(12) INTERNATIONAL APPLICATION PUBLISHED UNDER THE PATENT COOPERATION TREATY (PCT)
`
`(19) World Intellectual Property Organization
`International Bureau
`
`I IIIII IIIIIIII II IIIIII IIIII IIII I II Ill lllll lllll lllll lllll llll 1111111111111111111
`
`(43) International Publication Date
`21 December 2000 (21.12.2000)
`
`PCT
`
`(10) International Publication Number
`WO 00/77978 A2
`
`(51) International Patent Classification 7:
`
`H04L 12/00
`
`(21) International Application Number: PCT/US00/16467
`
`(22) International Filing Date:
`
`13 June 2000 (13.06.2000)
`
`(25) Filing Language:
`
`(26) Publication Language:
`
`English
`
`English
`
`(30) Priority Data:
`60/138,995
`09/387,860
`
`14 June 1999 (14.06.1999) US
`1 September 1999 (01.09.1999) US
`
`(71) Applicant: GEOWORKS CORPORATION [US/US];
`960 Atlantic Avenue, Alameda, CA 94501 (US).
`
`(72) Inventors: BOYLE, Charles; Geoworks Corporation,
`960 Atlantic Avenue, Alameda, CA 94501 (US). TOKU(cid:173)
`NAGA, David; Geoworks Corporation, 960 Atlantic
`Avenue, Alameda, CA 94501 (US). FONTE, John; Ge(cid:173)
`oworks Corporation, 960 Atlantic Avenue, Alameda, CA
`
`iiiiiiiiiiiiiii
`
`iiiiiiiiiiiiiii
`iiiiiiiiiiiiiii
`iiiiiiiiiiiiiii
`
`94501 (US). DE BOOR, Adam; Geoworks Corporation,
`960 Atlantic Avenue, Alameda, CA 94501 (US).
`
`(74) Agent: SEREBOFF, Steven; Arter & Hadden LLP, Suite
`1000, 5 Park Plaza, Irvine, CA 92614-8528 (US).
`
`(81) Designated States (national): AE, AG, AL, AM, AT, AU,
`AZ, BA, BB, BG, BR, BY, CA, CH, CN, CR, CU, CZ, DE,
`DK, DM, DZ, EE, ES, Fl, GB, GD, GE, GH, GM, HR, HU,
`ID, IL, IN, IS, JP, KE, KG, KP, KR, KZ, LC, LK, LR, LS,
`LT, LU, LV, MA, MD, MG, MK, MN, MW, MX, MZ, NO,
`NZ, PL, PT, RO, RU, SD, SE, SG, SI, SK, SL, TJ, TM, TR,
`TT, TZ, UA, UG, UZ, VN, YU, ZA, ZW.
`
`(84) Designated States (regional): ARIPO patent (GH, GM,
`KE, LS, MW, MZ, SD, SL, SZ, TZ, UG, ZW), Eurasian
`patent (AM, AZ, BY, KG, KZ, MD, RU, TJ, TM), European
`patent (AT, BE, CH, CY, DE, DK, ES, Fl, FR, GB, GR, IE,
`IT, LU, MC, NL, PT, SE), OAPI patent (BF, BJ, CF, CG,
`Cl, CM, GA, GN, GW, ML, MR, NE, SN, TD, TG).
`
`Published:
`Without international search report and to be republished
`upon receipt of that report.
`
`[Continued on next page]
`
`!!!!!!!!!!!! -==
`iiiiiiiiiiiiiii -~
`==-----------------------------------------'-
`
`(54) Title: METHOD FOR ADVERTISERS TO PROVISION ADVERTISEMENTS SENT TO MOBILE WIRELESS DISPLAY
`DEVICES
`
`----iiiiiiiiiiiiiii
`iiiiiiiiiiiiiii -iiiiiiiiiiiiiii
`
`iiiiiiiiiiiiiii
`
`iiiiiiiiiiiiiii
`
`~
`
`120
`
`ie - - -1 Data Access Network
`
`Profile
`Configuration
`Pages
`
`Ads with
`Addresses
`
`Local Device
`
`Adswi1h
`Addresses
`
`102
`
`0
`
`140
`
`Gateway
`
`Ad Server
`
`~
`t'""(cid:173)
`Q°'\
`t'""(cid:173)
`t'""-
`-....
