Method and apparatus for pricing calculation
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method comprising:
- receiving billing data, whereinthe billing data is obtained from a bill for a service,the service is utilized by a user, andthe billing data comprises information regardinga provider of the service,a location of the service, anda total bill amount of a single billing period for the service;
annualizing the service usage by converting the total bill amount into an annualized billing amount, whereinthe annualizing the service usage is performed over all billing periods in a year, the converting comprisescalculating the annualized billing amount by adjusting the total bill amount using a statistically-determined multiplier,the statistically-determined multiplier is an inverse of a ratio,the ratio represents a statistical relationship betweena plurality of bill amounts, anda plurality of annual bill amounts,each of the bill amounts is for utilization of the service by a corresponding one of a plurality of other users during the single billing period,each of the annual bill amounts is for utilization of the service by the corresponding one of the other users during all billing periods in a year,the service utilized by each of the other users is in a geographical region comprising the location of the service, andthe each of the other users is other than the user;
determining a usage pattern, whereinthe determining uses the annualized billing amount;
calculating a competitive bid, whereinthe competitive bid is calculated usingthe usage pattern, anda pricing structure of the provider; and
generating an administrative report, whereinthe administrative report comprises a value representing a number of other users having changed from a previous provider to a current provider, andthe administrative report comprises a listing of the previous provider and the current provider for each of the other users.
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for providing a competitive bid from a provider comprising receiving billing data from a user, the billing data including provider information, location, and total bill amount. The method further comprising calculating a complex usage pattern based on the billing data and statistical data for the location. The method additionally comprising calculating a competitive bid for the user, based on the complex usage pattern and a pricing structure of the provider.
3 Citations
21 Claims
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1. A method comprising:
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receiving billing data, wherein the billing data is obtained from a bill for a service, the service is utilized by a user, and the billing data comprises information regarding a provider of the service, a location of the service, and a total bill amount of a single billing period for the service; annualizing the service usage by converting the total bill amount into an annualized billing amount, wherein the annualizing the service usage is performed over all billing periods in a year, the converting comprises calculating the annualized billing amount by adjusting the total bill amount using a statistically-determined multiplier, the statistically-determined multiplier is an inverse of a ratio, the ratio represents a statistical relationship between a plurality of bill amounts, and a plurality of annual bill amounts, each of the bill amounts is for utilization of the service by a corresponding one of a plurality of other users during the single billing period, each of the annual bill amounts is for utilization of the service by the corresponding one of the other users during all billing periods in a year, the service utilized by each of the other users is in a geographical region comprising the location of the service, and the each of the other users is other than the user; determining a usage pattern, wherein the determining uses the annualized billing amount; calculating a competitive bid, wherein the competitive bid is calculated using the usage pattern, and a pricing structure of the provider; and generating an administrative report, wherein the administrative report comprises a value representing a number of other users having changed from a previous provider to a current provider, and the administrative report comprises a listing of the previous provider and the current provider for each of the other users. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. An apparatus comprising:
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a user interface, wherein the user interface is configured to receive billing data, the billing data is obtained from a bill for a service, the service is utilized by a user, and the billing data comprises a location of the service, information of a provider of the service, and a total bill amount of a single billing period for the service; an annualized bill calculator, wherein the annualized bill calculator is configured to annualize the service usage by virtue of being configured to convert the total bill amount into an annualized billing amount, the service usage is annualized over all billing periods in a year, the annualized bill calculator is configured to convert the total bill amount into the annualized billing amount by virtue of being configured to adjust the total bill amount using a statistically-determined multiplier, the statistically-determined multiplier is an inverse of a ratio, the ratio represents a statistical relationship between a plurality of bill amounts, and a plurality of annual bill amounts, each of the bill amounts is for utilization of the service by a corresponding one of a plurality of other users during the single billing period, each of the annual bill amounts is for utilization of the service by the corresponding one of the other users during all billing periods in a year, the service utilized by each of the other users is in a geographical region comprising the location of the service, and the each of the other users is other than the user; an annual use calculator, wherein the annual use calculator is configured to calculate a usage pattern based on the annualized billing amount; a rate calculator, wherein the rate calculator is configured to calculate a competitive bid, and the competitive bid is calculated using the usage pattern, and a pricing structure of the provider; and an administrative report generator, wherein the administrative report generator is configured to output an administrative report, the administrative report comprises a value representing a number of other users having changed from a previous provider to a current provider, and the administrative report comprises a listing of the previous provider and the current provider for each of the other users. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. An apparatus comprising:
