Sponsored facsimile to e-mail transmission methods and apparatus

Abstract

A method for sending an e-mail message comprises receiving a transmission instruction page, entering a plurality of text entries from a user on the transmission instruction page to form a filled-in transmission instruction page, wherein the plurality of text entries includes an e-mail address, and sending a facsimile to a facsimile server, wherein the facsimile includes the filled-in transmission instruction page and one or more pages of a document, wherein the facsimile server converts the facsimile into an e-mail attachment, wherein the facsimile server sends the e-mail message including a service provider indicator and the e-mail attachment to the e-mail address, wherein the facsimile server optically derives the e-mail address from the transmission instruction page of the facsimile, and wherein facsimile server need not know the e-mail address prior to receiving the facsimile.

1 . A method for sending an e-mail message with a computer system including a processor and a memory comprises:
 receiving a request for a facsimile cover page from a user via a web site in the processor, wherein the request includes a destination e-mail address and a user e-mail address, and wherein the request includes user payment information;   determining user tracking data associated with the user in the processor in response to the request;   storing an association of the user tracking data and the user payment information in the memory;   generating the user facsimile cover page for the user with the processor, wherein the facsimile cover page includes a representation of the destination e-mail address, the user e-mail address and a representation of the user tracking data associated with the user;   providing the user facsimile cover page to the user via the web site; thereafter   receiving a facsimile transmission from the user, wherein the facsimile transmission comprises a visual representation of at least the user facsimile cover page;   determining the user tracking data, the destination e-mail address, and the user e-mail address with the processor in response to the visual representation of the user facsimile cover page;   determining the user payment information from the memory with the processor in response to the user tracking data;   asserting a charge against a payment service provider with the processor in response to the payment information and in response to the facsimile transmission;   converting the visual representation of the user facsimile cover page into a file formatted in a standardized file format with the processor;   creating an e-mail message with the processor, wherein the e-mail message includes the destination e-mail address, the user e-mail address, and the file as an e-mail attachment;   sending the e-mail message to the destination e-mail address and to the user e-mail address with the processor.