US20050083906A1 - Internet-audiotext electronic advertising system with psychographic profiling and matching - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an electronic advertising system. More specifically, the present invention provides a computer based psychographic matching system that is significantly more effective and convenient for the advertiser. In the present invention, when a person places a personal ad on the system, either via a telephone or via the Internet, the person creates a personal psychographic profile (a subjective makeup of preferences) of himself by selecting his preference for various items, such as musical pieces, environmental sounds, poetry selections, etc. At the conclusion of the profiling process, the system automatically finds other advertisers (whether they placed their ad via audiotext or the Internet) whose profiles match the new advertiser's profile. The system then gives the new advertiser information on how to contact all of the recorded matches.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
• This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 08/744,879, filed Nov. 8, 1996.
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
• The present invention relates to audiotext systems designed to provide full access to traditional databases and telecommunications systems, such as local area networks, the Internet, other external databases, telephones and fax machines, etc., and more specifically to audiotext personal ad services.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
• Audiotext personal ad services are a popular way for people to meet, and are available in most newspapers and on many cable television systems. In a typical service, an advertiser calls a live operator and places a text personal ad. An advertiser then calls an audiotext system and records an audio message, often referred to as a greeting, which expands upon the advertiser's text ad by describing in more detail the advertiser and the type of person he is seeking. Personal ads are then published in a newspaper. A personal ad includes a 900 telephone number and an ad mailbox number permitting a caller to listen to an advertiser's voice greeting. A caller can respond to an ad by recording a reply voice mail message for the advertiser. An advertiser retrieves a message by calling the audiotext system and entering a password given at the time of ad placement. In another format, live operators are not used. Instead, an advertiser first records an audio greeting via telephone. An operator then listens to the audio greeting off-line and writes a text summary of the audio greeting for publication in the newspaper.
• With the expansion of the Internet and other on-line services, personal ad services have been created to take advantage of this new medium. A typical service allows an advertiser to place a text personal ad that is published on the Internet on an HyperText Markup Language (HTML) page. An Internet user may respond to a personal ad by sending an advertiser a message via electronic mail. The limitation of this approach is that an Internet user cannot listen to an audio recording of an advertiser, a feature that is the central to audiotext personal ad services. Another limitation is that telephone users cannot exchange messages with Internet users. Another limitation is that many people do not have Internet access, thus limiting the number of advertisers and respondents.
• In another format, an attempt is made to integrate audiotext personal ads services with the Internet. Using this approach, a newspaper publishes personal ads in both the newspaper and on the Internet. Each personal ad includes a 900 telephone number and an ad mailbox number permitting a caller to listen to an advertiser's voice greeting. This approach still has the disadvantage of not allowing an Internet user to listen to an advertiser's voice greeting via the Internet. Moreover, an Internet user can only respond to a personal ad via a telephone.
• To summarize, existing Internet personal ad services are limited in that they lack many of the features available on audiotext personal ad services. Also, existing personal ad services do not provide a means for those using an audiotext personal ad service to effectively communicate with those using an Internet personal ad service and visa versa. Therefore, there is a need for a personal ad system that seamlessly integrates an audiotext system with an Internet server, allowing straightforward communication between those using a telephone and those on the Internet. Such a system has been proposed in detail by the present inventor which comprises application Ser. No. 08/744,879. However, there is still the need to address some of the problems inherent in an integrated audiotext and Internet based personal ad service.
• A basic problem with the prior services is that when a person places an ad, he must wait for his ad to be published and then for someone to respond to it in order to meet someone. Another problem is that if an advertiser wants to meet someone by responding to other personal ads, he must scan a large number of ads to identify a relatively small number of ads that meet his criteria. In addition, if an advertiser does not locate a suitable ad on a given day, the advertiser must in general do a complete search on the following day, since ads are generally not segregated based upon whether they have been newly placed. Moreover, since new ads can be placed both via an audiotext system and via the Internet, the advertiser might need to scan both the audiotext system and the Internet to find new ads. Finally, advertisers are not notified when they receive a response to their ad, thus requiring advertisers to check their mailbox frequently so as not to miss a message.
• Because of their popularity, a personal ads service published in a newspaper or cable television system can attract several hundred or more advertisers at any given time. Because of the quantity of ads in a given service, it can be difficult and tedious to search all the ads to find a compatible person. Several attempts have been made to deal with this problem. The most common approach is to match individuals based on demographic criteria such as gender, race, age, religion, etc. One such system has been proposed by the present inventor which comprises application Ser. No. 08/799,537. In spite of the benefits of this type of matching, users of personal ad services continue to seek better and more effective ways of meeting compatible individuals.
• The limitation, however, of demographic-based matching is that it does not take into account the subjective, “psychographic”, makeup of the individual, such as an individual's preference for visual images (photographs or paintings), writing (prose and poetry), or audio (music, sounds), etc. which are more in line with an individual's personality. Many individuals find compatibility in these areas far more relevant to predicting the success of a relationship than rigid demographic categories, such as race, gender, religion and age. Therefore, there is a need for a personal ad service that incorporates this psychographic profiling in the matching process.
• This approach has been used by at least one Internet based personal ad service. In such a service, the Internet user is presented with a series of sets of two photographs in an “A/B” fashion. The user “clicks” on a given photograph to indicate his preference. The series of photographs selected by the user are then stored in a database and used to match the user with other users who selected the same photographs. The limitation of this approach is that there is no way for telephone users to participate, thereby excluding a large percentage of potential matches.
• To be effective, a psychographic profiling service must accommodate users of both traditional audiotext-based personal ad services as well as Internet-based personal ad services. Since large numbers of individuals continue to use each type of service on a more or less exclusive basis, failure to integrate the two environments significantly limits the database pool of potential matches. The current invention accommodates these needs by incorporating a matching feature based on psychographic profiling. Users are asked to indicate their preference for certain individual audio and/or visual elements which are presented in a series. A user's preferences are then stored in a database where they can be used to match with other users. In addition, the present invention allows both telephone and Internet users to take the same psychographic inventory and to match it with the psychographic profile of other individuals regardless of the medium (telephone or Internet) through which they enter the system. The benefit of this invention is that it provides a more powerful basis for matching individuals than has been available in the art while maximizing the pool of potential matches through the deployment of the service on a fully integrated Internet/audiotext platform.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
