Purchaser value optimization system

• US 20060218024A1
• Filed: 03/23/2005
• Published: 09/28/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/23/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amadeus (Amadeus Global Travel Distribution S.A.)
• Original Assignee: Amadeus (Amadeus Global Travel Distribution S.A.)
• Inventors: Lulla, Gautam
• Granted Patent: US 8,762,160 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/5
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

A purchasing system includes a master server linking to a product and service inventory database. A query and response coordination database is hosted on the master server and includes a customer profiles database, a loyalty program rules database, and a purchase rules dataset. The coordination database receives a purchase request query, extracts purchase data elements from the received purchase request query, uses purchase rules from the rules dataset, applying the extracted purchase data elements to form a purchase query, applies the purchase query to the inventory database to determine available product and service inventory that satisfy the purchase request query, available product and service inventory that satisfy the purchase request query being identified as purchase options, receives purchase options from the inventory database, determines a total rewards benefit and creates a file for sending via the network to the purchaser'"'"'s computer to display the query response.

Claims

1. An on-line travel purchase query and response system, comprising:

a computer network (50);

plural travel provider computers (80) connected to the network;

a travel inventory database (90) hosted on each travel provider computer, each travel inventory database storing travel inventory available as travel purchase options (100);

plural traveler computers (70) connected to the network, each traveler computer comprising an input (72) for originating a travel request query (75) and a monitor (110) for displaying a query response (120) comprising selected ones of the travel purchase options;

a travel server (45) connected to the network and, via the network, linking the plural travel provider computers to the plural traveler computers as a many-to-many system; and

a query and response coordination database (30) hosted on the travel server, the coordination database comprising a customer profiles database (10), a loyalty program rules database (60), and a rules dataset (20),

the coordination database i) receiving the travel request query and extracting travel data elements from the received travel request query, ii) using rules from the rules dataset, applying the extracted data elements to form a travel query, the travel query being sent to query each travel inventory database, iii) receiving travel purchase options from each travel inventory database generated responsive to the sent travel query, the received travel purchase options representing available travel inventory satisfying the travel request query, iv) using rules from the loyalty program rules database, applying the travel purchase options to the loyalty program rules database to determine a total rewards miles accruing to the user for each travel purchase option, and v) creating a file to display on the display of the traveler computer a consolidated query response comprising travel purchase options from plural travel providers together with the determined total rewards miles for each travel purchase option.

2. The system of claim 1, comprising further travel inventory databases (90) hosted on the travel server.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the coordination database when iv) determining the total rewards miles that will accrue to the user for each travel purchase option, extracts information concerning the user from the customer profiles database (10), the extracted user information also being used to determine the total rewards miles accruing to the user for each travel purchase option.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the coordination database when iv) determining the total rewards miles that will accrue to the user for each travel purchase option, uses user information, input by the user as part of the travel request query, to determine the total rewards miles accruing to the user for each travel purchase option.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein,

the extracted user information comprises loyalty program membership information, the loyalty program membership information being used to determine the total rewards miles accruing to the user for each purchase option, and

the consolidated query response indicates zero miles to be accrued for a travel purchase option for an airline where the user is not a loyalty program member of the airline.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the coordination database searches for travel promotions that increase the total rewards miles accruing to the user for any purchase option.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the file to display the query response simultaneously displays plural available airline travel seats, costs for each available airline seat, and the determined total rewards miles that accrue to the user for purchasing each available airline seat.

8. The system of claim 1, the file to display the query response, further prints a hard copy report of the query response comprising each travel purchase option together with the determined total rewards miles for each travel purchase option.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the coordination database, after receiving the travel request query from the user, solicits from the user information about loyalty program membership.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the coordination database, after receiving the travel request query from the user, solicits from the customer profiles database user information about loyalty program membership.

11. The system of claim 3, wherein the extracted user information comprises loyalty program membership information, the loyalty program membership information comprising membership level information, the membership level information being used to determine the total rewards miles accruing to the user for each purchase option.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the determined total rewards miles that accrue to the user for each purchase option is determined as a function of affiliate travel partner service providers, time bound promotions, and products offered by travel service providers.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein,

creating the file to display the query response, simultaneously displays plural available hotel rooms, rate costs for each room, and the determined total rewards miles that accrue to the user for reserving each room at the displayed rate costs, and

the determined total rewards miles that accrue to the user for each purchase option is determined as a function of affiliate travel partner service providers, time bound promotions, and products offered by travel service providers.

