U.S. Patent Position Review — 19/476,586
DATA COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING TASK SCHEDULES TO SERVICE PROVIDERS
Published international application: PCT/AU2024/050370 / WO2024216337A1
Section 07 — TT-07
Provider Availability & Capacity
Two related but distinct concepts, both evidenced for Thumbtack.
Executive Finding
Thumbtack's new AI experience explicitly states that professional recommendations consider preferred availability. Its granted U.S. patent separately describes provider configuration information including the number of requests a provider can fulfil in a given period of time, and describes determining provider capacity.
Patent ↔ Company Technical Mapping
| Patent element | Thumbtack — publicly observed | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Provider available / preferred time | Preferred availability used in curated recommendations | Very Strong Observed Correspondence |
| Provider workload constraint | Requests per period / capacity determination | Patent-Disclosed Architecture Only |
Availability
- When can the provider perform the work?
- Preferred availability is used in AI curation.
Capacity
- How much work can the provider accept?
- Requests fulfillable per period is disclosed in Thumbtack's patent.
Strategic Interpretation
Potentially very significant. Capacity is the closest publicly documented analogue to a workload-aware suitability constraint across all three companies.
Public Evidence
Each record exposes the source, publisher, date, direct link, relevant extract, what it establishes, what it does not establish and evidence confidence.
Classification language rule: "Not Publicly Established" records the limits of public evidence reviewed. It is not a finding that the company does not operate the technology. Forward-looking items are labelled: Potential Future Patent Development — Subject to Patent Attorney Review.