`g (57) Abstract: An advertiser can provision advertisements for receipt on subscribers' mobile wireless display devices. In accordance
`0 characterization of the subscribers. Furthermore, the advertisers can select the days and times for delivery of their content, and the
`> number of times that a subscriber should receive their advertisement in a unit time period. Accordingly, the advertiser is provided
`
`with the invention, the advertiser may identify desired recipients for its advertisements based upon demographic and geographic
`
`;;-,,- with the power to precisely target advertising to mobile wireless display devices.
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0001
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978 A2
`
`I IIIII IIIIIIII II 1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
`
`For two-letter codes and other abbreviations, refer to the "Guid(cid:173)
`ance Notes on Codes and Abbreviations" appearing at the begin(cid:173)
`ning of each regular issue of the PCT Gazette.
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0002
`
`

`

`W000/77978
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`Method for Advertisers to Provision Advertisements
`Sent to Mobile Wireless Display Devices
`
`NOTICE OF COPYRIGHTS AND TRADE DRESS
`
`A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is
`
`5
`
`subject to copyright protection. This patent document may show and/or describe
`
`matter that is or may become trade dress of the owner. The copyright and trade
`
`dress owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by any one of the patent
`
`disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records,
`
`but otherwise reserves all copyright and trade dress rights whatsoever.
`
`10 RELATED APPLICATION INFORMATION
`
`This application is related to Application No. 09/057,394, entitled "Wireless
`
`Communication Device With Markup Language Based Man-Machine Interface,"
`
`and filed on April 8, 1998 by Adam de Boor and Michael D. Eggers, assigned to the
`
`same assignee as the present application, which application is incorporated herein by
`
`15
`
`reference.
`
`This application is related to Application No. 09/075,405 entitled "Integrated
`
`Advertising for Wireless Communication Devices With Rich Content and Direct
`
`User Response Mechanism," and filed on May 8, 1998 by Adam de Boor and
`
`Michael D. Eggers, assigned to the same assignee as the present application, which
`
`20
`
`application is incorporated herein by reference.
`
`This application
`
`is
`
`related
`
`to Application No. 60/138,994 entitled
`
`"Subscriber Control of Advertisements Received on a Mobile Wireless Display
`
`Device," and filed on June 14, 1999 by Charles Boyle, David Tokunaga, John Fonte,
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0003
`
`

`

`W000/77978
`
`PCT /US00/16467
`
`and Adam de Boor, assigned to the same assignee as the present application, which
`
`application is incorporated herein by reference.
`
`This application is a continuation-in-part of Application No. 60/138,995
`
`entitled "Provisioning by Advertisers of Advertisements Sent to Mobile Wireless
`
`5 Display Devices," and filed on June 14, 1999 by Charles Boyle, David Tokunaga,
`
`John Fonte, and Adam de Boor, assigned to the same assignee as the present
`
`application, which application is incorporated herein by reference.
`
`This application is related to an application entitled "Method of Subscriber
`
`Self-Selection of Advertisements Received on Their Mobile Wireless Display
`
`10 Devices," and filed on August 31, 1999 by Charles Boyle, David Tokunaga, John
`
`Fonte, and Adam de Boor, assigned to the same assignee as the present application,
`
`which application is incorporated herein by reference.
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0004
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`3
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`
`PCT /US00/16467
`
`1.
`
`Field Of The Invention
`
`The present invention relates to user control of advertisements received on a
`
`mobile wireless display device.
`
`5
`
`2.
`
`Description Of Related Art
`
`Wireless communication devices are becoming increasingly prevalent for
`
`personal communication needs. These devices include, for example, cellular
`
`telephones, alphanumeric pagers, "palmtop" computers and personal information
`
`managers (PIMs ), and other small, primarily handheld communication and
`
`1 O
`
`computing devices. Wireless communication devices have matured considerably in
`
`their features, and now support not only basic point-to-point communication
`
`functions like telephone calling, but more advanced communications functions, such
`
`as electronic mail, facsimile receipt and transmission, Internet access and Web
`
`browsing and the like.
