U.S. patent application number 11/926067 was filed with the patent office on 2008-05-01 for contingency-based options and futures for contingent travel accommodations.
Invention is credited to CHARLES H. CELLA, EDWARD J. KELLY, MATTHEW P. VINCENT.
Application Number | 20080103926 11/926067 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 22476795 |
Filed Date | 2008-05-01 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080103926 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
CELLA; CHARLES H. ; et
al. |
May 1, 2008 |
CONTINGENCY-BASED OPTIONS AND FUTURES FOR CONTINGENT TRAVEL
ACCOMMODATIONS
Abstract
Disclosed herein is a system for allowing a remote user to
purchase, over a distributed computer network (e.g., the Internet),
an option for a ticket and/or accommodations for a "contingent
event", e.g., an event which is certain to occur but for which the
participants, content and/or location(s) are not predetermined. For
instance, the subject system can be used to sell options for the
purchase of tickets to such contingent events such as playoff games
on the basis of what teams qualify, or all-star game.
Inventors: |
CELLA; CHARLES H.;
(PEMBROKE, MA) ; KELLY; EDWARD J.; (WELLESLEY,
MA) ; VINCENT; MATTHEW P.; (GEORGETOWN, MA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
STRATEGIC PATENTS P.C..
C/O PORTFOLIOIP
P.O. BOX 52050
MINNEAPOLIS
MN
55402
US
|
Family ID: |
22476795 |
Appl. No.: |
11/926067 |
Filed: |
October 28, 2007 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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09586723 |
Jun 5, 2000 |
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11926067 |
Oct 28, 2007 |
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60137310 |
Jun 3, 1999 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/5 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 30/0641 20130101;
G06Q 30/0611 20130101; G06Q 10/02 20130101; G06Q 30/0601 20130101;
G06Q 40/04 20130101; G06Q 30/0607 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/026 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 30/00 20060101
G06Q030/00 |
Claims
1. A method of electronic commerce, comprising establishing a
network-based on-line system for purchase and sale of an option or
futures contract to acquire tickets and/or travel accommodation for
a contingent event, which contract is exercisable upon the
occurrence of the contingent event.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The advent of computer networks offers geographically
distributed users unprecedented opportunities to interact with each
other and to work together on content. One of the most widely
accepted and heavily used networks is the Internet. The Internet is
a global system of interconnected computer networks formed into a
single world wide network. A user, through the Internet, can
interactively transmit messages with users in different locations.
Similarly, a user in one location can connect to files and
libraries in other locations. Thus, the Internet provides versatile
communications functions and acts like a universal library,
providing electronic access to resources and information available
from Internet sites throughout the world. Access to the Internet
can be had from a wide range of locations and through a wide range
of devices. For example, a user with a laptop computer and a modem
may connect to the Internet through a telephone jack. Wireless
Internet connections are also available.
[0002] Electronic commerce has emerged as primary use of the
Internet. The global penetration of the Internet provides merchants
with the capability to merchandise their products to substantial
shopping audiences using an online merchant system. Online merchant
systems enable merchants to creatively display and describe their
products to shoppers using Web pages. Merchants can layout and
display Web pages having content, such as text, pictures, sound and
video, using HyperText Markup Language (HTML). Web shoppers, in
turn, access a merchant's Web page using a browser, such as
Microsoft Explorer or Netscape Navigator, installed on a client
connected to the Web through an online service provider, such as
the Microsoft Network or America OnLine. The browser interprets the
HTML to format and display the merchant's page for the shopper. The
online merchant system likewise enables shoppers to browse through
a merchant's store to identify products of interest, to obtain
specific product information and to electronically purchase
products after reviewing product information.
[0003] Thus, the Internet is used to assist buyers and sellers in
purchasing a variety of traditional goods and services. Novel
methods of purchasing and selling have been developed, including
cryptographic systems and methods for assuring authenticity of a
signer of a transaction, electronic payment systems, and electronic
auction systems and methods. Electronic commerce Internet sites
typically allow remotely distributed users to interact via an
Internet site, through which the users execute traditional
commercial transactions online. Thus, the Internet typically offers
convenience, but does not significantly alter the underlying
transaction contexts.
[0004] However, the present online methods of selling services and
goods generally do not account for the presence of uncertainty in
the market for those goods or services. It is well recognized that
a purchaser who purchases a good or service in advance of its need
may be disappointed if the price falls, or if the need for the good
or services disappears. A wide range of contingency planning
measures are undertaken by buyers and sellers in markets that
involve uncertainty. However, the Internet models of commerce
generally ignore event-driven contingency planning and are
therefore, in large part, unsatisfactory where the desire to
purchase a good or service are primarily motivated by the outcome
of an event certain in time.
[0005] An example of a market involving substantial uncertainty is
the market for goods and services surrounding a sporting event,
especially a sporting event in which the presence of particular
teams is not known well in advance of the time of the event. One
such event is the Super Bowl. National Football League Fans are
notoriously loyal to particular teams, but the two particular teams
that will appear in the Super Bowl are not known until two weeks
before the game. A fan of a particular team may not wish purchase a
game ticket, airfare, hotel or other accommodations unless his or
her team will be in the game; that is, the fan's desire to attend
the game is contingent on the outcome of a future event(s), namely
the progression of a team through the earlier playoff games. In the
present environment, hotels, air carriers and other transportation
providers must often scramble to finalize arrangements for goods
and 25 services required by a particular group of people, the
identity of which are not known until the occurrence of the
contingency, i.e., the presence of a particular pair of teams in
the Super Bowl. Moreover, under current business systems, the
inability to identify customers until only a week or two before the
event prevents certain purveyors from participating in the market
in any effective way. For example, charter airlines may be
significantly disadvantaged where fans need to be flown to the
Super Bowl from cities for which the charter company does not have
a regular route. For instance, despite the general ability of the
charter companies to offer fares lower than commercial air carriers
on less than 14 day notice, the ability to book passengers can be
substantially hindered by the inability of the charter to penetrate
the advertising market on short notice.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] Disclosed herein are methods and systems for futures and
options pricing, purchasing and selling, for tickets, travel and
lodging accommodations and other service or good associated with
the event. In accordance with the present invention, computer
networks, such as the Internet, which allows an increasingly large
number of purchasers and sellers to participate in electronic
markets, may be used to facilitate options transactions for tickets
to and/or accommodations based on the occurrence of such
contingencies as the participation of a given team or individual,
occurrence of the event at a given location, weather conditions, or
the like. As used herein, except where the context calls for a
particular type of option or futures contract, it should be
understood that the terms "option" and "future" should be
understood to encompass any contract that embodies a contingency,
including so-called American and European options, futures, and
other derivative contracts. Depending on the context, a futures
contract, where the buyer is required to commit to purchase a
particular ticket or other particular services at an advance date
if the contingency occurs, may be desired. In other contexts, the
buyer may be given a more classic option, where the buyer has the
opportunity to purchase, or not to purchase, if the contingency
occurs. Methods and systems disclosed herein are intended to offer
complete flexibility as to the nature of the underlying
contingency, as well as to the nature of the commitment of the
buyer to purchase the ticket and/or accommodation.
