Easy user activation of electronic commerce services

• US 20040143546A1
• Filed: 11/01/2002
• Published: 07/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Checkfree Corporation (Fiserv Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Checkfree Corporation (Fiserv Incorporated)
• Inventors: Dreyer, Hans D., McCoy, Randal A., Bemis, Teri W., Hobday, Donald K. Jr., Harris, Mark T., Wood, Jeff A.
• Application Number:
  US10/285,707
• Publication Number:
  US 20040143546A1
• 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

Abstract

A technique for activating electronic presentment of bills for a consumer by an electronic bill presentment service provider is provided. The service provider activates electronic presentment of bills of a first biller for a consumer. As a part of this activation, the service provider stores information identifying the consumer that is required for activation of electronic billing from the first biller. In a subsequent activation of electronic presentment of bills of a second biller for the consumer, the service provider determines that the stored consumer identifying information is necessary to activate electronic bill presentment of bills of the second biller. The service provider, instead of requesting the consumer to supply this information, retrieves the stored consumer identifying information an uses it in the activation relating to electronic presentment of bills of the second biller.

Claims

1. A method for activating electronic presentment of bills for a consumer by an electronic bill presentment service provider, comprising:

storing first information identifying the consumer, the first information associated with activating electronic presentment of bills of a first biller for the consumer;

receiving, a consumer request for activation of electronic presentment of bills of a second biller for the consumer;

determining that a portion of the stored first information is the same as a portion of second information identifying the consumer necessary for activation of electronic presentment of bills of the second biller;

retrieving the determined portion of the stored first information; and

activating electronic presentment of bills of the second biller for the consumer based upon the retrieved information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the determined portion of the stored first information includes all the information necessary for activation of electronic presentment of bills of the second biller; and

electronic presentment of bills of the second biller for the consumer is activated without requiring the consumer to provide further identifying information.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the necessary second information includes information not included in the stored first information, and further comprising:

obtaining the necessary information not included in the stored first information; and

storing the obtained information;

wherein electronic presentment of bills of the second biller for the consumer is activated based upon the retrieved information and the obtained information.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the obtained information is obtained from the consumer, and further comprising:

transmitting to the consumer a request for the necessary information not included in the stored first information; and

receiving from the consumer the necessary information not included in the stored first information from the consumer responsive to the transmitted request for the information.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the obtained information is obtained from a data repository other than a data repository of the electronic bill presentment service provider, and further comprising:

accessing the other data repository to obtain the necessary information not included in the stored first information.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first information is stored in a data repository other than a data repository of the electronic bill presentment service provider.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing third information identifying the consumer, the third information associated with enrollment with the electronic billing service provider;

determining that at a portion of the stored third information is the same as a portion of information necessary for activation of electronic presentment of bills of the first biller; and

retrieving the determined portion of the stored third information;

wherein the activation of electronic presentment of bills of the first biller for the consumer is based upon the retrieved portion of the third information.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the stored first information is received from an entity other than the consumer and the first biller.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from the consumer, a first payment request for the service provider to pay a first payee on behalf of the consumer;

transmitting to the consumer a request for information identifying a funding account associated with the consumer responsive to receiving the first payment request;

receiving the information identifying a consumer funding account responsive to the transmitted request for the information identifying the consumer funding account;

completing payment to the first payee based upon the first payment request and the received information identifying the consumer funding account;

storing the information identifying the consumer funding account;

receiving from the consumer, subsequent to storing the information identifying the consumer funding account, a second payment request for the service provider to pay a second payee on behalf of the consumer;

retrieving the stored information identifying the consumer funding account; and

completing payment to the second payee based upon the second payment request and the retrieved information identifying the consumer funding account.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a consumer request for activation of electronic presentment of bills of a third biller for the consumer;

determining that no information necessary for activation of electronic presentment of bills of the third biller is stored;

obtaining the necessary information for activation of electronic presentment of bills of the third biller;

activating electronic presentment of bills of the third biller for the consumer based upon the obtained information; and

storing the obtained information;

wherein, subsequent to the storing of the obtained information, activation of presentment of electronic bills of a fourth biller for the consumer is based upon at least a portion of the stored obtained information and at least a portion of the stored first information.

