Method for providing reductions on products and/or services

• US 20040172327A1
• Filed: 01/16/2004
• Published: 09/02/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/17/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Corvin Falk
• Original Assignee: Corvin Falk
• Inventors: Falk, Corvin
• Application Number:
  US10/484,487
• Publication Number:
  US 20040172327A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3223 Realising banking transactions through M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/363 with the personal data of a user
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0235 constrained by time limit or expiration date
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0866 by active credit-cards adapted therefor G07F7/1008 takes precedence

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for providing reductions on products and/or services, wherein an information carrier is made available to a customer after the purchase of a product and/or in connection with the administration of services. Said information carrier contains coded information on the amount of discount offered with respect to the purchase of a product or administration of a service. The information of the information carrier is inputted into a telecommunication device and transmitted to a central management unit by means of said telecommunication device via a telecommunication network. In the management unit, free telecommunication services or other data services corresponding to the value of the discount on the product or the service are automatically credited to the customer and can be used immediately or at a later stage by the customer by means of telecommunication devices with the aid of technical devices provided by the central management unit, whereupon the discount thus provided expires.

Claims

1. Method for granting rebates on products and/or services,

characterized in that

an information carrier is made accessible to a customer at the purchase of a product and/or in connection with receiving services, which carrier contains information about the amount of a rebate issued to him/her for the purchase of the product or for receiving the service, in coded form, and/or about the product or the service,

that the information of the information carrier is fed into a telecommunication device and transmitted to a central administration unit by way of a telecommunication network, by means of the telecommunication device,

that the customer automatically receives credit for the value of the rebate on the product or the service, in the administration unit, for telecommunication services or other data technology services, free of charge to the customer, which the customer can make use of immediately and/or with a time delay, by means of telecommunication devices, by way of technical facilities made available by the central administration unit, whereupon the rebate that was granted expires.

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that an ID preferably the phone number of the telecommunication device, is transmitted to the central administration unit together with the information about the rebate and/or the product or the service, with which the customer can be clearly identified.

3. Method according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the amount of the rebate transmitted by means of the telecommunication device is automatically credited to the customer in a customer-specific account, using the customer-specific ID, preferably in a database, and stored there until the telecommunication service or other data technology service is utilized.

4. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the information about the product purchased or the service utilized that was sent to the central administration unit is stored by the central administration unit together with the data of the customer.

5. Method according to claim 4, characterized in that a user profile is created from the information of every customer that is sent to the central administration unit, which reflects the consumer behavior of the customer.

6. Method according to one of claims 4 or 5, characterized in that the information about the product purchased or the service utilized and the data of the customer or the customer-specific user profile are transmitted to the vendor of the product or the performer of the service.

7. Method according to claim 6, characterized in that the data are transmitted to the vendor of the product or the performer of the service in anonymous manner.

8. Method according to claim 6, characterized in that the data are transmitted to the vendor of the product or the performer of the services linked with the user profile, if the customer agrees.

9. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that cell phones and/or land-line telephones are used as the telecommunication devices.

10. Method according to claim 9, characterized in that the information it transmitted by the customer to the central administration unit by means of SMS messages, by means of voice transmission by way of a land-line telephone, preferably a telephone that is capable of tone dialing, or by means of input by way of an Internet interface.

11. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that any type of data transmission, particularly e-mail messages, fax transmissions, SMS messages, transmission of video sequences, individual pictures, audio sequences, documents, or any form of data transmissions billed in time-dependent or volume-dependent manner can be utilized by the customer as the telecommunication service.

12. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that making available memory space on a storage unit made available by the central administration unit can be utilized by the customer as another data technology service.

13. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that information concerning the rebates of several products purchased and/or services used is transmitted to the central administration unit at the same time, in a message from the customer.

14. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the customer opens up an account with the central administration unit, particularly by providing personal data, before the first time he/she takes advantage of a rebate.

15. Method according to claim 14, characterized in that the account can be filled up by the customer by paying in rebate amounts in the form of monetary amounts.

16. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the customer sets his/her telecommunication device in such a manner that he/she handles his/her communications entirely by way of communication devices of the central administration unit or, optionally, when calling up the rebated telecommunication services or the other data technology services.

17. Method according to claim 16, characterized in that when using SMS messages, the short-message central number (SMSC) set at the telecommunication device refers to the central administration unit.

18. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the customer calls up a rebated telecommunication service or another data technology service from the central administration unit anonymously, in that he/she transmits only the coded information about the amount of the discount granted to the central administration unit, in direct connection with or directly integrated into a message transmission, and that the central administration unit passes this message on to the recipient specified by the customer, immediately after having checked the coded information.

19. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the coded information of the product or in connection with the service is automatically detected by the telecommunication device.

20. Method according to claim 19, characterized in that the coded information is read by a scanner integrated into the telecommunication device, or a similar detection unit.

21. Method according to one of claims 19 or 20, characterized in that a number code arranged on the product in covered manner is used as the coded information, which can only be exposed by the customer after purchase of the goods.

22. Method according to one of claims 19 to 21, characterized in that the bar code, particularly the EAN code, which is usually affixed to products for automatic scanning of the price, can be used as part of the coded information.

23. Method according to claim 19, characterized in that the coded information is arranged on the product in the form of a transponder and is read by a detection unit integrated into the telecommunication device.

24. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that when an attempt is made to utilize telecommunication services or other data technology services that are not covered by the customer'"'"'s account balance, the data transmission is not transmitted to the addressee indicated by the customer and instead, a message to this effect is sent to the customer.