Method, System and Apparatus for Facilitating Selection of Sellers in an Electronic Commerce System
First Claim
1. A method for facilitating a transaction between a buyer and one of a number of sellers utilizing a system that is accessible by the buyer and sellers over a communication network, the transaction related to a project specified by the buyer and maintained in a database of the system, the method comprising:
- identifying a set of sellers selected from the group including i) first-type sellers that are registered by the system and selected by an automated process carried out by the system, ii) second-type sellers that are registered by the system and selected by the buyer, and iii) third-type sellers that are not registered by the system and selected by the buyer;
receiving offers from each seller of the set of sellers; and
presenting to the buyer the offers received from the set of sellers.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An improved system and method for facilitating a transaction between a buyer and one of a number of sellers is provided. The transaction is related to a project specified by the buyer. A set of invited sellers suitable for the project are identified. Such invited sellers can be identified by an automated process that matches sellers registered by the system to the project, buyer selection of a seller registered by the system, and/or buyer selection of a seller not registered by the system. Invitations for submission of an offer for the project are communicated to the set of invited sellers for the project, and offers from the invited sellers are electronically submitted to the system.
108 Citations
31 Claims
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1. A method for facilitating a transaction between a buyer and one of a number of sellers utilizing a system that is accessible by the buyer and sellers over a communication network, the transaction related to a project specified by the buyer and maintained in a database of the system, the method comprising:
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identifying a set of sellers selected from the group including i) first-type sellers that are registered by the system and selected by an automated process carried out by the system, ii) second-type sellers that are registered by the system and selected by the buyer, and iii) third-type sellers that are not registered by the system and selected by the buyer; receiving offers from each seller of the set of sellers; and presenting to the buyer the offers received from the set of sellers. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A system for facilitating a transaction between a buyer and one of a number of sellers, the transaction related to a project, the system comprising:
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means for interacting with a buyer over a communication network to specify a project and storing data related to the project in a database; logic that identifies a set of sellers selected from the group including i) first-type sellers that are registered by the system and selected by an automated process carried out by the system, ii) second-type sellers that are registered by the system and selected by the buyer, and iii) third-type sellers that are not registered by the system and selected by the buyer; means for receiving offers from each seller of the set of sellers; and means for presenting to the buyer the offers received from the set of sellers. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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31. An application server, operably coupled to the Internet, for facilitating a transaction between a buyer and one of a number of sellers, the transaction related to a project, the application server comprising:
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a database; means for interacting with a buyer over a communication network to specify a project and storing data related to the project in the database; means for identifying a set of sellers selected from the group including i) first-type sellers that are registered by the system and selected by an automated process carried out by the system, ii) second-type sellers that are registered by the system and selected by the buyer, and iii) third-type sellers that are not registered by the system and selected by the buyer; means for interacting with sellers over the communication network to receiving offers from each seller of the set of sellers; and logic for interacting with the buyer over the communication network for presenting to the buyer the offers received from the set of sellers.
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Specification