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`USOO7076443B1
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`(12)
`
`United States Patent
`Emens et al.
`
`(10) Patent No.:
`(45) Date of Patent:
`
`US 7,076.443 B1
`Jul. 11, 2006
`
`(*) Notice:
`
`(54) SYSTEM AND TECHNIQUE FOR
`AUTOMATICALLY ASSOCATING RELATED
`ADVERTISEMENTS TO INDIVIDUAL
`SEARCH RESULTS ITEMIS OF A SEARCH
`RESULT SET
`(75) Inventors: Michael L. Emens, San Jose, CA (US);
`Reiner Kraft, Gilroy, CA (US)
`(73) Assignee: International Business Machines
`Corporation, Armonk, NY (US)
`Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this
`patent is extended or adjusted under 35
`U.S.C. 154(b) by 1116 days.
`(21) Appl. No.: 09/583,516
`y x- - -
`9
`(22) Filed:
`May 31, 2000
`(51) Int. Cl.
`(2006.01)
`G06F 7/60
`(52) U.S. Cl. ............................ 705/14. 705/10,705/26
`705/27
`(58) Field of Classification Search .................... 70s
`705/10, 14, 26 2
`See application file for complete search history. s
`References Cited
`
`(56)
`
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`5,638.433 A * 6/1997 Bubien, Jr. et al. ......... 379,130
`6,098,065 A * 8/2000 Skillen et al.
`707/3
`6,119, 101 A
`9, 2000 Peckover ..................... 705/26
`6,212,545 B1 * 4/2001 Ohtani et al. ............... TO9,202
`6,249,863 B1* 6/2001 Redford et al. ................ T13/1
`6,269,361 B1* 7/2001 Davis et al. ................... 707/3
`6,392,668 B1* 5/2002 Murray ...........
`... 345.738
`6,401,075 B1* 6/2002 Mason et al. ................. TO5/14
`
`FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS
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`WO
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`k
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`.
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`* 8, 1998
`WO 98.36366
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`Dialog reference. File 16, 06806736. “Excite(a)Home
`Launches New Shopping Service for Holiday Shoppers' PR
`Newswire, pp4463, Nov. 15, 1999.
`cited by examiner
`Primary Examiner Raquel Alvarez
`(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm—Delio & Peterson; Leonard
`T. Guzman
`ABSTRACT
`(57)
`The resultant search result items from a search engine
`performing an Internet search are associated with similar or
`related advertisements. These associated advertisements,
`once acquired, may be viewed by a user on demand. An
`Internet user selects a query to Submit to a search engine. For
`each search result item available from the query, a matching
`search of related product advertisements is then performed.
`For each related product advertisement found for a given
`search result item, the search result item is then flagged. This
`process is repeated until each search result item has been
`investigated and matched to related product advertisements
`when applicable. The user then designates a selection. This
`selection initiates a search of an advertisement database.
`Each product advertisement acquired is then formatted and
`displayed to the user.
`The computer system capable of associating related adver
`tisements to individual search results items uses the follow
`ing Subsystems: 1) a product database; 2) a user/session
`manager; 3) a product matching manager; 4) a product
`listing manager; and, 5) a result presentation manager.
`
`35 Claims, 3 Drawing Sheets
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`engine
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`match any products?
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`Flag this abstract as having
`supporting products
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`U.S. Patent
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`Jul. 11, 2006
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`U.S. Patent
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`Jul. 11, 2006
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`U.S. Patent
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`1.
`SYSTEM AND TECHNIQUE FOR
`AUTOMATICALLY ASSOCATING RELATED
`ADVERTISEMENTS TO INDIVIDUAL
`SEARCH RESULTS ITEMIS OF A SEARCH
`RESULT SET
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
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`2
`tantly, unlike the current user profiling methods, all web site
`owners who provide search engine services will be able
`make use of the instant invention, independent of whether
`user profiling information can be obtained.
`Bearing in mind the problems and deficiencies of the prior
`art, it is therefore an object of the present invention to
`provide a method and apparatus for assimilating and dis
`playing Internet advertisements during an Internet search
`that can be displayed to the user on demand.
