Abstract: Techniques are described for facilitating interactions between computing systems, such as by performing transactions between parties that are automatically authorized via a third-party transaction authorization system. In some situations, the transactions are programmatic transactions involving the use of fee-based Web services by executing application programs, with the transaction authorization system authorizing and/or providing payments in accordance with private authorization instructions previously specified by the parties. The authorization instructions may include predefined instruction rule sets that regulate conditions under which a potential transaction can be authorized, with the instruction rule sets each referenced by an associated reference token.

Abstract: An online data storage arrangement allows online users to share data with other users having online connectivity. User digital lockers may include a number user created content objects and view objects. A content object is a link to one or more data objects that a user may wish to share with others. Such a content object may specify a plurality of permissions that manage what a user can or cannot do with the content object. A content object's permissions may dictate use of the content object when it is shared with other users. Or, a content object's permissions may dictate use of a copied version of the content object. A view object is a medium that may be used to share content objects. A user may create a view object that references or includes one or more content objects. Users having authorized access to the view object may use the referenced/included content objects.

Abstract: A system and method for managing access rights of media files communicated over a network. In a preferred embodiment, the present invention allows a user to obtain rights to access media files of selected content, which may include a song, album, movie, etc. Once the user obtains rights to access media files of the selected content, information that identifies the user and information that describes the selected content is communicated to a plurality of content providers. By receiving information that identifies the user and information that describes the selected content, each content provider can verify independently that the user is authorized to access one or more files that contain the selected content. The user may then directly contact any one of many service providers to access media files that contain the selected content.

Abstract: A web server system regulates its own load level by dynamically varying its responses to requests for like web pages. The responses are preferably varied at least in-part using variables that directly or indirectly specify the type and/or quantity of processing to be performed in responding to requests for dynamically-generated web pages. The type of response generated by the web server system is preferably selected based upon one or more of the following: (a) the current load level of the server system as a whole, (b) the current load levels of specific computing devices or components invoked by the request, and (c) a profile of the user who requests the page.

Abstract: An aggregation service acts as an intermediary between a template (or template processor) and a set of two or more services that supply data for generating web pages or other types of content items. The aggregation service stores dependency information in connection with the set of services, and uses this information to control the order and timing with which service requests are made on behalf of the template/template processor. The aggregation service aggregates the retrieved service data for incorporation into the template, and in some cases, formats the service data for display.

Abstract: A method and system for allowing users of different web pages to exchange information. The information exchange system identifies groups of related web pages and maintains a database of user-supplied information for each group of related web pages. When a user accesses a web page the information exchange often displays in a separate area the information associated with the group of related web pages. Also the information exchange system allows the user to enter information that will be displayed to other users who access related web pages.

Abstract: Techniques are described for automatically and dynamically determining how to handle items being returned from customers while the items are in transit. Various factors may be considered to determine appropriate item return handling, including by assessing current conditions at the time of the determination. In addition, the dynamic item return handling may include selecting one of various potential return destinations for each item being returned and one of various types of return routing for the return. In some situations, the item return handling is performed for an item being returned from a customer while the item is at an intermediate shipping location, such as a selected location to which the customer was directed to send the item. This abstract is provided to comply with rules requiring an abstract, and with the intention that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims.

Abstract: A method and system is provided for maintaining customer data in a data store system utilizing a scalable partitioning framework. More specifically, the data store of a customer service system is partitioned (divided) into multiple partitions by a partitionable key of customer data so that each partition owns a subset of the customer data. By maintaining several partitions that store a subset of the customer data exclusive to each other, blackout or brownout problems can be local to one partition and, thus, the availability for the entire system will be increased. Moreover, a set of partitionable keys, a minimal unit to be moved between partitions, is grouped and associated with a partition. By eliminating direct dependencies between the partitions and the partitionable keys, the system can have great flexibility with regard to migrating customer data between partitions and adding a new partition.

