Methods, apparatus and articles-of-manufacture for secondary referral tracking on a public-access computer network

• US 10,013,695 B2
• Filed: 01/27/2001
• Issued: 07/03/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rakuten USA, Inc. (Rakuten Group, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rakuten Marketing LLC (Rakuten Group, Inc.)
• Inventors: Messer, Stephen D., Meng, Horace J., Ho, Cheryl
• Primary Examiner(s): Stoltenberg, David J
• Application Number:
  US97/711,35
• Time in Patent Office: 6,366 Days
• Field of Search: 705 14
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0214 Referral reward systems

Abstract

Improved methods, systems and articles-of-manufacture permit the tracking of secondary referral sources in network-based e-commerce environments, thereby enabling advantageous commission-sharing arrangements between primary and secondary referral sources.

Claims

1. A data processing system for supporting web-based commerce and commission tracking on a multi-node network comprising:

a clearinghouse server in communication with a network-accessible server that hosts a network-accessible webpage and a group of affiliated merchant servers including a first merchant server and a second merchant server, wherein

the network-accessible webpage includes a primary referral link that directs a user from the network-accessible webpage to a first merchant webpage generated by the first merchant server;

the first merchant server generates the first merchant webpage including a first secondary referral link that directs the user to a second merchant webpage generated by the second merchant server, and the first merchant server includes a first stub software module;

the second merchant server generates the second merchant webpage including a second secondary referral link that directs the user to the first merchant webpage, and the second merchant server includes a second stub software module;

the first and second stub software modules are configured to assist in tracking of referrals and detecting commission-generating events;

said clearinghouse server receives a first message when a user engages the primary referral link, and the first message confirms completion of the user'"'"'s navigation from the network-accessible webpage to the first merchant webpage;

said clearinghouse server receives a second message when the user engages the first secondary referral link, and the second message confirms completion of the user'"'"'s navigation from the first merchant webpage to the second merchant webpage;

said clearinghouse server receives a third message when the user engages the second secondary referral link, and the third message confirms completion of the user'"'"'s navigation from the second merchant webpage to the first merchant webpage;

said clearinghouse server contains programming for communicating with the first merchant server, wherein said clearinghouse server receives communications from the first merchant server, wherein said communications comprise information relating to completion of an electronic transaction by the user on the first merchant webpage;

said clearinghouse server assigns compensation to the network-accessible server and the second merchant server based on the first message, the second message and the third message in response to the user'"'"'s completion of the electronic transaction with the first merchant webpage, and

the clearinghouse server, the network-accessible server, and the first and second merchant servers comprise at least one of hardware and software embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium and executable by a processor.

2. The data processing system of claim 1 wherein compensation assigned to the network-accessible server and the second merchant server comprise equal shares.

3. The data processing system of claim 1 wherein compensation assigned to the network-accessible server comprises a majority portion of a commission associated with said user'"'"'s completion of the electronic transaction, and compensation assigned to the second merchant server comprises a minority portion of a commission associated with said user'"'"'s completion of the electronic transaction.

4. The data processing system of claim 1 further comprising a database communicatively coupled to the clearinghouse server, the database operable to store data associated with the network-accessible server and the second merchant server.

5. The data processing system of claim 4 wherein the database is further operable to store data associated with compensation assigned to the network-accessible server and the second merchant server.

6. A method for supporting web-based commerce and commission tracking at a clearinghouse server, the clearinghouse server in communication with a network-accessible server that hosts a network-accessible webpage and a group of affiliated merchant servers including a first merchant server and a second merchant server, the method comprising:

receiving, by the clearinghouse server, a first message when a user engages a primary referral link provided on the network-accessible webpage that directs the user from the network-accessible webpage to a first merchant webpage hosted by the first merchant server, the first message confirming completion of the user'"'"'s navigation from the network-accessible webpage to the first merchant webpage, the first merchant server including a first stub software module;

receiving, by the clearinghouse server, a second message when the user engages a first secondary referral link provided on the first merchant webpage that directs the user from the first merchant webpage to a second merchant webpage hosted by the second merchant server, the second message confirming completion of the user'"'"'s navigation from the first merchant webpage to the second merchant webpage, the second merchant server including a second stub software module, the first and second stub software modules being configured to assist in tracking referrals and detecting commission-generating events;

receiving, by the clearinghouse server, a third message when the user engages a second secondary referral link provided on the second merchant webpage that directs the user from the second merchant webpage to the first merchant webpage hosted by the first merchant server, the third message confirming completion of the user'"'"'s navigation from the second merchant webpage to the first merchant webpage;

receiving, by the clearinghouse server, an indication from the first merchant server when the user completes an electronic purchase via the first merchant webpage; and

assigning, by the clearinghouse server, compensation to the network-accessible server and the second merchant server based on the first message, the second message and the third message in response to the received indication.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein assigning compensation comprises assigning compensation to the network-accessible server and the second merchant server in equal shares.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein assigning compensation to the network-accessible server comprises assigning a majority portion of a commission associated with said electronic purchase to the network accessible server, and assigning compensation to the second merchant server comprises assigning a minority portion of said commission to the second merchant server.

9. Software embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium and executable by a processor of a clearinghouse server, the clearinghouse server in communication with a network-accessible server that hosts a network-accessible webpage and a group of affiliated merchant servers including a first merchant server and a second merchant server, wherein said software, when executed on a computer, causes said computer to perform steps comprising:

receiving, by the clearinghouse server, a first message when a user engages a primary referral link provided on the network-accessible webpage that directs the user from the network-accessible webpage to a first merchant webpage hosted by the first merchant server, the first message confirming completion of the user'"'"'s navigation from the network-accessible webpage to the first merchant webpage, the first merchant server including a first stub software module;

receiving, by the clearinghouse server, a second message when the user engages a first secondary referral link provided on the first merchant webpage that directs the user from the first merchant webpage to a second merchant webpage hosted by the second merchant server, the second message confirming completion of the user'"'"'s navigation from the first merchant webpage to the second merchant webpage, the second merchant server including a second stub software module, the first and second stub software modules being configured to assist in tracking referrals and detecting commission-generating events;

receiving, by the clearinghouse server, a third message when the user engages a second secondary referral link provided on the second merchant webpage that directs the user from the second merchant webpage to the first merchant webpage hosted by the first merchant server, the third message confirming completion of the user'"'"'s navigation from the second merchant webpage to the first merchant webpage;

receiving, by the clearinghouse server, an indication from the first merchant server when the user completes an electronic purchase via the first merchant webpage; and

assigning, by the clearinghouse server, compensation to the network-accessible server and the second merchant server based on the first message, the second message and the third message in response to the received indication.

10. Software embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium and executable by a processor of claim 9, wherein assigning compensation comprises assigning compensation to the network-accessible server and the second merchant server in equal shares.

11. Software embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium and executable by a processor of claim 9, wherein assigning compensation to the network-accessible server comprises assigning a majority portion of a commission associated with said electronic purchase to the network-accessible server, and assigning compensation to the second merchant server comprises assigning a minority portion of said commission to the second merchant server.