U.S. patent application number 09/863867 was filed with the patent office on 2002-08-29 for distributed information methods and systems used to collect and correlate user information and preferences with products and services.
Invention is credited to Hawkins, Campbell, Martin, Jeffrey W..
Application Number | 20020120519 09/863867 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 26901509 |
Filed Date | 2002-08-29 |
United States Patent
Application |
20020120519 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Martin, Jeffrey W. ; et
al. |
August 29, 2002 |
Distributed information methods and systems used to collect and
correlate user information and preferences with products and
services
Abstract
The present invention is related to a distributed information
system used to collect and correlate user information with products
and services. One method in accordance with the present invention
comprises providing a first terminal in a store which is networked
to a server having item and services databases, receiving an
indication from a customer that the customer wants to purchase a
first item-type, receiving profile information related to the
first-item type from the customer, and based on the profile
information, selecting a plurality of items from the item database
corresponding to the first item-type and a plurality of related
services of a first service type from the services database. The
method further comprises providing a ranking the selected plurality
of items and related services, and receiving an order for at least
one of the ranked selected plurality of items and at least one of
the related services.
Inventors: |
Martin, Jeffrey W.;
(Pasadena, CA) ; Hawkins, Campbell; (Pasadena,
CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
KNOBBE MARTENS OLSON & BEAR LLP
620 NEWPORT CENTER DRIVE
SIXTEENTH FLOOR
NEWPORT BEACH
CA
92660
US
|
Family ID: |
26901509 |
Appl. No.: |
09/863867 |
Filed: |
May 23, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60206609 |
May 23, 2000 |
|
|
|
60254075 |
Dec 7, 2000 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
705/21 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04W 4/24 20130101; H04W
84/042 20130101; H04W 4/00 20130101; G06Q 40/04 20130101; H04W
28/24 20130101; H04W 4/06 20130101; H04W 8/18 20130101; G06Q 20/202
20130101; H04W 16/18 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/21 |
International
Class: |
G06F 017/60 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A method of providing items and related services in a physical
store, the method comprising: providing a first terminal in the
store; networking the first terminal to a server having an item
database and a services database; receiving an indication from a
first customer that the first customer wants to purchase a first
item-type; receiving profile information related to the first-item
type from the first customer using the first terminal; based on the
profile information, selecting a plurality of items from the item
database corresponding to the first item-type and a plurality of
related services of a first service type from the services
database; ranking the selected plurality of items and related
services; presenting information on the ranked selected plurality
of items and related services to the customer on the first
terminal; receiving an order for at least one of the ranked
selected plurality of items and at least one of the related
services; providing the ordered item to the customer in the store;
and activating the ordered service.
2. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the service is
activated while the customer is in the store.
3. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising inspecting
the store inventory of at least the selected plurality of items to
determine which of the selected plurality of items are currently
available within the store.
4. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the item-type is a
cellular phone and the service is cellular phone service.
5. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the item-type is an
appliance and the service is at least one of an electricity and gas
service.
6. The method as defined in claim 1 further comprising: receiving
an order for a product via a terminal located external to the
physical store from a second customer; and when the second customer
visits the physical store, delivering the ordered product to the
second customer.
7. The method as defined in claim 1, where the first terminal is a
wireless terminal.
8. The method as defined in claim 1, where the first terminal is
the customer's personal digital assistant.
9. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the server is coupled
to receive item information from at least one of an item
manufacturer and an item wholesaler.
10. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the server is coupled
to receive service information from a service provider.
11. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising printing
out a order form at the first terminal, the order form including at
least a first bar code corresponding to the ordered item.
12. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising printing
out a order form at the first terminal, the order form including at
least a first bar code corresponding to the ordered item and at
least a second bar code for a related item not ordered by the
customer.
13. A networked provisioning system, comprising: a first terminal
located in a store, the first terminal configured to receive
customer profile information and a customer request for information
on at least a first item-type; a first computer system configured
to receive customer profile information and the customer request
from the first terminal, product information over a network from a
product provider computer system, and service information over the
network from a service provider computer system, wherein the
product information is related to the first item-type, and to store
the received customer profile information, product information, and
service information in at least a first database; a first module
stored in the first computer system, the first module configured to
select product information and service information and rank
products corresponding to the product information and services
corresponding to the service information based on at least the
customer profile information and the customer request; a second
module stored in the first computer system configured to receive at
least a portion of the selected product information, service
information, and rankings and to transmit the received selected
product information, service information, and rankings to the first
terminal; and a third module stored in the first computer system
configured to receive an order from the customer for at least a
first product related to the transmitted selected product
information and further configured to instruct at least a first
store employee to provide the ordered item to the customer.
14. The networked provisioning system as defined in claim 13,
further comprising a customer relationship management module
configured to provide automated marketing to the customer.
15. The networked provisioning system as defined in claim 13,
further comprising an affiliate module, configured to determine if
the customer is entitled to a discount intended for members of a
first organization.
16. The networked provisioning system as defined in claim 13,
further comprising an interface configuration module configured to
store customized Web pages for a plurality of different stores.
17. The networked provisioning system as defined in claim 13,
further comprising at least one of a downloadable phone ringer
tone, image and icon stored on said first terminal for downloading
to an item corresponding to the first item-type.
18. The networked provisioning system as defined in claim 13,
further comprising at least a first instruction configured to offer
the customer at least one of goods and services related to the
first product without the customer asking for information on the at
least one of goods and services.
19. A networked provisioning system, comprising: a first
instruction configured to be stored on a terminal located in a
store, the first instruction configured to receive customer profile
information and a customer request for information related to at
least one of a first product and a first service; a second
instruction configured to be stored on a first computer system, the
second instruction configured to receive information from the first
terminal, including customer profile information and the request
for information related to at least one of the first product and
the first service; a third instruction configured to receive
product information over a network from a product provider computer
system, and service information over the network from a service
provider computer system, including information related to the at
least one of a first product and a first service; a fourth
instruction configured to selectively transmit to the first
terminal at least portions of at least one of the product
information and the service information; a fifth instruction
configured to rank at least one of products corresponding to the
product information and services corresponding to the service
information based on at least the customer profile information and
the customer request; a sixth instruction configured to provide
ranking information to the first terminal; a seventh instruction
configured to transmit an offer of service corresponding to the
first product in response to at least one of the customer
requesting information on the first product and ordering the first
product; and an eighth instruction configured to activate service
corresponding to the offered service at least partly in response to
the customer accepting the offer.
20. The networked provisioning system as defined in 19, further
comprising a ninth instruction configured to determine if the first
product is available within the store.
21. The networked provisioning system as defined in 19, wherein the
terminal is a wireless terminal.
22. The networked provisioning system as defined in 19, wherein the
terminal is owned by the customer.
23. The networked provisioning system as defined in 19, wherein the
terminal is owned by the store.
24. The networked provisioning system as defined in 19, wherein the
first product is a phone.
25. The networked provisioning system as defined in 19, wherein the
first service is cellular service.
26. The networked provisioning system as defined in 19, wherein the
first product is a kitchen appliance.
27. The networked provisioning system as defined in 19, wherein the
first service is electrical service.
Description
PRIORITY CLAIM
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Application No. 60/206,609, filed May 23, 2000 and U.S. Provisional
Application No. 60/254,075, filed Dec. 7, 2000, which are
incorporated herein in their entirety.
Background of the Invention
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention is related to telecommunications, and
in particular to correlating telecommunications infrastructures
with infrastructure usage.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] Service providers, such as cellular phone service providers,
may be licensed to provide service within specific areas. The
service providers install or lease telecommunications
infrastructure, such as cellular antennas, within the licensed
service areas. The location and density of the infrastructure can
be critical in determining the quality of service that the provider
has in a given area. Disadvantageously, service users do not have
adequate access to or an understanding of such infrastructure
information and so cannot adequately evaluate the
telecommunications service provider's quality of service. Thus,
users contract for telecommunications services before knowing the
level of service that they will be receiving. Only after
contracting for and utilizing the telecommunication service, can
the user determine whether the service provider's telecommunication
infrastructure, and hence service, meets the user's needs.
[0006] Other problems exist in providing appropriate services. Many
industries, such as the telecommunications industry and the energy
industry, have undergone extensive deregulation. While deregulation
should theoretically lower costs to consumers, for many services,
such as electricity, retail customers lack the information and
tools needed to make informed pricing and service decisions. Thus,
many customers have not taken advantage of deregulation, depriving
them of cost savings and/or improved service.
[0007] Similarly, providers, such as electricity or
telecommunications providers, have not had a cost effective method
of identifying and targeting desirable customers. Thus, service
providers have not been able to effectively compete with a
customer's existing or incumbent provider, and so have been
deprived of meaningful opportunities to enter new markets and
acquire new customers.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] The present invention is related to methods and systems for
correlating user needs with providers' goods and services, such as
offered by utility and telecommunications providers. In accordance
with one embodiment of the present invention, a distributed
information system provides users, service providers, and
distributors with sufficient information to enable them to make
informed decisions before entering into contractual
relationships.
[0009] Advantageously, the distributed information system provides
consumers with substantially real-time information at the point of
sale, ensuring that a consumer's requirements or preferences are
correlated with the services and/or products being acquired.
[0010] One embodiment of the present invention provides utility
suppliers with information related to consumers of utility services
or products, such as electricity, gas, water, telecommunication
services (including, but not limited to wireless services, cellular
services, paging services, and wired phone services), cable,
broadband services (including, but not limited to ADSL, DSL, T1,
satellite, and cable services), heating oil, and other related
products and services. Based on the consumer information, one or
more suppliers may generate offers to provide the products and
services to consumers, which are then provided to the consumers.
More generally, one embodiment of the present invention may be used
to facilitate deals between suppliers and purchasers of products
and services, where the price of the products or services are based
at least in part on a given customer's characteristics or
preferences. These customer characteristics may relate to, by way
of example, the customer usage of a product or service, such as
customer's usage amount, usage location, and time of usage, and/or
to financial characteristics, including credit worthiness, payment
history, assets, debt, and related characteristics. Such products
and services may include leases, mortgages, insurance, investment
instruments, and the like.
[0011] Advantageously, one embodiment of the present invention acts
as a neutral market maker for services, such as utility services,
allowing consumers and utility providers to be better and more
efficiently matched. A plurality of consumer profiles are
generated, and based on these profiles a supplier may select an
individual consumer and/or define a subset of consumers and bid to
supply service or services to the individual consumer or that
consumer subset.
[0012] In one embodiment, consumers' identities are not revealed to
suppliers during the bidding process to thereby protect consumers'
privacy. In addition, the identity of suppliers may likewise not be
revealed to consumers, to keep suppliers' bidding strategies and
pricing structure secret.
[0013] In still another embodiment, information from the consumer
may be collected via a terminal located at a conventional,
physical, "bricks and mortar" store. Thus, as similarly described
above, consumer data, including preferences and/or usage data, is
collected and based at least in part on the preferences and/or
usage information, offers and related information may be generated
specifically for the consumer. The information and offers may then
be provided to the consumer via the store terminal. For example,
the consumer may be presented with a list of products and/or
services ranked based upon the consumer data. This advantageously
allows the store to customize and selectively offer to consumers
both products and related services. Based on the ranked list, the
consumer can quickly locate and order the most suitable products
and/or services. In addition, the store can optionally provide the
product and/or activate the related services before the consumer
leaves the store.
[0014] In one embodiment, a quality of service application helps
users select the service provider that offers the most suitable
service. For example, one such quality of service (QOS) application
aids users select the telecommunications service provider with the
most suitable telecommunications infrastructure, including the most
suitable placement and density of antennas for the users needs. The
customer is asked by the QOS application for information related to
the user's present or anticipated service and/or product
utilization patterns. For example, with respect to cellular
service, the customer is presented with a service area usage form,
wherein the customer specifies where the customer intends to use a
cellular phone or other similar telecommunications device. The form
may be displayed on a touch sensitive terminal installed in a
retail site or on a conventional end-user terminal in the user's
home or business. The form, by way of example, can include a map of
an area of interest.
[0015] Major cellular service areas are indicated on the map.
Optionally, the name of a city or town located within or adjacent
to a given service area may be displayed in conjunction with the
service area indicator. The user is asked to select which service
areas the customer intends to typically use their cellular phone
in. The selected circles are highlighted, filed in, or otherwise
emphasized. The user can then submit or verify the selection.
[0016] Next, a more detailed map of a first of the selected service
areas, and optionally, adjacent areas, is presented. The map may
show, for example, the local cities and towns within or adjacent to
the selected circled area. With finer granularity, the user can
select in which of these local areas the user intends to use the
cellular phone in. The selected areas are highlighted, filed in, or
otherwise emphasized. The user can then submit or verify the
selection or selections.
[0017] Once the user selects the local areas of interest, the user
can indicate which routes the user typically travels on. The
displayed routes can include major and secondary highways, as well
as streets, subways, trains, ferries, and other routes. The user
can then select or indicate which routes the user typically uses.
The selected routes are then further highlighted or otherwise
emphasized by changing the color of the selected routes, flashing
the routes, outlining the routes in bold, or using other emphasis
techniques. The user can then submit the selection or selections.
Next, a view of the communication infrastructure, in the form of
cellular antenna placement and/or coverage, along the selected
routes for different service providers, is provided to the user.
The user can then select the most appropriate service provider.
[0018] In one embodiment, an infrastructure database is provided.
The infrastructure database includes information on the locations
and types of infrastructure maintained by a service provider, and
other indicators of service area coverage and the quality of
service for each service provider. For example, the location and
types of cellular antennas maintained or operated by a cellular
service provider can be stored in the infrastructure database.