[0007] In an embodiment disclosed herein, the context is the
purchase and sale of options to purchase one or more tickets to a
sports event based on occurrence of contingent events, such as the
presence of a particular team in the sporting event.
[0008] In an embodiment disclosed herein, the context is the
purchase and sale of options to purchase travel accommodations,
such as airline tickets or hotel rooms, based on occurrence of
contingent events. In an embodiment, disclosed herein, one example
of a contingency is the presence of a particular team in a
particular sporting event for which a particular fan's need for
travel accommodations to the game will be dependent upon, at least
in part, the appearance of a particular team in the event. In an
embodiment, the goods and services are at least one of an event
ticket, an airline ticket, a charter airline reservation, a hotel
reservation, a rental car reservation, a restaurant reservation, a
bus ticket, and a train ticket.
[0009] Provided herein are methods and systems of electronic
commerce establishing a network-based on-line system for purchase
and sale of an option or futures contract to acquire a event
tickets and/or travel accommodations, e.g., airline tickets, to a
contingent ticketed event. As used herein, the term "ticket" or
"reservation" or "accommodation", as will be evident from its
context, should be understood to encompass include any permission,
contract, reservation, license, or similar right, or evidence of
the same, permitting a person or entity to attend an event (such as
a sporting event) and/or utilize a travel service (e.g., airline
service, hotel service, etc.) where such permission, contract,
license or similar right is limited to those having
reservations.
[0010] As used herein a "contingent event" should be understood to
be an event the occurrence of which is contingent upon occurrence
of other factors, including, for example, an event that is certain
to occur but for which the participants, content and/or location(s)
are not predetermined, an event that is tentatively scheduled, an
event that is subject to cancellation or change in the
constituents, and the like. A "contingent ticketed event" should be
understood to encompass contingent events for which tickets are
required. Examples of contingent ticketed events include playoff
and tournament sporting events. Examples of contingent ticketed
events include playoff and tournament sporting events, plays,
concerts and other performances where presence of particular
performers is not known until some period of time after the event
is planned, admission tickets to events or venues that are
weather-dependent, and many others.
[0011] In an embodiment, the contingent event may be defined by
party seeking an option or futures contract. That is, the systems
and methods disclosed herein may establish a marketplace in which a
person seeking an options or futures contract may define and post a
request, such as on a host Internet site, including a contingency
event, a desired good or service the desire for which is dependent
on the contingency and an offer or bid for an option or futures
contract to acquire the goods or services if the contingency event
occurs. Potential providers of the goods, services, or other items
identified in the request could then respond by accepting the
request or by offering a different price. Similarly, providers of
goods and services could identify and post offers, such as on an
Internet site, including a contingency event, a good, service, or
other item the supply or demand for which is dependent on the
contingency event, and the price at which the seller is willing to
enter into a provide the good, service or other item at a
predetermined price. Pricing of the option could be varied to
provide a range of option prices to obtain a range of goods or
services at a range of prices. Thus, a general marketplace can be
established for permitting users, including buyers and sellers, to
define and negotiate contingency event-based options and futures
contracts.
[0012] Also disclosed herein are methods and systems for allowing a
user to purchase an option or futures contract for a ticket to a
contingent event, e.g., a contingent ticketed event, and/or travel
accommodation surrounding that event, including a processor
operative with a program to (a) identify tickets (or other forms of
reservation) for a contingent event or an accommodation related
thereto; (b) enter bids for an option or futures contract to
purchase the ticket or accommodations; and (c) rank the bids.
[0013] In an embodiment, the contingent event may be a
participant-event. As used herein, "participant event" should be
understood to encompass a contingent event in which a particular
participant participates or is eligible for participation. A
"participant" should be understood to include any person or entity
that can participate in a contingent event; thus, the participant
could be a team in a team sports event, an athlete in an individual
or team sport, an entertainer in a tentatively scheduled event, or
other person or entity. Examples of participant events include
presence of a particular team in a particular round of playoffs,
presence of a particular athlete in a particular tournament, and
the like.
[0014] In embodiments of methods and systems disclosed herein, the
participant-event for which an options or futures contract for
tickets and/or accommodations may be purchased may be a team-game,
team-round, or a team-round-game. As used herein, a "team-game"
should be understood to encompass a game in which a particular team
participates, and a team-round-game should be understood to
encompass a round of games in which a team participates, and a
team-round-game should be understood to encompass a particular game
of a particular round in which a team participates. An example of a
team-round-game would be the presence of the Cincinnati Reds in the
first game of the National League Championship Series of the Major
League Baseball playoffs.
[0015] Also disclosed herein are methods and systems for allowing a
user to bid on an option to purchase a ticket or travel
accommodations to a contingent ticketed event, including database
having stored therein an option or futures record having a team
field representative of a participant being a candidate for
participation in the contingent event, an event field
representative of the sporting event, and a value field
representative of a value of a minimum winning bid to purchase an
option or future for a ticket or travel accommodation to the event
if the participant is selected to participate in the event; and a
server, in connection with said database, and capable of processing
a bid representative of a request to purchase one or more of said
options or futures, and being capable of processing said bid and
said option or futures record to adjust the minimum winning bid
value and to allocate an option or futures contract to the winning
bid. As used herein "database" should be understood to encompass
any of a variety of computer software, computer hardware, firmware
and other products capable of storing data and records, such as
products provided by Oracle and others, including relational and
object oriented databases. As used herein, "server" should be
understood to encompass any device or method capable of interacting
with a client or plurality of clients or similar devices or
supporting a network computing environment or providing access to
computing services, including hardware servers, software servers,
web servers, HTTP servers, and any other available type of
server.
[0016] Also provided herein are methods and systems for allowing a
remote user to purchase, over a distributed computer network, an
option or futures contract for tickets or travel accommodations to
a contingent event, e.g., a contingent ticketed event, which system
includes a host server operative with a program including an event
database connected in communication with said host server, said
database including participant-event identifiers each
representative of a ticket or travel accommodation for a contingent
participant-event, an option or futures bid database in
communication with said host server, said option or futures bid
database including allocation fields representative of an option or
futures bid for each of said ticket or travel accommodations, and
an interface manager implemented on said server and in
communication with said databases; wherein said interface manager
processes option or futures bids from remote users to determine
whether to accept the option or futures bid and to update the
allocation field.
[0017] As used herein, "network" should be understood to include
the Internet, worldwide web, wide area networks, local area
networks, Intranets, Extranets, telephone networks, cellular
networks, and other connections capable of supporting
communications, file transfers, and other functions over
distance.
