(12) United States Patent
`Apte et al.
`
`US007225142B1
`(10) Patent No.:
`US 7,225,142 B1
`(45) Date of Patent:
`May 29, 2007
`
`(54) INTERACTIVE MULTIMEDIA
`ADVERTISING AND ELECTRONIC
`EP
`COMMERCE ON A HYPERTEXT NETWORK WO
`(75) Inventors: Jitendra Apte, Woodbridge; Marina
`W
`Lima Roesler, Westfield, both of NJ
`(US)
`(73) Assignee: AT&T Corp., New York, NY (US)
`s
`s
`Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this
`patent is extended or adjusted under 35
`U.S.C. 154(b) by 0 days.
`
`(*) Notice:
`
`(21) Appl. No.: 08/691,900
`(22) Filed:
`Aug. 1, 1996
`(51) Int. Cl
`we
`G07G I/O
`
`(2006.01)
`
`s 1-a-s
`
`s
`
`O60O3.5102 2214
`
`FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS
`O 822 535
`2, 1998
`WO95/12176
`5, 1995
`W SE s:
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`Donald T. Hawkins, “Electronic Advertising on Online
`Information System’. Online V. 18, n. 2, pp. 26–39.
`Schlender “Whose Internet is it, anyway”; Dec. 1995: For
`tune V132n12 pp. 120–142, European 66–73; Dialof file 15,
`Accession No. 01125649.
`“I/Pro Is First Develop A Solution For Measuring Java
`Applets, Apr. 1996: PR Newswire, p412SFF008: Dialog
`file 16, Accession No. 04298692.*
`Nicol, D., et al., “Footsteps: Trail-Blazing the Web’. Com
`puter Networks & ISDN Systems, vol. 27, No. 6, Apr. 1,
`1995, pp. 879-885.
`Goldstein, J, et al., “Uses of Interactive Multimedia for
`Advertising, Marketing, & Sales’, Multimedia Review,
`Summer 1993, vol. 4, No. 2
`(52) U.S. Cl. .............................. 705/14; 705/26: 705/27
`, vol. 4, No. 2, pp. 60–64.
`O A
`O
`(58) Field of Classig starsh - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - S. European Patent Office Extended Search Report for Corre
`705/26, 27; 399.2):
`i:
`sponding
`European
`Patent
`Application
`No.
`See application file for complete search history.
`
`(56)
`
`References Cited
`
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`
`4,799,156 A * 1/1989 Shavit et al. ................. 705/26
`4,949,256 A
`8, 1990 Pirani et al.
`5,105,184 A * 4, 1992 Pirani et al. ................ 345,115
`5,285,278 A
`2f1994 Holman
`5,305,195 A * 4/1994 Murphy ....................... TO5/14
`5,353,218 A * 10/1994 De Lapa et al. .............. TO5/14
`5,544,040 A * 8/1996 Gerbaulet .................... 705/26
`5,557,721 A * 9/1996 Fite et al. .
`... 395,148
`5,696,965 A * 12/1997 Dedrick ....................... 70.5/10
`5,708,780 A * 1/1998 Levergood et al. .... 395/200.59
`5,715,314 A * 2/1998 Payne et al. .................. 380.24
`5,724,424 A * 3/1998 Gifford ........................ 380.24
`5,727,156 A * 3/1998 Herr-Hoyman
`et al. ..................... 395/20049
`(Continued)
`
`
`
`(Continued)
`Primary Examiner—Romain Jeanty
`(57)
`ABSTRACT
`A system and method for providing targeted, interactive,
`multimedia advertisements and electronic commerce capa
`bility on a hypertext network. Advertising software from a
`server is loaded on a user's client computer through a
`browser at the user's request. The display screen of the client
`computer is partitioned into a browser area, which retains
`the full functionality of the underlying browser, and adver
`tising area. Controls affecting the presentation and content of
`the advertisements streamed from the server to the client
`computer are available to the user in the advertising area, as
`are secure purchase and electronic coupon controls.
`
`44 Claims, 11 Drawing Sheets
`
`conti
`RECEST
`
`Twitter-Google Exhibit 1008
`
`

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`US 7.225,142 B1
`Page 2
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`6,483,895 B2 * 1 1/2002 Bixler et al. ............... 379 (67.1
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`5,737,619 A
`4, 1998 Judson ....................... 7O7/5OO
`5,740,361 A * 4/1998 Brown
`395, 18701
`Y. Kohda, et al., “Ubiquitous Advertising on the WWW:
`5,740,549 A * 4/1998 Reilly et al. .................. 70.5/14.