[0019] One aspect of the present invention is a method of
facilitating the bidding process over a network for the supply of
utility services, the method comprising: receiving over a network
individual historical utility consumption and use information for
corresponding service consumers; generating individual profiles,
based at least in part on the historical consumption and use
information, for at least a first portion of the consumers;
providing over the network information corresponding to the
individual profiles to at least a first utility service supplier;
receiving a bid from the first utility supplier to supply utility
service to at least a first consumer in the first portion of
consumers; and providing the bid to at least a first recipient.
[0020] Another aspect of the present invention is a method of
facilitating the bidding process for the supply of services, the
method comprising: receiving historical service usage information
for a plurality of consumers; generating individual profiles, based
at least in part on the service usage information, for at least a
first portion of the plurality of consumers; selectively providing
information related to the individual profiles to at least a first
supplier; receiving a first bid from the first supplier to supply
at least one of a service and a product to at least a first
consumer in the first portion of consumers; and providing the first
bid to at least a first recipient.
[0021] Still another aspect of the present invention is a method of
providing consumers with bids from suppliers of utility services,
the method comprising: receiving a request for bids for a plurality
of utility services from at least a first user over a network;
receiving historical utility usage information for at least a
portion of the plurality of utility services; providing via the
network information related to the received utility usage
information to a plurality of bidders; receiving a bid to supply
the plurality of utility services from at least a first bidder; and
receiving a bid to supply only a portion of the plurality of
utility services from at least a second bidder.
[0022] Yet another aspect of the present invention is a method of
requesting offers to supply utility services to consumers, the
method comprising: receiving utility service usage information from
a plurality of consumers; generating individual profiles, based at
least in part on the utility service usage information, for the
plurality of consumers;
[0023] providing information corresponding to the individual
profiles to at least a first offeror of utility service; and
receiving an offer from the first offeror to supply utility service
to an aggregated group of consumers, wherein the aggregated group
is at least partly selected by the first offeror from the plurality
of consumers.
[0024] One aspect of the present invention is a method of
facilitating the bidding process for the supply of utility
services, the method comprising: receiving utility service usage
information from at least a first commercial consumer; receiving
meter information on a plurality of meters associated with the
first commercial consumer; providing data related to the utility
service usage information and the meter information to at least a
first utility service supplier; and receiving a bid from the first
utility supplier to supply utility service to the at least first
commercial consumer.
[0025] Another aspect of the present invention is a method of
generating offers to supply utility services to consumers, the
method comprising: providing a first set of offer elements related
to providing a first utility service to a consumer; receiving a
user selection of offer elements from the first set that are to be
included in the offer to the consumer; receiving from the user at
least a first value associated with at least a first of the
selected offer elements; and providing an offer to the consumer
based on at least the selected offer elements and the first
value.
[0026] Still another aspect of the present invention is a method of
requesting offers over to supply services to consumers, the method
comprising: generating individual profiles for the plurality of
consumers based on information received over a network; providing
information corresponding to the individual profiles to at least a
first offeror of a first service; and receiving an offer from the
first offeror to supply the first service to an aggregated group of
consumers, wherein the aggregated group is at least partly selected
by the first offeror from the plurality of consumers.
[0027] One aspect of the present invention is a method of providing
items and related services in a physical store, the method
comprising: providing a first terminal in the store; networking the
first terminal to a server having an item database and a services
database; receiving an indication from a first customer that the
first customer wants to purchase a first item-type; receiving
profile information related to the first-item type from the first
customer using the first terminal; based on the profile
information, selecting a plurality of items from the item database
corresponding to the first item-type and a plurality of related
services of a first service type from the services database;
ranking the selected plurality of items and related services;
presenting information on the ranked selected plurality of items
and related services to the customer on the first terminal;
receiving an order for at least one of the ranked selected
plurality of items and at least one of the related services;
providing the ordered item to the customer in the store; and
activating the ordered service.
[0028] Another aspect of the present invention is a networked
provisioning system, comprising: a first terminal located in a
store, the first terminal configured to receive customer profile
information and a customer request for information on at least a
first item-type; a first computer system configured to receive
customer profile information and the customer request from the
first terminal, product information over a network from a product
provider computer system, and service information over the network
from a service provider computer system, wherein the product
information is related to the first item-type, and to store the
received customer profile information, product information, and
service information in at least a first database; a first module
stored in the first computer system, the first module configured to
select product information and service information and rank
products corresponding to the product information and services
corresponding to the service information based on at least the
customer profile information and the customer request; a second
module stored in the first computer system to receive at least a
portion of the selected product information, service information,
and rankings and to transmit the received selected product
information, service information, and rankings to the first
terminal; and a third module stored in the first computer system
configured to receive an order from the customer for at least a
first product related to the transmitted selected product
information and further configured to instruct at least a first
store employee to provide the ordered item to the customer.
[0029] Yet another aspect of the present invention is a networked
provisioning system, comprising: a first instruction configured to
be stored on a terminal located in a store, the first instruction
configured to receive customer profile information and a customer
request for information related to at least one of a first product
and a first service; a second instruction configured to be stored
on a first computer system, the second instruction configured to
receive information from the first terminal, including customer
profile information and the request for information related to at
least one of the first product and the first service; a third
instruction configured to receive product information over a
network from a product provider computer system, and service
information over the network from a service provider computer
system, including information related to the at least one of a
first product and a first service; a fourth instruction configured
to selectively transmit to the first terminal at least portions of
at least one of the product information and the service
information; a fifth instruction configured to rank at least one of
products corresponding to the product information and services
corresponding to the service information based on at least the
customer profile information and the customer request; a sixth
instruction configured to provide ranking information to the first
terminal; a seventh instruction configured to transmit an offer of
service corresponding to the first product in response to at least
one of the customer requesting information on the first product and
ordering the first product; and an eighth instruction configured to
activate service corresponding to the offered service at least
partly in response to the customer accepting the offer.
[0030] One aspect of the present invention is a method of
correlating telecommunications infrastructure information with user
routes, comprising: receiving from a plurality of sources cellular
antenna placement information, including latitude and longitude
information, for a plurality of cellular antennas in a plurality of
regions; requesting, over a network, a user to identify at least a
first city and a second city in which the user intends to utilize
cellular service; receiving over the network the user city
identifications; requesting the user to identify at least a first
route on which the user intends to travel from the first city to
the second city; receiving an instruction from the user to provide
coverage information for a first cellular service provider;
identifying, using the antenna placement information, antennas
located within a first area through which the first route passes,
wherein the antennas are associated with the first cellular service
provider; retrieving information related to the coverage of the
identified antennas associated with the first cellular service
provider; displaying, on a map of the first area presented on a
first terminal, area coverage indicators corresponding to the
identified antennas associated with the first cellular service
provider, wherein coverage gaps on the first route can be
identified by the user; receiving an instruction from the user to
provide coverage information for a second cellular service
provider; identifying, using the antenna placement information,
antennas associated with the second cellular service provider
located within the first area; retrieving information related to
the coverage of the identified antennas associated with the second
cellular service provider; and displaying, on the map of the first
area presented on the first terminal, area coverage indicators
corresponding to the identified antennas associated with the second
cellular service provider, wherein coverage gaps on the first route
can be identified by the user.
[0031] Another aspect of the present invention is a method of
identifying telecommunications infrastructure placement,
comprising: storing cellular antenna placement information for a
plurality of cellular antennas associated with a first service
provider in a database; storing cellular antenna placement
information for a plurality of cellular antennas associated with a
second service provider in the database; transmitting a request
over a network to a first terminal, for a user to identify at least
a first location in which the user intends to utilize cellular
service; receiving over the network the user identification of the
first location; transmitting information to the first terminal,
including map information for the first location and for related
travel routes; requesting the user to identify at least one of the
travel routes on which the user intends to travel; identifying the
cellular coverage for areas along the at least one travel route
provided by the first service provider, based at least upon the
antenna placement information for the plurality of cellular
antennas associated with the first service provider; transmitting
to the first terminal display information indicating the cellular
coverage for areas along the at least one travel route provided by
the cellular service provider; identifying the cellular coverage
for areas along the at least one travel route provided by the
second cellular service provider, based at least upon the antenna
placement information for the plurality of cellular antennas
associated with the second service provider; and transmitting to
the first terminal display information indicating the cellular
coverage for areas along the at least one travel route provided by
the second service provider.
[0032] Still another aspect of the present invention is a system
for correlating user usage information with a service provider's
service coverage, the system comprising: a database configured to
store cellular antenna location information for a plurality of
cellular antennas associated with a first service provider, and to
store cellular antenna placement information for a plurality of
cellular antennas associated with a second service provider; at
least a first instruction stored in memory configured to transmit a
request over a network to a first terminal for a user to identify
at least a first location in which the user intends to utilize
cellular service; at least a second instruction configured to
request the user to identify a travel route at least connecting to
the first location on which the user uses cellular service; at
least a third instruction configured to determine the cellular
coverage provided by the first service provider for areas along the
travel route, based at least upon the antenna location information
for the plurality of cellular antennas associated with the first
service provider; at least a fourth instruction configured to
provide to the first terminal information indicating the cellular
coverage for areas along the travel route provided by the first
service provider; and at least a fifth instruction configured to
provide to the first terminal information indicating the cellular
coverage for areas along the travel route provided by the second
service provider.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0033] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary networked system, including
Web components for implementing a consumer/supplier market system
in accordance with one embodiment of the invention and illustrates
typical user components for accessing the system;
[0034] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary method performed by the
consumer/supplier market system illustrated in FIG. 1;
[0035] FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary Web site page registration
form;
[0036] FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary Web site page account
information form;
[0037] FIGS. 5A-B illustrate residential account information
forms;
[0038] FIGS. 6A-C illustrate commercial account information
forms;
[0039] FIG. 7 illustrates three exemplary statistical load profiles
corresponding to three energy consumers;
[0040] FIG. 8 illustrates exemplary information presented to a
supplier;
[0041] FIGS. 9A-C illustrates another embodiment of a set of
registration forms;
[0042] FIG. 10 illustrates one embodiment of a supplier offer
configuration form;
[0043] FIG. 11 illustrates one embodiment of a form used to edit
offer elements;
[0044] FIG. 12 illustrates one embodiment of a record of offer
types;
[0045] FIG. 13 illustrates one embodiment of a record of offers
made;
[0046] FIG. 14 illustrates one embodiment of a display of multiple
offers made to a consumer;
[0047] FIG. 15 illustrates one embodiment of a display of offers
made to a consumer;
[0048] FIG. 16 illustrates a system architecture diagram in
accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;
[0049] FIG. 17 illustrates an example method of a purchase
process;
[0050] FIG. 18 illustrates an alternative system architecture
diagram in accordance with one embodiment of the present
invention;
[0051] FIG. 19 illustrates an example form used to enter user
profile information for telecommunications products and
services;
[0052] FIG. 20 illustrates an example service area usage form;
[0053] FIG. 21 illustrates an example local service area usage
form;
[0054] FIG. 22 illustrates an example a service route usage
form;
[0055] FIG. 23 illustrates an example antenna coverage display for
a first service provider;
[0056] FIG. 24 illustrates an example antenna coverage display for
a second service provider;
[0057] FIG. 25 illustrates an example percentage coverage
comparison for a plurality of providers;
[0058] FIG. 26 illustrates an example usage specification form;
[0059] FIG. 27 illustrates an example completed usage specification
form;
[0060] FIG. 28 illustrates an example context sensitive help
form;
[0061] FIG. 29 illustrates an example features specification
form;
[0062] FIGS. 30 and 31 illustrate example phone feature selection
forms;
[0063] FIG. 32 illustrates an example antenna tracking and usage
correlation system architecture diagram in accordance with one
embodiment of the present invention; and
[0064] FIG. 33 illustrates an example database display form.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0065] The present invention is related to methods and systems for
facilitating transactions involving goods and services between
suppliers and consumers of services, such as telecommunication
services, utility services, and associated services.
[0066] One embodiment of the present invention provides utility
suppliers with information related to consumers of utility services
or products, such as electricity, gas, water, telecommunication
services (including, but not limited to wireless services, cellular
services, paging services, and wired phone services), cable,
broadband services (including, but not limited to ADSL, DSL, T1,
satellite, and cable services), heating oil, and other related
products and services. Based on the consumer information, one or
more suppliers may generate offers to provide the products and
services to consumers, which are then provided to the consumers.
More generally, one embodiment of the present invention may be used
to facilitate deals between suppliers and purchasers of products
and services, where the price of the products or services are based
at least in part on a given customer's characteristics or
preferences. These customer characteristics may relate to, by way
of example, the customer usage of a product or service, such as
customer's usage amount, usage location, and time of usage, and/or
to financial characteristics, including credit worthiness, payment
history, assets, debt, and related characteristics. Such products
and services may include leases, mortgages, insurance, investment
instruments, and the like.
[0067] Advantageously, one embodiment of the present invention acts
as a neutral market maker for such services and products, allowing
consumers and suppliers, such as utility suppliers, to be better
and more efficiently matched via an offer and acceptance process.
Thus, retail customers, such as consumers, including residential
and commercial consumers, can realize savings by obtaining lower
priced utility or other services, and utility providers, as well as
other providers, can obtain new customers and enter new
markets.
