Location-based novelty index value and recommendation system and method

Abstract

The invention is a system and method for computing a result for a location, wherein the result indicates how novel it is for a wireless device to occupy a specific location. After determining the location of a wireless device through various means, a Novelty Index Value (NIV) is calculated for the location, and the NIV is then stored into a database. The NIV may then be subsequently used by application programs to compute a desired result from the NIV. Multiple users may utilize and/or share the same NIV values. The NIV may also be used to alter the configuration of a wireless device as well. A recommendation system is also disclosed, wherein user context is utilized along with NIV values to compute particular results for a user.

1 . A method for computing a result for a location, the result depending on how novel it is for a wireless device to occupy the location, comprising:
 determining the location of a wireless device;   computing a novelty index value for the location, the novelty index value characterizing how novel it is for the wireless device to occupy the determined location;   storing the novelty index value in a database;   running a program to determine a result that depends on the novelty index value;   accessing the database for information associated with the novelty index value;   computing the result using said information.