System and method for an automated sales system with remote negotiation and post-sale verification
First Claim
1. A method for facilitating the negotiation and sale of an item between a seller and at least one bidder across a network, said seller and said at least one bidder being remote from one another, said method comprising the steps of:
- receiving, from said seller to said at least one bidder, item data about said item, said item being nonstandard;
in response to an offer by said at least one bidder to said seller, counteroffering, by said seller, with new sales terms to said at least one bidder, wherein said new sales terms include a new price, said new price being less than a listed ask price in said item data and greater than a bid price in said offer, and said offer of said at least one bidder and the counteroffer by said seller being in real-time; and
selecting, among said at least one bidder, a buyer of said item at said new sales terms.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention provides a system and method to process items for sale or bid, to transmit electronic negotiations between prospective buyer and seller, and to verify the condition of the item before delivery to the buyer. The invention facilitates autonomous and remote negotiation between sellers and prospective buyers while protecting buyers from fraud and item misrepresentation. With the present invention, items can be sold individually and are not treated as standardized items that are interchangeable with similar commodity goods. The present invention also provides a waitlisting function. In addition, the functionality of traditional auction systems may be integrated with the novel features of the present invention. Furthermore, the present invention provides a system and method for conducting a reverse auction by allowing prospective buyers to list desired items.
89 Citations
65 Claims
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1. A method for facilitating the negotiation and sale of an item between a seller and at least one bidder across a network, said seller and said at least one bidder being remote from one another, said method comprising the steps of:
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receiving, from said seller to said at least one bidder, item data about said item, said item being nonstandard;
in response to an offer by said at least one bidder to said seller, counteroffering, by said seller, with new sales terms to said at least one bidder, wherein said new sales terms include a new price, said new price being less than a listed ask price in said item data and greater than a bid price in said offer, and said offer of said at least one bidder and the counteroffer by said seller being in real-time; and
selecting, among said at least one bidder, a buyer of said item at said new sales terms. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method for facilitating the negotiation and sale of an item between a seller and at least one bidder across a network, said seller and said at least one bidder being remote from one another, said method comprising the steps of:
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receiving, from said at least one bidder, item data about said item and a first offer to purchase said item at first sales terms, said item being nonstandard;
receiving, from said seller, a second offer to sell said item at new sales terms; and
selecting said at least one bidder to buy said item at said new sales terms.
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15. A method for facilitating the negotiation and sale of an item between a seller and at least one bidder across a network, said seller and said at least one bidder being remote from one another, said method comprising the steps of:
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receiving, from said seller to said at least one bidder, item data about said item, said item being nonstandard;
in response to an offer by said at least one bidder to said seller, counteroffering, by said seller, with new sales terms to said at least one bidder, wherein said new sales terms include a new price, said new price being greater than a bid price in said offer, said bid price being greater than or equal to a listed ask price in said item data, and said offer of said at least one bidder and the counteroffer by said seller being in real-time; and
selecting, among said at least one bidder, a buyer of said item at said new sales terms. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. A method for facilitating the sale and conveyance of at least one item from at least one seller to a buyer across a network, said at least one seller and said buyer being remote from one another, said method comprising the steps of:
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directing, after sale of said at least one item to said buyer, the at least one seller to forward said at least one item to a third party, said at least one item being nonstandard;
verifying, by said third party, that said at least one nonstandard item matches item description data sent to said buyer by said at least one seller;
receiving payment from said buyer;
transferring, after successful verification by said third party and receipt of said payment, said at least one nonstandard item to said buyer; and
transmitting said payment to said at least one seller. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30)
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31. A system for facilitating the negotiation and sale of an item between a seller and at least one bidder across a network, said seller and said at least one bidder being remote from one another, said system comprising:
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means for receiving from said seller to said at least one bidder, item data about said item, said item being nonstandard;
means for counteroffering by said seller, in response to an offer by said at least one bidder to said seller, with new sales terms to said at least one bidder, wherein said new sales terms include a new price, said new price being less than a listed ask price in said item data and greater than a bid price in said offer, and said offer of said at least one bidder and the counteroffer by said seller being in real-time; and
means for selecting, among said at least one bidder, a buyer of said item at said new sales terms. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43)
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44. A system for facilitating the negotiation and sale of an item between a seller and at least one bidder across a network, said seller and said at least one bidder being remote from one another, said system comprising:
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means for receiving, from said at least one bidder, item data about said item and a first offer to purchase said item at first sales terms, said item being nonstandard;
means for receiving from said seller a second offer to sell said item at new sales terms; and
means for selecting said at least one bidder to buy said item at said new sales terms.