[0068] Throughout the following description, the term "Web site" is
used to refer to a user-accessible network site that implements the
basic World Wide Web standards for the coding and transmission of
hypertextual documents. These standards currently include HTML (the
Hypertext Markup Language) and HTTP (the Hypertext Transfer
Protocol). It should be understood that the term "site" is not
intended to imply a single geographic location, as a Web or other
network site can, for example, include multiple
geographically-distributed computer systems that are appropriately
linked together. Furthermore, while the following description
relates to an embodiment utilizing the Internet and related
protocols, other networks, such as networked interactive
televisions, and other protocols may be used as well. In the
figures, words and phrases are underlined to indicate a hyperlink
to a document or Web page related to the underlined word or phrase.
In addition, unless otherwise indicated, the functions described
herein are preferably performed by executable code, including
instructions, running on one or more general purpose or computers
or on servers. The term retail consumer, as used herein, refers to
consumers or end users of a given product or service. The term
wholesaler, as used herein, refers to entities that purchase goods
or services for resale to others.
[0069] As will be discussed in greater detail below, one novel
aspect of the present invention is a process of individually
evaluating and generating a profile of consumers, such as consumers
of utility services or telecommunication services, based on their
historical usage information, geographic location and and/or their
credit or payment history. A code or identifier reflecting and
summarizing the consumer's profile is generated. A provider, such
as a utility supplier, may advantageously define or select an
aggregated group of consumers, such as residential or commercial
consumers, based on each consumer's individual profile or code, and
then bid to provide services and/or products to the
provider-defined group. Optionally, the provider may elect to bid
to provide services and/or products to individual consumers. This
contrasts with conventional systems, wherein providers are
typically limited to deciding whether or not to bid to provide
services and/or products to individual consumers or a group defined
or aggregated, for example, by a third party, but have no say in
defining the group.
[0070] In one embodiment, the bidding may be a "blind" bidding
process. For example, consumers' identities are optionally not
revealed to suppliers during the bidding process to thereby protect
consumers' privacy. In addition, the identity of suppliers may
likewise not be revealed to consumers, to keep suppliers' bidding
strategies and retail pricing secret.
[0071] By way of example, if a consumer wants to participate in the
consumer/supplier market place system in accordance with one
embodiment of the present invention, the consumer may register at a
Web site associated with a neutral manager of the consumer/supplier
market system. The consumer may be asked which of several services,
such as utility services, including electricity, gas, water,
telecommunication service, cable, broadband service, heating oil,
and/or other products and services, the consumer wants suppliers to
bid on, and whether the consumer is a residential or commercial
entity. The consumer may select one or more of the services and/or
products. The consumer is then presented with one or more forms
asking for information that will be used to build the consumer's
profile for a selected service. Different forms may be provided for
residential and commercial users.
[0072] For example, both commercial and residential consumers may
be asked to identify the consumer's present supplier, such as an
incumbent electricity supplier. Based on that identification, a
form similar in appearance or having similar energy usage and
billing fields as the consumer's present supplier's bill template
is presented. The consumer is then asked to fill in the information
corresponding to blank fields using existing incumbent provider
bills as a reference. For example, the consumer may be asked to
provide address information and monthly utility usage information
for the past year using the same format as the present supplier's
bill. Some bills may include not just the monthly usage data, but
also the usage during peak periods, such as 9:00 to 5:00, and the
usage during off-peak periods. This information is useful to
providers in deciding how much and whether to bid to provide the
consumer with a utility service, because prices often vary for
services, such as utility services, based on time of use, location
of use, and quantity of use. The consumer may also be asked to
provide the rates charged by the consumer's current supplier.
[0073] The consumer may key in usage data and other requested data
manually, or may provide authorization to the system manager to
obtain the usage information and some of the other requested data
from the consumer's present or incumbent provider. If such
authorization is provided, usage, rate, and other data may then be
electronically uploaded from the incumbent provider, thereby
relieving the consumer of having to enter the data and ensuring
better accuracy. If, instead, the consumer elects to enter the data
manually, the consumer may be asked to provide confirming evidence,
such as copies of past bills, within a predetermined time period of
registering, such as 30 days.
[0074] Other information related to the service and/or product may
be requested as well. For example, for electricity and/or natural
gas service, residential consumers may be asked how many people
live at the residential address, how many people are at home during
different periods of the day (i.e., 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, 5:01 PM to
11:00 PM, 11:01 PM to 7:59 AM) for weekdays and for weekends. In
addition, energy consuming appliance information may be requested.
For example, the consumer may be asked whether she or he has
central air-conditioning, central heating, window air-conditioning
units, area heaters, washing machine, clothes dryer, stove, and/or
a dishwasher. The consumer may be requested to specify the
thermostat-type for both central heating and air-conditioning
units. In addition, the form may ask whether the appliances are gas
or electric, and the appliance make, model and/or year. The
consumer may also be asked whether there is a pool, hot tub,
barbecue, and so on at the residence and how and/or when they are
heated or powered. In addition, the consumer may be asked to
indicate whether the residence is an apartment, a house, one story
or two stories, and rented or owned. Information related to
insulation, such as the type of insulation, if any, how many
windows the residence has, and whether the windows are single
paned, double paned, or triple paned windows, may be requested. The
consumer may also be asked to what thermostat setting the heater is
set for in the winter and to what thermostat setting the air
conditioner is set for in the winter.
[0075] Optionally, with respect to electricity, the consumer may be
allowed to specify whether he or she prefers or requires that the
electricity be generated using alternative energy sources, such as
solar, geothermal power, or non carbon-based fuels, or whether the
lowest cost provider is preferred. In addition, the consumer may
optionally be allowed to specify whether the consumer would like to
have his utility needs or load aggregated with other consumers'
loads. Generally, aggregated groups are more attractive to
suppliers, and so suppliers may provide lower rates or other
benefits to aggregated groups as compared to single consumer with a
much lower consumption of utility services and/or products.
[0076] If the consumer is to be charged a fee upon accepting an
offer, then in one embodiment, the consumer may elect to have that
fee charged on the first supplier generated utility bill. The
supplier then will forward that fee to the consumer/supplier market
system owner. Alternatively, the consumer may elect to have the fee
billed to a credit card or other funding source.
[0077] The requested information may then be used to build a very
descriptive residential consumer profile, giving suppliers an
accurate picture of the consumer's historical and anticipated use
and consumption patterns. This allows suppliers to give
correspondingly more accurate bids or quotes to provide the
requested utility service and/or product and to better aggregate a
number of consumers having similar or complementary desired
characteristics, such as statistical load profiles. For example, an
electricity or natural gas supplier may want to select a mix of
consumers, including some whose peak usage is during the day, some
whose peak usage is at night, and some whose usage is fairly
constant, so that the overall or aggregate usage load of the
consumer subset is approximately constant throughout the daily
cycle. Such load profiles are illustrated by curves A, B, and C in
FIG. 7. In addition, the information may be used to generate advice
for the consumer on how to use the energy service and/or product
more efficiently. A fee may be charged for such advice. As will be
described below, this advice may be provided by the utility
supplier, matching service manager, traditional energy services
company (ESCO) and/or independent utility auditor. Further, this
information may be used to target appropriate advertisements to the
consumer, such as advertisements for more efficient appliances, for
insulating services and/or products, and so on.
[0078] For commercial users, different and/or additional
information may be requested as compared to residential users. For
example, the commercial consumer may be asked what type of
commercial activity (i.e., restaurant, retail outlet, business
offices, light manufacturing, heavy manufacturing, computer center,
telecom transmitters, etc.) is being conducted. Further, commercial
consumers may be asked if they have more than one service account
address, and what those addresses are. The commercial consumer may
be asked to specify peak, mid-peak, and off peak usage times,
amounts, and current supplier's rates for different seasons, such
as during winter or summer. The form may request information on
current customer charges, energy credits, and revenue cycle
services credits.
[0079] In addition, the commercial consumer may be asked how many
people are employed at corresponding sites, how many people are
working each shift, whether and when there are planned site
shut-downs, whether the facility is owned or leased, the rentable
square feet, the make and model of the HVAC (heating, ventilating,
and air conditioning) system. The consumer may also be asked
whether the site or sites are affiliated with a chain, trade or
other association which may be entitled to special pricing.
[0080] In the case of a metered service, such as electricity or
natural gas, the consumer may be asked how many meters are
associated with the commercial service account, the billing address
and location of each meter, the meter type (interval, time-of-use,
etc.), rate class, and/or meter read dates. The commercial consumer
may also be asked whether the consumer wants a site bill, that is a
separate bill for each meter, or a consolidated bill for all
meters, and how often the consumers want to be billed. The consumer
may be notified that interest charges will accrue for bills for
sites that are delayed from a normal billing cycle more than a
predetermined amount, such as 3 days. The consumer may be allowed
to specify whether commodity and non-commodity charges should be
consolidated on a single bill.
[0081] Different forms with different and/or additional questions
may be provided for different types of services and/or products.
For example, for consumers seeking bids to supply their Internet
bandwidth needs (such as by DSL, ADSL, cable modems, satellite,
interactive TV, etc.) the consumer may be asked how many computers
and other networkable appliances the consumer has, how many e-mail
accounts the consumer has, periods of heaviest and lightest usage,
whether and how often the consumer downloads streaming video and/or
audio, and so on. For consumers seeking offers to supply their
telecom needs, the consumer may be asked how many fixed phones,
portable phones, cellular phones, and pagers the consumer has, and
what special services, such as call-waiting, caller ID, and call
forwarding, the consumer uses or wants, and times of heaviest
usage. For consumers seeking offers to supply their car lease
needs, the consumer may be asked for information related to the
consumer's income, assets, current lease provider, payment history
on a current lease and/or on other loans, the consumer's driving
habits, including mileage per year information, and the like.
[0082] In another embodiment of the present invention, information
from the user may be collected via a terminal located at a
conventional, physical, "bricks and mortar" store. Rather than rely
on having customers log on to their computer and find an
appropriate e-commerce web site, customers can go to their
familiar, trustworthy physical retail stores. The store acts as a
collection point for potential customers. As similarly described
above, the store terminal collects user data, including the user's
membership, if any, in an affinity group which has contracted with
an independent entity that licenses, operates and/or manages the
system, including the terminal or who has contracted directly with
the store, preferences and/or usage information, and based at least
in part on the affinity group membership, preferences and/or usage
information, offers and related information may be provided to the
user.
[0083] The store terminal may be managed by a separate entity which
has contracted to provide the terminal and/or related services to
the store in exchange for a percentage or fixed amount for sales
made using the terminal. The separate entity coordinates collecting
the user information, product information, and service information,
and processes the information and provides the processed
information appropriately to the store, product vendors, service
vendors, and customers. For example, the information and supplier
offers may then be provided to the user via the store terminal.
Once the user selects products and services to purchase, the
product fulfillment is performed by the store. This advantageously
allows the store to associate and offer to consumers both products
and related services and to participate in the fulfillment phase of
purchases, without having to manage relationships with vendors and
related service providers. In particular, the related services may
be those needed to use the product, such as energy sources,
wireless services, or other telecom services.
[0084] For example, a user may request information related to an
appliance-type, such as refrigerators, using the terminal. The
terminal may be a fixed, wired terminal, a handheld wireless
terminal, the consumer's own phone or wireless personal digital
assistant (PDA), or other networkable terminal. Using the terminal,
the user may specify preferences, such as the type of refrigerator
desired and the desired characteristics. By way of example, the
user may specify, using an appropriate form presented on the
terminal display, whether the user wants an ice maker included, the
desired location of the freezer (top, bottom, or on the side),
whether an ice water tap is desired, and so on. In addition, other
usage-related questions may be asked of the user. For example, in
order to better determine the refrigerator size appropriate for the
user, the user may be asked how many gallons of milk, soda, or
other liquid is typically stored in the refrigerator at a time.
Similarly, the user may be asked how much frozen meats are stored
in the freezer. In response to the user preferences and/or usage
information, a store server or server managed by a separate entity,
transmits to the store terminal information on the available
refrigerators whose characteristics match the user-specified
preferences and/or usage information. The information may be
provided in a ranked form, with the order or other designator used
to indicate which products most closely match the user preference
and/or usage information.
[0085] The provided information may include make, model number,
price, dimensions, storage capacity, energy efficiency, location in
the store (aisle number or other designator), available colors
and/or inventory status for one or more refrigerators. Further, in
one embodiment, the user is offered related services. For example,
in the case of a refrigerator, the user may be offered electricity
service. Optionally, the user may be presented with several service
plans from one or more electricity suppliers. In association with
the service plans the calculated energy cost savings for the
selected refrigerators is provided. Thus, the user is presented in
real-time with current information on the desired product is able
to make an informed decision regarding the product as well as
regarding the associated offered services. Optionally, user
electricity usage information and geographical locations may be
requested so that suppliers can bid to supply services as similarly
discussed above.
[0086] Of course the present invention is not limited to offering
information regarding refrigerators and electricity. Rather, the
present embodiment is directed generally to selling goods and
related services. Thus, the user may obtain information regarding
other products and services which may be procured from or via the
store. For example, as similarly described above with respect to
the refrigerator example, in order to select and purchase a gas
range, the user may provide user preference and/or usage
information and in response obtain information on an appropriate
gas range and be offered information on different gas suppliers.
The user may then independently purchase the desired gas range and
select and contract to receive the desired gas service.
[0087] By way of another example, the user may specify via the
store terminal characteristics related to a desired computer
configuration. In response, in addition to receiving the
information regarding the various corresponding computers available
via the store, the user may be offered a variety of related
services and plans. For example, the user may be offered one or
more broadband or internet services plans from one or more
suppliers.
