Matching consumers with billers having bills available for electronic presentment

• US 20040088255A1
• Filed: 11/01/2002
• Published: 05/06/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Checkfree Services Corporation (Fiserv Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Checkfree Corporation (Fiserv Incorporated)
• Inventors: Brothers, John, Moenickheim, Peter, Ward, Cheryl, McCoy, Randal, Stratton, Richard, McMichael, William, Bemis, Teri, Frech, John, Kozee, Casey, Zielke, William
• Granted Patent: US 7,526,448 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/00 Mechanisms actuated by objects other than coins to free or to actuate vending, hiring, coin or paper currency dispensing or refunding apparatus

Abstract

A technique for identifying electronic billers of a consumer whose bills are available by electronic presentment is provided. A request to identify electronic billers of the consumer is received. This request includes information that identifies the consumer, but excludes any information identifying any biller, electronic or not, of the consumer. From this information that does not identify any biller of the consumer, one more candidate electronic billers of the consumer are identified. Then, a positive determination is made that at least one of these candidate electronic billers is definitely an electronic biller of the consumer. Thus, electronic billers of the consumer are identified without the consumer identifying any biller.

Claims

1. A method for identifying electronic billers of a consumer whose bills are available by electronic presentment, comprising:

receiving a request to identify electronic billers of the consumer, the request including information identifying the consumer and excluding information identifying any billers of the consumer;

transforming the consumer identifying information into candidate electronic biller identity information identifying candidate electronic billers; and

identifying at least one of the candidate electronic billers as an electronic biller of the consumer based upon the candidate electronic biller identity information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein transforming the consumer identifying information into the candidate electronic biller identify information includes:

initially transforming the consumer identifying information into candidate biller identity information identifying candidate billers; and

transforming the candidate biller identity information into the candidate electronic biller identity information;

wherein the candidate electronic biller identity information identifies only those candidate billers having bills available for electronic presentment.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the candidate electronic biller identity information includes an account number assigned to the consumer by at least one identified electronic biller.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is received by an electronic bill presentment and payments service provider and transforming the consumer identifying information into the candidate electronic biller identity information includes:

accessing, by the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider and based upon the consumer identifying information, at least one of a) a payments database storing information associated with providing the payment service to the consumer, b) a credit report database storing credit report information of the consumer, c) a residency database storing information associated with a residency location of the consumer, and d) a socio-demographic database storing information associated with a socio-demographic status of the consumer; and

identifying candidate electronic biller identity information which identifies at least one candidate electronic biller based upon information contained in the at least one accessed database.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein:

the payments database includes information identifying at least one of a payee that the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider has paid on behalf of the consumer, a payee that the consumer has identified as a potential payee, and the consumer;

the credit report database includes information identifying creditors of the consumer;

the residency database includes information identifying electronic billers having customers in the residency location of the consumer; and

the socio-demographic database includes information identifying electronic billers having customers having the socio-demographic status of the consumer.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein:

the consumer identifying information is first consumer identifying information;

the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider obtains second information further identifying the consumer from at least one of the payments database, an e-mail list provider, and a data repository other than a data repository of the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider to other than a data repository of the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider prior to the accessing of the at least one database and the identification of the candidate electronic biller identity information based upon the information contained in the at least one accessed database;

the accessing of the at least one database is based upon at least the obtained second information; and

if the second information is obtained from the payments database, the accessed database is at least one of the credit report database, the residency database, and the socio-demographic database.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein:

the consumer identifying information is first consumer identifying information;

the accessed at least one database is the payments database;

candidate electronic biller identity information identifying at least a first candidate electronic biller is identified based upon the accessing of the payments database;

accessing the payments database includes retrieving second information, stored in the payments database, further identifying the consumer and excluding information identifying any billers of the consumer;

at least one of the credit report database, the residency database, and the socio-demographic database based is accessed based upon the retrieved second information; and

candidate electronic biller identity information which identifies at least one other candidate electronic biller is identified based upon information contained in the at least one database accessed based upon the second information.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

comparing the information identifying the consumer with information associated with each identified candidate electronic biller;

wherein the comparison identifies the at least one electronic biller of the consumer.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the information associated with each candidate electronic biller is one of biller customer data and bill data of each respective candidate electronic biller.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the received consumer identifying information is first consumer identifying information, and further comprising:

obtaining second information further identifying the consumer;

wherein the compared consumer identifying information is the first consumer identifying information and the second consumer identifying information;

wherein the second information is obtained from one of an external data repository, other than a data repository of the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider, an e-mail list provider, a payments database storing information associated with providing the payment service to the consumer, and a credit report database storing credit report information of the consumer.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein:

the request is received, the consumer identifying information is transformed, and the comparison is performed by an electronic bill presentment and payments service provider;

the compared information associated with a first one of the identified candidate electronic billers is stored by the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider; and

the compared information associated with a second one of the identified candidate electronic billers is stored by the second candidate electronic biller.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is received responsive to the consumer activating a hyper-link included in a Web page representing an entity other than an identified electronic biller.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the request is received from an entity other than the consumer; and

the request is not received responsive to any consumer request to identify electronic billers of the consumer.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting information identifying the at least one identified electronic biller of the consumer;

wherein the information identifying the at least one identified electronic biller of the consumer is transmitted to at least one of the consumer and an entity other than the consumer.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein:

the identified at least one electronic biller of the consumer includes a first electronic biller; and

the information transmitted identifying the at least one identified electronic biller of the consumer includes bill related information associated with a bill of the first electronic biller for the consumer.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein an electronic bill presentment and payments service provider receives the request and transforms the consumer identifying information, and further comprising:

transmitting, by the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider, to one of the candidate electronic billers, the consumer identifying information; and

receiving, by the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider and from the one candidate electronic biller, information identifying the one candidate electronic biller as an electronic biller of the consumer.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the identified at least one electronic biller of the consumer includes a first identified electronic biller of the consumer, and further comprising:

activating electronic bill presentment of bills of the first identified electronic biller, the activation excluding any communication with the consumer.

