Systems and Methods to Provide Benefits of Account Features to Account Holders

• US 20110029430A1
• Filed: 07/28/2010
• Published: 02/03/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Visa USA, Inc. (Visa, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Visa USA, Inc. (Visa, Inc.)
• Inventors: Norris, Mark, Bodington, Shaun, Carr, John, Woods, Rosann, Olson, Ray, Martin, Janet, Stiff, Nicola
• Granted Patent: US 8,266,031 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0224 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided to facilitate the sharing of account features. In one aspect, a system includes a transaction handler to process transactions and a data warehouse to record the transactions and store account data identifying account features of separate accounts, such as a second account having a feature and a first account without this feature. Account holders of the first and second accounts are in a same household and thus, in accordance with a set of rules, eligible to share the account features. A portal is configured to receive a request identifying the first account and to determine whether a transaction initiated in the first account and qualified for a benefit of the account feature is entitled to the benefit; and if so, a notification engine is to transmit a notification message to an account holder of the first account.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

storing account data identifying account features of a plurality of separate payment accounts;

receiving, in a computing apparatus, data identifying a first payment account, wherein the account data indicates that the first payment account does not have an account feature;

identifying, by the computing apparatus, at least one second payment account that is related to the first payment account; and

determining, by the computing apparatus, whether a user of the first payment account is eligible for a benefit of the account feature based on whether the account data indicates that the at least one second payment account has the account feature.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the benefit of the account feature comprises one of:

discount, incentive, reward, gift, access, insurance, service and cash back.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing link data to link the first payment account to the second payment account in response to a request from an account holder, wherein the identifying is based on the link data.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing a set of rules to link accounts, wherein the identifying is based on the set of rules.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

matching information about the first payment account and information about the second payment account to determine whether the first payment account and the second payment account satisfy the set of rules to be linked.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the first payment account and the second payment account are linked based on a determination of a family relationship between account holders of the first payment account and the second payment account.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the first payment account and the second payment account are linked based on a determination that the account holders are in a same household.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, in the computing apparatus, feature selection data for a third payment account having a feature set same as at least fourth payment account; and

modifying, by the computing apparatus, the account data in accordance with the feature selection data, to change feature specification of the third payment account without affecting feature specifications of the at least fourth payment account.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the feature selection data is received from an entity selected from the group consisting of:

an account holder of the third payment account and an issuer of the third payment account.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the first payment account and the second payment account are provided by a same issuer.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first payment account is provided by a first issuer and the second payment account is provided by a second issuer different from the first issuer.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the account feature of the second payment account is sponsored by the second issuer.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the identifying is in response to a transaction that qualifies for the benefit of the account feature.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the data identifying the first payment account comprises a request for the transaction;

and the method further comprises;

completing the transaction using the second payment account.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the data identifying the first payment account comprises a request for the transaction;

and the method further comprises;

completing the transaction using the first payment account; and

charging a fee for the benefit to the second payment account.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the benefit comprises a reward;

and the benefit is accumulated under the first payment account separately from the second payment account.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifying is in response to a transaction being processed in a transaction handler to make a payment from an issuer to an acquirer in response to an identifier of the first payment account, as issued by the issuer to the user, being submitted by a merchant to the acquirer, the issuer to make the payment on behalf of the user, the acquirer to receive the payment on behalf of the merchant;

and the account feature of the second payment account is sponsored by the transaction handler.

20. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a notification engine to transmit a message to an account holder of the first account when the portal determines that the transaction is entitled to the benefit.

18. A computer storage medium storing instructions which, when executed on a computing apparatus, cause the computing apparatus to perform a method, the method comprising:

storing account data identifying account features of a plurality of separate payment accounts;

receiving data identifying a first payment account, wherein the account data indicates that the first payment account does not have an account feature;

identifying at least one second payment account that is related to the first payment account; and

determining whether a user of the first payment account is eligible for a benefit of the account feature based on whether the account data indicates that the at least one second payment account has the account feature.

19. A system, comprising:

a transaction handler to process transactions, each of the transactions being processed to make a payment from an issuer to an acquirer via the transaction handler in response to an account identifier of a customer, as issued by the issuer, submitted by a merchant to the acquirer, the issuer to make the payment on behalf of the customer, the acquirer to receive the payment on behalf of the merchant;

a data warehouse to store

transaction data recording the transactions processed at the transaction handler,

account data identifying account features of a plurality of separate accounts, including a first account that does not have an account feature and a second account that has the account feature, wherein account holders of the first account and the second account are in a same household,

a set of rules; and

a portal to receive a request identifying the first account and to determine whether a transaction initiated in the first account and qualified for a benefit of the account feature is entitled to the benefit based on the set of rules.