Graphical user interface for the conversion of loyalty points for services

• US 8,523,064 B1
• Filed: 05/21/2013
• Issued: 09/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/25/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: JBSHBM, LLC
• Original Assignee: Brian K. Buchheit
• Inventors: Buchheit, Brian K., Mghie, Sean I.
• Primary Examiner(s): Labaze, Edwyn
• Application Number:
  US13/899,023
• Time in Patent Office: 105 Days
• Field of Search: 235/380, 235/375, 235/379, 235/487, 235/486, 705/14, 705/39, 463/25
• US Class Current: 235/380
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/02 involving a neutral party, e.g. certification authority, notary or trusted third party [TTP]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/06 Private payment circuits, e.g. involving electronic currency used among participants of a common payment scheme
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/105 involving programming of a portable memory device, e.g. IC cards, "electronic purses"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/28 Pre-payment schemes, e.g. "pay before"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/381 Currency conversion
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0226 Incentive systems for frequent usage, e.g. frequent flyer miles programs or point systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0227 Frequent usage incentive value reconciliation between diverse systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes

Abstract

In one embodiment, a graphical user interface includes a conversion option to convert at least a subset of non-negotiable credits earned from one into entity independent funds in accordance with a conversion ratio. The entity independent funds are accepted by a commerce partner as at least partial payment for goods or services provided by the commerce partner. In absence of converting the non-negotiable credits into entity independent funds, the commerce partner does not accept the non-negotiable credits as payment for goods or services. Responsive to a received selection of the conversion option, the computer presents within the graphical user interface a quantity of available entity independent funds for use as payment for the goods or services provided by the commerce partner. The quantity of available entity independent funds results from converting the subset of non-negotiable credits into the quantity of available entity independent funds in accordance with the conversion ratio.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

a computer serving a set of one or more Web pages for a loyalty program of an entity to one or more remotely located client machines, wherein the Web pages are able to be rendered within a client-side browser as a graphical user interface on the one or more client machines, wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser said graphical user interface shows a quantity of non-negotiable credits, wherein said non-negotiable credits are loyalty points of the loyalty program possessed by a member, wherein the loyalty points are maintained in a loyalty program account owned or controlled by the entity, wherein the entity redeems the loyalty points for a set of entity services that the entity provides to the member, wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser the graphical user interface comprises a conversion option to convert at least a subset of the shown non-negotiable credits into a quantity entity independent funds, wherein said entity independent funds are different loyalty points of a different loyalty program of a commerce partner, wherein the different loyalty points are redeemable by the commerce partner for commerce partner services that the commerce partner provides to the member, wherein said entity independent funds are possessed by the member and are maintained in a funds account, wherein the funds account is neither owned or controlled by the entity or by any subsidiary or parent of the entity, wherein the entity does not accept the entity independent funds as payment for any of the entity services, wherein an agreement exists between the entity and the commerce partner, wherein the agreement permits members to convert the non-negotiable credits to the entity independent funds, wherein the agreement specifies that the entity is to compensate the commerce partner in an agreed upon amount of cash or credit for conversions of non-negotiable credits to entity independent funds;

the computer responsive to receiving a message indicating a selection of the conversion option, processing the selection to effectuate changes in the served set of Web pages; and

responsive to the processing, the computer serving one or more Web pages or Web page updates that include the effectuated changes to the one or more remotely located client machines, wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser the graphical user interface is updated with the effectuated changes, wherein the updated graphical user interface shows a reduced quantity of non-negotiable credits possessed by the member in the loyalty program, said reduced quantity resulting at least in part from the subset of non-negotiable credits being converted into the quantity of entity independent funds.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the entity services provided by the entity for which the non-negotiable credits are redeemable with the entity comprise at least one of:

travel services for an airlines,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship,

vehicle rental services for a vehicle, or

lodging services for lodging the member,

wherein the commerce partner services provided by the commerce partner for which the entity independent funds are redeemable with the commerce partner comprise at least one of;

