METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR IDENTIFICATION-BASES DIGITAL COUPON REDEMPTION

• US 20110238479A1
• Filed: 05/18/2011
• Published: 09/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Quotient Technology Inc.
• Original Assignee: Quotient Technology Inc.
• Inventors: Bova, Alfred T.
• Granted Patent: US 9,143,249 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.26
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0211 Determining the effectiveness of discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0212 Chance discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0222 During e-commerce, i.e. online transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0225 Avoiding frauds
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0249 based upon budgets or funds
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/93 which locates resources of other pieces of information, e.g. URL [Uniform Resource Locator]
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/63 for services of sales data processing systems or methods specially adapted for electronic commerce G06Q30/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/254 Management at additional data server, e.g. shopping server, rights management server arrangements for maintenance or administration in data networks H04L41/00; network services using third party service providers H04L67/53
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25866 Management of end-user data customer care in data networks H04L41/5077
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4117 for generating hard copies of the content, e.g. printer, electronic paper interfaces to printers G06F3/12; printing data G06K15/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4784 receiving rewards
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6175 involving transmission via Internet broadcast-related systems characterised by the transmission system being the Internet H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/445 for displaying additional information H04N5/50 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/088 : the inserted signal being digital
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/16 : Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems

Abstract

Techniques for identifier-based redemption of coupons is disclosed. A server receives, via a user device, input from a user that selects a coupon offer. The server stores in association with a user identifier for the user, such as a store loyalty card or coupon card, data that indicates that the user has selected the coupon offer. The server provides, to a retailer, over a network, coupon availability data indicating that the coupon offer is available for use in a transaction in which the user identifier is presented to the retailer. A retail server receives a user identifier in association with a transaction. The retail server identifies coupon offer(s) that have been stored for use in association with the user identifier. The retail server determines that the transaction involves a particular product that is eligible for a particular offer. The retail server applies the particular offer to the transaction.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a server, via a user device, input from a user that selects a coupon offer;

the server storing data in association with a user identifier for the user that indicates that the user has selected the coupon offer;

the server providing, to a retailer, over a network, coupon availability data indicating that the coupon offer is available for use in a transaction in which the user identifier is presented to the retailer.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the user identifier is one of a customer loyalty card provided by the retailer or a coupon card provided by the operator of the server.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the user identifier is an identifier associated with a customer loyalty card or coupon card.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the server providing the coupon availability data for storage at a central server associated with the retailer.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

the server receiving a request from the retailer to identify one or more coupon offers stored in association with the user identifier;

the server providing the retailer with the coupon availability data in response to the request.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the server receiving from the retailer redemption data indicating that the coupon offer was redeemed in a particular transaction in which the user identifier was presented to the retailer.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising, in response to receiving the redemption data, the server voiding the coupon offer for the user.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

based at least on the data indicating that the coupon offer was redeemed, building a history of previously redeemed coupons for the user;

the server providing the user with one or more additional offers selected based at least on the history of previously redeemed coupons for the user.

9. The method of claim 6, further comprising the server invoicing an advertiser based on the redemption data.

10. A method comprising:

receiving a user identifier in association with a transaction with a user;

in response to receiving the user identifier, obtaining coupon availability data indicating one or more coupon offers that have been stored for use in association with the user identifier;

determining that the transaction involves a particular product that is eligible for a particular offer of the one or more coupon offers;

applying the particular offer to the transaction.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the user does not provide a printed coupon for the particular offer for use in the transaction.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the user identifier is one of a customer loyalty card provided by the retailer or a coupon card provided by the operator of the server.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the user identifier is an identifier associated with a customer loyalty card or coupon card.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

in response to receiving the user identifier, sending a request to a coupon server, the request including the user identifier;

in response to the request, receiving the coupon availability data from the coupon server.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

in response to receiving the user identifier, a point-of-sale for a retailer sending a request to a central server operated by the retailer, the request including the user identifier;

in response to the request, the point-of-sale receiving the coupon availability data from the central server.

16. The method of claim 10, further comprising, upon applying the particular offer to the transaction, sending redemption data to a coupon server indicating that the particular offer was redeemed in the transaction in association with the user identifier.

17. A system comprising one or more server computers configured to execute programmed instructions that cause:

receiving, at a server, via a user device, input from a user that selects a coupon offer;

the server storing data in association with a user identifier for the user that indicates that the user has selected the coupon offer;

the server providing, to a retailer, over a network, coupon availability data indicating that the coupon offer is available for use in a transaction in which the user identifier is presented to the retailer.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the user identifier is one of a customer loyalty card provided by the retailer, a coupon card provided by the operator of the server, or an identifier associated with a customer loyalty card or coupon card.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the programmed instructions further cause:

the server receiving a request from the retailer to identify one or more coupon offers stored in association with the user identifier;

the server providing the retailer with the coupon availability data in response to the request.

20. A system comprising one or more server computers configured to execute programmed instructions that cause:

receiving a user identifier in association with a transaction with a user;

in response to receiving the user identifier, obtaining coupon availability data indicating one or more coupon offers that have been stored for use in association with the user identifier;

determining that the transaction involves a particular product that is eligible for a particular offer of the one or more coupon offers;

applying the particular offer to the transaction.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the user identifier is one of a customer loyalty card provided by the retailer, a coupon card provided by the operator of the server, or an identifier associated with a customer loyalty card or coupon card.

22. The system of claim 20, wherein the programmed instructions further cause:

in response to receiving the user identifier, sending a request to a coupon server, the request including the user identifier;

in response to the request, receiving the coupon availability data from the coupon server.

23. The system of claim 20, wherein the programmed instructions further cause:

in response to receiving the user identifier, a point-of-sale for a retailer sending a request to a central server operated by the retailer, the request including the user identifier;

in response to the request, the point-of-sale receiving the coupon availability data from the central server.