[0088] In still another example, with respect to cellular phones, a
user may be asked, via the terminal, to indicate whether the user
is a member of a contracted-with affinity group, and to specify
preference information, such as a desired phone model and/or
manufacturer, and/or usage information, such as the user's address
or zip code, how often the user travels out of the geographical
area or region where the phone will be activated, how often the
user travels out of state and to which states, how often the user
travels out of the country and which countries, whether the user
currently has or desires text message or web access, whether the
user wants call features such as caller identification, conference
calling, call forwarding, and call waiting, the desired color,
approximately how many call minutes the user typically utilizes
during daily peak periods (8:00 AM to 6:00 PM, for example),
approximately how many call minutes the user utilizes during
off-peak periods (6:01 PM to 7:59 AM, for example), approximately
how many call minutes the user utilizes on weekends, who is the
user's current cellular service provider, how many current cellular
accounts the user (or the user's business or family) has, whether
the user has a page account and who with, and so on.
[0089] FIG. 19 illustrates an example form used to enter user
profile information for telecommunications products and services,
such as for a cellular phone and phone service. For example, the
user or customer is asked to provide zip code information, select
the level of service desired, and the desired coverage area. The
customer is also asked historical and future usage information,
such as the identity of the customer's current service provider,
the desired technology (PCS, TDM, CDMA), if any, the customer's
preferred handset choice, if any, how many calls the customer
expects to make for a given period of time, such as per week, the
expected call duration, the time of day the customer most
frequently makes calls, the approximate amount the customer expects
to spend per month, and the percentage calls that are long distance
calls. In addition, the customer is asked on the form if he or she
is interested in related products and services, such as ISP
services, long distance services, and phone accessories.
[0090] The customer is also asked what service plan and phone
features the customer desires. The customer is requested to
identify whether the customer is a member of a group that is
entitled to a special plan, plan price, or discount. Further, the
customer is asked what is the desired contract duration, whether
the customer would consider purchasing from a reseller, whether the
customer would consider paying the bill online, and to indicate the
relative importance of price and quality. The customer is also
requested to indicate with the user is interested in receiving
information on other services, such as ISP services, local and long
distance phone service, and on handset related accessories. The
customer then submits requested information.
[0091] Based on the provided affinity group membership, preference
and/or usage information the user is presented with a selection of
ranked phones, their inventory status and available corresponding
cellular service plans. The services plans may be predetermined or
may be dynamically automatically generated by the service providers
or authorized representatives thereof based on the user's
preference and/or usage information. The offering of phones and/or
services may be customized for members of certain affinity groups
in accordance with agreements made with those affinity groups. In
addition, or alternatively, affinity group members may be offered
discounts on standard offerings of phones and/or services. Of
course such customization for affinity group members and the like
can also be provided to purchases made directly online, rather than
in a physical store. Once the user selects the desired service plan
and phone, the in-store inventory is automatically checked to
determine if the phone is in stock. If the phone is not in stock,
the user is so informed and a predicted date when the phone will be
in stock is provided. The user then has the option to proceed with
the order or to select another phone.
[0092] In addition, the user may be presented with information on
related products or services. For example, the system may suggest a
hands-free unit, an additional battery, a carrying case, and the
like compatible with the selected phone. Similarly, the user may be
presented with an extended warranty plan for the phone. The user
can then select the desired phone, service, and related products
and services. If the user was not satisfied with the selection of
phones and service plans, the user can alter the user's profile
information so emphasize certain characteristics related to the
desired features for the phones or service plans.
[0093] In one embodiment, once the user selects a phone and service
plan, the user provides payment information, such as credit card
information. The credit card information may be manually entered
and/or entered by swiping the card using a card reader device that
reads the information stored on the magnetic strip typically found
on credit cards. The payment information is processed, and if
verified, an order is automatically placed with the service
provider for the ordered plan. In addition, a printer associated
with the terminal prints out a receipt which the user takes to a
store representative, which may be clerk at an in-store pick-up
counter. The store representative retrieves the selected phone from
a store storage area and provides the phone to the user. The phone
and associated plan may be activated in response to a directive
provided by the store representative or in response to the user
calling a predetermined number. If the phone is not in stock, an
order is automatically placed with a warehouse or supplier wherein
the phone is available for the phone to be delivered to the store.
Once the phone is available at the store an e-mail message is sent
to the user informing the user that the phone is ready to be
picked-up. The user then goes to the store to pick up the phone.
Alternatively, the user can request that the phone be delivered to
the user.
[0094] In addition, if the user is a member of an appropriate
affinity group, the affinity group will receive an agreed upon
benefit for the sale, which may include a percentage of the sale, a
fixed dollar amount per sale, and/or additional discounts for the
affinity group. This encourages affinity groups and the like to
refer business to the store, potentially greatly increasing
sales.
[0095] In one embodiment, rather than provide payment information
using the terminal as described above, the terminal prints out an
order form including one or more bar codes indicating the phone and
service plan desired by the user. In addition, the order form may
include offers for related products and services, including
corresponding bar codes and/or SKU numbers. Further, if the user is
a member of an appropriate affinity group, the order form may
include a discount bar code or coupon corresponding to a discount
offered to members of the affinity group. The user takes the order
form to a cash register operator or other store representative who
scans the appropriate bar codes, whereupon the register calculates
the total order cost, including any related taxes. The cash
register operator receives payment, via credit card, cash or
otherwise, and provides and activates the phone. Thus, the user
advantageously leaves the store with an appropriate activated phone
and service plan. If the phone is not in stock, the user can
specify the delivery method and have the phone shipped to an
address specified by the user.
[0096] In addition, in one embodiment, the user places an order for
an item, and optionally payment information, using their home
computer or other remotely located terminal via a Web site operated
by the store or by a third party affiliated with the store. The
in-store inventory is checked to determine if the item is in stock.
If the item is not in stock, the user is so informed and a
predicted date when the item will be in stock is provided. The user
then has the option to proceed with the order. If the user elects
to proceed, the user receives an order confirmation form including
a unique order number which the user prints out. In addition, if
the item was not in stock an order to have the item delivered to
the store is placed with a warehouse or supplier wherein the item
is available. Once the item is available at the store, an e-mail
message is sent to the user informing the user that the item is
ready to be picked-up. The user then goes to the store to pick up
the item. Alternatively, the user can request that the item be
delivered to the user.
[0097] FIG. 17 illustrates one example process or method 1700 of a
purchase process in accordance with an embodiment of the present
invention, including the purchase of a wireless phone and related
service. At state 1702, the customer can elect to shop for a phone
either by visiting a retail "bricks and mortar" store, or via an
online site. If the customer decides to shop in a retail "bricks
and mortar" store, the process 1700 proceeds to state 1704. Then
the customer can elect to shop for the phone via an online terminal
at state 1706, and enters in profile information, such as product
service needs and preference information. Otherwise, at state 1708,
the customer can provide the information to a sales person or other
customer representative, who at state 1710, enters the customers
product and service needs and preferences into the online
terminal.
[0098] At state 1711, a database query is made to locate available
profile matching products and services. The query request is
transmitted to the retailer's inventory system's feed 1712 to
determine the status of matching products. Similarly, the query
request is transmitted to the service providers' feed 1714, which
provides information and updates on service plans, to locate
matching service plans. In addition, the query request is
transmitted to the equipment providers' feed 1716, which provides
information and updates on available products and warehouse
inventory status, to locate and determine the status of matching
products. This information is returned to the terminal. If the
customer is directly utilizing the online terminal, then at state
1720, the customer browses and compares available products and
services on the terminal. Otherwise, at state 1718, the sales
person accesses the information from the terminal and explains the
product and service offering to the customer. The customer chooses
which service plan and product to purchase at state 1722. The
customer purchases the product at a sales counter or station at
state 1724. At state 1726, the customer leaves the retail store
with product in hand. The customer can activate the phone at home,
state 1730, via a phone call to the service provider at state 1732.
Alternatively, at state 1728, the phone can be activated in
response to an action by the retailer, such as by sending a
communication to the service provider. The customer can then use
the phone in a typical manner at state 1770.
[0099] If the customer decides to shop on an online site using a
remote terminal or the like, the process 1700 proceeds from state
1704 to state 1736. The online site may belong to a professional or
business association with which the customer is affiliated, a Web
site of the retail store, an intermediary that manages the
vendor-to-retailer-to-cust- omer sales and provisioning processor,
or other e-commerce Web site. At state 1738, the customer enters
product and service needs and preferences into an appropriate form,
such as that illustrated in FIG. 19. At state 1740, a database
query is made to locate available profile matching products and
services, as similarly described above with respect to state 1711.
At state 1742, the customer browses and compares available products
and services on the remote terminal. The customer chooses which
service plan and product to purchase at state 1744.
[0100] The customer can elect to proceed to either state 1746 or
state 1748. At state 1746 the customer pays online via credit card
or via direct debit from a bank account. At state 1748, the
customer enters an authorization code authorizing shipment of the
product to a designated address. An association or other business
party may have prepaid the payment. The ordered product is either
ordered or backordered from the equipment provider's warehouse at
state 1756, the service provider's warehouse at state 1754, or from
a retailer's warehouse at state 1752. The product can be activated
at state 1764 by the equipment provider, at state 1762 by the
retailer, or at state 1760 by the equipment provider. The product
is then shipped to the customer at state 1768, and the system
connect to the service provider is performed 1766. Alternatively,
at state 1758, the product is shipped to the customer before
activation. Once received, at state 1759, the customer can activate
the phone at the customer's home or office. At state 1770, the
customer then can use the product.
[0101] In addition, in one embodiment, the terminal can be used to
purchase and download to the phone various desirable items, such as
new ringer tones, images or icons to be displayed on the phone
display or intended to be sent from the phone to other phones,
games, application programs, and the like. Further, the phone may
include features, such as a Bluetooth interface circuit or General
Packet Radio Service, which is initially not enabled or for which
the phone lacks the appropriate driver software. At the discretion
of the retailer or provider, such un-enabled features can be
enabled either for an additional fee or for no charge via the
terminal. The items may be downloaded or features enabled via a
cellular network or other wireless technology, such as using the
Bluetooth standard, or via an infrared IRDA interface, if so
supported by the phone. Alternatively, the terminal may include a
physical docking port, including a connector, which connects to a
mating connector on the phone.
[0102] In addition, in one embodiment, the terminal may be used to
download to the user's wireless phone or personal digital
assistant, such as a Palm VII PDA, information about items in the
store. As the user roams the store and comes in physical proximity
to an item, a code associated with the item is transmitted from a
local transmitter having a short range to the phone or PDA and the
related downloaded information is then displayed on the phones or
PDA's screen. Via a menu presented on the screen, the user can then
elect to purchase the item and specify whether the item is to be
delivered to the user's home or other remote location, or if the
user wants to pick the item up from an in-store pickup counter.
[0103] The novel system described above contrasts with conventional
methods of selling phones and services in physical stores. With
many conventional methods, a user typically is provided with
separate brochures describing predetermined service plans and
phones. Thus, the user has to laboriously read through many
brochures to decide what phone and service plan to purchase. Some
stores also provide a representative to describe the available
plans and phones. However, these representatives often provide
inaccurate information, and are often difficult to locate or talk
to during peak store periods. Further, the phone is typically still
unactivated when the user leaves the store with the purchased
phone. After leaving the store, the user then needs to place to
call using a different phone to a designated service provider,
whereupon the user selects a service verbally described by a
provider representative and once again provides payment
information, in the form of credit card information and/or a
billing address. Only then is the phone and service plan
activated.
[0104] In another embodiment of the present invention, providers or
suppliers may be allowed to bid on a bundled set of needs, such as
several utility services, for one or more consumers. For example,
in one embodiment the provider can selectively bid to supply one or
more consumers with electricity, gas, and/or telecommunication
services and/or products. This flexibility allows the provider to
better generate an offer with competitive prices and thereby
provides consumers with lower overall lower costs.
[0105] The consumer may optionally be required to pay a fee to
participate in the matching service, and/or upon the consumer
accepting a bid from a supplier. To better ensure payment is made
by the consumer, the consumer may be asked to supply credit card
information, a bank account number, and/or other funding sources.
Optionally, the consumers credit history and/or timeliness of
utility payments may be checked via TRW, Dun & Bradstreet,
and/or the incumbent provider before the consumer is permitted to
participate in the matching service.
[0106] The information provided by the consumer and/or the
consumer's incumbent provider is advantageously translated into a
common format that lets information from a plurality of consumers
be efficiently compared and evaluated. Based on the profile
information provided by the consumer a consumer "score" is
generated. In one embodiment, this score is a "grade" or numeric
score generated by comparing the consumer's historical consumption
profile with that of a hypothetical profile or a hypothetical
"preferred consumer." The further the consumption profile is from
that of the hypothetical preferred consumer, the worse the score or
grade. The hypothetical profile may be generated based on surveys
taken of utility service providers.
[0107] For example, for many utilities the hypothetical "preferred
consumer" may be a consumer whose peak usage period is at the time
when overall usage of that utility by other consumers is at low
point. In addition, the "preferred consumer" may be one who
consumes large amount of the utility service, allowing the utility
supplier to provide that service more cost effectively. Different
usage characteristics may be weighted and combined to produce an
overall grade or score. Thus, the grade may be an "A," "B," "C,"
"D," or "F." If a numeric score is used, numeric score may be on a
scale of 1 to 10, where 10 is the highest rating and 1 is the
lowest rating.