travel services for an airlines,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship,

vehicle rental services for a vehicle, or

lodging services for lodging the member.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the Web pages do not permit the member to redeem the entity independent funds, wherein redeeming the entity independent funds occurs through a set of Web pages not owned or controlled by the entity and not owned or controlled by any subsidiary or parent of the entity.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the entity charges the member a fee for converting the non-negotiable credits to the entity independent funds, wherein the fee is specified in terms-of-use of the loyalty program.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the entity imposes a lower threshold on the quantity of non-negotiable credits able to be converted via conversion option the Web pages, wherein the lower threshold is greater than one hundred non-negotiable credits.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the loyalty program of the entity is an airline, hotel, or credit card loyalty program, wherein the different loyalty program of the commerce partner is an airline, hotel, or credit card loyalty program.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the computer serves the set of one or more Web pages, receives the selection, and serves the one or more Web pages or Web page updates that include the effectuated changes within a single user-interactive Web session with the member.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the entity has contractual agreements with a plurality of different commerce partners establishing different agreed upon conversion ratios and different compensation amounts owed by the entity to the different commerce partners for exchanging non-negotiable credits of the loyalty program for funds of loyalty programs of the different commerce partners, wherein said Web pages when rendered within the graphical user interface show the different agreed upon conversion ratios to the member.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the loyalty program is a hotel loyalty program, wherein the entity services are lodging services, wherein the non-negotiable credits are redeemable for the entity services by the member via Web pages served by the computer, wherein the different loyalty program is an airline, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein the commerce partner services are at least one of:

travel services for an airline,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the loyalty program is an airline loyalty program, wherein the entity services are travel services for an airline, wherein the non-negotiable credits are redeemable for the entity services by the member via Web pages served by the computer, wherein the different loyalty program is a hotel, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein the commerce partner services are at least one of:

lodging services for a hotel,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the loyalty program is a credit card program, wherein the entity is a financial service company that provides a credit card to the member, wherein the non-negotiable credits are redeemable for the entity services by the member via Web pages served by the computer, wherein the different loyalty program is a hotel, airline, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein the commerce partner services are at least one of:

lodging services for a hotel,

travel services for an airline,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle.

12. A method comprising:

a computer serving a set of one or more Web pages for a different loyalty program of a commerce partner to one or more remotely located client machines, wherein the Web pages are able to be rendered within a client-side browser as a graphical user interface on the one or more client machines, wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser said graphical user interface shows a quantity of entity independent funds, wherein said entity independent funds are different loyalty points of the different loyalty program possessed by a member, wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser the graphical user interface comprises a conversion option to convert at least a subset of non-negotiable credits into a quantity of the entity independent funds, wherein said non-negotiable credits are loyalty points of a loyalty program of an entity, wherein the loyalty points are possessed by the member, wherein the loyalty points are stored in a loyalty program account owned or controlled by the entity, wherein the commerce partner does not own or control the loyalty program account, wherein the entity independent funds are possessed by the member, wherein the different loyalty points are stored in a funds account owned or controlled by the commerce partner, wherein the commerce partner redeems the different loyalty points for a set of commerce partner services that the commerce partner provides to the member, wherein the loyalty points are redeemable by the entity for a set of entity services that the entity provides to the member, wherein the commerce partner does not provide the commerce partner services in exchange for loyalty points unless these loyalty points are first converted into the different loyalty points, wherein the entity independent funds are not redeemable with the entity for the set of entity services that the entity provides to the member, wherein an agreement exists between the commerce partner and the entity, wherein the agreement permits members to convert the non-negotiable credits to the entity independent funds, wherein the agreement specifies that the entity is to compensate the commerce partner in an agreed upon amount of cash or credit for conversions of non-negotiable credits to entity independent funds;

the computer responsive to receiving a message indicating a selection of the conversion option, processing the selection to effectuate changes in the served set of Web pages; and

