Value points exchanging managing method among first and second business entities where value points available to on-line customer obtaining goods or services

• US 6,721,743 B1
• Filed: 08/04/2000
• Issued: 04/13/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AD KEN Corporation
• Original Assignee: AD KEN Corporation
• Inventors: Sakakibara, Hisashi
• Primary Examiner(s): CHANNAVAJJALA, SRIRAMA T
• Application Number:
  US09/632,586
• Time in Patent Office: 1,348 Days
• Field of Search: 707/1-10, 707/100-104, 707/200-205, 707/501.1, 707/512-514, 709/203-210, 709/217-219, 705/1-15, 705/25-37, 705/39, 705/400, 713/200-202
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/06 Private payment circuits, e.g. involving electronic currency used among participants of a common payment scheme
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/1235 with control of digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/145 Payments according to the detected use or quantity
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0226 Incentive systems for frequent usage, e.g. frequent flyer miles programs or point systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0235 constrained by time limit or expiration date
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

A customer-use terminal unit 20 managed by a customer transmits exchange instructing information, which instructs an exchange of valuable points obtained by the customer for communication points used for receiving on-line services, to a central unit 10 that manages the communication points (S202). The central unit 10 transmits valuable point request information according to the received exchange instructing information to a cooperate-use terminal unit 30 that manages the valuable points (S204). The cooperate-use terminal unit 30 transmits valuable points corresponding to the received valuable point request information to the central unit 10 (S206). The central unit 10 exchanges the received valuable points for communication points according to a predetermined exchange rate (S209). Accordingly, it is possible to achieve point management capable of reducing the loss of valuable points given to the customer as a reward for consumption activity, due to the expiration of the term of validity of the valuable points, and improving the frequency in use of on-line services.

Claims

1. A point managing method for managing points among a first business entity, plural second business entities each of which has a business arrangement with said first business entity, and customers of the first and second business entities, said first business entity managing communication points that are capable of being exchanged by customers for on-line obtaining of goods or services, said second business entities managing value points given to customers as a reward for consumption activity, where the second business entities have already given value points to a customer as part of transactions completed before the customer uses said method, said method comprising:

interactively instructing said first business entity to exchange value points for communication points, where the customer does the instructing;

responsive to and in accordance with the instructing, automatically requesting said second business entity to send the value points already given to the customer;

responsive to the requesting, automatically sending the requested already given value points from said second business entity to said first business entity; and

responsive to receiving the value points, exchanging the received value points of each said second business entity for communication points according to preset exchange rates, each corresponding to a respective second business entity, whereby the exchanged-for communication points become available to the customer for on-line obtaining of goods or services via the first business entity.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the business arrangement of each second business entity comprises a contract between such second business entity and the first business entity, wherein the contract is for exchanging value points for communication points.

3. A point managing system comprising a central unit for managing communication points used for obtaining on-line services, a cooperate-use terminal unit that is connected to said central unit and manages value points of plural second business entities representing an already-given reward for prior consumption activity with the same, and a customer-use terminal unit that is connected to said central unit, wherein

said customer-use terminal unit comprises a controller capable of performing the operation of transmitting to said central unit exchange instructing information instructing an exchange of value points for communication points,

said central unit comprises:

a communication point database that records information related to communication points;

an exchange database that records information of an exchange rate between communication points and value points for each second business entity; and

a controller capable of performing the operation of transmitting to said cooperate-use terminal unit value point request information requesting value points corresponding to the customer-use terminal unit according to received exchange instructing information; and

said cooperate-use terminal unit comprises;

a value point database that records information of value points;

a controller capable of performing operations comprising;

transmitting to said central unit value points;

corresponding to received value point request information; and

updating the value point database according to the transmitted value points; and

said controller of the central unit further capable of performing operations comprising;

exchanging received value points for communication points of a first business entity according to an exchange rate recorded in said exchange database where the exchange rate corresponds to a second business entity that previously issued the exchanging value points; and

updating said communication point database according to the exchanged communication points, whereby the exchanged-for communication points become available to the customer for on-line obtaining of goods or services via the first business entity.

4. The point managing system as set forth in claim 3, wherein

said controller of the customer-use terminal unit further capable of performing following operations:

accepting input of first identification information related to customers and second identification information that is different from said first identification information; and

transmitting said first and second identification information to said central unit;

said controller of the central unit further capable of performing the following operations;

authenticating said customer-use terminal unit based on received first identification information; and

transmitting received second identification information to said cooperate-use terminal unit;

said value point database provided in said cooperate-use terminal unit stores value points recorded to correspond to the second identification information; and

said controller of the cooperate-use terminal unit further capable of performing the operation of extracting from the value point database value points to be transmitted to said central unit, according to received second identification information.

5. A computer readable recording medium including thereon a recorded computer program for causing a computer having communication means to manage communication points used for on-line services, comprising:

computer readable program code, when receiving exchange instructing information instructing an exchange of value points of plural second business entities representing an already-given reward for consumption activity with the same for communication points, causing a computer to transmit point request information requesting value points to said communication means corresponding to the requested value points, according to said exchange instructing information; and

computer readable program code means, when value points corresponding to the transmitted value point request information are received, causing a computer to exchange the received value points for communication points according to a preset exchange rate, where the exchange rate corresponds to a second business entity that previously issued the exchanging value points, and whereby the exchanged-for communication points become available to the customer for on-line obtaining of goods or services via the first business entity.

6. A method of exchanging points between different business entities, comprising:

responsive to a customer purchasing goods or services from first business entities that offer various types of goods or services, automatically crediting to the customer non-monetary first points of types issued by the first business entities, where the first business entities agree to, upon conditions, redeem to the customer the credited non-monetary first points in exchange for any of the goods or services of the various types offered by the first business entities; and

after crediting the first points, in response to an interactive request of the customer, exchanging the credited non-monetary first points for non-monetary second points of a type issued by a second business entity which are credited to the customer, where the second business entity agrees to, upon conditions, redeem to the customer the credited non-monetary second points in exchange for any of goods or services of various types offered by the second business entity, where the first points and the second points are of types that are not fungible.

7. A method according to claim 6, wherein the exchanging further comprises de-crediting the first points from the customer.

8. A method according to claim 6, wherein each first business entity has an exchange rate, and wherein the first points and second points are exchanged according to electronic exchange rate information of a first business entity who issued the first points being exchanged.

9. A method according to claim 6, wherein the first points are only directly redeemable by the first business entity, and wherein the second points are only directly redeemable by the second business entity.

10. A central unit connected to a cooperate-use terminal unit for managing value points of plural second business entities representing an already-given reward for prior consumption activity with the same, and a customer-use terminal unit, for managing communication points used for on-line services, comprising:

a communication point database that records information related to communication points;

an exchange database that records information related to of an exchange rate between communication points and value points for each second business entity; and

a controller, coupled to said communication point database and said exchange database, and capable of performing operations comprising;

when exchange instructing information instructing an exchange of value points for communication points is received, for transmitting to said cooperate-use terminal unit value point request information requesting value points corresponding to the customer-use terminal unit according to the received exchange instructing information;

when value points corresponding to the transmitted value point information are received, for exchanging the received value points for communication points of a first business entity according to an exchange rate recorded in said exchange database where the exchange rate corresponds to a second business entity that previously issued the exchanging value points; and

updating said communication point database according to the exchanged communication points whereby the exchanged-for communication points become available to the customer for on-line obtaining of goods or services via the first business entity.