On-line group-buying sale with increased value system and method

• US 7,194,427 B1
• Filed: 10/04/2000
• Issued: 03/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Fintegraph, LLC (Ascend Innovation Management, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Vulcan Portals Incorporated
• Inventors: Woodford, Dale A., Halbert, Richard V., Van Horn, Tom, Pache, Jerome P., Dean, Greg C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith; Jeffrey A.
• Application Number:
  US09/684,403
• Time in Patent Office: 2,358 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26, 705/27, 705/14, 705/400
• US Class Current: 705/26.2
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 Commerce
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0605 Supply or demand aggregation

Abstract

In the definition of an on-line group-buying sale (122), a price of a featured item may be specified as a fixed amount, such as $25 per month. As indicated at (124), the sale 122 has an increasing incentive as more buyers (104) join the sale. Buyers (104) make offers as indicated at (126). As more buyers (104) make offers below a maximum threshold, the on-line group-buying sale software (120) increases the incentive as indicated at (128). At the conclusion of the sale (122), the on-line group-buying sale software (120) confirms acceptance of all offers specifying an incentive at or below the final, increased incentive in the sale (122), as indicated at (130). The modified pricing on-line group-buying sale can be applied to a variety of featured items, such as long distance calling plans, rebates for the purchase of an automobile, bank certificates of deposit, or credit instruments, with an increasing number of free long distance minutes, an increasing face value for the rebate, an increasing interest rate for the certificate of deposit, or a lower interest rate for the credit instrument, as more buyers join the sale.

Claims

1. A system for carrying out an on-line group-buying sale of an item, the system comprising:

an e-commerce data processing system configured to provide the on-line group-buying sale of an item, the e-commerce data processing system further configured to associate the sale of the item with a price curve defined by prices of the item with respect to quantities associated with the item and a value curve defined by values of a non-price attribute of the item and the quantities assocaited with the item, wherein the e-commerce data processing system is further configured to increase the value of the non-price attribute of the item as more buyers make offers in the on-line group-buying sale and wherein the e-commerce data processing system further configured to hold constant the price of the item in response to an increase in the quantity of buyer offers;

a buyer data processing system coupled to the e-commerce data processing system and configured to receive buyer offers in the on-line group-buying sale of the item and to transmit the buyer offers to the e-commerce data processing system; and

a module configured to determine the price of the item in the on-line group buying sale responsive to buyer offers and the price curve.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the non-price attribute of the item comprises an interest rate.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the item comprises a security interest.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the non-price attribute of the item comprises benefits assocaited with the item.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the e-commerce data processing system is further configured to associate the sale of the item with an ignore curve defined by prices of the item with respect to quantities of the item;

and wherein the buyer data processing system is further configured to exclude a buyer offer from the on-line group buying sale responsive to the ignore curve.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the buyer offer comprises an offer to purchase the item at a specific price and a specific value of the non-price attribute of the item.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein the e-commerce data processing system is further configured to associate the sale of the item with an ignore curve defined by values of the non-price attribute of the item and quantities associated with the items;

and wherein the buyer data processing system is further configured to exclude a buyer offer from the on-line group buying sale responsive to the ignore curve.

8. A computer-implemented method for carrying out an on-line group-buying sale of an item, the method comprising the steps of:

conducting the on-line group-buying sale of an item, including associating the sale of the item with a price curve defined by prices of the item with respect to quantities associated with the item and a value curve defined by values of a non-price attribute of the item with respect to quantities associated with the item;

receiving buyer offers in the on-line group-buying sale of the item;

transmitting the buyer offers to an e-commerce data processing system; and

determining the value of the non-price attribute of the item in response to buyer offers and the value curve including increasing the value of the non-price attribute of the item as more buyers make offers in the on-line group-buying sale; and

holding constant the price of the item in response to an increase in the quantity of buyer offers.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the non-price attribute of the item comprises an interest rate.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the item comprises a security interest.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein the non-price attribute of the item comprises benefits associated with the item.

12. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

providing the on-line group buying sale of an item, the sale of the item associated with an ignore curve defined by prices of the item with respect to quantities associated with the item; and

excluding a buyer offer from the on-line group buying sale responsive to the ignore curve.

13. The method of claim 8 wherein the buyer offer comprises an offer to purchase the item at a specific price and a specific value of the non-price attribute of the item.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising:

providing the on-line group buying sale of an item, the sale of the item associated with an ignore curve defined by values of the non-price attribute of the item with respect to quantities associated with the item; and

excluding a buyer offer from the on-line group buying sale responsive to the ignore curve.

15. A computer-implemented method for carrying out an on-line group-buying sale of an item, the method comprising the steps of:

conducting the on-line group-buying sale of an item, the item including a price and a non-price attribute;

receiving buyer offers in the on-line group-buying sale of the item;

transmitting the buyer offers to an e-commerce data processing system;

determining the value of the non-price attribute of the item responsive to buyer offers including increasing the value of the non-price attribute as more buyers make offers in the on-line group-buying sale; and

determining the price of the item responsive to buyer offers including changing the price of the item as more buyers make offers in the on-line group buying sale.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising

specifying a value curve defined by value of the non-price attribute of the item and quantities of the items;

and

determining the value of the non-price attribute responsive to the value curve and buyer offers.

17. The method of claim 15 wherein the price of the item decreases and the value of the non-price attribute increases as the quantity of buyer offers increases.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the price of the item stays constant as the quantity of buyer offers increases.

19. The method of claim 15 wherein the value of the non-price attribute increases as the quantity of buyer offers increases.