Facebook, Inc.

Robert Kang Xing Jin

Ning Li

Kent Schoen

Jessica Gronski

Eric Michel Giovanola

Jordan Christopher Walke

Philip Zigoris

Mark E Zuckerberg

Andrew Garrod Bosworth

Adam Edward D'Angelo

Justin M Rosenstein

Yun-Fang Juan

Chamath M Palihapitiya

Timothy A Kendall

Yishan Wong

Jared S Morgenstern

Neville S Bowers

Matthew R Cohler

Nan Gao

Phillip Anastasios Zigoris

A method includes monitoring an activity stream to identify actions that match stored sponsored story specifications, for providing one or more sponsored stories to a viewing user. The sponsored story specifications include a visual specification for the sponsored story, and matched sponsored stories are ranked for a viewing user. Users can set privacy preferences related to sponsored stories. The ranking and privacy settings contribute to which sponsored stories are provided for display to the viewing user.

Engagement interface advertising in a social network

Sponsored story creation using inferential targeting

A social networking website logs information about actions taken by members of the website. For a particular member of the website, the website generates socially relevant ads for the member based on the actions logged for other members on the website to whom the member is connected (i.e., the member's online friends). The advertiser associated with the social ad may compensate the social networking website for publishing the ad on the website. When presenting a member with a social ad, the website may optimize advertising revenue by selecting an ad from the received ads that will maximize the expected value of the social ad. The expected value may be computed according to a function that includes the member's affinity for the ad content and the bid amount. The technique is also applied for providing socially relevant information off the social networking website.

Social advertisements and other informational messages on a social networking website, and advertising model for same

In one embodiment, a method includes receiving a first selection of an entity associated with a user of a social-networking system; receiving a second selection of a type of user interaction with the entity; and providing the first and second selections for use in a sponsored-story specification. The use of the first and second selections in the sponsored-story specification facilitate entries in an organic activity stream of the social-networking system that match the sponsored-story specification being provided for display in pre-determined areas of web pages.

Sponsored-stories-unit creation from organic activity stream

In one embodiment, a method includes receiving a bid to display in a predetermined area of a web page an organic-activity-stream entry matching particular story characteristics. The bid includes a bid amount and one or more targeting criteria. The method includes, n response to identifying an organic-activity-stream entry as matching the story characteristics, providing for display the organic-activity-stream entry in a predetermined area of a web page based at least in part on the bid amount and targeting criteria.

In one embodiment, a method includes receiving sponsor specifications designating story characteristics; monitoring an organic activity stream for entries matching the story characteristics; and, in response to identifying an entry as matching the story characteristics, providing for display the entry in a predetermined area of a web page.

Growing community of inventors

Palo Alto, CA, United States of America

Robert Kang Xing Jin