System and method for promoting commerce, including sales agent assisted commerce, in a networked economy

• US 7,546,254 B2
• Filed: 05/31/2005
• Issued: 06/09/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/03/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Michael Bednarek
• Original Assignee: Michael Bednarek
• Inventors: Bednarek, Michael D.
• Primary Examiner(s): MEINECKE DIAZ, SUSANNA M
• Application Number:
  US11/139,559
• Publication Number:
  US 20050251440A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,470 Days
• Field of Search: 705/10, 705/26
• US Class Current: 705/26.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0203 Market surveys; Market polls
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]

Abstract

A personal communication and electronic commerce system for use by participating users and participating merchants in connection with incentive programs in the Network Economy. The system includes a cellular communication network that includes geographically spaced base stations that are linked to a fixed communication network. Users may have personal communication devices that can be used to allow a digital message generated on the personal communication devices by placing a call through one of the base stations and memory for storing a digital value corresponding to a monetary value. The personal communication device may also be used as a cellular position locator to determine one'"'"'s geographic location and, if desired, to access information from a merchant information database containing information pertaining to a plurality of participating merchants located within the geographic territory covered by the cellular communication network. The merchant information may be stored on a database that is accessible by merchants so those merchants can add, delete or alter information contained in their respective listings. An incentive system is also provided for creating incentives for participating users to encourage. This computer implemented incentive program for encouraging certain participant actions includes a first reward program under which participants may earn points for certain actions and a second reward program through which the redemption rate associated with a particular participant is adjusted in response to certain participant action. The incentive program has a wide range of applications, including transportation, financial services and computer gaming.

Claims

1. A wireless connectivity and electronic commerce system, the system comprising:

a database for storing a plurality of merchant ID'"'"'s of a plurality of participating merchants in association with information indicative of geographic location;

merchant information data associated with each of the merchant ID'"'"'s, the merchant information data being accessible by merchants so that merchants can add, delete or alter information associated with their merchant ID;

a plurality of digital cellular phones, each of the digital cellular phones comprising;

a display;

audio output and input equipment to allow voice communication on a digital cellular network, a user interface for allowing an user to generate digital messages;

a transmitter and receiver for wireless connectivity so as to allow a digital message generated on the digital cellular phones to be transmitted to hardware equipped to receive such messages;

a position locator system for determining the geographic position of the digital cellular phones;

a search engine for querying the database to determine the merchant ID of all participating merchants located near a digital cellular phone and retrieving merchant information data pertaining to selected participating merchants and transmitting the information to the digital cellular phone; and

the user interface comprising a plurality of menu options stored on the digital cellular phone so as to allow a user to construct a search query specifying a type of merchant solely through a combination of a plurality of menu choices.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the database for storing a plurality of merchant D'"'"'s in association with information indicative of geographic location is a merchant information database maintained on a common server by a system operator, each of the plurality of merchant D'"'"'s conforming to a standard and being assigned by the system operator, the database storing content uniquely associated with a plurality of different merchants in a consistent format on a single server, the content including content that can be modified only by the system operator or the merchant to which the content is uniquely associated and the system controlling access to the database such that each of the plurality of different merchants are allowed to access the common server to modify content uniquely associated with their respective merchant ID'"'"'s, but prevented from modifying content uniquely associated with others of the plurality of different merchants.

3. The system of claim 1, the system further comprising a mobile exchange for facilitating digital cellular voice communication and a database linked to mobile exchange for storing content associated with content providers in geographic proximity to the mobile exchange.

4. The system of claim 1, further comprising a bid solicitation engine for soliciting bids from merchants within the proximity of the user in response to a query, the bid solicitation engine identifying the best value or values for the goods or services the user is interested in and providing a digital message through the digital cellular network to the user identifying the best value or values for the goods or services the user is interested in.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the user interface further provides the user the option of making a call to a merchant identified in response to a search query.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the digital cellular phones are Bluetooth enabled to allow the position locator system to provide position information to another device that communicates with the digital cellular phone through wireless connectivity.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the user interface further comprises a programmable button for generating a search query specifying a type of merchant with a single press of a button.