[0018] As used herein, "identifier" should be understood to
comprise any indicator, identifier, record, or combination of the
same that is capable of embodying or representing a data record and
may include the capability of identifying a location in computer
memory as well as data allocated to particular data fields. Systems
and methods disclosed herein may include contingent event
identifiers for records relating to particular events, including
participant-event identifiers for records relating to
participant-events, athlete-game identifiers for records relating
to the presence of an athlete in a game, entertainer event
identifiers for records relating to the presence of an entertainer
in a contingent event, and the like.
[0019] Systems and methods disclosed herein allow a user to
purchase an option or futures contract for goods or services
related to a contingent event, comprising a processor operative
with a program to identify goods or services related to a
contingent event; enter bids for an option or futures contract to
purchase the goods or services; and rank the bids.
[0020] The goods or services may be a wide range of goods and
services related to the existence of the contingent event, such as,
in the case of a sporting event ticket, an airline ticket, a
charter airline reservation, a hotel reservation, a rental car
reservation, a restaurant reservation, a bus ticket, a train
ticket, and a ticket or reservation to an attraction in the locale
of the contingent ticketed event. Thus, users can purchases
packages of goods and services based on the occurrence of the
contingencies that give rise to a particular contingent event. A
similar suite of goods and services may surround other contingent
events.
[0021] In an embodiment, the contingent event may be defined by
party seeking an option or futures contract. That is, the systems
and methods disclosed herein may establish a marketplace in which a
person seeking an options or futures contract may define and post a
request, such as on a host Internet site, including a contingency
event, a desired good or service the desire for which is dependent
on the contingency and an offer or bid for an option or futures
contract to acquire the goods or services if the contingency event
occurs. Potential providers of the goods, services, or other items
identified in the request could then respond by accepting the
request or by offering a different price. Similarly, providers of
goods and services could identify and post offers, such as on an
Internet site, including a contingency event, a good, service, or
other item the supply or demand for which is dependent on the
contingency event, and the price at which the seller is willing to
enter into a provide the good, service or other item at a
predetermined price. Pricing of the option could be varied to
provide a range of option prices to obtain a range of goods or
services at a range of prices. Thus, a general marketplace can be
established for permitting users, including buyers and sellers, to
define and negotiate contingency event-based options and futures
contracts.
[0022] Also, once systems and methods are established whereby an
option or future may be defined, offered and sold, the same systems
and methods can be used as a secondary marketplace for the options
or futures, as well as for the underlying goods, services,
information and other items to which the options and futures
relate. An option or futures contract for a contingent event ticket
would have a different value, depending on the probability of the
contingent event's actually occurring. For example, if a particular
team loses a game, then the probability of that team's making the
playoffs is reduced, thus reducing the value of the option or
futures contract for a ticket to that game involving that team. As
the values diminish, option holders may be willing to sell the
options to recover some of the original purchase price. Similarly,
others may be willing to buy at a lower price. Thus, a marketplace
can be established where purchasers and sellers trade in options
that are based on contingent events. Trading can be expected in any
case where there are marketplace events that change the value of
options; i.e., events that change the likelihood of a contingency
emerging. Where contingencies emerge after a chain of many related
marketplace events (such as the progression of a sports season), an
active marketplace can be established for the trading of options
and futures contracts based on the events.
[0023] Once a marketplace is established, it is possible to
establish another level of options, futures or other derivative
securities. Thus, for each type of options or futures contract
described herein, there can exist still another class of options
and futures contracts to acquire the options or futures. Thus,
while there may only be a fixed number of available tickets, and
only a fixed number of options can actually result in delivery of
the ticket, a far larger number of individuals may purchase and
sell options than can actually provide or take delivery on the
tickets. Individuals who have a delivery obligation, but cannot
ultimately deliver tickets, will be required to "cover," by paying
the purchasers the value of the promised options (as measured, for
example, by the trading price of an option or futures contract as
of a fixed date). Thus, as in trading markets for commodities, many
more options and futures are traded than underlying commodities are
delivered. Additional levels of "options on options" could be
envisioned and are encompassed by the present disclosure.
[0024] A wide variety of possible contingent event-based options
and futures, related secondary markets, and options on options can
be enabled by systems and methods disclosed herein. The following
examples are intended to illustrate some examples of contingent
events on which such options and markets can be based, but are by
no means exhaustive. Other embodiments evident to those of ordinary
skill in the art are intended to be encompassed by the present
disclosure.
[0025] A contingency event may be any event that is expected to
occur, but the outcome of which is unpredictable.
[0026] In one embodiment of the invention, the contingency event is
related to weather. It can be predicted that weather will be
relevant to a wide range of goods, services, and activities, but
the weather itself cannot be predicted with a high range of
long-term accuracy. Thus, a buyer 102 could purchase an option or
futures contract for delivery of a weather-dependent good or
service, with the purchase contingent upon the occurrence of a
measurable weather event at a given time. Weather-dependent goods
and services that could be made the subject of weather-contingent
options and futures contracts include, but are not limited to air
travel, skiing, weddings, parties, concerts, sports events,
vacation packages, hotel reservations, all outdoor events and
activities, hiking, camping, golf, surfing, swimming, amusement
park attendance, and many others. Thus, for example, a purchaser
could purchase an option to purchase a vacation package to a
Carribean island, contingent on the absence of any hurricanes in
the Atlantic ocean one week before the date of departure.
Similarly, a skier could purchase an option to have a hotel room
and lift ticket at a given price, if there is a predetermined
minimum amount of snow on the selected mountain a given number of
days before the date of the ski trip. The options would allow
buyers to purchase with diminished uncertainty, while sellers would
have advance notice of potential demand. As with sports event
options described above, the advance notice would permit planning,
marketing of related goods and services, and, in some cases, the
sale of multiple options for the same good or services. For
example, many individuals are highly interested in bad weather. For
example, a weather expert, newsperson, or weather buff might have a
strong desire to have the opportunity to observe a hurricane close
hand, while a vacationer might have no desire to vacation during
the same storm. Thus, an option or futures contract for a travel
package could be sold to each of them, with the former getting the
package if a hurricane was identified as being within a given
distance from the location at a given time, and the latter getting
the package otherwise. Similarly, many non-ski attractions have
arising around ski resorts, such as outlet shopping, family
entertainment complexes and the like. However, during the peak
season, price rise, and non-skiers typically avoid these locations.
If there is no snow, there is substantial unused capacity at a
given time. In order to help fill the unused capacity, options and
futures contracts can be established to permit one person
(presumably a skier) to have a hotel room, dinner reservation, or
the like if there is a predetermined amount of snow and to permit
another person (presumably a non-skier) to have the same item
(presumably at a "non-peak" price) if there is less than the
predetermined amount of snow. In other words, the systems and
methods enable vendors to offer the same item to different
individuals, depending on different tastes for weather-related
goods and services. Weather related options and futures contracts
would be particularly effective in booking off-peak times, such as
early and late season skiing, golf, beach vacations, and the like.
