INDIVIDUAL SEAT SELECTION TICKETING AND RESERVATION SYSTEM

• US 20090030748A1
• Filed: 10/02/2008
• Published: 01/29/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CEATS Incorporated
• Original Assignee: CEATS Incorporated
• Inventors: Halavais, Richard Arthur, Chung, Tony Cheng-Tong
• Granted Patent: US 7,685,009 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 20/401 Transaction verification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/12 Hotels or restaurants

Abstract

This invention relates to an electronic means by which people can select the exact seat or seats they want for any type of event or reserve an appointment for any activity. More specifically, a customer or a ticket re-seller or a venue operator can go, for example, to the internet and select the event or activity for which he wants a ticket or tickets or reserve a time and reserve and order the exact seat or seats or the time of his choosing directly online. The seat or seats or reserved time he selects is then removed from the inventory for that activity or event and made not available for any other buyer and such is so indicated by a graphical representation or other such indicator on the online map or picture representing availability of seating or time for that event.

Claims

1. A method for selling tickets to an end user over a wide area network,

comprising:

transmitting information relating to a set of available individual seats at a venue to an application running on a general purpose computer on the wide area network for display to the end user;

providing a page that comprises an interactive seating map representing information relating to the set of available individual seats from which the end user can select one or more specific seats, the interactive seating map providing additional information on the set of available individual seats in response to a user interaction with the seating map;

receiving from the end user a selection of one or more specific seats; and

accepting over the wide area network from the end user a payment for the one or more specific seats.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the user interaction comprises a mouse over the seating map.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

adding the one or more specific seats selected by the end user to a list of selected seats to be displayed to the end user.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

sending to the end user a confirmation page that can be printed as a ticket voucher.

5. A system for selling tickets to an end user over a wide area network,

comprising:

a database storing a plurality of entries denoting seat availability of a venue; and

a server that obtains from the database information relating to seat availability of the venue, the server configured to;

transmit information relating to a set of available individual seats at the venue to an application running on a general purpose computer on the wide area network for display to the end user;

provide a page that comprises an interactive seating map representing information relating to the set of available individual seats from which the end user can select one or more specific seats, the interactive seating map providing additional information on the set of available individual seats in response to a user interaction with the seating map;

receive from the end user a selection of one or more specific seats; and

accept over the wide area network from the end user a payment for the one or more specific seats.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein the user interaction comprises a mouse over the seating map.

7. The system of claim 5 wherein the server is further configured to add the one or more specific seats selected by the end user to a list of selected seats to be displayed to the end user.

8. The system of claim 5 wherein the server is further configured to send to the general purpose computer a confirmation page that can be printed as a ticket voucher.

9. A computer readable medium having computer executable code for selling tickets to an end user over a wide area network, the computer executable code comprising:

computer executable code for causing a host system to transmit information relating to a set of available individual seats at a venue to an application running on a general purpose computer on the wide area network for display to the end user;

computer executable code for causing the host system to provide a page that comprises an interactive seating map representing information relating to the set of available individual seats from which the end user can select one or more specific seats, the interactive seating map providing additional information on the set of available individual seats as the user interacts with the seating map;

computer executable code for causing the host system to receive from the end user a selection of one or more specific seats; and

computer executable code for causing the host system to accept over the wide area network from the end user a payment for the one or more specific seats.

10. The computer readable medium of claim 9 wherein the user interaction comprises a mouse over the seating map.

11. The computer readable medium of claim 9 further comprising:

computer executable code for causing the host system to add the one or more specific seats selected by the end user to a list of selected seats to be displayed to the end user.

12. The computer readable medium of claim 9 further comprising:

computer executable code for causing the host system to send to the end user a confirmation page that can be printed as a ticket voucher.

13. A method for purchasing tickets over a wide area network, comprising:

receiving from a server information relating to a set of available individual seats at a venue for display to an end user;

providing a page for display that comprises an interactive seating map representing information relating to the set of available individual seats from which the end user can select one or more specific seats, the interactive seating map providing additional information on the set of available individual seats in response to a user interaction with the seating map;

transmitting to the server the selection of one or more specific seats by the end user; and

sending the server a payment for the one or more specific seats.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the user interaction comprises a mouse over the seating map.

15. The method of claim 13 further comprising:

adding the one or more specific seats selected by the end user to a list of selected seats to be displayed to the end user.

16. The method of claim 13 further comprising:

providing for display a confirmation page that can be printed as a ticket voucher.