Selecting a cost-effective bandwidth for transmitting information to an end user in a computer network
US6014701A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 3, 1997 |
| Grant date | Jan 11, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 3, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L69/329
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A cost effective method for generating and delivering scalable multimedia content targeted at specific end user(s) via client computers coupled to servers by a diverse computer network which includes local area networks (LANs) and/or wide area networks (WANs) such as the internet. In one embodiment in which the server is billed for network bandwidth consumed, upon receiving an end user request for multimedia content, the server computes the likelihood of patronage. Indicators useful for estimating the likelihood of patronage include regularity of patronage, income history, credit worthiness, age, hobbies, occupation and marital status. A cost effective bandwidth is selected for delivering the requested content. Such an arrangement is advantageous because the content is delivered to end user at a bandwidth corresponding to the probability of consummating a sale.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.