responsive to the processing, the computer serving one or more Web pages or Web page updates that include the effectuated changes to the one or more remotely located client machines, wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser the graphical user interface is updated with the effectuated changes, wherein the updated graphical user interface shows an increased quantity of entity independent funds possessed by the member, said increased quantity resulting at least in part from the subset of non-negotiable credits being converted into the quantity of entity independent funds.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the entity services provided by the entity for which the non-negotiable credits are redeemable with the entity comprise at least one of:

travel services for an airlines,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship,

vehicle rental services for a vehicle, or

lodging services for lodging the member,

wherein the commerce partner services provided by the commerce partner for which the entity independent funds are redeemable with the commerce partner comprise at least one of;

travel services for an airlines,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship,

vehicle rental services for a vehicle, or

lodging services for lodging the member.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the Web pages do not permit the member to redeem the non-negotiable credits for any of the entity services provided by the entity, wherein redeeming the non-negotiable credits occurs through an set of Web pages not owned or directly controlled by the commerce partner and not owned or directly controlled by any subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the commerce partner charges the member a fee for converting the non-negotiable credits to the entity independent funds, wherein the fee is specified in terms-of-use of the different loyalty program.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the commerce partner imposes a lower threshold on the quantity of non-negotiable credits able to be converted via conversion option the Web pages, wherein the lower threshold is greater than one hundred non-negotiable credits.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein the loyalty program of the entity is an airline, hotel, or credit card loyalty program, and wherein the different loyalty program of the commerce partner is an airline, hotel, or credit card loyalty program.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein the computer serves the set of one or more Web pages, receives the selection, and serves the one or more Web pages or Web page updates that include the effectuated changes within a single user-interactive Web session.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein the commerce partner has contractual agreements with a plurality of different entities establishing different agreed upon conversion ratios and different compensation amounts owed by the different entities to the commerce partner for exchanging non-negotiable credits of the different entities for entity independent funds of the commerce partner, wherein said Web pages when rendered within the graphical user interface show the different agreed upon conversion ratios to the member.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein the different loyalty program is a hotel loyalty program, wherein the commerce partner services are lodging services, wherein the entity independent funds are redeemable for the commerce partner services by the member via Web pages served by the computer, wherein the loyalty program is an airline, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein the entity services are at least one of:

travel services for an airline,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle.

21. The method of claim 12, wherein the different loyalty program is an airline loyalty program, wherein the commerce partner services are travel services for an airline, wherein the entity independent funds are redeemable for the commerce partner services by the member via Web pages served by the computer, wherein the loyalty program is a hotel, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein the entity services are at least one of:

lodging services for a hotel,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle.

22. The method of claim 12, wherein the different loyalty program is a credit card program, wherein the commerce partner is a financial service company that provides a credit card to the member, wherein the entity independent funds are redeemable for the commerce partner services by the member via Web pages served by the computer, wherein the loyalty program is a hotel, airline, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein the entity services are at least one of:

lodging services for a hotel,

travel services for an airline,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle.

23. A method comprising:

a computer, comprising hardware, presenting a graphical user interface (GUI) on a display to a service agent and/or a machine manipulated by the service agent, wherein the service agent is a human agent authorized to act on behalf of an entity or a commerce partner, said graphical user interface showing a quantity of non-negotiable credits, wherein said non-negotiable credits are loyalty points of a loyalty program of the entity, wherein said shown quantity of non-negotiable credits are possessed by a member, wherein said shown quantity of non-negotiable credits were previously earned through previous interactions involving the loyalty program, wherein the non-negotiable credits are maintained in a loyalty program account owned or controlled by the entity, wherein the entity redeems the loyalty points for a set of entity services that the entity provides to the member, the graphical user interface comprising a conversion option to convert at least a subset of the shown non-negotiable credits into a quantity entity independent funds, wherein said entity independent funds are different loyalty points of a different loyalty program of the commerce partner, wherein said entity independent funds are possessed by the member and are maintained in a funds account owned or controlled by the commerce partner, wherein the funds account is not owned or controlled by the entity or by any subsidiary or parent of the entity, wherein the commerce partner redeems the different loyalty points for a set of commerce partner services that the commerce partner provides to the member, wherein an agreement exists between the entity and the commerce partner, wherein the agreement permits the service agent to convert quantities of the non-negotiable credits to quantities of the entity independent funds, wherein the agreement specifies that the entity is to compensate the commerce partner in an agreed upon amount of cash or credit for conversions of non-negotiable credits to entity independent funds;