• The present invention relates to an electronic advertising system. More specifically, the present invention provides a computer based psychographic matching system that is significantly more effective and convenient for the advertiser. In the present invention, when a person places a personal ad on the system, either via a telephone or via the Internet, the person creates a personal psychographic profile (a subjective makeup of preferences) of himself by selecting his preference for various items, such as musical pieces, environmental sounds, poetry selections, etc. At the conclusion of the profiling process, the system automatically finds other advertisers (whether they placed their ad via audiotext or the Internet) whose profiles match the new advertiser's profile. In addition, during the ad taking process, a person is asked to input a telephone number and an e-mail address. Thereafter, whenever a new personal ad comes on to the system that matches the person's profile (whether the ad originates on the audiotext system or on the Internet), the person is notified of the new ad and given instructions of how to contact the new match. Also, each time a person responds to a personal ad, the system automatically finds and presents other personal ads with similar characteristics to save the user time in finding an appealing ad. Finally, each time someone responds to a personal ad, the advertiser is automatically notified both via telephone and via electronic mail.
• The significant advantages provided by the present invention are apparent from the above description. The present invention provides a more effective means of matching individuals than previous demographic style matching systems. Also, the system of the present invention does not require the advertiser to scan large numbers of ads, or to repeatedly scan for new ads. In addition, new advertisers can meet someone faster because they are automatically matched with other advertisers at the time of ad placement and notified when someone responds to their ad.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
• For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference is made to the following drawings, in which:
• FIG. 1 shows a schematic representation of the present invention.
• FIG. 2 shows a table of the fields used for storing personal data, including a brief description of the particular fields.
• FIG. 3 shows a table of the fields used for storing greeting data, including a brief description of the particular fields.
• FIG. 4 shows a table of the fields used for storing response data, including a brief description of the particular fields.
• FIG. 5 shows a flow diagram of an exemplary operation of the present invention, more specifically placing an advertisement through a telephone.
• FIG. 6 shows a flow diagram of an exemplary operation of the present invention, more specifically placing an advertisement through the Internet.
• FIG. 7 shows a flow diagram of an exemplary operation of the process of reviewing and summarizing advertisements as accomplished by the present invention.
• FIG. 8 shows personal advertisements as they would appear in a local newspaper.
• FIG. 9 shows a flow diagram of an exemplary operation of the process of responding to an advertisement through a telephone as accomplished by the present invention.
• FIG. 10 shows a flow diagram of an exemplary operation of the process of responding to an advertisement through the Internet as accomplished by the present invention.
• FIG. 11 shows a maximized personal advertisement as seen by the Internet user who chooses to expand the advertisement to full-page size.
• FIG. 12 shows a flow diagram of the response confirmation process, including the Response Confirmation Form which gives the Internet user instructions on how to enhance a response to an advertisement with, audio, video or a photograph.
• FIG. 13 shows a flow diagram of an exemplary operation of the process of retrieving responses through a telephone as accomplished by the present invention.
• FIG. 14 shows a flow diagram of an exemplary operation of the process of retrieving responses through the Internet as accomplished by the present invention.
• FIG. 15 shows a flow diagram of an exemplary operation of the process of psychographic matching via a telephone as accomplished by the present invention.
• FIG. 16 shows a flow diagram of the psychographic profiling process, including the Psychographic Profile Form which provides the options for the Internet user to choose from in order to create the user's psychographic profile.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
• As required, a detailed illustrative embodiment of the present invention is disclosed herein. However, telephone techniques, physical communication systems, data formats and operating structures in accordance with the present invention may be embodied in a wide variety of forms and modes, some of which may be quite different from those in the disclosed embodiment. Consequently, the specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are merely representative, yet in that regard, they are deemed to afford the best embodiment for purposes of disclosure and to provide a basis for the claims herein which define the scope of the present invention.
• Referring initially toFIG. 1, a series of remote telephone terminals T1-Tn are represented. In addition, a series of remote computer terminals CT1-CTn are represented. The indicated terminals T1-Tn represent the multitude of telephone terminals existing in association with the public telephone network (PTN). The indicated computer terminals CT1-CTn represent the multitude of computer terminals connected to the Internet.
• The PTN, which accommodates the individual terminals T1-Tn, is coupled to an Interactive Voice Response System (IVR). The Internet, which accommodates individual computer terminals CT1-CTn, is coupled to an Internet Web Server (IWS)—Individual telephone callers use the individual telephone stations T1 through Tn to interface the IVR through the PTN. Individual Internet users at computer terminals CT1 through CTn use the Internet to interface the IWS. Both telephone callers and Internet users may record digital audio messages that can be listened to from any of the remote telephone terminals T1-Tn or from any of the remote computer terminals CT1-CTn. Internet users may leave digital text messages that may be accessed from any of the remote telephone terminals T1-Tn using text-to-speech or from the remote computer terminals CT1-CTn via a computer monitor.
• First, considering the system ofFIG. 1 in somewhat greater detail, it is to be understood that the PTN has multiplexing capability for individually coupling the terminals T1-Tn to the IVR on request. In the illustrative embodiment of the system, the individual terminals T1-Tn take the form of existing traditional or conventional telephone instruments. It is also to be understood that the Internet has the capability to individually connect the computer terminals CT1-CTn to the IWS. In this illustrative embodiment of the system, the individual computer terminals CT1-CTn take the form of personal computers that comprise a central processing unit CPU, modem, monitor, keyboard, hard drive, sound card, and microphone.
• Second, considering the IVR in somewhat greater detail, the PTN is coupled to an IVR (seeFIG. 1). In the disclosed embodiment, forty-eight lines are connected to the IVR from the PTN, and, accordingly, the IVR may accommodate up to forty-eight simultaneous calls from the PTN. The IVR contains a processor, an exemplary form of which is an Intel 166 MHz Pentium Processor. The forty-eight lines from the PTN are connected to the processor though an interface15, an exemplary form of which is a series of commercially available Dialogic (D240SC-T1) cards. The interface incorporates modems, tone decoders, switching mechanisms, and DNIS and ANI capability. The Dialogic card stores audio information in the Dialogic VOX format.
• Generally, DNIS capability is a function of the PTN in order to provide digital data indicating the called number. ANI capability is a similar function whereby the digital data indicates the calling number.
• Third, considering the IWS in somewhat greater detail, the IWS is coupled to the Internet via a DS1 line to a local Internet provider service. The IWS may accommodate a multitude of simultaneous Internet users. As represented, the IWS is a micro computer programmed for Internet information server operations. The IWS contains a processor and Internet server software, exemplary forms of which are an Intel 166 Mhz Pentium Processor and Microsoft Internet Information Server software.
• The IWS is also loaded with RealAudio Server software from Progressive Network. RealAudio allows a Microsoft Windows .WAV file to be converted into a RealAudio RA file, a compressed format that allows play back over the Internet in real time, as opposed to first downloading a file and then listening to it. RealAudio accomplishes this by playing an audio file while it is still downloading, using a process called data streaming.
• The IWS is also loaded with VDOLive Server software. VDOLive allows a video clip in the Microsoft Windows AVI, Apple Quicktime, or MPEG video file formats to be converted into a VDOLive .VDO format, a compressed format that allows play back over the Internet in real time, as opposed to first downloading a file and then listening to it. VDOLive also utilizes data streaming.
• The IVR and the IWS are coupled to a Database Server (DBS) via an Ethernet hub as shown inFIG. 1. The system includes one or more Operator Workstations (OWS) OW1-OWn, through which an operator can interact with and control the DBS, IVR and IWS.
