Auction method, auction system, and program product therefor

• US 20020138405A1
• Filed: 03/21/2002
• Published: 09/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Sakai, Hideo
• Granted Patent: US 7,752,114 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/37
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

It is one object of the present invention to provide a ticket vending and purchasing system for preventing illegal activities, such as ticket scalping, and for returning a fair profit to the correct persons.

A seat ticket auction method and system using the Internet 1 is provided. A user submits a tender for the auction of each seat while referring to a seating table, and also performs a search of an exhibition before submitting a tender during the auction. Further, when the seating table is referred to, information for a seat appropriate for a person in a wheelchair, and a simulation (view) of what a user will see of the stage from a seat are displayed on the terminal of the user. Three tender types, a personal tender, a complete group tender and an incomplete group tender can be selected. For the complete group tender, when a bid is not successful for all the members of the group, the bid is abandoned.

Claims

1. An auction method for a seats ticket using a computer system or a computer network, the method comprising the steps of:

transmitting data of a tender screen in response to a request from a purchase applicant for said seat ticket, said tender screen being including a seating table associated with tendering conditions of seats;

receiving tender data input to said tender screen; and

determining a successful bidder in accordance with a single or multiple sets of said tender data.

2. The auction method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of:

in response to a request from said purchase applicant, transmitting seat simulation data for a seat.

3. The auction method according to claim 1, wherein seat information for a person in a wheelchair is added to said seating table.

4. The auction method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of:

in response to a request from said purchase applicant, performing a search concerning an exhibition included in said request.

5. The auction method according to claim 1, wherein said tender data includes one of three tender types, a personal tender, a tender from a complete group, and a tender from an incomplete group, and wherein said step of determining said successful bidder includes:

a first determination step of determining whether the tender type of a highest tenderer is said personal tender or said tender from said incomplete group;

a step of, on condition that said first determination is true, determining that said highest tenderer is a successful bidder;

a second determination step of, on condition that said first determination is false, determining whether each member of said complete group is a non-successful bidder; and

a step of, on condition that said second determination is true, abandoning a tender for all the members of said complete group.

6. The auction method according to claim 1, wherein, said step of determining said successful bidder comprises:

determining a tenderer who has submitted a predetermined highest bidding price as a successful bidder regardless of expiration of a tender period.

7. The auction method according to claim 1, wherein multiple seats are defined as one unit, and tendering for said one unit is permitted.

8. An auction system for a seat ticket using a computer system or a computer network comprising:

means for generating a seating table associated with tender conditions for seats and transmitting a tender screen data including said seating table, in response to a request from a purchase applicant for said seat ticket, to a computer system of said purchase applicant; and

means for receiving tender data input by using said tender screen, and for determining a successful bidder in accordance with a single or multiple sets of said tender data.

9. The auction system according to claim 8, further comprising:

means for generating seat simulation data for a seat, and for, in response to a request from said purchase applicant, transmitting said seat simulation data.

10. The auction system according to claim 8, wherein seat information for a person in a wheelchair is added to said seating table.

11. The auction system according to claim 9, further comprising:

means for, in response to a request from said purchase applicant, performing a search concerning an exhibition included in said request, and for transmitting the search result to said purchase applicant.

12. The auction system according to claim 8, wherein said tender data includes one of three tender types, a personal tender, a tender from a complete group, and a tender from an incomplete group;

wherein said means for determining said successful bidder includes;

a first determination means for determining whether the tender type of a highest tenderer is said personal tender or said tender from said incomplete group, and

a second determination means for determining whether each member of said complete group is a non-successful bidder; and

wherein, if the decision by said first determination means is true, said highest tenderer is determined to be a successful bidder, and if the decision by said first determination means is false, said second determination means is performed, and if the decision by said second determination means is true, a tender is abandoned for all the members of said complete group.

13. The auction system according to claim 8, wherein said means for determining said successful bidder includes:

means for determining whether a bidding price included in said tender data is equal to or higher than the predetermined highest price; and

wherein, if the decision is true, a purchase applicant that has transmitted said tender data is immediately determined to be a successful bidder.

14. The auction system according to claim 8, wherein multiple seats are defined as one unit, and tendering for said one unit is permitted.

15. A computer program product comprising a computer usable medium having computer program logic for enabling a processor in a computer system to carry out an auction for a seat ticket using a computer network, that permits a computer to perform, the computer program logic comprising:

means for enabling the processor to transmit tender screen data in response to a request from a purchase applicant for said seat ticket, said tender screen data including a seating table associated with tendering conditions for seats; and

means for enabling the processor to receive tender data input by using said tender screen, and to determine a successful bidder in accordance with a single or multiple sets of said tender data.