`Merging Advertisement on the Browser, Computer Net
`5,754,939 A * 5/1998 Hertz et al. .................. 455/4.2
`works and ISDN Systems, vol. 28, pp. 1493–1499, 1996.
`5,761,683 A * 6/1998 Logan et al.
`... 707/513
`Wiedling, H. P. “HotJava EIN WWW Browser für
`5,805,242 A * 9/1998 Shaw et al. ................... TO5/14
`Nachladbare Objekte', Objekt Verlag. Duesseldorf, DE, No.
`5,848,396 A * 12/1998 Gerace ....
`... TOS/10
`5 pp 68 69, 1995
`5,909,670 A
`6, 1999 Trader et al. ................. TO5/14
`s
`s
`Nicol, D., et al., “Footsteps: Trail-Blazing the Web’. Com
`5.937,390 A ck 8/1999 Hyodo ........................ TO5/14
`5,957,695 A
`9, 1999 Redford et al. ......... 434,307 R
`5.959.623 A
`9, 1999 van Hoff et al. ............
`70 puter Networks & ISDN Systems, vol. 27, No. 6, Apr. 1,
`5,970,469 A * 10/1999 Scroggie et al. .............. TO5/14
`1995, pp. 879-885.
`6,185,541 B1
`2/2001 Scroggie et al. .............. TO5/14
`Goldstein, J, et al., “Uses of Interactive Multimedia for
`6,199,106 B1 * 3/2001 Shaw et al. .....
`... 709,217
`Advertising, Marketing, & Sales’, Multimedia Review,
`6,336,099 B1 * 1/2002 Barnett et al. ................ TO5/14
`Summer 1993, vol. 4. No. 2. pp. 60–64.
`6,356,874 B1 * 3/2002 O slashed.hrn ............... 705/6
`6,457,025 B2 * 9/2002 Judson .................... T15,501.1
`
`* cited by examiner
`
`ck
`
`
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`May 29, 2007
`
`Sheet 1 of 11
`
`US 7.225,142 B1
`
`FIC. f
`PRIOR ART
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`11
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`12
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`4
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`TWA 747 crashes in Allantic
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`U.S. Patent
`
`May 29, 2007
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`Sheet 2 of 11
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`US 7.225,142 B1
`
`FIG. 2
`PRIOR ART
`
`
`
`PCN - Lost updated on wedesdorjuly 17 at 9:38 pm ve
`Kolo)
`22
`LOCotion: http://www.sotumcars.com/Recycle/
`
`The Soturn Cycle Recycle Program. Or, whot should I do
`hot old bike?
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`May 29, 2007
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`Sheet 3 of 11
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`US 7.225,142 B1
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`sey
`SERVER
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`U.S. Patent
`
`May 29, 2007
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`Sheet 4 of 11
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`US 7.225,142 B1
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`63
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`ADVERTISEMENT
`SERVER
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`SERVER
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`SERVER
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`U.S. Patent
`
`May 29, 2007
`
`Sheet 5 of 11
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`US 7.225,142 B1
`
`FIC. 6
`S$ 34
`35
`// Nescope, Interactive Advertising
`File Edit View Go Bookmarks Option Directory Window Help
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`LOCotion:
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`

`U.S. Patent
`
`May 29, 2007
`
`Sheet 6 of 11
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`US 7.225,142 B1
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`
`
`LOCotion: http://www.ott.com
`
`AT&T Home Page SearchAT&T/A-ZSite MapWhat's NewWrite to Us
`Wednesday, 17-jul-96 10:54:46 EDT
`Products & Services:
`For Your Home
`For Your Business
`
`AT&T HealthSite ATPocketNet
`AT&T WorldNet Service
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`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`May 29, 2007
`
`Sheet 7 of 11
`
`US 7.225,142 B1
`
`FIC. 7
`
`
`
`Netscape - Interactive Advertising
`File Edit View Go Bookmarks Option Directory Window Help
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`DX
`
`LOCotion: http://www.777 film.com
`
`HELLO AND WELCOME TO
`
`MOVIELINK
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`777-FILM-ONLINE
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`Americo's source for movie information,
`showtimes, previews, ond even tickets.
