Intelligent, non-intrusive, adaptive wireless discount coupon delivery system over GPRS

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] Embodiments described herein are directed to an intelligent, non-intrusive, adaptive wireless discount coupon delivery system over the General Packet Radio Service (“GPRS”). Specifically, the system generates and delivers electronic coupons to GPRS subscribers from business entities in the subscribers' vicinity.

[0004] 2. Related Art

[0005] GPRS is a nonvoice value added service that allows information to be sent and received across a mobile telephone network. See Global System for Mobile Communication (“GSM”) 09.60:—“Digital Cellular Telecommunications System (Phase 2+); General Packet Radio Service (“GPRS”); GPRS Tunneling Protocol (“GTP”) Across the Gn and Gp Interface”, European Telecommunications Standard Institute (“ETSI”) EN 301 347 V7.5.1, released 1998). In essence, GPRS involves overlaying a packet-based air interface on an existing circuit switched network. This scheme gives a user an option to use a packet-based data service. Packet switching means that GPRS radio resources are used only when users are actually sending or receiving data. Theoretical maximum speeds of up to 171.2 kilobits per second are achievable with GPRS using all eight of its timeslots concurrently. GPRS facilitates instant connections whereby information may be sent or received immediately as the need arises, subject to radio coverage. No dial-up modem connection is necessary. High immediacy is an important feature of GPRS for time critical applications, such as remote credit card authorization. To use GPRS, users need the following: a mobile phone or terminal that supports GPRS; a subscription to a mobile telephone network that supports GPRS; knowledge of how to send and/or receive GPRS information using their specific model of mobile phone, including software and hardware configurations; and a destination in which to send or receive information through GPRS.

[0006] While wireless coupon delivery mechanisms over GPRS and other wireless technologies exist, current systems are not personalized. That is, they do not isolate subscribers' profile information from store databases. Accordingly, such delivery services cannot ensure privacy. In addition, most of the coupons today are generalized and thus not traceable. In current systems, no “preferred customer cards” are established. It is thus difficult for a pricing system to understand that a subscriber has preferred status, even if the subscriber has used coupons many times in the past.

[0007] A detailed description of embodiments of the invention will be made with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like numerals designate corresponding parts in the several figures.

[0008] FIG. 1 illustrates a wireless discount coupon delivery system over General Packet Radio Service (“GPRS”) according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0009] FIG. 2 illustrates a flowchart depicting steps involved in achieving wireless discount coupon delivery over GPRS according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0010] The following paragraphs describe an intelligent, non-intrusive, adaptive wireless discount coupon delivery system over General Packet Radio Service (“GPRS”) or any other present or future wireless technology. FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of the present invention, whereby the components of the invention are depicted. In addition, FIG. 2 depicts steps involved in achieving wireless discount coupon delivery over GPRS. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the GPRS mobile station 110 stores information about a subscriber 100 as his/her created profile. This step is depicted as step 205. The profile may include, for example, name, telephone number, business entities of interest, genre of shopping interest, credit card number, preferred customer number, and the like. The GPRS station 110 allows the subscriber 100 to make only part of his/her profile visible to a third party. That is, the subscriber 100 may choose to make his name and telephone number visible, while maintaining private the remaining profile attributes. As such, a profile is divided into two sections—public and private. The information stored in the public section is made visible to anyone. In sharp contrast, the information stored in the private profile is not visible to anyone. The subscriber 100 may choose, however, to make the information available on a per instance basis. To this extent, a small client program runs on the GPRS mobile station 110 to enable the subscriber 100 to send a “coupon service request.” When this request is transmitted, it shall be understood that the subscriber 100 has opted for sharing his/her profile information, public and if applicable, private, with the coupon generating server 150.

[0011] As shown in step 210, the GPRS mobile station 110 connects to the GPRS network 120. This step is achieved by a command such as “GPRS_ATTACH”. Meanwhile, the base station 130 is a typical GPRS base station subsystem that may contain a radio tower, an amplifier, and an antenna. Each base station 130 has a BASE_STATION_ID. For each call processed, the base station 130 passes the BASE_STATION_ID to the Serving GPRS Service Node (“SGSN”) 140.

[0012] The base station 130 then connects to the Mobile-Switching Center (“MSC”) and SGSN 140. The SGSN 140 contains a database with the BASE_STATION_ID and CELL_LOCATION. The SGSN 140, thus, determines the approximate location of the GPRS mobile station 110 based on the BASE_STATION_ID through which it is communicating. This action is shown as step 220. As shown in step 215, if a “coupon service request” is received by the SGSN 140, then the SGSN 140 forwards the request along with the subscriber 100 profile and CELL_LOCATION to the Coupon Generating Server (“CGS”) 150 over the GPRS network 120, which may be the Internet or a managed IP network. Step 225 outlines the above-described action.

