Recommending native applications

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9280789-B2
Application number	US-201213588824-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 17, 2012
Priority date	Aug 17, 2012
Publication date	Mar 8, 2016
Grant date	Mar 8, 2016

Abstract

In one implementation, a computer-implemented method includes accessing, by a computer system, information that describes use of one or more computer-based services by a particular user from one or more computing devices that are associated with the particular user; identifying one or more native applications that are associated with the one or more services, wherein the one or more native applications are configured to be installed and executed by one or more types of mobile computing devices; determining whether to recommend the one or more native applications based on the information and one or more threshold levels of use of the one or more computer-based services; and providing, based on the determining, a recommendation that is associated with the particular user and that identifies at least one of the one or more native applications.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:
accessing, by a computer system, information that identifies visits to a web site by a particular user from one or more computing devices that are associated with the particular user;
identifying, by the computer system, a native application that is associated with the web site, wherein the native application is configured to be installed and executed by mobile computing devices and to provide services that match services that are provided by the web site;
determining, by the computer system, whether to recommend the native application based on a determination that the user has visited the web site at least a threshold number of times during a defined time period; and
providing, by the computer system based on the determining, a recommendation that identifies the native application and includes a user-selectable control to download the native application to a device associated with the user.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the information includes information that identifies one or more web browser bookmarks on the one or more computing devices.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the information includes information that indicates a web browsing history for the particular user on the one or more computing devices.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the information includes information that identifies email messages that were received or sent using the one or more computing devices.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the information includes information that identifies one or more geographic locations of the one or more computing devices.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the information is accessed for each of the one or more computing devices based on each of the one or more computing devices being either a desktop computing device or a laptop computing device.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6 , further comprising:
comparing, using the information, i) a first visit to the web site by the particular user on the one or more computing devices with ii) a second visit to the web site by the particular user on the particular mobile computing device or other mobile computing devices;
wherein, when the first visit is determined to exceed the second visit by at least a threshold amount, a particular native application from the one or more native applications that corresponds to the web site is determined to be recommended for installation on the particular mobile computing device.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more computing devices does not include the particular mobile computing device.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the determined threshold number of times during a defined time period includes a threshold frequency that the one or more computer-based services were accessed from the one or more computing devices over a period of time.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein determining whether to recommend the native application is further based on a determination that the user has used the services that are provided by the web site for a duration of that greater than a threshold duration of time.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the recommendation is provided to the particular mobile computing device.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11 , wherein the recommendation causes the particular mobile computing device to automatically install the native application.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 11 , wherein the recommendation causes the particular mobile computing device to provide a notification that identifies the native application for installation on the particular mobile computing device.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the recommendation is provided to another computer system that provides an application store service; and
wherein the recommendation causes the native application to be recommended to the particular user by the other computer system as part of the application store service.

15. A computer-implemented method comprising:
accessing, by a computer system, social network information that identifies a plurality of users who have at least a threshold acquaintance relationship on one or more social networks with a particular user;
identifying, by the computer system, a number of visits by the particular user to a web site over a particular period of time;
identifying, by the computer system, a native application that is i) installed on mobile computing devices that are associated with the plurality of users, ii) not installed on a particular mobile computing device that is associated with the particular user, and iii) provides services that match services that are provided by the web site;
determining, by the computer system, whether to recommend the native application based on a determination that the user has visited the web site at least a threshold number of times during a defined time period; and
providing, by the computer system based on the determining, a recommendation that is associated with the particular user, identifies the native application, and includes a user-selectable control to download the native application to the particular mobile computing device that is associated with the user.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15 , wherein
determining whether to recommend the native application is further based on a frequency of installation or use of the one or more native application on the mobile computing devices that are associated with the plurality users, and
the frequency of installation or use corresponds to the native application being i) installed on at least a threshold number of the mobile computing devices that are associated with the plurality of users or ii) used by the mobile computing devices that are associated with the plurality of users at least a threshold number of times over a period of time.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 16 , further comprising determining strengths of relationships between the particular user and the plurality of users;
wherein the frequency of installation or use by each of the plurality of users is weighted based on the determined strengths of relationships to produce weighted frequency of installation or use; and
wherein the determination of whether to recommend the native application is performed using the weighted frequency of installation or use.

18. A computer system for providing recommendations for native mobile applications, the system comprising:
a data collection system that is programmed to access information that identifies visits to a web site by a particular user from one or more computing devices that are associated with the particular user;
a native application discovery system that is programmed to identify a native application that are associated with the web site, wherein the native application is configured to be installed and executed by mobile computing devices and to provide services that match services that are provided by the web site;
a native application selection system that is programmed to determine whether to recommend the native application based on a determination that the user has visited the web site at least a threshold number of times during a defined time period; and
a recommendation unit that is programmed to provide, based on the determination by the native application selection system, a

Assignees

• Kirkham Stephen
• Bilinski Brandon
• Google Inc

Inventors

• Kirkham Stephen
• Bilinski Brandon

Classifications

• G06Q30/0631 Primary

  Recommending goods or services · CPC title

• G06F16/9562

  Bookmark management · CPC title

• G06F8/61

  Installation · CPC title

• G06N5/04 Primary

  Inference or reasoning models · CPC title

• H04L67/34

  involving the movement of software or configuration parameters  (network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416) · CPC title