U.S. patent application number 10/821158 was filed with the patent office on 2005-01-13 for method of transacting a purchase.
Invention is credited to Blasiman, Douglas E., Sutton, David B..
Application Number | 20050010489 10/821158 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 23430481 |
Filed Date | 2005-01-13 |
United States Patent
Application |
20050010489 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Sutton, David B. ; et
al. |
January 13, 2005 |
Method of transacting a purchase
Abstract
A method is provided for transacting an anonymous purchase over
the Internet. The method comprises the steps of: (a) acquiring
intermediary credit account information from a purchasing
intermediary; (b) providing transactional purchase information,
including the intermediary credit account information, to a
retailer, where the transactional purchase information is provided
by the purchaser using a first computing device of a
computer-implemented purchasing system; and (c) transacting a
purchase between the purchaser and the retailer using the
intermediary credit account information, thereby maintaining the
anonymity of the purchaser.
Inventors: |
Sutton, David B.; (Monroe,
MI) ; Blasiman, Douglas E.; (Bowling Green,
OH) |
Correspondence
Address: |
HARNESS, DICKEY & PIERCE, P.L.C.
P.O. BOX 828
BLOOMFIELD HILLS
MI
48303
US
|
Family ID: |
23430481 |
Appl. No.: |
10/821158 |
Filed: |
April 8, 2004 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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10821158 |
Apr 8, 2004 |
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09363499 |
Jul 29, 1999 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/26.1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 20/10 20130101;
G06Q 20/385 20130101; G06Q 20/24 20130101; G06Q 30/06 20130101;
G06Q 20/105 20130101; G07F 7/0866 20130101; G07F 7/02 20130101;
G06Q 40/12 20131203; G06Q 20/363 20130101; G06Q 20/382 20130101;
G06Q 20/12 20130101; G06Q 30/0601 20130101; G06Q 20/383 20130101;
G06Q 20/3433 20130101; G06Q 20/04 20130101; G06Q 40/00
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/026 |
International
Class: |
G06F 017/60 |
Claims
1-14. cancel
15. A method of transacting a purchase, comprising: acquiring a
purchase card from a purchase card provider, the purchase card is a
bearer instrument having an associated account number, but does not
identify the person who acquired the purchase card; providing
purchase transactional information, including the account number
associated with the purchase card, to a retailer, the retailer
being different from the purchase card provider; and transacting a
purchase with the retailer based on the account number associated
with the purchase card.
16. The method of claim 15 wherein the purchase card having indicia
of a card issuer, indicia of an interchange association, and
indicia for at least one other entity associated with distribution
of the purchase cards.
17. The method of claim 16 wherein the indicia for at least one
other entity is further defined as the name of the purchase card
provider.
18. The method of claim 15 wherein the purchase card is selected
from a plurality of purchase cards acquired by the purchase card
provider, where each of the plurality of purchase cards embodies a
different account number but having the same cardholder name.
19. The method of claim 15 wherein the step of acquiring a purchase
card further comprises purchasing the purchase card from a retail
establishment, where the purchase card is provided to the retail
establishment by the purchase card provider.
20. The method of claim 19 wherein the purchase card is provided by
the purchase card provider to the retail establishment on a
consignment basis.
21. The method of claim 19 wherein the purchase card having a
purchase limit equal to an amount paid for the purchase card less a
service fee assessed by the purchase card provider.
22. The method of claim 15 further comprises activating the
purchasing card by contacting the purchase card provider prior to
transacting a purchase.
23. The method of claim 22 wherein contact information for the
purchase card provider is provided on the purchase card.
24. The method of claim 22 wherein the consumer contacts the
purchase card provider over a network connection using a
software-implemented application.
25. The method of claim 15 wherein the step of transacting a
purchase with the retailer further comprises authorizing the
purchase by way of an authorization system of an interchange
association.
26. A method of transacting a purchase, comprising: acquiring a
purchase card from a purchase card provider, the purchase card
having an associated account number, but does not identify the
person who acquired the purchase card; providing purchase
transactional information, including the account number associated
with the purchase card, to a retailer, the retailer being different
from the purchase card provider; activating the purchasing card by
contacting the purchase card provider prior to transacting a
purchase, wherein contact information for the purchase card
provider is provided on the purchase card; and transacting a
purchase with the retailer based on the account number associated
with the purchase card.
27. A method of transacting a purchase, comprising: acquiring a
purchase card from a purchase card provider, the purchase card
having an associated account number, but does not identify the
person who acquired the purchase card, and the purchase card being
is selected from a plurality of purchase cards acquired by the
purchase card provider, where each of the plurality of purchase
cards embodies a different account number but having the same
cardholder name providing purchase transactional information,
including the account number associated with the purchase card, to
a retailer, the retailer being different from the purchase card
provider; and transacting a purchase with the retailer based on the
account number associated with the purchase card.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates generally to a method for
making a purchase over the Internet, and more particularly to a
method of transacting an anonymous purchase through the use of
intermediary credit account information.
