Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput – Computer-to-computer session/connection establishing – Network resources access controlling
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-19
2002-08-20
Maung, Zarni (Department: 2154)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput
Computer-to-computer session/connection establishing
Network resources access controlling
C709S217000, C705S053000, C705S040000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06438601
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a telecommunications system, and more particularly to using the 900-service telecommunications infrastructure to provide single-use and short term access to fee for access Internet sites.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Some Internet Web sites, such as those for reference materials, e.g., Physicians Desk Reference, stock and investments news letters, e.g., TheStreet.com, and some newspapers, e.g., the Wall Street Journal, are intended to produce revenue in the form of charges for access to the site. Today such access charges are typically collected through a subscription process, whereby the person desiring access completes a registration form, provides a credit card number to which the access price for some period of time is charged, and receives in return an identification number/password that can be used to access the Web site. While this subscription system for charging for access is workable for individuals who expect to have continuing needs for access to a particular web site, it has certain drawbacks.
Granting access by subscription only is analogous to requiring individuals to take out a year's subscription to a magazine rather than paying the single copy price to satisfy their interest in a particular article that has attracted their attention. The requirement to subscribe to a particular web site similarly creates a barrier to visitation by casual users who would be willing to pay for particular items of interest, but cannot justify the cost of subscribing to the service as the cost for acquisition for that one item of information. Just as a subscription requirement would eliminate newsstand sales of magazines, the subscription mechanism for web sites puts off a whole body of potential users who might use the site as a source of a particular article, piece of information or graphic.
Further, the use of a credit card as the medium of payment of small charges is not cost-effective. Even if the subscription mechanism were set up for separate prices of one-time/limited time entry to web sites, the reasonable prices that might be charged for such access would, in general, be too small for credit card handling. From the users' point of view, for example, there is a very large psychological barrier to giving out the information of a credit card with a $10,000 limit to an unfamiliar destination to cover a fifty cent fee. From the point of view of the web site owner, the handling overhead for hundreds of small charges is certainly daunting, if not prohibitive.
It is therefore highly desirable to have an alternate system for collecting fees for access to web sites that would circumvent the inherent limitations in the subscription mechanism. Such a system would both expand the potential market for web sites that are currently accessed only by subscription to include what might be a very large body of casual users who are willing to pay smaller prices for one-time access, and open up a whole new market of “admission price” web sites, which are accessed by paying a small access fee for each visit to the site.
One such solution, U.S. Pat. No. 5,737,414 entitled “900 NUMBER BILLING AND COLLECTION SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ON-LINE COMPUTER SERVICES” proposes several methods to enable an on-line service provider to collect revenue from a 900-toll billing network though an access management computer. Several conceptual methods are provided, but these methods do not necessarily represent the optimum methods of connectivity for the existing 900-service infrastructure.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The method and system for utilizing 900 service for single use and short term access to internet subscription services of the present invention overcomes the limitations of the related art discussed above.
In accordance with one aspect, the present invention is directed to a method for using an existing caller pays service telecommunications infrastructure to provide single use and short term access to fee for access Internet web sites. The method comprising registering one or more fee for access Internet web sites with an access code handling system to generate and communicate user ID and password pairs to be used to validate payment for access to each fee for access Internet web site, provisioning one or more caller pays numbers for each registered fee for access Internet web site, and registering each provisioned number with one or more intelligent network service switches to which the provisioned numbers would be routed, routing any user originated calls by a user who desires to access the one or more fee for access Internet sites to both an automated voice response unit and a caller pays service billing system, providing the user with a session user ID via a display generated by the fee for access Internet web site, communicating via the caller pays telecommunications infrastructure a password associated with the session user ID and service option for the registered fee for access Internet web site via the automated voice response unit, and billing the user for the selected option with the caller pays service billing network.
In accordance with another aspect, the present invention is directed to a system for implementing an existing caller pays telecommunications infrastructure to provide single use and short term access to fee for access Internet web sites. The system comprises an access code handling system for generating and communicating user ID and password pairs to be used to validate payment for access to each fee for access Internet web site, a provisioning system for registering one or more caller pays call numbers for each fee for access Internet web site and registering each provisioned number within or more intelligent network service switches to which the provisioned numbers would be routed, a public switched network for routing any user originated calls by a user who desires to access the one or more fee for access Internet web sites to both an automated voice response unit and a caller pays billing system via the one or more intelligent network service switches, the fee for access Internet web site providing a web-based communication to the user enabling user selection of the one or more service options and generating a user ID in accordance with the user selection, the user communicating the user ID to the access code handling system via the automated voice response unit and, a network switch initiating billing for the user selection via the caller pays service billing system, and the access code handling system generating an associated password according to the password assignment protocol, wherein the voice response unit further communicates to the user, in response to receipt of a session user ID, an associated password in accordance with the protocol for the registered fee for access Internet web site, and the access code handling system communicates the user ID, the password and the service option to the registered fee for access Internet web site, and a verification device for verifying the session user ID and password provided to the user and the user ID and password communicated to the fee for access Internet web site, whereby the fee for access Internet web site enabling access to web site content upon verification.
In accordance with another aspect, the present invention is directed to a method for utilizing an access code handling system to control a user's access to digital data provided by an on-line server over a data network, wherein a billing system separate from the on-line server charges the user for access to the digital data. The method comprising the steps of the user receiving from the on-line server a user ID code, the access code handling system receiving, from the billing system, a message indicating that the user has requested access to digital data via the user ID code, the access code handling system communicating a password associated with the user ID code to a voice response unit, the voice response unit communicating to the user the pass
Lin Wen Tai
Maung Zarni
WorldCom, Inc.
LandOfFree
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