Information aggregation and synthesization system

A computer for notifying a third party of a demand for information by users of a network, the computer comprising:

• a memory having program instructions;
• and
• a processor, responsive to the program instructions, configured to:
• receive a user request to locate particular information on a network accessible datastore;
• determine whether the particular information is present on the datastore;
• collect data reflecting a number of requests for the particular information when the particular information is determined to be absent from the datastore;
• and
• forward the collected data to the third party to notify the third party of a demand for the particular information.

A computer-readable medium containing instructions for controlling a data processing system to perform a method for notifying a third party of a demand for information by users of a network, the method comprising the steps of:

• receiving a user request to locate particular information on a network accessible datastore;
• determining whether the particular information is present on the datastore;
• collecting data reflecting a number of requests for the particular information when the particular information is determined to be absent from the datastore;
• and
• forwarding the collected data to the third party to notify the third party of a demand for the particular information.

An apparatus for notifying a third party of a demand for information by users of a network, the apparatus comprising:

• means for receiving a user request to locate particular information on a network accessible datastore;
• means for determining whether the particular information is present on the datastore;
• means for collecting data reflecting a number of requests for the particular information when the particular information is determined to be absent from the datastore;
• and
• means for forwarding the collected data to the third party to notify the third party of a demand for the particular information.