[0002] Currently, a consumer wishing to make a purchase over the
Internet must utilize their personal credit card. Secured servers
utilized by online vendors accept credit cards and provide
protection, via various encryption processes, for the interception
of credit card information by third party "hackers". However, even
if no "hacking" takes place, the vendor ultimately has the
consumer's credit card number. Having the credit card number
provides a trail back to the consumer's social security number and
other private and personal information which the consumer would not
normally circulate.
[0003] Possession of the credit card number, in effect, gives the
vendor the opportunity to circulate information regarding the
consumer, including the consumer's history of purchases which may
be utilized for mass targeted mailings as well as any other
marketing objectives. In addition, by using ones credit card, those
purchases made over the Internet that a consumer may otherwise wish
to keep confidential appear on the consumer's monthly credit card
statement, and thus are available to others having access to the
statement. In other words, circulating information relating to the
consumer's purchase could prove to be damaging to the consumer. The
current mechanism for transacting purchases over the Internet could
lead to irreparable harm and embarrassment to one's credit standing
as well as one's personal and professional business life.
Accordingly, there is a significant need for a means by which a
consumer may confidentially make a purchase over the Internet.
[0004] Therefore, it is desirable to provide a method of
transacting an anonymous purchase through the use of intermediary
credit account information. The purchase should be "untraceable"
simulating a "cash" transaction which typically occurs in a typical
"bricks and mortar" retail setting. This need will continue to grow
exponentially as commercial transactions over the Internet continue
to grow. Moreover, there is a rapidly growing need for those
consumers who do not have access to a credit card to be able to
conduct commercial transactions over the Internet. For instance,
due to their credit history or age, there are numerous consumers
who do not qualify for a credit card account. These types of
consumers are fundamentally prohibited from participating in any
Internet commerce transaction.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] In accordance with the present invention, a method is
provided for transacting an anonymous purchase over the Internet.
The method comprises the steps of: (a) acquiring intermediary
credit account information from a purchasing intermediary; (b)
providing transactional purchase information, including the
intermediary credit account information, to a retailer, where the
transactional purchase information is provided by the purchaser
using a first computing device of a computer-implemented purchasing
system; and (c) transacting a purchase between the purchaser and
the retailer using the intermediary credit account information,
thereby maintaining the anonymity of the purchaser.
[0006] For a more complete understanding of the invention, its
objects and advantages, refer to the following specification and to
the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the basic components of a
conventional computer-implemented purchasing system;
[0008] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a method for transacting an
anonymous purchase in accordance with the present invention;
[0009] FIG. 3 is a detailed flow diagram of the method for
transacting an anonymous purchase in accordance with the present
invention;
[0010] FIGS. 4A and 4B are a front and back view, respectively, of
an exemplary pre-paid purchasing card in accordance with the
present invention; and
[0011] FIG. 5 is a detailed flow diagram of an alternative method
for transacting an anonymous purchase in accordance with the
present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0012] FIG. 1 illustrates the basic components of a conventional
computer-implemented purchasing system 10. The purchasing system 10
is comprised of a plurality of purchasing computing devices 12
interconnected via a network 14 (e.g., the Internet) to at least
one retail computing device 16. As will be apparent to one skilled
in the art, the computing devices are able to communicate using
common communication protocols (e.g., TCP/IP) over different types
of network channels. For illustration purposes, a preferred
embodiment of the computing device is a personal computer (PC). Of
course, it will be appreciated that the principles of the invention
can be employed in a wide variety of computing devices, including
but not limited to a telephone, a television or a personal digital
assistant (PDA).
[0013] In accordance with the present invention, an overview of a
method for transacting an anonymous purchase using the
computer-implemented purchasing system 10 is shown in FIG. 2.
First, a purchaser must acquire intermediary credit account
information 22 from a purchasing intermediary. Next, the purchaser
provides transactional purchase information 24, including the
intermediary credit account information, to a retailer, using a
purchasing computing device connected to the network 14. Lastly, a
purchase is transacted 26 between the purchaser and the retailer
through the use of the intermediary credit account information,
thereby maintaining the anonymity of the purchaser. While the
following description is provided with reference to an intermediary
credit account, it is readily understood that an intermediary debit
account is within the scope of the present invention.