[0108] In another embodiment, rather than providing a grade or
score, a code may be generated that summarizes all or part of the
consumer's profile, such as historical use and consumption
information, permitting consumers having specified characteristics
to be more quickly and efficiently located or identified. Thus, for
example, an alphanumeric 10 character code for an electricity
consumer may be generated as follows:
1 Character Position Function Code 1 Indicate if commercial or C =
Commercial residential R = Residential 2-6 Zip code 5 digit zip
code 7-9 Consumer's Statistical 000-999 Load Profile (1 thousand
possible statistical load profiles) 10 Credit worthiness A-F ("A"
is best, "F" is worst)
[0109] The consumer's statistical load usage may be examined and
categorized as falling into a predetermined category. The 10 digit
code discussed above allows up to 1000 categories of statistical
load profiles, ensuring that a given category accurately represents
the consumer's usage patterns. The code may be extended to include
all or some of the other profile information, such as the number of
meters associated with the account.
[0110] In one embodiment, a consumer's profiles for multiple
corresponding utilities or other products and services may be
included in a single code. For example, the 10 digit code discussed
above may be extended to a 22 digit code, where digits 11-13 are
used to identify a usage profile for telephone services, digits
14-16 are used to identify a usage profile for DSL services, digits
17-19 are used to identify a usage profile for water services, and
digits 20-22 are used to identify a usage profile for natural gas
services. Use of a single code, rather than separate codes for each
utility service, may be used reduce system memory requirements and
to may make it easier for suppliers to define an aggregated group
for several product and/or service lines. In another embodiment,
separate codes may be used for each utility-type.
[0111] A consumer's code may be dynamically updated to reflect
changes in the consumer's profile information. For example, in one
embodiment, once the consumer registers, the consumer's monthly
utility usage information is uploaded from the consumer's present
supplier. This information may be used to assign the consumer a
different statistical load profile and correspondingly update the
consumer's profile code or score. In another embodiment, the
consumer may be asked to manually update the profile information on
a periodic basis, or each time the consumer requests new bids for a
given utility service.
[0112] Once the consumer's profile has been generated and a code or
score produced, the profile and score/code are stored in a consumer
profile database in a consistent format. Suppliers can then select
consumers having certain profiles and bid to supply utility
services and/or products to those consumers. In one embodiment,
using a search engine or browser, the suppliers may be allowed to
search through the consumer profile database, with identifying
information, such as name and address, optionally filtered out, to
select the consumers. In one embodiment, the supplier is charged a
fee for having access to the database and may be charged an
additional fee for each search. The supplier may also be provided
database access and/or the search for free. The supplier may
initiate the search using an SQL database query or via a form. In
addition or instead, the supplier may be allowed to specify one or
more codes or a range of scores, such as consumers with greater
than a 7 rating, corresponding to an aggregation of consumers to
which the supplier wants to bid to supply services. The supplier
may also be presented with graphical representations, such as a
graph, bar chart, or pie chart, of consumers' usage patterns. This
greatly reduces the amount of effort on the part of the supplier
needed to identify and select a desired aggregated group of
consumers. In exchange, the supplier may optionally be charged a
fee higher than the first fee.
[0113] Different suppliers may thus define different aggregated
groups across one or more product or service lines for which they
are bidding to supply service. Thus, one supplier may bid for an
aggregation of consumers whose peak utility usage is between the
hours of 3:00 AM to 8:00 AM, and another supplier may bid for an
aggregation of consumers whose peak utility usage is between the
hours of 11:00 PM to 4:00 AM. In this example, there is some
overlap, that is, some consumers will fall into both aggregated
groups, and thus may receive two bids from the two suppliers.
[0114] Optionally, the suppliers may be asked to provide
standardized terms so that consumers can better compare the offers.
Thus, for example, while the rates offered by the suppliers may
differ, many or all of the other terms, such as contract lengths,
cancellation policies, warranties, and so on, are the same. In
another embodiment, suppliers may provide a combination of
standardized terms and supplier specific terms. Thus, for example,
a supplier may agree to offer standardized warranties, but
non-standard cancellation policies. This allows consumers to easily
compare many terms, while still providing the supplier the option
of offering some customized terms. In yet another embodiment, in
addition to or in place of the two previous options, the supplier
may elect to provide its own contract, without using standardized
terms as defined by the consumer/supplier market system
manager.
[0115] In addition, the consumer/supplier market system may
dynamically score and/or rank the suppliers offer based both on the
offer terms and the consumer's historical use and consumption
profile. The scores and/or rankings for the suppliers' bids may
then be presented on a dynamically generated Web page to the
consumer, with those having better rankings being presented at the
top of a list of bidders and those with lower rankings being
presented lower on the list. The score or ranking may take into
account the supplier's rates for various daily time periods, the
contract length, cancellation fees, service quality the consumer's
peak usage periods, the consumer's desire for alternative energy
sources, and so on. The bids may be evaluated to predicate the cost
to the consumer over a period of time, such as a year, based on the
consumer's usage information. The score may then be set equal or
related to the amount of predicted savings over the previous year's
costs. Because the user's profile is taken into account, different
consumers may receive different scores for the same offer from the
same supplier. For example, an offer to supply electricity at a
given rate may be a good offer for a consumer whose peak usage is
between 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM, but that same rate may be a poor or
expensive rate for a consumer whose peak usage is at night or
during some other period.
[0116] In one embodiment, offers may be provided individually with
customized terms to consumers, where the consumer indicated that he
or she did not want to participate in an aggregated group.
[0117] Once the offers are provided to the aggregated groups of
consumers as defined by the suppliers, different group members may
select different suppliers, or no supplier at all. Thus, the number
of consumers accepting an offer may not be the same number as those
in the aggregated group to which the offer was provided. Therefore,
in one embodiment, the supplier may make the offer contingent on
having a minimum number or percentage of consumers to whom the
offer is made accept the offer. For example, the supplier may make
the offer contingent on 75% of the offerees accepting the offer. In
addition, in one embodiment, providers may optionally be allowed to
bid to provide services and/or products to an individual consumer,
rather than an aggregated group.
[0118] Additionally, the offer to each consumer may be contingent
on the consumer's usage profile remaining substantially the same as
a specified benchmark period. For example, the supplier may
contractually maintain the ability to charge a fee, cancel or
renegotiate the contract and/or change utility rates if the
consumer's utility usage between the typical peak hours of 9:00 AM
to 4:00 PM increases by more than 15% over the previous year.
[0119] As previously discussed, the consumer's profile information
may advantageously be used not just to supply the consumer with
utility services and/or products, but may be used to provide
valuable information on how to decrease utility usage and/or costs.
Related advertisements for goods or services which may be further
used to reduce utility usage or costs may be presented to the
consumer. The owner or operator of the consumer/supplier market
system may charge fees for the advertisements, as well as fees for
the sale of goods or services sold as a result of the
advertisements.
[0120] For example, if the consumer's profile indicates the
consumer has an electric water heater with certain operating
specifications, the consumer may be advised that replacing the
electric water heater with a gas water heater would reduce the
consumer's energy costs by a specified dollar amount or range per
year. Advertisements for gas water heaters may be presented to the
consumer. These advertisements may be linked such that when a
consumer clicks on or otherwise activates the link, the consumer is
presented with detailed information, including efficiency
information, on the water heater and is given the opportunity to
purchase the water heater. The owner or operator of the
consumer/supplier market system may charge the advertisers a fee
each time the advertisement is presented. An additional fee may be
charged if the consumer actually activates the link. Further, if
the consumer purchases the water heater, still another fee may be
charged. Similarly, if the consumer has an electric powered heater
or dryer, advertisements may be provided for gas powered heaters or
dryers.
[0121] By way of another example, if the consumer's profile
indicates that the consumer's residence has only single paned
windows, the consumer may be presented with advertisements for
double paned windows. In yet another example, if the residence
lacks insulation, advertisements may be provided for insulation
installers. In addition, the consumer may be advised that by
operating certain appliances, such as a pool pump, at night instead
of during the day, the associated energy costs will be reduced. The
consumer may optionally be charged a fee for such advice.
[0122] Advertisements or offers for the services of an energy
auditor or ESCO may also be presented to the consumer. Energy
efficiency auditors typically examine a consumer's residence or
facility, and provides recommendations on how to reduce utility
costs, such as electricity costs. Often, the auditors also supply
or sell some or all of the equipment, such as appliances,
insulation, HVACs, thermostats, and the like, used to reduce the
utility costs. In one embodiment, the owner or operator of the
consumer/supplier market system may charge a fee or collect a
percentage based on the use of their services or the related sales
of goods or demand-side management services.
[0123] In addition, advertisements or offers for the services of a
utility bill auditor may also be presented to the consumer. Utility
bill auditors typically examine a consumer's utility bill and
determine if the rates charged and the total bill, including
transportation and distribution charges, are accurate. Typically,
the utility bill auditor charges a percentage of the overbilling
detected by the utility bill auditor. In one embodiment, the owner
or operator of the consumer/supplier market system may charge a fee
or collect a percentage of the fee collected by the utility bill
auditor.
[0124] Various embodiments of the present invention will now be
described in greater detail with reference to the figures.
Throughout the following description, reference will be made to
various implementation-specific details, including, for example,
coding conventions, document and protocol standards, forms, and
scoring or ranking techniques. These details are provided in order
to fully set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention, and not
to limit the scope of the invention. The scope of the invention is
set forth in the appended claims.
[0125] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary market place system,
including Web components for implementing a consumer/supplier
market system in accordance with one embodiment of the invention
and illustrates typical user components for accessing the system.
By way of example, the exemplary consumer/supplier market system
may be used with the exemplary methods and Web pages discussed
below.
[0126] Using a terminal or computer connected to the Internet,
consumers access a consumer/supplier market Web site at which they
may register, so that suppliers, such as utility providers, may bid
to supply the consumer's various product and/or service needs. A
neutral intermediary may operate the Web site, thereby earning the
trust of both consumers and suppliers. The consumer computers may
run commercially-available Web browser applications, such as
Microsoft Internet Explorer.RTM. or Netscape Navigator.RTM., which
implement the basic World Wide Web standards such as HTTP and HTML.
In addition, the consumer/supplier market Web site may be connected
via the Internet or other network to servers associated with
various utility suppliers, their intermediaries, or
wholesalers.
[0127] The consumer computers may also run commercially available
e-mail applications, such as Microsoft Outlook.RTM., Outlook
Express.RTM. or Netscape Navigator.RTM., which may be used to send
and receive communications, such as bids, bid acceptances, account
information, and profile information, from or to the
consumer/supplier market Web site or utility suppliers or their
intermediaries.
[0128] In the embodiment described herein, the consumer/supplier
market Web site includes a computer system and associated content
that are accessible via the Internet. The Web site may optionally
include content that spans multiple Internet domains, and/or may be
implemented using physical servers that are geographically remote
from one another. In other embodiments, the Web site may be in the
form of an Intranet site, and the consumer computers may be coupled
to the site by a private network.
[0129] In other embodiments, the consumer/supplier market Web site
may be replaced with another type of network site. For example, the
various services described herein could alternatively be
implemented on a hypertextual site or browsing area of an online
services network such as America Online.RTM. or MSN.RTM., or using
interactive TV, in which case users may access the site using
software that implements non-standard document formats and transfer
protocols.
[0130] As further depicted by FIG. 1, the consumer/supplier market
Web site includes a commercially available Web server application.
The Web server application accesses an HTML page code database used
to generate Web pages in response to the actions of end users.
[0131] The consumer/supplier market Web site also includes a
translation application which includes the basic functionality for
receiving consumer usage and other profile information from the
consumer or from their incumbent supplier and translating that
information into a consistent format. The translated consumer
information is then stored in a consumer profile and account
database, implemented using a commercial database product, such as
one from Oracle. The translation application also receives bid
information from the suppliers and translates or parses that
information into a consistent format. The information is then
stored in a supplier database. A scoring application scores and/or
codes the consumer's profile information and stores the score
and/or code in association with the consumer's profile in the
consumer profile database. Similarly, the scoring application
scores and/or codes the supplier's bid and stores the score and/or
code in association with the supplier's bid in the supplier
database.
[0132] Optionally voice and/or visual interfaces between consumers,
suppliers, and/or the consumer/supplier market system may be
provided as well. These user-friendly interfaces may be used to
facilitate the generation of the consumer profile, the aggregation
definition by suppliers, and the offering and acceptance of
bids.
[0133] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary process of registering
consumers and matching consumers utility needs with suppliers,
performed by the consumer/supplier market system illustrated in
FIG. 1. First, the consumer registers at the consumer/supplier
market Web site. FIGS. 3-6 illustrate several exemplary forms used
in one embodiment of the registration process. These exemplary
forms are for a consumer looking for bids to supply the consumer's
electricity needs. The forms may be stored in the HTML database. As
illustrated in FIG. 3, the consumer or user selects a user
identifier, a password, indicates whether the registration is for a
commercial or residential account, provides an e-mail address and
credit card information. If the consumer indicates that a
residential account is being opened then additional residential
account information forms will be later presented. If, instead, the
consumer indicates that a commercial account is being opened then
additional commercial account information forms will be later
presented.
[0134] The consumer is then presented with an account information
form, such as that illustrated in FIG. 4, having fields into which
the consumer may enter data from previous utility bills. The
requested data includes, among other information, the customer
name, address, SIC code, name of incumbent provider, and usage
information. This information may then be used to build a consumer
profile to help suppliers, their intermediaries, or wholesalers bid
appropriately to supply services and/or products to the
consumer.
[0135] In one embodiment, the consumer may be asked to specify the
incumbent provider in an earlier form, such as on the form
illustrated in FIG. 3. In such an embodiment, the consumer/supplier
market system may optionally present an account information form
that has the same fields and may look similar to the statements
provided by the incumbent provider, easing the data entry task.