Abstract: A method, system, and computer-readable medium for automatically determining appropriate delivery information for one or more items of an order or potential order is described. A variety of types of information can be considered when determining what delivery information is appropriate for one or more items, such as a type of the items, the particular items, relationships of the items to other items, information about the purchaser, and/or information about the recipient. In addition, the automatic determination of an appropriate address for an item being ordered or potentially ordered by a user can be made in a variety of ways, such as based on inferences from past behavior when ordering items, on inferences from information about the item and from available delivery information for the user, and/or on previous explicit indications from the user.

Abstract: A method and system for determining analyzing an inventory purchasing opportunity with respect to inventory health. A method may include receiving an offer to purchase units of an inventory item via a purchasing channel for a purchase price per unit; determining a rate of sales demand of the item; and determining a breakeven holding time of existing units of the item, where a cost of holding a unit until the breakeven holding time equals, within an equality threshold, a difference between a sales channel value and the offer purchase price. The method may additionally include determining a healthy inventory level of the item that exceeds a target inventory level by a function of the sales demand rate and the breakeven holding time, and, if a current inventory level of the item exceeds the healthy level, declining to purchase units of said inventory item for the purchase price.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for programmatically substituting synonyms into distributed text content. A synonym substitution mechanism may programmatically replace selected words in textual data with synonyms for the selected words. The modification to an excerpt performed by the synonym substitution mechanism may not significantly alter the meaning of the excerpt to a human reader. By replacing one or more selected words in an excerpt with synonyms for the words, illicit copies of the excerpt may be recognized by comparing a copy of the excerpt to the original. Particular permutations of synonym substitutions may be provided in excerpts to particular requestors. The particular permutations may be recorded and used to determine a requestor as the source of a copy of the excerpt. Synonym substitution may make programmatic excerpt chaining difficult by substituting different synonyms for the same word(s) in an overlapping portion of two adjacent excerpts.

Abstract: Robust forecasting techniques are relatively immune from anomalies or outliers in observed data, such as a stream of data values reflective of the operation or use of a computer system. One robust technique provides a relatively accurate forecast of seasonal behavior even in the presence of an anomaly in corresponding historical data. Another robust forecasting technique provides a relatively accurate forecast even in the presence of an anomaly that spans multiple recent observations. In one embodiment, both techniques are used in combination to automatically detect anomalies in the operation and/or use of a multi-user computer system.

Abstract: A networked computer system provides various services for assisting users in locating, and sharing information with, other users. The system provides a user interface through which users can establish contact relationships with other users. The system also provides functionality for users to identify contacts of their respective contacts. For example, in one embodiment, each respective user can conduct a search of contacts of contacts of the respective user. The search may be limited in scope to users that satisfy one or more particular search criteria, such as users that reside in a particular region or are affiliated with a particular group.

Abstract: A catalog or database of items capable of being searched may be organized into a browse tree structure. In accordance with aspects of the present invention, attributes that describe and are common to the items in each category can be assigned or associated with the browse node for the category. Such “browse node attributes” may be displayed with their respective associated item category. Accordingly, as a user searches the browse tree and or narrows his/her search to more specific item categories in a browse tree, the attributes corresponding to the more specific item categories can then be displayed as a superset of the attributes corresponding to a less specific category. Furthermore, the arrangement of attributes displayed to the user can be customized according to user preferences, clickstream analysis, or other techniques and the user may select which attributes are to be displayed.

Abstract: A network-based payment service provides various features for facilitating online, user-to-user payments and item purchases. One feature involves methods for validating transaction requests initiated during browsing of third party web sites, including web sites of associates.

Abstract: An apparatus and methods advantageously select content items for dynamically-generated web pages in an intelligent and virtually autonomous manner. This permits the operator of the web site to rapidly identify and respond to trends, thereby advantageously updating the web site relatively quickly and efficiently without or with less time consuming and expensive manual labor. User interaction for a plurality of users with the web site is collected in a database. For various content items, the database is mined to extract relationships between probability and references of select attributes in probability models. When a new web page is requested, attributes, which can include attributes associated with a user, are used as references to the applicable probability models of selected content items, combined with value weighting to generate expected values, and selected for use in the web page at least partially based on the expected values.