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`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`May 29, 2007
`
`Sheet 8 of 11
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`US 7.225,142 B1
`
`FIC. 8
`
`102
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`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`May 29, 2007
`
`Sheet 9 of 11
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`US 7.225,142 B1
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`FIC. 9
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`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`May 29, 2007
`
`Sheet 10 of 11
`
`US 7.225,142 B1
`
`FIC. f. O
`
`Netscape - Interactive Advertising
`e
`File Edit View Go Bookmorks Option Directory Window Help
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`U.S. Patent
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`May 29, 2007
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`Sheet 11 of 11
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`US 7.225,142 B1
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`FIG. f. 1
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`
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`Netscope - Interactive Advertising
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`
`

`

`US 7,225,142 B1
`
`1.
`INTERACTIVE MULTIMEDIA
`ADVERTISING AND ELECTRONIC
`COMMERCE ON A HYPERTEXT NETWORK
`
`2
`operates independently of any other application software.
`Like the static advertisement, the dynamic advertisement
`may also be a link, is displayed at a fixed location on a page,
`and generally disappears after it is selected and replaced by
`a linked page.
`An example of a dynamic web advertising system is the
`Point Cast Network. FIG. 1 shows this known stand-alone
`system that is installed as an independent software package
`on the client computer. Information including news, weather
`and sports is transmitted to the PCN software on the client
`computer and is updated periodically. The user may view
`news stories by selecting the news button 11, the weather by
`selecting the weather button 12, and so on. Advertisements
`are shown in a corner of the screen, in the advertisement area
`13.
`Each advertisement 14 is a link. When the user selects an
`advertisement link, PCN launches a browser and loads and
`displays a page 21 (FIG. 2) at a predetermined address,
`known as a Universal Resource Locator (URL) 22. The
`browser replaces the advertisement area 13, so PCN no
`longer displays advertisements to the user. Alternatively,
`PCN may be configured to launch a separate stand-alone
`browser, such as the Netscape browser, when an advertise
`ment link is selected. In this case, the stand-alone browser
`appears in front of and obscures the advertisements pre
`sented by PCN. However, the browser can be moved to
`another part of the screen, thus revealing the ongoing stream
`of advertisements from PCN.
`Nonetheless, viewing both PCN and the page on the
`stand-alone browser in their entirety is practically
`impossible, and the user generally must choose whether to
`view the one or the other, but cannot typically view both.
`The advertisements that appear on the PCN comprise
`graphic and animated media. The advertisements are down
`loaded from a server to a client computer and occasionally
`updated (along with the rest of the content on the PCN)
`when the user selects the update button 15 (FIG. 1). A set of
`advertisements are stored on the user's client computer and
`played in sequence in a loop. The sequence repeats with a
`duty cycle dependent upon the number of advertisements
`downloaded.
`In another known advertising system called the Hypernet,
`advertisements are streamed to the user while permitting the
`user to continue to browse the Internet. When an advertise
`ment is selected, a page is presented to the user.
`For these known systems, each advertisement only
`appears for a short period of time, and then is replaced by the
`next advertisement in the sequence. The user has no control
`over the content or order of the advertisements, and cannot
`pause, skip, replay, or step through the advertisements at
`will. Nor can the user make a secure purchase directly using
`the PCN service. The same advertisements are sent to all
`users, regardless of user preferences.
`Both static and dynamic advertisements are limited in that
`they only provide a one-way flow of information from the
`advertiser to the user. At best, these advertisements provide
`a telephone number that the user must call to purchase or
`learn more about the advertised product, or a link to a page
`with additional information from the advertiser. Additional
`information from the advertiser must be requested through
`the advertiser's page that is linked to the advertisement, or
`verbally over the telephone from an advertiser representa
`tive.
`Another disadvantage of known advertising systems is
`that, when an advertisement is selected by a user, the
`advertising process is generally interrupted as the linked
`
`FIELD OF THE INVENTION
`This invention relates to providing interactive advertising
`and secure purchase opportunities on a network, and par
`ticularly to a system and method for providing targeted,
`interactive, multimedia advertising and electronic com
`merce capabilities through a hypertext network.
`
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`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`A hypertext file is displayed on a computer as a page
`through software called a browser. A page comprises links
`that, when selected by a user, cause another page to be
`displayed (known as the linked page), cause another part of
`the presently displayed page to be shown, or else cause a
`computer program to execute. A hypertext file is written in
`a programming language such as Hypertext Markup Lan
`guage (HTML).