18. A system for identifying electronic billers of a consumer whose bills are available by electronic presentment, comprising:

a communications interface configured to receive a request to identify electronic billers of the consumer, the request including information identifying the consumer and excluding information identifying any billers of the consumer; and

a processor configured to transform the consumer identifying information into candidate electronic biller identify information identifying candidate electronic billers and to identify at least one of the candidate electronic billers as an electronic biller of the consumer based upon the candidate electronic biller identity information.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein:

the processor is further configured to initially transform the consumer identifying information into candidate biller identity information identifying candidate billers, and to transform the candidate biller identity information into the candidate electronic identity information; and

the candidate electronic biller identity information identifies only those candidate electronic billers having bills available for electronic presentment.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the candidate electronic biller identity information includes an account number assigned to the consumer by at least one identified electronic biller.

21. The system of claim 18, wherein the communications interface and the processor are associated with an electronic bill presentment and payments service provider, and further comprising:

a payments database associated with the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider configured to store information associated with providing the payment service to the consumer;

a credit report database associated with the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider configured to store credit report information of the consumer;

a residency database associated with the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider configured to store information associated with a residency location of the consumer; and

a socio-demographic database associated with the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider configured to store information associated with a socio-demographic status of the consumer;

wherein the processor is further configured to access, based upon he consumer identifying information, at least one of the payments database, credit report database, residency database, and socio-demographic database, and to identify candidate electronic biller identity information which identifies at least one candidate electronic biller based upon information contained in the at least one accessed database.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein:

the payments database includes information identifying at least one of a payee that the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider has paid on behalf of the consumer, a payee that the consumer has identified as a potential payee, and the consumer;

the credit report database includes information identifying creditors of the consumer;

the residency database includes information identifying electronic billers having customers in the residency location of the consumer; and

the socio-demographic database includes information identifying electronic billers having customers having the socio-demographic status of the consumer.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein:

the consumer identifying information is first consumer identifying information;

the processor is further configured to obtain second information further identifying the consumer from at least one of the payments database, an e-mail list provider, and an external data repository other than a data repository at the electronic bill presentment and payments service provider prior to the accessing of the at least one database; and

the accessing of the at least one database is based upon at least the obtained second information; and

if the second information is obtained from the payments database, the accessed database is at least one of the credit report database, the residency database, and the socio-demographic database.

24. The system of claim 21, wherein:

the consumer identifying information is first consumer identifying information;

the accessed database is the payments database;

candidate electronic biller identity information identifying at least a first candidate electronic biller is identified by the processor based upon the accessed payments database; and

the processor is further configured to retrieve second information further identifying the consumer and excluding information identifying any billers of the consumer in accessing the payments database, and to access, based upon the retrieved second consumer identifying information, at least one other of the credit report database, the residency database, and the socio-demographic database, and to identify candidate electronic biller identity information which identifies at least one other candidate electronic biller based upon information contained in the accessed at least one other database.

25. The system of claim 18, further comprising:

an electronic biller database configured to store information associated with a plurality of electronic billers, including each of the identified candidate electronic billers;

wherein the processor is further configured to compare the information identifying the consumer with information associated with each identified candidate electronic biller stored in the electronic biller database; and

wherein the comparison identifies the at least one electronic biller of the consumer.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the information associated with each electronic biller stored in the electronic biller database is one of biller customer data and bill data of each respective electronic biller.

27. The system of claim 25, wherein:

the consumer identifying information is first consumer identifying information; and

the processor is further configured to determine that second information identifying the consumer is required to identify a first one of the identified candidate electronic billers as an electronic biller of the consumer, to obtain the second consumer identifying information, to compare the second consumer identifying information with information associated with the first candidate electronic biller, and to identify the first candidate electronic biller as an electronic biller of the consumer based upon the comparison of the second consumer identifying information with the information associated with the first candidate electronic biller.

28. The system of claim 18, wherein the request is received responsive to the consumer activating a hyper-link included in a Web page representing an entity other than an identified electronic biller.

29. The system of claim 18, wherein:

the request is received from an entity other than the consumer; and

the request is not received responsive to any consumer request to identify electronic billers of the consumer.

30. The system of claim 18, wherein:

the processor is further configured to cause the communications interface to transmit information identifying the at least one identified electronic biller of the consumer;

wherein the information identifying the at least one identified electronic biller of the consumer is transmitted to at least one of the consumer and an entity other than the consumer.

31. The system of claim 30, wherein:

the identified at least one electronic biller of the consumer includes a first electronic biller; and

the information transmitted identifying the at least one identified electronic biller of the consumer includes bill related information associated with a bill of the first electronic biller for the consumer.

32. The system of claim 18, wherein:

the communications interface and the processor are associated with an electronic bill presentment and payments service provider; and

the processor is further configured to cause the communications interface to transmit, to one of the candidate electronic billers, the consumer identifying information; and

the communications interface is further configured to receive, from the one candidate electronic biller, information identifying the one candidate electronic biller as an electronic biller of the consumer.

33. The system of claim 18, wherein:

the identified at least one electronic biller of the consumer includes a first identified electronic biller of the consumer;

the processor is further configured to activate electronic bill presentment of bills of the first identified electronic biller for the consumer; and

the activation excluding any communication with the consumer.