# US 10,769,702 B2 · Recommendations based upon explicit user similarity > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,769,702 B2 - Document ID: US10769702B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/980,396 - Filed: 2018-05-15 - Published: 2018-12-13 - Granted: 2020-09-08 - Earliest claimed: 2013-03-15 - Assignees: Transform Sr Brands LLC - Applicants: Transform Sr Brands LLC - Inventors: Ofer Egozi; Amit Moran; Oren Shamir - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10769702B2 ## CPC - G06Q 30/0631: {Recommending goods or services} - G06Q 10/10: Office automation; Time management - G06Q 10/42: Determination of affinities or common interests between users - G06Q 30/02: Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising - G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR ## Abstract A system and method for providing recommendations to individuals on a social network, in which the recommendations include information indicating the similarity of the individuals to one another, to aid the individuals in judging the degree to which the opinions of the others are applicable to the themselves. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method, comprising: characterizing a first user and a second user based on interaction information for the first user and the second user via a network; calculating a level of similarity of the first user and the second user based on the interaction information; providing, to the first user, a recommendation of a product or a service based on the interaction information for the first user and the second user and the similarity level; providing, to the first user, information relating to the second user so that reasons for the similarity can be reviewed by the first user; causing, via a selection of one or more graphical elements of a graphical user interface when the information relating to the second user is presented, a list of categories and their respective similarity levels to be presented; and causing, via a selection of one or more graphical elements of the graphical user interface, to be presented how one or more of the similarity levels are calculated. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the network comprises an e-commerce system. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the interaction information is based on online social network activities of the first user and the second user via the network. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the interaction information is based on implicit interactions. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein calculating the level of similarity of the first user and the second user comprises calculating an aggregated similarity level based on user interests and product preferences. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein providing the recommendation to the first user comprises providing a level of similarity of a first attribute weight vector and a second attribute weight vector. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the interaction information is based on one or more of a vote on an online survey, an addition of an item to an online shopping cart, a purchase of one or more items, and an addition of an item to a catalog. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein calculating the level of similarity of the first user and the second user comprises calculating an aggregated similarity level based on user interests and product preferences. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein calculating the level of similarity of the first user and the second user comprises calculating the aggregated similarity level using answers to online surveys. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein characterizing the first user and the second user is with respect to attributes. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method according to claim 10, wherein calculating the level of similarity of the first user and the second user comprises adjusting a plurality of weights for each of the first user and the second user based upon a number of distinct users associated with each attribute. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the list of categories and their respective similarity levels are used to determine whether opinions of the second user are useful to the first user. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, comprising normalizing the calculated similarity levels for corresponding categories into different level categories. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method according to claim 13, wherein the normalized similarity levels comprise two or more different level categories. ### Claim 15 (depends on 13) The method according to claim 13, wherein the normalized similarity levels comprise three or more different level categories. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein, although how one or more of the similarity levels are calculated is presented, the privacy of the second user is maintained. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The method according to claim 16, wherein particular purchases of the second user are not revealed. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, comprising: expressing a strength of a relationship between the first user and each of a plurality of attributes as a plurality of weights; and expressing a strength of a relationship between the second user and each of a plurality of attributes as a plurality of weights. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The method according to claim 18, comprising calculating a metric of similarity of the first user and the second user based on the weights of the first user and the weights of the second user. ### Claim 20 (depends on 19) The method according to claim 19, comprising expressing a graphical indication representing the similarity metric.