[0014] A more detailed description of the method of the present
invention is provided in conjunction with FIG. 3. The method of the
present invention operates in a similar fashion to that of a
pre-paid phone card. The primary objective of the method is to
create a non-traceable means to transact a purchase over the
Internet. In order to accomplish this task, there must exist a
procedure for converting "real currency" to "Internet currency". In
the context of this discussion, "real currency" refers to credit on
a credit card or actual currency issued by a national treasury of
any country. Therefore, a currency conversion must take place via
an intermediary web site over the Internet or in a "bricks and
mortar" retailer.
[0015] In the case of the "bricks and mortar" retailer, a pre-paid
purchasing card is to be offered by the retailer in various
predetermined denominations (e.g., $25, $50, or $100). The consumer
would visit the retail establishment 32, such as a 7-11 store, a
Wal-Mart store, or a Rite-Aid store, to buy 31 one or more
purchasing cards. An exemplary purchasing card 40 is shown in FIGS.
4A and 4B. The purchasing card 40 includes a unique and
non-traceable Master Card or Visa credit account number 42 and an
expiration date 44 which allows the consumer the ability to make a
purchase(s) over the Internet or in other "bricks and mortar"
retail establishments. It is envisioned that the card will have a
predetermined expiration (e.g., six month) from the date the
consumer activates the card. As will be more fully explained below,
there is also a credit limit associated with each purchasing
card.
[0016] Each purchasing card 40 is a non-recourse credit card issued
by a credit card provider (e.g., Citibank, BancOne, etc.). The
credit card provider sells blocks of purchasing cards to a
purchasing intermediary 35. Each purchasing card is sold for a
predetermined denomination (e.g., $23, $47 or $97) which
corresponds to a credit limit that is associated with the
purchasing card 40. The purchasing intermediary 35 in turn sells
each purchasing card 40 at a slightly higher cost to a consumer.
For instance, a consumer would pay $25 for a purchasing card 40
which has an available credit limit of $22. The $3 difference in
cost is a service fee captured by the purchasing intermediary 35.
It should also be noted that as additional inducement for providing
the actual physical purchasing cards, the credit card provider may
receive a fee from the purchasing intermediary for each card which
is activated and/or used by a consumer.
[0017] The purchasing cards are provided on a consignment basis by
the purchasing intermediary 40 to participating retailers 32.
Amongst other incentives, the retailer may also receive a fee from
the purchasing intermediary for each purchasing card which was
purchased at their retail establishment.
[0018] The consumer then buys the purchasing card 40 at the
retailer establishment 32 either by charging the purchase on the
consumer's credit card or through an exchange of actual cash
currency. If the consumer elects to buy the purchasing card 40 with
a credit card, then consumer's monthly billing statement from the
credit card provider simply shows the name of the retailer and the
aggregate amount of the purchase. On the other hand, if the
consumer elects to buy a purchasing card 40 with cash currency
there is no post purchase confirmation process.
[0019] In either case, the credit account number on the purchasing
card 40 is not part of the transaction, and thus is not linked to
the consumer. In other words, each purchasing card 40 is a "bearer
card" which means it is as good as cash. Should the consumer lose
or misplace the purchasing card 40, it may be used up to the limit
available on the card by anyone in possession of the card. In this
way, the purchasing card provides a means for preserving the
anonymity of the purchaser in future purchases made over the
Internet.
[0020] Once the consumer buys the purchasing card 40, they then
need to activate 33 their purchasing card 40 by contacting the
purchasing intermediary 35. It is envisioned that an intermediary
software-implemented application 34 resides on a computing device
which is operated by the purchasing intermediary 35. Thus, the
intermediary application 34 may be accessed by the consumer via the
network 14 using a purchasing computing device 12. More
specifically, the intermediary application 34 may be associated
with a web site on the Internet, where an address for the web site
is provided on the purchasing card 40. The intermediary application
34 is receptive of the credit account number as entered by the
consumer and operative to activate the card.
[0021] In order to activate their card, the consumer enters the
credit account number shown on the purchasing card into the
intermediary application 34. No further information is requested of
the consumer. One skilled in the art will readily recognize that to
activate the purchasing card 40, the intermediary application 34
may interface with an additional authorization system as provided
by the credit card provider. Upon activation, the consumer has a
set time from the activation date to exhaust the available funds of
their purchasing card 40. While the above description discusses
contacting the purchasing intermediary via the network, it is
readily understood that other means are available for contacting
the purchasing intermediary (e.g., via the telephone), thereby
activating the purchasing card 40.
[0022] An alternative means for acquiring intermediary credit
account information is described in relation to FIG. 5. Rather than
visiting a retail establishment, the consumer may directly access
52 the intermediary application 34 in order to obtain intermediary
credit account information. Instead of receiving a purchasing card,
the consumer merely acquires the intermediary credit account
information over the network 14. In this case, the intermediary
application 34 is receptive of credit card information from the
consumer and operative to provide intermediary credit account
information to the consumer.