`It is another object of the present invention to provide a
`method and apparatus for assimilating and displaying Inter
`net advertisements that do not rely on user profiling during
`an Internet search to individual users.
`A further object of the invention is to provide a more
`accurate distribution of advertisements to a selected target
`audience or user during an Internet search for each user
`request.
`Still other advantages of the invention will in part be
`obvious and will in part be apparent from the specification.
`
`SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
`
`The above and other objects and advantages, which will
`be apparent to one of skill in the art, are achieved in the
`present invention which is directed to, in a first aspect, a
`method for targeting advertising based upon an information
`repository search by a user, comprising associating an
`advertisement with a result from the information repository
`search. This method further comprises providing the adver
`tisement on demand by the user. The information repository
`may be associated with a server. The associating step of this
`method further comprises: analyzing the search result to
`produce at least one keyword; using the keyword to search
`for the associated advertisement within the repository; iden
`tifying the associated advertisement from the repository
`having a word that matches the keyword as related to the
`search result; and, correlating the associated advertisement
`with the search result.
`In a second aspect, the instant invention is directed to a
`method for targeting related advertisements to individual
`search result items from a search of an information reposi
`tory, comprising: matching the individual search result items
`to the related advertisements; and, designating those of the
`individual search result items matched to the related adver
`tisements for subsequent selection by a user. The method of
`this second aspect further comprises first Submitting a query
`to the information repository and obtaining the individual
`search result items. The designation of the individual search
`result items further comprises displaying a graphical user
`interface to the user.
`Additionally, this method may store the related advertise
`ments using a URL as an identifier for each of the individual
`search result items.
`In a third aspect, the instant invention is directed to a
`method for providing related advertisements for search
`result items from a search of an information repository,
`comprising: matching the search result items to the related
`advertisements; designating each of the search result items
`that have the related advertisements matched therewith:
`providing a corresponding graphical user interface for each
`of the search result items so designated for Subsequent user
`selection; searching and retrieving the related advertise
`ments for one of the search result items when the corre
`sponding graphical user interface is selected by a user, and,
`formatting and displaying the related advertisements upon
`selection.
`
`1. Field of the Invention
`This invention relates to the field of Internet Search
`Engine Technology, specifically, the arena of e-commerce
`solutions. More Specifically, this invention relates to e-com
`merce solutions that include target advertising.
`2. Description of Related Art
`With the accelerated growth of the Internet and its asso
`ciated e-commerce activities, advertising over the Internet
`has become increasingly more acceptable to Internet users.
`Typically, this advertising is accomplished using so-called
`“banner ads', which are placed on popular web sites. Web
`sites having a high page view rate may reach millions of
`viewers in a relatively short amount of time.
`However, relying on banner ads has inherent drawbacks.
`First, advertisements are made available to the users whether
`or not these ads have been specifically solicited. Second,
`banner ads rely on user profiling, which is burdensome to
`employ. Third, web site owners who are not technically
`savvy, or without available resources, can not easily acquire
`user profiling information.
`Marketing people are continuously trying to focus and
`target specific banner ads to a specific audience. Preferably,
`this specific audience would include those Internet users
`who would most likely be interested in, and make use of the
`advertised product. The current e-commerce approach to
`Internet advertising has been to display pre-selected adver
`tisements for a general audience or for a target audience
`based on user profiling. Prior art methods have concentrated
`on assimilating information from user profiles collected
`from each Internet user. These user profiles are used to
`determine the appropriate advertisement banner(s) to dis
`play. For example, user profiles may contain the information
`that a particular user is interested in automobiles, particu
`larly in purchasing an automobile. When this Internet user
`visits various web sites, the user's profile information may
`be retrieved and advertisement banner ads about automo
`biles or related products may be instantly displayed.
`This approach provides several challenges. First, the user
`profiles need to be collected and built, which has proven to
`be cumbersome work. Second, the information in these user
`profiles will inevitably change when the interests of a user
`changes. In the aforementioned example, a user may be no
`longer interested in buying an automobile simply because he
`or she has just purchased one. Thus, it is important, yet
`extremely difficult to ensure these profiles remain current.
