TARGETED INCENTIVE ACTIONS BASED ON LOCATION AND INTENT

• US 20150006291A1
• Filed: 09/15/2014
• Published: 01/01/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Yankovich, Steve, Melcher, Ryan, Veres, Robert Dean
• Application Number:
  US14/486,518
• Publication Number:
  US 20150006291A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.58
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0235 constrained by time limit or expiration date
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

A method and system for offering an incentive to a user device based on a geographic location associated with a medium identifying the item and the intent of the user are described. For example, a machine receives, from a mobile device of a user, a medium identifying an item, and data that pertains to the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item. The machine determines, based on the data that pertains to the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item, the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item. The machine identifies the item based on the medium identifying the item. The machine offers an incentive associated with the identified item. The incentive may be from at least one merchant located within a distance from the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item.

Claims

1. (canceled)

2. A system, comprising:

one or more hardware processors configured to include;

a location identification module configured to

receive, from a mobile device of a user, a medium identifying an item, and data that pertains to a geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item, and

determine, based on the data that pertains to the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item, the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item;

an item identification module configured to identify the item based on the medium identifying the item; and

an incentive module configured to offer an incentive associated with the identified item, the incentive being from at least one merchant located within a distance from the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the location identification module further comprises:

a location input module configured to determine the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item based on a user input at the mobile device.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the location identification module further comprises:

a location-dependent search term input module configured to determine the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item based on a location-dependent search term input by the user at the mobile device.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein the location identification module further comprises:

a triangulation service or a global positioning service (GPS) configured to determine a geographic location of the mobile device based on a triangulation service or a GPS service.

6. The system of claim 2, wherein the location identification module further comprises:

a tag module configured to determine the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item based on a tag received from the mobile device, the tag being associated with a unique geographic location.

7. The system of claim 2, wherein the item identification module further comprises:

a text identification module configured to identify the item based on a text input received from the user via the mobile device;

an audio identification module configured to identify the item based on an audio input received from the user via the mobile device;

a processor-implemented machine-readable symbol module configured to identify the item based on a machine-readable symbol scanned by the user via the mobile device;

a processor-implemented image identification module configured to identify the item based on an image taken by the user via the mobile device; and

a processor-implemented video identification module configured to identify the item based on a video taken by the user via the mobile device.

8. The system of claim 2, wherein the incentive module further comprises:

a local merchant module configured to identify one or more local merchants having at least one incentive, the identifying of the one or more local merchants being based on the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item;

an incentive match module configured to determine that the item identified in the medium corresponds to an item identified in the at least one incentive from the one or more merchants having at least one incentive; and

a communication module configured to transmit a communication to the mobile device of the user, the communication including the at least one incentive of the identified item from the one or more merchants having at least one incentive.

9. The system of claim 2, wherein the incentive module further comprises:

an item category module configured to determine a category of the item identified in the medium;

an incentive match module configured to determine that the category of the item identified in the medium corresponds to a category of items that is identified in at least one incentive from the at least one merchant located within the distance; and

a communication module configured to transmit a communication to the mobile device of the user, the communication including the at least one incentive of the identified category of items, the at least one incentive being from the at least one merchant located within the distance.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the item identification module generates a descriptor of an attribute of the item identified in the medium;

and

wherein the item category module determines the category of the item identified in the medium based on the descriptor of the attribute of the item identified in the medium.

11. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

receiving, from a mobile device of a user, a medium identifying an item, and data that pertains to a geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item;

determining, based on the data that pertains to the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item, the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item;

identifying, by one or more hardware processors, the item based on the medium identifying the item; and

offering an incentive associated with the identified item, the incentive being from at least one merchant located within a distance from the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the determining of the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item is based on a user input at the mobile device.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the determining of the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item is based on a location-dependent search term input by the user at the mobile device.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the determining of the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item includes determining a geographic location of the mobile device based on a triangulation service or a GPS service.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the determining of the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item is based on a tag received from the mobile device, the tag being associated with a unique geographic location.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the medium identifying the item includes at least one of a text input received from the mobile device, an audio input received from the mobile device, a machine-readable symbol received from the mobile device, an image received from the mobile device, and a video received from the mobile device.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the identifying of the item is based on at least one of a text input received from the user via the mobile device, an audio input received from the user via the mobile device, a machine-readable symbol scanned by the user via the mobile device, an image taken by the user via the mobile device, and a video taken by the user via the mobile device.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the offering of the incentive associated with the identified item comprises:

identifying one or more local merchants having at least one incentive, the identifying of the one or more local merchants being based on the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item;

determining that the item identified in the medium corresponds to an item identified in the at least one incentive from the one or more merchants having at least one incentive; and

transmitting a communication to the mobile device of the user, the communication including the at least one incentive of the identified item from the one or more merchants having at least one incentive.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, further comprising:

determining a category of the item identified in the medium;

determining that the category of the item identified in the medium corresponds to a category of items that is identified in at least one incentive from the at least one merchant located within the distance; and

transmitting a communication to the mobile device of the user, the communication including the at least one incentive of the identified category of items, the at least one incentive being from the at least one merchant located within the distance.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 19, further comprising:

generating a descriptor of an attribute of the item identified in the medium; and

wherein the determining of the category of the item identified in the medium is based on the descriptor of the attribute of the item identified in the medium.

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

receiving, from a mobile device of a user, a medium identifying an item, and data that pertains to a geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item;

determining, based on the data that pertains to the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item, the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item;

identifying the item based on the medium identifying the item; and

offering an incentive associated with the identified item, the incentive being from at least one merchant located within a distance from the geographic location associated with the medium identifying the item.