[0023] As part of this process, the consumer's credit card is
debited 54 for the cost (e.g., $25, $50 or $100) associated with
acquiring the intermediary credit account information. As
previously explained, the intermediary credit account information
includes a credit account number, an expiration date, and a credit
limit (e.g., $23, $47 or $97) which is slightly less than the cost
associated with the service. The consumer's monthly billing
statement from the credit card provider will simply show the name
of the purchasing intermediary and the aggregate amount of the
purchase. Again, the intermediary credit account information is not
linked to the consumer, thereby maintaining the anonymity of the
purchaser in future Internet transactions.
[0024] Once the consumer acquires intermediary credit account
information, they are free to use it to make an online purchase
over the Internet as shown in either FIG. 3 or FIG. 5. The consumer
must first accesses a retailer's software-implemented application
37 in order to transact a purchase 36. It is envisioned that the
retailer's application 37 resides on the retailer's computing
device 16 which is accessed via the network 14 using a purchasing
computing device 12. In particular, the retailer's application 37
may be associated with a web site on the Internet. Furthermore, the
retailer's application 37 is receptive of purchase transactional
information from the consumer and operative to transact a purchase
with the consumer over the network 14.
[0025] When the consumer is ready to make a purchase, they are
prompted through a series of payment and shipping questions to
provide purchase transactional information. As will be apparent to
one skilled in the art, the purchase transactional information
describes the purchased goods or services as well as provides
payment information from the consumer, including the credit account
number associated with the intermediary credit account information.
The intermediary credit account information further provides at
least some pseudo purchase transactional information to the
consumer. For instance, each purchasing card may have the same or a
different name listed on the card. When the consumer is prompted by
the retailer's application 37 to provide a name, they simply insert
the name, for example the name of the purchasing intermediary or
"John Smith" as provided on the card. The consumer will also be
prompted to provide the credit account number and the expiration
date associated with the purchasing card. One skilled in the art
will readily recognize that as part of transacting the purchase,
the retailer's application 37 may verify 38 that the purchase price
does not exceed the credit limit associated with the purchasing
card. To do so, the retailer's application 37 may interface with an
additional authorization system 39 as provided by either the
purchasing intermediary or the credit card provider.
[0026] Of course, the consumer is free to make other purchases up
to the credit limit associated with their intermediary credit
account. In the case the purchasing card, the card can be discarded
once the funds on the purchasing card are exhausted. In addition,
any residual funds remaining on the consumer's purchasing card may
be drawn out (e.g., using any ATM facility or bank) prior to the
expiration date by the consumer.
[0027] In the event that the purchase is for goods which need to be
shipped to the consumer, the consumer will also need to provide
shipping instructions. The consumer has two options: (1) provide a
shipping address (i.e., home or business address) or (2) utilize a
forwarding service provided by the purchasing intermediary. It is
noteworthy that the consumer's address does not alone generally
ensure access to a consumer's credit history and other confidential
personal information. Thus, a consumer may opt to provide a
shipping address and yet retain anonymity from the retailer.
[0028] In the later case, the goods will be shipped to the
purchasing intermediary who will then ship the goods to the
consumer. To do so, the intermediary credit account information
provides an intermediary shipping address which the consumer can
provide to the retailer. The consumer's shipping address may be
captured by the purchasing intermediary when the consumer is
activating their purchasing card, and then, upon receipt of the
goods from the retailer, it is used to ship the goods to the
consumer. An additional service fee covering at least up to the
shipping costs may be charged by the purchasing intermediary to the
consumer. It is envisioned that the service fee may be debited to
the available funds remaining on the purchasing card.
[0029] It is widely known that large retailers spend considerable
money to circulate discount coupons to consumers. The present
invention offers an alternative distribution channel for these
retailers. In particular, the intermediary application 34 may
further be operative to provide discount coupons to the consumer.
While the consumer is either activating their purchasing card or
acquiring intermediary credit account information, the consumer may
select from a menu of participating retailers. The consumer would
then be directed to a web site or other type of software
application where they could check to see if any discount coupons
were being offered by the retailer. If so, they could simply print
the coupon on a printer attached to their local computing device
12. The consumer may also be asked to answer a short series of
non-personal questions in conjunction with obtaining the coupon.
The questions are typically designed to determine relevant product
user information. By enabling retailers the ability to offer their
coupons in conjunction with this service, the purchasing
intermediary is then able to charge a service fee to the retailer,
thereby deriving another revenue stream.
[0030] While the above description constitutes the preferred
embodiment of the invention, it will be appreciated that the
invention is susceptible to modification, variation, and change
without departing from the proper scope or fair meaning of the
accompanying claims.
* * * * *