Method and system to facilitate an online promotion relating to a network-based marketplace

• US 9,881,308 B2
• Filed: 04/11/2003
• Issued: 01/30/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Lee, Stacy A., Early, Justin Christopher, McSpadden, Kevin, Pedone, Greg
• Primary Examiner(s): DURAN, ARTHUR D
• Application Number:
  US10/412,017
• Publication Number:
  US 20040204967A1
• Time in Patent Office: 5,408 Days
• Field of Search: 705 141, 705 144
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance

Abstract

A method and system to facilitate an online promotion in a network-based marketplace. A user-provided election to participate in the online promotion is recorded on a client machine associated with a user. Responsive to a trigger event, a determination of the user-provided election as recorded on the client machine associated with the user is made. The determination causes a presentation of the online promotion if so elected.

Claims

1. A method to facilitate an online sales promotion in a network-based marketplace, the method including:

transmitting, by a network-based marketplace machine, a web page to a browser on a client machine, the web page facilitating a user of the client machine to transact products or services identified in listings that are offered for sale by sellers, the web page including a promotion screen element, the online sales promotion to promote an action by the user without advertising a product;

generating, by the network-based marketplace machine, an opt-in web page for the user, the opt-in web page including directions for the user to follow to participate in the online sales promotion and an opt-in element to receive a user-provided election to opt-in to the online sales promotion;

communicating, by the network-based marketplace machine in response to the user selecting the promotion screen element, the opt-in web page to the client machine;

displaying, by the client machine, the opt-in web page to the user in response to the communicating of the opt-in web page by the network-based marketplace machine;

receiving, by the client machine, the user-provided election from the user to opt-in to the online sales promotion from the opt-in element;

recording, by the client machine, the user-provided election on the client machine;

requesting, by the network-based marketplace machine in response to the user entering a listing to a network-based marketplace, a determination of the user-provided election as recorded on the client machine by transmitting a script in a confirmation web page to the client machine, the script being executed by the browser on the client machine to read the recorded contents of the opt-in element and determine that the user elected to participate in the online sales promotion based on the contents;

communicating, by the client machine in response to the determination that the user elected to participate in the online sales promotion, confirmation details to a service machine, the confirmation details including user information about the user, the service machine to verify whether the confirmation details are appropriate and communicate a promotion game card to the client machine; and

presenting, by the client machine, the promotion game card of the online sales promotion to the user.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the user-provided election is recorded within a cookie on the client machine.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein to read the recorded contents of the opt-in element includes reading the cookie as stored on the client machine.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein transmitting the script includes embedding the script in a one-by-one invisible pixel in the confirmation web page.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the user information includes at least one of a referring universal resource locator, a user identifier, a time and date stamp, and a listing number.

6. The method of claim 5, further including communicating the user information via the service machine to the network-based marketplace.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the time and date stamp is utilized to limit participation of the user in the online sales promotion.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the promotion game card is a virtual scratch game card.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

responsive to communicating the promotion game card to the user, communicating a second promotion game card to a second user; and

responsive to the user playing the promotion game card and winning a prize, presenting an award to the second user.

10. A system to facilitate an online sales promotion in a network-based marketplace, the system including:

a network-based marketplace machine including a listing server to;

transmit a web page to a browser on a client machine, the web page facilitating a user of the client machine to transact products or services identified in listings that are offered for sale by sellers, the web page including a promotion screen element, the online sales promotion to promote an action by the user without advertising a product;

generate an opt-in web page for the user, the opt-in web page including directions for the user to follow to participate in the online sales promotion and an opt-in element to receive a user-provided election to opt-in to the online sales promotion;

communicate, in response to the user selecting the promotion screen element, the opt-in web page to the client machine; and

request, in response to the user entering a listing to a network-based marketplace, a determination of a user-provided election recorded on the client machine by transmitting a script in a confirmation web page to the client machine; and

the client machine including;

a communications component to;

display the opt-in web page to the user in response to the communication of the opt-in web page by the network-based marketplace machine;

receive the user-provided election from the user to opt-in to the online sales promotion from the opt-in element;

