Providing and receiving network access

摘要

The disclosure concerns the expansion of wireless network access beyond networks for which a user is registered. A method of facilitating connection to a wireless network access point includes receiving a request from a user device for access information-required to connect to a network through an access point. The network being a network for which the user is not registered, determining user contribution account acceptability for the access point, and providing the access information to the user if the user contribution account is acceptable for said access point. In this manner, users who are willing to share network access to networks for which they are registered will be able to access networks for which they are not registered.

主权项

1. A method of facilitating connection to a wireless network access point comprising:
storing, by a server, access point information for one or more wireless network access points, each of which enables a user device to connect to a network; receiving, by the server, a request from a user device for the access point information; determining, at the server, user contribution account acceptability for a user associated with the user device, based, at least in part, on an amount of bandwidth provided by a wireless network access point associated with the user to one or more other user devices to connect to the network, wherein one or more other users of the one or more other user devices are associated with the one or more wireless network access points; wherein determining user contribution account acceptability includes verifying an acceptable user contribution account balance; wherein additions to a user contribution account balance are weighted proportional to access point bandwidth allocation provided by the user to other users; and providing the access point information to the user device based at least in part on the determination.