Coupon bearing sponsor account transaction authorization

• US 8,965,810 B2
• Filed: 04/14/2014
• Issued: 02/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Visa USA, Inc. (Visa, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Visa USA, Inc. (Visa, Inc.)
• Inventors: Cervenka, Karen Louise, Taylor, Mary Theresa, Ma, Gwen Diane
• Primary Examiner(s): CHEUNG, CALVIN K
• Application Number:
  US14/252,435
• Publication Number:
  US 20140229260A1
• Time in Patent Office: 316 Days
• Field of Search: 705/50, 705/64, 705/67
• US Class Current: 705/64
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3274 using a pictured code, e.g. barcode or QR-code, being displayed on the M-device
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/387 Payment using discounts or coupons relating to marketing G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 Commerce
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0222 During e-commerce, i.e. online transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0225 Avoiding frauds
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0238 at point-of-sale [POS]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4878 Advertisement messages

Abstract

A transaction handler receives, for forwarding to a sponsor account'"'"'s issuer, a coupon authorization request message from a merchant'"'"'s acquirer that identifies the sponsor account and a coupon for an item being purchased by a consumer in a transaction with the merchant. The issuer determines eligibility of the coupon for use by the consumer, and sends an authorization response message to the merchant via its acquirer and the transaction handler for the application of a corresponding discount for the item when the coupon is eligible. One or more coupon eligibilities for the purchase of the item by the consumer from the merchant can be derived from comparisons of the transaction to predetermined times, geographies, jurisdictions, sets of merchants, and/or the number of times that coupons have been used in other transactions. The transaction handler can further process the transaction for authorization the consumer'"'"'s account to pay of the transaction.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

sending, from a computing device of a transaction handler of a payment processing network, a coupon authorization request message to an issuer of a sponsor account for a coupon to be used with a purchase from a merchant;

receiving, in the computing device and in response to the coupon authorization request message, a coupon authorization response message from the issuer of the sponsor account;

receiving, in the computing device and from the merchant, a consumer authorization request message identifying a consumer account for a payment transaction between a consumer and the merchant for the purchase;

sending, from the computing device, a consumer authorization request message to an issuer of the consumer account for the payment transaction;

receiving, in the computing device and in response to the consumer authorization request message to the issuer of the consumer account, a consumer authorization response message from the issuer of the consumer account; and

communicating, from the computing device, authorization data to the merchant for the purchase, in accordance with the consumer authorization response message and the coupon authorization response message.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the communicating of the authorization data comprises:

sending, from the computing device, the consumer authorization response message to the merchant; and

sending, from the computing device, the coupon authorization response message to the merchant.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the sending of the consumer authorization response message to the merchant is in response to the receiving of the consumer authorization response message from the issuer of the consumer account.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the sending of the coupon authorization response message to the merchant is in response to the receiving of the coupon authorization response message from the issuer of the sponsor account.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the issuer of the consumer account is different from the issuer of the sponsor account.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, in the computing device from the merchant, the coupon authorization request message for using the coupon with the payment transaction.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the coupon authorization request message is received from the merchant via an acquirer.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the consumer authorization request message is received from the merchant via the acquirer.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the coupon authorization request message received in the computing device identifies the sponsor account.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein the coupon authorization request message received in the computing device requests to charge the sponsor account an amount in accordance with the coupon.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving of the consumer authorization request message from the merchant follows the receiving of the coupon authorization response message from the issuer of the sponsor account.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein a transaction amount of the payment transaction in the consumer account is a result of applying a discount according to the coupon to the purchase from the merchant.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

clearing and settling, by the computing device, a transaction between the merchant and the sponsor account for a discount provided by the coupon.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the coupon authorization request message requests to charge the sponsor account an amount in accordance with the coupon.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein a transaction amount requested in the consumer authorization request message sent to the issuer of the consumer account includes a discount provided to the purchase according to the coupon.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the transaction amount is computed by a point of service terminal of the merchant in response to the coupon authorization response message.

17. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions configured to instruct a computing device of a transaction handler of a payment processing network to perform a method, the method comprising:

sending, from the computing device of the transaction handler of the payment processing network, a coupon authorization request message to an issuer of a sponsor account for a coupon to be used with a purchase from a merchant;

receiving, in the computing device and in response to the coupon authorization request message, a coupon authorization response message from the issuer of the sponsor account;

sending, from the computing device, a consumer authorization request message to an issuer of a consumer account for a payment transaction between a consumer and the merchant for the purchase;

receiving, in the computing device and in response to the consumer authorization request message to the issuer of the consumer account, a consumer authorization response message from the issuer of the consumer account; and

communicating, from the computing device, authorization data to the merchant for the purchase, in accordance with the consumer authorization response message and the coupon authorization response message.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the coupon provides a discount, a transaction amount request by the consumer authorization request message to the issuer of the consumer account includes the discount applied to the purchase, and the coupon authorization request message requests to charge the sponsor account for the discount in accordance with the coupon.

19. A computing device, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory storing instructions configured to instruct the processor to perform operations of a transaction handler of a payment processing network, the operations including;

sending, from the computing device, a coupon authorization request message to an issuer of a sponsor account for a coupon to be used with a purchase from a merchant;

receiving, in the computing device and in response to the coupon authorization request message, a coupon authorization response message from the issuer of the sponsor account;

sending, from the computing device, a consumer authorization request message to an issuer of a consumer account for a payment transaction between a consumer and the merchant for the purchase;

receiving, in the computing device and in response to the consumer authorization request message to the issuer of the consumer account, a consumer authorization response message from the issuer of the consumer account; and

communicating, from the computing device, authorization data to the merchant for the purchase, in accordance with the consumer authorization response message and the coupon authorization response message.

20. The computing device of claim 19, wherein a transaction amount request by the consumer authorization request message to the issuer of the consumer account includes a benefit of the coupon, and the coupon authorization request message charges the sponsor account for the benefit of the coupon.