Method and system for connecting people in a social network
AssigneeWallrust, Inc.
InventorsJozsef Patvarczki, Adam Kornafeld, Endre Tamas
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system and method for connecting people in a social network using information from a user's digital address book. A social network member can unilaterally friend any contact in her address book. Optionally, a member can only friend a contact and be friended by a contact if she is in that contact's address book. An central server keeps track of friended members of the social network and contacts.
Claims12
A method for automatically connecting people on a social network, each person having a device with access to a global computer network and an address book with contacts, each contact having at least one unique identifier, said method comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing a central server that maintains a list of social network members with unique member identifiers;
- (b) operatively connecting said device to said central server via said global computer network;
- (c) registering said person with said social network as a member;
- (d) friending a contact by (1) said central server accepting from said device said at least one unique identifier associated with said contact from said address book;
- (2) said central server determining if said unique identifier identifies another member;
- (3) if said unique identifier identifies another member, verifying that said member is in said contact's address book;
- (4) if said member is in said contact's address book, providing access to said member for said contact;
- and (5) if said unique identifier does not identify another member, saving said unique identifier, and upon a new member registering, determining if said unique identifier of said new member is saved, and if so, providing access to said member by said new member;
- and
- (e) upon said person registering as a member, automatically friending a predetermined subset of said contacts.
A system for automatically connecting people on a social network, each person having a device with access to a global computer network and an address book with contacts, each contact having at least one unique identifier, said system comprising:
- (a) a central server that maintains a list of social network members with unique member identifiers;
- (b) said device being connected to said central server via said global computer network;
- (c) said central server running an application, said application including instructions for registering said person with said social network as a member;
- (d) said application including instructions for friending a contact comprising the steps of (1) accepting from said device said at least one unique identifier associated with said contact from said address book;
- (2) determining if said unique identifier identifies another member;
- (3) if said unique identifier identifies another member, verifying that said member is in said contact's address book;
- (4) if said member is in said contact's address book, providing access to said member for said contact;
- and (5) if said unique identifier does not identify another member, saving said unique identifier, and upon a new member registering, determining if said unique identifier of said new member is saved, and if so, providing access to said member by said new member;
- and
- (e) said application including instructions to automatically friend a predetermined subset of said contacts upon said person registering as a member.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.