Charge number issuing and transaction system and method

• US 7,814,018 B1
• Filed: 09/14/2000
• Issued: 10/12/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/27/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NetSpend Corporation (Global Payments Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: NetSpend Corporation (Global Payments Incorporated)
• Inventors: Sosa, Rogelio, Sosa, Bertrand
• Primary Examiner(s): Colbert; Ella
• Application Number:
  US09/662,222
• Time in Patent Office: 3,680 Days
• Field of Search: 705/35, 705/39, 705/44, 705/28, 705/41, 705/1, 705/26, 705/43, 705/65, 235/380
• US Class Current: 705/43
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/1085 involving automatic teller machines [ATMs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/48 Message addressing, e.g. address format or anonymous messages, aliases

Abstract

A charge number issuing and transaction system providing a universally acceptable, anonymous and secure payment option. An issuing and transaction system receives a bin of valid purchase numbers from an issuing bank, establishes a prepaid cash account for a user, detects a request for a charge number by the user, and provides a valid purchase number via a computer or telephonic network. The user may then consummate a pending transaction or a subsequent transaction via the network using the provided purchase number. The transaction is cleared through a charge settlement network. The issuing and transaction system may be pre-certified as processor for the purchase numbers, where the charge settlement network routes the purchase transaction back to the issuing and transaction system for verification, authorization and settlement. The issuing and transaction system may generate and provide a valid expiration date and may further expire each purchase number after being used.

Claims

1. A method of issuing and transacting charge numbers using an electronic communications network, comprising:

receiving, a plurality of valid charge numbers from an issuing bank, wherein each valid charge number is acceptable to any entity that accepts valid charge numbers that are provided to and routed by the charge settlement network for validating transactions;

storing, the plurality of valid charge numbers;

establishing a prepaid cash account for a user in exchange for cash;

detecting a request by a user via the electronic communications network for a valid charge number;

associating one of the plurality of valid charge numbers with the prepaid cash account;

providing, via the electronic communications network, the associated valid charge number in response to the request;

detecting, via the charge settlement network, a purchase transaction using the associated valid charge number between the user and a merchant; and

authorizing the purchase transaction if a cash balance of the prepaid cash account is sufficient for a purchase amount of the purchase transaction.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the associated valid charge number comprises providing the associated valid charge number to the user.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the detecting a request comprises detecting an online purchase transaction between an online merchant and the user via a computer communications network.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the associated valid charge number comprises providing the associated valid charge number to the user via a telephonic network.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

the detecting a request comprises detecting an online purchase transaction between an online merchant and the user via a computer communications network; and

the providing the associated valid charge number comprises providing the associated valid charge number to the online merchant via the computer communications network.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

expiring the associated one of the plurality of valid charge numbers after being used to consummate the purchase transaction.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing a plurality of valid charge numbers via the electronic communications network;

detecting a plurality of provided valid charge numbers used to consummate a corresponding plurality of purchase transactions; and

expiring each of the plurality of provided valid charge numbers after being used to consummate the plurality of purchase transactions.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

clearing, by a merchant, the purchase transaction via a charge settlement network.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

settling, by a merchant processor associated with the merchant, the purchase transaction through the charge settlement network.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

deducting, by the merchant processor, a merchant discount for the merchant.

11. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

routing, by the charge settlement network, the associated one of the plurality of valid charge numbers to a predetermined processor for the plurality of valid charge numbers.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

pre-certifying, by an issuing bank, a valid charge number issuer as the processor for the plurality of valid charge numbers; and

the routing comprising routing the associated one of the plurality of valid charge numbers to the valid charge number issuer.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the authorizing comprises returning authorization information via the charge settlement network.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

clearing, by a merchant via a charge settlement network, the associated valid charge number employed to consummate the purchase transaction;

routing, by the charge settlement network, purchase transaction information including the associated valid charge number; and

processing the purchase transaction information.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the processing further comprises:

verifying a charge number received via the charge settlement network with the associated valid charge number.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

generating a valid expiration date corresponding to the associated valid charge number;

providing, via the electronic communications network, the corresponding valid expiration date with the associated valid charge number; and

the processing further comprising verifying an expiration date received via the charge settlement network with the corresponding valid expiration date.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the processing further comprises:

comparing a purchase amount received via the charge settlement network with a corresponding cash balance.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

authorizing and settling the purchase transaction.

19. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

authorizing and settling a plurality of purchase transactions, each associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of valid charge numbers; and

sending a plurality of settled purchase transactions to a sponsoring bank via an automated clearing house (ACH) batch transfer.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

settling, by the sponsoring bank, the plurality of purchase transactions.

21. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

the detecting of a request comprises detecting an online purchase transaction between an online merchant and the user via a computer communications network; and

establishing an email account that includes communication between the online merchant and the user via the computer communications network.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

generating an email address linked to a prepaid cash account associated with the user; and

providing the email address to the online merchant during the purchase transaction.

23. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating a valid expiration date for the associated valid charge number; and

providing, via the electronic communications network, the valid expiration date with the associated valid charge number.

