Method and system for provideing order status information using a network address

• US 20030149640A1
• Filed: 02/14/2003
• Published: 08/07/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/1996
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Kaplan, Samuel Jerrold, Fisher, Alan S.
• Granted Patent: US 7,130,818 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063114 Status monitoring or status determination for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0875 Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0619 Neutral agent
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching

Abstract

A method and system for providing order status information using a network address, by receiving a network address from a customer when the customer places an order with the merchant. An information system is interrogated via a network to determine a status of the order. A message indicating the status of the order is automatically composed and transmitted to the network address for the customer.

Claims

1. A method to provide update information, the method including:

at a merchant, receiving a network address from a customer when the customer places an order with the merchant;

interrogating an information system via a network to determine a status of the order; and

automatically composing and transmitting a message to the network address for the customer, wherein the message indicates the status of the order.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the automatically composing and transmitting of the message is performed upon determining that the status of the order has changed.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the interrogating the information system further includes:

receiving status information to determine the status of the order and indicating the status information in the message to the customer.

4. The method of claim 3, further including updating a status record to include the received status information, the updating the status record including setting a flag associated with the status record.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the automatically composing and transmitting of the message includes performing a check to see if the flag associated with the status record is set and sending the message if the flag is set.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the network address is an electronic mail address of the customer.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the information system is an information system of a common carrier.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the network is the Internet.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the message is an electronic mail message.

10. An electronic commerce system, comprising:

an electronic mail messenger to automatically compose and transmit a message to a network address for a customer, wherein the message indicates a status of an order.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the electronic mail messenger automatically composes and transmits the message upon determining that the status of the order has changed.

12. The system of claim 10, further including:

a status requester, coupled to the electronic mail messenger, to interrogate an information system via a network to determine the status of the order.

13. The system of claim 10, further including:

a status receiver, coupled to the electronic mail messenger, to receive the status information; and

a status database, coupled to the status receiver, wherein the status receiver stores the status information in a status record in the status database, wherein updating the status record with the status information includes setting a flag associated with the status record.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the electronic mail messenger automatically composes and transmits the message upon performing a check to see if the flag associated with the status record is set.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein the network address is an electronic mail address of the customer.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the information system is an information system of a common carrier.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein the message is an electronic mail message.

18. A machine-readable medium having executable instructions to cause a machine to perform a method to provide update information, the method including:

at a merchant, receiving a network address from a customer when the customer places an order with the merchant;

interrogating an information system via a network to determine a status of the order; and

automatically composing and transmitting a message to the network address for the customer, wherein the message indicates the status of the order.

19. The machine-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the automatically composing and transmitting the message is performed upon determining that the status of the order has changed.

20. The machine-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the interrogating the information system further includes:

receiving status information to determine the status of the order and indicating the status information in the message to the customer.

21. The machine-readable medium of claim 20, further including updating a status record to include the received status information, the updating the status record including setting a flag associated with the status record.

22. The machine-readable medium of claim 21, wherein the automatically composing and transmitting of the message includes performing a check to see if the flag associated with the status record is set and sending the message if the flag is set.

23. An electronic commerce system, comprising:

a receiving means for receiving a status of an order for a customer; and

a messaging means for automatically composing and transmitting a message to a network address for the customer, wherein the message indicates the status of the order.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the electronic mail messenger is for automatically composing and transmitting the message upon determining that the status of the order has changed.

25. The system of claim 23, further including:

a requesting means for interrogating an information system via a network to determine the status of the order.

26. The system of claim 23, further including:

a storage means for storing the status in a status record in the storage means, wherein the receiving means updates the status record with the status information and sets a flag associated with the status record.