Location-based services
View Patent ↗Provided herein are methods and systems relating to location-based services such as social networking, providing demographic information, tracking mobile devices, providing business information, providing an adaptable user interface, remotely effecting a change on a portable electronic device, providing a geofence, outputting location-based information on a mobile device, varying transmissions to and from a mobile device, providing location-based alerts, verifying transactions and tailoring information to the behavior of a user.
1. A method of providing a location-based service, comprising:
providing a user interface that enables a user of a portable electronic device to define a geofence at a user-selected distance about a user-selected location, the geofence graphically indicated by an outline on a map displayed in the user interface;
determining a current location of the portable electronic device using a location facility of the portable electronic device;
passing the current location to an application server that monitors the current location of the portable electronic device with respect to the geofence; and
in response to the application server determining that the current location of the portable electronic device is within the geofence, transmitting instructions to the portable electronic device to cause said device to offer a service to the user that is not offered when the user is external to the geofence.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the user interface is provided by a computer separate from the portable electronic device, wherein the user defines the geofence on a screen of the computer using a pointing device.
3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising allowing a user to define more than one geofence.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the user interface is a browser.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the geofence is associated with a moving location that is associated with a portable electronic device.
6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising taking an action based on an interaction of an entity with the geofence.
7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the action is sending an alert when a portable electronic device crosses the geofence.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the portable electronic device is a mobile phone, and the service offered to the user when within the geofence is differing pricing for telephone calls than when external to the geofence.
9. The method of claim 1 wherein the service offered to the user when within the geofence is availability of a particular software application.
10. The method of claim 9 wherein the particular software application is a game.
11. The method of claim 1 wherein the service offered to the user when within the geofence is availability of a coupon.
12. The method of claim 1 wherein the portable electronic device is capable of data communications, and the service offered to the user when within the geofence is differing pricing for transmission or receipt of data than when external to the geofence.
13. The method of claim 1 wherein the geofence has a user-defined shape other than circular or spherical.
14. The method of claim 1 wherein the user interface is provided on a display of the portable electronic device.
15. A system for providing a location-based service, comprising:
a user interface that enables a user of a portable electronic device to define a geofence at a user-selected distance about a user-selected location, the geofence graphically indicated by an outline on a map displayed in the user interface;
a location facility of the portable electronic device operable to determine the current location of the portable electronic device; and
an application server in communicating relation with the portable electronic device and operable to monitor the current location of the portable electronic device with respect to the geofence and, in response to the current location being within the geofence, to transmit instructions to the portable electronic device to cause the portable electronic device to offer a service to the user that is not offered when the user is external to the geofence.
16. The system of claim 15 , wherein the user interface is provided by a computer separate from the portable electronic device, wherein the user defines the geofence on a screen of the computer using a pointing device.
17. The system of claim 15 , wherein the user interface allows a user to define more than one geofence.
18. The system of claim 15 , wherein the user interface is a browser.
19. The system of claim 15 , wherein the geofence is associated with a moving location that is associated with a portable electronic device.
20. The system of claim 15 , further comprising a facility for taking an action based on an interaction of an entity with the geofence.
21. The system of claim 19 , wherein the action is sending an alert when a portable electronic device enters the geofence.
22. The system of claim 15 , wherein the portable electronic device is a mobile phone and the service offered to the user when within the geofence is differing pricing for telephone calls than when external to the geofence.
23. The system of claim 15 , wherein the service offered to the user when within the geofence is availability of a particular software application.
24. The method of claim 23 wherein the particular software application is a game.
25. The system of claim 15 wherein the service offered to the user when within the geofence is availability of a coupon.
26. The system of claim 15 wherein the portable electronic device is capable of data communications, and the service offered to the user when within the geofence is differing pricing for transmission or receipt of data than when external to the geofence.
27. The system of claim 15 wherein the geofence has a user-defined shape other than circular or spherical.
28. The system of claim 15 wherein the user interface is provided on a display of the portable electronic device.
29. A method of providing a location-based service, comprising:
providing a user interface on a portable electronic device of a user;
defining, by the user, a geofence about a user-selected location on a map displayed in the user interface on the portable electronic device, the geofence, once defined, graphically indicated by an outline displayed on the map in the user interface;
subsequent to the defining, determining a current location of the portable electronic device, and thereby the user, using a location facility of the portable electronic device;
monitoring the current location of the portable electronic device with respect to the geofence; and
in response to determining that the current location of the portable electronic device is within the geofence, causing the portable electronic device to offer a service to the user that is not offered when the user is external to the geofence.
30. The method of claim 29 wherein the geofence has a closed-polygonal shape.
31. The method of claim 30 wherein the shape of the closed-polygonal shape is user-defined.