Ticket tracking, reminding, and redeeming system and method

• US 7,529,681 B2
• Filed: 11/14/2002
• Issued: 05/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Liberty Peak Ventures, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. (American Express Company)
• Inventors: Steury, Lisa, Rediess, Meg, Barnes, Robert G., Warner, Warren P., Espinosa, Diego
• Primary Examiner(s): Weiss, John G
• Assistant Examiner(s): Meyers, Matthew S
• Application Number:
  US10/294,930
• Publication Number:
  US 20040010427A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,364 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/50, 705/77, 705/80
• US Class Current: 705/5
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/025 Coordination of plural reservations, e.g. plural trip segments, transportation combined with accommodation

Abstract

An automated method and system for facilitating timely use and/or redemption of the unused portion of an electronic ticket are provided. In accordance with the method, an aging period is set and is added to the scheduled departure date of the issued ticket, and a reminder period is set and subtracted from the scheduled date of a ticket. If the scheduled departure date plus the aging date is earlier than the current date, a determination is made as to whether the ticket has been used. If the scheduled date minus the reminder period is earlier than the current date, then a message is communicated to the traveler reminding him to use or redeem the ticket. A residual value of the ticket is calculated and communicated to a client to facilitate redemption of the unused ticket and issuance of appropriate redemption credit.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for facilitating automated redemption of an unused electronic ticket, comprising the steps of:

setting, via a computer system, an aging period;

identifying, via a computer system, a scheduled date of an issued ticket;

adding, via a computer system, the aging period to the scheduled date and, if the scheduled date plus the aging period is earlier than a current date, determining, via a computer system, whether all or a portion of the issued ticket is unused; and

if all or a portion of the issued ticket has not been used,

comparing, via a computer system, information in an invoice table and a central reservation system database to determine at least one of a use of the issued ticket and a change to the issued ticket, the comparing forming comparison data;

calculating, via a computer system, a residual value of the ticket based on a contract term associated with the ticket and any changes to the issued ticket or partial use of the issued ticket as indicated by the comparison data;

determining, via a computer system, an offer to redeem the issued ticket based on the residual value and a contract term associated with the ticket, the offer not including a refund; and

presenting, via a computer system, the offer to redeem the issued ticket.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of setting a benchmark value, wherein said step of presenting is performed only if the residual value of the ticket is not less than the benchmark value.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of setting a benchmark value and determining, via a computer system, a quantity representing a number of tickets having a residual value that is less than the benchmark value.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising the step of notifying the client of the quantity.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic ticket comprises a plurality of data fields and wherein said step of calculating, comprises the steps of communicating the data fields to a customer service tool and receiving a redemption value from the customer service tool.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the client is a ticket reservation system.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the client is a point of sale office.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the client is a global distribution system.

9. A system for redeeming an unused electronic ticket, comprising:

a first database containing information on activities scheduled and ticketed;

a second database containing information on tickets issued for the activities;

a third database containing information on selected ones of the tickets for activities having a schedule date more than a predetermined period of time prior to a current date;

means for determining from the information in said second database whether all or a portion of each of the selected ones of the tickets are unused;

means for comparing information in an invoice table and a central reservation system database to determine at least one of a use of each of the selected ones of the tickets and a change to each of the selected ones of the tickets, the comparing forming comparison data;

means for calculating a residual value of each of the selected ones of the tickets based on a contract term associated with each of the selected ones of the tickets, and any changes to each of the selected ones of the tickets or partial use of each of the selected ones of the tickets, respectively, as indicated by the comparison data;

means for determining offers to redeem each of the selected ones of the tickets based on the residual value of each of the selected ones of the tickets and a contract term associated with each of the selected ones of the tickets, respectively, the offers not including a refund; and

means for redeeming the offers.

10. A computer-implemented method for facilitating timely use of an electronic ticket, comprising the steps of:

setting, via a computer system, a reminder period;

identifying, via a computer system, a scheduled date of an issued ticket; and

subtracting, via computer a system, a reminder period from the scheduled date and, if the scheduled date minus the reminder period is earlier than a current date, determining, via a computer system, whether all or a portion of the issued ticket is unused; and

if all or a portion of the issued ticket has not been used,

comparing, via a computer system, information in an invoice table and a central reservation system database to determine at least one of a use of the issued ticket and a change to the issued ticket, the comparing forming comparison data;

calculating, via a computer system, a residual value of the issued ticket based on a contract term associated with the issued ticket and any changes to the issued ticket or partial use of the issued ticket as indicated by the comparison data;

determining, via a computer system, an offer to redeem the issued ticket based on the residual value and a contract term associated with the issued ticket, the offer not including a refund; and

presenting, via a computer system, the offer to redeem the issued ticket.

11. A computer-implemented system for facilitating automated redemption of an unused electronic ticket, comprising:

means for setting, via a computer, an aging period;

means for identifying, via a computer, a scheduled date of an issued ticket;

means for adding, via a computer, the aging period to the scheduled date and, if the scheduled date plus the aging period is earlier than a current date, determining whether all or a portion of the issued ticket is unused; and

if all or a portion of the issued ticket has not been used,

means for comparing information in an invoice table and a central reservation system database to determine at least one of a use of the issued ticket and a change to the issued ticket, the comparing forming comparison data;

means for calculating a residual value of the issued ticket based on a contract term associated with the issued ticket and any changes to the issued ticket or partial use of the issued ticket as indicated by the comparison data;

means for determining an offer to redeem the issued ticket based on the residual value and a contract term associated with the issued ticket, the offer not including a refund; and

means for presenting the offer to redeem the issued ticket.

12. A computer-implemented system for facilitating timely use of an electronic ticket, comprising:

means for setting, via a computer, a reminder period;

means for identifying, via a computer, a scheduled date of an issued ticket; and

means for subtracting, via computer a system, a reminder period from the scheduled date and, if the scheduled date minus the reminder period is earlier than a current date, determining whether all or a portion of the issued ticket is unused; and

if all or a portion of the issued ticket has not been used,

means for comparing information in an invoice table and a central reservation system database to determine at least one of a use of the issued ticket and a change to the issued ticket, the comparing forming comparison data;

means for calculating a residual value of the issued ticket based on a contract term associated with the issued ticket and any changes to the issued ticket or partial use of the issued ticket as indicated by the comparison data;

means for determining an offer to redeem the issued ticket based on the residual value and a contract term associated with the issued ticket, the offer not including a refund; and

means for presenting the offer to redeem the issued ticket.