[0136] Optionally, the consumer may grant permission to the
consumer/supplier market system to retrieve some or all of the
requested data from the consumer's incumbent supplier. If
available, this data may be electronically transferred over a
network or using a recording medium, to the consumer/supplier
market system. The uploaded data may be used to spare the consumer
from manually entering the data and/or may be used to confirm
information provided by the consumer.
[0137] FIGS. 5A-B illustrate residential account information forms.
These forms are presented if the consumer indicated on the form
illustrated in FIG. 3 that a residential account is being
registered. The data requested on these forms is used to further
develop the consumer's profile. The requested information relates
to electricity usage patterns, efficiency of use, geographic point
of consumption, and desired energy source. Thus, for example, the
consumer is requested to provide information on the number of
people who are typically are at home during different periods. In
addition, the consumer is asked whether the consumer has certain
types of energy-using appliances, such air-conditioners, heaters,
dishwashers, pools, and the like, as well as the method for
powering those appliances. In addition, other information, such as
the year, make, and model of the appliances may be requested as
well. Further, the consumer may be asked whether the residence is
owned or rented, the age of the home, the square footage of the
home, the type of insulation used, the type of interior and
exterior lighting, the type and number of windows, the type of
thermostat and thermostat settings for different times of day
during different seasons, and so on.
[0138] FIGS. 6A-C illustrate commercial account information forms
for commercial facilities. These forms are used to gather
information which can be used to build a commercial consumer
profile. These forms are presented if the consumer indicated on the
form illustrated in FIG. 3 that a commercial account is being
registered. If the consumer has previously registered, the consumer
may be presented with the forms already filled out with previously
received registration information. The consumer may then be asked
to update usage information and verify that the other information
is still accurate.
[0139] As illustrated in FIG. 6A, information related to the type
of business conducted at the address, the number of employees,
their working hours, and facility shutdown periods is requested. In
addition, the consumer may be asked to specify the number of
employees at each consumer facility. Furthermore, information
relating to energy consuming units, such as the facility's HVAC
unit, may also be requested. Additional information relating to the
type of lighting (florescent, incandescent, halogen), the building
construction technique, whether the facility is rented or leased,
the facility size (in square or cubic feet or meters), and so on
may be requested as well.
[0140] The exemplary meter form illustrated in FIG. 6B is used to
request metering information for a first meter, including, by way
of example, the location, address, meter type, and rate class. If
additional meters are being registered, then the consumer may
activate the "more meters" link and a new meter form will be
presented. Once information has been provided on all the meters,
the consumer may activate the "no more meters" link, and the form
illustrated in FIG. 6C is presented.
[0141] FIG. 6C requests information related to billing, possible
rate discounts, and facility information. In this example, the
consumer may elect to have all meters billed together on one bill,
twice a month. Alternatively, the consumer may elect to have
separate bills for each meter. Further, the consumer may elect to
have commodity and non-commodity charges provided on a single bill
or on two separate bills. Thus, the consumer is provided great
flexibility in specifying how billing is to be performed. In
addition, the consumer may provide information as to whether the
consumer is part of a larger chain or is part of a trade or other
association. This information may be used to determine if the
energy supplier has a discount arrangement with the chain or
association, so that the consumer may receive discounted rates or
other buying preferences. The consumer may also be asked to
indicate the square footage of the facility and whether the
facility is leased or owned.
[0142] FIGS. 9A-C illustrate another embodiment of a set of
registration forms. As illustrated in FIG. 9A, the customer is
asked if the account is for a residential or commercial/industrial
consumer. As illustrated in FIG. 9B, the consumer is asked for a
variety of customer information, including tax identification
number, customer name, primary contact name, and one or more
primary contact addresses, as well as the type or types of
commodity to be priced or bid on.
[0143] FIG. 9C requests customer utility and usage information,
including by way of example, the service account number, the
service account address, the state where the service address is
located, and the name of the current provider. Metering
information, including the number of meters associated with the
service account number, the meter number, rate class, and the meter
billing address, may be requested as well. The form also includes
usage related fields, including on, off, and mid peak usage times
and quantities for different seasons. The customer is also
requested to provide information on customer charges, PX energy
credits, and revenue cycle services credits. The consumer may elect
to be part of an aggregated load cost to receive better bids.
[0144] Referring to FIG. 2, once the profile information is
received, the information, including information entered into the
forms and information uploaded from the incumbent energy supplier,
are translated into a common or consistent format to facilitate the
manipulation of and searches for the information. Based on the
profile information, a consumer score or code is generated as
discussed above. The consumer profile information, and/or the
scores/codes are provided to one or more suppliers, with certain
information, such as contact and related private information,
filtered out. The suppliers may be charged a fee for the consumer
profile information and an additional fee for the consumer codes.
Optionally, the suppliers may specify what consumer characteristics
they desire, and consumer profile information, and/or the
scores/codes for consumers having those characteristics is
supplied.
[0145] FIG. 8 illustrates one embodiment of a display including
information provided to a supplier. The display provides
information on the number of customers in the aggregated profile,
the aggregated credit score, aggregated predicted revenue, UDC
(Utility Distribution Company) payments, cash flow implications,
number of site billed accounts, number of summary billed accounts,
and the maximum number of meters per summary account. In addition,
graphical information is provided indicated consumers' usage versus
time. Individual customer's usage may be charted as well as the
aggregated group's usage. This makes it easy for suppliers to
quickly evaluate the desirability of the aggregated group and
provide an appropriate bid, if any.
[0146] The suppliers may then decide which consumers they wish to
bid to supply utility services and/or products to, and generate
corresponding offers. As discussed above, the consumer/supplier
market system then optionally translates the offers to a consistent
format, and scores and/or ranks the offers. These scored offers are
then presented to the consumer in rank order. The consumer may then
accept a supplier's offer. The consumer/supplier market system may
then charge the consumer and/or the supplier once the offer is
accepted.
[0147] FIG. 10 illustrates one embodiment of a supplier offer
configuration form. The illustrated form may be used to allow
suppliers to customize their offers within certain predetermined
constraints. For example, the supplier may optionally only be
allowed to include term types or elements from a predetermined set
of terms or elements, such as those displayed in FIG. 10. The
displayed form includes a "Use Element" column, wherein if a
supplier activates the check box for a given row, the associated
contract element in the contract element column will be included as
part of the contract or proposal to one or more consumers. Some of
the contract elements may be mutually exclusive. The element type
column specifies the type of element (alpha, numeric, alphanumeric,
matrix, ASCII, or other type) to be entered into the element value
column. The actual element value is entered into the element value
column. The exemplary form illustrated in FIG. 10 includes examples
of appropriate element values. The account level column is used to
specify whether the contract element is to apply at the account
level, such as at the meter level or other low level, or at a
higher level, such at the billing, service, or customer level.
[0148] To reuse the offer without having to reenter the data, the
supplier can save the offer terms as a standard product by entering
the product name in the Product Name field. Using the corresponding
illustrated fields, the supplier may also enter an abbreviated
product name, indicate whether the product is currently active and
so may be offered, and the state or states the offer is valid for.
Using the Edit Users or Add New User functions, the supplier may
specify who is authorized to view, edit, and/or add products.
Authorized users may utilize the Edit Product function to edit the
terms of an existing product. The Add New Product function may be
used to create or define a new product. The Add Product Element
function allows additional contract elements to be defined. The Add
UDC function is used add another Utility Distribution Company or
default provider.
[0149] The use of the illustrated form will now be explained in
greater detail. By way of example, if the supplier checks the "Auto
Renewal" contract element, the offer to the customer will specify
that unless the consumer instructs the supplier not to renew the
contract within a certain period, such as 30 days, before the end
of the contract, the contract will automatically renew for the
renewal term entered into the renewal term element value
column.
[0150] The CA PX Index Price is related to the price the California
Power Exchange sets for power in the state of California. The
element value is the amount related to the utility commodity that
customers will be credited with if they use a provider other than
the utility. Competing suppliers will often try to meet or offer a
lower price than this credited amount.
[0151] ComEd RCDS Customer Class/Demand contract element relates to
Commonwealth Edison's Retail Customer Service Delivery customer
class or demand category, which is used to determine the new tariff
or price a customer would pay if they elected a retail electricity
provider.
[0152] The Contract End Date and Contract Start Date elements are
used respectively to specify the contract start and end dates.
Rather than using the Contract End Date element, a provider may
elect to use a Contract Term element and enter the corresponding
term of the contract.
[0153] The Fixed Discount Amount element may be used to specify the
discount amount per a given energy unit, such as the number of
cents per kilowatt-hour, being offered off the CA PX Index Price.
The Fixed Discount Base element is used to specify an additional
discount off the CA PX Index Price once the consumer's energy use
exceeds an amount specified in a Fixed Discount Base Trigger Amount
element (not shown). The Trigger Amount value may be specified as a
dollar amount or in kilowatt-hours. The discount may also be
specified the percentage discount being offered off the CA PX Index
Price using the Fixed Discount Percent element
[0154] Rather than characterize the offer as a discount off the CA
PX Index Price or other price, the supplier can specify a fixed
energy price per kilowatt over the life of the contract using the
Fixed Energy Price (Contract Term) element. Alternatively, rather
than specify one fixed price for the entire contract term, using
the next two contract elements, the supplier can specify different
fixed prices for different periods over the contract term.
[0155] The Late Payment Charge element is used to specify the
percentage or amount that will be charged for bill payments made
after the bill due date. The Net Terms element is used to specify
the billing period.
[0156] Referring now to FIG. 11, a form or other user interface may
be used to edit or add contract elements. A user may enter the
element name using the Contract Element Name field. The entered
name is the name that will appear in the Contract Element column
illustrated in FIG. 10. The user may then select which element
value (numeric, alpha, percent, matrix) is to be used with the
contract element. The user may also enter a contract element value
in the Value field. If the user indicates that this value is to be
used as a default value, then the entered value will appear in the
Element Value column illustrated in FIG. 11.
[0157] The supplier, consumer/supplier market system manager, or
other authorized entity may view the defined product or contract
types using a report, such as that illustrated in FIG. 12. The
report lists the product abbreviation and product name for each
product defined by an exemplary supplier. The report may include
additional information, such as which products are active, and in
what states are they active.
[0158] Using a report, such as that illustrated in FIG. 13, the
supplier, consumer/supplier market system manager, or other
authorized entity may also view a supplier's record of actual
proposals, offers, or bids submitted to customers. Under user
control, the report may be limited to offers made during a
specified period of time, in selected states, to a certain type of
consumer (commercial or residential, individual entity or
aggregated group), and so on. The report may list an offer
identifier or ID, the customer name to whom the offer was made, the
date the offer was provided, the date the offer was accepted, and
if not accepted, the date the offer expired. If the offer was made
to an aggregated group, an aggregated group identifier is provided
in the Customer Name field. Activating the group identifier causes
a list of group member names to be provided for viewing.
[0159] FIG. 14 illustrates one embodiment of a display or report
used to list multiple account offers made to a selected consumer.
The consumer name, contract type, and status of offer are provided.
Each offer may be related to a specific meter associated with the
consumer. The report provides the account number, the contract end
and start dates, the contract term length, and the offer price or
discount. Each account may have its own set of dates, term length,
and/or price or discount, providing great flexibility in optimizing
offers and in satisfying consumer expectations. Activating the
Historical Usage field causes historical usage information for that
account to be presented in numerical and/or graphical form.
[0160] FIG. 15 illustrates one embodiment of a display report of
offers made to a consumer. The report is intended to summarize the
offers or bids provided by suppliers, thereby facilitating the task
of selecting the most appropriate supplier or offer. The report may
be viewed by the consumer, utility consumer/supplier market system
manager, or other authorized entity. The report lists the supplier
by name or optionally, by an anonymous identifier. By activating
certain highlighted fields, such as a Supplier Profile field or a
Supplier's Financials field, additional related details about the
supplier is provided to the consumer. The consumer may use this
additional information in deciding what offer to accept. A Customer
Service Ranking may also be provided. This ranking may be based on
ratings provided via a survey or the like of the supplier's
existing customers. The ranking may also be based on a ranking
provided by an independent entity that evaluates objective factors,
such the availability of a 24 hour, 7 days a week, customer service
line, the ratio of customer service personnel to customers, the
number of reported outages or brownouts during a specified period,
the number of complaints filed with an appropriate regulatory
agency or to the utility consumer/supplier market system manager,
and so on.
[0161] The report also includes a predicted amount of savings the
consumer can expect as compared to the consumer's current supplier.
The savings may be specified as a percent and/or as a dollar amount
over a given period, such as a year or a month. The savings may be
calculated by comparing the consumer's current rates with those
offered by the bidding suppliers. In addition, the report provides
the contract start and end dates, the contract term, and the type
and amount of discount. The discount may be expressed as a
percentage, an amount per kilowatt-hour, or in other formats.
[0162] A supplier may optionally provide multiple bids to a
consumer, each bid having different terms. For example, a supplier
may provide a first bid to supply energy at a first rate for a
first term, such as 1 year, and a second bid to supply energy at a
lower rate for a longer term, such as 18 months. These multiple
offers may also be ranked and presented on the report.
[0163] FIG. 16 illustrates an architecture diagram in accordance
with one embodiment of the present invention. Advantageously, the
illustrated distributed information system provides consumers with
substantially real-time information at the point of sale, ensuring
that the consumer's requirements or preferences are correlated with
the services and/or products being acquired.
[0164] As illustrated, the novel process coordinates over one or
more networks the following: service providers, equipment
providers, brick and mortar retailers and customers. The
illustrated process architecture allows the sales of goods and
services to be made at a physical, brick and mortar store, or via a
web site from the user's home or business.
