System and method for controlling access to a venue using alterable tickets

• US 6,107,932 A
• Filed: 08/22/1997
• Issued: 08/22/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: PayPal, Inc. (PayPal Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Walker Digital LLC (Walker Innovation Inc. (f/k/a Patent Properties, Inc.))
• Inventors: Walker, Jay S., Tedesco, Daniel E., Jorasch, James A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Trammell, James P.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Cuong H.
• Application Number:
  US08/916,656
• Time in Patent Office: 1,096 Days
• Field of Search: 705/5, 705/6, 705/4, 705/37, 379/26, 379/32, 379/279, 379/280, 379/381, 379/384, 345/329, 345/355, 273/139, 340/825.34, 340/825.3, 340/825.31
• US Class Current: 340/5.22
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/025 Coordination of plural reservations, e.g. plural trip segments, transportation combined with accommodation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/00 Arrangements or apparatus for collecting fares, tolls or entrance fees at one or more control points handling coins or valuable papers, e.g. banknotes, G07D; apparatus for vending or hiring articles or services activated by coins, credit cards, paper currency or the like G07F7/00, G07F17/00

Abstract

An alterable ticket and a system and method for controlling access to and within a venue using the alterable ticket. As described in one aspect of the disclosure, a ticket holder purchases such a ticket that conveys a right to access the venue. The ticket is altered in order to modify that right. Because the ticket is altered, it cannot be used by the ticket holder to gain access to the venue. A computer system tracks that the ticket has been altered and enables a refund to be provided to the ticket holder. In this way, a second ticket, conveying the same right as the altered ticket, may be sold to a second ticket holder. According to another aspect of the disclosure, a ticket holder purchases a ticket that conveys a right to occupy a first seat in a venue. The ticket is physically altered in order to upgrade the first seat to a second seat.

Claims

1. A system for monitoring a status of a right to access a venue, wherein the system has a ticket associated therewith which confers the right to access the venue, and wherein the ticket has a normally hidden code associated therewith, the system comprising:

a memory having status data corresponding to the right to access the venue and data corresponding to the code; and

a processor in communication with the memory, wherein the processor is operative to receive the code and to alter the status data based on the received code and the data corresponding to the code so that the status is monitored.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein when the status data is altered, the status data indicates that a holder of the ticket is not entitled to access the venue.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further operative to calculate a refund to a holder holding the ticket when the status data is altered.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the ticket has a class associated therewith, and wherein the refund is based on the class of the ticket.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further operative to output instructions for altering the ticket to obtain the code.

6. The system of claim 3, wherein the refund is calculated based on when the code is received by the processor.

7. The system of claim 3, wherein the venue has an event associated therewith, and wherein the refund is calculated based on demand to the event.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further operative to enable a sale of the right to a second person when the status data is altered.

9. A system for monitoring a status of a right to access a venue, comprising:

a memory having status data corresponding to the right to access the venue and data corresponding to a normally hidden code; and

a processor in communication with the memory, wherein the processor is operative to receive the code, to alter the status data based on the received code and the data corresponding to the code, and to output instructions for accessing the code so that the status is monitored.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein when the status data is altered, the right to access the venue is modified.

11. A method for monitoring a status of a right to access a venue, wherein the venue has a server associated therewith, the method comprising the steps of:

issuing a ticket to a holder, wherein the ticket confers a right to access the venue, wherein the ticket has a normally hidden code associated therewith;

receiving the code by the server from the holder; and

altering the right to access the venue by the server based on the received code.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein when the code is received, the holder is not entitled to access the venue.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the server includes status data indicative of the right to access the venue and wherein the step of altering the right to access the venue comprises the step of altering the status data by the server.

14. A method for enabling an entity to provide a refund to a holder holding a ticket, and wherein the entity has a server associated therewith, comprising the steps of:

issuing the ticket by the entity to the holder, wherein the ticket has a normally hidden code associated therewith; and

receiving the code by the server from the holder so that the refund can be provided to the holder.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the holder has an account associated therewith, and wherein the method further comprises the steps of:

transmitting data indicating the account from the holder to the server; and

providing the refund to the account of the holder.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the value of the refund is calculated based on when the code is received by the server.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the ticket has a class associated therewith, and wherein the value of the refund is based on the class of the ticket.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the venue has an event associated therewith, and wherein the value of the refund is calculated based on demand to the event.

