GEOGRAPHIC ADVERTISING USING A SCALABLE WIRELESS GEOCAST PROTOCOL

摘要

Geographic advertising utilizes a location of a mobile communications device to infer potential interest in a product and/or service. A scalable network protocol is utilized to provide advertisements, coupons, discounts, or the like, to mobile communications devices that are within a select geographic area or areas. A geographically addressed message is formulated based on the location of a potential customer and the content to be provided to potential customer. A message is generated at the time it is sent based on a current location of mobile communications device in the select geographic area. A protocol is utilized that replaces an IP address with a geographic location.

主权项

1. A method for transmitting a broadcast signal from a first short range forwarding zone to a geocast region within a non-contiguous second short range forwarding zone, the method comprising:
receiving in a first communications device operating within a long range forwarding zone and the second short range forwarding zone a broadcast signal from a second communications device;
wherein the second communication device operates in both the long range forwarding zone and the first short range forwarding zone;wherein the broadcast signal was transmitted from the second communications device to the first communications device through the long range forwarding zone;wherein the broadcast signal comprises an indication of an advertising message and is formatted in accordance with a location-based wireless geocast protocol which comprises a packet comprising an indication of the geocast region, determining whether to retransmit the message from the first communication device to a third communications device within the geocast region based upon the number of times the advertising message was previously received by the first communications device, the proximity of the first communications device to the third communication device; and the proximity of the first communication device to the geocast region; if it is determined that the message is to be retransmitted, then retransmitting the message within the geocast region of intended reception.