`Moreover, it is also difficult to identify a specific user, i.e.,
`a user interested in purchasing automobiles, and associate
`the correct advertisement profile to the user. Many efforts
`within Internet search engine technology are being under
`taken to enhance the selection of targeted advertisements
`based on user profiles, however, the challenges and limita
`tions of Such approaches indicate a need for a different
`method of ascertaining user information, and associating the
`appropriate corresponding advertisements to certain users.
`The instant invention provides a new method and appa
`ratus for associating search result items with similar or
`related advertisements. It is anticipated that the implemen
`tation of this methodology will establish a new avenue for
`generating revenue from Internet advertisements. Impor
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`In a fourth aspect, the instant invention is directed to a
`program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly
`embodying a program of instructions executable by the
`machine to perform the method steps for targeting advertis
`ing based upon an information repository search by a user,
`comprising associating an advertisement with a search result
`from the information repository search. This device further
`comprises performing the step of providing the advertise
`ment on demand by the user.
`The associating step of this program Storage device fur
`ther comprises: analyzing the search result to produce at
`least one keyword; using the keyword to search for the
`associated advertisement within the repository; identifying
`the associated advertisement from the repository having a
`word that matches the keyword as related to the search
`result; and, correlating the associated advertisement with the
`search result. Additionally, the device displays along with
`the search result, a user-selectable icon containing a link to
`the associated advertisement.
`In a fifth aspect, the instant invention is directed to a
`program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly
`embodying a program of instructions executable by the
`machine to perform the method steps for targeting related
`advertisements to individual search result items from a
`search of an information repository, the method steps com
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`prising: matching the individual search result items to the
`related advertisements; and, designating those of the indi
`vidual search result items matched to the related advertise
`ments for Subsequent selection by a user.
`In a sixth aspect, the instant invention is directed to
`program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly
`embodying a program of instructions executable by the
`machine to perform the method steps for providing related
`advertisements for search result items from a search of an
`information repository, comprising: matching the search
`result items to the related advertisements; designating each
`of the search result items that have the related advertise
`ments matched therewith; providing a corresponding graphi
`cal user interface for each of the search result items so
`designated for Subsequent user selection; searching and
`retrieving the related advertisements for one of the search
`result items when the corresponding graphical user interface
`is selected by a user, and, formatting and displaying the
`related advertisements upon selection.
`In a seventh aspect, the instant invention is directed to a
`system for providing related advertisements for search result
`items from a search of an information repository, compris
`ing: a user/session manager adapted to maintain and track
`user sessions, user queries, and advertisement requests; a
`product database adapted to provide storage and retrieval for
`the related advertisements; a product matching manager
`adapted to analyze the search result items and match the
`related advertisements corresponding to each of the search
`result items; a request server adapted to display results from
`the search and to display the related advertisements from the
`product matching manager, and, a product presentation
`manager adapted to reference and retrieve the related adver
`tisements that correspond to each of the search result items,
`in the product database, and to formulate the related adver
`tisements into a list, and pass the list to the request server.
`In an eighth aspect, the instant invention is directed to a
`computer program product for providing related advertise
`ments for search result items from a search of an information
`repository, comprising: a computer readable program code
`for causing a computer to effect maintaining and tracking
`user sessions, user queries, and advertisement requests; a
`computer readable program code for causing a computer to
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`effect providing storage and retrieval of the related adver
`tisements; a computer readable program code for causing a
`computer to effect analyzing the search result items and
`matching the related advertisements corresponding to each
`of the search result items; a computer readable program code
`for causing a computer to effect displaying results from the
`search and displaying the related advertisements; and, a
`computer readable program code for causing a computer to
`effect referencing and retrieving the related advertisements
`corresponding to each of the search result items, formulating
`the related advertisements into a list, and presenting the list
`to a user.
