SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MARKETING AND SELLING AUCTION ITEMS

• US 20150120484A1
• Filed: 10/27/2014
• Published: 04/30/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/2013
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: ALTESO LLC
• Original Assignee: ALTESO LLC
• Inventors: Kaganov, Yury, Repik, Maksim V.
• Application Number:
  US14/524,764
• Publication Number:
  US 20150120484A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/26.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0631 Item recommendations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions

Abstract

A method for marketing and selling auction items includes the steps of providing a system for generating a customized auction website to facilitate access to an inventory of auction items, receiving a request from a subscriber of the system to generate a customized auction website to provide access to the inventory of auction items for a user of the customized auction website, and generating the customized auction website according to subscriber specified parameters. The method further includes the steps of receiving a bid request for an auction item from a user of the customized auction website and communicating a response to the bid request to the user via the customized auction website. A method is for use by auction houses and a plurality of buyers, where identity of the auction house remains unknown to the customer of a buyer, and identity of the customer remain unknown to the auction house.

Claims

1. A method for marketing and selling an auction item comprising the steps of:

providing a system for generating a customized auction website to facilitate access to an inventory of auction items;

receiving a request from a subscriber of the system to generate a customized auction website to provide access to the inventory of auction items for a user of the customized auction website;

generating the customized auction website according to subscriber specified parameters;

receiving a bid request for an auction item from a user of the customized auction website; and

communicating a response to the bid request to the user via the customized auction website.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the inventory of auction items includes transportation vehicles.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein an auction house supplies items to the inventory of auction items.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the subscriber supplies items to the inventory of auction items.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the bid request from the user is communicated to the auction house.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein a response to the bid request is received from the auction house.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein if the bid request from the user is a winning bid, the response to the bid request includes an indication that the user is awarded the auction item.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the subscriber takes ownership of the auction item upon the user being awarded the auction item.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the subscriber transfers ownership of the auction item to the user.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the user renders payment for the awarded auction item directly to the subscriber.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the system receives payment from the user, and the system forwards a first portion of the payment to the auction house and forwards a second portion of the payment to the subscriber.

12. A method of marketing and selling auction items comprising the steps of:

providing a system for use by an auction house and a plurality of buyers;

arranging the system so that a customer associated with one of the plurality of buyers can review an auction inventory and place a bid on an auction item without knowing the identity of the auction house;

receiving a bid placed by the customer for the auction item;

forwarding the customer'"'"'s bid to the auction house without the auction house knowing the identity of the customer;

receiving a response to the customer'"'"'s bid from the auction house, where the response includes an indication of whether the customer'"'"'s bid is a winning bid;

forwarding the response to the customer'"'"'s bid to the customer;

the buyer associated with the customer taking ownership of the auction item if the customer'"'"'s bid is the winning bid; and

the buyer transferring ownership of the auction item from the buyer to the customer.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the method is facilitated by a website customized for each of the plurality of buyers.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein a customer of each buyer can view auction items and bid on auction items via the website customized for the buyer.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein a first buyer of the plurality of buyers supplies an auction item to the inventory of auction items.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein customers associated with a second buyer of the plurality of buyers can view and bid on the auction item supplied by the first buyer.

17. A method for marketing and selling an auction item comprising the steps of:

an auction house providing customized websites to a plurality of buyers;

each of the plurality of buyers providing access to the customized website to customers associated with the buyer;

receiving a bid on an auction item from a customer associated with one of the plurality of buyers;

responding to the bid, where the response to the bid includes an indication of whether the bid is a winning bid;

if the bid is the winning bid, transferring ownership of the auction item to the buyer associated with the customer.

18. The method of claim 17, where a first buyer of the plurality of buyers can supply an auction item.

19. The method of claim 18, where a customer associated with a second buyer can view and place a bid on the auction item supplied by the first buyer.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein a substantial portion of auction items are supplied by the plurality of buyers.