Apparatus and a method for supplying information

Abstract

An apparatus is provided with a first receiver for receiving changing information relating to a plurality of different sets of data such as financial data and a second receiver for receiving said changing information in synchronism with said first receiver means. A data base is provided to store information received by the first receiver and a subscriber profile store stores information associating a subscriber with a group of said different sets of data. The apparatus is arranged to supply, via the mobile telecommunications network, information from the data base for the group of data sets associated in the subscriber profile store with a subscriber when communication with that subscriber is first established and thereafter to supply changing information relating to the group of data sets associated with that subscriber directly to the subscriber from the second receiver.

1 . Apparatus for supplying changing information to communication devices of subscribers during subscriber sessions via a mobile telecommunications network, the apparatus comprising: 
 a receiver to receive changing information for each of a plurality of different sets of data;    a data base to store received information for each of the plurality of different sets of data;    a communicator to communicate with a said subscriber communication device via a mobile telecommunications network;    a determiner to, when a said subscriber communication device establishes communication via the communicator to start a subscriber session for a subscriber, determining the group of said different sets of data associated with that said subscriber; and    a supplier to supply, when a said subscriber communication device establishes communication via the communicator to start a subscriber session for a subscriber, to that subscriber communication device via the mobile telecommunications network as initial information the information currently stored in the data base for the sets of data in which that subscriber is interested to cause that subscriber communication device to present that initial information to the subscriber and to subsequently, as changing information is received by the receiver during the subscriber session, supply to the subscriber communication device via the mobile telecommunications network only changes since that initial information, to cause that subscriber communication device to present those changes to the subscriber, the supplier being operable to continue supplying changes since that initial information to that subscriber communication device until the subscriber terminates the subscriber session.    
     
     
         2 . Apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the changing information is changing price information for a plurality of different sets of financial market data.  
     
     
         3 . Apparatus according to  claim 2  wherein the database comprises a data store having a plurality of files each arranged to store changing price data for a specific set of financial data.  
     
     
         4 . Apparatus according to  claim 3 , wherein the receiver is arranged to identify a financial exchange and contracts to which received changing price information relates and to store that changing price information in the data file for that contract in the data store.  
     
     
         5 . Apparatus according to  claim 4 , wherein the receiver is arranged to replace existing price information in a data file with updated price information as the updated price information is received.  
     
     
         6 . Apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the different sets of data comprise different contracts on any one or more of the following types of financial exchanges: commodity future, commodity option, index, stock, foreign exchange.  
     
     
         7 . Apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising a subscriber profile store to store information associating each subscriber with a corresponding group of said different sets of data in which that subscriber is interested.  
     
     
         8 . Apparatus according to  claim 7 , wherein the subscriber profile store is adapted to associate a particular set of data with each subscriber interested in receiving changing information for that set of data.  
     
     
         9 . Apparatus according to  7 , wherein the subscriber profile store is adapted to associate sets of data with different character strings.  
     
     
         10 . Apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein the subscriber profile store is arranged to store the different character strings using a ternary tree structure.  
     
     
         11 . Apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein each end node of the ternary tree representing a different one of said character strings is associated with the subscriber or subscribers interested in changing information for the set or sets of data associated with that character string.  
     
     
         12 . Apparatus according to  claim 7 , wherein the subscriber profile store is arranged to associate a subscriber with said group of sets of data only while communication is established with the subscriber using the communicator.  
     
     
         13 . Apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the communicator is arranged to determine whether a subscriber communication device is able to receive information and to store said information in a data structure if the subscriber communication device is unable to receive information.  
     
     
         14 . Apparatus according to  claim 13 , wherein, when the subscriber communication device is again able to receive information, the communicator is arranged to send said stored information as soon as it determines that the subscriber communication device is able to receive information.  
     
     
         15 . Apparatus according to  claim 13 , wherein, when the subscriber communication device is again able to receive information, the communicator is arranged to send the subscriber communication device new information rather than said stored information so that the subscriber receives the most recent information.  
     
     
         16 . Apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the supplier is operable to supply initial information to the subscriber when the subscriber logs on to commence a session and is operable to continue supplying changes since the initial information until the subscriber logs off to terminate the session.  
     
     
         17 . Apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the data base comprises data for determining fees payable by the subscribers.  
     
     
         18 . Apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the supplier comprises a demand engine server operable, when a said subscriber communication device establishes communication with the apparatus over the mobile telecommunications network to start a session, to allocate to that subscriber a thread configured to access the data stored in the database for the said group associated with that subscriber and the determiner comprises a parser operable to extract data from a data stream received by the receiver, to determine from the subscriber profile store which of the subscribers currently conducting a session with the apparatus are interested in the extracted data and to release the associated subscriber threads to enable the demand engine server to supply that data to the interested subscribers via the mobile telecommunications network.  
     
     
         19 . Apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the supplier comprises a demand engine server operable to wait for requests for communication from a subscriber communication device to start a session and, when such a request is received, to establish communication with that subscriber, to receive a user name and authentication code or password from the subscriber, to check a subscriber data store to determine whether the received password is a valid password and, if so, to determine whether a subscriber ID sent by the subscriber communication device when the subscriber attempts to start a session agrees with a subscriber ID stored in the subscriber data store for that password, to check, once the subscriber has been authenticated, whether the database contains any information regarding modifications by an information provider to the available sets of data and, if so, to communicate that information to the subscriber communication device.  
     