• The DBS is a computer programmed for database operations. In the illustrated embodiment, the DBS manages a personal Ad Database which is comprised of multiple tables that manage the creation of advertisement files, audio greeting files, advertisement response files, and photograph and video files. The Ad Database comprises an electronic equivalent of the personal classified advertisements placed via telephone and the Internet, and responses placed to the advertisements.
• In addition, the DBS converts audio files received via telephone into the RealAudio RA format for real time retrieval via the Internet. Conversely, the DBS converts audio files received via the Internet into Dialogic VOX files for retrieval via telephone. Audio file conversions are done through audio file conversion software, an exemplary form of which is Vox Studio by Xentec.
• The DBS contains a processor and a Structured Query Language (SQL) relational database software, exemplary forms of which are the Intel 166 Mhz Pentium Processor and Microsoft SQL Server.
• The OWS is a conventional personal computer equipped with a sound card capable of playing the audio data and a video display capable of displaying digitally stored photographs and videos. An exemplary form of the OWS is a microcomputer equipped with an Intel 166 Mhz Pentium Processor and a Creative Labs Sound Blaster sound card. Operators review all incoming advertiser files—text, audio, photograph, and video—to insure that their content is appropriate. Also, operators use advertisers' text messages and audio recordings to create summary text advertisements for publication in a newspaper.
• The following sections describe in greater detail the interaction between the IVR, DBS, IWS, and OWS.
• Placing an Ad Through a Telephone
• An exemplary operation of the system with regard to a specific telephone caller placing a personal advertisement will now be treated to accomplish the process as indicated inFIG. 5. First, suppose a telephone caller at terminal T1 initiates a call to place a personal advertisement in response to an advertisement in XYZ newspaper. The assumed call involves the telephone caller actuating the buttons to input the number, for example, 1-8-0-0-5-5-5-3-3-3-3. As a result, signals are provided to the public telephone network resulting in a connection from the remote terminal T1 to the IVR. Using standard DNIS techniques, the IVR associates the called number, 1-8-0-0-5-5-5-3-3-3-3 with a specific format, for example, a voice personals advertisement taking format.
• The caller is first prompted to create a profile of himself by answering a series of questions using the buttons on his touch tone phone. The profile contains data on the advertiser and the type of person the advertiser wishes to meet. Referring initially toFIG. 5, upon receiving a call, the IVR cues the caller to enter histelephone number801. The IVR stores thetelephone number802 in thefield AD_PHONE203. Next, the IVR cues the caller to enter hisgender803. For example: “If you are a woman,press 1. If you are a man,press 2. ” The IVR stores the caller'sgender804 in thefield AD_GENDER 207. Next, the IVR cues the caller for hismarital status805. For example: “If you are single,press 1. If you are divorced,press 2. If you are widowed, press 3. ” The caller responds and the IVR stores the caller'smarital status806 in thefield AD_MARITAL STATUS208. Next, the IVR cues the caller for hisage807. For example: “Please enter your age.” The caller's age is then stored808 in thefield AD_AGE209.
• Next, the caller is prompted to indicate the type of person he wishes to meet. The IVR first cues the caller for the martial status of the person he is seeking825. For example: “If you wish to meet someone who is single,press 1. If you wish to meet someone who is divorced,press 2. If you wish to meet someone who is widowed, press 3. ” The martial status sought is then stored826 in thefield AD_MARITAL_SOUGHT212. Next, the IVR cues the caller to enter the lowest age of the person he wishes to meet827. For example: “Please enter the lowest age of the person you wish to meet.” The low age sought is them stored828 in the field LOW_AGE_SOUGHT213. Finally, the IVR cues the caller to enter the highest age of the person he wishes to meet829. For example: “Please enter the highest age of the person you wish to meet.” The high age sought is them stored830 in the field HIGH_AGE_SOUGHT213. It is to be understood that the actual questions asked about the caller and the person he is seeking are merely illustrative. The actual questions could vary greatly in both number and kind.
• Next, the IVR cues the caller to record an audio greeting812. The advertiser's audio greeting is then stored to a disk file on the IVR813 and the Ad Database is updated809. Specifically, theAD_REVIEW_FLAG210 in the AD_PERSONAL_TABLE (seeFIG. 2) is set to FALSE indicating that the ad must be reviewed by an operator. In addition, a new record is created in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 3) and thefield GR_REVIEW_FLAG303 is set to FALSE to indicate that the audio greeting has not been reviewed. In the new record, thefields GR_MAILBOX_NUMBER301,GR_TYPE302,GR_FILENAME304,GR_DATE_TIME305 in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 3) are also populated to indicate the advertiser's mailbox number, the format of the audio file, the location of the audio file on the IVR, and the date and time the greeting was recorded. The field GR_TYPE is set to VOX to indicate that the audio recording is in the Dialogic VOX file format. Finally, the field GR CONVERSION FLAG is set to FALSE to indicate that the audio file must be converted from the Dialogic VOX format to create a new audio file in the RealAudio RA format for playback on the Internet.
• The IVR then cues the caller to indicate if he wishes to record ane-mail address 816. For example: “Press 1 to input an e-mail address.Press 2 to decline.” If the caller elects to leave an e-mail address, the IVR cues the caller to record hise-mail address817. The audio recording is stored to a disk file on theIVR818 and thefield AD_EMAIL_FILENAME205 in AD_PERSONAL_TABLE (seeFIG. 2) is set, indicating that an e-mail audio file exists and listing its location on the IVR.
• Next, the IVR assigns the advertiser a fivedigit mailbox number819. For example: “Your 5-digit mailbox number is 12345. ” The mailbox number is then stored820 in thefield AD_MAILBOX_NUMBER201. The IVR then cues the caller to enter a fivedigit password821. The password is stored822 in thefield AD_PASSWORD202. This allows only the caller to recall messages stored in the mailbox which the caller created.
• In addition, the IVR stores the date the advertisement is taken in thefield AD_DATE_TIME206, and updates thefield AD_ORIGIN211 to indicate that the personal advertisement originated on thetelephone823. Finally, the IVR creates an electronic mailbox for the advertiser on theIWS824, using the mailbox number stored in thefield AD_MAILBOX_NUMBER201 as the electronic mailbox address. This allows respondents to submit audio, video and photographic files in response to the advertiser's advertisement.
• Finally, the IVR queries the Ad Database to determine if there are other existing advertiser's whose profile matches that of the new advertiser831. More specifically, there is a match if the values in thefield AD_MARITAL_STATUS208 and the values in thefield AD_MARITAL_SOUGHT212 match for each advertiser, and if the value in thefield AD_AGE209 for each advertiser is within the range of values in the fields AD_LOW_AGE_SOUGHT213 and AD_HIGH_AGE_SOUGHT214 for the other advertiser. If the query finds one or more ads that match, the IVR speaks the number of matching ads to the caller832. For example: “The number of ads that match your preferences is 5. ” The caller is then given both a 900 number833 and an Internet address834 that can be used to retrieve the matches, and the call is terminated835. If no matches are found, the IVR tells the caller that no matches were found, and the call is terminated835.
• In addition, the mailbox numbers of matching advertisements are placed in a notification queue835, together with delivery information corresponding to the matching advertisement so that the existing advertisers can be notified that a new personal advertisement has come onto the system that matches the existing advertisers' profile. The delivery information includes the telephone number and e-mail address, if available, of the existing advertiser which is to be notified, together with the mailbox number of the new advertisement coming onto the system.
• Placing an Ad Through the Internet
• An exemplary operation of the system with regard to a specific Internet user placing a personal advertisement will now be treated to accomplish the process as indicated inFIG. 6. First, suppose a Internet user at terminal CT1 connects to the Internet to place a personal advertisement in response to an advertisement in XYZ newspaper. The assumed Internet user connects to the Internet and inputs a Uniform Reference Locator (URL), for example: http://www.personal_ads.com, resulting in a connection from the remote terminal CT1 to aHome Page1001 on the IWS.
• Referring toFIG. 6, from theHome Page1001 on the IWS, the Internet user selects anAd Placement Form1002. TheAd Placement Form1002 contains the following input fields corresponding to fields in the Ad Database as indicated:

  	Gender 1003	AD_GENDER 207
  	Marital Status 11004	AD_MARITAL_STATUS 208
  	Age 1005	AD_AGE 209
  	Martial Sought 1034	AD_MARTIAL_SOUGHT 212
  	Low Age Sought 1035	AD_LOW_AGE_SOUGHT 213
  	High Age Sought 1036	AD_HIGH_AGE_SOUGHT 214
  	E-mail address 1006	AD_EMAIL_ADDRESS 204
  	Phone Number 1007	AD_PHONE 203
  	Password 1008	AD_PASSWORD 202
  	Greeting Text 1014	GR_FILENAME 304.

• This process largely parallels the process of placing a personal advertisement via a telephone. The password1008 is used by the advertiser to retrieve messages and thee-mail address1006 andtelephone number1007 are used to contact the advertiser. The gender1003,age1005, andmarital status1004 fields create a demographic profile of the advertiser. The marital sought1034, low age sought1035 and high age sought1036 fields complete the advertiser's demographic profile by indicating the type of person the advertiser wishes to meet. Finally, thefield Greeting Text1014 comprises the advertiser's text personal advertisement.
• The Internet user completes theAd Placement Form1002 and presses the “Submit” button to submit her ad. The form is checked by the IWS forcompleteness1016. If the form is incomplete, the user is returned to theAd Placement Form1002. If the form is complete, the IWS updates theAd Database1017. This includes assigning the user a five digit mailbox number and storing it in thefield AD_MAILBOX_NUMBER201. In addition, the advertiser's profile, contact information, password and greeting are added to the Ad Database. Also, the advertiser's text greeting is stored to a disk file on the IWS. Next, theAD_REVIEW_FLAG 210 in the AD_PERSONAL_TABLE (seeFIG. 2) is set to FALSE indicating that the advertisement must be reviewed by anoperator10, a new record is created in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 3), and thefield GR_REVIEW_FLAG303 is set to FALSE to indicate that the text greeting has not been reviewed. In the new record, thefields GR_MAILBOX_NUMBER301,GR_TYPE302,GR_FILENAME304,GR_DATE_TIME305 in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 3) are also populated to indicate the advertiser's mailbox number, the file format, the location of the text file on the IWS, and the date and time the greeting was placed. Specifically, the field GR_TYPE is set to TEXT. Finally, the field GR_CONVERSION_FLAG is set to TRUE to indicate that the text does not need to be converted to a different format.
• Next, the IWS queries the Ad Database to determine if there are other existing advertiser's whose profile matches that of the new advertiser1018. The IWS then creates anAd Confirmation Page1020. If the query finds one or more advertisements that match, the Ad Confirmation Page displays a text message of the number of matching advertisements1027. The text message is displayed as a hyper-link which can be followed by a browser to the actual matching ads. In addition, theAd Confirmation Page1020 confirms the advertiser'smailbox number1021, and gives the advertiser instructions on how to include an audio greeting1022, photograph1023, or video clip1024 with her personal advertisement. Also, the IWS stores the date and time when the advertisement is taken in thefield AD_DATE_TIME206, and updates thefield AD_ORIGIN211 to indicate that the personal advertisement originated on theInternet1025. Finally, the IWS creates an electronic mailbox for theadvertiser1026, using the mailbox number stored in the field AD_MAILBOX_NUMBER as the electronic mail address. This allows respondents to submit audio, video and photographic files in response to the advertiser's advertisement.
• In addition, the mailbox numbers of matching ads are placed in a notification queue1038, together with delivery information corresponding to the matching advertisement so that the existing advertisers can be notified that a new personal advertisement has come onto the system that matches the existing advertisers' demographic profile. The delivery information includes the telephone number and e-mail address, if available, of the existing advertiser to be notified, together with mailbox number of the new advertisement coming onto the system. Enhancing an Internet Ad with Audio, Photograph and Video
• A more detailed explanation of how an advertiser submits an audio greeting, photograph, or video clip via CT1 will now be given. To submit an audio greeting, the advertiser first makes an audio recording using a WAV file editor and then saves the file using her five digit mailbox number as the file name1030 (seeFIG. 6), for example: 44567.wav. The advertiser then submits the audio file using e-mail to an audio greetingelectronic mailbox1031, for example: audio_greeting@personals.com. The advertiser's audio recording is then stored to a disk file on the IWS.
• In addition, a new record is created in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 3) and the Ad Database is updated1032. Specifically, thefield GR_REVIEW_FLAG303 is set to FALSE to indicate that the audio greeting has not been reviewed. Also, thefields GR_MAILBOX_NUMBER301,GR_TYPE302,GR_FILENAME304,GR_DATE_TIME305 in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 3) are populated to indicate the advertiser's mailbox number, the format of the audio file, the location of the audio file on the IWS, and the date and time the greeting was placed. The field GR_TYPE is set to WAV to indicate that the audio recording is in the Microsoft .WAV file format. Finally, the field GR_CONVERSION_FLAG is set to FALSE to indicate that the audio file must be converted from the Microsoft .WAV format to create two new audio files: one in the RealAudio RA format for playback on the Internet, and another in the Dialogic VOX format for playback via the telephone.
• To enhance a personal advertisement with a photograph, the advertiser first digitizes a photograph using a scanner or takes a photograph with a digital camera and then saves the image to a .GIF file using her five digit mailbox number as the file name1037, for example: 44567.gif. The advertiser then submits the graphic file using e-mail to an photograph electronic mailbox, for example: photo@personals.com1031.
• The advertiser's photo is stored to a disk file on the IWS and the Ad Database is updated1032. Specifically, a new record is created in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 3) and thefield GR_REVIEW_FLAG303 is set to FALSE to indicate that the graphic file has not been reviewed. In each new record, thefields GR_MAILBOX_NUMBER301,GR_TYPE302,GR_FILENAME304,GR_DATE_TIME305 in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 3) are also populated to indicate the advertiser's mailbox number, the format of the graphic file, the location of the graphic file on the IWS, and the date and time when the photograph was received. Thefield GR_TYPE302 is set to GIF to indicate that the graphic file is in the GIF file format. Finally, thefield GR CONVERSION_FLAG306 is set to TRUE to indicate that no file conversion is necessary as GIF is the graphic file format used by the IWS. If other graphic formats were accepted, they might have to be converted to a GIF format, depending on the file formats supported by the IWS. If file conversion is necessary, thefield GR_CONVERSION_FLAG306 would be set to FALSE.
• To enhance a personal advertisement with video clip, the advertiser first digitizes the video clip and then saves the image to a Microsoft AVI file using her five digit mailbox number as thefile name1036, for example: 44567.avi. Other video formats such as Apple Quicktime, or MPEG video could also be used. The advertiser then submits the graphic file using e-mail to an electronic mailbox, for example: video@personals.com1031.
• The advertiser's video clip is stored to a disk file on the IWS and the Ad Database is updated1032. Specifically, a new record is created in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 3) and thefield GR_REVIEW_FLAG303 is set to FALSE to indicate that the video file has not been reviewed. In each new record, thefields GR_MAILBOX_NUMBER301,GR_TYPE302,GR_FILENAME304,GR_DATE_TIME305 in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 3) are populated to indicate the advertiser's mailbox number, the format of the video file, the location of the video file on the IWS, and the date and time when the video was received. Specifically, thefield GR_TYPE302 is set to AVI to indicate that the video clip is in the Microsoft AVI file format. Finally, thefield GR_CONVERSION FLAG306 is set to FALSE to indicate that the video file must be converted to the VDOLive format for real time playback on the Internet.
• Reviewing and Summarizing Ads