`
`15
`
`A subset of wireless communications devices can be considered "mobile
`
`wireless display devices." These devices are able to receive transmissions from a
`
`wireless service provider, and further include an alphanumeric display which can
`
`display at least 12 characters. Mobile wireless display devices include smart phones,
`
`alphanumeric pagers, and mobile phones having multiline displays, including many
`
`20
`
`cellular, PCS and satellite phones. It has also become common for PDAs and other
`
`mobile information devices to include interfaces for wireless communication
`
`reception and sometimes even transmission. Not only have small devices such as
`
`PDAs been given more features, larger devices have shrunk. Thus, portable PCs,
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0005
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`b k
`such as note oo
`
`computers,
`
`.
`~l
`.
`h avmg wire ess receivers and transceivers are
`
`
`
`available. These, too, are mobile wireless display devices.
`
`One of the current problems facing wireless service operators providing
`
`cellular services on wireless communication devices is the delivery of electronic
`
`5
`
`advertising. Service operators desire to provide advertising directly on the wireless
`
`communication device, as a way of garnering additional revenue or reaching
`
`additional subscribers by allowing the service operator to charge the subscriber less,
`
`making up the difference with advertising revenue.
`
`Mobile wireless communications devices, however, are usually considered to
`
`1 O
`
`be very personal devices; subscribers are very sensitive about what is delivered to
`
`their devices. Current advertising systems are fairly heavy-handed, and do not
`
`include an element of self-selection in how they choose which advertisement to
`
`provide in an advertising slot. Rather, they rely on coarse and inaccurate
`
`mechanisms.
`
`For example, service providers run the risk of delivering an
`
`15
`
`advertisement for a competitor - potentially leading a subscriber to switch to a
`
`different service provider. Furthermore, subscribers who are bombarded with
`
`unwanted advertisements will either learn to disregard all ads, or will reduce their
`
`use of the mobile wireless display device.
`
`One of the current problems facing service operators providing cellular
`
`20
`
`services on wireless communication devices is the delivery of electronic advertising.
`
`Service operators desire
`
`to provide advertising directly on
`
`the wireless
`
`communication device, but the software architecture of conventional wireless
`
`communication devices does not accommodate
`
`the direct
`
`integration of
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0006
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`5
`advertisements into the user interface or the ability for the subscriber to directly
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`respond to an advertisement.
`
`For example, one current method of electronic advertising is via a paging
`
`service built into
`
`the messaging service operator's GSM cellular network.
`
`5 Customers receive a "page" on their wireless communication device, the page being
`
`a text message that contains the promotion and instructions for reaching a customer
`
`service center to change to a new rate or service plan.
`
`This method has a number of limitations. First, subscribers generally have a
`
`low tolerance for advertising, but they like it even less when it interferes with their
`
`10
`
`use of their equipment. To be acceptable, advertisements must be displayed only
`
`when the subscriber is not actively using the wireless communication device to
`
`accomplish a task.
`
`However, in the paging method the advertisements are very intrusive to the
`
`subscriber. The messages are delivered to the subscriber's "in box" along with all
`
`15
`
`other paging messages.
`
`The subscriber must read through and delete the
`
`advertisements in order to get to an important personal message. Undeleted
`
`advertisements can "clog" the inbox (which can only hold a fixed number of
`
`messages) preventing the delivery of important messages to the subscriber.
`
`Second, the paging advertisements do not contain "rich~' content. These
`
`20
`
`advertisements are subject to all the restrictions of the Short Messaging Service
`
`(SMS), particularly a single font, no graphics, and no character styles such as
`
`boldface or italic. It is nearly impossible to make such advertisements visually
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0007
`
`

`

`W000/77978
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`appealing or eye-catching. This limitation reduces the value of the advertisements to
`
`potential advertisers.
`
`Third, it is important to enable a subscriber to respond immediately to an
`
`advertisement in order to "sign up on the spot," for the simple reason that he may
`
`5
`
`lose interest while waiting for additional information to be downloaded to the
`
`wireless communication device. A variety of back-channels are important, since
`
`some advertisers will prefer to connect a potential customer directly to a sales agent,
`
`while others would rather have an automated system that can log the request and
`
`automatically start the service.
`
`(The latter is likely the case for information
`
`10
`
`services.)