`In a ninth aspect, the instant invention is directed to a
`computer program product for selecting related advertise
`ments for search result items from a search of an information
`repository, comprising a computer readable program code
`for: causing a computer to effect matching the search result
`items to the related advertisements; a computer readable
`program code for causing a computer to effect designating
`each of the search result items that have the related adver
`tisements matched therewith; a computer readable program
`code for causing a computer to effect providing a corre
`sponding graphical user interface for each of the search
`result items so designated for Subsequent selection by a user;
`a computer readable program code for causing a computer to
`effect searching and retrieving the related advertisements for
`one of the search result items when the corresponding
`graphical user interface is selected by the user; and, a
`computer readable program code for causing a computer to
`effect formatting and displaying the related advertisements
`upon selection.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`
`The features of the invention believed to be novel and the
`elements characteristic of the invention are set forth with
`particularity in the appended claims. The figures are for
`illustration purposes only and are not drawn to scale. The
`invention itself, however, both as to organization and
`method of operation, may best be understood by reference to
`the detailed description which follows taken in conjunction
`with the accompanying drawings in which:
`FIG. 1 is a flowchart representing the methodology for
`matching search result items to corresponding Internet
`advertised products.
`FIG. 2 is a flowchart for displaying and searching on the
`matched items of FIG. 1.
`FIG. 3 is a diagram of the system architecture illustrating
`the various subsystems of the invention.
`
`DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED
`EMBODIMENT(S)
`The method of the instant invention follows an approach
`uniquely different from the e-commerce method of user
`profiling. Instead of using user profiles to target advertise
`ment, the resultant search result items from a search engine
`performing an Internet search are utilized. These search
`result items are associated with similar or related advertise
`ments. Importantly, once these associated advertisements
`are acquired, they may be viewed by the user on demand.
`For example, if a software developer is searching for a
`specific piece of software code, a query will be entered to
`initiate a search on an Internet search engine, e.g., yahoo
`.com or .ibm.com/java. The search engine then returns a
`specific search result set showing items which may contain
`the sought after information. For each search result item, a
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`matching manager; 4) a product listing manager; and, 5) a
`result presentation manager. FIG. 3 is a diagram of the
`system architecture illustrating these various Subsystems of
`the invention.
`Depending upon which search is being performed, i.e., a
`general user query or a Subsequent search of product adver
`tisements based on the search result items from the general
`query, these Subsystems will take on multiple functions.
`Thus, the preferred function of each subsystem is divided
`depending upon the types of searches or passes performed.
`Query, Product Matching, and Results Presentation Pass
`Referring to FIG. 3, the product database 110 provides
`storage for a list of potential product advertisements. The
`type of information pertaining to these products may be in
`the form of images, such as hyperlinks or full HTML pages,
`and the like. It is not necessary to dictate the details of this
`database, provided accessible images can be acquired. The
`primary purpose of product database 110 is provide a
`repository for potentially matching product advertisements
`for the search results.
`The user/session manager Subsystem 120 is responsible
`for maintaining and tracking user sessions, user queries, and
`product advertisement requests. Each user performing a
`query is assigned a user session identifier. This session
`identifier is used to associate user queries to search result
`items selections, i.e., product selections. When a user ini
`tially submits a query, a normal Internet search 90 is
`performed. The query is forwarded to the user/session
`manager subsystem 120 which then forwards it on to search
`engine 130. The search engine 130 performs an Internet
`search and produces a search results set. The search results
`set is then forwarded 97 to the product matching manager
`140.
`The product matching manager 140 takes the search
`engine results set and attempts to match at least one product
`to each of the search result items. This is accomplished, in
`part, through communication with the product database 110.
`For example, if the search had yielded twenty five (25) in the
`results set, the product matching manager 140 would, for
`each of those twenty five search result items, try to match at
`least one of the products found in the product database 110
`to the individual search result item. Additionally, a storage
`and retrieval component, or caching component, may be
`used to expedite the matching process. The caching com
`ponent may be part of the product matching manager 140, or
`a separate Subsystem. This additional caching component
`stores frequent advertising queries, using the URL of the
`search result item as a unique key identifier. For each match
`found, the product matching manager 140 then flags the
`corresponding search result item. This flag is used by the
`request server 160, also referred to as the results presentation
`manager, to display a graphical user interface designator,
`which may simply be a product icon. Since performance of
`the implementation is time sensitive, the complete product
`list is not associated with each search result item at this time.