`A logical grouping of hypertext files is called a site. Sites
`may reside on different computers. A set of sites that are
`interconnected by links is called a web. A site on a first
`computer may be effectively linked to a site on a second
`computer by connecting the first and second computers
`through a network. An example of a set of sites residing on
`different computers interconnected by a network is the
`World Wide Web (WWW), which is a set of sites written in
`HTML on computers interconnected by the Internet. Each
`site on the WWW is known as a website.
`A site resides on a computer known as a server, which is
`accessed through a network by a user utilizing a client
`computer. Pages at a site are viewed by the user through
`software called a browser, which resides on the user's client
`computer. Here, a client computer is a system with a
`microprocessor and means for storing data and/or Software
`Such as random access memory and/or a hard disk drive, and
`which is capable of communicating with a hypertext net
`work. The client computer is capable of providing output for
`display to a user, for example through a video display. Such
`output may take the form of at least one of textual, graphic,
`animation, video, audio, or virtual object media. The client
`computer is also capable of accepting input from a user.
`Such input may be provided by means Such as a keyboard,
`a mouse, a telephone touchpad, a television remote control,
`and so on.
`A web can be used as a channel for disseminating com
`50
`mercial information, including advertisements, as well as
`effectuating electronic commerce. Electronic commerce
`here refers to the process of buying and selling on a web.
`Advertising on a web may be static or dynamic. Static
`web advertising operates by displaying an advertisement
`image at a fixed location on a page displayed to a user. The
`advertisement image may be a link that, when selected by
`the user, displays a new page that conveys additional infor
`mation about the product or service featured in the static
`advertisement. The advertisement image link generally dis
`appears when selected, and is replaced on the screen by the
`linked page.
`Dynamic web advertising operates by displaying a
`sequence of advertisements. Dynamic web advertising is
`implemented using proprietary, stand-alone advertiser Soft
`ware that must be downloaded to the user client and
`executed by the user. Stand-alone here means software that
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`3
`page is displayed to the user. In systems where the adver
`tising process is not interrupted, it is difficult or impossible
`for the user to view both advertisements and the linked page
`in their entirety. Thus, other advertisers are essentially
`prevented from presenting their advertisements while the
`user is pursuing further information on another advertise
`ment.
`Furthermore, a linked page generally contains other entic
`ing links, thus reducing the likelihood that the user will soon
`(if ever) return to the website on which the advertisements
`are displayed.
`A Superior system of advertising on a web would provide
`the user with the capability to interact with and control the
`presentation of advertisements; engage in electronic com
`merce without leaving the web; easily obtain additional
`15
`information regarding a product or service featured in an
`advertisement without interrupting the display of further
`advertisements; and establish communications with a sales
`representative of the advertiser through the client computer
`without leaving the web.
`These features would enable an advertiser to more effec
`tively target a purchaser, sending advertisements that are
`responsive to the user's needs. They would also give the user
`access to extensive information about the advertised product
`or service, resulting in better, more informed buying deci
`sions. Advertisers would be able to take advantage of the
`low cost of selling electronically, thus lowering their cost of
`sales and improving their profitability. Competition under
`these circumstances would result in lower prices and greater
`values for the purchaser.
`SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
`The present invention provides a system and method for
`advertising and carrying out electronic commerce on a web
`using advertising software that is transmitted from a server
`to a client computer over a network at a user's request. The
`advertising software operates as an overlay to a
`conventional, known browser, such as the Netscape browser,
`dividing the user's client computer display into an adver
`tising area and a browser area.
`The advertising area is provided with buttons for the user
`to control the presentation and content of advertisements,
`and for the user to view multimedia information, securely
`purchase an item, clip an electronic coupon, and communi
`cate with a sales agent concerning a presently displayed
`advertisement.
`The user may pause the stream of advertisements, view a
`previously displayed advertisement, or skip forward to the
`next advertisement to be displayed.
`The browser area retains the original functionality of the
`underlying browser and operates independently of the adver
`tising area, except that certain buttons (e.g., control buttons
`and electronic transaction buttons) in the advertising area
`cause pages to load and display in the browser area when
`selected. The independent operation of the browser area
`means that several advertisements may be displayed to a
`user in the advertising area while the user browses a single
`page in the browser area. This is Superior to known systems
`wherein only one fixed advertisement may be shown on each
`browsed page.
`The server includes a home page by which the advertising
`service may be accessed by the user. The server also includes
`a help page by which assistance in using the advertising
`service may be provided to the user.
`In accordance with the present invention, the advertising
`server streams advertisements in sequence to the client
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`computer more or less continuously. This is in contrast to
`known advertising services, which download a set of adver
`tisements to a client computer that are stored and shown in
`a repeating loop to the user.
