System and method for selecting a service provider
First Claim
1. A system for enabling the selection of a service provider from a plurality of service providers for the performance of a job, said system including:
- a database which is accessible by a service user via a network, the database including a plurality of records, each record being associated with a service provider, wherein each record includes a service provider profile including a plurality of comparable performance criteria indicative of the performance attributes of the service provider;
an interface for receiving a job request comprising at least one desired performance criterion from said service user, and a processor for comparing the stored comparable performance criteria and the at least one desired performance criterion, and for extracting at least one preferred service provider from the database on the basis of said comparison.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A preferred embodiment provides a selection system to facilitate the provision of services on a computer network to prospective service users. According to a first aspect of the invention provides a system for enabling the selection of a service provider from a plurality of service providers for the performance of a job, said system including, a database which is accessible by a service user via a network, the database including a plurality of records, each record being associated with a service provider, wherein each record includes a service provider profile including a plurality of comparable performance criteria indicative of the performance attributes of the service provider; interface means for receiving a job request comprising at least one desired performance criterion from said service user, and processor means for comparing the stored comparable performance criteria and the at least one desired performance criterion, and for extracting at least one preferred service provider from the database on the basis of said comparison. The invention also provides a method of enabling a service user to select a service provider from a plurality of service providers for the performance of a job, said method including the steps of: providing a database which is accessible by the service user via a network, storing in said database a plurality of records, each record being associated with a service provider, wherein each record includes a service provider profile including a plurality of comparable performance criteria indicative of the performance attributes of the service provider; receiving a job request comprising at least one desired performance criterion from said service user, comparing the plurality of stored performance criteria with the desired performance criterion, and automatically selecting at least one preferred service provider from the database on the basis of said comparison.
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Citations
58 Claims
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1. A system for enabling the selection of a service provider from a plurality of service providers for the performance of a job, said system including:
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a database which is accessible by a service user via a network, the database including a plurality of records, each record being associated with a service provider, wherein each record includes a service provider profile including a plurality of comparable performance criteria indicative of the performance attributes of the service provider;
an interface for receiving a job request comprising at least one desired performance criterion from said service user, and a processor for comparing the stored comparable performance criteria and the at least one desired performance criterion, and for extracting at least one preferred service provider from the database on the basis of said comparison. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 25)
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16. A method of enabling a service user to select a service provider from a plurality of service providers for the performance of a job, said method including:
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providing a database which is accessible by the service user via a network, storing in said database a plurality of records, each record being associated with a service provider, wherein each record includes a service provider profile including a plurality of comparable performance criteria indicative of the performance attributes of the service provider;
receiving a job request comprising at least one desired performance criterion from said service user, comparing the plurality of stored performance criteria with the desired performance criterion, and automatically selecting at least one preferred service provider from the database on the basis of said comparison. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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26. A computerized method of enabling a buyer to select a service provider for performing a service;
- said method including;
(a) processing a service enquiry for a particular service;
(b) retrieving historical cost data associated with said service in respect of a plurality of service providers in response to said enquiry;
(c) processing said historical cost data to arrive at comparable cost data in respect of said service providers for enabling the selection of a service provider to perform the particular service;
(d) capturing cost data relating to the provision of the particular service by the selected service provider, and (e) updating the historical cost data by incorporating said captured cost data. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
- said method including;
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40. A computerized method of enabling a buyer to select a service provider for performing a service, said method including:
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(a) compiling historical cost and quality datasets including historical cost and quality data associated with the provision of at least one previous service by each service provider. (b) receiving and processing a service enquiry from the buyer for a particular service;
(c) retrieving historical cost and quality data associated with said service in respect of a plurality of service providers in response to said enquiry; and
(d) processing said historical cost and quality data to arrive at comparable cost and quality data in respect of said service providers for enabling the selection of a service provider to perform the particular service. - View Dependent Claims (41, 42)
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43. A computer-readable medium having stored thereon executable instructions for causing a computer to perform a method of enabling a buyer to select a service provider for performing a service;
- said method including;
(a) processing a service enquiry for a particular service;
(b) retrieving historical cost data associated with said service in respect of a plurality of service providers in response to said enquiry;
(c) processing said historical cost data to arrive at comparable cost data in respect of said service providers for enabling the selection of a service provider to perform the particular service;
(d) capturing cost data relating to the provision of the particular service by the selected service provider, and (e) updating the historical cost data by incorporating said captured cost data. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45)
- said method including;
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46. A computer system to enable a buyer to select a service provider for performing a service, said system including:
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an enquiry processing device configured to receive and process a service enquiry for a particular service from the buyer;
a database configured to store historical cost data associated with said service in respect of a plurality of service providers;
a processor adapted to retrieve and process said historical cost data from said database in response to said query to arrive at comparable cost data in respect of said service providers for enabling the buyer to select a service provider, on the basis of said comparable cost data, to perform the particular service. - View Dependent Claims (47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52)
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53. A computer system to enable a buyer to select a service provider for performing a service;
- said system including;
a database configured to store a first dataset including a plurality of service providers, a plurality of associated services and a plurality of associated historical costs;
a processor in communication with said database, wherein said processor is configured to receive historical cost data associated with each service provider and to generate comparative cost data for each service provider according to a predetermined algorithm; and
a communication device configured to communicate said comparative cost data to said buyer to enable the buyer to select a service provider. - View Dependent Claims (54, 55, 56, 57, 58)
- said system including;
Specification