Patent Document ID: 9026916
Application ID: 13167452

Base Claim:
1. A system for managing user-generated questions and answers across multiple social media sources comprising: a processor; a non-transitory memory; computer program code stored within the non-transitory memory and able to be executed by the processor; a plurality of social media data sources, stored in data of the non-transitory memory, configured to maintain data representing a collection of knowledge from its respective members; a social media question and answer (Q&A) manager, comprising at least a portion of the computer program code, configured to organize and present knowledge from the plurality of social media data sources for a user-entered question, wherein said social media Q&A manager operates independent of the plurality of social media data sources; and an answer quality calculator, comprising at least a portion of the computer program code, configured determine an answer quality for each element of knowledge, wherein said answer quality quantitatively represents a completeness and reliability of the knowledge with respect to the user-entered question, wherein the answer quality is based upon a plurality of quality factors, wherein said plurality of quality factors comprise an identifier of an author of the knowledge, a competency level of the author of the knowledge, an amount of time in which the author provided the knowledge, an identifier of the social media data source containing the knowledge, a position of the knowledge within a data structure of the social media data source, a feedback rating assigned to the knowledge by visitors of the social media data source, and references associated with the knowledge.

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Claim 6:
6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the social media Q&A manager is provided as a licensed service of at least one of the plurality of social media data sources, wherein the social media Q&A manager is accessible from within a user interface of the at least one social media data source, yet owned and operated by an entity independent of the plurality of social media data sources.