Machine-implemented system and method for providing timed targeted promotional offers to individual payment account users with feedback

• US 9,373,119 B2
• Filed: 08/14/2008
• Issued: 06/21/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/15/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fiserv Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Monitise Americas Inc. (Fiserv Incorporated)
• Inventors: Salesky, Joseph H., Madams, Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): STOLTENBERG, DAVID J
• Application Number:
  US12/191,795
• Publication Number:
  US 20090048926A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,868 Days
• Field of Search: 705/14.17, 705/14.25, 705/14.35, 705/14.71
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0211 Determining the effectiveness of discounts or incentives
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0215 Including financial accounts
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0224 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0225 Avoiding frauds

Abstract

A machine-implemented method includes determining when a particular promotional offer which is associated with a payment account of a particular consumer should be released to the particular consumer, and then transmitting a first message indicating the particular promotional offer to a device of the particular consumer. The first message indicates the merchant and the terms of the offer, which may include a specific time period during which the offer is valid. The method further includes detecting that the particular consumer has accepted the offer and, in response, automatically transmitting a second message to trigger a transfer of funds to an account of the consumer. The method can further include, in response to detecting that the consumer has accepted the offer, automatically and immediately transmitting a message to the consumer to confirm the transfer of funds to the account of the consumer, so as to provide feedback to the consumer.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

determining in a computer system when a promotional offer which is associated with a credit/debit card account of a particular consumer should be released to the particular consumer;

in response to a determination in the computer system that the promotional offer should be released to the particular consumer,

storing a rule representing the promotional offer in a rules database, the rule specifying the particular consumer, a merchant to which the promotional offer applies and a time frame during which the promotional offer is valid, and

causing an alert indicating the promotional offer to be delivered to a mobile device of the particular consumer via a cellular communications network, the alert indicating the merchant to which the promotional offer applies and the time frame during which the promotional offer is valid;

receiving, at the computer system, information representing a plurality of consumer credit/debit transactions;

comparing, in the computer system, information representing each of the consumer credit/debit transactions to the rules database to determine if there is a match between any of the consumer credit/debit transactions and a rule representing a promotional offer in the rules database;

in response to identifying a match between one of the consumer credit/debit transactions and a rule representing a promotional offer in the rules database, automatically transmitting a first message to a financial institution to cause a transfer of funds to the credit/debit card account of the particular consumer; and

in response to identifying the match between the one of the consumer credit/debit transactions and the rule representing the promotional offer in the rules database, immediately transmitting a second message to the mobile device of the particular consumer via a cellular communications network to notify the particular consumer of the transfer of funds.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein said determining when the promotional offer should be released to the particular consumer is based on a behavior of the particular consumer.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the information representing the plurality of consumer credit/debit transactions comprises a real-time stream of information representing consumer credit/debit transactions.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein receiving the information representing the plurality of consumer credit/debit transactions comprises receiving the information representing the plurality of consumer credit/debit transactions from a credit/debit card processor.

19. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein a determined time at which the promotional offer should be released to the particular consumer is not dependent upon a present location of the particular consumer.

20. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising using an auction process to determine which promotional offer should be released to the particular consumer at a particular time.

5. A processing system comprising:

a processor;

a rules database, operatively coupled to the processor, to store a plurality of rules representing a plurality of promotional offers made to different consumers;

an offer release module to determine when a particular promotional offer which is associated with a payment account of a particular consumer should be released to the particular consumer and to cause a rule representing the particular promotional offer to be stored in the rules database when the particular promotional offer is released to the particular consumer;

a message delivery module to cause a first message indicating the particular promotional offer to be delivered to a mobile device of the particular consumer via a cellular communications network; and

an event engine to compare information representing a plurality of consumer payment transactions to the rules database to determine if there is a match between any of the plurality of consumer payment transactions and a rule in the rules database, and in response to identifying said match, to trigger a second message for causing a transfer of funds to the payment account of the particular consumer and a third message for notifying the particular consumer of the transfer of funds.

6. A processing system as recited in claim 5, wherein the rule specifies the particular consumer, a merchant to which the promotional offer applies and a time frame during which the promotional offer is valid.

7. A processing system as recited in claim 5, wherein the first message indicates a merchant to which the promotional offer applies and a time frame during which the promotional offer is valid.

8. A processing system as recited in claim 5, wherein the event engine further triggers a third message in response to identifying a match between one of the consumer payment transactions and a rule in the rules database, the third message being destined for the particular consumer and confirming the transfer of funds to the payment account of the particular consumer.

9. A processing system as recited in claim 5, wherein the offer release module determines when the promotional offer should be released to the particular consumer based on a behavior of the particular consumer.

10. A processing system as recited in claim 5, wherein the information representing the plurality of consumer payment transactions comprises a real-time stream of information representing consumer credit/debit transactions.

11. A processing system as recited in claim 5, wherein the plurality of payment transactions are credit/debit transactions.

12. A processing system as recited in claim 11, wherein the information representing a plurality of consumer credit/debit transactions is received by the processing system from a credit/debit card processor.

13. A processing system as recited in claim 5, wherein the third message is sent to the mobile device of the particular consumer.

21. A processing system as recited in claim 5, wherein a determined time at which the promotional offer should be released to the particular consumer is not dependent upon a present location of the particular consumer.

22. A processing system as recited in claim 5, wherein an auction process is used to determine which promotional offer should be released to the particular consumer at a particular time.

14. A processing system comprising:

a processor;

a network communicate device through which to communicate data with a remote system via a network; and

a machine readable storage medium storing instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processing system to perform a process that includes;

determining a time at which a promotional offer associated with a credit/debit card account of a particular consumer should be released to the particular consumer, wherein the determined time at which the promotional offer should be released to the particular consumer is not dependent upon a present location of the particular consumer;

in response to a determination that the promotional offer should be released to the particular consumer,

storing a rule representing the promotional offer in a rules database, the rule specifying the particular consumer, a merchant to which the promotional offer applies and a time frame during which the promotional offer is valid, and

causing an alert indicating the promotional offer to be delivered to a mobile device of the particular consumer via a cellular communications network, the alert indicating the merchant to which the promotional offer applies and the time frame during which the promotional offer is valid;

receiving information representing a plurality of consumer credit/debit transactions;

detecting that the particular consumer has accepted the promotional offer, by comparing information representing each of the plurality of consumer credit/debit transactions to the rules database to detect a match between any of the consumer credit/debit transactions and the rule representing the promotional offer in the rules database;

in response to detecting that the particular consumer has accepted the promotional offer, causing a first message to be transmitted automatically to a financial institution to cause a transfer of funds to the credit/debit card account of the particular consumer; and

in response to detecting that the particular consumer has accepted the promotional offer, immediately causing a second message to be transmitted to a personal mobile device of the particular consumer via the cellular communications network to notify the particular consumer of the transfer of funds.

15. A processing system as recited in claim 14, wherein said determining when the promotional offer should be released to the particular consumer is based on past behavior of the particular consumer.

16. A processing system as recited in claim 14, wherein the information representing the plurality of consumer credit/debit transactions comprises a real-time stream of information representing consumer credit/debit transactions.

17. A processing system as recited in claim 14, wherein receiving the information representing the plurality of consumer credit/debit transactions comprises receiving the information representing the plurality of consumer credit/debit transactions from a credit/debit card processor.

18. A processing system as recited in claim 14, wherein said process further comprises using an auction process to determine which promotional offer should be released to the particular consumer at a particular time.