Systems and methods to process donations

• US 9,830,622 B1
• Filed: 07/25/2017
• Issued: 11/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Boku Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Boku Incorporated
• Inventors: Martell, Javier Francisco
• Primary Examiner(s): Agosta, Steve D
• Application Number:
  US15/659,473
• Publication Number:
  US 20170323354A1
• Time in Patent Office: 126 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/027 involving a payment switch or gateway
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/16 Payments settled via telecommunication systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/18 involving self-service terminals [SST], vending machines, kiosks or multimedia terminals
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/204 comprising interface for record bearing medium or carrier for electronic funds transfer or payment credit
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3223 Realising banking transactions through M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3255 using mobile network messaging services for payment, e.g. SMS
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/385 using an alias or single-use codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/386 using messaging services or messaging apps using mobile network messaging services for payment, e.g. SMS G06Q20/3255
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4012 Verifying personal identification numbers [PIN]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/425 using two different networks, one for transaction and one for security confirmation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0279 Fundraising management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0613 Third-party assisted
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1453 Methods or systems for payment or settlement of the charges for data transmission involving significant interaction with the data transmission network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1457 using an account
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1464 using a card, such as credit card, prepay card or SIM
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1467 involving prepayment
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/51 for resellers, retailers or service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/68 Payment of value-added services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8242 Transaction based
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/844 : Message, e.g. SMS
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/866 : a predetermined or undetermined destination, e.g. notifying a prepaid accounting server of a successful delivery of a service
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0192 : Sponsored, subsidised calls via advertising, e.g. calling cards with ads or connecting to special ads, free calling time by purchasing goods
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 : Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 : Accounting or billing

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided to facilitate donations via mobile communications. In one aspect, a system includes a data storage facility and an interchange having a common format processor and a plurality of converters to interface with a plurality of different controllers of mobile communications. The converters are configured to communicate with the controllers in different formats and with the common format processor in a common format. For a payment to a merchant, the common format processor provides a user interface configured to present charity donation options in response to a phone number being specified in the user interface to identify a fund source. The common format processor uses one of the converters to communicate with a mobile phone at the phone number to confirm the payment to the merchant and a donation to a separate charity organization specified via the user interface.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

providing, via a computing device, a user interface to a user for a payment to a merchant, in response to the user visiting a website of the merchant to make a purchase, wherein the user interface is configured to receive a phone number of a mobile phone of the user for the payment of an amount to the merchant and configured to receive a selection for a donation to an organization;

determining an amount of the donation based on a difference between a price point selected from a set of predetermined discrete price points and an amount of the payment wherein the user interface is configured to present the amount of the donation, wherein the user interface is configured to present a list of organizations to allow the user to select the organization from the list of organizations;

receiving, by the computing device, a request via the user interface, the request including the phone number, the amount of the payment to the merchant, and the amount specified for the donation;

transmitting, by the computing device, a message to the phone number of the mobile phone, the message including first and second selections that are selectable by the user of the mobile phone, the first selection to make a payment for the amount specified for payment to the merchant without making a payment for the amount specified for the donation and the second selection to make a payment for the amount specified for payment to the merchant and make a donation to the organization for the amount specified for the donation;

receiving, by the computing device, in response to the message, a confirmation from the mobile phone, the confirmation indicating whether to make the payment according to the first selection made by the user or according to the second selection made by the user;

in response to the confirmation, billing, by the computing device, a phone number at a telecommunication carrier for the mobile phone to collect funds from the telecommunication carrier according to the amount according to the selection made by the user;

if the confirmation indicates to make the payment according to the first selection then paying, by the computing device, the merchant in accordance with the amount according to the first selection; and

if the confirmation indicates to make the payment according to the second selection then paying, by the computing device, the merchant in accordance with the amount to be paid to the merchant according to the second selection making a donation to the organization then making, by the computing device, a donation to the organization in accordance with the amount specified for the donation according to the second selection.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the user interface is configured to receive a user specified amount for the donation.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of predetermined discrete price points is determined by a set of premium message codes, each respective premium message code in the set of premium message codes corresponding to a predetermined price charged to a recipient of the respective premium message code transmitted via a premium message to a mobile phone of the recipient;

and the predetermined price is specified by the telecommunication carrier of the mobile phone of the recipient.