`
`However, the paging method has a very limited and primitive response
`
`mechanism. All that the advertisement can do is supply a telephone number that the
`
`subscriber must manually dial, or supply other instructions to be followed by the
`
`subscriber at his initiative. Further, because the subscriber must initiate and make
`
`15
`
`the telephone call, the subscriber is responsible for explaining the purpose of the call
`
`and acquiring the advertised service. The customer service center receives no
`
`information other than that provided by the subscriber.
`
`A related type of electronic advertising is found on the World Wide Web.
`
`Most commercial pages on the World Wide Web contain a small "banner"
`
`20
`
`advertisement at the top to generate additional income to the content provider. Web
`
`banner advertisements are typically animated images that transfer the user to another
`
`Web site when clicked upon with the mouse. This approach is inadequate for
`
`wireless communication devices for a number of reasons.
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0008
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`1
`Web banner advertisements of this type are too expensive to transmit via data
`
`PCT /US00/16467
`
`channels on cellular networks. Web banner advertisements are typically large
`
`animated graphic images, and data transmission over cellular networks is either
`
`expensive (involving making a data phone call, which results in the normal air-time
`
`5
`
`charges) or slow (SMS is inexpensive, but each message can only transmit 140
`
`octets characters of information).
`
`Second, the size of the screen display on a typical wireless communication
`
`device is too small for a Web banner advertisement and other content to fit on a
`
`single screen. With graphical screens on wireless communication devices being
`
`10
`
`generally 25x3 7 mm, there is insufficient area to incorporate advertising with normal
`
`screen content of the user interface of the device.
`
`Third, conventional Web banner advertisements also have a very limited
`
`response mechanism. Conventional Web banner advertisements merely transfer the
`
`user to a special advertising page hosted by a provider of the advertisement. This
`
`15
`
`system is not useful for wireless communication devices because of the inherent
`
`latency and low bandwidth of the transmission medium. It is impractical to force the
`
`subscriber to wait for up to half a minute for an advertising page to be downloaded.
`
`In addition, conventional banner advertisements generally do not collect enough
`
`information to form a complete transaction.
`
`20
`
`Related to banner advertisements are screen-saver based advertisements
`
`found on desktop computers.
`
`In this approach, a screen saver can display
`
`advertising while the computer is idle. Screen saver advertisements are very similar
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0009
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`IC
`to Web banner advertisements, and suffer from exactly the same problems when
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`applied to wireless communication devices.
`
`Current advertising systems do not include an element of self-selection in
`
`how they choose which advertisement to provide in an advertising slot. They
`
`5
`
`generally fall into three types: billboard, channel, and personalized. In the billboard
`
`system, whoever bought the slot gets their advertisement there.
`
`In the channel
`
`system, an advertisement appropriate to the demographic associated with the content
`
`around the advertising slot (e.g. TV show, magazine, web page) is chosen. In the
`
`personalized system, the system infers interest on the basis of ongoing, personal
`
`1 O monitoring of the viewer's behavior ( topic searches, subscriptions, email,
`
`travel/location) or
`
`subscriber-entered demographic data, and delivers an
`
`advertisement based on that inference. Although all three types provide some
`
`measure of targeting, none is adequate to solve the needs of wireless service
`
`providers.
`
`15
`
`Advertisers find it desirable to target advertisements to relevant potential
`
`customers. For example, an advertiser of motor oil would prefer to target car owners
`
`with its advertising. A Boston restaurant would prefer to target residents of Boston
`
`and business travelers rather than children living in San Francisco. Moreover,
`
`advertisers prefer to pay for advertising based upon the number of relevant
`
`20
`
`consumers who are actually exposed to the advertisement. For typical advertising
`
`media, it is often difficult for an advertiser to precisely determine whether its
`
`advertisements were actually viewed by a subscriber and for how long, and whether
`
`the advertisement induced a response. Accordingly, there exists a need for a
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0010
`
`

`

`W000/77978
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`targeted advertisement system that also can provide information as
`
`to
`
`the
`
`characteristics of those who were exposed to each advertisement, for how long the
`
`subscriber was exposed, and at what times.
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0011
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`/0
`SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`In accordance with the present invention, an advertiser can provision
`
`advertisements for receipt on subscribers' mobile wireless display devices.