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a pricing engine, wherein the pricing engine is configured to calculate a plurality of competitive bids by virtue of being configured to use; billing information, wherein the billing information is received from the customer for a service utilized by the customer, and the billing information comprises a location of the service, information of a provider of the service, and a total bill amount of a single billing period for the service, an annualized billing amount, wherein the annualized billing amount is calculated by converting the total bill amount, the annualized billing amount is calculated over all billing periods in a year, the annualized billing amount is calculated by adjusting the total bill amount using a statistically-determined multiplier, the statistically-determined multiplier an inverse of a ratio, the ratio represents a statistical relationship between a plurality of bill amounts, and a plurality of annual bill amounts, each of the bill amounts is for utilization of the service by a corresponding one of a plurality of other users during the single billing period, each of the annual bill amounts is for utilization of the service by the corresponding one of the other users during all billing periods in a year, the service utilized by each of the other users is in a geographical region comprising the location of the service, and the each of the other users is other than the user, a usage pattern, wherein the usage pattern is calculated based on the annualized billing amount, and a competitive bid calculated for the customer based on the usage pattern and a pricing structure of the provider; a web interface, wherein the web interface is configured to provide the customer with access to the pricing engine, and the web interface is configured to permit entry of the billing information by the customer; a call center interface, wherein the call center interface is configured to provide a customer service representative with access to the pricing engine, and the access is provided such that the customer receives identical information from the customer service representative and the web interface; and an administrative interface, wherein the administrative interface is configured to provide an administrative report, the administrative report comprises a value representing a number of other users having changed from a previous provider to a current provider, and the administrative report comprises a listing of the previous provider and the current provider for each of the other users. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising program instructions executable on a processor, the computer-readable storage medium storing the program instructions, wherein the program instructions are configured to:
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receive billing data, wherein the billing data is obtained from a bill for a service, the service is utilized by a user, and the billing data comprises information regarding a provider of the service, a location of the service, and a total bill amount of a single billing period for the service; annualize the service usage by conversion of the total bill amount into an annualized billing amount, wherein the service usage is annualized over all billing periods in a year, the conversion comprises calculation of the annualized billing amount by adjustment of the total bill amount using a statistically-determined multiplier, the statistically-determined multiplier is an inverse of a ratio, the ratio represents a statistical relationship between a plurality of bill amounts, and a plurality of annual bill amounts, each of the bill amounts is for utilization of the service by a corresponding one of a plurality of other users during the single billing period, each of the annual bill amounts is for utilization of the service by the corresponding one of the other users during all billing periods in a year, the service utilized by each of the other users is in a geographical region comprising the location of the service, and the each of the other users is other than the user; determine a usage pattern, wherein the usage pattern is determined using the annualized billing amount; calculate a competitive bid, wherein the competitive bid is calculated using the usage pattern, and a pricing structure of the provider; and generate an administrative report, wherein the administrative report comprises a value representing a number of other users having changed from a previous provider to a current provider, and the administrative report comprises a listing of the previous provider and the current provider for each of the other users.
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Specification
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Current AssigneeOracle America, Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
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Original AssigneeSiebel Systems Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
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InventorsChau, Victor, Hoople, Doug, Leung, Timothy, Nuttall, Kirsty, Ravuri, Muralidhar, Roper, Joshua M., Sovocool, Peter, Srinivasan, Balaji, Yee, Colette
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Primary Examiner(s)Maguire, Lindsay M.
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Application NumberUS10/179,128Publication NumberTime in Patent Office3,592 DaysField of Search705/26, 705/35, 705/40US Class Current705/40CPC Class CodesG06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or paymentsG06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation...G06Q 30/0206 Price or cost determination...