Thus, vendors could identify interested parties who would commit to
purchase a package of items if the weather, as of a given date, is
appropriate for the particular activity. For example, a skier could
commit to a ski package in October or May, which would be
contingent on the presence of snow. Knowing the skier might arrive,
the vendor could target advertising for a host of related products
and services, even if the skier doesn't end up purchasing the
package.
[0027] In other embodiments, the contingent event may consist of a
blending of one or more contingencies, including any of the
contingencies identified herein. Thus, for example, skier might
purchase an option to acquire a hotel room and lift ticket on a
particular mountain in May, if there is adequate snow, and if the
price is lower than a predetermined amount.
[0028] In other embodiments, the contingency may be the
unavailability or limited availability of a particular good or
service. Thus, a user might purchase an option of futures contract
to purchase a good, service, or other item if that item is sold out
in the user's area, or if the price of the good in that area
exceeds a predetermined price. Such a contract could identify a
particular good or suite of goods of a given type. Examples might
include popular toys, CDs, and other consumer items. For example, a
buyer might purchase an option to acquire a particular item (or any
of a group of items) offered by a major toy store, if the item or
one of the items is sold out on December 20 of a given year.
Similarly, a buyer could purchase an option to purchase tickets to
a particular event, if the event is sold out. A buyer could
purchase an option to acquire services, if the market rate for the
services exceeds a certain rate, or if there are no individuals
offering the services at a given time. The services could be a wide
range of services, such as professional services, contracting
services, legal services, accounting services, consulting services,
plumbing services, development services, design services,
engineering services and the like.
[0029] More generally, contingency events may include any events
where different outcomes are possible, and where different
purchasers are capable of benefiting from the different outcomes.
Thus, any goods or services where buyer tastes vary depending on
the outcome, such as weather, sporting events, performances, and
the like.
[0030] In another embodiment, the contingency event may be the
popularity of a particular item. For example, television programs
are rated according to number of households and percentage of
viewing households for each program. Those ratings reflect the
popularity of a particular program. Whether a particular program
has a particular popularity rating can be a contingency event upon
which an option to purchase advertising time or space is based.
Similar options and futures can be established for advertising in
periodicals and books based on the circulation of the same. Similar
options and futures can be established for Internet space. Since
demographic information is often made available, options and
futures can be established where the contingency event is the
establishment of a particular rating in a particular demographic.
Thus, for example, an advertiser could purchase air time at a given
price and time if a particular television show has achieved an
average of a twenty percent audience share among women aged twenty
to thirty. As with other embodiments, a secondary market can be
established, with market information arising each time ratings are
announced, encouraging trading of options based on the ratings.
Also, secondary services and goods can be targeted to particular
advertisers, based on what they are seeking to advertise.
[0031] The methods and systems established herein can also be used
to establish options and futures for non-traditional goods and
services, where a future need is known and the buyer wishes to lock
in the current price. Any goods or services can be covered, ranging
from appliances, to home repairs, to fixtures, to automobiles, to
concert tickets, to automobiles, to antiques, to collectibles, to
used cars, to computers, to real estate, and many others.
[0032] Also, once systems and methods are established whereby an
option or future may be defined, offered and sold, the same systems
and methods can be used as a secondary marketplace for the options
or futures, as well as for the underlying goods, services,
information and other items to which the options and futures
relate.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0033] FIG. 1 depicts a schematic of the entities involved in an
embodiment of a methods and systems disclosed herein.
[0034] FIG. 2 depicts a host system of an embodiment of the methods
and systems disclosed herein.
[0035] FIG. 3 depicts an embodiment of a buyer's device for using
an embodiment of the methods and systems disclosed herein to
purchase an option to purchase a ticket to an event.
[0036] FIG. 4 is a schematic depiction of a round of the National
Football League playoffs.
[0037] FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating steps involved in
accepting and ranking a bid for an option or futures contract for a
sporting event ticket or related good or service.
[0038] FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating steps for allocating
options and futures according to an auction format in accordance
with an embodiment of the invention.
[0039] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a database
structure for an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0040] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating a table for
storing and ranking bids in accordance with an embodiment of the
invention.
[0041] FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating providers of
goods and services that are related to the existence of a sporting
event involving a particular team.
[0042] FIG. 10 is illustrates the structure of a dynamic page
generator in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0043] Disclosed herein is a system for allowing a remote user to
purchase, over a distributed computer network (e.g., the Internet),
an option to purchase a ticket, goods or services, or other item
that is based on a contingent event, e.g., an event which is
certain to occur but for which the participants, content and/or
location(s) are not predetermined. For instance, the subject system
can be used to sell options for the purchase of tickets or
accommodations for such contingent sports events such as playoff
games on the basis of what teams qualify, or who may appear in an
all-star game. In general, the system comprises a host server
operative with a program including: (i) an event database connected
in communication with said host server, said database including
contingent event identifiers, such as team-round-game identifiers,
each identifier being representative of an ticket or other good or
service for a contingent sporting event within a range of possible
sporting events, (ii) an option bid database in communication with
said host server, said option bid database including allocation
fields representative of an option bid for each of the tickets,
goods or services to be made available upon occurrence of a
contingency, and (iii) an interface manager implemented on said
server and in communication with said databases, wherein said
interface manager processes option bids from remote users to
determine whether to accept the option bid and to update the
allocation field.
[0044] Referring to FIG. 1, the entities involved in an embodiment
of a method and system disclosed herein are depicted in schematic
format. In a system 100, a plurality of buyers 102, a provider 108
and a host 104 are connected via a network 110. It should be
understood that any number of buyers 102, hosts 104, and providers
108 could participate in such a system 100. In an embodiment, the
network 110 may be a wide area computer network, such as the
Internet.
[0045] To further illustrate, an example of a client-server system
interconnected through the Internet 100. In this example, a remote
server system is interconnected through the Internet to client
system. The buyer system 102 can include conventional components of
a client system, such as a processor, memory (e.g. RAM), a bus
which couples the processor and memory, a mass storage device (e.g.
a magnetic hard disk or an optical storage disk) coupled to the
processor and memory through an I/O controller and a network
interface, such as a conventional modem. The server system can also
include conventional components such as a processor, memory (e.g.
RAM), a bus which couples the processor and memory, a mass storage
device (e.g. a magnetic or optical disk) coupled to the processor
and memory through an I/O controller and a network interface, such
as a conventional modem. It will be appreciated from the
description below that the present invention may be implemented in
software which is stored as executable instructions on a computer
readable medium on the client and server systems, such as mass
storage devices, or in memories.