4. The method of claim 1, the message to the phone number and response to the message are text messages.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a price point based on an amount of the payment and a set of discrete prices associated with a predetermined set of premium message codes, each respective premium message code in the predetermined set of premium message codes corresponding to a predetermined price charged to a recipient of the respective premium message code transmitted via a premium message to a mobile phone of the recipient;

identifying a set of premium messages corresponding to the price point, each of the set of premium messages containing one of the predetermined set of premium message codes; and

calculating an amount of the donation based on a difference between the price point and the amount of the payment;

wherein the billing of the funding source comprises transmitting the set of premium messages to the mobile phone at the phone number.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein if no organization is identified in the user interface, a payment of a first amount is paid to the merchant for the purchase;

and if the organization is identified in the user interface, a portion of the first amount is provided to the organization for the donation.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein in response to the identification of the organization, a portion of the payment is redirected as the donation to the organization.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein in response to the identification of the organization, a portion of fees charged by the computing device for processing of the payment is donated to the organization.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing, by the computing device, the donation to the organization via transmitting at least one premium message to a phone number designated to collect charity contributions for the organization.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the at least one premium message transmitted from the computing device to the phone number designated to collect contributions for the organization is configured to indicate the phone number of the user included in the request received via the user interface.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the phone number designated to collect contributions for the organization is a short code.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing data tracking donation contributions from at least one of;

the user and the merchant.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the fund source is one selected from the group consisting of:

a bank account, a credit account, a debit account, a prepaid account, a checking account and a savings account.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the communicating with the mobile phone at the phone number for the confirmation of the request includes transmitting a text message to the mobile phone at the phone number to request a response for the confirmation;

and the text message identifies an amount of the donation.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the response for the confirmation is a message transmitted from the mobile phone at the phone number via a short message service.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable storage media storing instructions which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform a method, the method comprising:

providing, via a computing device, a user interface to a user for a payment to a merchant, in response to the user visiting a website of the merchant to make a purchase, wherein the user interface is configured to receive a phone number of a mobile phone of the user for the payment of an amount to the merchant and configured to receive a selection for a donation to an organization;

determining an amount of the donation based on a difference between a price point selected from a set of predetermined discrete price points and an amount of the payment wherein the user interface is configured to present the amount of the donation, wherein the user interface is configured to present a list of organizations to allow the user to select the organization from the list of organizations;

wherein the user interface receiving, by the computing device, a request via the user interface, the request including the phone number, the amount of the payment to the merchant, and the amount specified for the donation;

transmitting, by the computing device, a message to the phone number of the mobile phone, the message including first and second selections that are selectable by the user of the mobile phone, the first selection to make a payment for the amount specified for payment to the merchant without making a payment for the amount specified for the donation and the second selection to make a payment for the amount specified for payment to the merchant and make a donation to the organization for the amount specified for the donation;

receiving, by the computing device, in response to the message, a confirmation from the mobile phone, the confirmation indicating whether to make the payment according to the first selection made by the user or according to the second selection made by the user;

in response to the confirmation, billing, by the computing device, a phone number at a telecommunication carrier for the mobile phone to collect funds from the telecommunication carrier according to the amount according to the selection made by the user;

if the confirmation indicates to make the payment according to the first selection then paying, by the computing device, the merchant in accordance with the amount according to the first selection; and

if the confirmation indicates to make the payment according to the second selection then paying, by the computing device, the merchant in accordance with the amount to be paid to the merchant according to the second selection making a donation to the organization then making, by the computing device, a donation to the organization in accordance with the amount specified for the donation according to the second selection.