METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR HUMAN ASSISTED REFERRAL TO PROVIDERS OF PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

• US 20090157523A1
• Filed: 12/11/2008
• Published: 06/18/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: ChaCha Search, Inc.
• Original Assignee: ChaCha Search, Inc.
• Inventors: Cooper, Thomas E., Jones, Scott A.
• Application Number:
  US12/332,920
• Publication Number:
  US 20090157523A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 Commerce
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]

Abstract

A method and system for referring a user to a provider of good(s), service(s) and/or information thereof which utilizes a human assistant. A human searcher or guide is selected to respond to a user request, and communication is established between a user and a guide. If the system determines that a user is requesting a product(s) and/or service(s), a provider of the product(s) and/or the service(s) is identified, and a communication session is established between a user and a provider of goods and/or services. A search system may assist in completing a transaction and may provide a referral service. Payment may be made using a payment system associated with a user using Premium SMS without requiring a user to provide payment information to a guide and/or the search system.

Claims

1. A method of providing access to a good and/or a service, comprising:

receiving a request from a user;

providing information of the request to a guide; and

selecting a provider based on the information presented to the guide.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is received from a mobile device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the guide and the provider are selected based on a category associated with the request.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the provider is associated with a web service.

5. The method of claim 1, comprising:

obtaining an identifier associated with the request, and

providing a payment to the provider based on the identifier.

6. The method of claim 1, the information is qualified by another guide and the provider is ranked based on the information.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the guide is selected based on the information.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is delivered to a search service.

9. The method of claim 1, comprising:

establishing a communication between the user and the provider.

10. The method of claim 9, comprising:

associating another identifier with the identifier,

transmitting a pay per use message to a device associated with the other identifier, and

providing the payment to the provider based on the message.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the selection is made anonymously.

12. A computer readable medium storing therein a program for causing a program to execute an operation including providing access to a product or a service, comprising:

receiving a request from a user;

providing information of the request to a guide; and

selecting a provider based on the information presented to the guide.

13. The computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein said provider presents one of the product, the service or information thereof as a result to the request, and a payment for the result is provided using an existing service of the user.

14. The computer readable medium of claim 13, comprising:

verifying the existing service of the user using data transmitted to the user prior to applying the payment.

15. The computer readable medium of claim 13, wherein the existing service is a phone service.

16. The computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein the guide directs the user to the provider.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein information from the provider is presented to the user using a communication format identified by the user.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 12, comprising:

modifying the request of the user to be in a format identified by the provider, and presenting the request to the provider.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein the guide establishes a communication session between the provider and the user.

20. A system, comprising:

a user device sending a request;

a search system providing information of the request to a guide;

a guide system selecting a provider based on the information presented to the guide; and

a provider system providing a product and/or a service.