[0046] In an exemplary embodiment, a browser, residing on the
computer of buyer 102, displays a home page retrieved from the
World Wide Web on a viewing device, e.g., a screen. A user can view
this page by entering, or selecting a link to, a Universal Resource
Locator (URL), such as "www.playoffquest.com", in a browser
program, such as Microsoft Explorer or Netscape Navigator,
executing on the buyer's computer. Note that the subject online
system 100 may reside in a server or in a combination of
servers.
[0047] Focusing now on the network 110, the presently preferred
network is the Internet. The structure of the Internet is well
known to those of ordinary skill in the art and includes a network
backbone with networks branching from the backbone. These branches,
in turn, have networks branching from them, and so on. For a more
detailed description of the structure and operation of the
Internet, please refer to "The Internet Complete Reference," by
Harley Hahn and Rick Stout, published by McGraw-Hill, 1994.
However, one may practice the present invention on a wide variety
of communication networks. For example, the network 104 can include
interactive television networks, telephone networks, wireless data
transmission systems, two-way cable systems, customized computer
networks, interactive kiosk networks and automatic teller machine
networks.
[0048] In addition, the network 110 can include online service
providers, such as Microsoft Network, America OnLine, Prodigy and
CompuServe. In a preferred embodiment, the online service provider
is a computer system which provides Internet access to a buyer 102.
Of course, the online service providers are optional, and in some
cases, the buyers 102 may have direct access to the Internet.
[0049] In its present deployment, the Internet consists of a
worldwide computer network that communicates using well defined
protocol known as the Internet Protocol (IP). Computer systems that
are directly connected to the Internet each have an unique Internet
address. An Internet address consists of four numbers where each
number is less than 256. The four numbers of an Internet address
are commonly written out separated by periods such as 192.101.0.3.
To simplify Internet addressing, the "Domain Name System" was
created. The domain name system allows users to access Internet
resources with a simpler alphanumeric naming system. An Internet
Domain name consists of a series of alphanumeric names separated by
periods. For example, the name "www.optionbid.com" corresponds to
an Internet address. When a domain name is used, the computer
accesses a "Domain Name Server" to obtain the explicit four number
Internet address.
[0050] To further define the addresses of resources on the
Internet, the Uniform Resource Locator system was created. A
Uniform Resource Locator (URL) is a descriptor that specifically
defines a type of Internet resource and its location. URLs have the
following format:
[0051] resource-type://domain.address/path-name
[0052] where "resource-type" defines the type of Internet resource.
Web documents are identified by the resource type "HTTP" which
indicates that the hypertext transfer protocol should be used to
access the document. Other resource types include "ftp" (file
transmission protocol) and "telnet". The "domain.address" defines
the domain name address of the computer that the resource is
located on. Finally, the "path-name" defines a directory path
within the file system of the server that identifies the
resource.
[0053] To access an initial Web document, the user enters the URL
for a Web document into a Web browser program. The Web browser then
sends an HTTP request to the server that has the Web document using
the URL. The Web server responds to the HTTP request by sending the
requested HTTP object to the client. In most cases, the HTTP object
is an plain text (ASCII) document containing text (in ASCII) that
is written in HyperText Markup Language (HTML). The HTML document
usually contains hyperlinks to other Web documents. The Web browser
displays the HTML document on the screen for the user and the
hyperlinks to other Web documents are emphasized in some fashion
such that the user can selected the hyperlink.
[0054] Focusing now on the buyer 102, the buyer system may be a
general purpose computer. In a preferred embodiment, the buyer 102
is equipped with a conventional personal computer equipped with an
operating system supporting Internet communication protocols, such
as Microsoft Windows 95 and Microsoft Windows NT, a browser, such
as Microsoft Explorer or Netscape Navigator, to access the present
system and a modem, wireless connection (such as infrared link or
satellite dish) or other mechanism for access to the network 110.
In other embodiments, the buyer 102 could, for example, be a
computer workstation, a local area network of computers, an
interactive television, an interactive kiosk, a personal digital
assistant, an interactive wireless communications device or the
like which can interact with the network. While the operating
systems may differ in such systems, they will continue to provide
the appropriate communications protocols needed to establish
communication links with the network 110.
[0055] Referring to FIG. 2, the host 104 may include a server 112
which communicates with one or more databases 114. The server 112
may be an HTTP server or other server capable of a communication
connection, such as a connection to the Internet. In such
embodiments, the server 112 can include a dynamic page generator,
HTML structures, a database module, an action manager, and an order
processing module having an order engine, an order pipeline, and
components for various purposes, such as calculating sales tax and
shipping/handling fees. The dynamic page generator can use, e.g.,
HTML structures and communicates with the database module to access
data from the database(s) to format and display on the buyer's
browser. The order processing module communicates with the dynamic
page generator and the database module to create Web pages having
product information, e.g., ticket option data, for display on a
buyer 102. Similarly, the order processing module communicates with
the auction manager and the database module as needed to execute
purchasing transactions for the ticket options. Lastly, the order
processing module can includes various components, that is, a
plurality of application programs to enhance and administer the
system. For example, the components can include applications to
interface with commercial banking systems, to calculate
shipping/handling, to determine applicable taxes and to post
payments to various bank accounts.
[0056] The server 112 may include conventional computer components,
such as an operating system 118, which may execute a variety of
application programs 120. The server 112 may include memory 122 and
a communications device 124, such as a modem or network interface
card. The communications device 124 may provide a communications
connection 128 for connection to the network 110 of FIG. 1 The host
104 may, in an embodiment, host a site on the Internet or other
computer network. The host 104 may thus execute various
conventional computing functions, such as data processing and file
storage, manipulation and retrieval. The server 112 may access the
database 114, which may be internal to the server 112 or may be a
separate database. The database 114 may be at a remote location
from the server 112 or may be at the same location as the server
112. In a preferred embodiment, the database(s) 114 comprises data
stored locally in one or more storage devices, such as a magnetic
disk drive or an optical disk drive. In another preferred
embodiment, the database(s) 114 comprises data distributed across a
local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN). For example,
the database 114 might be a third party database that is accessed
by the server 112 through the network 110 or through another
communications connection, such as a dedicated line. The
database(s) 114 may include query data, ticket information, order
information, buyer information, receipts data and the like.
[0057] In an embodiment, the server 112 hosts a web site, in which
case the server 112 could include application programs 120 capable
of enabling a buyer 102 to interact with the server 112 through a
web browser or similar application, via the network 110.
[0058] In certain preferred embodiments, the system uses templates,
directives and actions to dynamically respond to buyer's bids or
requests. Templates, which include directives and actions, can be
located in the HTML structures. In response to browser requests,
the dynamic page generator composes HTML pages dynamically from
templates stored in the HTML structures. In a preferred embodiment,
the buyer 102 invokes the dynamic page generator by selecting a
URL. The system interprets the URL by analyzing its constituents to
identify a template and its arguments. Thus, an "HTTP://" portion
of the URL specifies use of the HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP)
for communication across the Internet.
