Patent Application
20130325619
The present application relates to electronic coupons, and, more particularly, saving electronic coupons for future use.
Selling goods and services through websites on the Internet has become commonplace. Merchants operating websites that offer goods and services for sale often place advertisements on other websites (web portals) in order to inform potential customers about their offerings, and to direct users to web pages where purchases can be made.
A typical example is where a user is reading a news story or other content and an advertisement is displayed on the same webpage as the story. Sometimes the advertisements change, such that if the user failed to select the advertisement after a predetermined period of time, the advertisement rotates to a next advertisement in a queue, as there is an increased probability that the user is not interested in an unselected advertisement. Thus, there is some pressure on the user to select the advertisement within a limited period of time or otherwise lose the opportunity to do so. The advertisements typically have an associated Internet address or hyperlink and if the advertisement is selected, the currently displayed content is replaced with a different webpage downloaded from the Internet address. Thus, the news story that the user was reading was displaced and interrupted. As a result, the overall user experience reading web content containing advertisements can be disruptive and not relaxing.
The present application allows a coupon to be displayed and saved in a manner that it is usable at a later time. Coupons are typically displayed as pop-up windows or as a banner ad, and an option is provided to save the coupon.
In one embodiment, an advertising platform can embed metadata into a coupon such that the coupon can be saved together with other coupons for later use. The coupons can be associated with multiple different, and unrelated stores (e.g., Starbucks®, Macy's®, etc.). Additionally, the coupons can be stored together in a common coupon storage area, located locally or on a network.
In another embodiment, the coupons can have two separate selectable portions. A first portion can allow the user to download a webpage associated with the coupon to view additional information associated with the product or service offered for sale. A second portion can allow the user to save the coupon for later use without downloading the associated web page.
This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.
The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying figures.
The illustrated mobile device 500 can include a controller or processor 510 (e.g., signal processor, microprocessor, ASIC, or other control and processing logic circuitry) for performing such tasks as signal coding, data processing, input/output processing, power control, and/or other functions. An operating system 512 can control the allocation and usage of the components 502 and support for one or more application programs 514. The application programs can include common mobile computing applications (e.g., email applications, calendars, contact managers, web browsers, messaging applications), or any other computing application. A coupon retrieval application can also be provided to retrieve coupons from a coupon storage 515.
The illustrated mobile device 500 can include memory 520. Memory 520 can include non-removable memory 522 and/or removable memory 524. The non-removable memory 522 can include RAM, ROM, flash memory, a hard disk, or other well-known memory storage technologies. The removable memory 524 can include flash memory or a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card, which is well known in GSM communication systems, or other well-known memory storage technologies, such as “smart cards.” The memory 520 can be used for storing data and/or code for running the operating system 512 and the applications 514. Example data can include web pages, text, images, sound files, video data, or other data sets to be sent to and/or received from one or more network servers or other devices via one or more wired or wireless networks. The memory 520 can be used to store a subscriber identifier, such as an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), and an equipment identifier, such as an International Mobile Equipment Identifier (IMEI). Such identifiers can be transmitted to a network server to identify users and equipment. The memory can also be used for implementing the coupon storage 515.
The mobile device 500 can support one or more input devices 530, such as a touchscreen 532, microphone 534, camera 536, physical keyboard 538 and/or trackball 540 and one or more output devices 550, such as a speaker 552 and a display 554. Other possible output devices (not shown) can include piezoelectric or other haptic output devices. Some devices can serve more than one input/output function. For example, touchscreen 532 and display 554 can be combined in a single input/output device.
A wireless modem 560 can be coupled to an antenna (not shown) and can support two-way communications between the processor 510 and external devices, as is well understood in the art. The modem 560 is shown generically and can include a cellular modem for communicating with the mobile communication network 504 and/or other radio-based modems (e.g., Bluetooth or Wi-Fi). The wireless modem 560 is typically configured for communication with one or more cellular networks, such as a GSM network for data and voice communications within a single cellular network, between cellular networks, or between the mobile device and a public switched telephone network (PSTN).
The mobile device can further include at least one input/output port 580, a power supply 582, a satellite navigation system receiver 584, such as a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver, an accelerometer 586, and/or a physical connector 590, which can be a USB port, IEEE 1394 (FireWire) port, and/or RS-232 port. The illustrated components 502 are not required or all-inclusive, as any components can deleted and other components can be added.
In example environment 600, various types of services (e.g., computing services) are provided by a cloud 610. For example, the cloud 610 can comprise a collection of computing devices, which may be located centrally or distributed, that provide cloud-based services to various types of users and devices connected via a network such as the Internet. The implementation environment 600 can be used in different ways to accomplish computing tasks. For example, some tasks (e.g., processing user input and presenting a user interface) can be performed on local computing devices (e.g., connected devices 630, 640, 650) while other tasks (e.g., storage of data to be used in subsequent processing) can be performed in the cloud 610.