• All new personal advertisements are reviewed by an operator at OWS OW1 to insure that their content is appropriate. Also, each greeting submitted by an advertiser, whether it be an audio greeting recorded by an advertiser via a telephone or a text greeting placed by an advertiser via the Internet, is summarized by an operator to create a short, approximately twenty word, classified text advertisement for publication in a newspaper. The twenty word limit is a function of newspaper imposed space limitations. It should be noted that space limitations, if they exist at all, may vary widely from newspaper to newspaper. In another format, text advertisements that are published in the newspaper are first placed with a live operator via a telephone, precluding the need to summarize an audio recording.
• An exemplary operation of the process of reviewing and summarizing advertisements with regard to a specific operator at OP1 will now be treated to accomplish the process as indicated inFIG. 10. The operator first queries the Ad Database to determine if there are new advertisements to review1800. Specifically, the query looks for all ads in the AD PERSONAL TABLE(seeFIG. 2) where thefield AD_REVIEW_FLAG210 is set to FALSE. If the query finds a new advertisement, the operator first reviews the advertiser'sgreeting1801 as found in the AD GREETINGS TABLE (seeFIG. 3). If the advertisement was placed via telephone, this consists of listening to the advertiser's audio greeting. If the advertisement was placed via the Internet, this consists of reading the text greeting. The operator then determines if the greeting's content is appropriate1802. If the greeting's content is inappropriate, the advertisement is deleted, the record is purged from thedatabase1803 and the operator is returned to block1800 to select another new advertisement to review. If the greeting's content is appropriate, the operator writes a twenty word summary of thegreeting1804. The operator then queries the database to determine if the advertiser recorded ane-mail address1805. If an e-mail address audio recording is found, the operator transcribes thee-mail address1806. The operator then updates theAd Database1807.
• Specifically, the advertiser's twenty word text summary is stored to a disk file on the IWS. TheAD_REVIEW_FLAG210 in the AD_PERSONAL_TABLE (seeFIG. 2) is set to TRUE indicating that the ad has been reviewed. In addition, a new record for the text summary is created in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 3) and thefield GR_REVIEW_FLAG303 is set to TRUE indicating that the record has been reviewed. In the new record, thefields GR_MAILBOX_NUMBER301,GR_TYPE302,GR_FILENAME304,GR_DATE_TIME305 in the AD_GREETINGS TABLE (seeFIG. 3) are also populated to indicate the advertiser's mailbox number, the file format, the location of the text file on the IWS, and the date and time. The field GR_TYPE is set to TEXT. Finally, thefield GR_CONVERSION_FLAG 306 is set to TRUE to indicate that the text does not need to be converted to a different format.
• The operator then returns to block1800 to select another advertisement to review in order to continue processing advertisements. If no new advertisements are found, the operator queries the Ad Database to determine if any multimedia files (audio, video, or photo) have been submitted via the Internet to enhance apersonal advertisement1808. Specifically, the query looks for all advertisements in the AD_PERSONAL_TABLE (seeFIG. 2) where thefield AD_REVIEW_FLAG210 is set to TRUE that has files in the AD_GREETING_TABLE (seeFIG. 3) where theGR_REVIEW_FLAG303 is set to FALSE. If the query finds a multimedia file, the operator first reviews thefile1809. If it is an audio file, this consists of listening to the advertiser's audio greeting. If it is a video or graphic file, this consists of viewing the file. The operator then determines if the greeting's content is appropriate1810. If the greeting's content is inappropriate, the filed is deleted and the record purged from thedatabase1811. The operator is then returned to block1808 to continue processing multimedia files. If the file's content is appropriate, the operator approves thefile1812 and updates thedatabase1813. Specifically, this consists in setting thefield GR_REVIEW_FLAG303 to TRUE to indicate that the file has been reviewed.
• If the file is an audio file, the OWS converts the file to create a new RealAudio RA file and stores the file on the IWS. The OWS also converts the file to create a Dialogic VOX file and stores the file on the IVR. For each new audio file, a new record is created in the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 2) and thefields GR_MAILBOX_NUMBER301,GR_TYPE302,GR_DATE_TIME305, andGR_FILENAME304 are populated to indicate the mailbox number of the advertiser, the format of the file, the date and time, and the location of the audio file on the IVR. Also, thefield GR_REVIEW_FLAG303 is set to TRUE to indicate that the file has been reviewed. Finally, the field GR_CONVERSION_FLAG is set to TRUE to indicate that the audio file does not need to be converted.
• If the file is a video file, the OWS converts the Microsoft AVI file to create a new VDOLive file and stores the file on the IWS. Also, a new record is created in the AD GREETINGS TABLE (seeFIG. 2) and thefields GR_MAILBOX_NUMBER301,GR_TYPE302,GR_DATE_TIME305, andGR_FILENAME304 are populated to indicate the mailbox number of the advertiser, the format of the file, the date and time, and the location of the video file on the IVR.
• Also, thefield GR_REVIEW_FLAG303 is set to TRUE to indicate that the file has been reviewed. Finally, thefield GR_CONVERSION_FLAG306 is set to TRUE to indicate that the video file does not need to be converted.
• The operator then returns to block1808 to continue processing multimedia files. If no new multimedia files are found, the session is terminated1814.
• Publishing Ads in the Newspaper
• Each week, all the twenty-word summary text advertisements from personal advertisements submitted via telephone and via the Internet are published in a newspaper along with their five digit mailbox numbers.FIG. 8 depicts personal advertisements as they would appear in the local newspaper. Icons are included in each advertisement that represent the origin of an advertisement (via telephone or via the Internet) and what additional information or multimedia, if any, is available on the Internet. For example, an advertisement placed via the telephone contains atelephone icon2001; an advertisement placed via the Internet contains acomputer icon2002. If there is additional text on the Internet, an advertisement contains an icon denotingadditional text2004. The presence of a photo or video clip is indicated respectively by a stillcamera2004 andvideo camera2005 icons.
• Responding to an Ad Through a Telephone
• An exemplary operation of the system with regard to a telephone caller responding to a personal advertisement will now be treated to accomplish the process as indicated inFIG. 9. First, suppose a telephone caller at terminal T1 places a call to respond to a personal advertisement advertised in XYZ newspaper. The assumed call involves the telephone caller actuating the buttons to input the number 1-9-0-0-7-7-7-3-3-3-3, for example. As a result, signals are provided to the PTN resulting in a connection from the remote terminal T1i to the IVR. Using standard DNIS techniques, the IVR associates the called number 1-9-0-0-7-7-7-3-3-3-3 with a specific format, for example, a voice personals response format. s Referring toFIG. 9, upon receiving a call, the IVR sets the “invalid mailbox number count” equal to zero2301. The IVR then increments the “invalid mailbox number count” by one2302 and cues the caller for amailbox number2303. Upon the caller entering a mailbox number, the IVR queries thefield AD_MAILBOX_NUMBER201 to determine if the mailbox number is valid2304. If the mailbox number is invalid, the IVR determines if the caller has exceeded the maximum number of attempts allowed2305. If the caller has exceeded the maximum number of attempts allowed, the call is terminated2306. If the maximum number of attempts allowed has not been exceeded, the IVR increments the “invalid mailbox number count” by one2302 and again cues the caller for amailbox number2303.
