Consumer presence based deal offers

• US 10,235,692 B2
• Filed: 03/13/2013
• Issued: 03/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/17/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Groupon Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Groupon Incorporated
• Inventors: Artman, Tuomas, Engestrom, Jyri, Schwekendiek, Ulf
• Primary Examiner(s): Abdi, Kambiz
• Assistant Examiner(s): Anderson, Scott C
• Application Number:
  US13/801,610
• Publication Number:
  US 20140108108A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,197 Days
• Field of Search: 705 141
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/322 Aspects of commerce using mobile devices [M-devices]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3278 RFID or NFC payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/36 using electronic wallets or electronic money safes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/384 using social networks
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/387 Payment using discounts or coupons relating to marketing G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location

Abstract

Systems and related methods facilitating payments with a mobile device are discussed herein. Circuitry in a networked-based central system, which may be a promotional system or payment system, may be configured to receive payment information from a consumer device. The consumer device may include circuitry configured to receive wallet identifying data from the central system. The wallet identification data may be used to secure messages between the consumer device and another device, such as a merchant device, over a wireless link. In some embodiments, the consumer device may receive promotional offers, such as deal vouchers or rewards, and make payments to the other device via the wireless link.

Claims

1. A merchant device comprising processing circuitry configured to:

facilitate communications with a consumer device and a central system, wherein the communications between the merchant device and the consumer device occur over a personal area network (PAN) and the communications between the merchant device and the central system occur over the Internet, wherein the PAN is a local network not connected to the Internet, and wherein the processing circuitry facilitates communications with the consumer device at least in part by being configured to discover consumer devices located within a communicable range of the processing circuitry and further by being configured to, subsequent to discovering the consumer device, automatically create the PAN;

wirelessly receive anonymized wallet identifying data from a consumer device via the PAN;

transmit the anonymized wallet identifying data to the central system;

receive, from the central system, consumer identifying data associated with the anonymized wallet identifying data; and

display, via a merchant device display, consumer information based on at least some of the consumer identifying data.

2. The merchant device of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to cease displaying the consumer information in response to determining the consumer device is no longer in the communicable range of the merchant device.

3. The merchant device of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to cease displaying the consumer information in response to determining the consumer device is outside a given range relative to the merchant device, wherein the given range is set based on a user range defining indication.

4. The merchant device of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to:

receive product identifying data from the consumer device; and

transmit the product identifying data to the central system.

5. The merchant device of claim 4, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to receive promotional information associated with the product identifying data from the central system.

6. The merchant device of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to wirelessly send a promotional offer to the consumer device.

7. The merchant device of claim 6, wherein the promotional offer is wirelessly sent in response to determining the consumer device is within the communicable range of the merchant device.

8. The merchant device of claim 7, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

receive an indication that the promotional offer has been redeemed by the consumer device;

generate redemption data indicating the promotional offer has been redeemed; and

transmit the redemption data to the central system.

9. The merchant device of claim 8, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to send a receipt to the consumer device indicating an applied discount associated with the promotional offer.

10. The merchant device of claim 1, wherein the anonymized wallet identifying data is associated with a payment account.

11. A machine-implemented method of determining the presence of a consumer, comprising:

wirelessly receiving, by a processor included in a merchant device, anonymized wallet identifying data from a consumer device via a personal area network (PAN), wherein the consumer device is a smartphone, wherein the anonymized wallet identifying data is generated by a central system, and wherein the PAN is a local network not connected to the Internet and is automatically created when the consumer device is within a communicable range of the merchant device;

transmitting the anonymized wallet identifying data to the central system;

receiving, from the central system, consumer identifying data associated with the anonymized wallet identifying data; and

displaying, via a merchant device display of the merchant device, consumer information based on at least some of the of the consumer identifying data.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the anonymized wallet identifying data comprises one or more keys, random numbers, codes, or tokens.

13. The method of claim 12 further comprising ceasing display of the consumer information in response to determining the consumer device is no longer in the communicable range of the merchant device.

14. The method of claim 12 further comprising ceasing display of the consumer information in response to determining the consumer device is outside a given range relative to the merchant device, wherein the given range is set based on a user range defining.

15. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

receiving product identifying data from the consumer device; and

transmitting the product identifying data to the central system.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising receiving promotional information associated with the product identifying data from the central system.

17. The method of claim 11 further comprising wirelessly sending a promotional offer to the consumer device.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein sending the promotional offer is in response to determining the consumer device is the communicable range of to the merchant device.

19. The method of claim 18 further comprising:

receiving an indication that the promotional offer has been redeemed by the consumer device;

generating redemption data indicating the promotional offer has been redeemed; and

transmitting the redemption data to the central system.

20. The method of claim 19 further comprising sending a receipt to the consumer device indicating an applied discount associated with the promotional offer.

21. The method of claim 11, wherein the anonymized wallet identifying data is associated with a payment account.

24. The system of claim 15, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to retain a portion of the remaining amount as a fee for services provided to the merchant device.

25. The system of claim 15, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to facilitate payment to a merchant account associated with the merchant device.

22. A system comprising a networked device and a merchant device, wherein the networked device comprises processing circuitry configured to:

receive consumer identifying data from a consumer device, wherein the consumer device is a smartphone;

generate first anonymized wallet identifying data associated with the consumer identifying data, wherein the first anonymized wallet identifying data is generated by the processing circuitry;

associate promotional data with the consumer identifying data, wherein the promotional data is also associated with a merchant;

send the first anonymized wallet identifying data to the consumer device via an unsecured communication link;

establish a secure communication link with a merchant device, wherein the merchant device is associated with the merchant, and wherein the processing circuitry establishes the secure communication link subsequent to authenticating the identity of the merchant;

subsequent to sending the first anonymized wallet identifying data to the consumer device, receive, via the secure communication link, second anonymized wallet identifying data from the merchant device, wherein the merchant device received the second anonymized wallet identifying data from the consumer device over a personal area network (PAN), wherein the PAN is a local network not connected to the Internet, and wherein the merchant device automatically created the PAN subsequent to discovering the consumer device and determining that the consumer device was located within a communicable range of the merchant device;

validate the second anonymized wallet identifying data received from the merchant device by determining that the second anonymized wallet identifying data corresponds with the first anonymized wallet identifying data;

send the consumer identifying data, via the secure communication link, to the merchant device after validating the anonymized wallet identifying data; and

send the promotional data.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

receive a request to authorize a payment of a total amount, the total amount to be paid to the merchant by the networked device from a payment account associated with the consumer device;

determine the promotional data is associated with a discount;

process the request by applying the discount to the total amount and pay the remaining amount to the merchant from the payment account; and

send a payment confirmation indicating payment of the total cost less the discount to the merchant device after processing the request.

26. The system of claim 22, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

determine when the consumer device is in proximity to the merchant device; and

in response to determining when the consumer device is in proximity to the merchant device, send the promotional data to the consumer device.

27. The system of claim 22, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

determine when the consumer device is in proximity to the merchant device; and

in response to determining when the consumer device is in proximity to the merchant device, send the promotional data to the merchant device.

28. The system of claim 22, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

determine a location of the consumer device; and

send the promotional data to the consumer device, wherein the promotional data is associated with merchants within a geofencing distance to the location of the consumer device.