Point pooling loyalty system and method

• US 8,180,671 B2
• Filed: 03/11/2004
• Issued: 05/15/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Liberty Peak Ventures, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Propulsion Remote Holdings LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Menichilli, Julia, Mayer, Birgitta, Cohagan, Perry A., Wood-Kulko, Penelope, Voltmer, Theodore S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Alvarez, Raquel
• Application Number:
  US10/708,568
• Publication Number:
  US 20050043992A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,987 Days
• Field of Search: 705/14.3, 705/14.27, 705/14.31, 705/14.32, 705/14.33, 705/14.34
• US Class Current: 705/14.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0208 Trade or exchange of goods or services in exchange for incentives or rewards
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0226 Incentive systems for frequent usage, e.g. frequent flyer miles programs or point systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0229 Multi-merchant loyalty card systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0231 Awarding of a frequent usage incentive independent of the monetary value of a good or service purchased, or distance travelled
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0232 Frequent usage rewards other than merchandise, cash or travel
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0233 Method of redeeming a frequent usage reward
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0234 Rebates after completed purchase
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0235 constrained by time limit or expiration date
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location

Abstract

The invention facilitates pooling, gifting or transferring of geographic area loyalty points between accounts. The invention also facilitates a transfer of geographic area loyalty points from a consumer account associated with a sponsoring company to a consumer account associated with a host company. The invention may also facilitate gifting of loyalty points to charitable organizations on a recurring basis, wherein the gifting may transfer any portion of geographic based points to various charities. The system may also convert the geographic area loyalty points to a monetary value, thereby allowing the points to be donated to a charity such that the donation appears to be a monetary value donation to the charity.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a computer based system for managing loyalty accounts, a transfer request to transfer an amount of first geographic area loyalty points from a first loyalty account to a second loyalty account, wherein said first loyalty account is associated with a first geographic area and said second loyalty account is associated with a second geographic area;

converting, by said computer based system, an amount of said first geographic area loyalty points to an amount of said second geographic area loyalty points based on a conversion factor associated with a difference in an assigned first value of said first geographic location and an assigned second value of said second geographic location;

deducting, by said computer based system, said amount of said first geographic area loyalty points from said first loyalty account; and

crediting, by said computer based system, said amount of said second geographic area loyalty points to said second loyalty account.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of said steps of receiving a transfer request, deducting, and crediting occur in substantially real time.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said amount of said second geographic area loyalty points is determined based on a set of predetermined rules that includes at least one of consumer type, consumer level, class of consumer, and account type associated with at least one of said first loyalty account and said second loyalty account.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said second loyalty account is associated with a charity.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said first loyalty account is associated with a sponsoring company and said second loyalty account is associated with a host company.

6. The method of claim 1, further including determining if said first loyalty account includes a first geographic area loyalty point balance that is below a certain threshold amount.

7. The method of claim 1, further including determining if said first loyalty account includes a first geographic area loyalty point balance that has remained inactive for a certain time period.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said deducting step includes deducting said amount of said first geographic area loyalty points during at least one of any predetermined time periods, certain dates, random dates, and a requested time.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein said deducting step includes deducting said amount of said first geographic area loyalty points based upon at least one of a set amount of points, all of the points, any subset of points, an increasing amount of points, a decreasing amount of points, a certain formula, an event, and a non-event.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein said crediting said amount of said second geographic area loyalty points to said second loyalty account includes providing access to a plurality of government approved charities, searching for at least one of said charities, and crediting geographic area loyalty points to said charities.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving a transfer request further includes receiving gift matching information.

12. The method of claim 1, further including deducting, by said computer based system, said amount of said second geographic area loyalty points from said second loyalty account in response to an activity in a predetermined geographic area.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving a transfer request includes receiving a request based upon a triggering event, wherein said triggering event includes at least one of said first loyalty account having geographic area, a first loyalty point balance which is at least one of above and below a certain threshold amount, said first loyalty account remaining inactive for a certain time period, a predetermined time period, a certain date, a random date, a requested time, a certain formula, an event, a non-event, and a predetermined data point.

14. The method of claim 1, further including verifying, by said computer based system, a balance of first geographic area loyalty points in said first loyalty account is sufficient to cover said transfer request of said first amount of geographic area loyalty points.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein said first geographic area loyalty points are earned in a first geographic area and are redeemable in said first geographic area.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said second geographic area loyalty points are earned in a second geographic area and are redeemable in said second geographic area.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein said first geographic area loyalty points are converted to second geographic area loyalty points to be redeemed in said second geographic area.

18. A tangible non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable instructions stored thereon that, if executed by a computer based system for managing loyalty accounts, cause said computer based system to perform operations comprising:

receiving, by said computer based system, a transfer request to transfer an amount of first geographic area loyalty points from a first loyalty account to a second loyalty account, wherein said first loyalty account is associated with a first geographic area and said second loyalty account is associated with a second geographic area;

converting, by said computer based system, an amount of said first geographic area loyalty points to an amount of said second geographic area loyalty points based on a conversion factor associated with a difference in an assigned first value of said first geographic location and an assigned second value of said second geographic location;

deducting, by said computer based system, said amount of said first geographic area loyalty points from said first loyalty account; and

crediting, by said computer based system, said amount of said second geographic area loyalty points to said second loyalty account.

19. A system for managing loyalty accounts comprising:

a processor;

a memory configured to communicate with said processor for managing loyalty accounts;

a network interface communicating with said memory;

said memory communicating with a processor for managing loyalty accounts; and

wherein said processor, when executing a computer program, is configured to;

receive a transfer request to transfer an amount of first geographic area loyalty points from a first loyalty account to a second loyalty account, wherein said first loyalty account is associated with a first geographic area and said second loyalty account is associated with a second geographic area;

convert an amount of said first geographic area loyalty points to an amount of said second geographic area loyalty points based on a conversion factor associated with a difference in an assigned first value of said first geographic location and an assigned second value of said second geographic location;

deduct said amount of said first geographic area loyalty points from said first loyalty account; and

credit said amount of said second geographic area loyalty points to said second loyalty account.