24. A charge number issuing and transaction system for issuing and authorizing valid charge numbers via an electronic communications network, comprising:

a storage device that stores a plurality of valid charge numbers issued by an issuing bank and an accounts database including at least one prepaid cash account associated with the user, wherein each of the plurality of valid charge numbers is acceptable to any entity that accepts valid charge numbers that are provided to a charge settlement network and routed by the charge settlement network for validating transactions;

a network system for coupling to and communicating with the electronic communications network and the charge settlement network; and

an issuing and transaction system, coupled to the storage device and the network system, that detects a request by a user for a charge number via the electronic communications network and that issues a selected one of the plurality of valid charge numbers via the electronic communications network in response to the request, wherein the issuing and transaction system is configured to authorize a purchase transaction submitted for authorization with the selected valid charge number via the charge settlement network if a cash balance in a prepaid cash account associated with the user is sufficient to cover a purchase amount of the purchase transaction.

25. The charge number issuing system of claim 24, wherein the issuing and transaction system provides the selected valid charge number to the user.

26. The charge number issuing system of claim 25, further comprising:

the network system including a telephonic communications system for interfacing a telephonic network; and

the issuing and transaction system providing the selected valid charge number to the user via the telephonic network.

27. The charge number issuing system of claim 24, further comprising:

the network system including a computer communications system for interfacing a computer communications network; and

the issuing and transaction system providing the selected valid charge number to an online merchant via the computer communications network to consummate an online purchase transaction with an online merchant for the user.

28. The charge number issuing system of claim 24, further comprising:

a processor system, coupled to the issuing and transaction system, for coupling to and communicating with the charge settlement network; and

the processor system configured to process transactions utilizing any of the plurality of valid charge numbers entered for clearance via the charge settlement network.

29. The charge number issuing system of claim 28, wherein the issuing and transaction system is configured to verify that a charge number received via the charge settlement network is a selected valid charge number provided via the electronic communications network.

30. The charge number issuing system of claim 28, wherein the charge settlement network comprises an electronic funds transfer (EFT) network.

31. The charge number issuing system of claim 24, further comprising:

the processor system configured to return authorization information via the charge settlement network if the purchase transaction is approved.

32. The charge number issuing system of claim 24, further comprising:

the issuing and transaction system configured to generate a valid expiration date to correspond with the selected valid charge number and to provide the corresponding valid expiration date with the selected valid charge number via the electronic communications network; and

the issuing and transaction system configured to verify that an expiration date received via the charge settlement network is the same as the corresponding valid expiration date.

33. The charge number issuing system of claim 24, further comprising:

the issuing and transaction system expiring the selected valid charge number after authorizing a purchase transaction using the selected valid charge number; and

the storage device storing the expired selected valid charge number in an expired charge number database.

34. The charge number issuing system of claim 24, further comprising:

the issuing and transaction system providing the selected valid charge number to consummate an online transaction between the user and an online merchant; and

an email system, coupled to the issuing and transaction system and the storage device, that includes email communication between the user and the online merchant.

35. The charge number issuing system of claim 34, wherein the email system comprises:

an email processor, coupled to the issuing and transaction system, that generates an email address and that provides the generated email address to the online merchant.

36. The charge number issuing system of claim 35, wherein the email system further comprises:

an email database, stored by the storage device, that further stores generated email addresses.

37. The charge number issuing system of claim 36, further comprising:

the storage device storing an accounts database including at least one prepaid cash account associated with the user; and

the email system associating at least one email address to the at least one prepaid cash account of the user.

38. A charge number issuing and transaction system for issuing valid charge numbers via an electronic communications network and for transacting the valid charge numbers via a charge settlement network, comprising:

an issuing and transaction system, comprising;

a storage device that stores a plurality of valid charge numbers issued by an issuing bank and that stores an accounts database including at least one prepaid cash account, wherein each of the plurality of valid charge numbers is acceptable to any entity that accepts valid charge numbers that are provided to the charge settlement network and routed by the charge settlement network for validating transactions;

a communication system for coupling to and communicating with the electronic communications network and the charge settlement network;

a transaction system, coupled to the storage device and the communication system, that detects requests for charge numbers via the electronic communications network, that provides a selected one of the plurality of valid charge numbers via the electronic communications network in response to the request, and that is configured to authorize a purchase transaction submitted for authorization via the charge settlement network with a selected one of the plurality of valid charge numbers if a cash balance in a prepaid cash account is sufficient to cover a purchase amount of the purchase transaction; and

a processor system, coupled to the transaction system, for coupling to and enabling communications with the charge settlement network; and

a switch network, for coupling to the charge settlement network, that routes any of the plurality of valid charge numbers entered into the charge settlement network to the issuing and transaction system for processing.

39. The charge number issuing and transaction system of claim 38, further comprising:

the storage device storing each valid charge number that has been utilized to consummate a single purchase transaction in an expired charge number database.

40. The charge number issuing and transaction system of claim 38, further comprising:

an email system, coupled to the transaction system and the storage device, that includes email communication with online merchants that conduct online purchase transactions via the electronic communications network.

41. The charge number issuing and transaction system of claim 40, wherein the email system comprises:

an email processor, coupled to the transaction system, that generates an email addresses; and

an email database, stored by the storage device, that stores the generated email addresses.

42. The charge number issuing and transaction system of claim 38, further comprising:

the transaction system generating a valid expiration date to correspond with the selected valid charge number and providing the corresponding valid expiration date with the selected valid charge number via the electronic communications network; and

the transaction system configured to authorize a purchase transaction submitted for authorization via the charge settlement network if a charge number received by the processing system is the same as the selected valid charge number and if an expiration date received by the processing system is the same as the corresponding valid expiration date.

43. The charge number issuing and transaction system of claim 38, wherein the communication system further comprises:

a computer network communications system for interfacing a computer communications network; and

a telephonic communications system for interfacing a telephonic network.