Bidder-side auction dynamic pricing agent, system, method and computer program product

• US 8,204,819 B2
• Filed: 08/04/2008
• Issued: 06/19/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Lifeproxy LLC
• Original Assignee: Rob R. Montgomery
• Inventors: Montgomery, Rob R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Akintola, Olabode
• Application Number:
  US12/185,589
• Publication Number:
  US 20080306862A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,415 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 705/37
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

A system, method, and computer program product for automating a bidder-centric bidder online auction interaction. The method can include receiving a bidder and an online auction service at a bidding automation service; receiving an auction in a bid portfolio; receiving a bid parameter; setting a bid time before time before time auction close (TAC) and receiving a minimum absolute time logged for prior auctions; and activating a bid proxy to transmit bid information to online auction. Auction monitoring of temporal progression of product auctions, and notification of changes in status that could prevent an initial bid from being placed by a bid proxy, can be provided. Bid proxies can be activated as an auction nears completion to begin placing bids until the auction is won or lost, or if out-bid, can execute a higher bid.

Claims

1. A method of automating an interaction between a bidder and an electronic online auction hosting service comprising:

receiving, by at least one computer processor, at least an identification of a bidder at an online bidder-centric bidding automation service, and at least an identification of an online auction service, wherein the online bidder-centric bidding automation service is separate from the online auction service;

receiving, by the at least one computer processor, an identification of an auction, and receiving the identification of the auction in a bid portfolio of at least one bid of the bidder;

receiving, by the at least one computer processor, at least one bid parameter for the auction;

setting, by the at least one computer processor, a bid time that is before a time of auction close (TAC) of the auction and receiving at least a minimum absolute time that has been logged for prior successful auctions; and

activating, by the at least one computer processor, at least one bid proxy of the bidding automation service to transmit at the bid time to the online auction hosting service, bid information based on the at least one bid parameter.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving financial transaction instrument information of the bidder to fund the bidder-centric bidding automation service.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising at least one of monitoring of temporal progression of the auction, or notifying the bidder of any changes affecting the bidder'"'"'s at least one bid parameter of the at least one auction.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one bid parameter comprises a bid price.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the bid time setting comprises a function of at least one of:

a current bid, a relative differential bid value, a minimum valid bid increment, auction service performance parameters, auction service telemetry information computed based on at least one of recent response time, network latency, delay close counter measure, or using a telemetry agent to test the response time of the online auction hosting service to periodically ascertain temporal latency for at least one interaction between the bidder and the online auction service, or in part of a balance between when to place a bid and keeping winning price at least one of as low as possible for forward auctions or as high as possible for reverse auctions, using information on the response time.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one bid proxy is configured to emulate the bidder'"'"'s input, comprising at least one of navigation or command input, to the online auction service.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the setting comprises utilizing probability analysis or auction service telemetry information based on least one of:

response times of the online auction service, or at least one network latency.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the minimum absolute time is a time till close (TTC) value.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

automating the bidding of the at least one bid on each of at least two auctions with temporally sequential auction closing window (TACW) where the at least two TACW are not overlapping in time.

10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising a method for automating a bidder'"'"'s search of at least one electronic auction on at least one auction site comprising:

searching at least one auction catalog of at least one auction service, and

identifying at least one correlation between

at least one auction parameter and at least one of;

a received, entered, or stored, bidder parameter comprising at least one of;

at least one keyword,

at least one product classification, or

at least one price range.

11. The method according to claim 10, comprising:

providing at least one persistent search agent that at least one of periodically or repeatedly searches at least one auction service.

12. A system of automating an interaction between a bidder and an electronic online auction hosting service comprising:

at least one computer processor executing code stored in at least one memory that causes the at least one computer processor to;

receive at least an identification of a bidder at an online, bidder-centric bidding automation service, and at least an identification of an online auction service of the bidder, wherein the bidder-centric bidding automation service is separate from the online auction service;

receive an identification of an auction, and receive the identification of the auction in a bid portfolio of at least one bid of the bidder;

receive

at least one bid parameter for the auction;

set

a bid time that is before a time of auction close (TAC) of the auction and receive at least a minimum absolute time that has been logged for prior successful auctions; and

activate at least one bid proxy of the bidding automation service to transmit at the bid time to the online auction hosting service, bid information based on the at least one bid parameter.

13. The system comprising according to claim 12, further comprising:

automating-bidding

of the at least one bid on each of at least two auctions with temporally sequential auction closing window (TACW) where the at least two TACW are not overlapping in time.

14. The system according to claim 12, further comprising code that causes the at least one processor to automate a bidder'"'"'s search of at least one electronic auction on at least one auction site comprising causing the at least one processor to:

search at least one auction catalog of at least one auction service, and

identify at least one correlation between

at least one auction parameter and at least one of;

a received, entered, or stored, bidder parameter comprising at least one of;

at least one keyword,

at least one product classification, or

at least one price range.

15. The system according to claim 14, further comprising causing the at least one processor to:

provide at least one persistent search agent that at least one of periodically or repeatedly searches at least one auction service.

16. The system according to claim 12, further comprising causing the at least one processor to receive financial transaction instrument information of the bidder to fund the bidder-centric bidding automation service.

