CHANGING EMAIL TEXT BASED ON PAYMENT STATUS

• US 20140188702A1
• Filed: 12/30/2012
• Published: 07/03/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Green, Travis Harrison Kroll, Sharp, Phillip Neal, Salay, Brian Maximilian
• Granted Patent: US 9,805,358 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/223 based on the use of peer-to-peer networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/48 Message addressing, e.g. address format or anonymous messages, aliases

Abstract

An email payment system and method to provide users with the ability to initiate and send payments to one more recipients via email messaging. A user interface is provided in an email client that allows a user to insert payment with the email. Payment details are collected through one or more payment modals displayed in the email client. A payment object is inserted into the body of the email and is displayed to both the sender and recipient. The payment details captured in the payment object are communicated to a payment processor. The payment processor uses electronic payment accounts associated with the corresponding sender and recipient email addresses to identify the relevant electronic payment accounts and transfer the payment between said accounts. A status of the payment transaction is tracked and displayed within the payment object of the emails residing in both the sender and recipient email client.

Claims

1. A method for updating status of email payment objects in email messages, comprising:

receiving, by one or more computing devices, a notification that an email message comprising a payment object was communicated from a sender of the email message to a recipient of the email message, the payment object comprising information regarding a payment from the sender to the recipient, the payment object displaying within the email message when presented to the sender and the recipient;

setting, by one or more computing devices, an initial payment status of the payment object, the initial payment status indicating a processing status of the payment, the initial status being displayed within the email message when presented to the sender and the recipient;

receiving, by the one or more computing devices, an update of the processing status of the payment; and

updating, by the one or more computing devices, the payment object with the update of the status of the processing of the payment, the updated status being displayed in the payment object within the email message when presented to the sender and the recipient instead of the initial payment status.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising requesting, by the one or more computing devices, an update of the processing status of the payment from a computer system processing the payment,

wherein the updated status is received from the computer system processing the payment, and

wherein the updated status is communicated, by the one or more computing devices, to the payment object in the email message for display to the sender and the recipient with the email message.

3. The method of claim 2, the payment update status request comprising a transaction identifier associated with the payment on the computer system processing the payment.

4. The method of claim 2, the payment update status request being executed each time a request is made to present the email message in a sender or recipient email client.

5. The method of claim 2, the payment update status request being executed at regularly defined intervals.

6. The method of claim 1, the payment object being coded in a hypertext mark-up language in a body of the email message.

7. The method of claim 1, the updating step being performed by responding to payment object status update requests executed by dynamic application program interface calls encoded within the payment object in the email message.

8. A method for updating the status of email request objects in email messages, comprising:

receiving, by one or more computing devices, a notification that an email message comprising a payment object was communicated from a sender of the email message to a recipient of the email message, the payment object comprising a payment request from the sender to the recipient, the payment object displaying within the email message when the email message is presented to the sender and the recipient;

setting, by one or more computing devices, an first payment status of the payment object, the first payment status indicating a first processing status of the payment request, the first processing status displaying in the payment object within the email message when the email message is presented to the sender and the recipient;

requesting, by the one or more computing devices, an update of the first processing status of the payment request from a computer system processing the payment request;

receiving, by the one or more computing devices, an update of the first processing status of the payment request from the payment processing computer system; and

updating, by the one or more computing devices, the payment object with the updated status of the processing of the payment request, the updated status displaying instead of the first processing status in the payment object within the email message when the email message is presented to the sender and the recipient.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the payment object is coded in a hypertext mark-up language in a body of the email message.

10. The method of claim 8, the requesting of the payment object status update being executed by dynamic application program interface (API) calls encoded within the payment object.

11. The method of claim 8, the requesting of the payment object status update comprising communicating a transaction identifier associated with the payment request by the payment processing computer system.

12. The method of claim 8, the requesting of the payment object status update being executed each time a request is made to display the email message in a sender or recipient email client.

13. The method of claim 8, the requesting of the payment object status update being executed at regular intervals.

14. A computer program product, comprising:

a non-transitory computer-executable storage device having computer-readable program instructions embodied thereon that when executed by a computer perform a method for updating the status of email request objects in email messages, the computer-executable program instructions comprising;

computer-executable program instructions to receive a notification that an email message comprising a payment object was communicated from a sender of the email message to a recipient of the email message, the payment object comprising a payment from the sender to the recipient, the payment object displaying within the email message when presented to the sender and the recipient;

computer-executable program instructions to set an initial payment status of the payment object, the initial payment status indicating a first processing status of the payment and displaying in the payment object within the email message;

computer-executable program instructions to request an update of the first processing status of the payment from a computer system processing the payment;

computer-executable program instructions to receive an update of the first processing status of the payment from the payment processing computer system; and

computer-executable program instructions to update the payment object with the updated status of the processing of the payment, the updated status displaying in the payment object within the email message.

15. The computer program product of claim 14, the payment object coded in a hypertext mark-up language in a body of the email message.

16. The computer program product of claim 14, the payment object status update request being executed by dynamic application program interface (API) calls encoded within the payment object.

17. The computer program product of claim 14, the payment object status update request comprising a transaction identifier associated with the payment on the payment processing computer system.

18. The computer program product of claim 14, the payment object status update request being executed each time a request is made to display the email message in a sender or recipient email client.

19. The computer program product of claim 14, the payment object status update request being executed at regular intervals.

20. A system for updating the status of email request objects in email messages, the system comprising:

a storage device;

a network device; and

a processor communicatively coupled to the storage device and the network device, the processor executing application code instructions that are stored in the storage device and that cause the system to;

receive a notification that an email message comprising a payment object was communicated from a sender of the email message to a recipient of the email message, the payment object comprising a payment from the sender to the recipient, the payment object displaying within the email message when presented to the sender and the recipient;

set an initial payment status of the payment object, the initial payment status indicating a first processing status of the payment and displaying in the payment object within the email message;

request an update of the first processing status of the payment from a computer system processing the payment;

receive an update of the first processing status of the payment from the payment processing computer system; and

update the payment object with the updated status of the processing of the payment, the updated status displaying in the payment object within the email message.

21. The system of claim 20, the update request being executed each time a request is made to display the email message in a sender or recipient email client.

22. The system of claim 20, the update request being executed at regular intervals.