`
`In
`
`accordance with the invention, the advertiser may identify desired recipients for its
`
`5
`
`advertisements based upon demographic and geographic characterization (fixed
`
`address as well as their current location, and whether they are in motion) of the
`
`subscribers. Furthermore, the advertisers can select the days and times for delivery
`
`of their content, and the number of times that a subscriber should receive their
`
`advertisement in a unit time period. Accordingly, the advertiser is provided with the
`
`10
`
`power to precisely target advertising to mobile wireless display devices.
`
`Still further objects and advantages attaching to the system and to its use and
`
`operation will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following particular
`
`description.
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0012
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`JI
`DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`
`PCT /US00/16467
`
`Further objects of this
`
`invention,
`
`together with additional features
`
`contributing thereto and advantages accruing therefrom, will be apparent from the
`
`following description of a preferred embodiment of the present invention which is
`
`5
`
`shown in the accompanying drawings with like reference numerals indicating
`
`corresponding parts throughout and which is to be read in conjunction with the
`
`following drawings, wherein:
`
`Figure l is a first block diagram of a network data distribution system in
`
`accordance with the invention.
`
`10
`
`Figure 2 is a frontal plan view of a mobile wireless display device m
`
`accordance with the present invention.
`
`Figure 3 is a frontal plan view of a mobile wireless display device in
`
`accordance with the invention.
`
`Figure 4 is a flow diagram of a method of provisioning by advertisers of
`
`15
`
`advertisements sent to mobile wireless display devices in accordance with the
`
`invention.
`
`Figure 5 is a flow diagram of a method of subscriber registration m
`
`accordance with the invention.
`
`Figure 6 is a flow chart of a method of preference setting in accordance with
`
`20
`
`the invention.
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0013
`
`

`

`W000/77978
`
`/9-
`Figure 7 is a flow chart of a method of selecting advertisements in
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`accordance with the invention.
`
`Figures SA and SB are views of database objects of a subscriber database in
`
`accordance with the invention.
`
`5
`
`These and additional embodiments of the invention may now be better
`
`understood by turning to the following detailed description wherein an illustrated
`
`embodiment is described.
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0014
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`!'b
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`Throughout this description, the preferred embodiment and examples shown
`
`should be considered as exemplars, rather than limitations on the apparatus and
`
`methods of the present invention.
`
`5
`
`The System of the Invention
`
`The system of the invention enables ads to be sent to mobile wireless display
`
`devices based upon: a subscriber's personal profile information; the scheduling
`
`requirements of the ads; and the demographic, target behavior profile, or subscriber
`
`location requirements of the ads.
`
`10
`
`As used herein, an "ad" is an advertisement or promotion. An "ad message"
`
`means a discrete communication sent in a communications channel. Whereas "ad
`
`message" relates to the transmission process, "ad content" relates to the information
`
`conveyed by the ad message. Ad content includes a visual component, such as text
`
`or graphics, and may also include audio, video and / or other physical feedback. Ad
`
`15 messages are not sent in real time, so although the recipient of an ad message may
`
`respond directly to its corresponding ad content, neither the ad content nor the
`
`response are sensitive to delays. Of course, at some point, the delays may impact the
`
`effect of the ad content or the response, notably because the ad or the response may
`
`get "stale." However, the underlying transport is not sensitive to delays.
`
`20
`
`Referring now to Figure 1, there is shown a block diagram of an ad message
`
`distribution system in accordance with the invention. Figure 1 includes a local
`
`device 100, a data access network 120, an ad server 130 (more properly, an ad
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0015
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`message server), a gateway 140, a radio tower 145 and a mobile wireless display
`
`device 150.
`
`The local device 100 preferably compnses a client computer which is
`
`configured to access the ad server 130 via the data access network 120. The client
`
`5
`
`computer may be, for example, a PC running a Microsoft Windows operating
`
`system. The local device 100 preferably includes an output device, such as display
`
`101, and an input device, such as keyboard 102 and/ or pointing device 103 (e.g.,
`
`mouse, track ball, light pen, or data glove). The local device 100 may also be, for
`
`example, an Internet appliance, network computer (NC), or an appropriately
`
`10
`
`Internet-enabled device such as a portable digital assistant (PDA), mobile phone,
`
`refrigerator, etc. The particular type of device of the local device 100 is not
`
`considered to be important so long as the local device 100 can provide some
`
`measure of individual subscriber interactivity with an online service. Nor is it
`
`required that the local device 100 be different from the mobile wireless display
`
`15
`
`device 150; they may be one and the same. Although not shown, other devices such
`
`as web servers may also be connected to the data access network 120 and be
`
`accessible from the local device 100. A browser application, such as Microsoft
`
`Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator is preferably installed on the local device
`
`100.
