System for promoting account activity

• US 5,297,026 A
• Filed: 01/03/1992
• Issued: 03/22/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 01/03/1992
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Frank Hoffman
• Original Assignee: Frank Hoffman
• Inventors: Hoffman, Frank
• Primary Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran, Khai
• Application Number:
  US07/816,675
• Time in Patent Office: 809 Days
• Field of Search: 364/401, 364/405, 364/408
• US Class Current: 705/14.18
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/387 Payment using discounts or coupons relating to marketing G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0216 Investment accounts
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/0036 Checkout procedures
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/145 PLU-management

Abstract

A system and data processing arrangement for promoting purchases and account activity in a credit card account or other consumer transaction involving sales of goods or services rewards a customer for purchases by providing a high rate of return for funds invested by the customer. A financial institution, general purpose credit card agency, department store, automobile manufacturer, or various other marketers of goods or services agrees to grant the customer a high rate of interest on funds invested with the firm by the customer, provided the customer makes purchases. For purchases made by the customer in a given period (such as one month or six months), the firm gives the customer the right to invest a certain percentage (such as 10%) of the amount of purchases made by the customer in that period. Using automated data processing, the firm calculates the sum of the total purchases made by the customer during the preselected period. Then, funds are accepted from the customer up to the pre-agreed percentage of purchases, and provides a deposit account for the customer, crediting the investment funds in the deposit account. The firm may limit the term during which interest is paid on accepted funds invested for a particular such period, such as a term of six months or one year, or it may simply lower the interest rate at the end of that term.

Claims

1. A method used by an offering entity such as a seller of goods or services or a firm financing goods and services, for using a computer having a memory with associated data processing means to create and operate investment accounts for investors/purchasers and to provide an attractive rate of return for the investor/purchaser in such investment account while also promoting purchases by the investor/purchaser of products or services from or through the offering firm or entity, comprising:

(a) selecting an interest rate and entering and storing the selected interest rate into the memory of the computer,

(b) each time the investor/purchaser makes a purchase from or through the offering entity, entering and storing a record of the purchase in the computer memory, including the date and the amount of the purchase,

(c) using the data processing means of the computer, automatically calculating a sum of total purchases made by the investor/purchaser during a preselected period,

(d) under the control of the computer, automatically calculating a prescribed proportion of the sum of total purchases made by the investor/purchaser during the preselected period, and automatically issuing a statement to the investor/purchaser for the preselected period, indicating said prescribed proportion of the sum of total purchases as a maximum amount which can be received from the investor/purchaser as an investment.

(e) accepting investment funds from the investor/purchaser up to said prescribed proportion of the sum of total purchases and entering and storing the amount of said investment funds into the computer memory and, under the control of the computer, creating a deposit account for the investor/purchaser in the computer memory and crediting such investment funds in the deposit account of the investor/purchaser in the computer memory,

(f) under the control of the computer, automatically accruing interest for the investor/purchaser in the deposit account by automatically calculating interest due based on the amount and date of investment funds in the investor/purchaser'"'"'s deposit account in the computer memory, by applying said selected interest rate stored in the computer memory, and

(g) at a time when the investor/purchaser'"'"'s deposit account is to be liquidated, using the computer to automatically determine an amount of principal and accrued interest due the investor/purchaser based on amounts and dates stored in the deposit account in the computer memory, and paying the investor/purchaser such determined amount.

2. The method of claim 1, further including entering and storing into the memory of the computer a specific term of investment limiting the time within which said interest rate will be paid on investment funds from the investor/purchaser.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the steps of selecting and entering and storing an interest rate comprise selecting an interest rate which has a preselected relationship to a published money rate.

4. The method of claim 3, further including entering and storing updated, revised interest rates as said interest rate, with period changes in said published money rate.

5. The method of claim 1, further including, using the computer, automatically and periodically issuing statements to the investor/purchaser showing balance in said deposit account.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein step (g) is implemented by the computer after input to the computer of a demand from the investor/purchaser for the deposit account funds.

7. The method of claim 1, concluding the further step of repeatedly entering into the computer memory updated information concerning an account balance owed by the investor/purchaser for the purchase of products or services, and wherein the step of paying the investor/purchaser is not executed by the computer until the account balance of the investor/purchaser has been fully paid.

8. A system comprising a computer and associated data processing programming and data storage, used by an offering entity such as a seller of goods or services or a firm financing goods and services, for promoting saving by providing an attractive rate of return for investors/purchasers while promoting purchases by the investors/purchasers of products or services from or through the offering entity or firm, comprising:

central computer means with associated data storage means, data processing means and data input means,

data including an interest rate stored in the data storage means, being an attractive interest rate to individual investors, the data input means including means for receiving inputs of updated interest rates when appropriate,

the central computer means including purchase tabulating means for automatically receiving and entering into the data storage means records of purchases made by an investor/purchaser from or through the offering entity or firm during a preselected period, and for calculating a sum of total purchases made during such preselected period,

the data storage means having stored a prescribed, preselected proportion or percentage figure for use in inviting an investor/purchaser to invest funds,

the central computer means including means for applying said proportion or percentage figure to the sum of total purchases calculated by the central computer means to produce an investment maximum for the preselected period as a proportion of the sum of total purchases for the preselected period, and means for automatically issuing to the investor/purchaser a statement showing said investment maximum for funds that will be accepted from the investor/purchaser based on purchases made in said preselected period,

deposit account means in the central computer means for establishing and maintaining a deposit account as data in the data storage means, for the investor/purchaser,

investment accepting means in the central computer means, for accepting and storing in the data storage means records of investment funds received from the investor/purchaser up to said investment maximum for the preselected period, including means for automatically comparing the amount of funds received from the investor/purchaser with said investment maximum to determine whether the funds are acceptable, and for automatically crediting such investment funds in the investor/purchaser'"'"'s deposit account in the data storage means up to the investment maximum for the preselected period,

interest calculating means in the central computer means, for accruing interest for the investor/purchaser in the deposit account at said interest rate stored in the data storage means,

statement means in the central computer means for issuing account statements for the investor/purchaser reporting principal and accrued interest in the deposit account of the investor/purchaser.

redemption means in the central computer means for issuing payment to the investor/purchaser for principal and accrued interest after one of the following events;

(a) entry into the central computer means of a demand by the investor/purchaser

(b) termination of a prescribed term of investment which has been stored in the data storage means.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein said interest rate is an interest rate having a preselected relationship to a published money rate.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the offering entity or firm comprises an issuer of general purpose credit cards.