[0059] A template defines the appearance of a page. Templates
include HTML and directives, which are keywords to the dynamic page
generator specifying how to build a page for display, such as what
data to insert into the page and what queries to run against the
database to obtain data for display on the page. A template may
also include a wide variety of content, such as ActiveX controls,
Visual Basic Scripts, forms, images, video and sound.
[0060] In a preferred embodiment, the system includes several
predefined templates in the HTML structures. For example, a
"welcome.html" page serves as a logon page for consumers.
Similarly, a "register.html" page provides a form for a new
consumer to enter registration information. An "update.html" page
likewise provides a form for consumers to update their registration
information. A "purchase.html" page presents the order total and
provides a form for entry of credit card payment information. To
confirm purchases, a "confirmed.html" page presents a message
confirming completion of the purchase transaction. Similarly, a
"receipt.html" page presents a summary of the order in the form of
an online checkout receipt. In addition, a "detail.html" page
presents a detailed line item receipt for options ordered.
[0061] To perform various system operations, the system uses
actions. For example, actions can add an item to an order form,
clear an order from, and initiate a bid for options or futures for
tickets, goods, services, information or other items associated
with a contingent event, from the database. An action is a routine
to perform specific functions. Actions have return values that
control the display of results to a buyer 102 or other operator.
Similarly, actions take arguments that control their behavior. Some
actions generate errors when they receive incorrect arguments while
other actions process and validate the arguments they receive. Many
action arguments have default values to use when no values are
specified. After execution of an action and its resulting system
operation, the action may cause display of an HTML page having
information, such as confirmation information or error information
resulting from execution of the action, or the action may redirect
the buyer 102 to a new HTML page.
[0062] During a session, the buyer 102 sends requests, e.g.,
embedded in URL addresses, to the system. The system responds to
these embedded requests with HTML documents. The HTML documents may
contain, for example, registration information, product offerings,
promotional advertisements, orders, bids, requests and receipts.
The page generator composes the HTML documents sent to the buyer
102. The system provides a set of HTML pages dynamically generated
from queries to a database having store information, such as
inventory data for various contingent events, such as ticket
inventory and prices, advertising copy, pricing, customer
information, promotions or the like.
[0063] FIG. 10 illustrates one embodiment of a dynamic page
generator 304. In a preferred embodiment, the dynamic page
generator 304 includes a page processor 308 and a query module 310.
The page processor 304 retrieves and parses a template from the
HTML structures 302 to form an HTML page for display on the browser
306, e.g., of a user 102. In parsing the HTML template, the page
processor 308 communicates with the query module 310 as needed to
extract and format information from the database(s) 312 to display
on the browser 306. For example, the template can provide a query,
such as the name of a team or other contingency event, or a bid
price for a specified option or the like, to the query module 310.
The query module 310 then passes this query to the database module
312. In the instance where the query is a participant name or
contingent event name, the database module 312 uses the query to
retrieve information related to query from associated databases 314
and then passes that query to the database module 312 for
execution. In embodiments wherein the query is a bid for a
specified option, the database module 312 retrieves from associated
databases 314 (such as an option bid database) information related
to other bids for the specified option, and then passes that
information to the database module 312 for execution. In that
embodiment, the database module 312, or other sub-system of the
present system, can compare the queried option bid to returned data
from the option bid database to determine if the bid should be
accepted. In a preferred embodiment, the database 314 is a
relational database that processes queries in the SQL data
sublanguage. The database 314 in turn executes the query and
returns the query results to the database module 312 to produce an
access object having the query results. The database module 312
returns the access object having the query results to the query
module 310. The page processor 308 obtains the access object from
the query module 310 and processes the access object to extract and
format the query data to prepare HTML for display on the browser
306.
[0064] The present system may also include a financial transaction
settlement sub-system. The financial transaction settlement
sub-system processes various modes of payment for accepted options,
e.g., including processing credit card authorization requests,
debit card purchase requests, electronic money ("e-money")
requests, or other such financial transaction request. For example,
the financial transaction settlement sub-system may represent
commercially available credit card processing institutions.
[0065] Referring to FIG. 3, in an embodiment, the server 112 hosts
a web site that enables buyers 102 to purchase options to purchase
tickets to contingent events, such as contingent sports events.
Buyers 102 may interact with the site via a buyer device 154, which
may be any device capable of an Internet connection, such as a
personal or laptop computer running a web browser application, such
as Netscape Navigator, Microsoft Explorer, or the like. The buyer
device 154 may include a graphical user interface 130, which
appears on the screen of the buyer device 154 and through which the
buyer 102 may interact with the site. In an embodiment, the buyer
device 154 permits the user to enter information relating to a
sports event for which the buyer 102 wishes to purchase an option
to purchase one or more tickets. The information may be entered by
the buyer 102 in any conventional data processing format. In the
embodiment of FIG. 3, the user may enter the information via a
template 132, which may be an HTML template, JAVA applet, or other
conventional mechanism for permitting user entry. The entry of the
data could be via pull-down menus, clicking on a series of icons,
or other mechanism. The buyer-entered information may vary,
depending on the sporting event, as described below.
[0066] In an exemplary embodiment, the buyer may enter information
relating to a series of fields 134, 138, 140, 142. Each field 134,
138, 140, 142 may correspond to data stored in the database(s) 112
of FIG. 1. The buyer may enter data for each field in a series of
template fields 152, each corresponding to one of the fields 134,
138, 140, 142. The buyer may type in an entry in the template field
152, or may select from available choices via a pull-down arrow or
menu 150 for each field. Clicking the pull-down arrow, in a
conventional manner, would result in the display of a list of
available options in a list. The buyer 102 could thus enter the
buyer's name in the template field 152 corresponding to the name
field 134. The buyer 102 could select a contingent event, in this
case a sports event, in the template field 152 corresponding to the
sport field 140. The buyer 102 could select a particular team for
the team field 138. The buyer could then select a particular event
for the event field 142.
[0067] In the case of a sporting event, the event field could offer
choices of specific games, specific rounds, or specific
combinations of rounds and games. Thus, through use of the menus or
other entry means, the buyer could identify a potential game for
which the buyer may want a ticket or travel accommodation, linked
to the presence of the buyer's team in the game. For example, a
buyer could select an option to purchase a ticket for a first round
NFL playoff game in which the Denver Broncos play. The option to
purchase the ticket could mature in an event-driven manner. In
particular, the option could be made exercisable only if the
selected team appeared in the selected game.
[0068] The option may also include, or be for, an event requiring
travel. In certain embodiments, the airfare may be calculated in
advance, such that the cost is identified to the buyer in advance,
e.g., as an entry in a web-page of the site. In other embodiments,
the buyer may specify that the option is also contingent on the
airfare being less than a certain amount.
[0069] Depending on the sport, a wide range of events or
combinations of events could serve as triggers for exercisability
of an option for tickets, transportation or other accommodation.
