Anonymous delivery of digital products over a network via a link

• US 7,805,336 B2
• Filed: 09/12/2006
• Issued: 09/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Seal, Krishanu, Siegel, Hilliard B.
• Primary Examiner(s): BAYAT, BRADLEY B
• Application Number:
  US11/531,184
• Publication Number:
  US 20070027781A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,477 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26
• US Class Current: 705/26.42
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6254 by anonymising data, e.g. decorrelating personal data from the owner's identification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0615 Anonymizing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders

Abstract

Processes and systems are disclosed for enabling a user to purchase a digital product from a first computer system (e.g., a merchant web site), and to then initiate electronic delivery of the digital product from a second computer system without revealing personal information to the second computer system or its operator. In one embodiment, the user initiates the anonymous delivery from the second computer system using a link received from the first computer system. The first and second computer systems communicate with each other to track fulfillment/delivery statuses of orders, and to limit the number of times the user can download the purchased digital product from the second computer system.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for controlling delivery of digital products to users, the method comprising:

receiving, at a first computer system, an order placed by a user for a digital product;

in response to processing the order, transmitting a link from the first computer system to a user computer associated with the user, said link being selectable by the user to initiate electronic delivery of the digital product from a second computer system in fulfillment of the order while remaining anonymous to the second computer system, said second computer system programmed to notify the first computer system when the digital product is delivered to the user; and

when the user accesses said link, determining, at said first computer system, whether the second computer system has already delivered the digital product to the user in fulfillment of the order;

wherein the first computer system has access to personal information of the user, and enables the user to obtain the digital work from the second computer system without exposure of said personal information to the second computer system.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first computer system is operated by a merchant that collects payment for the digital product.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the second computer system is operated by a vendor that is separate from the merchant.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second computer systems are operated by first and second business entities, respectively, and the method is performed such that the user remains anonymous to the second business entity.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising, via the first computer system, blocking the user from obtaining delivery of the digital product via said link if the second computer system has already delivered the digital product to the user a threshold number of times.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the threshold is one.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the threshold is greater than one.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first computer system authorizes or requests the second computer system to deliver the digital product to the user in response to selection of said link only if the second computer system has not already delivered the digital product to the user.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising, without exposing any personal information of the user to the second computer system, communicating information to the second computer system to enable the second computer system to deliver the digital product to the user in fulfillment of the order.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the method comprises the first computer system determining how many times the digital product has been delivered to the user in connection with the order.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising, in response to receiving a notification from the second computer system that the digital product has been delivered to the user, updating a database of the first computer system to indicate that the order has been fulfilled.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the link points to the first computer system.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the method comprises the first computer system responding to user selection of said link by sending a fulfillment request to the second computer system.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the fulfillment request identifies a computer of the user, but does not contain any personal information of the user.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the link points to the second computer system.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the method comprises the second computer system responding to user selection of said link by communicating with the first computer system to obtain delivery authorization.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the second computer system is one of a plurality of vendor computer systems that interact with the first computer system to deliver digital products to users in accordance with said method, each vendor computer system being associated with a different respective vendor.

18. A first computer system comprising one or more physical servers, said first computer system programmed, via executable instructions stored in computer storage, to at least:

receive an order placed by a user for a digital product;

in response to processing the order, transmit a link from the first computer system to a user computer associated with the user, said link being selectable by the user to initiate electronic delivery of the digital product from a second computer system in fulfillment of the order while remaining anonymous to the second computer system;

determine, by communicating over a network with the second computer system, whether the second computer system has delivered the digital product to the user in fulfillment of the order; and

when the user accesses said link, determine, based at least partly on whether the second computer system has already delivered the digital product to the user, whether to authorize the second computer system to deliver the digital product to the user;

wherein the first computer system has access to personal information of the user, and enables the user to obtain the digital work from the second computer system without exposure of said personal information to the second computer system.

19. A system for delivering digital products to users, the system comprising:

a first computer system that receives and processes orders from users for digital products, said first computer system programmed to interact over a network with a second computer system that (1) delivers the digital products to the users in fulfillment of said orders, and (2) notifies the first computer system that particular orders have been fulfilled;

wherein the first computer system is responsive to an order placed by a user for a digital product by transmitting a link to the user, said link being selectable by the user to request delivery of the digital product from the second computer system;

wherein the first computer system determines, when the user selects said link, whether to authorize or cause the second computer system to deliver the digital product to the user based at least in part on whether the first computer system has already been notified by the second computer system that the order has been fulfilled;

wherein the first computer system has access to personal information of the user, and enables the user to obtain the digital work from the second computer system without exposure of said personal information to the second computer system, said first computer system thereby enabling the user to remain anonymous to the second computer system.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the first and second computer systems are operated by first and second business entities, respectively.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein the first computer system, without exposing any personal information of the users to the second computer system, communicates information to the second computer system to enable the second computer system to deliver the digital products to the users in fulfillment of said orders.

22. The system of claim 19, wherein the first computer system determines whether to authorize or request the second computer system to deliver the digital product to the user based, at least in part, one whether the digital product has been delivered to the user a threshold number of times.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the threshold is one.

24. The system of claim 22, wherein the threshold is greater than one.

25. The system of claim 19, wherein the first computer system is responsive to receiving a notification from the second computer system that the digital product has been delivered to the user by updating a database of the first computer system to mark the order as fulfilled.

26. The system of claim 19, wherein the link points to the first computer system.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein the first computer system responds to user selection of the link by determining whether to send a fulfillment request to the second computer system.

28. The system of claim 27, wherein the fulfillment request identifies a computer of the user, but does not contain any personal information of the user.

29. The system of claim 19, wherein the link points to the second computer system.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein the first computer system is programmed to provide delivery authorization to the second computer system in response to receiving a request from the second computer system.

31. The system of claim 19, in combination with the second computer system, wherein the second computer system is one of a plurality of vendor computer systems that interact with the first computer system to deliver digital products to the users, each vendor computer system being associated with a different respective vendor.