In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a client application
for enabling access to an online service and displaying advertisements while the
user is accessing the online service. The client application receives play lists
from the online service provider. The play lists include information about advertisements
to be played and the order of play. The client application also receives match
lists from the online service provider. The match lists include information about
advertisements to be played when the user performs certain actions. The client
application provides the user with the ability to cycle back through previously
displayed advertisements, and to cycle forward. The client application displays
advertisements continuously while the user is connected to and/or using the online
service, and also displays advertisements during the delay between when the client
application is activated and when the user can actually use the online service.
In conjunction with the client application displaying advertisements, the client
application also records which advertisements were played. The client application
displays a number of icons for functions available to the user, and the client
application records when the user selects these functions. The client application
also records certain pre-connection events, such as dial-up errors.
