Context-aware market-making service

• US 20030126095A1
• Filed: 06/28/2002
• Published: 07/03/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: DOCOMO Communications Laboratories USA, Inc.
• Inventors: Allen, Lee
• Application Number:
  US10/186,844
• Publication Number:
  US 20030126095A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/80
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/188 Electronic negotiation

Abstract

A mobile virtual network operators system is disclosed. The mobile virtual network operators system provides a single point of contact for wireless customers accessing a variety of services offered by a plurality of vendors. The mobile virtual network operators system may generate a sales proposal for a customer or a vendor and handle a proposal generated by a customer or a vendor. The mobile virtual network operators system may include a vendor database and a customer database. The mobile virtual network operators system receives, records and analyzes plurality of the customer'"'"'s product search requests to form the customer'"'"'s context aware purchase history. The customer database may store accumulated context aware purchase histories for a plurality of customers. The mobile virtual network operators system may generate a solicitation proposal for a customer based on the customer'"'"'s context aware purchase history. The mobile virtual network operators system can anticipate customer'"'"'s needs in advance and can generate a proposal accordingly.

Claims

1. A method of generating a marketing offer, using a computer network comprising the steps of:

maintaining a mobile virtual network operators system (the system), which is a single point of contact for wireless customers accessing a variety of services offered by a plurality of vendors;

receiving, recording and analyzing a product search request from a customer;

creating and maintaining a customer database having stored therein accumulated context aware purchase histories for a plurality of customers from the receiving, recording and analyzing step;

creating and maintaining a vendor database having stored therein a plurality of vendor'"'"'s sales histories;

generating a solicitation proposal for the customer based on the customer'"'"'s purchase history in the customer database; and

processing the solicitation proposal including searching and updating the vendor database, and searching and updating the customer database.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

receiving a promotional offer from a vendor; and

processing the promotional offer generated by the vendor including updating the vendor database and searching the customer database.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

receiving a purchase proposal from the customer for a product; and

processing the purchase proposal generated by the customer including updating the customer database and searching the vendor database.

4. The method according to claim 1, where the system and the vendors are two distinct and independent entities.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the vendor'"'"'s expectations regarding a sale are clearly stated and the customer is guaranteed the best available deal in the system.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the system allows the vendor to dynamically change any attributes of the promotional offer before the promotional offer is accepted by the customer.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein after reserving a predetermined sale amount as a sales commission, the system returns a revenue amount to the respective vendor.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein the customer is a prospective customer, if the customer has previously purchased the product, which is the subject of the promotional offer generated by the vendor.

9. The method of claim 2, wherein the customer is a prospective customer, if the customer has previously purchased the product, which is the subject of the solicitation proposal.

10. The method of claim 3, wherein the vendor is a qualified vendor if the vendor supplies the product, which is the subject of the purchase proposal or the solicitation proposal.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the step of processing the purchase proposal generated by the customer further comprises the steps of:

searching the vendor database to locate the qualified vendors;

presenting the customer'"'"'s purchase proposal to the qualified vendors;

communicating the vendor'"'"'s response to the customer generating the purchase proposal; and

updating the vendor'"'"'s database to record the vendor'"'"'s response.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the step of processing the promotional offer from the vendor further comprises the steps of:

searching the customer database to locate the prospective customers;

presenting the vendor'"'"'s promotional offer to the prospective customers;

communicating the customer'"'"'s response to the vendor generating the promotional offer; and

updating the customer database to include the customer'"'"'s response.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of processing the solicitation proposal comprises the steps of:

anticipating the customer'"'"'s future needs based on the customer'"'"'s context aware purchase history;

generating the solicitation proposal based on a plurality of rules derived from the customer'"'"'s context aware purchase history;

presenting the solicitation proposal to the vendors;

negotiating with the vendors upon receiving the vendor'"'"'s refusal for the solicitation proposal;

receiving the vendor'"'"'s acceptance for the solicitation proposal;

searching the customer database to locate the customers interested in the product that is subject matter of the solicitation proposal;

presenting the solicitation proposal to the customers;

receiving the customer'"'"'s response to the solicitation proposal; and

recording the sale transaction in the customer database and the vendor database.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the customer database comprises one record for each of a plurality of customers, said customer record comprising:

a unique customer identifier;

the customer'"'"'s purchase history for at least one purchase; and

at least one product category from which the customer purchased a product.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the vendor database comprises at least one vendor record for each of a plurality of vendors, said vendor record comprising:

a unique vendor identifier;

