System and method for enhanced sports pool raffle

• US 9,754,453 B2
• Filed: 05/04/2015
• Issued: 09/05/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/06/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sean O'Hagan
• Original Assignee: Sean O'Hagan
• Inventors: O'Hagan, Sean
• Primary Examiner(s): Laneau, Ronald
• Application Number:
  US14/703,102
• Publication Number:
  US 20150325085A1
• Time in Patent Office: 855 Days
• Field of Search: 463 16- 25
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 9/24 Electric games; Games using electronic circuits not otherwise provided for video games A63F13/00; computerized gaming systems G07F17/32
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3272 Games involving multiple players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3286 Type of games

Abstract

A system for an electronic raffle based on the final score of at least one sporting event. Tickets are sold which are assigned at least one unique outcome of the at least one sporting event. The winning ticket is dictated by the matching of the scores on the ticket with the actual scores of the sporting event. If a winning ticket is not sold, or there is an anomaly in that a score or scores is outside the range of scores that are in the pool, a winner is chosen from a random drawing of the tickets sold.

Claims

1. A method of conducting an electronically facilitated sports pool raffle in respect of at least one sporting event having a winning event outcome, said method comprising:

a) providing a ticketing server comprising;

i. a ticket database comprising a plurality of ticket records each corresponding to a sports pool ticket sold in the raffle, each ticket record including a unique ticket identifier, purchasor identity details and associated details of at least one potential event outcome of said at least one sporting event assigned to the ticket;

ii. a dataset of unique potential event outcomes of said at least one sporting event in respect of which sports pool tickets can be sold, potential event outcomes which have been associated with ticket records being sold event outcomes and potential event outcomes which have not been associated with ticket records being available potential event outcomes;

iii. ticketing server software stored on a memory, for administering the ticket database;

b) providing a raffle sales system in communication with the ticketing server, to transact the sale of sports pool tickets to purchasors;

c) selling sports pool tickets in the raffle during a defined sales window by, in respect of each sports pool ticket sold;

i) using the raffle sales system and the ticketing server;

capturing purchasor identity details corresponding to the purchasor;

associating at least one available event outcome in respect of the ticket being sold;

storing the sold ticket particulars of the sold ticket, being the purchasor identity details and the at least one associated potential event outcome to a ticket record in the ticket database along with a unique ticket identifier;

wherein upon association of available potential event outcomes to a ticket record they become sold event outcomes and are no longer available for association with another ticket record;

and wherein the purchasor of a ticket is not aware of the particulars of the associated potential event outcomes for their ticket until after the ticket purchase transaction is completed;

d) following the closure of the defined sales window for the sports pool raffle and completion of the at least one sporting event, selecting a winning ticket from tickets sold by comparison of the winning event outcome of the at least one sporting event to the potential event outcomes associated with the ticket records for sold sports pool tickets within the ticket database.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the ticket database is pre-populated with ticket records for sports pool tickets in the raffle before the opening of the defined ticket sales window by creating ticket records corresponding to each potential event outcome, and wherein sales of a sports pool ticket within the sales window comprises capturing purchasor identity details and assigning said captured purchasor identity details to a prepopulated ticket record in the ticket database.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein available potential event outcomes are associated with tickets being sold during sales of individual tickets within the sales window, by selection and association of the desired number of available potential event outcomes to the ticket record at the time of ticket sale.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the raffle sales system comprises at least one raffle sales unit, comprising an operator interface, a ticketing network interface for communication with the ticketing server, and raffle sales software, by which an operator can sell tickets.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the sale of a sports pool ticket further comprises the printing of a ticket receipt on the raffle sales unit for provision to the purchasor.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the raffle sales system comprises a raffle sales web site system, by which a purchasor can purchase sports pool tickets.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the server components of the web site system are integrated with the ticketing server.

8. The method of claim 6 wherein the web site system uses a separate web server from the ticketing server, operatively connected to the ticketing server.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the sale of a sports pool ticket to a purchasor further comprises the transmission of a ticket receipt to an electronic device of the purchasor.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the number of sporting events in respect of which a raffle is sold is one.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the number of sporting events in respect of which a raffle is sold is more than one.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein at least one sporting event is a discrete sporting event.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein at least one sporting event is an interval scoring point within a discrete sporting event.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one winning ticket is selected based on comparison of the winning event outcome of the at least one sporting event to the associated potential event outcomes stored in respect of the ticket records.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein tickets are sold for all available potential event outcomes during the raffle sales window.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the winning ticket is the ticket corresponding to the ticket record which has the sold event outcome that matches the winning event outcome associated therewith.

