Methods and systems for electronic coupon issuance transmission and mangement
First Claim
1. A system for utilizing an electronic coupon, the system comprising:
- a vendor computer device configured to utilize the electronic coupon to provide a benefit;
a purchaser computer device configured to communicate with the vendor computer device at a point of sale; and
a short-range communications device coupled to the purchaser computer device to enable the communication with the vendor computer device at the point of sale.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Methods and systems for electronic coupon issuance transmission and management. Wireless vendor devices and wireless purchaser devices transmit electronic coupons at a point of sale for coupon redemption. Further processing of the electronic coupon information may be performed with the purchaser device or with a secondary computing device after subsequent coupon transmission to that secondary device. The electronic coupons may incorporate a numerous variety of discount types as well as include various information such as purchaser profiles and coupon use histories. The electronic coupons may either be stored locally on the purchaser device or be a reference location on a network for the merchant to get coupon information from. The electronic coupons are also designed to allow the individual purchaser to automatically organize his or her coupons. Some electronic coupons can additionally be set to automatically delete upon expiration.
183 Citations
29 Claims
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1. A system for utilizing an electronic coupon, the system comprising:
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a vendor computer device configured to utilize the electronic coupon to provide a benefit;
a purchaser computer device configured to communicate with the vendor computer device at a point of sale; and
a short-range communications device coupled to the purchaser computer device to enable the communication with the vendor computer device at the point of sale. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. In a system that includes a purchaser computer device, a vendor computer device, and an electronic coupon, a method for utilizing the electronic coupon, the method comprising the steps for:
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providing the electronic coupon;
determining the validity of using the electronic coupon;
if the electronic coupon is determined to be valid for use, providing a benefit to a user. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28)
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17. In a system that includes a first electronic coupon, a first computer device that provides the first electronic coupon, and a second computer device that receives the first electronic coupon, a method for distributing the first electronic coupon, the method comprising the steps for:
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providing the first electronic coupon at the first computer device;
selectively transmitting the first electronic coupon from the first computer device to the second computer device to enable a benefit to be provided to a user of the second computer device.
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26. A computer program product for implementing within a computer system a method for utilizing an electronic coupon, the computer program product comprising:
computer readable medium for providing computer program code means utilized to implement the method, wherein the computer program code means is comprised of executable code for implementing the steps for;
providing the electronic coupon;
determining the validity of using the electronic coupon;
if the electronic coupon is determined to be valid for use, providing a benefit to a user.
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29. A computer program product for implementing within a computer system a method for distributing the electronic coupon, the computer program product comprising:
computer readable medium for providing computer program code means utilized to implement the method, wherein the computer program code means is comprised of executable code for implementing the steps for;
providing the electronic coupon at a first computer device;
selectively transmitting the electronic coupon from the first computer device to a second computer device to enable a benefit to be provided to a user of the second computer device.
Specification