14. An on-line service and product purchasing system, comprising:

a master server (450) linking to a product and service inventory database (900) and, via a computer network (500), to plural consumer computers (700),

the product and service inventory database storing available product and service inventory; and

a query and response coordination database (300) hosted on the master server,

the coordination database (300) comprising a customer profiles database (100), a loyalty program rules database (600), and a purchase rules dataset (200),

the coordination database configured to coordinate plural operations including

receiving a purchase request query (750) generated by a purchaser on one of the purchaser computers (700),

extracting purchase data elements from the received purchase request query,

using purchase rules from the rules dataset, applying the extracted purchase data elements to form a purchase query,

applying the purchase query to the inventory database to determine available product and service inventory that satisfy the purchase request query, the determined available product and service inventory that satisfy the purchase request query being identified as purchase options,

applying rules to the received purchase options to determine a total rewards benefit accruing to the purchaser for each available purchase option,

creating a file for sending via the network to the purchaser'"'"'s computer to display available purchase options from plural sellers as a query response, where the display of the query response simultaneously shows each purchase option together with the determined total rewards benefit for each purchase option.

15. An on-line travel purchase query and response system, comprising:

a travel server (45) connected to a computer network and, via the network, linking travel inventory databases to plural traveler computers as a many-to-many system, the travel inventory databases storing travel inventory available as travel purchase options (100); and

a query and response coordination database (30) hosted on the travel server, the coordination database comprising a customer profiles database (10), a loyalty program rules database (60), and a rules dataset (20),

the coordination database i) receiving a travel request query (75) from one of the traveler computers and extracting travel data elements from the received travel request query, ii) using rules from the rules dataset, applying the extracted data elements to form a travel query, the travel query being sent to query each travel inventory database, iii) receiving travel purchase options from each travel inventory database generated responsive to the sent travel query, the received travel purchase options representing available travel inventory of plural travel service providers, iv) applying the travel purchase options to the loyalty program rules database to determine a total rewards benefit accruing to the traveler for each travel purchase option, and v) creating a file to display on the display of the traveler computer a query response comprising the travel purchase options from the plural travel service providers together with the determined total rewards benefit for each travel purchase option, wherein,

the file provides a consolidated, simultaneous display of the plural travel purchase options, where each travel purchase option includes a purchase price and the corresponding total rewards benefit, the simultaneous display allowing the traveler to readily compare one purchase option to other remaining purchase options to make an optimal purchase decision based on net cost to optimize purchaser value to the traveler, the simultaneous display comprising rewards benefits from plural loyalty programs.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the coordination database when iv) using the loyalty program rules database to determine total rewards miles that will accrue to the traveler for each travel purchase option, extracts information concerning the traveler from the customer profiles database (10), the extracted traveler information also being used to determine the total rewards miles accruing to the traveler for each travel purchase option.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the coordination database when iv) using the loyalty program rules database to determine total rewards miles that will accrue to the traveler for each travel purchase option, also uses traveler information, input by the traveler as part of the travel request query, to determine the total rewards miles accruing to the traveler for each travel purchase option.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein,

the extracted traveler information comprises loyalty program membership information, the loyalty program membership information being used to determine total rewards miles accruing to the traveler for each purchase option,

the coordination database searches for travel promotions that increase the total rewards miles accruing to the traveler for any purchase option and determines rewards miles from plural loyalty programs for the same purchase,

the determined total rewards miles that accrue to the traveler for each purchase option is determined as a function of affiliate travel partner service providers, time bound promotions, and products offered by travel service providers, and

the file providing a consolidated, simultaneous display of the plural travel purchase options, includes total awards benefits for each of plural loyalty programs for a single travel purchase option.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the file to display the query response, simultaneously displays travel seats of plural airlines, costs for each seat, and the determined total rewards miles that accrue to the traveler for purchasing each seat.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the file to display the query response, simultaneously displays hotel rooms of plural hotels, costs for each room, and the determined total rewards miles that accrue to the traveler for reserving each room.