11. A system for activating electronic presentment of bills for a consumer by an electronic bill presentment service provider, comprising:

a memory configured to store first information identifying the consumer, the first information associated with activating electronic presentment of bills of a first biller for the consumer;

a communications interface configure to receive a consumer request for activation of electronic presentment of bills of a second biller for the consumer; and

a processor configured to determine that a portion of the stored first information is the same as a portion of second information identifying the consumer necessary for activation of electronic presentment of bills of the second biller responsive to the received request, to retrieve the determined portion of the stored first information, and to activate electronic presentment of bills of the second biller for the consumer based upon the retrieved information.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein:

the determined portion of the stored first information includes all the information necessary for activation of electronic presentment of bills of the second biller; and

electronic presentment of bills of the second biller for the consumer is activated without requiring the consumer to provider further identifying information.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein:

the necessary second information includes-information not included in the stored first information;

the processor is further configured to obtain the necessary information not included in the stored first information, and to cause the memory to store the obtained information; and

electronic presentment of bills of the second biller for the consumer is activated based upon the retrieved information and the obtained information.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein:

the obtained information is obtained from the consumer;

the communications interface is further configured transmit a request to the consumer for the necessary information not included in the stored first information and to receive, from the consumer, the necessary information not included in the stored first information responsive to the transmitted request to the consumer for the information; and

the processor is further configured to cause the communications interface to transmit the request to the consumer for the information in obtaining the information.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein:

the obtained information is obtained from a data repository other than an electronic bill presentment service provider data repository;

the communications interface is further configured to access the other data repository and retrieve the information not included in the stored first information from the other data repository; and

the processor is further configured to cause the communications interface to access the other data repository in obtaining the information.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the memory is a Web services data repository.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein:

the memory is further configured to store third information identifying the consumer, the third information associated with enrollment with an electronic billing service provider;

the processor is further configured to determine that a portion of the stored third information is the same as a portion of information necessary for activation of electronic bill presentment of bills of the first biller, and to retrieve the determined portion of the stored third information; and

the activation of electronic bill presentment of bills of the first biller for the consumer based upon the retrieved portion of the third information.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein at least a portion of the stored first information is received from an entity other than the consumer and the first biller.

19. The system of claim 11, wherein:

the communications interface is further configured to receive from the consumer a first payment request for the electronic bill presentment service provider to pay a first payee on behalf of the consumer, to transmit to the consumer a request for information identifying a funding account associated with the consumer, and to receive information identifying the consumer funding account responsive to the transmitted request for information identifying the consumer funding account;

the processor is further configured to cause the communications interface to transmit the request for information identifying the consumer funding account, to cause the memory to store the received information identifying the consumer funding account, and to cause payment to the first payee to be completed based upon the first payment request and the received information identifying the consumer funding account;

the communications interface is further configured to receive from the consumer a second payment request for the electronic bill presentment service provider to pay a second payee on behalf of the consumer, the second payment request received subsequent to the storage of the information identifying the consumer funding account; and

the processor is further configured to retrieve the stored information identifying the consumer funding account and to cause payment to the second payee to be completed based upon the second payment request and the retrieved information identifying the consumer funding account.

20. The system of claim 11, wherein:

the communications interface is further configured to receive a consumer request for activation of electronic presentment of bills of a third biller;

the processor is further configured to determine that information necessary for activation of electronic bill presentment of bills of the third biller is not stored in the memory, to obtain the necessary third biller information, to activate electronic presentment of bills of the third biller for the consumer based upon the obtained information, and to cause the memory to store the obtained information; and

subsequent to the storing of the obtained information, activation of presentment of electronic bills of a fourth biller for the consumer is based upon at least a portion of the stored obtained information and at least a portion of the stored first information.