`Also in accordance with the present invention, the adver
`tisements shown to the user are interactive multimedia
`advertisements, comprising one or more of text, graphics,
`animation, video, audio, and virtual object media that
`include at least one link to a page that is displayed in the
`browser area when selected. The multimedia features of the
`advertisements of the present invention are advantageous
`because they stimulate users to buy who are especially
`responsive to video, Virtual object browsing, audio,
`animation, text, graphics, or any combination thereof,
`whereas known advertising systems only appeal to those
`who are receptive to text, graphics, animation, and combi
`nations thereof.
`A user may select advertising topics, whereupon adver
`tisements in the selected topics are transmitted to the user.
`Advertisements may also be selected by deducing user areas
`of interest based upon the content of pages on the web
`selected by the user for viewing.
`The present invention provides a Superior system and
`method for providing targeted, interactive, multimedia
`advertising and electronic commerce capabilities by which
`advertisers and users may exchange information and buy
`and sell goods and services.
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`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`FIG. 1 shows a known advertising service for a web.
`FIG. 2 shows another a known advertising service for a
`web displaying a page linked to an advertisement.
`FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of the present invention.
`FIG. 4 shows a system in accordance with an embodiment
`of the present invention.
`FIG. 5 shows a graphical user interface in accordance
`with an embodiment of the present invention.
`FIG. 6 shows another graphic user interface in accordance
`with an embodiment of the present invention.
`FIG. 7 shows yet another graphic user interface in accor
`dance with an embodiment of the present invention.
`FIG. 8 shows a graphical user interface demonstrating the
`use of a media clip button in accordance with the present
`invention.
`FIG. 9 shows a graphical user interface demonstrating the
`use of an order form in accordance with the present inven
`tion.
`FIG. 10 shows a graphical user interface demonstrating
`the use of an electronic coupon in accordance with the
`present invention.
`FIG. 11 shows a graphical user interface demonstrating
`the use of a coupon in accordance with the present invention.
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`DETAILED DESCRIPTION
`The present invention provides a new and Superior system
`and method for providing advertising and electronic com
`merce capabilities on a web.
`In accordance with the present invention, the content and
`presentation of advertisements may be controlled by the
`user, who may also securely purchase goods and services
`without having to leave the web.
`The present invention is interactive, providing means for
`sending information from the user to the advertiser, as well
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`as Vice versa. This results in more targeted advertising and
`better, more pertinent information being sent to the prospec
`tive purchaser.
`The system of the present invention, shown in FIG. 3,
`comprises a server 51 and client computer 52 that has a
`browser, with the server 51 and client computer 52 inter
`connected through a network 53. The client computer 52
`comprises a microprocessor, a display device Such as a
`screen, storage devices such as a hard disk drive and random
`access memory, and input devices such as a keyboard and
`OUS.
`Advertising software on the server 51 is downloaded to
`the client computer 52 and executes to act as an overlay to
`the browser. In one embodiment, this software is written in
`the Java programming language, and is loaded and executed
`on the client computer 52 when a user selects an advertising
`service link on an advertising service page displayed to the
`user through the user's browser. This mode of operation is
`Superior to known advertising systems that execute exclu
`sively outside of the client computer 52, because the system
`of the present invention is able to obtain information regard
`ing the client computer 52 that may be screened by a firewall
`between the client computer 52 and the server 51. For
`example, the present system is able to obtain the exact
`network address of client computer 54 (FIG. 3a) that is
`connected to the network 55 through a local area network
`56, whereas known systems would only be able to determine
`the network address of the network server 57 on the local
`area network.
`While the advertising software executes on the client
`computer 52 (FIG. 3), the browser retains its initial func
`tionality to browse hypertext files, and the advertising soft
`ware appropriates a part of the display screen of the client
`computer 52.
`In another embodiment of the present invention shown in
`FIG. 4, the functions of the advertising service provider in
`accordance with the present invention are divided among
`several servers interconnected with each other and the client
`computer 61 through a network 62. Advertisements are
`streamed to the client computer from an advertisement
`server 63. Secure purchase transactions are handled by a
`transaction server 64. Multimedia information is transmitted
`to the client computer from a multimedia server 65. Assis
`tance is provided to users from an information server 66.
`Communications are established between a user and an
`advertiser using a connection request server 67, which is
`connected to a public telephone network 68. In one
`embodiment, communications are established using the
`invention disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No.
