System, method and program product for delivery of digital content offerings at a retail establishment

Abstract

A method and system for providing distributed network access point installation and management. A network provider installs and / or operates a plurality of access points at locations of a retail entity. Each access point may provide services such as Internet access, and / or content such as audio, video, text, and / or graphics, among other types of services. A carrier, such as a telephone or cable company, may compensate the network service provider for installation and operation of the access points. The carrier may in turn charge its subscribers for network access at the retail entity locations. A plurality of different carriers may provide compensation and allow respective subscriber access. The network access points may be configured to allow each carrier to present a point of presence to its subscribers at the retail entity locations. The installed network may also provide service for retail entity back office functions.

Description

PRIORITY CLAIM [0001] The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10 / 851,633, filed on Nov. 24, 2005, entitled “Method for Providing Wireless Services.”BACKGROUND [0002] 1. Field of the Invention [0003] This invention relates generally to wired and / or wireless network data communications, and more specifically to a system and method for installing and / or providing a network infrastructure in various retail entity locations to offer network services to support customers of one or more carrier entities. The invention also relates to a business method which enables installation and / or provision of wired and / or wireless network services in various retail entity locations. [0004] 2. Description of Related Art [0005] Various types of wired and wireless infrastructures are being developed to service users of computing devices, such as portable computing devices (PCDs). Currently, numerous network service providers are attempting to install wireless network...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

"The patent describes a network service provider that installs and operates wired and wireless access points at various locations of a retail entity. The network service provider can offer network services to the retail entity's customers through these access points. The network service provider can receive payment from the retail entity or from a carrier entity for the installation and operation of the access points. The carrier entity can also offer services to the retail entity's customers through the access points. The network service provider can provide invoices to the carrier entity's subscribers for the services they use. The network service provider can also provide network access to the portable computing devices of non-subscribers by requesting payment from them. The network service provider can also provide a virtual point of presence for each carrier entity by providing a virtual point of presence for each carrier entity's customers. The portable computing device of each customer can store unique identification information that uniquely identifies the carrier entity they subscribe to."

Problems solved by technology

Furthermore, bearing these costs has proven difficult and even financially detrimental to various network service providers.

This may produce several problems and / or complications.

For instance, if the network infrastructure is installed at a location such as a fast-food restaurant, space may be limited as to how much equipment may be present.

Installing an additional access controller for each additional wireless service provider may not be feasible.

This may also add several costs.

Not only may there be various up-front costs, there may also be on-going additional costs associated with monitoring and / or maintenance of additional equipment.

When multiple service providers install networking equipment at a retail entity location, other drawbacks may become present as well.

With the use of additional access controllers, use of resources (e.g., bandwidth) of the connection to the network or Internet may become unbalanced or congested.

The use of multiple access controllers may contribute to a complicated implementation, even if the implementation is possible.

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