The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Oct. 28, 2008
Filed:
Jun. 13, 2002
Ketan Shah, San Jose, CA (US);
Ketan Shah, San Jose, CA (US);
AOL LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, Dulles, VA (US);
Abstract
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for connecting wish lists to users, thus making wish lists accessible to such user attributes as buddy lists, or the equivalent. The invention attaches a wish list to an instant messaging name and therefore makes it available to all persons on the user's buddy list. In a further embodiment of the invention, the wish list is attached to an account, such as a wallet. As a result, various conveniences are provided. For example, a member of the user's buddy list can give a gift to the user from the wish list; a group can contribute incrementally to the giving of a gift to the user; an individual can add incremental amounts to his or her wish list to pay for an item on time (as a type of layaway); and relatives and friends can give gifts that they know will be appreciated because the gifts are on the user's wish list.