19. A method for controlling access to a venue, comprising the steps of:

receiving a ticket, wherein the ticket normally represents a right to access the venue, and wherein the ticket includes indicia which, when visible, indicate that the right to access the venue has been modified;

examining the ticket to determine whether the ticket represents the right or the modified right; and

controlling access to the venue based on the right or the modified right.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the indicia is normally covered by an alterable area, and wherein the indicia is visible when the alterable area is altered.

21. An article of manufacture, comprising:

first indicia entitling a holder of the article to a right to enter a venue; and

second indicia for modifying the right, wherein the second indicia is normally hidden under an alterable area so that when the alterable area is altered, the right to enter the venue is modified.

22. The article of manufacture of claim 21, wherein the alterable area comprises a scratch-off material.

23. The article of manufacture of claim 21, wherein the alterable area comprises an aluminum permeated latex material.

24. A method for enabling a holder to upgrade a ticket, wherein the ticket has normally hidden upgrade indicia associated therewith, and wherein the holder is in communication with a server, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a request to upgrade the ticket by the server from the holder;

transmitting a signal from the server to the holder, wherein the signal indicates a location of the normally hidden upgrade indicia; and

transmitting instructions to alter the location indicated by the signal to the holder from the server to the holder so that the ticket can be upgraded.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the signal indicates one of a plurality of cells.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein the signal indicates a cell defined by one of a plurality of columns and one of a plurality of rows.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the location indicated by the signal corresponds to one of said plurality of columns and one of said plurality of rows.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein the instructions direct the holder to remove a scratch-off material.

29. The method of claim 24, further comprising the step of transmitting data indicative of a seat which reflects the upgrade to the device by the server.

30. An article of manufacture, comprising:

first indicia entitling a holder holding the article to a right to occupy a first location in a venue; and

second indicia for modifying the right, wherein the second indicia is normally hidden under at least a portion of an alterable area;

so that when the portion of the alterable area is altered, the holder is entitled to occupy a second location in the venue.

31. The article of manufacture of claim 30, wherein the alterable area comprises a plurality of cells.

32. The article of manufacture of claim 30, wherein the alterable area comprises a plurality of columns and a plurality of rows.

33. The article of manufacture of claim 32, wherein the second indicia is located under one of said plurality of columns and one of said plurality of rows.

34. The article of manufacture of claim 30, wherein the alterable area comprises a scratch-off material.

35. The article of manufacture of claim 34, wherein the alterable area comprises an aluminum permeated latex material.

36. A system for enabling a holder to upgrade a ticket to a venue, wherein the ticket confers a right to occupy a location in the venue, wherein the ticket has normally hidden upgrade indicia associated therewith, and wherein the normally hidden upgrade indicia have a location on the ticket associated therewith, the system comprising:

a memory having data indicating the ticket to be upgraded, status data corresponding to a status of an upgrade of the ticket, and a location code corresponding to the location of the upgrade indicia on the ticket; and

a processor in communication with the memory, wherein the processor is operative to receive a signal indicative of the ticket to be upgraded, to retrieve the location code based on the received signal and the data indicating the ticket to be upgraded, and to transmit the location code to the holder.

37. The system of claim 36, wherein the holder has an account associated therewith, and wherein the processor is further operative to receive data indicative of the account so that the holder may pay for the upgrade.

38. The system of claim 36, wherein the processor is further operative to output instructions to the holder to alter the location on the ticket corresponding to the location code so that the normally hidden upgrade indicia are revealed.

39. The system of claim 38, wherein the instructions include directing the holder to alter one of a plurality of cells.

40. The system of claim 38, wherein the instructions include directing the holder to alter a cell defined by one of a plurality of columns and one of a plurality of rows.

41. The system of claim 40, wherein the location of the code corresponds to one of said plurality of columns and one of said plurality of rows.