Method and system for gift credit card

• US 6,182,895 B1
• Filed: 10/14/1999
• Issued: 02/06/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Agilent Technologies Europe BV (Agilent Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Agilent Technologies Europe BV (Agilent Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Albrecht, Jerry L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pitts, Harold I.
• Application Number:
  US09/417,733
• Time in Patent Office: 481 Days
• Field of Search: 235/329, 235/380
• US Class Current: 235/380
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/2295 Parent-child type, e.g. where parent has control on child rights
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/342 Cards defining paid or billed services or quantities
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/385 using an alias or single-use codes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/025 by means, e.g. cards, providing billing information at the time of purchase, e.g. identification of seller or purchaser, quantity of goods delivered or to be delivered

Abstract

A method and system for providing purchasable value for gifts and other uses in the form of a credit instrument is provided. A purchaser of a gift credit instrument authorizes a credit institution with which the purchaser holds a credit account to create a limited-value, non-renewable secondary account linked exclusively to the purchaser'"'"'s credit account. A credit instrument is issued to an authorized user which credit instrument uniquely identifies the secondary account. The gift credit instrument may be used in the same manner as the purchaser'"'"'s credit instrument; however, it expires after a certain period of time or after the initial value of the secondary account is spent. A system for carrying out the method is also provided.

Claims

1. A credit transaction system, comprising:

a plurality of points of sale;

a credit data storage and transaction processing system communicatively connected to said points of sale, said credit data storage and transaction processing system including first computer memory for storing credit account data of a primary credit account, and a processor for processing said credit account data and transaction data communicated to said processor from said points of sale;

second computer memory communicatively connected to said processor adapted to store data of a secondary account, said secondary account having an initially-determined value and being exclusively related to said primary account; and

a credit instrument for conducting transactions at one or more of said plurality of points of sale, said credit instrument uniquely identifying said secondary account,

wherein data of said transactions are processed by said processor and stored in said second computer memory, and wherein said processor terminates said secondary account when said credit instrument has been used for said transactions such that the value of said transactions substantially equals said initially-determined value of said secondary account.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said primary account is controlled by a primary account holder, and said initially-determined value of said secondary account is charged to the primary account holder.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein said initially-determined value is charged to said primary account.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein said initially-determined value is charged at one time.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein said initially-determined value is charged at a plurality of times as said secondary account is used.

6. The system of claim 3, wherein said points of sale are affiliated with a single retail institution.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein said points of sale are affiliated with multiple retail institutions.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein said credit instrument includes at least one datum identifying said secondary account.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein said datum is imprinted on the face of said credit instrument.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein said datum is magnetically stored on said credit instrument.

11. A method of creating and processing a secondary account linked to a primary credit account and having an initially-determined limit, comprising the steps of:

receiving authorization from a holder of a primary credit account to create said secondary account;

determining whether said authorization is sufficient;

creating said secondary account if said authorization is determined to be sufficient;

creating a credit instrument uniquely identifying said secondary account for use in credit transactions;

providing said credit instrument to the primary account holder or to an authorized user;

allowing continued use of said credit instrument for credit transactions as long as the cumulative value of the transactions does not exceed the initially-determined value; and

terminating said secondary account when the cumulative value of the transactions made using said credit instrument substantially equals said initially-determined value.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of charging the initially-determined value to the holder of the primary credit account.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said charging step is performed by charging the initially-determined value to the primary credit account.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of charging the value of transactions made using said credit instrument to the primary credit account.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein said receiving step includes receiving authorization data submitted in paper or electronic form.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of terminating said secondary account after passage of a predetermined amount of time.