• If the mailbox number is valid, the IVR queries thefield AD_ORIGIN211 to determine whether the advertisement originated on the Internet or on thetelephone2307. If the advertisement originated on the telephone, the IVR plays the advertiser'saudio greeting2311. If the advertisement originated on the Internet, the IVR uses text to speech to play the advertiser's text greeting as placed on theInternet2308. The IVR then queries the AD_GREETINGS_TABLE (seeFIG. 2) to determine if the Internet advertiser also submitted anaudio greeting2309. If the query does not find anaudio greeting2310, the IVR prompts the caller to indicate if he wishes to respond to theadvertisement2312. If the query finds anaudio greeting2310, the IVR plays theaudio greeting2311. The IVR then prompts the caller to indicate if he wishes to respond to theadvertisement2312.
• If the caller elects not to respond to the advertisement, he is given the option of having the IVR find other advertisements that are similar to the one he just listened to2325. If the caller elects to respond to the advertisement, the IVR first cues him to record hisresponse2319. The IVR then stores the response to a disk file and updates theAd Database2321. Specifically, the IVR creates a new record in the AD_RESPONSE_TABLE (seeFIG. 4) and populates thefields RSP_MAILBOX_NUMBER501,RSP_DATE_TIME503,RSP_TYPE504, andRSP_FILENAME505 to indicate the mailbox number of the advertisement responded to, the date and time of the response, the format of the response, and the location of the response file on the IVR. Thefield RSP_TYPE504 is set to VOX to indicate that the audio recording is in the Dialogic VOX file format. Finally, thefield RSP_CONVERSION_FLAG506 is set to FALSE to indicate that the audio must be converted from the Dialogic VOX format to create a new audio file in the RealAudio RA format for playback on the Internet.
• The IVR also creates a new RealAudio RA file from Dialogic .VOX file and stores the RealAudio file to a disk file on the IWS. Specifically, the IVR creates a new record in the AD_RESPONSE_TABLE (seeFIG. 4) and populates thefields RSP_MAILBOX_NUMBER501,RSP_DATE_TIME503,RSP_TYPE504, andRSP_FILENAME505 to indicate the mailbox number of the advertisement responded to, the date and time of the response, the format of the response, and the location of the response file on the IVR. Thefield RSP_TYPE504 is set to RA to indicate that the audio recording is in the RealAudio RA file format. Finally, thefield RSP_CONVERSION_FLAG506 is set to TRUE for both the audiotext VOX file and the RealAudio .RA file to indicate that the audio files do not need to be converted.
• In addition, the mailbox number of the personal advertisement responded to is placed in anotification queue2322, together with delivery information corresponding to the advertisement, so that the advertiser can be notified that a response has been left for her advertisement. The delivery information includes the telephone number and e-mail address, if available, of the advertiser who is to be notified.
• The caller is then asked if he wants the IVR to automatically find other ads that are similar to the one he just responded to2325. If the caller declines this option, the call is terminated2326.
• Responding to an Ad Through the Internet
• An exemplary operation of the system with regard to a specific Internet user responding to a personal advertisement via the Internet will now be treated to accomplish the process as indicated inFIG. 10. First, suppose an advertiser at terminal CT1 connects to the Internet to respond to a personal advertisement advertised in XYZ newspaper. The assumed Internet user connects to the Internet and inputs a URL, for example: http://www.personal_ads.com, resulting in a connection from the remote terminal CT1 to a Home Page on the IWS.
• Referring toFIG. 10, from theHome Page2401 on the IWS, the Internet user selects anAd Response Form2402. The Ad Response Form instructs the Internet user to enter the five digit mailbox number of the advertisement she wishes to respond to2403. Upon the Internet user entering her mailbox number, the IWS queries the field AD_MAILBOX_NUMBER in the Ad Database to determine if the mailbox number is valid2404. If the mailbox number is invalid, the Internet user is presented with an InvalidMailbox Number Form2405.
• If the mailbox number is valid, the IWS presents the Internet user with aResults Form2406. The Results Form2406 shows the advertisement the Internet user selected. Specifically, the Results Form shows the twenty word text advertisement that appears in thenewspaper2407. In addition, the advertisement contains one or more icons that represent additional text or multimedia files (audio, video, photograph) related to the advertisement that are available on the IWS, and indicates a path to other advertisements which match the advertisement to which the Internet user is responding. These icons include anaudio icon2408 to denote the advertiser's audio greeting, a stillcamera icon2409 to denote a photograph of the advertiser, avideo camera icon2410 to denote a video clip of the advertiser, a paper icon2411 to denote the advertiser's full text greeting, if the advertisement was placed on the Internet and a “matching” icon to denote that the IWS has identified other advertisements that are similar to the one being responded to2415. It is to be understood that these icons are merely representative and that many other possibilities exist to denote the existence of text and multimedia files. By clicking on an icon, the Internet user can view or listen to the associated file. In addition, by selecting a maximizebar2412, the Internet user can expand an advertisement to full page size (seeFIG. 11). The Internet user responds to an advertisement by selecting the “Respond” button2413.
• When the Internet user selects the respond button, she is presented with anAd Response Form2414. The Internet user creates a response by completing aresponse text field2416. After completing the Ad Response Form, the Internet user submits the form by pressing the “Submit” button2422. The advertiser is then presented with aResponse Confirmation Form2423. The Response Confirmation Form gives the advertiser information on enhancing her response with an audio message, photograph, or video clip.
• The IWS then stores the response to a disk file and updates the Ad Database2424. Specifically, the IWS creates a new record in the AD_RESPONSE_TABLE (seeFIG. 4) and populates thefields RSP_MAILBOX_NUMBER501,RSP_DATE_TIME503,RSP_TYPE504, andRSP_FILENAME505 to indicate the mailbox number of the advertisement responded to, the date and time of the response, the format of the response, and the location of the response file on the IWS. Thefield RSP_TYPE504 is set to TEXT. Finally, thefield RSP_CONVERSION_FLAG506 is set to TRUE to indicate that the text does not need to be converted to a different format.
• Enhancing a Response with Audio, Photograph and Video
• As already indicated, after a text response has been submitted via the Internet, the Internet user is shown a Response Confirmation Form1501 (seeFIG. 12). The response confirmation form gives the Internet user instructions on how to enhance a response to an advertisement with audio, video, or a photograph.
• A more detailed explanation of how a respondent submits an audio response, photograph, or video clip via CT1 will now be given. To submit an audio response, the Internet user first makes an audio recording using a WAV file editor and then saves the file using her five digit mailbox number as thefile name1503, for example: 44567.wav. The Internet user then submits the audio file using e-mail to the recipient's electronic mailbox on theIWS1504, for example: 22345@personals.com1512. The Internet user's audio response is stored to a disk file on the IWS and the Ad Database is updated1505.
• Specifically, the IVR creates a new record in the AD_RESPONSE_TABLE (seeFIG. 4) and populates thefields RSP_MAILBOX_NUMBER501,RSP_DATE_TIME503,RSP_TYPE504, andRSP_FILENAME506 to indicate the mailbox number of the advertisement responded to, the date of the response, the format of the audio file, and the location of the audio file on the IVR. Thefield RSP_TYPE504 is set to WAV to indicate that the audio recording is in the Microsoft .WAV file format. Also, thefield RSP_CONVERSION_FLAG506 is set to FALSE to indicate that the audio file must be converted from the Microsoft .WAV format to create two new audio response files: one in the RealAudio RA format for playback on the Internet, and another in the Dialogic .VOX format for playback via the telephone.