[0013] The CGS 150 compares the CELL_LOCATION with a “Store Listings Database” 160 and filters the listings of stores that are within the same geographical area as the CELL_LOCATION. That is, the CGS 150 begins with a radius of 100 meters to search for store listings. It then gradually expands its search to a five-mile radius. If no results are returned after the search, it will continue to expand its search, via an appropriate algorithm, until at least several store listings are found. The CGS 150 uses all the available information about the subscriber 100 from the SGSN 140. For instance, if a profile sent by the SGSN 140 merely lists the name and telephone number, the CGS 150 will search for all the stores in the desired geographical area. If, however, the profile sent by the SGSN 140 includes the subscriber's 100 “stores of interest”, the CGS 150 will search for only those stores. If the profile further includes that which the subscriber 100 specifically desires, i.e., grocery store, electronics store, clothing store, etc., then the CGS 150 will further refine its search. In general, the function of the CGS 150 is to extract the listings of the stores that best match the subscriber's 100 profile. This step is illustrated in step 230.

[0014] As shown in step 235, once the CGS 150 identifies the store listings within the desired geographical area, the CGS 150 contacts the Offer Generating Server (“OGS”) 170 to determine if there are any “coupons” which stores may be offering. The CGS 150 conveys to the OGS 170 all the relevant information it has about the subscriber 100 profile that the subscriber 100 has agreed to make public. The CGS 150 further provides to the OGS 170 the IP address of the store pricing database 180a-c.

[0015] As illustrated by step 240, the OGS 170 may then search the subscriber's 100 name, telephone number, and other available details to determine what discounts it can offer to the subscriber 100 by contacting the various store pricing databases 180a-c. The OGS 170 does not share any subscriber 100 profile information with the store pricing databases 180a-c, unless specifically requested by the subscriber 100. Once the OGS 170 and the store pricing database 180a-cmutually agree upon an offer, the OGS 170 generates an offer number and a brief description of the offer and sends them to the CGS 150. This arrangement is described in steps 245 and 255. The OGS 170 further updates the store pricing database 180a-c, as shown in step 250. The OGS 170 uses a specialized algorithm for generating the unique, personalized offer number that uses the subscriber's 100 telephone number, time of day, store location, and the like.

[0016] The OGS 170 sends the offer number or offer numbers for multiple stores to the CGS 150, which then forwards it to the SGSN 140 and then delivers it to the subscriber's 100 GPRS mobile station 110. The CGS 150 may optionally convert the number into a bar code image that can further be sent to the GPRS mobile station 110, as shown in step 260. The GPRS mobile station 110 will then store the information.

[0017] The OGS 170 communicates with individual store pricing databases 180a-cover the GPRS network 120, which may be a managed IP or private network. Pricing information is always stored at the pricing database 180a-cand not on the OGS 170. The function of the OGS 170 is to negotiate the offer with pricing databases 180a-cof each store, generate a unique and traceable offer number for the subscriber 100 and then update the store pricing databases 180a-cwith the number. The offer could be time-sensitive and could expire automatically. Upon the expiration of the offer, the OGS 170 removes the entry from the store pricing database 180a-cand further contacts the CGS 150 informing it of the expiration. This step is illustrated in step 270. As shown in step 275, when such request is received by the CGS 150, the CGS 150 connects to the subscriber 100 GPRS mobile station 110 and informs the subscriber 100 of the expiration. The CGS 150 can delete the offer numbers or bar code images with or without subscriber 100 intervention.

[0018] When the subscriber 100 decides to redeem the offer, the subscriber 100 simply walks into the store and presents the bar code or offer number. The store pricing database 180a-ccompares the offer number with the stored number and honors the previously agreed discount upon purchase. Upon redemption, the OGS 170 receives confirmation from the store pricing database 180a-cand the OGS 170 then updates and maintains the subscriber 100 record. As illustrated in step 265, the OGS 170 may optionally tag a store name as “preferred” for the subscriber 100 and use this information when the subscriber 100 requests coupon service at a later date. From the providers of mobile services perspectives, this wireless coupon delivery service over GPRS should prove to be a revenue-generating opportunity.

[0019] Indeed, there is a need for an easy wireless coupon delivery service that maintains subscriber privacy. For example, the CGS 150 and the OGS 170 act as brokers on behalf of the subscriber 100. The CGS 150 and OGS 170 will not communicate personal information about the subscriber 100 to the pricing database of stores 180a-c. Instead, the CGS 150 uses location information to find stores within a desired geographical area. Meanwhile, the OGS 170 acts as a conduit for negotiating an offer. The OGS 170 can extract pertinent subscriber 100 information and provide only the necessary information about the subscriber 100 to the pricing database 180a-c. The OGS 170 obtains the offer and generates a unique offer number that is personalized for the subscriber 100. The concept of unique offer number generation provides an advantage over current systems, as stores can track offers, and subscribers 100 are ensured privacy. This is possible because when an offer is redeemed, only the CGS 150/OGS 170 can decode the offer number into the subscriber 100 user profile and information.

[0020] While the above description refers to particular embodiments of the present invention, it will be understood to those of ordinary skill in the art that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit thereof The accompanying claims are intended to cover any such modifications as would fall within the true scope and spirit of the present invention.

[0021] The presently disclosed embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive; the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims, rather than the foregoing description. All changes that come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.