[0165] Using the illustrated architecture, sales of products and
services may be made members, to government agencies, corporations,
and to market places. An affinity group, or the like, may
optionally receive payment, credits, or other benefits as a reward
for sales made to its members. This encourages affinity groups to
refer business to the store, whether online, off-line, as well as
to a Website of the system operator. In one embodiment, a basic set
of tools is used for physical retail store sales, for sales made by
Web sites associated with the physical retail stores, and for sales
made via a purely on-line retailer that does not have a physical
brick and mortar store.
[0166] As similarly discussed above, the system gathers user
profile data, including one or more of usage data, feature
preferences, lifestyle characteristics and business usage
attributes. Once data is captured it is analyzed, based on the
analysis and available products and services, the product service
bundles that meet the unique needs of the user are presented with
optional corresponding rankings. By providing an objective,
independent recommendation based on the user's specific profile,
confusion and uncertainty on the part of the user is greatly
reduced, and retailers, product providers, and service providers
can more effectively design and present tailored service
offerings.
[0167] In the illustrated example, an intermediary manages the
vendor-to-retailer-to-customer sales and provisioning process. By
way of example, the intermediary is TruePricing, Inc. The
intermediary server site hosts a variety of vendor and system
components used to manage the process.
[0168] Generally, the vendor components provide retailer interfaces
allowing management of service and product offerings, account and
revenue communication, and tracking with service and equipment
providers. This advantageously provides avenues for product
widening, upselling, the creation of new provider relationships,
data exports and links to internal business systems, and other
services based on existing data flow between the retailers and
providers.
[0169] The vendor components include an interface configuration
module, a point-of-sale system (POS) module, a customer
relationship management (CRM) module, and an inventory module.
These vendor component modules communicate via an interface engine
over a network, which may be the Internet, with customer terminals,
store terminals, and/or to terminals intended to be used by
individual customers or an association's customers.
[0170] The interface engine translates data, such as preference,
usage or billing data, received from customers into a standardized
or common format. The now-standardized data is then arranged into
queryable forms allowing comparison and matrixing across different
product and service attributes and characteristics.
[0171] In addition, the vendor components are coupled via a network
to retailers' computer servers. By being able to access retailer
inventory and business systems data of service and equipment
providers, an integrated data source descriptive of retailer,
service and equipment providers is achieved. Thus, multiple
attributes relating to products and services, such as geographical
locality of services and retail store locations, inventory
standings in current and future timeframes, and other related
characteristics may be accessed and tracked. For example, the
tracking of back-orders and purchase orders is provided in an
online presence for either the customer or the retailer. This
further enhances communication and the interaction between the
customer and the retailed.
[0172] In particular, the interface configuration module stores and
generates retailers' Web site pages in the form of HTML, XML, Java,
and the like. When the intermediary site is used to provide
services for different retailers, each interface configuration
module may be used to store customized Web site pages for each
retailer, so that each retailer may have its own look and feel and
its own branding.
[0173] The point of sale module captures sales-related information
for sales being made at the retail store. The sales-related
information may include one or more of the product code for the
product being sold, the identifier code for any associated service
being sold with the product, the price of the product, the up front
price (if any) of the service, and customer information, such as
customer contact information and credit card number.
[0174] The CRM system module is used to establish and maintain
relationships with the retailer's customers. The CRM module
provides automated marketing, sales and customer care for the
retailer's customers. For example, the CRM module may automatically
transmit extended warranties or loss insurance offers to customer's
who have purchased a product.
[0175] The inventory module is used to read retailers' inventory
status for a given product and provide the inventory status to a
user requesting information or purchasing the product. The
inventory module provides inventory management by controlling
equipment fulfillment through multiple channels such as from
equipment providers, service providers, retail warehouses, retail
stores and other equipment sources. Optionally, the retailer can
specify that the inventory module indicate that there is no
inventory in-stock even should there be such in-stock inventory. In
one embodiment, the inventory module provides a notification to the
retailer via an electronic message when the inventory for a given
product falls to or below a predetermined amount.
[0176] The system components include an intermediary CRM module, a
service plans database, a hardware database, an infrastructure
database, and an intermediary content database. The intermediary
CRM module is used to establish and maintain relationships between
the intermediary, individual customers and association customers
for sales made directly by the intermediary to the customers. The
CRM module provides automated marketing, sales and customer care.
For example, the CRM module will automatically transmit extended
warranties or loss insurance offers to customer's who have
purchased a product.
[0177] The service plans database stores service plans provided by
the service providers. The service providers may be, by way of
example, telecommunications service providers, electricity
providers, gas providers, ISP providers and the like. In the case
of cellular phones, the service plans may specify the number of
included prime time minutes provided, the number of weekend minutes
provided, and so on. The stored service plans will be selectively
provided or presented to customers based on their preferences and
usage.
[0178] The hardware database stores hardware information and
specifications provided by the hardware providers. For example, in
the case of cellular phones, the hardware information and
specifications may include an image of the phone, the
communications standard(s) the phone conforms to, the amount of
talk time provided on a battery charge, and so on.
[0179] The content database includes other information relevant to
the products and services being offered. For example, test reports,
consumer reviews, environmental regulations, and the like may be
stored in the content database for later retrieval using a query
engine.
[0180] The infrastructure database includes information on the
locations and types of infrastructure maintained by a service
provider, and other indicators of service area coverage and the
quality of service for each service provider. For example, the
location and types of cellular antennas maintained or operated by a
cellular service provider can be stored in the infrastructure
database. Some or all of this information can be provided to
customers to help them select an appropriate service provider, as
discussed in greater detail below.
[0181] The system components communicate via a data engine to user
terminals. The data engine formats the data for presentation on the
appropriate terminal. For example, data may be appropriately
formatted for use with a physical retail store's terminals and/or
sales registers, including, by way of example, sales support
computer terminal kiosks, customer self-service computer terminal
kiosks, wireless tablet touch sensitive computers, and other
networked connected equipment. The data may include data regarding
products, service plans, and inventory status of the products. Data
from terminals are likewise formatted by the data engine to be
compatible with the system components. In addition, when used as
part of a pure, online Website, the data engine includes the
interfaces and translation tools for processing the data received
over the Internet on an intranet from consumers and related
associations. For example, the data engine manages manual online
input screens, automatic communication services (e.g., XML, EDI),
or other data formats. The data engine provides the interface for
service and equipment providers to submit offerings to specific
single customer or to multiple customers in real-time. The data
engine provides bundling capabilities among services, thereby
allowing single or multiple service offerings comprised of multiple
service provider offerings.
[0182] In addition, the service plan and hardware databases are
coupled to service providers' sites via a configuration engine. The
hardware database is also coupled to hardware manufacture sites
either directly or via the configuration engine. The configuration
engine translates data received from the service and equipment
providers into a standardized searchable format useable with the
intermediary site's database tools.
[0183] Optionally, an online provisioning engine is coupled to the
intermediary site, service providers, and product vendors so that
orders can be fulfilled without the participation of a physical
retail store.
[0184] A bidding engine optionally couples one or more service
providers, hardware or product providers, the intermediary site,
and consumers. As similarly described above, the bidding engine
allows product and service providers to bid to supply corresponding
products and services to consumers. The consumers may be aggregated
by the providers as described above, or may be pre-grouped. The
pre-grouping may be, by way of example, in the form of professional
or business associations.
[0185] FIG. 18 illustrates an alternative system architecture
diagram in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 18 illustrates the relationship between the participants in
the transactions discussed above, including the retailer, the
intermediary that manages the vendor-to-retailer-to-customer sales
and provisioning process, and the vendors, including the service
and product suppliers. At the retailer, the customer provides
customer data, such as customer survey responses, via a user
interface. The customer orders or selects desired goods and
services, such as phones, phone service plans, and accessories, via
the user interface. This information is provided as system output
to the retailer and the retailer's point-of-sale (POS) system.
[0186] Information is communicated between the intermediary and the
retail site as follows. The customer data entered using the user
interface is sent via an interface or profiling engine to the
configuration engine. The interface engine translates data, such as
preference, usage or billing data, received from customers into a
standardized or common format. The now-standardized data is then
arranged into queryable forms allowing comparison and matrixing
across different product and service attributes and
characteristics. The configuration engine utilizes the queries to
retrieve vendor data, such as product and service data. The
configuration engine translates data received from the service and
product providers into a standardized searchable format useable
with the intermediary site's database tools. The data is
transferred to a CRM system in the form of customer profiling data.
In the illustrated example, the configuration engine accesses a
service plan database, a handset or product database, and an
accessories data, which in turn communicate with an inventory
database. The inventory database communicates with the retailer
point-of-sale (POS) system described above. The profile data is
also communicated to the CRM system. In addition, customer order
information, such as purchase decision information, is provided via
the system output. The CRM system provides upsell information and
the like to the customer directly, using mail or email, or via the
user interface. The communications between the retailer and
intermediary can be preformed in real time. A service plan
administrative tool using information from service providers or
vendor sales representatives periodically updates the service plan
database. The handset database is likewise updated using
information from handset manufacturers. Customer data is stored in
a customer database associated with the intermediary and well as in
the database associated with the service provider that the customer
has selected to purchase services from. These activities can occur
offline, in batch mode.
[0187] As previously discussed, a novel process in accordance with
the present invention coordinates over one or more networks service
providers, equipment providers, brick and mortar retailers and
customers. Further, users can correlate the service infrastructures
of several different providers with user utilization needs. For
example, as will be described in further detail, based on user
specified routes, telecommunications infrastructure placement or
coverage will be provided to the user. The user can then use the
placement or coverage information as a factor in selecting an
appropriate service provider.
[0188] In one embodiment, a quality of service software application
helps users select the service provider that offers the most
suitable service. Thus, the quality of service software application
advantageously enables customer's to make an informed decision
before entering into a service agreement. This contrasts with
conventional systems, where customers have little information
regarding a service provider's quality of service before
contracting with the provider. Hence, customers often simply
contracts for the service and hopes for the best. Only after the
customer contracts for and utilizes the service, does the customer
find out whether the quality of service is adequate or not.
[0189] One quality of service (QOS) application in accordance with
the present invention aids users select the telecommunications
service provider with the most suitable telecommunications
infrastructure, including the most suitable placement and density
of antennas for the users needs. The customer is asked by the QOS
application, via a web page form, to select which service/product
combination the customer is interested in. For example, the
customer may be asked between cellular phone and pager products and
services. If the customer selects cellular phone product and
services, the customer is presented with a service area usage form,
wherein the customer specifies where the customer intends to use
the phone. The user input can be received via a touch screen
interface, touch pad interface, voice recognition interface, mouse,
trackball, or other user input device.
[0190] FIG. 20 illustrates an example service area usage form. The
form may be displayed on a touch sensitive terminal installed in a
retail site or on a conventional end-user terminal in the user's
home or business. The illustrated form includes a map, in this
example, a map of the continental United States and portions of
Canada and Mexico. Major cellular service areas are indicated using
a circle or the like. Optionally, the name of the city or town
located within the service area may be displayed in conjunction
with the service area indicator. The user is asked to select which
service areas the customer intends to typically use their cellular
phone in. The user can select the areas by touching the appropriate
circled areas, or can use a pointing device, such as a trackball,
touch pad, or mouse, to select the appropriate circled areas. The
selected circles are highlighted, filed in, or otherwise
emphasized. The user can then submit the selection by activating
the "next" on-screen button.
[0191] Next, a more detailed map of a first of the selected circles
areas, as well as adjacent areas, is presented. The map may show,
for example, the local cities and towns within or adjacent to the
selected circled area. FIG. 21 illustrates an example local service
area usage form displaying a selected service area from FIG. 20 in
greater detail. With finer granularity, the user can select in
which of these local areas the user intends to use the cellular
phone in. For example, the user can select 3 of 5 cities presented.
The selected areas are highlighted, filed in, or otherwise
emphasized. The user can then submit the selection by activating
the "next" on-screen button.
[0192] Once the user selects the local areas of interest, the user
can indicate which routes the user typically travels on. FIG. 22
illustrates an example a service route usage form. The example form
displays and highlights routes connecting the areas selected by the
user using the form illustrated in FIG. 21 or leading in or out of
the selected areas. The displayed routes can include major and
secondary highways, as well as streets, subways, trains, ferries,
and other routes. In addition, routes within the selected cities or
towns can be displayed as well. The user can then select or
indicate which routes the user typically travels. The selected
routes are then further highlighted or otherwise emphasized by
changing the color of the selected routes, flashing the routes,
outlining the routes in bold, or using other emphasis techniques.
The user can then submit the selection by activating the "next"
on-screen button.
[0193] Next, the user can view the communication infrastructure, in
the form of cellular antenna placement and/or coverage, along the
selected routes for different service providers. This contrasts
with conventional licensed area maps, which do not show actual
service coverage, but instead often merely indicate with the
provider is licensed to provide service. FIG. 23 illustrates an
example antenna coverage display for a first service provider. In
this example, the user can select to view the communications
infrastructure for Company A, Company B, or Company C. In this
example, the user has selected to view the coverage of Company B.
The system displays infrastructure indicators, in the form of a
circle, for each antenna used by Company B along the routes
selected by the user on the service route usage form. The
infrastructure information, including location and type
information, is stored in the infrastructure database, as
previously described. The system can thus display the placement of
the service provider's antennas within a bounded area through which
the selected route traverses.
[0194] If the user's route is very long, such as between San
Francisco and Chicago, rather than display the whole route with
coverage indicators on one screen display, the coverage map may be
divided into multiple screen displays, or in one scrollable map of
which only a portion is displayed at one time. This ensures that
there is sufficient granularity for the user to visible discern
coverage densities and coverage gaps.