• The IWS determines if conversion of audio files is needed1506, and then creates a new RealAudio RA file and Dialogic VOX file from the Microsoft .WAV file1507. The RealAudio file is stored on the IWS and the Dialogic file is stored on the IVR. The IWS also updates theAd Database1508. Specifically, for each new audio file, the IWS creates a new record in the AD_RESPONSE_TABLE (seeFIG. 4) and populates thefields RSP_MAILBOX_NUMBER501,RSP_DATE_TIME503,RSP_TYPE504, andRSP_FILENAME505 to indicate the mailbox number of the ad responded to, the date of the response, the format of the response, and the location of the response file on the IWS. Finally, thefield RSP_CONVERSION_FLAG506 is set to TRUE for both the source audio file (.WAV) and the target audio files (.VOX and RA) to indicate that the audio files do not need to be converted1509.
• To send a photograph in response to an ad, the Internet user first digitizes a photograph using a scanner or takes a photograph with a digital camera and then saves the image to a .GIF file using her five digit mailbox number as thefile name1510, for example: 44567.gif. The respondent then submits the graphic file using e-mail to the recipient's electronic mailbox, for example: 22345@personals.com1504. The respondent's photo is stored to a disk file on the IWS and the Ad Database is updated1505.
• Specifically, the IWS creates a new record in the AD_RESPONSE_TABLE (seeFIG. 4) and populates theRSP_MAILBOX_NUMBER501,RSP_DATE_TIME503,RSP_TYPE504, andRSP_FILENAME505 to indicate the mailbox number of the advertisement responded to, the date of the response, the file format of the photograph, and the location of the file on the IWS. Thefield RSP_TYPE504 is set to GIF to indicate that the graphic file is in the GIF file format. Finally, thefield RSP_CONVERSION_FLAG506 is set to TRUE to indicate that no file conversion is necessary as GIF is the graphic file format used by theIWS1506. It should be noted that file conversion may or may not be necessary depending on what file formats are supported by the IWS and IVR and in what formats the system allows users to submit files.
• To send an advertiser a video clip, the Internet user first digitizes a video clip and-then saves the image to a Microsoft AVI file using her five digit mailbox number as thefile name1510, for example: 44567.avi. Other video formats such as Apple Quicktime, or MPEG video could also be used. The respondent then submits the graphic file using e-mail to the recipient's electronic mailbox, for example: 22345@personals.com1504. The respondent's video is stored to a disk file on the IWS and the Ad Database is updated1505.
• Specifically, the IVR creates a new record in the AD_RESPONSE_TABLE (seeFIG. 4) and populates thefields RSP_MAILBOX_NUMBER501,RSP_DATE_TIME503,RSP_TYPE504, andRSP_FILENAME505 to indicate the mailbox number of the advertisement responded to, the date of the response, the file format of the video clip, and the location of the video file on the IWS. Specifically, thefield RSP_TYPE504 is set to AVI to indicate that the audio recording is in the Microsoft AVI file format. Finally, thefield RSP_CONVERSION_FLAG506 is set to FALSE to indicate that the VDOLive file must be converted to the VDOLive format for real time playback on the Internet.
• The IWS determines that the video file must be converted toVDOLive format1506. The IWS creates a new VDOLive file from the Microsoft AVI file and stores the new file to adisk file1507 on the IWS and updates theAd Database1508. A new record in the AD_RESPONSE_TABLE (seeFIG. 4) is created and the IWS populates theRSP_MAILBOX_NUMBER501,RSP_DATE_TIME503,RSP_TYPE504, andRSP_FILENAME505 fields to indicate the mailbox number of the advertisement responded to, the date and time of the response, the format of the video file, and the location of the video file on the IWS. Finally, thefield RSP_CONVERSION_FLAG506 is set to TRUE for both record formats (AVI and VDOLive) in the Ad Database to indicate that the video file(s) does not need to be converted1509.
• Retrieving Responses Through a Telephone
• An exemplary operation of the system with regard to an advertiser retrieving responses to his personal advertisement will now be treated to accomplish the process as indicated inFIG. 13. First, suppose an advertiser at terminal T1 places a call to retrieve messages left in response to his advertisement. The assumed call involves the advertiser actuating the buttons to input the number 1-9-0-0-7-7-7-4-4-4-4, for example. As a result, signals are provided to the PTN resulting in a connection from the remote terminal T1 to the IVR. Using standard DNIS techniques, the IVR associates the callednumber 1 900 777 4444 with a specific format, for example, a message retrieval format.
• Referring toFIG. 13, upon receiving a call, the IVR sets the “logon attempts” equal to zero2501. The IVR then increments the “logon attempts” by one2502 and cues the caller for amailbox number2503 andpassword2504. The IVR then queries the Ad Database to determine if the mailbox number and password are valid2505. If the entries are not valid, the IVR determines if the caller has exceeded the maximum number of logon attempts allowed2506. If the caller has exceeded the maximum number of logon attempts allowed, the call is terminated2507. If the maximum number of logon attempts allowed has not been exceeded, the IVR increments the “logon attempts” by one2502 and again cues the caller for amailbox number2503 andpassword2504.
• If the entries are valid, the IVR then queries the AD_RESPONSE_TABLE to determine if the advertiser has anyresponses messages2508. If the advertiser has no response messages, the call is terminated2507. If the IVR finds a response, the IVR plays thetext2513 and audio2514 messages from the respondent. If a response is in text form, the IVR uses text-to-speech to play the message. If there are additional responses, the caller is returned toblock2513. Otherwise, the call is terminated2507.
• Retrieving Messages Through the Internet
• An exemplary operation of the system, with regard to an advertiser retrieving her messages via the Internet will now be treated to accomplish the process as indicated inFIG. 14. First, suppose an advertiser at terminal CT1 connects to the Internet to retrieve messages. The assumed Internet user connects to the Internet and inputs a URL, for example: http://www.personal_ads.com, resulting in a connection from the remote terminal CT1 to aHome Page1701 on the IWS.
• Referring toFIG. 14, from theHome Page1701 on the IWS, the advertiser selects aMessage Retrieval Form1702. TheMessage Retrieval Form1702 instructs the advertiser to enter amailbox number1703 andpassword1704. The IWS then queries the Ad Database to determine if the mailbox number and password are valid1705. If the entries are not valid, the Internet user is presented with an Invalid Mailbox andPassword Form1706. If the entries are valid1705, the IWS queries the Ad Database1707 to find responses to the advertiser's ad.
• If there are no responses, the IWS presents the advertiser with aNo Responses Form1709. If the IWS finds one or more responses, the IWS presents the advertiser with a Personal Ad Messages Form1710. The Personal Ad Messages Form1709 shows any messages that were stored for the advertiser. Each message shows thedate1712 andtime1713 the message was received and contains one or more icons that represent the contents of the message. Atext icon1714 denotes a text message; anaudio icon1715 denotes an audio message; a stillcamera icon1716 denotes a photograph; a video camera icon1717 denotes a video clip. By clicking on an icon, the advertiser can view or listen to the associated file.
• Psychographic Profiling Via Telephone
• An exemplary operation of the system with regard to psychographic profiling will now be treated to accomplish the process as indicated inFIG. 15. First, suppose a telephone caller at terminal T1 places a call to find other advertisers whose subjective makeup and preferences, or “psychographic” profile matches his own. The assumed call involves the advertiser actuating the buttons to input the number 1-9-0-0-7-7-7-4-4-4-4, for example. As a result, signals are provided to the public telephone network resulting in a connection from the remote terminal T1 to the IVR. Using standard DNIS techniques, the IVR associates the called number 1-9-0-0-7-7-7-4-4-4-4 with a specific format, for example, a psychographic profiling format.
• Referring toFIG. 15, upon receiving a call, the IVR sets the “logon attempts” equal to zero8001. The IVR then increments the “logon attempts” by one8002 and cues the caller for amailbox number8003 andpassword8004. The IVR then queries the Ad Database to determine if the mailbox number and password are valid8005. If the entries are not valid, the IVR determines if the caller has exceeded the maximum number of logon attempts allowed8006. If the caller has exceeded the maximum number of logon attempts allowed, the call is terminated8007. If the maximum number of logon attempts allowed has not been exceeded, the IVR increments the “logon attempts” by one8002 and again cues the caller for amailbox number8003 andpassword8004.