`
`20
`
`The data access network 120 provides lower layer network support for the
`
`local device 100 to interact with the ad server 130. The data access network 120
`
`preferably comprises a common or private bi-directional telecommunications
`
`network ( e.g., a public switched telephone network (PSTN), a cable-based
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0016
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`15
`telecommunication network, a LAN, a WAN, a wireless network), coupled with or
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`overlaid by a TCP/IP network (e.g., the Internet or an intranet). TCP/IP, however, is
`
`not a requirement of the present invention.
`
`The gateway 140 is preferably a server and associated devices which
`
`5
`
`interface the data access network 120 to the radio transmitter 145, as known in the
`
`art. The gateway 140 is preferably part of a network operations center. Figure 1
`
`shows the ad server 130 and the gateway 140 communicating through the data
`
`access network 120. Alternatively, the ad server 130 and the gateway 140 may be
`
`connected through a network which is separate from the data access network 120, or
`
`1 O
`
`could be connected directly, such as within a service operator's facilities. In these
`
`alternatives, the ad server 130 might also be a part of the network operations center.
`
`The radio tower 145 may be terrestrial or airborne.
`
`The gateway 140 preferably also has tracking capabilities. That is, in the
`
`manner known in the art, the location of a subscriber's mobile wireless display
`
`15
`
`device is known to the gateway 140, or the gateway 140 can obtain this information
`
`from the service provider's network information center. Depending on the type of
`
`mobile wireless display device and the service provider, the precision of the location
`
`information varies.
`
`Furthermore, some service providers may be unable to
`
`determine the location information. Since mobile wireless display devices are
`
`20 mobile, the gateway 140 preferably can locate the mobile wireless display devices as
`
`they move. To the extent that the gateway 140 can obtain subscriber location
`
`infonnation, the gateway 140 preferably provides this infonnation to the ad server
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0017
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`14'
`130. Whether a mobile wireless display device is stationary or moving can also be
`
`PCT /US00/16467
`
`determined within a reasonable margin of error.
`
`The ad server 130 preferably is a computer system, such as a server
`
`computer. Alternatively, the ad server 130 may be considered to represent a number
`
`5
`
`of physical devices which as a group provide the indicated network services. The ad
`
`server 130 acts as a recipient of certain information transmitted by the local device
`
`100, as described further below. The ad server 130 preferably also transmits certain
`
`data to the mobile wireless display device 150 as described further below.
`
`Although only one local device and one mobile wireless display device are
`
`10
`
`shown in Figure 1, the system of the invention contemplates any number of these
`
`devices.
`
`Referring now to Figure 2, there is shown an enlarged view of the mobile
`
`wireless display device 150. The mobile wireless display device shown is a cellular
`
`phone, although it will be appreciated that other mobile wireless display devices,
`
`15
`
`such as PCS phones, pagers, PDAs enabled with wireless communications
`
`capabilities, and satellite-based phones are also with the scope of the invention.
`
`Indeed, the mobile wireless display device 150 may actually consist of two devices
`
`linked together: one interfacing to the wireless communications network, and the
`
`other serving to display the ad content.
`
`20
`
`The mobile wireless display device 150 is shown having a display 200
`
`which is logically divided into a status bar 210, a title bar 220 and a content area
`
`250.
`
`The status bar 210 is preferably always present and displays items such as
`
`signal strength 211, battery strength 212, and message-waiting indicator 213. A
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0018
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`11
`mode indicator 214 may also be included to indicate the mode for text entry,
`
`PCT /US00/16467
`
`whether alpha, numeric, or a combined alphanumeric mode.
`
`The title bar 220 preferably displays an identification of the content in the
`
`content area 250. For example, the title bar 220 might display "Promo" for a
`
`5
`
`promotion or advertisement in the content area 250, "Phone Book" if the content
`
`area 250 is being used to show phone book entries, or "Dialing" if the phone is
`
`dialing a number.
`
`The content area 250 is used to display the particular content of a user
`
`interface page, for example, text of a message, phone book entries, advertisements,
`
`1 O
`
`phone numbers being dialed and the like.
