Patents by Inventor John R. Kountz

John R. Kountz 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).

  • Annotating shared contacts with public descriptors
    Patent number: 8095551
    Abstract: A method for annotating shared contacts within a social network with public tags, notes or other data. This allows users of a social network to gain useful information at a glance about others' contacts within that network, as well as providing a means for filtering contacts within that network by user-defined keywords. Such a system improves and simplifies the ability of a user to discover new potential friends and business contacts.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2012
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: John R. Kountz, Matthew S. Augustine, Michael I. Torres, Oludare Obasanjo
  • Networking through electronic messaging and mail
    Patent number: 7797318
    Abstract: A social networking service is integrated with a traditional communication service. The communication service may include an instant messaging service, an electronic mail service, a content page management service, or other communication service. The communication service provides one or more interfaces allowing a user to navigate and manage a contact network. A user may access several layers of contacts, and expand their contact list, by selecting additional contacts within additional contact lists.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 14, 2010
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Michael I. Torres, John R. Kountz, Oludare Obasanjo, Matthew S. Augustine, Jason C. Fluegel, Jacob D. Kim, DeEtte M. Day