17. The method of claim 14 wherein tickets are not sold for all available potential event outcomes during the raffle sales window.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein if the potential event outcome which matches the winning event outcome in respect of the at least one sporting event remains an unsold available event outcome, the selection of a winning ticket comprises randomly selecting a winning ticket record from the ticket records in the ticket database corresponding to the raffle.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the random selection of a winning ticket record is electronically accomplished using a random number generator on the ticketing server.

20. The method of claim 18 wherein the random selection of a winning ticket record comprises printing at least one counterfoil for each active ticket record in the ticket database in respect of the raffle, from which a physical draw can be made.

21. The method of claim 1 wherein the number of potential event outcomes which is associated with a single sports pool ticket sold is one.

22. The method of claim 1 wherein the number of potential event outcomes which is associated with a single sports pool ticket sold is more than one.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein the dataset of potential event outcomes in respect of which a raffle is sold is subdivided into a plurality of subgroups, and wherein the more than one potential event outcomes associated to the ticket are selected from multiple subgroups.

24. The method of claim 1 wherein the number of potential event outcomes associated with each sports pool ticket sold is the same.

25. The method of claim 1 wherein the number of potential event outcomes associated with each sports pool ticket sold can be different.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein the purchasor can select the number of potential event outcomes for purchase in respect of their ticket at the time of sale, and based on that choice the correct number of available event outcomes is assigned to the ticket record for the ticket sold.

27. The method of claim 1 wherein the raffle prize is an advertised static amount or prize.

28. The method of claim 1 wherein the prize is a money amount based on a percentage of ticket sales recorded on the ticketing database.

29. The method of claim 1 wherein each potential event outcome of the at least one sporting event in respect of a raffle is associated with a draw number such that the sports outcomes do not act as the draw number.

30. A ticketing server for the conduct of an electronically facilitated sports pool raffle in respect of at least one sporting event having a winning event outcome, said server comprising:

a) a ticket database comprising a plurality of ticket records each corresponding to a sports pool ticket sold in the raffle, each ticket record including a unique ticket identifier, purchasor identity details and associated details of at least one potential event outcome of said at least one sporting event assigned to the ticket;

b) a dataset of unique potential event outcomes of said at least one sporting event in respect of which sports pool tickets can be sold, potential event outcomes which have been associated with ticket records being sold event outcomes and potential event outcomes which have not been associated with ticket records being available potential event outcomes; and

c) a ticketing network interface for communication with a raffle sales system; and

d) ticketing server software stored on a memory, for administering the ticket database and managing communications via the ticketing network interface;

wherein said ticketing server can be used in the sale of sports pool tickets in the raffle during a defined sales window by, in respect of each sports pool ticket sold;

capturing purchasor identity details corresponding to the purchasor;

associating at least one available event outcome in respect of the ticket being sold;

storing the sold ticket particulars of the sold ticket, being the purchasor identity details and the at least one associated potential event outcome to a ticket record in the ticket database along with a unique ticket identifier;

wherein upon association of available potential event outcomes to a ticket record they become sold event outcomes and are no longer available for association with another ticket record;

and wherein the purchasor of a ticket is not aware of the particulars of the associated potential event outcomes for their ticket until after the ticket purchase transaction is completed;

and wherein the ticketing server will facilitate the selection of a winning ticket in the raffle following the closure of the defined sales window and completion of the at least one sporting event, by selecting at least one winning ticket record from the ticket records related to the sports pool raffle stored in the ticket database based on the winning event outcome and associated potential event outcomes stored in respect of each ticket sold.

31. The ticketing server of claim 30 wherein the raffle sales system comprises at least one raffle sales unit, comprising an operator interface, a network interface for communication with the ticketing server, and raffle sales software, by which an operator can sell tickets.

32. The ticketing server of claim 30 wherein the raffle sales system comprises a raffle sales web site system, by which a purchasor can purchase sports pool tickets.