Method and handheld electronic device for triggering advertising on a display screen

1. A method of triggering the display of content on a display screen of a handheld electronic device, the method comprising:

monitoring for the occurrence of trigger conditions comprising one or more of:

changes in orientation of the handheld electronic device, changes in a screen orientation of a graphical user interface (GUI) displayed on the display screen, or monitoring for the sliding out of a keyboard on the handheld electronic device which is slide-ably connected to a housing which houses the display screen;

reproducing content on the handheld electronic device in response to detection of one of the trigger conditions, the content selected in accordance with content parameters and information from a social networking site about a user associated with the handheld electronic device, the content comprising at least one favorite personal media from a personal media library associated with the user and the at least one favorite personal media designated as a favorite by the user; and

implementing a locked mode on the handheld electronic device in response to the reproducing of the content, the locked mode limiting inputs accepted by user input devices of the handheld electronic device.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein reproducing content comprises displaying an advertisement on the display screen of the handheld electronic device in response to the detection of one of the trigger conditions.

3. The method of claim 2 , further comprising:

monitoring after the locked mode is implemented for a predetermined termination condition; and

releasing the locked mode in response to detection of the predetermined termination condition.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the predetermined termination condition is the expiry of a predetermined duration from the display of the advertisement on the display screen.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the predetermined duration is a duration of the advertisement.

6. The method of claim 3 , wherein the display screen is a touchscreen display screen having a touch-sensitive input surface, and the predetermined termination condition comprises detection of a touch event at a specific area of the touch-sensitive input surface.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the specific area of the touch-sensitive input surface is a predetermined area or a randomly generated area determined when the advertisement is displayed on the display screen.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the personal media library is stored on the handheld electronic device or a server.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one favorite personal media is identified as the favorite by its location in a media database.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one favorite personal media is identified as the favorite by a favorite flag associated with the at least one favorite personal media.

11. The method of claim 2 , wherein the trigger condition is input to commence playback of media in a media player mode of the handheld electronic device, input to commence a text entry mode of the handheld electronic device, or a change in the screen orientation of the GUI from one of a portrait screen orientation and landscape screen orientation to the other of the portrait screen orientation and landscape screen orientation.

12. The method of claim 2 , wherein the trigger condition is a change in orientation of the handheld electronic device, the method further comprising determining the orientation of the handheld electronic device.

13. The method of claim 2 , wherein the handheld electronic device is a mobile communication device configured to connect to a wireless data network, the method further comprising:

requesting the advertisement for display from an advertising server over the wireless data network; and

receiving the advertisement from the advertising server over the wireless data network, the advertisement being selected by the advertising server based on predetermined advertising parameters.

14. The method of claim 2 , further comprising:

storing at least a number of advertisements displayed on the handheld electronic device;

calculating a reward in accordance with the number of advertisements displayed on the handheld electronic device; and

posting a credit to a financial reward system in accordance with the calculated reward.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein a time parameter comprising a duration of the advertisement or a delay associated with each advertisement is stored in association with the number of advertisements displayed, the reward being calculated in accordance with the number of advertisements displayed on the handheld electronic device and the time parameter.

16. A handheld electronic device, comprising:

a controller for controlling the operation of the device;

one or more input devices connected to the controller;

a display screen connected to the controller;

a housing which houses the display screen; and

the controller being configured to: (i) monitor for the occurrence of trigger conditions comprising one or more of:

changes in orientation of the handheld electronic device, changes in a screen orientation of a graphical user interface (GUI) displayed on the display screen, or sliding out of a keyboard on the handheld electronic device which is slide-ably connected to the housing; and (ii) reproduce content on the handheld electronic device in response to detection of one of the trigger conditions, wherein the content was is selected in accordance with content parameters and information from a social networking site about a user associated with the handheld electronic device, and wherein the content comprises at least one favorite personal media from a personal media library associated with the user and the at least one favorite personal media designated as a favorite by the user.

17. The handheld electronic device of claim 16 , wherein the at least one favorite personal media comprises an image an audio or a video.

18. The handheld electronic device of claim 17 , wherein the controller is configured to:

(iii) implement a locked mode on the handheld electronic device in response to the reproducing of the content, the locked mode limiting inputs accepted by the one or more user input devices, (iv) monitor after the locked mode is implemented for a predetermined termination condition; and (v) release the locked mode in response to detection of the predetermined termination condition.

19. The handheld electronic device of claim 18 , wherein the display screen comprises a touchscreen display connected to the controller and having a touch-sensitive input surface which generates a touch signal in response to external force applied to the touch-sensitive input surface, wherein the touch signal is indicative of a location on the touch-sensitive input surface to which the external force was applied; wherein the predetermined termination condition is the detection of a touch event at a specific area of the touch-sensitive input surface.

20. The handheld electronic device of claim 16 , further comprising a position detection subsystem comprising a positional sensor connected to the controller which generates positional signals representing an orientation of the device; wherein the trigger condition is a change in orientation of the handheld electronic device; the controller being further configured to: determine the orientation of the handheld electronic device.