EP0913789A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Pre-paid links to networks servers
Assignee: Sun Microsystems Inc
•
Filing: 1998-10-28
•
Granted: —
•
Expires: 2018-10-28
Abstract
Abstract The author or sponsor of a document on a server may provide a hyperlink to content that requires payment to view or download. The author or sponsor can prepay for access to that content in a manner that is transparent to the end user. In one approach the author's document is generated dynamically when a user requests it. During the generation process a payment token is inserted into hyperlinks to payment-required content to which the author or sponsor desires to permit free access. When the user selects a pre-paid hyperlink the remote server attempts to validate the payment token. If the token is valid then the content is provided to the end user and the author or sponsor is billed. If the token is not valid an error message is displayed. <IMAGE>
Inventors
- 👤 Jakob Neilsen
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 16:31
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06Q; G06Q20/00; G06Q20/08; G06Q20/12; G06Q20/123; G06Q20/1235; G06Q20/22; G06Q20/28
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 20
Claim 1
Independent Claim
71 words
Apparatus for permitting access to services for
which a payment is required, comprising: a. a network port; and b. a computer, connected to said network port,
configured to generate a document having a link to services on
a network for which an access payment is required and to
associate payment information with said link by which access
to said services may be obtained without payment by a user
following said link.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
22 words
Apparatus of claim 1 in which said document is
generated using one of a Java servelet and a common gateway
interface program.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
22 words
Apparatus of claim 1 in which said payment
information includes one or more of a billing account
identifier and a payment token.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
22 words
Apparatus of claim 3 in which said token
comprises one or more of a token number, an expiration date
and expiration time.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
15 words
Apparatus of claim 3 in which at least part of
said payment information is encrypted.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
11 words
Apparatus of claim 1 in which said services
includes providing information.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
55 words
Apparatus for permitting access to services for
which a payment is required, comprising: a. a network port; and b. a computer, connected to said network port,
configured to provide access to services under control of said
computer upon receipt of payment therefore and to extract
payment information from a connect received over said network
port.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
11 words
Apparatus of claim 7 in which said computer
manages a database.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
20 words
Apparatus of claim 8 in which said database
contains account information about one or more customers
authorized to provide pre-payment.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
16 words
Apparatus of claim 9 in which said database
contains information about tokens which have been honored.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
18 words
Apparatus of claim 7 in which said computer is
configured to check whether said payment information is valid.
Claim 12
Independent Claim
49 words
A method of pre-paying for services accessed
over a computer, comprising the steps of: a. providing an element for performing the step of
generating a document containing a link to a service provider;
and b. providing an element for performing the step of
associating payment information with said link.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
15 words
The method of claim 12 in which said service
provider provides information for a fee.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
38 words
A method of providing a service for a fee,
comprising the steps of: a. receiving an connect request containing payment
information over a network; and b. providing the service once said payment
information is determined to be valid.
Claim 15
Independent Claim
66 words
A system for providing a service for a fee,
comprising: a. a network; b. at least one computer connected to said network
and configured to generate a connect request containing
payment information; and c. at least one server connected to said network
configured to extract payment information received with a
connect request and to provide a service when said payment
information is determined to be valid.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
12 words
The system of claim 15 in which said service
includes providing information.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
39 words
A computer program product, comprising: a memory medium; and a computer program stored on said memory medium, said
program comprising instructions for generating a document
containing a link to a network address and associating payment
information with said link.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
45 words
A computer program product, comprising: a memory medium; and a computer program stored on said memory medium, said
program comprising instructions for receiving an connect
request containing payment information over a network and
providing a service once said payment information is
determined to be valid.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
32 words
A computer controlling product, comprising: a memory medium; and a document stored on said memory medium, said
document containing a link for connecting to a remote computer
said link containing payment information.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
35 words
A computer controlling product, comprising: a memory medium; and a document template stored on said memory medium,
said document template containing a slot for identifying
information for connecting to a remote computer and payment
information.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
Maintenance schedule is calculated for granted US utility patents.