System and process for local acquisition of products priced online

• US 8,010,417 B2
• Filed: 06/15/2006
• Issued: 08/30/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/08/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Groupon Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Walker Digital LLC (Walker Innovation Inc. (f/k/a Patent Properties, Inc.))
• Inventors: Jorasch, James A., Van Luchene, Andrew S., Walker, Jay S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Zeender; F. Ryan
• Assistant Examiner(s): ROJAS, HAJIME S
• Application Number:
  US11/424,294
• Publication Number:
  US 20060224467A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,902 Days
• Field of Search: 705 26- 28
• US Class Current: 705/26.4
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/00 Payment architectures, schemes or protocols apparatus for performing or posting payment transactions G07F7/08, G07F19/00; electronic cash registers G07G1/12
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0609 Buyer or seller confidence or verification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0611 Request for offers or quotes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0613 Third-party assisted
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0625 Directed, with specific intent or strategy
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/00 Mechanisms actuated by objects other than coins to free or to actuate vending, hiring, coin or paper currency dispensing or refunding apparatus

Abstract

A system and process for establishing prices for products on line and for allowing acquisition of those products from retailers that honor such prices. The system and process involve a customer having a credit card account, a computer terminal configured to access a network, and a central authority coupled to the computer terminal via the network. The central authority maintains information about a product and a corresponding price. The price is established by the central authority and the central authority is configured to communicate the information about the product and the price to the customer via the network. Also involved is a credit card processor that is coupled to the central authority. The credit card processor is configured to query the information maintained by the central authority and to receive the price from the central authority. A retailer is involved and includes a point-of-sale system coupled to the central authority and to the credit card processor. The retailer is configured to deliver the product to the customer after the customer purchases the product from the retailer via his credit card account or other form of payment at the price established by the central authority and provided to the retailer and the point-of-sale system by the credit card processor.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving from a first merchant at a central controller, first inventory data of a product;

receiving from a second merchant at the central controller, second inventory data of the product;

displaying, via a Web site associated with the central controller, the first inventory data and the second inventory data of the product and a purchase price for the product;

receiving, via the Web site, a request from a buyer to purchase the product for the purchase price from the first merchant;

receiving, by the central controller, the purchase price from the buyer;

receiving, via the Web site, credit card information and identification information descriptive of the buyer;

storing, by the central controller, the credit card information and the identification information descriptive of the buyer in a customer database;

transmitting, by the central controller, a transaction confirmation indicator to the buyer;

receiving, by the central controller, after the transmitting of the transaction confirmation indicator and from a POS device of a store location of the first merchant, a query including an indication of at least one of the transaction confirmation indicator, the credit card information, and the identification information descriptive of the buyer; and

transmitting, by the central controller, in response to the receiving of the query, and to the POS device of the store location of the first merchant, information that permits the buyer to physically acquire the product at the store location of the first merchant wherein the information comprises at least an indication of the purchase price.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first inventory data includes store location data of the first merchant, and the second inventory data includes store location data of the second merchant.

3. The method of claim 1, which further comprises displaying functional equivalents of the product on the Web site.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the central controller searching at least one database for inventory data of a selected product.

5. The method of claim 4, which further comprises selecting a database to search based on a zipcode.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying stock-out statistics associated with the product.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying an expiration date for the product that indicates the last date on which the purchase price will be valid.

8. A non-transitory computer readable memory storing instructions configured to direct a processor to:

receive first inventory data of a product from a first merchant;

receive second inventory data of the product from a second merchant;

display the first inventory data and the second inventory data of the product and a purchase price for the product on a Web site associated with the central controller;

receive a request from a buyer to purchase the product for a purchase price from the first merchant;

receive the purchase price from the buyer;

receive credit card information and identification information descriptive of the buyer;

store the credit card information and the identification information descriptive of the buyer in a customer database;

transmit a transaction confirmation indicator to the buyer;

receive, after the transmitting of the transaction confirmation indicator and from a POS device of a store location of the first merchant, a query including an indication of at least one of the transaction confirmation indicator, the credit card information, and the identification information descriptive of the buyer; and

transmit, in response to the receiving of the query, and to the POS device of the store location of the first merchant, information that permits the buyer to physically acquire the product at the store location of the first merchant, wherein the information comprises at least an indication of the purchase price.

9. The computer readable medium of claim 8, which further comprises instructions configured to direct the processor to display functional equivalents of the product on the Web site.

10. The computer readable medium of claim 8, which further comprises instructions configured to direct the processor to search at least one database for inventory data of a selected product.

11. The computer readable medium of claim 10, which further comprises instructions configured to direct the processor to select a database to search based on a street address.

12. The computer readable medium of claim 8, which further comprises instructions configured to direct the processor to display stock-out statistics associated with the product.

13. The computer readable medium of claim 8, which further comprises instructions configured to direct the processor to display an expiration date for the product that indicates the last date on which the purchase price will be valid.

14. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory coupled to the processor and storing instructions adapted to be executed by the processor to;

receive first inventory data of a product from a first merchant;

receive second inventory data of the product from a second merchant;

display the first inventory data and the second inventory data of the product and a purchase price for the product on a Web site associated with the central controller;

receive a request from a buyer to purchase the product for a purchase price from the first merchant;

receive the purchase price from the buyer;

receive credit card information and identification information descriptive of the buyer;

store the credit card information and the identification information descriptive of the buyer in a customer database;

transmit a transaction confirmation indicator to the buyer;

receive, after the transmitting of the transaction confirmation indicator and from a POS device of a store location of the first merchant, a query including an indication of at least one of the transaction confirmation indicator, the credit card information, and the identification information descriptive of the buyer; and

transmit, in response to the receiving of the query, and to the POS device of the store location of the first merchant, information that permits the buyer to physically acquire the product at the store location of the first merchant, wherein the information comprises at least an indication of the purchase price.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, which further comprises the memory storing instructions adapted to be executed by the processor to display functional equivalents of the product on the Web site.

16. The apparatus of claim 14, which further comprises the memory storing instructions adapted to be executed by the processor to direct the processor to search at least one database for inventory data of a selected product.

17. The apparatus of claim 14, which further comprises the memory storing instructions adapted to be executed by the processor to select a merchandise database to search based on a street address.

18. The apparatus of claim 14, which further comprises the memory storing instructions adapted to be executed by the processor to display stock-out statistics associated with the product.

19. The apparatus of claim 14, which further comprises the memory storing instructions adapted to be executed by the processor to display an expiration date for the product that indicates the last date on which the purchase price will be valid.