Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput – Distributed data processing – Client/server
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-26
2004-12-14
Eng, David Y. (Department: 2155)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput
Distributed data processing
Client/server
C705S026640
Reexamination Certificate
active
06832240
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method, system, and program for providing a connection from a customer computer to a merchant server implementing a merchant electronic commerce (e-commerce) web site.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many retail merchants utilize an electronic commerce (“e-commerce”) web site accessible through the Internet or World Wide Web through which customers can gather information and purchase products. One concern with customers using an e-commerce web site is that the customer's Internet service provider (ISP) may be gathering information on customer “surfing” activities at the merchant e-commerce web site. The ISP could then target Internet banner ads from competitors to customers that accessed the merchant e-commerce web site or obtain information on customer spending habits that could be used to develop a computing business. For instance, certain ISPS, such as Netzero, AltaVista Company, and Yahoo! Inc., monitor the activities of Internet users accessing their site. Netzero and AltaVista offer free Internet access in exchange for the opportunity to display banner Internet ads targeted to the Internet users based on their “surfing” habits, including their activities at e-commerce web sites. Moreover, the ISP can sell anonymous information on web pages the customer visited at the merchant e-commerce web site that could be useful to competitors of the merchant.
For these reasons, there is a need in the art to provide a technique that allows merchants to offer on-line e-commerce and prevent the customers' ISP from using information on the customers' “surfing” activity at the merchant e-commerce site in a manner that adversely affects the merchants' commercial interests.
SUMMARY OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
To overcome the limitations in the prior art described above, preferred embodiments disclose a method, system, and program for providing a connection to a merchant server implementing a merchant electronic commerce (e-commerce) web site at a customer computer. A request is received from the customer computer, through a third party internet service provider (ISP), for a web page from the merchant server made from a link within a web page from a third party server. An installation program is transmitted to the customer computer in response to the request from the customer computer. The installation program executes on the customer computer to install an access program on the customer computer that when executed by the customer computer opens a direct connection from the customer computer to the merchant server without going through the third party ISP.
In further embodiments, the access program when executed on the client computer opens a connection to a merchant ISP provided by the merchant through which the client computer accesses the merchant server.
Preferred embodiments provide a technique for setting-up an alternative connection on a customer computer when the customer computer attempts to access the merchant e-commerce web site from an external or third party server. This alternative connection allows the customer computer to connect to the merchant server directly or through a merchant operated ISP and completely bypass the third party ISP the customer normally uses. In this way, the third party ISP cannot monitor and gather information on the customer “surfing” at the merchant e-commerce web site, nor display Internet banner ads to the customer that could distract the consumer from the presentation at the merchant e-commerce web site. Preferred embodiments thus prevent third parties from tracking merchant customer Internet activities at the merchant e-commerce server and using such information against the merchant's commercial interests.
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patent: 6539424 (2003-03-01), Dutta
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patent: 6772208 (2004-08-01), Dutta
Eng David Y.
International Business Machines - Corporation
Konrad Raynes & Victor LLP
Victor David W.
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