`
`In the content area 250, a focus and
`
`selection icon may optionally be used to indicate the particular item or line of
`
`content that has the focus, i.e. is the current user interface gadget or input field.
`
`Figure 3 shows the mobile wireless display device 150 with a graphical
`
`advertisement. The advertisement of Figure 3 covers the title area 220, and includes
`
`15
`
`soft key labels 255 along the bottom of the content area 250 (though other locations
`
`may be used).
`
`Any of the pages or content displayed on the screen display 200 may be
`
`obtained locally or remotely, such as from the Internet or World Wide Web.
`
`Examples of local content include advertisements, a telephone book, received text
`
`20 messages, and the like.
`
`The ad content and portions thereof (e.g., objects) may be delivered to the
`
`mobile wireless display device 150 in many ways. For example, ad content may be
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0019
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`IB
`delivered to a mobile wireless display device at a first point in time and stored, and
`
`PCT/US00/16467
`
`ad messages sent later to the mobile wireless display device would cause the ad
`
`content to be conveyed to the subscriber. Thus, batches of ad content may be
`
`delivered to a mobile wireless display device at a time which is lower in cost or
`
`5 when there is less wireless traffic. Furthermore, some aspects of the ad content may
`
`be delivered using fixed communications means (e.g., wireline), and also activated
`
`by ad messages.
`
`In most embodiments, the mobile wireless display device 150 will have at
`
`least some displayable objects, and signals from the ad server 130 cause these
`
`IO
`
`objects to be displayed in the content area 250 (Figure 2). For example, characters
`
`of the alphabet may be pre-stored in the mobile wireless display device 150 during
`
`its manufacture, and signals sent to the mobile wireless display device 150 would
`
`identify the characters forming the ad content to be displayed. Displays may also be
`
`generated through a combination of pre-stored and transmitted objects.
`
`15
`
`The ad content is preferably fom1atted to be compatible with a wide range of
`
`mobile wireless display devices. In general, a text-only message of less than 100
`
`characters will be compatible with a majority of current mobile wireless display
`
`devices.
`
`In one embodiment, the GSM Short Message Service is utilized. Each
`
`advertisement preferably contains no more than one discount, and an expiration date.
`
`20
`
`The expiration date is used to create a sense of urgency to the subscriber. Limiting
`
`an ad to a single discount is desirable to avoid clutter. Since most mobile wireless
`
`communication devices have a small display, the limited space should be used for
`
`maximum impact. Furthermore, because many mobile wireless display devices are
`
`Snap Inc. Ex. 1005 Page 0020
`
`

`

`WO 00/77978
`
`PCT /US00/16467
`
`used by subscribers during other activities such as while driving, the intrusiveness
`
`and scope of distraction of the message should be moderated.
`
`Several ways to redeem an ad are possible. Preferably, redemption also
`
`provides the advertisers and service providers a way to track transactions and the
`
`5
`
`associated revenue. For mobile phones, a phone number or promotion code are the
`
`preferred bases for redemption. With a phone number, the subscriber can call a
`
`phone number especially designated by the advertiser or the service provider.
`
`Telephone-based redemption also permits the subscriber to find local outlets of the
`
`advertisers' businesses, and to receive additional information from the advertisers.
`
`10 With a promotion code, the subscriber contacts the advertiser either in person, by
`
`phone or electronically to receive the benefit of the ad. Some smart phones support
`
`soft keys, and a one-touch smart key may be included in the ad content for
`
`redemption. Similar capabilities may be provided in two-way pagers.
`
`The Method of the Invention
`
`15
`
`Referring now to Figure 4, there is shown a block diagram of the ad server
`
`130 and how the ad server 130 allows advertisers to provision advertisements in
`
`accordance with the invention. The method of the invention has four basic
`
`processes: an advertiser registration process 450, an ad registration process 460 and
`
`an ad selection process 470. These processes 450, 460, 470 operate in conjunction
`
`20 with a database 410 maintained by the ad server 130. In the advertiser registration
`
`process 450, an advertiser provides identifying information to the ad server 130. In
`
`the advertisement registration process 460, the advertiser identifies to the server the
`
`ad content, and the advertiser provides targeting information with respect to that ad
`
`Snap I