Examples of events would include presence of a buyer's selected
team in a game, presence of a particular pair of teams in a game,
presence of a team or combination of teams in a game having a
predetermined proximity to the buyer, existence of a game involving
a particular team or combination of teams occurring on a specific
date, and the like. It should be understood that while the present
disclosure refers to the presence of a particular team in a
particular game as the primary contingency upon which an option or
future may be based, other contingency events can be envisioned.
For example, a fan's loyalty may be to a particular player, rather
than to a particular team. In that case, a fan could purchase an
option for a ticket to a particular game if that player was to
appear in the game. Such an option might be appropriate for ticket
and accommodations at tournaments in individual sports, such as
tennis and match-play golf, and for all-star or all-pro games in
other sports, such as baseball, football, basketball, soccer and
hockey. Thus, for example, a buyer 102 could purchase an option to
have a ticket to the women's U.S. Open final, if the match involves
Monica Seles, or a ticket to the baseball All-Star game, if Pedro
Martinez is an All-Star.
[0070] In still another embodiment, the option for tickets, travel
and/or hotel accommodations may be contingent upon availability of
resources, weather or any other condition which may effect the
desirability to travel to the location.
[0071] In one embodiment of the invention, the contingency event is
related to weather. It can be predicted that weather will be
relevant to a wide range of goods, services, and activities, but
the weather itself cannot be predicted with a high range of
long-term accuracy. Thus, a buyer 102 could purchase an option or
futures contract for delivery of a weather-dependent good or
service, with the purchase contingent upon the occurrence of a
measurable weather event at a given time. Weather-dependent goods
and services that could be made the subject of weather-contingent
options and futures contracts include, but are not limited to air
travel, skiing, weddings, parties, concerts, sports events,
vacation packages, hotel reservations, all outdoor events and
activities, hiking, camping, golf, surfing, swimming, amusement
park attendance, and many others.
[0072] Thus, for example, travel or ski packages (travel, hotel,
lift tickets, etc) for spring skiing trips may be optioned based on
snow base for a resort for a particular time of the year, e.g., the
buyer may wish to travel to a ski resort in the month of May if
there is at least a certain number of trails open, a certain
minimal snow base (e.g., a pre-determined minimum amount of snow on
the selected mountain a given number of days before the date of the
ski trip), or other objective criteria for determining when, if at
all, the option is exercisable. Likewise, a buyer could purchase an
option to purchase a vacation package to a Carribean island,
contingent on the absence of any hurricanes in the Atlantic ocean
one week before the date of departure.
[0073] The options would allow buyers to purchase with diminished
uncertainty, while sellers would have advance notice of potential
demand. As with sports event options described above, the advance
notice would permit planning, marketing of related goods and
services, and, in some cases, the sale of multiple options for the
same good or services. For example, many individuals are highly
interested in bad weather. For example, a weather expert,
newsperson, or weather buff might have a strong desire to have the
opportunity to observe a hurricane close hand, while a vacationer
might have no desire to vacation during the same storm. Thus, an
option or futures contract for a travel package could be sold to
each of them, with the former getting the package if a hurricane
was identified as being within a given distance from the location
at a given time, and the latter getting the package otherwise.
Similarly, many non-ski attractions have arising around ski
resorts, such as outlet shopping, family entertainment complexes
and the like. However, during the peak season, price rise, and
non-skiers typically avoid these locations. If there is no snow,
there is substantial unused capacity at a given time. In order to
help fill the unused capacity, options and futures contracts can be
established to permit one person (presumably a skier) to have a
hotel room, dinner reservation, or the like if there is a
predetermined amount of snow and to permit another person
(presumably a non-skier) to have the same item (presumably at a
"non-peak" price) if there is less than the predetermined amount of
snow. In other words, the systems and methods enable vendors to
offer the same item to different individuals, depending on
different tastes for weather-related goods and services. Weather
related options and futures contracts would be particularly
effective in booking off-peak times, such as early and late season
skiing, golf, beach vacations, and the like. Thus, vendors could
identify interested parties who would commit to purchase a package
of items if the weather, as of a given date, is appropriate for the
particular activity. For example, a skier could commit to a ski
package in October or May, which would be contingent on the
presence of snow. Knowing the skier might arrive, the vendor could
target advertising for a host of related products and services,
even if the skier doesn't end up purchasing the package.
[0074] In other embodiments, the contingent event may consist of a
blending of one or more contingencies, including any of the
contingencies identified herein. Thus, for example, a skier might
purchase an option to acquire a hotel room and lift ticket on a
particular mountain in May, if there is adequate snow, and if the
price is lower than a predetermined amount.
[0075] The available options may be subject to constraints, which
may be particular to, e.g., the sport or other event underlying the
desire of the buyer to the option. For example, a buyer could not
purchase an option for a ticket for an American Football Conference
playoff game involving the Green Bay Packers, because the Green Bay
Packers are in the National Football Conference, not the American
Football Conference. Another constraint may be the number of
options, such as the number of guaranteed tickets that the host can
deliver.
[0076] In certain preferred embodiments where the host has limited
number of tickets or hotel accommodations available, the host will
not permit the purchase of more options than can be actually be
delivered by the host, assuming any possible combination of events
occurs. For example, if host has contracted for 4000 tickets to the
Super Bowl, the host will preferably not sell options that would
result in a commitment to sell more than 4000 Super Bowl tickets.
In this simple scenario, options could be made exercisable based
only on the presence of a buyer's designated team in the Super
Bowl. In one embodiment, if the host is capable of delivering N
tickets to a play-off game, the host can sell N/2 options to buyers
designating each team that can appear in the game. Thus, if the
host is capable of delivering 4000 tickets to the Super Bowl, then
the host can sell options to purchase up to 2000 tickets to buyers
designating each particular team. Of course, in another embodiment,
all 4000 tickets could be optioned to every team, and the 4000
highest bids from amongst all the buyers (e.g., all 8000 option
holders) for both teams making the Super Bowl are selected.
[0077] It should be understood that the number of tickets the host
is capable of delivering may be constrained not only by the number
of seats in the stadium or on a plane, but by other factors, such
as the ability of the host to obtain the tickets for delivery. In a
preferred embodiment, the host may obtain pre-commitments for
tickets for a given number of seats, N. A conservative approach
would be to sell options to purchase N/2 seats to buyers
designating each particular team for appearance in the game. One of
the benefits of the system to the host and to providers of tickets
may be observed, which is that in addition to ultimately selling N
tickets to the game, the host and provider sell up to a number of
options equal to (N/2) times the number of teams.
[0078] Additional event combinations and option triggers can be
employed in scenarios that are more complicated than sale of
options to purchase options to a single game. For example, a buyer
may wish to have tickets to a game in a particular round of
playoffs, if the buyer's designated team is in that round, although
it may be impossible to know in advance the location of the game.
