Method and system for recording evidence of assent

• US 20020031209A1
• Filed: 03/14/2001
• Published: 03/14/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jeremy Mark Newman
• Original Assignee: Christopher Paul Kenneth Smithies, Jeremy Mark Newman
• Inventors: Newman, Jeremy Mark, Smithies, Christopher Paul Kenneth
• Granted Patent: US 7,379,881 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/93.12
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/389 Keeping log of transactions for guaranteeing non-repudiation of a transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42221 Conversation recording systems at the subscriber's set H04M1/656

Abstract

A system and method for recording the evidence of intent of a party to a transaction, archiving this speech recording, and notifying and making it available to interested parties. A party seeking an affirmation will send to the affirming party a communication outlining the terms of the affirmation to be made, and also a transaction identifier by which a system may identify the parties to the transaction. The affirming party communicates with the system. The affirming party communicates the transaction identifier, and subsequently recites a spoken affirmation which is recorded by the system. The system then stores the recording in association with a recording identifier which can be used later to retrieve the recording. Finally, the system communicates the recording identifier both to the affirming party and to the party requesting the affirmation. The requesting party is thus informed that the affirmation has been made.

Claims

1. A method for recording evidence of consent to a transaction involving a relying party and an affirming party, the consent being recorded by a voice recording system, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a transaction identifier to the relying party to the transaction, the transaction identifier being transmitted by the relying party to the affirming party, the transaction identifier corresponding to the transaction;

receiving the transaction identifier from the affirming party after establishing electronic communications between the affirming party and the voice recording system;

receiving a voice message from the affirming party, the voice message indicating that the affirming party assents to the transaction;

recording and storing the voice message at the voice recording system;

generating a recording identifier associated with the recorded voice message; and

communicating the recording identifier to the relying party.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of receiving the recording identifier and, in response to said receipt, providing the recorded voice message.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of providing the transaction identifier to the relying party further comprises providing the transaction identifier to the relying party via a telephone network.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of providing the transaction identifier to the relying party further comprises providing the transaction identifier to the relying party via a computer network.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of receiving a voice message from the affirming party further comprises receiving the voice message from the affirming party via a telephone network.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of receiving a voice message from the affirming party further comprises receiving the voice message from the affirming party via a computer network.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the relying party communicates the transaction identifier to the affirming party via an electronic message.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of authenticating the affirming party using biometric information provided by the affirming party.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the transaction identifier is communicated from the relying party to the affirming party by a paper document.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the transaction identifier is communicated from the relying party to the affirming party in an Internet message.

11. A method for recording consent to a transaction using a voice recording system, the transaction involving a relying party and an affirming party, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a transaction identifier at the voice recording system;

recording a voice message received from the affirming party, the voice message indicating that the affirming party assents to the transaction;

storing the voice message in the voice recording system; and

associating a recording identifier with the recorded voice message.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the step of receiving a transaction identifier further comprises the step of receiving the transaction identifier during establishment of communications between the affirming party and the recording system.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein the step of receiving a transaction identifier further comprises the step of receiving the transaction identifier after establishment of communications between the affirming party and the recording system.

14. The method of claim 11 further comprising the step of providing the recording identifier to the relying party.

15. The method of claim 11 further comprising the step of providing the recording identifier to the affirming party.

16. The method of claim 11 further comprising the step of notifying the relying party that the voice message has been stored.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the transaction identifier is received at a relying party communications device from the voice storage system.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the recording is initiated by receipt of the identifier by a recording system from the party.

17. A method for obtaining evidence of consent to a transaction involving a relying party and an affirming party, the method comprising the steps of:

the relying party associating a transaction identifier with the transaction;

providing the transaction identifier to the affirming party;

the relying party receiving a recording identifier from a voice storage system, receipt of the recording identifier indicating that the affirming party assented to the transaction by providing a voice message that has been recorded by the voice storage system, the recording identifier associated with the recorded voice message.

19. A method for gathering evidence of assent to a proposition, the method comprising the steps of:

assigning an identifier to the proposition, the identifier associating a party with the proposition;

communicating the identifier to the party to enable the party to record a spoken declaration of assent to the proposition; and

upon making the recorded spoken declaration, receiving notification that the recording has been completed.

21. A system for recording consent to a transaction involving a relying party and an affirming party, the system comprising:

means for providing a transaction identifier to the relying party to the transaction, the transaction identifier corresponding to the transaction;

means for receiving a voice message from the affirming party, after receipt of the transaction identifier from the affirming party, the voice message indicating that the affirming party assents to the transaction;

means for recording the voice message;

means for storing the voice message; and

means for providing a recording identifier to the relying party, the recording identifier associated with the recorded voice message.

22. A method for recording a solemn declaration, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a declaration identifier from an affirming party, the declaration identifier corresponding to the declaration;

receiving a voice message from the affirming party, the voice message including a statement of the solemn declaration;

recording and storing the voice message; and

associating a recording identifier with the recorded voice message.

23. The method of claim 22 further comprising the step of communicating the declaration identifier from a recording system to a relying party, prior to the step of receiving a declaration identifier.

25. The method of claim 24 further comprising the step of receiving a recording identifier from the recording system.

26. The method of claim 25 further comprising the step of providing the recording identifier to the party to the contract.

29. The computer readable medium of claim 28 wherein the computer program performs the additional step of communicating the recording identifier to the relying party.

24. A method for entering into a contract comprising the steps of:

a party receiving a contract and instructions how to signify agreement to the contract, including instructions as to how to establish communications with a recording system;

establishing communications between the party to the contract and the recording system;

communicating a transaction identifier to the recording system;

in response to a prompt from the recording system, communicating a spoken declaration to indicate assent to the contract.

27. A computer readable medium comprising a computer program for recording evidence of consent to a transaction involving a relying party and an affirming party, the consent being recorded by a voice recording system, by performing the steps of:

providing a transaction identifier to the relying party to the transaction, the transaction identifier being transmitted by the relying party to the affirming party, the transaction identifier corresponding to the transaction;

receiving the transaction identifier from the affirming party after establishing electronic communications between the affirming party and the voice recording system;

receiving a voice message from the affirming party, the voice message indicating that the affirming party assents to the transaction;

recording and storing the voice message at the voice recording system;

generating a recording identifier associated with the recorded voice message; and

communicating the recording identifier to the relying party.

28. A computer readable medium comprising a computer program for recording consent to a transaction using a voice recording system, the transaction involving a relying party and an affirming party, by performing the steps of:

receiving a transaction identifier from the affirming party after establishing communications between the affirming party and the voice recording system, the transaction identifier corresponding to the transaction;

recording a voice message received from the affirming party, the voice message indicating that the affirming party assents to the transaction;

storing the voice message in the voice recording system; and

associating a recording identifier with the recorded voice message.