17. The system according to claim 12, further comprising causing the at least one processor to at least one of:

monitor temporal progression of the auction, or

notify the bidder of any changes affecting the bidder'"'"'s at least one bid parameter of the at least one auction.

18. The system according to claim 12, wherein the at least one bid parameter comprises a bid price.

19. The system according to claim 12, wherein the bid time setting comprises a function of at least one of:

a current bid, a relative differential bid value, a minimum valid bid increment, auction service performance parameters, auction service telemetry information computed based on at least one of;

recent response time, network latency, delay close counter measure, or using a telemetry agent to test the response time of the online auction hosting service to periodically ascertain temporal latency for at least one interaction between the bidder and the online auction service, or in part of a balance between when to place a bid and keeping winning price at least one of as low as possible for forward auctions or as high as possible for reverse auctions, using information on the response time.

20. The system according to claim 12, wherein the at least one bid proxy is configured to emulate the bidder'"'"'s input, comprising at least one of navigation or command input, to the online auction service.

21. The system according to claim 12, wherein the system comprises causing the at least one processor to utilize probability analysis or auction service telemetry information based on at least one of:

at least one response time of the online auction service, or

at least one network latency.

22. A nontransitory computer program product of automating an interaction between a bidder and an electronic, online auction hosting service, the product embodied on a computer accessible medium, the computer program product comprising program logic, which when executed on at least one processor performs a method comprising:

receiving, by the at least one computer processor, at least an identification of a bidder at an online bidder-centric bidding automation service, and an identification of online auction service, wherein the bidder-centric bidding automation service is separate from the online auction service;

receiving, by the at least one computer processor, an identification of an auction, and receiving the identification of the auction in a bid portfolio of at least one bid of the bidder;

receiving, by the

at least one computer processor, at least one bid parameter for the auction;

setting, by the

at least one computer processor, a bid time that is before a time of auction close (TAC) of the auction and receiving at least a minimum absolute time that has been logged for prior successful auctions; and

activating, by the at least one computer processor, at least one bid proxy of the bidding automation service to transmit at the bid time to the online auction hosting service, bid information based on the at least one bid parameter.

23. The computer program product according to claim 22, wherein the method further comprises:

automating the bidding

of the at least one bid on each of at least two auctions with temporally sequential auction closing window (TACW) where the at least two TACW are not overlapping time.

24. The computer program product according to claim 22, wherein the method further comprises automating a bidder'"'"'s search of at least one electronic auction on at least one auction site comprising:

searching at least one auction catalog of at least one auction service, and

identifying at least one correlation between

at least one auction parameter and at least one of;

a received, entered, or stored, bidder parameter comprising at least one of;

at least one keyword,

at least one product classification, or

at least one price range.

25. The computer program product according to claim 24, wherein the method further comprises:

providing at least one persistent search agent that at least one of periodically or repeatedly searches at least one auction service.

26. The computer program product according to claim 22, wherein said method further comprises receiving financial transaction instrument information of the bidder to fund the bidder-centric bidding automation service.

27. The computer program product according to claim 22, wherein said method further comprises at least one of:

monitoring of temporal progression of the auction, or

notifying the bidder of any changes affecting the bidder'"'"'s at least one bid parameter of the at least one auction.

28. The computer program product according to claim 22, wherein the at least one bid parameter comprises a bid price.

29. The computer program product according to claim 22, wherein the bid time setting comprises a function of at least one of:

a current bid, a relative differential bid value, a minimum valid bid increment, auction service performance parameters, auction service telemetry information computed based on at least one of recent response time, network latency, delay close counter measure, or using a telemetry agent to test the response time of the online auction hosting service to periodically ascertain temporal latency for at least one interaction between the bidder and the online auction service, or in part of a balance between when to place a bid and keeping winning price at least one of as low as possible for forward auctions or as high as possible for reverse auctions, using information on the response time.

30. The computer program product according to claim 22, wherein the at least one bid proxy is configured to emulate the bidder'"'"'s input, comprising at least one of navigation or command input, to the online auction service.

31. The computer program product according to claim 22, wherein the method comprising the setting comprises utilizing probability analysis or auction service telemetry information based on at least one of:

at least one response time of the online auction service, or

at least one network latency.

32. A method of automating an interaction between a bidder and an electronic, dynamic pricing online auction hosting service comprising:

receiving a registration of a bidder at an online, computer-implemented, Internet-based, bidder-centric bidding automation services application site, wherein said bidder-centric bidding automation services application site is separate from any online auction hosting services site, by creating logon credentials that are used to at least one of authenticate or authorize the bidder'"'"'s use of services of the bidder-centric bidding automation services application site;

receiving at least one auction hosting services site account associated with the bidder;

receiving at least one auction identifier and one of said at least one online auction hosting services sites associated with said at least one auction, and storing said at least one auction identifier in a bid portfolio of the bidder for acquiring data using at least one scan agent or at least one bid proxy; and

enabling activating of the at least one bid proxy to programmatically bid on said at least one auction of said one of said at least one online auction hosting services site to said at least one online auction hosting services site, the at least one bid proxy placing at least one bid, driven by said programmed bid parameters, until said at least one auction is either won or lost by a time of auction close (TAC) of said at least one auction, wherein said bidding by the at least one bid proxy begins at a start of a time to auction close window (TACW) and said start of TACW is based on at least a received minimum absolute time that has been logged for prior successful auctions.