details of at least one product sold by the vendor; and

the vendor'"'"'s sales history for at least one product.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of receiving, recording and analyzing a product search request from the customer further comprises the steps of:

observing a plurality of context specific information of the customer each time the customer contacts the system;

recording the observed context information in the customer database;

accumulating a plurality of product search requests of the customer to form a context aware purchase history of the customer;

processing the context aware purchase history of the customer; and

deriving the rules by analyzing the context aware purchase history of the customer.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the system observes and accumulates the context aware purchase history of a respective customer in real time.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the step of observing the context specific information of the customer, further comprises the steps of:

sensing and recording the customer'"'"'s personal context information;

sensing and recording the customer'"'"'s external context information; and

sensing and recording the customer'"'"'s device'"'"'s context information.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of sensing and recording the customer'"'"'s personal context information, further comprises the steps of:

sensing and recording the customer'"'"'s identity;

sensing and recording an activity customer is engaged in;

sensing and recording the customer'"'"'s location information;

sensing and recording the customer'"'"'s schedule information; and

sensing and recording the customer'"'"'s usage habits.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of sensing and recording the customer'"'"'s external context information, further comprises the steps of:

sensing and recording the time of the day when the customer contacts the system;

sensing and recording the identities of the people present near the customer when the customer contacts the system; and

sensing and recording any other nearby activity concurrently happening when the customer contacts the system.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of sensing and recording the characteristics of a device used by the customer to contact the system, further comprises the steps of:

sensing and recording the computing capabilities of the device used by the customer to contact the system;

sensing and recording the display capabilities of the device used by the customer, to contact the system; and

sensing and recording the proximity of the device used by the customer to the other devices to contact the system.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein, the system'"'"'s Internet marketing efforts only target the customers who have proved the interest in the product which is the subject matter of the marketing.

23. The method to claim 22, which reduces the marketing research cost of the vendor.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the participating vendors pay the system a contracting fee as well as a commission in proportion to the sale accomplished by the system.

25. The method according to claim 22, which provides a cost-effective method of Internet advertising, where the vendor is directly and automatically charged in proportion to the sale generated by the system.

26. A method of:

maintaining a mobile virtual network operators system (the system), which is a single point of contact for wireless customers accessing a variety of services offered by a plurality of vendors;

generating a promotional offer using a computer network;

generating a solicitation proposal using a computer network;

generating a purchase proposal using a computer network;

maintaining a customer database including a plurality of purchase histories, wherein each purchase history is associated with a customer;

maintaining a vendor database including a plurality of sale histories, wherein each sale history is associated with a vendor;

identifying the customer'"'"'s needs based on the customer'"'"'s purchase history;

searching the vendor'"'"'s database to locate the vendor supplying the product needed by the customer;

comparing the results of the vendor database search and identifying the vendor who carries the product that meets the customer'"'"'s needs; and

presenting the customer the best available deal in the system from the comparing step.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprises the step of subtracting a commission amount from the amount paid by the customer, substantially in real time when a sale is accomplished by the system.

28. The method of claim 26, further comprising the steps of:

indexing the customer database to locate a plurality of potential customers who are likely to be interested in the vendor'"'"'s proposal; and

indexing the vendor database to locate a plurality of potential vendors that are likely to be interested in the customer'"'"'s proposal.

29. The method of claim 26, wherein, the customer database is indexed to be queried by a product type, a product brand, and a price range.

30. The method of claim 26, wherein the vendor database is indexed to query by a product type, a product brand, and a price range.

31. The method of claim 26, further comprising the step of communicating the customer generated purchase proposal to the vendor substantially in real time.

32. The method of claim 26, further comprising the step of communicating the vendor'"'"'s promotional offer substantially in real time to the customer.

33. The method of claim 26, further comprising the step of communicating the solicitation proposal substantially in real time to the vendors and the customers.

34. The method of claim 26, further comprising verifying the monetary transactions of the system in real time.

35. The method of claim 26, wherein the system is able to modify the terms of the sale in a real time.

36. A system for enabling a plurality of mobile wireless customers to access variety of services offered by a plurality of vendors via a single network operator, the system comprising:

a customer database including purchase histories, whereas each purchase history is associated with a respective customer from the plurality of customers;

a vendor database including a plurality of sale histories, wherein each sale history is associated with a respective vendor from the plurality of vendors;

a set of rules driven from the plurality of the customer'"'"'s accumulated purchase histories; and

a wireless network to communicate information based on said set of rules to the system customers.