Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput – Network computer configuring
Reexamination Certificate
1999-12-03
2004-12-28
Dharia, Rupal (Department: 2141)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput
Network computer configuring
C709S203000, C709S223000, C709S229000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06836792
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to systems and methods for providing add-on services to emails transferred via a distributed computer network. More particularly, the present invention relates to techniques for providing add-on services responsive to emails received at an email system, which techniques require little change to the email system itself.
Emails and email systems for providing computer users with email communication via a distributed computer network, such as the Internet, have been around for some time. In a typical Internet-based email system, a computer user typically employs an Internet-based email application program (e.g., Yahoo™ mail or another email front end that is accessible via a web browser) or a desktop-based email application program (e.g., Outlook™ by Microsoft Corp.), to compose an email. To direct the email to reach the intended recipient, the sender may provide a unique recipient email address, which typically includes the recipient's user name and a domain name. Together, the recipient's user name and the domain name comprise a unique email address.
Once the sender or a program (generically referred herein simply as the sender to simplify discussion) issues the command to send the composed email to the specified unique email address, the email message, with the unique recipient email address as its header, is sent via the distributed computer network, e.g., the Internet, to an email service provider that services the specified domain. Along the way, the email typically passes through a plurality of mail relay stations, using the store-and-forward paradigm. Once the email arrives at the email service provider that services the specified domain, the email system may notify the recipient that he has an email waiting to be retrieved, or the email system simply waits until the recipient logs in to check his email folder to inform him of the existence of a new email to be read.
To facilitate discussion,
FIG. 1
illustrates a simplified representation of a typical email arrangement which allows email senders
102
and
104
to transmit emails to an email recipient
106
. With reference to
FIG. 1
, email sender
102
may employ an email front end
108
, which as mentioned earlier may either be a browser-based email application program or a desktop-based email application program that has a gateway to the Internet, to compose the desired email message and to specify the unique address of the email recipient. If the email system is HTTP-based (as in the case of front end
108
A), a web-server
190
is typically employed to permit the email to be transferred in the SMTP format. If the email front-end employs the SMTP format (as in the case of front end
108
B).
After the email is composed, email sender
102
may command email front end
108
to transmit the email to email recipient
106
by issuing a send command. When email front end
108
receives the send command, it forwards the composed email message, including the recipient email address as its header, to distributed computer network
110
, which in this case is the Internet. Internet
110
is represented, as is conventional, by a cloud within this cloud that symbolically represents the Internet, the email system that provides email service for the domain specified in the email address resides. In the example of
FIG. 1
, such an email system is illustrated by an email system
130
. Since email system
130
resides in the distributed computer network, the email message typically arrives at email system
130
through a plurality of connecting legs and relay facilities. To simplify the illustration, these relay facilities, which are distributed within Internet
110
between email front end
108
and email system
130
, is illustrated by a relay cloud
132
.
In the current art, emails relayed through the Internet also typically employ a suitable email protocol to allow the emails to be efficiently relayed to the appropriate destination. One such protocol is SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol). In the example of
FIG. 1
, the transmitted email is first received at email system
130
by an SMTP server
140
. SMTP server
140
then ascertains whether the recipient is indeed one who is serviced by email system
130
. Assuming that the email recipient is associated with a domain (e.g., “abc.com”) which is serviced by email system
130
, SMTP server
140
then forwards the email message to a database facility
142
, which stores the received email message in an appropriate mail box accessible by the intended recipient of the email message.
Thereafter, email recipient
106
may employ an appropriate email front end
150
to access Internet
110
and ascertain, via web server
152
of email system
130
, whether there is an email message waiting for email recipient
106
within database facility
142
. If there is, email recipient
106
may access the email message by sending a command via email front end
150
to email system
130
to request the email message to be sent from email system
130
to email front end
150
to be displayed thereon.
If email front end
150
is implemented in a web browser that displays RTML-formatted pages or a similar protocol, an HTML converter facility
158
or an appropriate protocol converter facility may be employed to convert the email message to an appropriate format prior to sending the email message to email front end
150
via web server
152
. The arrangement of
FIG. 1
is conventional and may include other implementational details and variations, which are well known to those in the business of providing email service and will not be discussed in great detail here for brevity's sake.
As Internet revenue models evolve, email service has become one of the loss leader services that many portals or web businesses are expected to provide. In other words, many users expect free email service from their portals as a condition for their patronage. As a result, many providers of email systems have been forced to turn to advertisement revenue to operate and maintain their email systems.
FIG. 2
illustrates a simplified exemplary prior art technique for providing advertisement-based emails using the basic architecture of FIG.
1
. In the example of
FIG. 2
, an advertisement insertion module
170
interfaces with HTML converter facility
158
to insert an appropriate advertisement banner into the email message prior to sending the email message to email front end
150
. In this manner, the emails are received by the recipients with advertisements inserted by the email system. This arrangement results in payment from the advertisers to the email system operator, which provides a revenue base for the provider of email system
130
to operate and maintain the email system.
As the Internet evolves further, email users begin to demand even more sophisticated services from their email system providers. By way of example, many email users nowadays demand the ability to redirect their emails to other domains to allow all their emails to be centralized at one email system. Another service that many email users also desire nowadays is auto-reply, wherein the email system automatically notifies the sender with a preselected message (e.g., “I am away for two weeks,” “I got your message and I will get back in touch with you shortly,” or the like). Some email users may desire to receive their emails in the form of voice or facsimile while they are on the road and may accordingly require these capabilities from their email system. Other security-related services, such as anti-spamming services, virus-scanning services, are also popular on the list of desirable features among email users.
For many email system providers, these demands represent a significant challenge. For one, most email services are provided to email users free of charge, which makes it difficult for email system providers to find the necessary financial resources to update their email systems to provide such services. More significantly, given the speed at which products and servi
Beyer Weaver & Thomas LLP
Dharia Rupal
Mirza Adnan
Trend Micro Incorporated
LandOfFree
Techniques for providing add-on services for an email system does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Techniques for providing add-on services for an email system, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Techniques for providing add-on services for an email system will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3301081