FIXED PRICING OF SERVICES
First Claim
1. A method for generating a market price for a service at a computing device(s), comprising:
- acquiring a set of values about a customer-selected service, the set of values pertaining to task details specific to the customer-selected service defined to differentiate a quantity of work associated with the customer-selected service for a plurality of service providers capable of performing the customer-selected service;
removing, at the computing device(s), potential differences in the quantity of work associated with the customer-selected service by assigning values from the set of values to the task details specific to the customer-selected service; and
,applying, at the computing device(s), statistically-based pricing information to the quantity of work associated with the customer-selected service to determine a market price acceptable to the plurality of service providers for the customer-selected service.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Technology is described for generating a market and a fixed price for a customer-selected service. The technology can include pooling service providers from a data store capable of performing the customer-selected service. Additionally, the technology can include acquiring information over a network from the customer and/or one or more additional sources. The information can provide values for a set of task details that can be defined to differentiate a quantity of work associated with the customer-selected service. By applying these values, potential differences in the quantity of work can be removed. Statistical information related to pricing can also be applied to the defined quantity of work to determine a fixed price for the customer-selected service, which can, thereafter, be treated as a virtual commodity.
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Citations
37 Claims
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1. A method for generating a market price for a service at a computing device(s), comprising:
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acquiring a set of values about a customer-selected service, the set of values pertaining to task details specific to the customer-selected service defined to differentiate a quantity of work associated with the customer-selected service for a plurality of service providers capable of performing the customer-selected service; removing, at the computing device(s), potential differences in the quantity of work associated with the customer-selected service by assigning values from the set of values to the task details specific to the customer-selected service; and
,applying, at the computing device(s), statistically-based pricing information to the quantity of work associated with the customer-selected service to determine a market price acceptable to the plurality of service providers for the customer-selected service. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-usable medium having computer-readable program code adapted to be executed to implement a method for assigning a market value to a service selected by a customer, comprising:
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requesting, from a customer over a network, a set of customer information for a set of predefined categories of information related to a customer-selected service; acquiring a set of external information related to the customer-selected service from at least one additional source; determining a set of potential service providers being capable of performing the customer-selected service from multiple service providers profiled in an accessible data store; determining a market value for the customer-selected service using information from the set of customer information and the set of external information and statistical information in the accessible data store; and
,offering performance of the customer-selected service over the network at a fixed price commensurate with the market value determined for the customer-selected service. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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33. A system for brokering a fixed price for a service over a Graphical User Interface, comprising:
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an interface module configured to provide a Graphical User Interface (GUI) to a customer, the GUI being configured to; present a list of services to the customer, request information for a first set of predefined categories related to a customer-selected service from the list of services, and report a set of customer responses to the first set of predefined categories to a market value module; a retrieval module configured to acquire information for a second set of predefined categories related to the customer-selected service from at least one additional source; and
,the market value module configured to; receive the set of customer responses and the information for the second set of predefined categories from the retrieval module, and determine a market value for the customer-selected service relative to a market created with a plurality of selected service providers based on the set of customer responses and the information for the second set of predefined categories. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35)
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36. A method for pooling service providers into a service market from which fixed prices for services can be offered, comprising:
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providing a list of services over a Graphical User Interface (GUI) at a computer terminal from which a customer can select; pooling a plurality of service providers capable of performing a customer-selected service that is selected by a customer over the GUI based on capability data previously obtained for a set of potential service providers from which the plurality of service providers is selected; and applying statistically-based pricing information to determine a market value relative to the plurality of service providers for the customer-selected service. - View Dependent Claims (37)
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Specification