Patent ID: 7650329

Claim:
A method for refining Internet search results in response to a search request input through a communication network by a searcher utilizing a keyword and a local information of the searcher, the method comprising the steps of: receiving a first local information from the searcher comprising at least a location information of the searcher related to the searcher; maintaining the first local information for searching related to the searcher; receiving a second local information comprising at least a location information of one or more of search items related to a network information provider, wherein each search item corresponds to a web page on the Internet; maintaining a database including the search items related to the network information provider, wherein some of the search items are related to the keyword of the searcher; receiving the search request input through an Internet search engine by the searcher, the search request utilizing both the keyword and the maintained first local information related to the searcher; identifying at least more than one search item related to the keyword that matches the search request, when the keyword that matches the search request is a local keyword, identifying search items related to the local keyword and selecting the search item related to the second local information matched to the first local information, among the identified search items; and arranging at least a part of the search items according to a predetermined search item arranging method in arranging the selected search items so as to provide Internet search results according to the first local information of the searcher, wherein the local keyword is differently selected depending on region with consideration of characteristics of the region.