Providing offers for sales of combinations of virtual items at discounted prices

• US 8,777,754 B1
• Filed: 07/30/2012
• Issued: 07/15/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zynga Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Zynga Incorporated
• Inventors: Santini, Fabio, Lai, Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): Ahmed, Masud
• Application Number:
  US13/562,044
• Time in Patent Office: 715 Days
• Field of Search: 463 31- 42, 705/80
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0209 Incentive being awarded or redeemed in connection with the playing of a video game
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3255 Incentive, loyalty and/or promotion schemes, e.g. comps, gaming associated with a purchase, gaming funded by advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/326 Game play aspects of gaming systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/34 depending on the stopping of moving members in a mechanical slot machine, e.g. "fruit" machines

Abstract

A method of providing offers for sales of combinations of virtual items at discounted prices is disclosed. An offer is generated for a sale of a combination of virtual items at a discounted price. The offer for the sale of the combination of virtual items at the discounted price is presented to a user. The presenting suggests to the user that the combination of virtual items is randomly selected from a set of virtual items and the discounted price is randomly selected from a set of discounted prices, the presenting of the offer being performed by a processor. However, in actuality, the combination of virtual items or the discounted price may not be selected randomly.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method comprising:

Generating an offer to be presented to a user for a sale of a combination of a virtual items at a discounted price; and

Presenting the offer for the sale of the combination of virtual items at the discounted price to the user in a virtual environment, the presenting suggesting to the user that the combination of virtual items is randomly selected from a set of virtual items and the discounted price is randomly selected from a set of discounted prices;

wherein the generating of the offer for the sale of the combination of virtual items at the discounted price includes at least partially randomly selecting the combination of virtual items from the set of virtual items using the depiction result of a spinning wheel and at least partially randomly selecting the discounted price from the set of discount prices;

wherein the generating and the presenting of the offer is being performed by a processor.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the result including a selection of a virtual item of the set of virtual items, a plurality of the set of virtual items being on respective spaces of the reel.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising presenting the user with an option to make a payment for an additional presenting of an additional offer for an additional sale of an additional combination of virtual items at an additional discounted price.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising selecting the set of virtual items based on information about the user pertaining to a game executing on a game networking system.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the presenting of the offer for the sale of the combination of virtual items at the discounted price is based on an acceptance by the user of an option to receive the presenting of the offer, the option presented to the user while the user is playing the game.

6. The method of claim 3, further comprising adapting a casino-style game to incorporate the presenting of the offer and the presenting the user with the option to make the payment for the additional presenting of the additional offer.

7. A system comprising:

an offer-generation module configured to generate an offer for a sale of a combination of virtual items at a discounted price; and

an offer presentation module implemented by a processor and configured to present the offer for the sale of the combination of virtual items at the discounted price to a user, the presenting suggesting that the combination of virtual items is randomly selected from a set of virtual items and the discounted price is randomly selected from a set of discounted prices, the presenting of the offer being performed by a processor;

the generating of the offer for the sale of the combination of virtual items at the discounted price includes at least partially randomly selecting the combination of virtual items from the set of virtual items using the depiction result of a spinning wheel and at least partially randomly selecting the discounted price from the set of discount prices; and

the generating and the presenting of the offer is being performed by a processor.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the result including a selection of a virtual item of the set of virtual items, a plurality of the set of virtual items being on respective spaces of the reel.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the offer presentation module is configured to present the user with an option to make a payment for an additional presenting of an additional offer for an additional sale of an additional combination of virtual items at an additional discounted price.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the offer generation module is configured to at least partially randomly select the combination of virtual items from the set of virtual items and at least partially randomly select the discounted price from the set of discount prices.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein the offer generation module is configured to select the set of virtual items based on information about the user pertaining to a game executing on a game networking system.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the offer presentation module is configured to present the offer for the sale of the combination of virtual items at the discounted price based on an acceptance by the user of an option to receive the presenting of the offer, the option presented to the user while the user is playing the game.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the offer presentation module is configured to adapt a casino-style game to incorporate the presenting of the offer and the presenting the user with the option to make the payment for the additional presenting of the additional offer.

14. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium embodying a set of instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, causes the processor to perform operations, the operations comprising:

generating an offer for a sale of a combination of virtual items at a discounted price;

and presenting the offer for the sale of the combination of virtual items at the discounted price to a user, the presenting suggesting that the combination of virtual items is randomly selected from a set of virtual items and the discounted price is randomly selected from a set of discounted prices;

wherein the generating of the offer for the sale of the combination of virtual items at the discounted price includes at least partially randomly selecting the combination of virtual items from the set of virtual items using the depiction result of a spinning wheel and at least partially randomly selecting the discounted price from the set of discount prices; and

wherein the generating and the presenting of the offer is being performed by a processor.

15. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein the result including a selection of a virtual item of the set of virtual items, a plurality of the set of virtual items being on respective spaces of the reel.

16. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 14, further comprising presenting the user with an option to make a payment for an additional presenting of an additional offer for an additional sale of an additional combination of virtual items at an additional discounted price.

17. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 14, further comprising selecting the set of virtual items based on information about the user pertaining to a game executing on a game networking system.

18. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the presenting of the offer for the sale of the combination of virtual items at the discounted price is based on an acceptance by the user of an option to receive the presenting of the offer.