8. the system of claim 7, wherein the programmable button is programmed to generate a search query specifying a specific merchant to find the nearest location of that merchant with a single press of a button.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the digital cellular phones comprise and a transmitter and receiver for communication with a cellular base station so as to allow digital cellular voice communication and allow a digital message generated on the digital cellular phones to be transmitted through a mobile exchange.

10. A computer implemented merchant locator system that allows users equipped with digital cellular phones to identify merchants in their vicinity, the system comprising:

a plurality of digital cellular phones, each of the digital cellular phones comprising;

a display;

audio output and input equipment to allow voice communication on a digital cellular network, a user interface for allowing an user to generate digital messages, the user interface comprising a plurality of menu options stored on the digital cellular phone so as to allow a user to construct a search query specifying a type of merchant through a combination of a plurality of menu choices;

a transmitter and receiver for wireless connectivity so as to allow a digital message generated on the digital cellular phones to be transmitted to hardware equipped to receive such messages;

a position locator system for determining the geographic position of the digital cellular phones;

a database for storing a plurality of merchant ID'"'"'s in association with information indicative of geographic location;

wherein the database for storing a plurality of merchant ID'"'"'s in association with information indicative of geographic location is a merchant information database maintained on a common server by a system operator, each of the plurality of merchant ID'"'"'s conforming to a standard and being assigned by the system operator, the database storing content uniquely associated with a plurality of different merchants in a consistent format on a single server, the content including content that can be modified only by the system operator or the merchant to which the content is uniquely associated and the system controlling access to the database such that each of the plurality of different merchants are allowed to access the common server to modify content uniquely associated with their respective merchant ID'"'"'s, but prevented from modifying content uniquely associated with others of the plurality of different merchants.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the digital cellular phones comprise a transmitter and receiver for communication with a cellular base station so as to allow digital cellular voice communication and allow a digital message generated on the digital cellular phones to be transmitted through a mobile exchange.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the user interface further provides the user the option of making a call to a merchant identified in response to a search query.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the user interface further comprises a programmable button for generating a search query specifying a type of merchant with a single press of a button.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the programmable button is programmed to generate a search query specifying a specific merchant to find the nearest location of that merchant with a single press of a button.

15. A computer implemented merchant locator system for allowing users to identify merchants from among a plurality of merchants by location and receive information regarding the merchants, the system further allowing merchants to alter or control the content of information sent to users, the system comprising:

a database for storing a plurality of merchant ID'"'"'s and merchant information data addresses in association with information indicative of geographic location;

wherein the database for storing a plurality of merchant ID'"'"'s in association with information indicative of geographic location is a merchant information database maintained on a common server by a system operator, each of the plurality of merchant ID'"'"'s conforming to a standard and being assigned by the system operator, the database storing content uniquely associated with a plurality of different merchants in a consistent format on a single server, the content including content that can be modified only by the system operator or the merchant to which the content is uniquely associated and the system controlling access to the database such that each of the plurality of different merchants are allowed to access the common server to modify content uniquely associated with their respective merchant ID'"'"'s, but prevented from modifying content uniquely associated with others of the plurality of different merchants;

a plurality of digital cellular phones, each of the digital cellular phones comprising;

a display;

a position locator system for determining the geographic position of the digital cellular phones;

a user interface for allowing an user to generate digital messages, the user interface comprising a plurality of menu options stored on the digital cellular phone so as to allow a user to construct a search query specifying a type of merchant through a combination of a plurality of menu choices;

a transmitter and receiver for communication with a cellular base station so as to allow digital cellular voice communication and allow a digital message generated on the digital cellular phones to be transmitted through a mobile exchange to the common server.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein each of the digital cellular phones further comprise a smart card and wherein the smart card includes a chip that can store a digital code representing a monetary value, the smart card being detachable from the remainder of the digital cellular phone.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein each of the digital cellular phones further comprise a web browser.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the user interface further comprises a programmable button for generating a search query specifying a type of merchant with a single press of a button.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the programmable button is programmed to generate a search query specifying a specific merchant to find the nearest location of that merchant with a single press of a button.