Brief Description of My Invention

My invention is a new method to deliver information to large number of subscribers/users. It is especially useful if the information is a document that contains links so subscribers/users can obtain updates and/or additional information.

This method involves two steps. The first step is to broadcast the information to the subscribers. This step is best performed if the cost of broadcast is low. In my patents, I gave several examples of broadcast, such as: (1) satellite, (2) CDROM, and (3) wired connection. Many people wrong believed that satellite delivery would be expensive. I talked to satellite companies, and realized that the cost per subscriber could be very low if there were reasonable number of subscribers. Similarly the costs to master CDROM were high, but the costs per buyer could be low if there were enough buyers.

The next step is set up bi-directional communication between the subscribers (or buyers of CDROM) so the subscribers can obtain updates and/or additional information. This step can be carried out using a modem.

As mentioned in another page of this site, the patent examiner looked for “prior art” during the patent application process. One piece of prior art that came up was Web browsers and HTML (HyperText Markup Language). Browsers and HTML were available before I filed my patent applications. At that time they were used only by a small number of computer professionals in research institutions. They were introduced to the public and popularized after I filed my applications. I did not know they existed when I developed my invention. The ignorance of the Web was a blessing. It allowed me to develop a similar but fundamentally different system.

In browsers of that time a webpage would be displayed after a user either (1) entered the address of the web page or (2) clicked on a link that points to the page. On the other hand my system is a broadcast and browsing system. The user doesn’t need to do anything for a page with links to show up. The page is pushed to the user.

To put it simply, HTML and browsers at that time were designed for individual users to initiate actions to access webpages at times convenient to them. My system was designed to push a document with embedded links so a large number of users can receive the same document at about the same time.

No one else had invented a system similar to mine. Once the examiner understood the difference, the applications were allowed easily.

Click here to read what happened to the patents