`The caching component may be adapted to yield a TRUE or
`FALSE designation to the user depending on whether related
`advertisements exist for the URL of a particular search result
`item. Every result for an advertisement is stored in the
`caching component. Advertising queries issued from the
`product matching manager 140 perform a first inquiry in the
`caching component database, and then a full advertising
`query if no information is found in the caching component
`database for the particular search result item.
`Alternatively, the product matching manager 140 may be
`adapted to perform an off-line batch process for each search
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`graphical user interface (GUI) selection is presented, allow
`ing the user to select the GUI, on demand if so desired, to
`investigate related advertisements. Selecting the GUI will
`initiate a search in the search engine's advertisement data
`base using the associated search result item as the basis for
`this second search. In the instant example, the second search
`would be based on the search result item of a related piece
`of software code. Selecting the GUI will invoke the adver
`tisement search and return a set of banner ads, in this case
`showing advertisements for software developers.
`The invention’s philosophy relies on the principle that
`users who are performing a search query have a special
`interest in finding a particular piece of information. From
`this one may deduce that if a user is interested in a specific
`piece of information, he or she may be interested in related
`or similar advertisements. Consequently, unlike the prior art
`methods of selecting and displaying banner ads predicated
`on user profiles, these profiles need not be relied upon.
`Instead the initial search results themselves are utilized.
`These search results provide a more narrowly defined basis
`for selecting target advertisements for each user.
`FIGS. 1 and 2 are flowcharts illustrating the preferred
`method for automatically associating related advertisements
`to individual search result items from a search result set. The
`search is to an information repository generally, and more
`specifically, to a server or wide area network. FIG. 1
`represents the methodology flow for matching search result
`items, such as abstracts, and the like, to corresponding
`advertised products in an information repository. First, an
`information repository user selects a query 10 to Submit to
`a search engine. For an Internet search, this search engine
`may be one of many existing types, such as yahoo.com,
`ibm.com/java, and the like. If search result items are avail
`able from this query 20, then for each search result item 30,
`the method requires a match search 40 of related products.
`If related products are found for a given search result item
`in the match search 40, the search result item or abstract is
`then flagged 50, generally by utilizing a graphical user
`interface selection designator. The next search result item is
`then investigated 55 for related products. This process is
`repeated until each search result item has been investigated
`and matched to related product advertisements when appli
`cable.
`FIG. 2 represents the program flow for displaying the
`flagged search result items, and searching for and retrieving
`related advertisements. First, the user designates a selection
`60. This can be either one of two designations: a) the search
`result item may be selected for further investigation 62; or,
`b) a graphical user interface or product icon may be selected
`to acquire information on related advertised products 69. If
`the search result item is searched 62, the user's selection of
`the search result items hyperlink will lead the user to the
`desired items information 65. The search result items
`information will then be displayed 67. If, however, the user
`desires related product information associated with each
`search result item having been flagged with corresponding
`related product advertisements, the user selects 69 one of the
`graphical user interfaces (flags) or product icons. This
`selection initiates a search 70 of an advertisement database.
`Each product advertisement acquired and assimilated with
`the designated search result item, is then formatted 75 and
`displayed 80 to the user. This gives the user the opportunity
`to review, at her sole discretion, related product advertise
`ments for specifically selected search result items.
`To achieve the described functionality above, the archi
`tecture of the system comprises the following Subsystems: 1)
`a product database; 2) a user/session manager; 3) a product
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`result item in the search engine repository. The product
`database 110 and the search engine repository are synchro
`nized for this alternative approach. For example, for any
`new product advertisements, the product matching manager
`140 would update the cache.