the computer receiving a selection of the conversion option; and

responsive to the received selection being processed, the computer presenting within the graphical user interface a reduced quantity of non-negotiable credits possessed by the member, said reduced quantity resulting at least in part from converting the subset of non-negotiable credits into the quantity of entity independent funds in accordance with the fixed credits-to-funds conversion ratio, wherein the computer presents the graphical user interface to the service agent, receives the selection, and presents the reduced quantity of non-negotiable credits within a single user-interactive session.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the entity services provided by the entity for which the non-negotiable credits are redeemable with the entity comprise at least one of:

travel services for an airlines,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship,

vehicle rental services for a vehicle, or

lodging services for lodging the member,

wherein the commerce partner services provided by the commerce partner for which the entity independent funds are redeemable with the commerce partner comprise at least one of;

travel services for an airlines,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship,

vehicle rental services for a vehicle, or

lodging services for lodging the member.

25. The method of claim 23, wherein the loyalty program is an airline, hotel, or credit card loyalty program, wherein the different loyalty program is an airline, hotel, or credit card loyalty program.

26. The method of claim 23, wherein the service agent is an employee of an airline, a hotel, a credit card company, or of a company providing customer service for the loyalty program or for the different loyalty program, wherein the loyalty program is an airline, hotel, or credit card loyalty program, and wherein the different loyalty program is an airline, hotel, or credit card loyalty program.

27. The method of claim 23, wherein the service agent is an employee of a hotel, is an employee of a company providing customer service for the hotel, or is an employee of a company providing customer service for the loyalty program, wherein the loyalty program is a hotel loyalty program, wherein the entity services comprise lodging services for the hotel, wherein the different loyalty program is an airline, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein the commerce partner services are at least one of:

travel services for an airline,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle.

28. The method of claim 23, wherein the service agent is an employee of an airline, is an employee of a company providing customer service for the airline, or is an employee of a company providing customer service for the loyalty program, wherein the loyalty program is an airline loyalty program, wherein the entity services comprise travel services for the airline, wherein the different loyalty program is a hotel, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein the commerce partner services are at least one of:

lodging services for a hotel,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle.

29. The method of claim 23, wherein the service agent is an employee of a financial service company, is an employee of a company providing customer service for the financial service company, or is an employee of a company providing customer service for the loyalty program, wherein the loyalty program is an credit card loyalty program, wherein the entity is the financial service company that provides a credit card to the member, wherein the different loyalty program is a hotel, airline, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein the commerce partner services are at least one of:

lodging services for a hotel,

travel services for an airline,

travel services for a train,

travel services for a cruise ship, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle.

30. A method comprising:

a computer serving a set of one or more Web pages for a loyalty program of an entity to one or more remotely located client machines, wherein the Web pages are able to be rendered within a client-side browser as a graphical user interface on the one or more client machines, wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser said graphical user interface shows a quantity of non-negotiable credits, wherein said non-negotiable credits are loyalty points of the loyalty program possessed by a member, wherein the loyalty points are maintained in a loyalty program account owned or controlled by the entity, wherein the entity redeems the loyalty points for a set of entity services that the entity provides to the member, wherein the entity services for which the non-negotiable credits are redeemable via Web pages served by the computer comprise;

travel services for an airline owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity, or

lodging services for a hotel owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity,

wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser the graphical user interface comprises a conversion option to convert at least a subset of the shown non-negotiable credits into a quantity entity independent funds, wherein said entity independent funds are different loyalty points of a different loyalty program of a commerce partner, wherein the different loyalty points are redeemable by the commerce partner for commerce partner services that the commerce partner provides to the member, wherein the commerce partner services for which the entity independent funds are redeemable comprise;

travel services for an airline owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner,

lodging services for a hotel owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner,

travel services for a train owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner,

travel services for a cruise ship owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner,

wherein the loyalty program of the entity is an airline or hotel loyalty program, wherein the different loyalty program of the commerce partner is a hotel, airline, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein said entity independent funds are possessed by the member and are maintained in a funds account, wherein the funds account is neither owned nor controlled by the entity or by any subsidiary or parent of the entity, wherein the entity does not accept the entity independent funds as payment for any of the entity services, wherein an agreement exists between the entity and the commerce partner, wherein the agreement permits members to convert the non-negotiable credits to the entity independent funds, wherein the agreement specifies that the entity is to compensate the commerce partner in an agreed upon amount of cash or credit for conversions of non-negotiable credits to entity independent funds;

the computer responsive to receiving a message indicating a selection of the conversion option, processing the selection to effectuate changes in the served set of Web pages; and

responsive to the processing, the computer serving one or more Web pages or Web page updates that include the effectuated changes to the one or more remotely located client machines, wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser the graphical user interface is updated with the effectuated changes, wherein the updated graphical user interface shows a reduced quantity of non-negotiable credits possessed by the member in the loyalty program, said reduced quantity resulting at least in part from the subset of non-negotiable credits being converted into the quantity of entity independent funds, wherein the computer serves the set of one or more Web pages, receives the selection, and serves the one or more Web pages or Web page updates that include the effectuated changes within a single user-interactive Web session with the member.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the entity services are travel services for an airline owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity.

32. The method of claim 30, wherein the entity services are lodging services for a hotel owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity.

33. A method comprising:

a computer serving a set of one or more Web pages for a different loyalty program of a commerce partner to one or more remotely located client machines, wherein the Web pages are able to be rendered within a client-side browser as a graphical user interface on the one or more client machines, wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser said graphical user interface shows a quantity of entity independent funds, wherein said entity independent funds are different loyalty points of the different loyalty program possessed by a member, wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser the graphical user interface comprises a conversion option to convert at least a subset of non-negotiable credits into a quantity of the entity independent funds, wherein said non-negotiable credits are loyalty points of a loyalty program of an entity, wherein the loyalty points are possessed by the member, wherein the loyalty points are stored in a loyalty program account owned or controlled by the entity, wherein the commerce partner does not own or control the loyalty program account, wherein the entity independent funds are possessed by the member, wherein the different loyalty points are stored in a funds account owned or controlled by the commerce partner, wherein the commerce partner redeems the different loyalty points for a set of commerce partner services that the commerce partner provides to the member, wherein the commerce partner services for which the different loyalty points are redeemable via Web pages served by the computer comprise;

travel services for an airline owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner, or

lodging services for a hotel owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner,

wherein the loyalty points are redeemable by the entity for a set of entity services that the entity provides to the member, wherein the entity services for which the loyalty points are redeemable comprise;

travel services for an airline owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity,

lodging services for a hotel owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity,

travel services for a train owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity,

travel services for a cruise ship owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity,

wherein the different loyalty program of the commerce partner is an airline or hotel loyalty program, wherein the loyalty program of the entity is a hotel, airline, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein the commerce partner does not provide the commerce partner services in exchange for loyalty points unless these loyalty points are first converted into the different loyalty points, wherein the entity independent funds are not redeemable with the entity for the set of entity services that the entity provides to the member, wherein an agreement exists between the commerce partner and the entity, wherein the agreement permits members to convert the non-negotiable credits to the entity independent funds, wherein the agreement specifies that the entity is to compensate the commerce partner in an agreed upon amount of cash or credit for conversions of non-negotiable credits to entity independent funds;

