Patents by Inventor Howard L. Pfeffer

Howard L. Pfeffer has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 9622017
    Abstract: According to one configuration, a user is able to activate an application on a mobile phone device without the user having to directly pressing an appropriate sequence of keys on the mobile phone device. For example, a user logs onto a web site to provide a phone number of the mobile phone device. Additionally, via input to the web site, the user also requests activation of a particular application on the mobile phone device. An application server receives notification of the request and generates a text-message to the application on the mobile phone device to initiate activation of the application. In response to receiving the text-message, the application on the mobile phone device initiates retrieval of appropriate configuration information associated with the user from the application server.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2017
    Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC
    Inventors: Matthew J. Cannon, Howard L. Pfeffer
  • Publication number: 20160183028
    Abstract: According to one configuration, a user is able to activate an application on a mobile phone device without the user having to directly pressing an appropriate sequence of keys on the mobile phone device. For example, a user logs onto a web site to provide a phone number of the mobile phone device. Additionally, via input to the web site, the user also requests activation of a particular application on the mobile phone device. An application server receives notification of the request and generates a text-message to the application on the mobile phone device to initiate activation of the application. In response to receiving the text-message, the application on the mobile phone device initiates retrieval of appropriate configuration information associated with the user from the application server.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 18, 2015
    Publication date: June 23, 2016
    Inventors: Matthew J. Cannon, Howard L. Pfeffer
  • Patent number: 8713178
    Abstract: A home gateway accesses a host system that differentially routes messages over a communication network to a destination system. The selection of a communication pathway from multiple possible communication pathways through a communication network is based on a user experience type (e.g., gaming user experience, streaming user experience, or browsing user experience) that generally reflects network resource consumption preferences of the user of the access account for the home gateway. Examples of user experience types include a gaming user experience, a streaming user experience and a browsing user experience. The user experience type generally reflects the online experience desired by the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 29, 2014
    Assignee: Facebook, Inc.
    Inventor: Howard L. Pfeffer
  • Publication number: 20130073728
    Abstract: A home gateway accesses a host system that differentially routes messages over a communication network to a destination system. The selection of a communication pathway from multiple possible communication pathways through a communication network is based on a user experience type (e.g., gaming user experience, streaming user experience, or browsing user experience) that generally reflects network resource consumption preferences of the user of the access account for the home gateway. Examples of user experience types include a gaming user experience, a streaming user experience and a browsing user experience. The user experience type generally reflects the online experience desired by the user.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 14, 2012
    Publication date: March 21, 2013
    Inventor: HOWARD L. PFEFFER
  • Patent number: 8396991
    Abstract: A home gateway accesses a host system that differentially routes messages over a communication network to a destination system. The selection of a communication pathway from multiple possible communication pathways through a communication network is based on a user experience type (e.g., gaming user experience, streaming user experience, or browsing user experience) that generally reflects network resource consumption preferences of the user of the access account for the home gateway. Examples of user experience types include a gaming user experience, a streaming user experience and a browsing user experience. The user experience type generally reflects the online experience desired by the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2013
    Assignee: Facebook, Inc.
    Inventor: Howard L. Pfeffer
  • Patent number: 8160068
    Abstract: A system and method for facilitating communication between a CMTS and a VoIP application server in a cable network. VoIP-enabled customer premises equipment (CPE) generates packets that are sent through a cable modem (CM) to a cable modem termination system (CMTS). A packet is parsed by CMTS and the destination IP address and port number compared to the destination IP address-port tuples received by the CMTS from a datastore. A packet that is directed to an IP address-port tuple on the target list (a “service request packet”) is modified to incorporate CMTS-identifying information and subscriber-identifying information in the packet header. When the VoIP application server communicates with the CMTS to reserve the network resources, the VoIP application server provides the CMTS with the CM MAC and CM IP addresses to facilitate resource allocation, subscriber identification and billing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 17, 2012
    Assignee: Time Warner Cable, Inc.
    Inventors: Howard L. Pfeffer, Kenneth Gould
  • Publication number: 20100257083
    Abstract: A home gateway accesses a host system that differentially routes messages over a communication network to a destination system. The selection of a communication pathway from multiple possible communication pathways through a communication network is based on a user experience type (e.g., gaming user experience, streaming user experience, or browsing user experience) that generally reflects network resource consumption preferences of the user of the access account for the home gateway. Examples of user experience types include a gaming user experience, a streaming user experience and a browsing user experience. The user experience type generally reflects the online experience desired by the user.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 21, 2010
    Publication date: October 7, 2010
    Applicant: AOL LLC
    Inventor: Howard L. Pfeffer
  • Patent number: 7752321
    Abstract: A home gateway accesses a host system that differentially routes messages over a communication network to a destination system. The selection of a communication pathway from multiple possible communication pathways through a communication network is based on a user experience type (e.g., gaming user experience, streaming user experience, or browsing user experience) that generally reflects network resource consumption preferences of the user of the access account for the home gateway. Examples of user experience types include a gaming user experience, a streaming user experience and a browsing user experience. The user experience type generally reflects the online experience desired by the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 29, 2003
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2010
    Assignee: AOL Inc.
    Inventor: Howard L. Pfeffer
  • Patent number: 7539193
    Abstract: A system and method for facilitating communication between a CMTS and an application sever in a cable network. Customer premises equipment (CPE) generates packets that are sent through a cable modem (CM) to a cable modem termination system (CMTS). A packet is parsed by CMTS and the destination IP address and port number compared to the destination IP address-port tuples received by the CMTS from a datastore. A packet that is directed to an IP address-port tuple on the target list (a “service request packet”) is modified to incorporate CMTS-identifying information and subscriber-identifying information in the packet header. When the application server communicates with the CMTS to reserve the network resources, the application server provides the CMTS with the CM MAC and CM IP addresses to facilitate resource allocation, subscriber identification and billing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2005
    Date of Patent: May 26, 2009
    Assignee: Time Warner Cable, Inc.
    Inventors: Howard L. Pfeffer, Kenneth Gould
  • Publication number: 20090052440
    Abstract: A system and method for facilitating communication between a CMTS and a VoIP application server in a cable network. VoIP-enabled customer premises equipment (CPE) generates packets that are sent through a cable modem (CM) to a cable modem termination system (CMTS). A packet is parsed by CMTS and the destination IP address and port number compared to the destination IP address-port tuples received by the CMTS from a datastore. A packet that is directed to an IP address-port tuple on the target list (a “service request packet”) is modified to incorporate CMTS-identifying information and subscriber-identifying information in the packet header. When the VoIP application server communicates with the CMTS to reserve the network resources, the VoIP application server provides the CMTS with the CM MAC and CM IP addresses to facilitate resource allocation, subscriber identification and billing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 5, 2008
    Publication date: February 26, 2009
    Inventors: Howard L. Pfeffer, Kenneth Gould