Consumer controlled tracking of ad interactions leading to purchases
AssigneeAbsolute Software Corporation
InventorsJohn Livingston, Damien Loveland
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system is disclosed that records a user's interactions with online ads, and that detects associations between these interactions and subsequent purchases (such as in-store purchases). The system may include a mobile application that tracks the ad interactions and purchase events. Users control whether the associations between the purchases and ad interactions are divulged to an ad serving entity or any other entity. In return for divulging the associations, the user may be offered compensation. The system enables the ad serving entity to bill the advertiser on a pay-per-purchase basis, and enables advertisers to obtain clear and specific performance indicators for their ads.
Claims24
A computer-implemented method, comprising:
- maintaining, in computer storage, a record of ads accessed by a user on one or more devices;
- detecting a purchase made using one of said devices;
- determining, based on the record of accessed ads, whether the purchase is associated with an ad accessed on the one or more devices;
- and
- presenting the user of the one or more devices, via a user interface, with an option to disclose, to an entity associated with the ad, information that associates the purchase with a user access to the ad.
A system for tracking purchases related to previously viewed ads, comprising:
- a computer storage system that stores a history of user interactions with ads;
- a module that detects when a payment has occurred;
- a module that detects an association between the payment and an ad represented in the history of user interactions;
- a module configured to receive a user's permission to divulge said association;
- and
- a module configured to charge an advertiser corresponding to the ad after said permission has been received and said association has been divulged.
A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon a mobile application, said mobile application comprising executable program code that directs a mobile device to perform a process that comprises:
- maintaining a record of ads accessed on the mobile device;
- detecting a purchase made with the mobile device;
- determining whether, based on the record of accessed ads, the purchase is associated with an ad accessed on the mobile device;
- and
- presenting a user of the mobile device with an option to disclose, to an entity associated with the ad, information that associates the purchase with a user access to the ad.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.