Self-service terminal

• US 20010029528A1
• Filed: 04/05/2001
• Published: 10/11/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NCR Corporation
• Original Assignee: NCR Corporation
• Inventors: Coutts, Michael G., Dove, Lee G.
• Granted Patent: US 7,739,144 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/1085 involving automatic teller machines [ATMs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]

Abstract

A self-service terminal (20) for displaying advertisements is described. The terminal comprises a display (52) and a network connection (32). The terminal further comprises means for accessing an advertisement database (18) to retrieve an advertisement associated with the terminal (20), and means for incorporating the retrieved advertisement in a screen (130) for displaying on the display (52). The terminal (20) may be an ATM. A method of supplying an advertisement for displaying on a self-service terminal, and a system for controlling presentation of advertisements on a self-service terminal are also described.

Claims

1. A self-service terminal for displaying advertisements, the terminal comprising:

a display;

means for accessing an advertisement database to retrieve an authorized advertisement associated with the terminal; and

means for incorporating the retrieved advertisement in a screen for displaying on the display.

2. A terminal according to

claim 1

, wherein the means for incorporating the retrieved advertisement in a screen includes a terminal program for executing a Web browser.

3. A terminal according to

claim 2

, wherein the terminal program is operable to allocate screen space to the Web browser in accordance with predefined allocation times.

4. A method of displaying advertisements on a self-service terminal, the method comprising the steps of:

accessing a database of authorized advertisements;

retrieving from the database an authorized advertisement associated with the terminal; and

displaying the retrieved advertisement.

5. A method of supplying an advertisement for displaying on a self-service terminal, the method comprising the steps of:

accepting via a network an identification signal from a terminal located on the network;

accessing an advertisement database to retrieve an authorized advertisement associated with that terminal; and

transmitting the retrieved advertisement to the terminal for displaying at that terminal.

6. A method according to

claim 5

, further comprising the steps of:

logging the number of times the advertisement database has been accessed by each terminal; and

applying a charge to each advertisement based on the number of accesses.

7. A system comprising:

a self-service terminal;

an advertisement database for storing authorized advertisements; and

a server interconnected to the self-service terminal and for accessing the advertisement database in response to a request from the terminal, to retrieve an advertisement associated with the terminal, and to transmit the retrieved advertisement to the terminal for displaying at the terminal.

8. The system of

claim 7

, wherein the configuration of the system is such that an authorized user is allowed to update the stored advertisements.

9. A system according to

claim 7

, wherein the server is configured to allow a user to enter descriptive fields relating to an advertisement.

10. A system according to

claim 7

, further comprising a screening system for screening each advertisement to determine if the information fulfils an acceptance criterion.

11. A self-service terminal comprising:

means for connecting to a first server to authorize a transaction;

means for connecting to a second server to retrieve an authorized advertisement associated with the terminal; and

means for displaying the authorized advertisement to a user of the terminal.

12. A method of offsetting the cost of owning a self-service terminal, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a database for storing advertisements;

allowing an authorized user to access the database and to transmit an advertisement to the database for storing therein;

screening the transmitted advertisement to ensure that it meets an acceptance criterion;

storing the screened advertisement in a database entry associated with the self-service terminal; and

charging a fee each time the advertisement is accessed by the terminal.

13. A network comprising:

a number of self-service terminals;

a server interconnected to a plurality of the self-service terminals; and

a database of authorized advertisements, each advertisement having an associated display criteria, each self-service terminal including means for requesting an authorized advertisement from the database, the server including means for matching an authorized advertisement with each self-service terminal based on the display criteria.

14. A method of leasing advertising space on one or more self-service terminals in a network of self-service terminals, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a database for storing authorized advertisements;

allowing a third party to access the database and to transmit an advertisement thereto;

screening the transmitted advertisement;

in the event of the screened advertisement meeting an acceptance criterion, storing the transmitted advertisement;

associating display criteria with the stored advertisement;

transmitting the stored advertisement to any request from a terminal fulfilling the display criteria; and

applying a charge to an account associated with the third party.

15. An advertisement brokerage system, the system comprising:

a network of self-service terminals;

means for receiving and storing advertisement data;

means for screening the advertisement data;

means for applying display criteria to the advertisement data; and

means for transmitting the advertisement data to one or more terminals in accordance with the display criteria.