System and method for automated auctioning of web services

• US 20080154796A1
• Filed: 12/04/2007
• Published: 06/26/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Pallister, Kim, Mandera, Sandip H.
• Granted Patent: US 7,953,646 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/36R
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0222 During e-commerce, i.e. online transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0609 Buyer or seller confidence or verification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/06 Asset management; Financial planning or analysis
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image

Abstract

An automated auctioning system includes a customer, a web services register server (such as an Extended Markup Language (XML)-based registry server like an Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI) registry) and a number of web service providers. Automated auctioning processes of a web service desired by the customer are undertaken between the potential customer and the web service providers. The potential customer issues a bid request, and each web service provider determines whether the value of a bid in response to the bid request is below a value warranted by market demand and issues the bid if the value is higher. The potential customer assesses the bid, creating a bid assessment score. The potential customer performs an iteration on the bid assessment score using a new bid request if the score has improved since a last iteration, while engaging the web service if the score has not improved.

Claims

1. A method of providing automated auctioning of a web service at a customer'"'"'s side, comprising:

receiving a list of a plurality of web service providers matching a requested profile of a required web service.

issuing a first bid request to each entry on the list;

collecting bids from the web service providers based on the first bid request;

assessing the bids according to customer needs to create bid assessment scores;

performing an iteration utilizing a best bid assessment score from all scores as a reference, the iteration being performed with a second bid request; and

determining whether the web service is to be employed, wherein the customer accepts a bid if the best bid assessment score has not improved since a last iteration, while the customer assembles another bid request to perform another iteration if the best bid assessment score has improved.

2. The method of claim 1, further including engaging the web service.

3. The method of claim 1, further including querying an Extended Markup Language (XML) registry server with the requested profile.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the web services directory server is based on Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI) standards or Extended Markup Language (XML)-based registry standards.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein heuristics are utilized in assembling new bid requests during the iteration.

6. A computer readable medium for use in conjunction with a system for providing automated auctioning of a web service, the computer readable medium including computer readable instructions encoded thereon for:

receiving a list of a plurality of web service providers matching a requested profile of a required web service;

issuing a first bid request to each entry on the list;

collecting bids from the web service providers based on the first bid request;

assessing the bids according to customer needs to create bid assessment scores;

performing an iteration utilizing a best bid assessment score from all scores as a reference, the iteration being performed with a second bid request; and

determining whether the web service is to be employed, wherein the customer accepts a bid if the best bid assessment score has not improved since a last iteration, while the customer assembles another bid request to perform another iteration if the best bid assessment score has improved.

7. The computer readable medium of claim 6, further including computer readable instructions encoded thereon for engaging the web service.

8. The computer readable medium of claim 6, further including computer readable instructions encoded thereon for querying a web services directory server with the requested profile.

9. The computer readable medium of claim 8, wherein the web services directory server is based on Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI) standards or Extended Markup Language (XML)-based standards.

10. The computer readable medium of claim 6, wherein heuristics are utilized in assembling new bid requests during the iteration.

11. An automated auctioning system, comprising:

a potential customer of a web service;

a web services register server connected to the potential customer; and

a web service provider listed in the web services register server, wherein automated auctioning processes of the web service are undertaken between the potential customer and the web service provider, the potential customer issues a bid request for the web service to the web service provider, the web service provider determines whether a value of a bid in response to the bid, request is below a value warranted by market demand and issues the bid if the value is higher, the potential customer assesses the bid to create a bid assessment score, the potential customer performs a bid assessment iteration using a new bid request if the score has improved since a last iteration, while the potential customer engages the web service if the score has not improved since the last iteration.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the web services register server is based on Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI) standards or Extended Markup Language (XML) standards.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the potential customer includes a bid heuristics database.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the web services directory server includes a web service listing database, each web service in the database is expanded to contain fields that characterize priorities of a web service provider of the web service.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein each field has a value and a weight.