execute the script transmitted in the confirmation web page to read recorded contents of the opt-in element and determine that the user elected to participate in the online sales promotion based on the contents;

communicate, in response to the determination that the user elected to participate in the online sales promotion, confirmation details to a service machine, the confirmation details including user information about the user, the service machine to verify whether the confirmation details are appropriate and communicate a promotion game card to the client machine; and

present the promotion game card of the online sales promotion to the user; and

a logic component to record the user-provided election on the client machine in response to receipt of the user-provided election from the user to opt-in to the online sales promotion from the opt-in element and before execution of the script.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the user-provided election is recorded within a cookie on the client machine.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein to read the recorded contents of the opt-in element includes the script to read the cookie as stored on the client machine.

13. The system of claim 12, further including the listing server to embed the script in a one-by-one invisible pixel in the confirmation web page.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein the user information includes at least one of a referring universal resource locator, a user identifier, a time and date stamp, and a listing number.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the network-based marketplace server machine further includes a detection module to receive information from the service machine.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the detection module is to read the user information that includes the time and date stamp to limit participation of the user in the online sales promotion.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein the promotion game card is a virtual scratch game card.

18. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

responsive to communicating the promotion game card to the user, the service to communicate a second promotion game card to a second user; and

responsive to the user playing the promotion game card and winning a prize, to present an award to the second user.

19. A plurality of non-transitory machine-readable media storing a set of instructions that, when executed by a client machine and a network-based marketplace server machine, cause the client machine and the network-based marketplace server machine to perform operations comprising:

transmitting, by the network-based marketplace machine, a web page to a browser on the client machine, the web page facilitating a user of the client machine to transact products or services identified in listings that are offered for sale by sellers, the web page including a promotion screen element, the online sales promotion to promote an action by the user without advertising a product;

generating, by the network-based marketplace machine, an opt-in web page for the user, the opt-in web page including directions for the user to follow to participate in the online sales promotion and an opt-in element to receive a user-provided election to opt-in to the online sales promotion;

communicating, by the network-based marketplace machine in response to the user selecting the promotion screen element, the opt-in web page to the client machine;

displaying, by the client machine, the opt-in web page to the user in response to the communicating of the opt-in web page by the network-based marketplace machine;

receiving, by the client machine, the user-provided election from the user to opt-in to the online sales promotion from the opt-in element;

recording, by the client machine, the user-provided election on the client machine;

requesting, by the network-based marketplace machine in response to the user entering a listing to a network-based marketplace, a determination of the user-provided election as recorded on the client machine by transmitting a script in a confirmation web page to the client machine, the script being executed by the browser on the client machine to read the recorded contents of the opt-in element and determine that the user elected to participate in the online sales promotion based on the contents;

communicating, by the client machine in response to the determination that the user elected to participate in the online sales promotion, confirmation details to a service machine, the confirmation details including user information about the user, the service machine to verify whether the confirmation details are appropriate and communicate a promotion game card to the client machine; and

presenting, by the client machine, the promotion game card of the online sales promotion to the user.

20. The machine-readable media of claim 19, wherein the user-provided election is recorded within a cookie on the client machine.

21. The machine-readable media of claim 20, wherein to read the recorded contents of the opt-in element includes reading the cookie as stored on the client machine.

22. The machine-readable media of claim 21, wherein transmitting the script includes embedding the script in a one-by-one invisible pixel in the confirmation web page.

23. The machine-readable media of claim 19, wherein the user information includes at least one of a referring universal resource locator, a user identifier, a time and date stamp, and a listing number.

24. The machine-readable media of claim 23, further including communicating the user information via the service to the network-based marketplace.

25. The machine-readable media of claim 23, wherein the time and date stamp is utilized to limit participation of the user in the online sales promotion.

26. The computer-readable media of claim 19, wherein the promotion game card is a virtual scratch game card.

27. The computer-readable media of claim 19, wherein the operations further comprise:

responsive to communicating the promotion game card to the user, communicating a second promotion game card to a second user; and

responsive to the user playing the promotion game card and winning a prize, presenting an award to the second user.