• If the entries are valid, the caller is prompted to create his psychographic profile. The following is an illustrative embodiment of the creation of a psychographic profile. The IVR first plays two excerpts of music. The caller is asked to indicate his preference by pressing the “one” key if he prefers the first selection or the “two” key if he prefers thesecond selection8008. Next, the caller is played two recordings of environmental sounds. The caller is asked to indicate his preference by pressing the “one” key if he prefers the first sound selection or the “two” key if he prefers thesecond selection8009. The caller is then read two brief poetry selections. The caller is asked to indicate his preference by pressing the “one” key if he prefers the first selection or the “two” key if he prefers the second selection8010. Finally, the caller is referred to the newspaper where two visual images are published. The caller is asked to press the “one” key if he prefers the first visual image or the “two” key if he prefers the secondvisual image8011. The callers answers to these questions are then recorded in the Ad Database in the field AD_PSYCH_PROFILE213. It is to be understood that the these psychographic profile questions are merely illustrative. The actual questions could vary greatly in both number and kind. The callers responses are then stored in the Ad Database in thefield AD_PSYCH_PROFILE8012.
• Next, the IVR queries the Ad Database for ads of existing advertisers who have the same or a similarpsychographic profile8013. If there are no matches, the call is terminated8007. Optionally, if there are no exact matches, a feature may be included whereby the caller could then select the 5, 10, 20, etc. closest matches. On the other hand, if the IVR finds a match, the IVR plays the greeting of the matchingadvertiser8014. If the greeting is in text form, the IVR uses text to speech to play the message. The IVR then prompts the caller to indicate if he wishes to respond to the advertisement8015.
• If the caller elects not to respond to the advertisement and there are no additional matches, the call is terminated8020. If the caller elects not to respond to the advertisement and there are additional matches, the caller is returned toblock8014.
• If the caller elects to respond to the advertisement, the IVR next cues him to record hisresponse8016. The IVR then stores the response to adisk file8017 and updates theAd Database8018. Specifically, the IVR creates a new record in the AD_RESPONSE_TABLE (seeFIG. 4) and populates thefields RSP_MAILBOX_NUMBER501,RSP_DATE_TIME503,RSP_TYPE504, andRSP_FILENAME505 to indicate the mailbox number of the advertisement responded to, the date and time of the response, the format of the response, and the location of the response file on the IVR. Thefield RSP_TYPE504 is set to VOX to indicate that the audio recording is in the Dialogic VOX file format. Finally, thefield RSP_CONVERSION_FLAG506 is set to FALSE to indicate that the audio must be converted from the Dialogic VOX format to create a new audio file in the RealAudio .RA format for playback on the Internet.
• The IVR creates a new RealAudio RA file from Dialogic VOX file and stores the RealAudio file to a disk file on the IWS and updates the database. Specifically, the IVR creates a new record in the AD_RESPONSE_TABLE (seeFIG. 4) and populates thefields RSP_MAILBOX_NUMBER501,RSP DATE_TIME503,RSP_TYPE504, andRSP_FILENAME505 to indicate the mailbox number of the advertisement responded to, the date and time of the response, the format of the response, and the location of the response file on the IVR. Thefield RSP_TYPE504 is set to RA to indicate that the audio recording is in the RealAudio RA file format.
• Finally, thefield RSP_CONVERSION_FLAG506 is set to TRUE for both the audiotext VOX file and the RealAudio RA file to indicate that the audio files do not need to be converted.
• If there are additional matches, the caller is returned toblock8014. Otherwise, the call is terminated8020.
• Psychographic Profiling Via the Internet
• An exemplary operation of the system with regard to psychographic profiling via the Internet will now be treated to accomplish the process as indicated inFIG. 16. First, suppose an advertiser at terminal CT1 connects to the Internet to find existing advertisements that match her psychographic profile. The assumed advertiser connects to the Internet and inputs a Uniform Reference Locator URL, for example: http://www.personal_ads.com, resulting in a connection from the remote terminal CT1 to aHome Page9001 the Internet Web Server.
• Referring toFIG. 16., from theHome Page9001 on the Internet Web Server, the Internet user selects aMatch Form9002. TheMatch Form9002 instructs the advertiser to enter amailbox number9003 andpassword9004. Upon submitting the input, the IWS queries the Ad Database to determine if the mailbox number and password are valid9005. If the entries are not valid, the Internet user is presented with an Invalid Mailbox andPassword Form9006. If the entries are valid, the advertiser is passed to a Psychographic Profile page where she is instructed to create her psychographic profile. The advertiser first plays two experts of music by selecting the corresponding music hyperlinks. The advertiser indicates her preference by filling in the appropriate check box9008. Next, the advertiser plays two recordings of environmental sounds by selecting the sound hyperlinks. The advertiser indicates her preference by filling in the appropriate check box9009. The caller then plays two poetry selections by selecting the poetry hyperlinks. The advertiser again indicates her preference by filling in acheck box9010. Finally, the advertiser selects a preferred visual image by filling in itscorresponding check box9011. The advertiser then submits her selections, which are in turn recorded in the Ad Database in thefield AD_PSYCH_PROFILE9012. It is to be understood that these psychographic profile questions are merely illustrative. The actual questions could vary greatly in both number and kind.
• Next, the IWS queries the Ad Database to find the advertisements of other advertisers who have the same or a similarpsychographic profile9013. If the query does not find any matching ads, the advertiser is presented with a No MatchesPage9014. Optionally, if there are no exact matches, a feature may be included whereby the caller could then be presented with a page listing the 5, 10, 20, etc., closest matches. On the other hand, if the query finds one or more matching advertisers, the IWS presents the advertiser with a Psychographic Matchesform9015. This Psychographic Matches form shows the user with a brief description, including a headline of the matching advertiser or advertisers, presented one at a time. Specifically, the Psychographic Matches form shows the advertisements titles or headline of each matchingadvertiser9016. Each advertiser's title is a hyperlink that can be followed to the actual advertisement for viewing and responding.
• While the present invention has been described with reference to one or more preferred embodiments, such embodiments are merely exemplary and are not intended to be limiting or represent an exhaustive enumeration of all aspects of the invention. The scope of the invention, therefore, shall be defined solely by the following claims. Further, it will be apparent to those of skill in the art that numerous changes may be made in such details without departing from the spirit and the principles of the invention.

Claims (2)

1. A method for storing an audio file and listening to said audio file via the Internet, said method comprising:

means for queuing the audio input of data into said audio file;

means for storing said audio file in digital memory;

means for transferring said audio file to an Internet access node; and

means for controlling said transfer;

wherein said means for transferring said audio file formats said audio message for output into humanly perceivable form.

2. An apparatus for storing audio files and transferring said audio files to the Internet, said apparatus comprising:

an input queue;

a digital information storage device;

a transfer means; and

an Internet access node;

wherein said digital information storage device stores phonemes indicative of audio and wherein said transfer means formats said digital information for output in humanly perceivable form via said Internet access node.

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