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45. A system for facilitating the negotiation and sale of an item between a seller and at least one bidder across a network, said seller and said at least one bidder being remote from one another, said system comprising:
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means for receiving, from said seller to said at least one bidder, item data about said item, said item being nonstandard;
means for counteroffering by said seller, in response to an offer by said at least one bidder to said seller, with new sales terms to said at least one bidder, wherein said new sales terms include a new price, said new price being greater than a bid price in said offer, said bid price being greater than or equal to a listed ask price in said item data, and said offer of said at least one bidder and the counteroffer by said seller being in real-time; and
means for selecting, among said at least one bidder, a buyer of said item at said new sales terms. - View Dependent Claims (46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56)
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57. A system for facilitating the sale and conveyance of at least one item from at least one seller to a buyer across a network, said at least one seller and said buyer being remote from one another, said system comprising:
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means for directing, after sale of said at least one item to said buyer, the at least one seller to forward said at least one item to a third party, said at least one item being nonstandard;
means for verifying, by said third party, that said at least one nonstandard item matches item description data sent to said buyer by said at least one seller;
means for receiving payment from said buyer;
means for transferring, after successful verification by said third party and receipt of said payment, said at least one nonstandard item to said buyer; and
means for transmitting said payment to said at least one seller. - View Dependent Claims (58, 59, 60)
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61. A data storage medium with computer-executable instructions thereon for facilitating the negotiation and sale of an item between a seller and at least one bidder across a network, said seller and said at least one bidder being remote from one another, said data storage medium comprising:
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instructions for receiving, from said seller to said at least one bidder, item data about said item, said item being nonstandard;
in response to an offer by said at least one bidder to said seller, instructions for counteroffering, by said seller, with new sales terms to said at least one bidder, wherein said new sales terms include a new price, said new price being less than a listed ask price in said item data and greater than a bid price in said offer, and said offer of said at least one bidder and the counteroffer by said seller being in real-time; and
instructions for selecting, among said at least one bidder, a buyer of said item at said new sales terms.
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62. A data storage medium with computer-executable instructions thereon for facilitating the negotiation and sale of an item between a seller and at least one bidder across a network, said seller and said at least one bidder being remote from one another, said data storage medium comprising:
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instructions for receiving, from said at least one bidder, item data about said item and a first offer to purchase said item at first sales terms, said item being nonstandard;
instructions for receiving from said seller a second offer to sell said item at new sales terms; and
instructions for selecting said at least one bidder to buy said item at said new sales terms.
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63. A data storage medium with computer-executable instructions thereon for facilitating the negotiation and sale of an item between a seller and at least one bidder across a network, said seller and said at least one bidder being remote from one another, said data storage medium comprising:
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instructions for receiving, from said seller to said at least one bidder, item data about said item, said item being nonstandard;
in response to an offer by said at least one bidder to said seller, instructions for counteroffering, by said seller, with new sales terms to said at least one bidder, wherein said new sales terms include a new price, said new price being greater than a bid price in said offer, said bid price being greater than or equal to a listed ask price in said item data, and said offer of said at least one bidder and the counteroffer by said seller being in real-time; and
instructions for selecting, among said at least one bidder, a buyer of said item at said new sales terms.
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64. A data storage medium with computer-executable instructions thereon for facilitating the sale and conveyance of at least one item from at least one seller to a buyer across a network, said at least one seller and said buyer being remote from one another, said data storage medium comprising:
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instructions for directing, after sale of said at least one item to said buyer, the at least one seller to forward said at least one item to a third party, said at least one item being nonstandard;
instructions for verifying, by said third party, that said at least one nonstandard item matches item description data sent to said buyer by said at least one seller;
instructions for receiving payment from said buyer;
instructions for transferring, after successful verification by said third party and receipt of said payment, said at least one nonstandard item to said buyer; and
instructions for transmitting said payment to said at least one seller. - View Dependent Claims (65)
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Specification