Ranking of Place-Entities on Online Social Networks

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method includes receiving a query by a first user from a client system of the first user by computing devices of an online social network, accessing a social graph of the online social network, the social graph including multiple nodes and multiple edges connecting the nodes, each node corresponding to an entity associated with the online social network, identifying multiple entities matching the query, each identified entity having a duplication-value with respect to a canonical-entity, the duplication-values being based on a name similarity between the identified entity and the canonical-entity, suppressing one or more entities of the identified entities based on the duplication-value of the entity and social-graph information associated with the entity, and sending a search-results page to the client system for display to the first user, wherein the search-results page comprises references to one or more non-suppressed entities of the identified entities.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method comprising, by one or more computing devices of an online social network:
 receiving, from a client system of a first user of the online social network, a query inputted by the first user;   accessing a social graph of the online social network, the social graph comprising a plurality of nodes and a plurality of edges connecting the nodes, each node corresponding to an entity associated with the online social network;   identifying a plurality of entities matching the query, each identified entity having a duplication-value with respect to a canonical-entity, the duplication-values being based on a name similarity between the identified entity and the canonical-entity;   suppressing one or more entities of the identified entities based on the duplication-value of the entity and social-graph information associated with the entity; and   sending, to the client system, a search-results page for display to the first user, wherein the search-results page comprises references to one or more non-suppressed entities of the identified entities.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the duplication-value of each identified entity is further based on a geographic location or distance associated with the identified entity or the canonical-entity. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the duplication-value of each identified entity is further based on one or more of a number of check-ins associated with the entity, a number of likes associated with the entity, or a number of reviews associated with the entity. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the duplication-value of each identified entity is further based on crowdsourcing votes or redirects associated with the identified entity. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein suppressing the one or more entities of the identified entities is based on the duplication-value of each suppressed entity being above a threshold duplication-value. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the duplication-value of each non-suppressed entity is below a threshold duplication-value. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the social-graph information associated with the entity comprises one or more of a number of check-ins associated with the entity, a number of likes associated with the entity, or a number of reviews associated with the entity. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the social-graph information associated with the entity comprises an affinity coefficient between the entity and the canonical-entity. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein an affinity coefficient for each suppressed entity is below a threshold affinity-coefficient value. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the social-graph information associated with the entity comprises an affinity coefficient between the entity and the first user. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising updating a list of entities associated with the canonical-entity to remove one or more of the suppressed entities from the list. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the non-suppressed entities comprise two or more entities which are possible duplicate-entities having duplication-values above a threshold duplication-value. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the search-results page comprises a reference to the canonical-entity. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the search-results page comprises references to the canonical-entity and one of the non-suppressed entities. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising:
 receiving, from the client system, a response indicating that the first user interacted with the canonical-entity; and   increasing the duplication-value of the one of the non-suppressed entities.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising:
 receiving, from the client system, a response indicating that the first user interacted with the one of the non-suppressed entities; and   decreasing the duplication-value of the one of the non-suppressed entities.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 receiving, from the client system, a response indicating that the first user interacted with a particular reference corresponding to one of the non-suppressed entities; and   adjusting, based on the user interaction, the duplication-value of one or more of the non-suppressed entities.   
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 receiving, from the client system, a follow-up query inputted by the first user, the follow-up query indicating a suppressed entity of the one or more suppressed entities; and   decreasing, based on the follow-up query, the duplication-value of the suppressed entity.   
     
     
         19 . One or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media embodying software that is operable when executed to:
 receive, from a client system of a first user of the online social network, a query inputted by the first user;   access a social graph of the online social network, the social graph comprising a plurality of nodes and a plurality of edges connecting the nodes, each node corresponding to an entity associated with the online social network;   identify a plurality of entities matching the query, each identified entity having a duplication-value with respect to a canonical-entity, the duplication-values being based on a name similarity between the identified entity and the canonical-entity;   suppress one or more entities of the identified entities based on the duplication-value of the entity and social-graph information associated with the entity; and   send, to the client system, a search-results page for display to the first user, wherein the search-results page comprises references to one or more non-suppressed entities of the identified entities.   
     
     
         20 . A system comprising: one or more processors; and a memory coupled to the processors comprising instructions executable by the processors, the processors operable when executing the instructions to:
 receive, from a client system of a first user of the online social network, a query inputted by the first user;   access a social graph of the online social network, the social graph comprising a plurality of nodes and a plurality of edges connecting the nodes, each node corresponding to an entity associated with the online social network;   identify a plurality of entities matching the query, each identified entity having a duplication-value with respect to a canonical-entity, the duplication-values being based on a name similarity between the identified entity and the canonical-entity;   suppress one or more entities of the identified entities based on the duplication-value of the entity and social-graph information associated with the entity; and   send, to the client system, a search-results page for display to the first user, wherein the search-results page comprises references to one or more non-suppressed entities of the identified entities.