     
         20 . Apparatus according to  claim 1  also adapted to communicate changing news data to subscribers.  
     
     
         21 . Apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the receiver is arranged to receive changing information from at least one information provider.  
     
     
         22 . Apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising a satellite communicator to communicate with an information provider to receive changing information for supply to the receiver.  
     
     
         23 . Apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the receiver comprises a first receiver to receive said changing information and a second receiver to receive said changing information in synchronism with said first receiver.  
     
     
         24 . Apparatus for supplying to a subscriber via a mobile telecommunications network continually changing price information for a plurality of different sets of financial market data, the apparatus comprising a determiner to determine which of the different sets of financial market data a subscriber is interested in and a supplier to initially supply the subscriber via the mobile telecommunications network all current information for the set or sets of financial market data in which the subscriber is interested and then to supply to the subscriber via the mobile telecommunications network only updates or changes in the information for that set or sets of financial market data that have occurred since the information initially supplied to the subscriber.  
     
     
         25 . A subscriber apparatus for communicating via a mobile telecommunications network with information supplying apparatus for supplying to the subscriber changing information for each of a plurality of different sets of data, the subscriber apparatus comprising: 
 a user input interface for enabling a user to input data identifying a group of said sets of data in which the subscriber is interested;    a communicator to communicate to the information supplying apparatus via the mobile telecommunications network data identifying the group of said sets of data in which the subscriber is interested;    a requester to request from the information supplying apparatus via the mobile telecommunications network information for the group of sets of data;    a receiver to receive from the information supplying apparatus via the mobile telecommunications network, in response to a request by the requester, initial information comprising the current available data for the group of sets of data at the time of the request and then to receive, as changes occur in the changing information for the group of sets of data, change information comprising only the changes to the data since the initial information; and    an advisor to advise a user of the received information.    
     
     
         26 . Apparatus according to  claim 25 , wherein the advisor comprises a display to display the initial information to a user and to change the displayed information as change information is received.  
     
     
         27 . Apparatus according to  claim 25 , further comprising a store to store subscriber profile data identifying a group of said sets of data in which the subscriber is interested.  
     
     
         28 . Apparatus according to  claim 25 , further comprising an informer to inform the information supplying apparatus via the mobile telecommunications network when the receiver is ready to receive information.  
     
     
         29 . Apparatus according to  claim 25 , further comprising a store to store received information.  
     
     
         30 . Apparatus according to  claim 25 , wherein the store is arranged to store received information while the advisor is advising a user of previously received information.  
     
     
         31 . A method of supplying to subscribers via a mobile telecommunications network changing information for each of a plurality of different sets of data, the method comprising the steps of: 
 receiving changing information from an information provider;    storing data representing the received changing information in a database;    storing data indicating which of the different sets of data a subscriber is interested in;    establishing communication with a subscriber via the mobile telecommunications network;    when communication is established with the subscriber, supplying the subscriber with information regarding the data sets in which the subscriber is interested by initially supplying to the subscriber over the mobile telecommunications network initial information representing the data then stored in the database for the data sets in which the subscriber is interested and, after the initial information has been supplied, as further changing information is received from the information provider, supplying directly to the subscriber over the mobile telecommunications network only changes in the information since the initial information.    
     
     
         32 . A method according to  claim 31 , wherein the plurality of different sets of data is a plurality of different sets of financial market data.  
     
     
         33 . A method according to  claim 31 , which comprises storing in the database as said changing information changing price data.  
     
     
         34 . A method according to  claim 32 , which comprises identifying the financial exchange and contract to which received changing price data relates and storing that changing price data in a file related to that contract.  
     
     
         35 . A method according to  claim 31 , wherein existing changing information in the database is replaced as new changing information is received.  
     
     
         36 . A method according to  claim 31 , wherein the subscriber profile storing step comprises associating a subscriber with codes relating to the or each set of data in which the subscriber is interested.  
     
     
         37 . A method according to  claim 31 , wherein the subscriber profile storing step comprises associating different character strings with sets of data and associating a subscriber with a character string relating to a set of data in which the subscriber is interested.  
     
     
         38 . A method according to  claim 37 , which comprises arranging the character strings in at least one ternary tree structure.  
     
     
         39 . A method according to  claim 31 , which also comprises communicating changing news data to subscribers.  
     
     
         40 . A method according to  claim 32 , wherein changing information is received by satellite communication from at least one information provider.  
     
     
         41 . A method of operating a computer having mobile telecommunications facilities to enable communication via a mobile telecommunications network with information supplying apparatus for supplying to the subscriber changing information for each of a plurality of different sets of data, the method comprising: 
 receiving via a user input device data identifying a group of said sets of data in which the subscriber is interested;    communicating the subscriber profile data to the information supplying apparatus;    establishing communication with the information supplying apparatus;    when communication is established with the information supplying apparatus, initially receiving from the information supplying apparatus over the mobile telecommunications network all information stored in the database for the group of said sets of data in which the subscriber is interested and thereafter, as further changing information is received, receiving from the information supplying apparatus over the mobile telecommunications network only changes to the information for that group since the information stored in the database was supplied to the subscriber.    
     
     
         42 . A method according to  claim 41 , which comprises advising a user by displaying changing information to a user on a display of the computer.  
     
     
         43 . A method according to  claim 41 , further comprising storing subscriber profile data for future use.