the computer responsive to receiving a message indicating a selection of the conversion option, processing the selection to effectuate changes in the served set of Web pages; and

responsive to the processing, the computer serving one or more Web pages or Web page updates that include the effectuated changes to the one or more remotely located client machines, wherein upon being rendered within the client-side browser the graphical user interface is updated with the effectuated changes, wherein the updated graphical user interface shows an increased quantity of entity independent funds possessed by the member, said increased quantity resulting at least in part from the subset of non-negotiable credits being converted into the quantity of entity independent funds, wherein the computer serves the set of one or more Web pages, receives the selection, and serves the one or more Web pages or Web page updates that include the effectuated changes within a single user-interactive Web session with the member.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the commerce partner services are travel services for an airline owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner.

35. The method of claim 33, wherein the commerce partner services are lodging services for a hotel owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner.

36. A method comprising:

a computer, comprising hardware, presenting a graphical user interface (GUI) on a display to a service agent and/or a machine manipulated by the service agent, wherein the service agent is a human agent authorized to act on behalf of an entity or a commerce partner, said graphical user interface showing a quantity of non-negotiable credits, wherein said non-negotiable credits are loyalty points of a loyalty program of the entity, wherein said shown quantity of non-negotiable credits are possessed by a member, wherein said shown quantity of non-negotiable credits were previously earned through previous interactions involving the loyalty program, wherein the non-negotiable credits are maintained in a loyalty program account owned or controlled by the entity, wherein the entity redeems the loyalty points for a set of entity services that the entity provides to the member, wherein the entity services for which the non-negotiable credits are redeemable via Web pages served by the computer comprise;

travel services for an airline owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity, or

lodging services for a hotel owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity,

wherein the graphical user interface comprises a conversion option to convert at least a subset of the shown non-negotiable credits into a quantity entity independent funds, wherein said entity independent funds are different loyalty points of a different loyalty program of the commerce partner, wherein said entity independent funds are possessed by the member and are maintained in a funds account owned or controlled by the commerce partner, wherein the funds account is not owned or controlled by the entity or by any subsidiary or parent of the entity, wherein the commerce partner redeems the different loyalty points for a set of commerce partner services that the commerce partner provides to the member, wherein the commerce partner services for which the entity independent funds are redeemable comprise;

travel services for an airline owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner, or

lodging services for a hotel owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner,

travel services for a train owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner,

travel services for a cruise ship owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner, or

vehicle rental services for a vehicle owned, operated, or managed by the commerce partner or by a subsidiary or parent of the commerce partner,

wherein the loyalty program of the entity is an airline or hotel loyalty program, wherein the different loyalty program of the commerce partner is a hotel, airline, rental car, train, or cruise ship loyalty program, wherein an agreement exists between the entity and the commerce partner, wherein the agreement permits the service agent to convert quantities of the non-negotiable credits to quantities of the entity independent funds, wherein the agreement specifies that the entity is to compensate the commerce partner in an agreed upon amount of cash or credit for conversions of non-negotiable credits to entity independent funds;

the computer receiving a selection of the conversion option; and

responsive to the received selection being processed, the computer presenting within the graphical user interface a reduced quantity of non-negotiable credits possessed by the member, said reduced quantity resulting at least in part from converting the subset of non-negotiable credits into the quantity of entity independent funds in accordance with the fixed credits-to-funds conversion ratio, wherein the computer presents the graphical user interface to the service agent, receives the selection, and presents the reduced quantity of non-negotiable credits within a single user-interactive session.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein the entity services are travel services for an airline owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity.

38. The method of claim 36, wherein the entity services are lodging services for a hotel owned, operated, or managed by the entity or by a subsidiary or parent of the entity.