Payment transactions via substantially instant communication system

• US 20070011104A1
• Filed: 09/15/2006
• Published: 01/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PayPal, Inc. (PayPal Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Phillips, Brian, Leger, David, Rhyu, Yong
• Granted Patent: US 10,535,049 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/77
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/085 involving remote charge determination or related payment systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• 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 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes

Abstract

A method and a system conducts payment transactions via instant messaging. The system includes a messaging interface to receive a payment transaction request at a payment application from a network-based device via a network. The messaging interface facilitates substantially instant communication over the network. The payment application, responsive to receiving the payment transaction request, transfers a payment from a user associated with the network-based device to a third party.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a network-based device providing an interface including;

a messaging pane to facilitate substantially instant communication via a network; and

a payment transaction feature to receive a payment transaction request in association with a message in the messaging pane; and

a server in communication with the network-based device to process the payment transaction request.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the payment transaction request includes a request for a payment.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the payment transaction request includes an initiation of payment.

4. The system of claim 1, the interface further to include a promotions pane to publish a promotion to the user.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the messaging pane is to receive an order summary cut from a buffer of an online marketplace website, wherein the payment transaction request is associated with the order summary.

6. A system comprising:

a network-based device providing a messaging interface to process a payment transaction request for a user associated with the network-based device, the messaging interface to facilitate substantially instant communication over a network; and

a server providing a payment application being responsive to receipt of the payment transaction request from the network-based device via the network and to transfer a payment from the user to a third party.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein the payment application being further operable to publish a web link to the user in a messaging pane of the messaging interface, wherein a payment transaction is completed at a website associated with the web link.

8. The system of claim 6 wherein the payment application being further operable to initiate a telephone call with the user, wherein a payment transaction is completed through the telephone call.

9. The system of claim 6 wherein the network-based device being further operable to initiate a telephone call between the payment application and the user, wherein a payment transaction is completed through the telephone call.

10. The system of claim 8 wherein the telephone call is via Voice Over Internet Protocol.

11. The system of claim 6 wherein the payment transaction request is selected from a group including a purchase request and a request for a payment.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the network-based device being further operable to display to the user a promotion published by the third party, wherein the promotion is associated with the purchase request.

13. The system of claim 6 wherein the network-based device is selected from a group including a mobile device, a palmtop computer, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a personal digital assistant, a cellular telephone, a communications device, a wireless telephone, a land-line telephone, a speaker telephone, a control system, a camera, a scanner, a reader, a television, cable, a facsimile machine, a printer, a pager, and a personal trusted device.

14. The system of claim 6 further comprising a database with payment information associated with the user and with an address destination associated with the user, wherein the database is accessible by the payment application.

15. The system of claim 6 wherein the messaging interface is to receive a user identifier associated with the network-based device, and wherein the payment application is to determine an identity of the user utilizing the user identifier.

16. The system of claim 6 wherein the payment is in connection with the request and the payment application is to debit a user account and is to credit a third party account, accordingly.

17. A method comprising:

receiving a request at a financial service provider from a network-based device via a messaging interface facilitating substantially instant communication over a network, the network-based device being associated with a user, the request being associated with a third party; and

responsive to receiving the request, transferring a payment from the user to the third party via the financial service provider.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising publishing status notifications to the user in a messaging pane of the messaging interface.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein transferring the payment includes the financial service provider debiting an account associated with the user and crediting an account associated with the third party.

20. The method of claim 17 wherein the financial service provider verifies the request and sends associated order information to the third party.

21. The method of claim 17 further comprising determining a user identification at the financial service provider upon receipt of a user identifier associated with the network-based device.

22. The method of claim 17 further comprising using an instant messaging service to communicate the request.

23. The method of claim 17 further comprising using Voice Over Internet Protocol to communicate the request.

24. The method of claim 17 further comprising executing an application on the network-based device, wherein the application is associated with the financial service provider, and submitting the request in response to a prompt associated with the application.

25. The method of claim 17 further comprising providing information selected from a group including shipment information and payment confirmation information from the financial service provider to the third party, responsive to receiving the request.

26. An article of manufacture comprising at least one machine readable storage medium having one or more computer programs stored thereon and operable on one or more computing systems to:

receive a request at a financial service provider from a network-based device via a messaging interface facilitating substantially instant communication over a network, the network-based device being associated with a user, the request being associated with a third party; and

responsive to receiving the request, transfer a payment from the user to the third party via the financial service provider

27. A system comprising:

means for receiving a request at a financial service provider from a network-based device via a messaging interface, the network-based device being associated with a user, the request being associated with a third party, the messaging interface to facilitate substantially instant communication over a network; and

responsive to receiving the request, means for transferring a payment from the user to the third party via the financial service provider.

28. The system of claim 27 wherein the means for receiving includes the messaging interface, wherein the means for transferring includes a payment application.

29. The system of claim 27 further comprising means for sending information, selected from a group including shipment information and payment confirmation, to the third party.