Patent ID: 8145529

Claim:
A method of generating advertising revenue from advertisements displayed on users' computers, each user's computer having a computer display able to provide a graphical user interface, data storage and being accessible to the Internet, the method comprising: i) pushing a tool bar to the user's interface by an action that is not initiated by the user; ii) assigning a first-time user a unique identification; iii) storing said unique identification in said data storage of said first-time user's computer; iv) storing a user profile including information provided by the user or other data captured about the user's prior behaviour in association with said unique identification; v) each subsequent time said first-time user activates said tool bar, retrieving said first-time user's unique identification from said data storage and passing said unique identification to a Common Gateway Interface (CGI) on an advertising server; vi) said advertising server running a CGI that returns advertising content to said tool bar in response to said unique identification and said associated user profile; vii) said toolbar displaying said advertising content; and viii) providing an incentive to maintain the tool bar on the user's interface; wherein said tool bar is adapted to communicate advertisements.