In example environment 600, the cloud 610 provides services for connected devices 630, 640, 650 with a variety of screen capabilities. Connected device 630 represents a device with a computer screen 635 (e.g., a mid-size screen). For example, connected device 630 could be a personal computer such as desktop computer, laptop, notebook, netbook, or the like. Connected device 640 represents a device with a mobile device screen 645 (e.g., a small size screen). For example, connected device 640 could be a mobile phone, smart phone, personal digital assistant, tablet computer, or the like. Connected device 650 represents a device with a large screen 655. For example, connected device 650 could be a television screen (e.g., a smart television) or another device connected to a television (e.g., a set-top box or gaming console) or the like. One or more of the connected devices 630, 640, 650 can include touchscreen capabilities. Touchscreens can accept input in different ways. For example, capacitive touchscreens detect touch input when an object (e.g., a fingertip or stylus) distorts or interrupts an electrical current running across the surface. As another example, touchscreens can use optical sensors to detect touch input when beams from the optical sensors are interrupted. Physical contact with the surface of the screen is not necessary for input to be detected by some touchscreens. Devices without screen capabilities also can be used in example environment 600. For example, the cloud 610 can provide services for one or more computers (e.g., server computers) without displays.
Services can be provided by the cloud 610 through service providers 620, or through other providers of online services (not depicted). For example, cloud services can be customized to the screen size, display capability, and/or touchscreen capability of a particular connected device (e.g., connected devices 630, 640, 650). A coupon storage 622 can be located in the cloud and accessible to any of the connected devices. Thus, multiple client devices can share the coupon storage for making purchases. Additionally, coupon applications on the connected devices 630, 640, 650 can access the coupon storage for retrieving, using and consuming the coupons.
In example environment 600, the cloud 610 provides the technologies and solutions described herein to the various connected devices 630, 640, 650 using, at least in part, the service providers 620. For example, the service providers 620 can provide a centralized solution for various cloud-based services. The service providers 620 can manage service subscriptions for users and/or devices (e.g., for the connected devices 630, 640, 650 and/or their respective users).
Although the operations of some of the disclosed methods are described in a particular, sequential order for convenient presentation, it should be understood that this manner of description encompasses rearrangement, unless a particular ordering is required by specific language set forth below. For example, operations described sequentially may in some cases be rearranged or performed concurrently. Moreover, for the sake of simplicity, the attached figures may not show the various ways in which the disclosed methods can be used in conjunction with other methods.
Any of the disclosed methods can be implemented as computer-executable instructions stored on one or more computer-readable storage media (e.g., non-transitory computer-readable media, such as one or more optical media discs, volatile memory components (such as DRAM or SRAM), or nonvolatile memory components (such as hard drives)) and executed on a computer (e.g., any commercially available computer, including smart phones or other mobile devices that include computing hardware). Any of the computer-executable instructions for implementing the disclosed techniques as well as any data created and used during implementation of the disclosed embodiments can be stored on one or more computer-readable media (e.g., non-transitory computer-readable media). The computer-executable instructions can be part of, for example, a dedicated software application or a software application that is accessed or downloaded via a web browser or other software application (such as a remote computing application). Such software can be executed, for example, on a single local computer (e.g., any suitable commercially available computer) or in a network environment (e.g., via the Internet, a wide-area network, a local-area network, a client-server network (such as a cloud computing network), or other such network) using one or more network computers.
For clarity, only certain selected aspects of the software-based implementations are described. Other details that are well known in the art are omitted. For example, it should be understood that the disclosed technology is not limited to any specific computer language or program. For instance, the disclosed technology can be implemented by software written in C++, Java, Perl, JavaScript, Adobe Flash, or any other suitable programming language. Likewise, the disclosed technology is not limited to any particular computer or type of hardware. Certain details of suitable computers and hardware are well known and need not be set forth in detail in this disclosure.
Furthermore, any of the software-based embodiments (comprising, for example, computer-executable instructions for causing a computer to perform any of the disclosed methods) can be uploaded, downloaded, or remotely accessed through a suitable communication means. Such suitable communication means include, for example, the Internet, the World Wide Web, an intranet, software applications, cable (including fiber optic cable), magnetic communications, electromagnetic communications (including RF, microwave, and infrared communications), electronic communications, or other such communication means.
The disclosed methods, apparatus, and systems should not be construed as limiting in any way. Instead, the present disclosure is directed toward all novel and nonobvious features and aspects of the various disclosed embodiments, alone and in various combinations and subcombinations with one another. The disclosed methods, apparatus, and systems are not limited to any specific aspect or feature or combination thereof, nor do the disclosed embodiments require that any one or more specific advantages be present or problems be solved.
In view of the many possible embodiments to which the principles of the disclosed invention may be applied, it should be recognized that the illustrated embodiments are only preferred examples of the invention and should not be taken as limiting the scope of the invention. Rather, the scope of the invention is defined by the following claims. We therefore claim as our invention all that comes within the scope of these claims.
