Patents by Inventor James Dale Black

James Dale Black 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: 8645187
    Abstract: An embodiment of the invention is directed to retaining customers for a wireless-service provider (“carrier”). A ratio is calculated based on a number of incoming calls received by a mobile device and a number of outgoing calls originating from the mobile device. The ratio is also based on locations of callers that originated the incoming calls. The ratio is compared to an influencer threshold. When the ratio is greater than the influencer threshold, then a subscriber associated with the mobile device is indicated to be an influencer that potentially affects decisions of other subscribers regarding whether to cancel or maintain their subscriptions with the wireless service. An incentive is provided to the influencer to increase the likelihood that the influencer will retain a subscription with the wireless service, thereby increasing the likelihood that other subscribers who might be influenced by the influencer will retain their respective subscriptions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 4, 2014
    Assignee: Sprint Communications Company L.P.
    Inventors: David Lindel Harris, Claudio Ribeiro Lima, James Dale Black
  • Patent number: 8214253
    Abstract: An embodiment of the current invention is directed to retaining customers for a wireless-service provider (“carrier”). A plurality of users who are influencers are identified from a group of wireless-service subscribers, wherein an influencer is a user who is likely to affect decisions of other users regarding whether to cancel or maintain their subscriptions with a particular carrier based on whether the influencer cancels or maintains his or her subscription. A list of influencers is thereby created. An incentive to provide the list of identified influencers is determined. The incentive increases the likelihood that the set of influencers will retain their respective subscriptions, thereby increasing the likelihood that other subscribers who might be influenced will also retain their respective subscriptions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 3, 2012
    Assignee: Sprint Communications Company L.P.
    Inventors: David Lindel Harris, Claudio Ribeiro Lima, James Dale Black