On-line interactive system and method for transacting business

• US 6,934,692 B1
• Filed: 07/06/2000
• Issued: 08/23/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Duncan Ventures Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Duncan Ventures Incorporated
• Inventors: Duncan, Dana B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Myhre, James
• Assistant Examiner(s): Le, Khanh H.
• Application Number:
  US09/610,772
• Time in Patent Office: 1,874 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26, 705/27, 705/31, 705/39, 705/40, 705/35, 705/37, 705/14
• US Class Current: 705/35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0607 Regulated
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

The present invention includes a method for transacting business over a network between multiple buyers and sellers. In an exemplary embodiment, the invention operates within an improved extranet system which is a secure, limited access network which operates within the larger public packet switched network (Internet) and allows only registered buyers and sellers to access the website while the system communicates with, and takes advantage of, existing credit, billing, collection, clearinghouse, insurance, transportation, tracking and banking systems. The interactive database includes real-time information in connection with a transaction, where the buyer submits a request for product and the request for the product locks out the requested product from selection by any other buyers.

Claims

1. A method for facilitating a sales transaction over a computer network among a buyer, a merchant and a freight carrier, comprising the steps of:

qualifying, by said freight carrier, at least one buyer and at least one merchant to participate in said sales transaction facilitated by a freight carrier, wherein said freight carrier is distinct from said buyer and said merchant, and wherein said freight carrier has a pre-existing relationship with an international network of financial institutions in different countries, and wherein only said freight carrier facilitates, for said buyer and said merchant, freight insurance services, custom services, tariffs services, duties services, language services, currency services, shipping services at multiple drop points, transaction fee services, clearinghouse services, tracking of goods services, and establishing terms of sale;

and wherein qualifying includes analyzing merchant qualifying data associated with said merchant, wherein said merchant qualifying data includes credit information, system users, business references, Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HAACP) Compliance Certificate, Food and Drug Administration regulations, site inspection information, designated bank, amount of inventory for posting, percentage of inventory for posting, Certified Insured Freight (CIF), fee structure and payment type;

contractually obligating said merchant to refrain from selling said perishable soft goods associated with a locked out line item, obligating said merchant to relinquish control of said perishable soft goods to said freight carrier, and transferring responsibility of collection of buyer funds to said freight carrier;

receiving information related to establishing, a buyer account containing deposited buyer funds at one of said financial institutions which is associated with said freight carrier;

receiving, by said freight carrier without coordinating with any third party entity, a buyer account code from said buyer to allow said freight carrier to effect a hold on at least a portion of said deposited buyer funds to establish held buyer funds, wherein said buyer account code corresponds to an account which includes said deposited buyer funds in a buyer account;

receiving, by said freight carrier without coordinating with any third party entity, a merchant account code from said merchant to allow said freight carrier to effect the depositing of said held buyer funds into a merchant account, wherein said merchant account code is associated with said merchant account;

providing a host database for facilitating on-line display of a plurality of descriptive line items corresponding to, respectively, one of a plurality of available perishable soft goods from a plurality of merchants, each of said perishable soft goods having a limited shelf life, wherein each of said descriptive line items comprises an identification of a unique perishable soft good available from a unique one of a plurality of merchants, wherein said line items include product, size, packaging, quality, origin, quantity, SKU and price per pound;

receiving merchant sales data from said merchant, wherein said merchant sales data includes inventory information, product information, SKU numbers, fresh characteristics of said perishable goods, frozen characteristics of said perishable goods, type of said perishable goods, species name, sales information and buyer information;

receiving buyer input data, wherein said buyer input data includes price, quantity, fresh characterstics of said perishable goods, frozen characteristics of said perishable goods, packaging, type of perishable goods, species of perishable goods, identification of an existing merchant, drop shipping points, and FOB sites;

providing access of said on-line display by said buyer;

receiving selected identification, from said buyer, of a particular one of said plurality of line items for subsequent purchase by buyer, said selected identification not available to any other entity aside from said freight carrier;

effecting a lock-out of at least a portion of said identified line item on said on-line display such that at least a portion of said line item is no longer displayed;

notifying said merchant to remove a unique one of said perishable soft goods from one of said merchants corresponding to said locked-out line item from available inventory;

analyzing buyers credit based upon said buyer'"'"'s pre-existing profile and credit information within a database of said freight carrier, wherein said buyer'"'"'s profile includes buyer order history information and buyer inspection information;

if buyer'"'"'s credit is satisfactory, directing, by said freight carrier, said financial institution to effect a hold on a portion of said deposited buyer funds equal to a cost of said goods associated with said identified line item and a transaction fee to establish held buyer funds through the use of said buyer account code and said selected identification, such that said portion of said deposited buyer funds are unavailable for use by said buyer as a result of said hold initiated by said freight carrier,

transmitting an email notification to said buyer and said merchant regarding said held buyer funds;

notifying a CIF inspector to inspect said perishable soft goods corresponding to said locked-out line item;

creating an invoice including a bill of material and a bill of lading;

preparing said perishable soft goods for shipment;

receiving said buyer signature on said bill of lading, thereby transferring custody of said perishable soft goods from said freight carrier to said buyer;

and closing the transaction;

if buyer'"'"'s credit is unsatisfactory, effecting an unlock of said identified line item on said on-line display such that said identified line tem is re-displayed for viewing and un-removing said perishable soft goods corresponding to said locked-out line item from available inventory;

wherein said closing the transaction comprises the steps of;

effecting the deposit, by said freight carrier, using said merchant account code and a tracking code, of a portion of said held buyer funds into said merchant account and effecting the deposit of a portion of said held buyer funds into an account related to said freight carrier representing a transaction fee; and

,

shipping said perishable soft goods based on said selected identification and corresponding to said locked-out line item from said merchant to said buyer, at a previously selected FOB site associated with said buyer and obtained from said freight carrier database, via said freight carrier without notifying any third party entity outside of said freight carrier, said merchant and said buyer, wherein said freight carrier includes trucks dedicated to said freight carrier and said freight carrier dispatches said trucks without coordinating with other entities, wherein said trucks are used for shipping said perishable soft goods.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein allowing said freight carrier to effect a hold on at least a portion of said buyer funds to establish held buyer funds includes effecting a hold on said buyer funds equal to an amount of said transaction plus an amount of a transaction fee.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein providing a host database for facilitating on-line display of a plurality of line items corresponding to available perishable soft goods from a plurality of merchants includes a plurality of line items corresponding to available perishable soft goods from a plurality of merchants in a similar industry.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein providing a host database for facilitating on-line display of a plurality of line items further includes on-line display of industry-specific information.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein allowing said freight carrier to effect a hold on at least a portion of said buyer funds to establish held buyer funds includes said freight carrier having a pre-existing relationship with a financial institution which maintains said buyer account.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein effecting the deposit, by said freight carrier, using said merchant account code, of said held buyer funds into said merchant account includes said freight carrier having a pre-existing relationship with a financial institution which maintains said merchant account.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein a first financial institution associated with said buyer account and a second financial institution associated with said merchant account originate in different countries.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising notifying at least one of said shipper, said buyer, and said merchant in substantially real-time of at least one of analyzing buyer'"'"'s credit and closing the transaction.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein said providing a host database for facilitating on-line display of a plurality of line items corresponding to available perishable soft goods from a plurality of merchants includes line items corresponding to seafood.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the merchant may enter information into said host database at least one of product information, SKU numbers, fresh or frozen characteristics of the seafood, type of seafood, sales information, and buyer information.