SELLER-CONTROLLED PUBLICATION OF QUESTION AND ANSWER SETS

• US 20110022490A1
• Filed: 09/29/2010
• Published: 01/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Grove, Brian Alan, Grove, Steve, Edson, Zak James, Sandler, Andrew Leigh
• Application Number:
  US12/893,885
• Publication Number:
  US 20110022490A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/26.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0623 Item investigation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

An auction mechanism that would allow a buyer to submit a question to a seller, and optionally have the seller post the relevant question as well as a response for inclusion within a listing.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

accessing a question pertinent to an item available for viewing in a web page, the item being displayed in the web page, the question being authored by a viewer of the web page;

accessing an answer to the question, the answer being pertinent to the item and authored by a presenter of the item in response to the question from the viewer of the web page; and

presenting the answer as included in the web page, the presenting of the answer being performed by a module implemented by a processor of a machine.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

accessing an authorization to include the answer in the web page; and

wherein

the presenting of the answer is responsive to the authorization.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein:

the accessing of the authorization includes receiving the authorization from a device of the presenter.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein:

the authorization further is to include the question in the web page; and

the method further comprises

presenting the question as included in the web page.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein:

the presenting of the question includes modifying the web page to include the question and presenting the modified web page.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the presenting of the answer includes modifying the web page to include the answer and presenting the modified web page.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the viewer of the web page is a potential buyer of the item; and

the presenter of the item is a seller of the item.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the viewer of the web page is a bidder using an auction price-setting process for the item.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the presenting of the answer includes presenting the web page, the web page including the answer.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein:

the presenting of the web page includes displaying the web page as a listing of the item,

the listing indicating that the item is available for purchase.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the accessing of the question includes receiving the question from a device of the viewer.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the accessing of the question includes receiving the question from a device of a seller.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the accessing of the answer includes receiving the answer from a device of the presenter.

14. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

providing the question to a device of the presenter in response to the accessing of the question and prior to the accessing of the answer.

15. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

providing the question and the answer to a device of the viewer.

16. A system comprising:

a processor coupled to a memory; and

instructions executable by the processor from the memory that, when executed by the processor, cause the system to perform operations comprising;

accessing a question pertinent to an item available for viewing in a web page, the item being displayed in the web page, the question being authored by a viewer of the web page;

accessing an answer to the question, the answer being pertinent to the item and authored by a presenter of the item in response to the question from the viewer of the web page; and

presenting the answer as included in the web page.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the instructions further cause the system to perform operations comprising:

accessing an authorization to include the answer in the web page; and

wherein

the presenting of the answer is responsive to the authorization.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein:

the presenting of the answer includes presenting the web page, the web page including the answer.

19. The system of claim 16, wherein the instructions further cause the system to perform operations comprising:

providing the question to a device of the presenter in response to the accessing of the question and prior to the accessing of the answer.

20. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a machine, cause the machine to perform operations comprising:

accessing a question pertinent to an item available for viewing in a web page, the item being displayed in the web page, the question being authored by a viewer of the web page;

accessing an answer to the question, the answer being pertinent to the item and authored by a presenter of the item in response to the question from the viewer of the web page; and

presenting the answer as included in the web page.