Seller-controlled publication of question and answer sets

• US 20050015325A1
• Filed: 12/30/2003
• Published: 01/20/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Grove, Brian Alan, Grove, Steve, Edson, Zak James, Sandler, Andrew Leigh
• Granted Patent: US 7,831,484 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/37
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0623 Item investigation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

An auction mechanism that would allow a buyer to submit a question to a seller, and optionally have the seller post the relevant question as well as a response for inclusion within a listing.

Claims

1. A network-based commerce system including:

a processor coupled to a memory through a bus; and

a fixed price-setting process executed from the memory by the processor to cause the processor to receive a question associated with a listing for an item during a network-based auction price-setting process, and to provide an answer to the question via a communications network.

2. The network-based commerce system of claim 1, wherein the fixed price-setting process further causes the processor, when providing the answer to publish the question and the answer on the listing for the item.

3. The network-based commerce system of claim 1, wherein the fixed price-setting process further causes the processor, when providing the answer to provide the answer to the question via an electronic mail message over the communications network.

4. The network-based commerce system of claim 1, wherein the fixed price-setting process further causes the processor, when the receiving the question to receive the question from a bidder over the communications network.

5. A network-based commerce system including:

a means for receiving a question associated with a listing for an item during a network-based auction price-setting process; and

a means for providing an answer to the question via a communications network.

6. The network-based commerce system of claim 5, wherein the means for providing includes publishing the question and the answer on the listing for the item.

7. The network-based commerce system of claim 5, wherein the means for providing includes providing the answer to the question via an electronic mail message over the communications network.

8. The network-based commerce system of claim 5, wherein the means for receiving includes receiving the question from a bidder over the communications network.

9. A machine-readable medium having instructions to cause a machine to perform a method to facilitate operation of a network-based commerce system, the method including:

receiving a question associated with a listing for an item during a network-based auction price-setting process; and

providing an answer to the question via a communications network.

10. The machine-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the providing includes publishing the question and the answer on the listing for the item.

11. The machine-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the providing includes providing the answer to the question via an electronic mail message over the communications network.

12. The machine-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the receiving includes receiving the question from a bidder over the communications network.

13. A method to facilitate operation of a network-based commerce system, the method including:

receiving a question associated with a listing for an item during a network-based auction price-setting process; and

providing an answer to the question via a communications network.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the providing includes publishing the question and the answer on the listing for the item.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the providing includes providing the answer to the question via an electronic mail message over the communications network.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the receiving includes receiving the question from a bidder over the communications network.