`09/038,149, filed Mar. 11, 1998, which is incorporated
`herein by reference.
`The advertiser software acts with the browser to present
`to the user a display, an embodiment of which is shown in
`FIG. 5. The user's screen is divided into two areas: the
`browser area 31 and the advertisement area 32. The browser
`area and the advertising area operate essentially indepen
`dently so that several advertisements may advantageously be
`displayed to the user while the user is browsing a single page
`displayed in the browser area.
`The browser area 31 retains all of the controls originally
`provided by the browser, including the file features 33, the
`edit feature 34, the bookmarks feature 35, and so on. Thus,
`the browser area continues to function essentially as the
`original browser (before the advertising software was down
`loaded and executed). In this embodiment, the area for
`viewing pages 31 has been decreased to accommodate the
`advertiser area 32.
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`The advertisement area 32 comprises a control area 36, a
`display area 37, and a transaction area 38. The control area
`is provided with a help button 39, a pause button 40, a step
`back button 41, and a step forward button 42. Each button
`acts as a link. In one embodiment, when the user places the
`mouse arrow 49 over a button, an explanatory bubble 50
`appears nearby that comprises a short description of the
`functionality of the button.
`When selected by a user, the help button 39 loads and
`displays an advertising service help page in the browser area
`31. In one embodiment, the help page has a table of contents,
`a searchable index, and general information about using the
`present invention. The table of contents and index comprise
`links to other help pages that provide detailed information
`on specific topics of interest concerning the advertising
`service to the user.
`The pause button 40 halts the progression of the adver
`tisements shown in the display area 37, which are streamed
`to the client computer in sequence from a server. The
`advertisement shown in the display area 37 at the time the
`user selected the pause button 40 persists in the display area
`37 until the user again selects the pause button 40, at which
`time the next advertisement is shown in the display area 37.
`and the progression is resumed. In this way, the pause button
`functions as a toggle.
`A predetermined number of advertisements shown in the
`display area are cached on the client computer. The present
`invention provides the capability of stepping back to previ
`ously displayed advertisements by selecting the step back
`button 41. When this button is selected, the progression of
`advertisements shown in the display area 37 is suspended,
`and the user may review previously displayed advertise
`ments one at a time. The progression may be resumed at any
`time by selecting the pause button 40.
`In order to move forward through advertisements, the
`present invention provides the step forward button 42. When
`selected, the step forward button causes the next advertise
`ment in the progression to be displayed in the display area
`37. Thus, if the step forward button 42 is selected while
`reviewing previously shown advertisements, the next pre
`viously shown advertisement will be displayed in the display
`area 37. In this way, it is possible to move forward among
`previously displayed advertisements.
`Likewise, if the step forward button 42 is selected during
`the progression of streamed advertisements from the server,
`the presently displayed advertisement will be immediately
`replaced with the next advertisement in the progression.
`The pause button 40, the step backward button 41, and the
`step forward button 42 provide the capability of suspending
`the progression of advertisements, moving backwards and
`forward among previously displayed advertisements, and
`immediately replacing a presently displayed advertisement
`with the next advertisement in the progression.
`The advertisements shown in the display area 37 may be
`links, may contain links, and/or may function as image maps
`with selectable areas. Image maps are known in the art. The
`advertisements comprise at least one of textual, graphic,
`animation, video, audio and virtual object media.
`Because the advertisements are streamed from a server
`rather than downloaded as a set and played to the user in a
`loop, the present invention can make choices about which
`advertisements to display to the user that are responsive to
`the user's current viewing habits. Thus, if a user is selecting
`and viewing pages in the browser area 31 concerning
`outdoor activities, the present invention can select adver
`tisements for camping gear, which are streamed from the
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`server to the client for display to the user. This advantageous
`capability to dynamically target advertisements is not pro
`vided by known advertising services that download prede
`termined advertisements in sets.
`This dynamic targeting capability is in part due to the
`capability of the present invention to operate with a browser
`Such that the progression of advertisements in no way
`interferes with the independent operation of the browser.
`An embodiment of the present invention as an overlay to
`the known Netscape browser is shown in FIG. 6. The
`browser area 81 maintains all of the functionality of the
`Netscape browser, while the advertising area 82 comprises
`the features shown in FIG. 5.
`The transaction area 38 is provided with a sales agent
`button 43, a media clip button 44, a secure purchase button
`45, a home page button 46, and an electronic coupon button
`