`If a search result item can be associated with at least one
`related product, then this search result item is flagged. This
`ensures that when looking for related products, a user can
`not select a flag which could then lead to an empty product
`list.
`The request server 160 then builds a results page which
`contains the search result items, and if the search result item
`was flagged as a having a product match, a product icon or
`graphical user interface designator is also displayed for
`Subsequent user selection. The search result items and
`associated product icons are then displayed 98 to the
`browser 100.
`Product Selection and Product Presentation Pass
`The request server 160 displays the results that the user
`will receive from the query, product matching, and results
`presentation pass. The user may either select from the search
`result set as before, or select a product icon corresponding
`to each search result item having at least one product
`advertisement associated with it in the search result set. If
`the user selects a search result item (not the product icon),
`he or she is ultimately shown the information pertaining to
`that item. However, if the user requests a product 95 by
`selecting the product icon, the user/session manager 120
`routes the product request 95 to the product presentation or
`product listing manager 150.
`The product presentation manager 150 then references the
`products in the Product Database 110. Products which match
`this search result item are then formulated into one list and
`passed to the request server or results presentation manager
`160.
`The result presentation manager 160 builds a results page
`which now contains the initial single search result item
`along with a list of products from which the user may select
`on demand. This results page is sent 99 to the browser 100
`to display the selected search result item with its correspond
`ing products. The format of this results page can be anything
`from a text based match list or a full graphical, and which
`includes HTML and/or graphics which illustrate this product
`along with corresponding hyperlinks to each of the third
`party products.
`Thus, the implementation of the instant invention pro
`vides several significant advantages over the prior art tech
`niques. First, advertisements are selected independent of
`user profiling techniques. Second, these advertisements can
`now be provided on the user's demand. Third, the instant
`invention facilitates a better distribution of advertisements to
`a more narrowly focused group of users, those user who
`have a more direct interest in the advertised products.
`The present invention is described herein in the context of
`55
`an Internet application merely as a specific example, and is
`not meant to limit its applicability to Internet technology.
`Those skilled in the art will understand that the invention is
`broadly applicable to any method in which it is desirable to
`associate an advertisement with a result from an information
`repository search.
`While the present invention has been particularly
`described, in conjunction with a specific preferred embodi
`ment, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications and
`variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art in light
`of the foregoing description. It is therefore contemplated that
`the appended claims will embrace any such alternatives,
`
`8
`modifications and variations as falling within the true scope
`and spirit of the present invention.
`Thus, having described the invention, what is claimed is:
`The invention claimed is:
`1. A method of targeting at least one associated adver
`tisement from an Internet search having access to an infor
`mation repository by a user, comprising:
`identifying at least one search result item from a search
`result of said Internet search by said user;
`searching for said at least one associated advertisement
`within said repository using said at least one search
`result item;
`identifying said at least one associated advertisement
`from said repository having at least one word that
`matches said at least one search result item; and
`correlating said at least one associated advertisement with
`said at least one search result item.
`2. The method of claim 1 further comprising providing
`said at least one associated advertisement on demand by said
`USC.
`3. The method of claim 1 wherein said information
`repository is associated with an Internet server.
`4. The method of claim 1 further comprising displaying
`along with said at least one search result item a user
`selectable icon containing a link to said at least one asso
`ciated advertisement.
`5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
`designating said at least one search result item matched to
`said at least one associated advertisement for Subse
`quent selection by a user.
`6. The method of claim 5 further comprising first sub
`mitting a query to said information repository and obtaining
`said at least one search result item.
`7. The method of claim 5 wherein designating said at least
`one search result item further comprises displaying a graphi
`cal user interface to said user.
`8. The method of claim 7 wherein said graphical user
`interface comprises a product icon.
`9. The method of claim 5 wherein said at least one
`associated advertisement comprises at least one related
`product advertisement.
`10. The method of claim 5 further comprising assigning a
`user identifier prior to matching said at least one search
`result item to said at least one associated advertisement.
`11. The method of claim 5 further comprising formatting
`said at least one associated advertisement matched with said
`at least one search result item so designated, prior to
`displaying said