[0195] By way of example, if the user selects a route traveling
between two cities, such as San Francisco and Sacramento, the
system determines the latitude and longitude of the city boundary
that intersects the selected route. The system then determines a
bounded area by subtracting the latitude of the first city, San
Francisco, from the latitude of the second city, Sacramento, to
determine a first difference value, and taking an absolute value of
the result. Similarly, the system subtracts the longitude of the
first city, San Francisco, from the longitude of the second city,
Sacramento, to determine a second difference value, and taking an
absolute value of the result. The bounded area is defined by a
rectangle of a predetermined width, such as 80 miles, wherein a
first side is approximately centered on a first point where the
route intersects the first city and an opposite second side is
approximately centered on the second point where the route
intersects the second city. Thus, the first and second sides are
spaced apart by approximately the predetermined width. The first
point and the second point are spaced apart by approximately the
square root of the square of the first difference plus the square
of the second difference.
[0196] The size or diameter of the indicator circle is optionally
selected to approximately correspond to the coverage area of the
corresponding antenna. Thus, for example, the coverage indicator
may vary in size based on the communication technology used. Analog
antenna indicators may be, for example, different in size then
digital (PCS, CDMA) antenna indicators. Alternatively, the size of
the indicator circle may be the same regardless of variation in
antenna coverage. Of course, rather than using an indicator circle,
other coverage area indicators can be used as well, such as changes
in colors or flashing icons. In addition, rather than displaying
discrete, if overlapping, coverage indicators for each antenna, an
indicator, in the form of a shaded area or the like, can encompass
a plurality of antennas' coverage areas. However, this type of
indicator is preferably selected so that breaks in coverage will
still be evident, that is, the indicator does not encompass areas
where there is no antenna coverage.
[0197] As illustrated in FIG. 23, there may be gaps in the antenna
coverage of the service provider, which can result in service
disruption while the user is communicating on the phone. The gaps
can be indicated by the absence of antenna coverage indicators, or
gaps may be emphasized using icons, flashing symbols, different
colors, or the like. In addition, landmarks known to block or
interfere with cellular services can also be displayed. For
example, geographical features or buildings that can block an
antenna's coverage can be indicated. The blocking feature can be
indicated on the map, and/or the antenna coverage indicator can be
altered to indicate the presence of coverage blockage. For example,
rather than a full circle, the coverage indicator my appear as a
circle with a triangular slice missing, indicating that coverage is
blocked within the triangular area.
[0198] The user can similarly request to view the antenna coverage
of the other service providers, Company A and Company C. FIG. 24
illustrates an example antenna coverage display for Company C. The
antenna coverage and antenna density patterns differs from that
illustrated by FIG. 23 for Company B. The user can examine the
antenna coverage displays for each provider to determine which
provider has the most suitable coverage for the user. The user can
avoid selecting providers who have gaps in undesirable locations.
In addition, the user can examine the density of antenna coverage
in desired areas, and based on the number and locations of gaps and
the antenna density of service providers make an informed decision
when selecting a service provider. Thus the present invention
provides for the correlations of telecommunications antennas or
other infrastructure with the user usage.
[0199] To further help the user make a suitable service provider
selection, numerical coverage information can be provided as well.
The numerical coverage information can include the total square
miles or kilometers covered within a bounded area, the percentage
of the bounded area that is covered by the provider's antenna, or
the percentage of the provider's licensed area that is covered by
the antennas. FIG. 25 illustrates an example percentage coverage
comparison for a plurality of providers.
[0200] The user can optionally down select to a single provider at
this point based on the infrastructure coverage, or can still
consider one or more providers, while using the coverage
information as well as service plan information to make the down
selection. The system requests the user to provide anticipated
usage information, such as the amount of monthly call minutes that
will be used, as well as desired plan features.
[0201] FIG. 26 illustrates an example usage specification form. The
user can select from the following options: up to 250 minutes; up
to 400 minutes; up to 750 minutes or more. Before the user makes
the selection, available plans are identified, without restricting
the display to plans providing a user designated number of minutes.
Once the user selects a certain number or range of minutes, the
displayed available plans are limited to plans providing that
number or the range of minutes. FIG. 27 illustrates an example
completed usage specification form, wherein the user selected "up
to 750" minutes. The display of available plans on the left-hand
side of the form is correspondingly restricted to plans that
include up to 750 minutes within the monthly service fee. The user
can also be asked if the user wants nationwide coverage included in
the monthly fee, or specified local area coverage, or coverage for
the areas selected by the user, such as the areas selected using
the previously discussed forms.
[0202] The user can request help or hints in selecting a service
plan by activating a context sensitive hint button or link. FIG. 28
illustrates an example context sensitive help or hint display. The
illustrated hint provides the user with information on the average
length of a cell phone call, as well on the types of calls the user
will be billed for. In addition, the hint provides the user with
information on how many additional call minutes beyond the minutes
selected by the user using the form illustrated in FIG. 27 it would
take to make the selection of the next plan level more economical.
In the illustrated example, the hint informs the user that it would
take an additional 30 extra call minutes to make it more economical
or less expensive for the user to subscribe to the next level plan,
which includes more call minutes in the periodic monthly fee.
[0203] Next, the system requests the user to select desired service
features. FIG. 29 illustrates an example features specification
form used to select the desired features. For example, the user can
request plans having a pre-paid option for cell phone use, plans
including cellular phone Internet access, plans providing for free
long distance calls included in the monthly fee, plans providing a
month-to-month service contract, and/or free cellular phone to
cellular phone calls. The display of available plans is
correspondingly restricted to plans that include the selected
features. The user can then select from the corresponding displayed
service plans.
[0204] The system then enables the user to select an appropriate
cellular phone. The system requests the user to specify the desired
cell phone features. For example, the user can specify a desired
price range, size, technology, battery life, display type, weight
range, web enabled, text messaging, and so on. FIGS. 30 and 31
illustrate example phone feature selection forms. As the user
specifies desired features, a list of available phone is provided
indicating which phones available phones have the specified
features.
[0205] In addition, the user is offered a variety of accessories.
Optionally, some of the offered accessories are selected by the
system based the previous information provided by the user, the
service plan selected by the user, and or the phone selected by the
user. Thus, for example, if the user selects a nationwide plan,
indicating the user probably travels a significant amount, high
capacity batteries may be offered. If the user has indicated that
the user travels along many highway routes, the user may be offered
a hands-free accessory, such as a headset or mounted
speaker/microphone combination.
[0206] FIG. 32 illustrates an example antenna tracking and usage
correlation system 3200 architecture diagram in accordance with one
embodiment of the present invention. A retail store environment
3202 includes an intermediary's workstation or terminal 3204, which
can optionally be a wireless terminal with a touch sensitive
screen, a retailer workstation or terminal 3206, used to access the
retailer's web site, a retailer decision support 3208, a retailer
Web site 3210, a store local area network (LAN) 3212, and a
retailer wide area network (WAN) 3214. The terminal 3204 and the
terminal 3206 can optionally provide user access to both the
retailer's Web site and to the Web site and services of the
intermediary. For example, the terminals 3204, 3206 can be used to
provide a user interface, to thereby display the previously
discussed forms and input user information. The intermediary work
station 3204 and the retailer workstation 3206 are connected to the
store LAN 3212, which is in turn connected to the retailer WAN
3214. The retailer Web site 3210, store LAN 3212 and the retailer
WAN 3214 are connected to the correlation system 3200, which may be
operated as part of the intermediary environment 3218, over the
Internet 3216. In addition, the WAN 3214 can be connected to other
stores and/or offsite computer resources of the retailer.
[0207] The correlation system operator or intermediary environment
3218 includes an HTML web server 3246 and virtual private network
(VPN) 3244, which provide Internet connectivity. In addition, the
HTML web server 3246 serves web pages used to provide the service
and product information described above. The HTML web server 3246
and the VPN 3244 are connected through a firewall 3242 to the
backend of the system 3218. The firewall 3242 provides security and
limits access to the backend. The firewall 3242 is connected to a
load balancing and presentation server 3240, which is in-turn
connected to a local area network interconnecting the backend.
[0208] The backend includes quality of service applications 3232,
an informed decision engine 3234, an application server 3236, and
business systems 3238 configured to access corresponding databases
3252, 3250, 3248 for the storage and retrieval of data. The quality
of service applications include applications that enable the user
to select service providers that offer the most satisfactory or
best quality service based on a given user's needs. One such
quality of service application is the telecommunications
infrastructure quality of service application previously described.
The informed decision engine 3234 aids in finding suitable product
choices for the customer. For example, as similarly described above
with respect to cell phone selection, the informed decision engine
3234 generates user questions regarding features the user desires
for a given product type, and based on the user's responses,
provides the user with information on products that meet the user's
requirements or desires. The application server 3236 interfaces web
browser-based thin clients, such as the workstations 3204, 3206,
with backend databases and business applications. The business
systems 3238 include, by way of example, marketing software,
information technology development software, and back office
functions.
[0209] The quality of service application 3232 accesses relevant
information or data from one or more corresponding databases. The
databases may be included in the operator environment 3218, or they
may be located off-site, at the source of the data. The databases
may be updated in real-time, as new data is made available from
other sources, or may be updated on a periodic or batch basis.
[0210] By way of example, for the previously discussed
telecommunications quality of service application, the
corresponding infrastructure data accessed includes carrier data
3222, tower management data 3224, property management data 3226,
regulatory agency data, such as Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) data 3228, transit authority data 3228, and GIS (geographic
information system) data 3230. Separate mapping data, used to
present the maps and travel routes, is optionally also included. In
addition, landmark information related to landmarks, such as
buildings or mountains, that can block or interfere with cellular
communication, is also stored. In particular, to develop a more
accurate mapping of antenna placement, data may need to be
collected from a variety of sources, such as from the service
providers, companies that maintain antenna towers for service
providers, property owners or managers regarding antennas located
on the properties under their control, the FCC, and transit
authorities, who have information on antennas located in tunnels,
on bridges, along train routes, and the like.
[0211] In addition the example environment 3218 includes a
lightweight directory access protocol (LDAP) database 3252 that
stores and retrieves data, including hierarchical data, for
accessing information directories. A relational database management
system (RDBMS) 3250 stores product and service plan information. A
data mart database 3248 is used to store and access customer
profiles and information related to their shopping experiences and
habits, including historical purchase information.
[0212] FIG. 33 illustrates an example infrastructure database
display form, illustrating the associated data available to the
system. The system can extract the following stored
infrastructure-related information from the database. The database
includes cellular market area (CMA) information for some or all
CMAs within a predetermined larger area, such as within the United
States, Canada, Mexico, and/or other parts of the world. The CMA
information can include an area or territory name, a basic trading
area identifier, a major trading area identifier, a regional area
identifier, an economic area identifier, a major economic area
identifier, a regional economic area identifier, an economic area
grouping identifier, a VHF public coast station area identifier,
and a public safety planning region identifier. This information
may, in some circumstances, be obtained from a regulatory agency,
such as the FCC. The identities of the licensees for each cellular
market area (CMA) of interest are stored as well. The cities,
towns, counties, and the like within the CMA are identified, as are
their corresponding zip codes and latitude and longitude
positions.
[0213] A variety of information is stored for each antenna,
including the antenna call sign, the name of the local geographic
area where the antenna is located, the name of the city, town, or
county in which the antenna is located, the name of the state in
which the antenna is located, and the latitude and longitude of the
antenna location. The source of the information may be identified
as well. For example, the source of the antenna location
information may be appropriately identified as being sourced by the
FCC or by the Cellular Telephone and Internet Association (CTIA).
When multiple sources are used to build the database, there may
duplicate listings for one or more antennas. In one embodiment,
these duplicate listings are identified and only one listing is
stored in the database. The identification can be performed by
identifying antenna listings or records with the same latitude and
longitude information, or having other duplicate information.
[0214] In addition, a default, approximate or estimated area
coverage for each antenna or for each class of antenna can be
stored as well. This information is used to display coverage
indicators to users.
[0215] This above information is used to correlate the antenna
placement with users' usage locations, as previously discussed.
[0216] While the above description discusses methods and systems
for correlating telecommunication antennas to user routes, the
invention is not so limited. For example, the present invention can
be utilized to correlate user travel routes to gas station service
area coverage for a plurality of gas station operators and to
provide the user with station coverage information, the hours the
gas stations are operated, whether the gas stations take credit
cards, and so on.
[0217] Thus, as described above, the present invention facilitates
the procurement and management of products and related services and
provides an architecture and process that coordinates the sale and
purchase of services involving product and service providers, such
as stores and vendors, end consumers, such as individuals,
companies and associations, and intermediaries. By way of example,
the present invention advantageously increases the opportunities
for utility suppliers and the like to enter new markets and acquire
new customers, while providing customers with the ability to select
suppliers who can reduce utility costs and/or offer improved
service.
[0218] Further, information from the consumer may be collected via
a terminal located at a conventional, physical, "bricks and mortar"
store. Preference and usage data are collected at the store and
based at least in part on the collected data, offers and related
information may be generated specifically for the consumer. In
addition, the store can optionally provide the product and/or
activate the related services to the consumer before the consumer
leaves the store.
[0219] Although this invention has been described in terms of
certain preferred embodiments, other embodiments that are apparent
to those of ordinary skill in the art are also within the scope of
this invention. For example, while one described embodiment relates
to utility services, the present invention is not so limited, and
may be utilized with other goods and services, such as those where
the price of the products or services are based at least in part on
a given customer's characteristics. Accordingly, the scope of the
present invention is intended to be defined only by reference to
the appended claims.
* * * * *