Centralized customer care for electronic payments and other transactions via a wide area communications network
First Claim
1. A method for providing customer care via a wide area communications network to a user who has previously requested payment of a bill of a biller on the user'"'"'s behalf by a bill payment service provider, the communications network having multiple different network sites including a first network site associated with a customer care entity, and at least two of (i) a second network site associated with the biller, (ii) a third network site associated with a financial institution which maintains a payment account of the user and (iii) a fourth network site associated with the bill payment service provider, comprising:
- receiving a request of the user for assistance regarding the payment of the bill;
accessing, from the first network site via the communications network, at least two of (i) information associated with the bill at the second network site, (ii) information associated with the payment account of the user at the third network site and (iii) information associated with one or both of the bill and payment of the bill at the fourth network site, based on the received request of the user for assistance; and
responding to the received request of the user for assistance based on the information accessed at the at least two network sites.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Customer care is provided via a wide area communications network to a user who has previously requested payment of a bill of a biller on the user'"'"'s behalf by a bill payment service provider. The communications network has multiple different network sites including a first network site associated with a customer care entity, and at least two of (i) a second network site associated with the biller, (ii) a third network site associated with a financial institution which maintains a payment account of the user and (iii) a fourth network site associated with the bill payment service provider. A request of the user for assistance regarding the payment of the bill is received. Based on the received request, at least two of (i) information associated with the bill that is available at the second network site, (ii) information associated with the payment account of the user that is available at the third network site and (iii) information associated with one or both of the bill and payment of the bill that is available at the fourth network site, are accessed from the first network site via the communications network. A response to the received request of the user for assistance it then given, e.g. transmitted via a telephone network or the Internet, based on the information accessed at the at least two network sites.
81 Citations
22 Claims
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1. A method for providing customer care via a wide area communications network to a user who has previously requested payment of a bill of a biller on the user'"'"'s behalf by a bill payment service provider, the communications network having multiple different network sites including a first network site associated with a customer care entity, and at least two of (i) a second network site associated with the biller, (ii) a third network site associated with a financial institution which maintains a payment account of the user and (iii) a fourth network site associated with the bill payment service provider, comprising:
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receiving a request of the user for assistance regarding the payment of the bill;
accessing, from the first network site via the communications network, at least two of (i) information associated with the bill at the second network site, (ii) information associated with the payment account of the user at the third network site and (iii) information associated with one or both of the bill and payment of the bill at the fourth network site, based on the received request of the user for assistance; and
responding to the received request of the user for assistance based on the information accessed at the at least two network sites. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A networked system having multiple different network stations each associated with a different entity for providing customer care to user entities, comprising:
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a wide area communications network;
a first network station associated with a biller and at which information associated with bills of the biller is stored;
a second network station associated with a financial institution that maintains a payment account of the user entity and at which information associated with the payment accounts maintained by the financial institution is stored;
a third network site associated with a bill payment service and at which information associated with one or both of bills and payment of the bills is stored; and
a fourth network station associated with a customer care entity (i) for accessing, via the communications network, at least two of (a) the stored bill information at the first network station, (b) the stored payment account information at the second network station, and (c) the stored bill or payment information at the third network station, based on a request of the user entity for assistance regarding a previously requested payment of a bill of the biller on the user entity'"'"'s behalf by the bill payment service, and (ii) for presenting information responsive to the request of the user entity for assistance regarding the previously requested payment based on the information accessed at the at least two network stations. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method for providing, via a wide area communications network, centralized customer care regarding a transaction involving a user entity, a first other and a second other entity, the communications network having multiple different network sites including a first network site associated with a customer care entity, a second network site associated with the first other entity, and a third network site associated with the second other entity, comprising:
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receiving a request of the user entity for assistance regarding the transaction;
accessing, from the first network site via the communications network, first information associated with the first other entity'"'"'s involvement in the transaction at the second network site and second information associated with the second other entity'"'"'s involvement in the transaction at the third network site, based on the received request of the user entity for assistance; and
responding to the received request of the user entity for assistance based on one or both of the accessed first information and the accessed second information. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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Specification