Referring to FIG. 4, a schematic diagram 158 depicts the National
Football League playoff format. It should be understood that
variations in format can be accommodated by the systems and methods
disclosed herein, and that the systems and methods are not limited
to a particular sport or tournament format. The playoffs are
divided into a number of rounds, including a wild card round 160, a
second round 162, a conference championship round 164 and the Super
Bowl 168. There are two conferences, the American Football
Conference, of AFC 170, and the National Football Conference, of
NFC 172. Each conference 170, 172 has the wild card round 160, the
second round 162 and the conference championship 164. The winner of
each single game in each round advances to the next round. Although
the playoffs are depicted as having a predetermined path of games,
in fact the matching of teams for the games for the second round
162 are determined in part based on the results in the wild card
round 160. Among other things, the NFL seeks not to match teams
from the same division in the second round 162, where possible.
[0079] Each of the rounds 160, 162, 164 can be divided into a set
of games. The wild card round 160 has two AFC conference games 174,
176 and two NFC conference wild card games 178, 180. Each of the
games can be given a unique identifier, or the games can be grouped
together as "AFC round one" and NFC round one" games. Thus, a buyer
could, in advance, purchase an option for a ticket to a wild card
round game, if the buyer's team appears in the wild card round.
Allocation of options for rounds, rather than a single game,
introduces additional complexity to the allocation scheme. The host
or provider must determine not only the number of options that it
has to sell for the round, but also the different combinations of
teams that could appear in the round and the different locations
that could host games. A variety of conservative approaches would
permit allocation of options in a manner that would not result in a
conflict. The most conservative approach would be to treat each
option as, e.g., a committed ticket. This would still offer
benefits, because not all options would likely be exercised, given
the actual teams that make it to the wild card round, but the
benefits would be much lower than a system that allows multiple
options for the same ticket. Another approach would be to sell
options for N/2 seats to buyers from each team, where N is equal to
the smallest number of committed tickets that the host has from any
of the games in the round. In situations such as the NFL, the two
conferences could be treated separately, since a team from one
conference would not make the playoffs for the other conference. A
similar approach could be taken with each round.
[0080] To give effect to the type of option just described, the
concept of a team-round identifier can be introduced. Thus, an
option can be made exercisable based on the presence of a given
team in a given round, and allocations can be made based on the
possible combinations of teams in the games of the round.
[0081] In another embodiment, options to purchase tickets could be
sold for home games of the buyer's designated team. This would
avoid the complication of having to limit sales to half of the
number of tickets for each team, which could result in one team's
options selling out, but the other team's options remaining largely
unsold. A team-round-home game identifier can be introduced. The
option would be exercisable based on existence of a home game for a
designated team in a particular round of playoffs. Option
allocations could be made based on the possible combinations of
teams appearing in a particular team's home games.
[0082] In another embodiment, buyers could purchase options for a
particular team's appearance in a particular round at a particular
location or set of locations. Adding a location element would be
more complicated than the scenario in which only home game options
are sold, but it would offer more flexibility to the buyer. A
team-round-location identifier can be introduced, based on which
options would be exercisable if a team appears in a specified round
in a specified location or locations. Allocation of options could
be made based on possible combinations of teams in a given round at
given locations.
[0083] In another embodiment, options to purchase travel
accommodations could be sold only for away games of the buyer's
designated team.
[0084] It should be understood that the systems and methods
disclosed herein are not limited to a particular type of contingent
event or sport. By way of example, and without limitation, the
systems and methods could be used to sell options to National
Basketball League games, National Hockey League games, Major League
Soccer games, Major League Baseball games, soccer games from
leagues throughout the world, games for soccer cups and
tournaments, such as the World Cup, FA Cup, European Cup, MLS Cup,
and the like, college sports, such as the Men's and Women's NCAA
basketball playoffs, tennis and golf tournaments, and other
events.
[0085] In situations such as the NBA playoffs, an additional
complication is introduced in that multiple games appear in each
round. The first round of playoffs is a best-of-five series, and
the other rounds are best-of-seven series. Thus, in place of a
team-round identifier, a team-round-game identifier can be
introduced, permitting the buyer to purchase an option, for
example, to have guaranteed tickets and/or airfare to attend a game
involving the Los Angeles Lakers in the seventh game of the NBA
finals. The option would be triggered based on the presence of the
existence of the identified game, in the identified round, with the
identified team. The allocation would, as in other embodiments, be
based on the possible combinations of teams, rounds and games. As
in other embodiments, an option purchase could be made available
that is limited to home or away games, and then to games in
locations within a given proximity of the user.
[0086] It should be understood that the sale of options is not
necessarily limited to playoff games. In fact, some of the benefits
of the systems and methods disclosed herein can be obtained with
any game where the desirability to attend varies over time. For
example, a late-season baseball game between the Red Sox and
Yankees would be much more attractive if both teams were in playoff
contention than if one or the other was not in contention. Options
could be sold that would enable to buyer to obtain a tickets if a
particular combination events occurred that would make attending
the game more attractive to the buyer. For example, the buyer could
indicate that s/he wishes to have an option to a ticket(s) for a
Red Sox-Yankees game (optionally in a specific location) on a given
date if both teams are in contention for the American League East
division title.
[0087] In an embodiment, the invention includes a method of
electronic commerce, comprising establishing a network-based
on-line system for purchase and sale of options to acquire tickets
and travel accommodations, such as airline tickets, to destinations
for a given sporting events.
[0088] In a preferred embodiment, a system is provided for allowing
user to purchase an option for a ticket to a playoff sporting
event. Referring to FIG. 5, a flow chart 200 depicts the steps by
which the system may permit a buyer to buy an option. First, at a
step 202, the user may identify an event. For example, the user may
identify a team-round-game combination as a trigger event for the
right to purchase a ticket, preferably at a price set at the time
the option is purchased. Next, at a step 204, the system may enter
the option bid into a location in memory for bids for that event,
e.g., team-round-game. Next, at a step 208, the system may process
the option bids. The identification, entry and ranking of bids may
be accomplished by a variety of conventional data processing
methods and systems. Many such systems are known and in use, such
as systems and methods for electronic auctions.
[0089] Referring to FIG. 6, in an embodiment, the ranking may
consist of a comparison of bids for the available tickets to a
team-round-game in an auction format, so that the user is informed
whether, after submission, the bid is the highest current bid.
Thus, in the flow chart 210 of FIG. 6, at a step 212, an event can
be identified. At a step 214, the bids can be entered into the
system. At a step 218, the bids can be compared to the highest
previous winning bid, designated MINWIN. It should be recognized
that the winning bid might be a single bid (in the case of an
option to buy a ticket for a particular seat at a game) or the
lowest previously winning bid from a set of bids (in the case of
auctioning a set of seats to a particular event, e.g.,
team-round-game). If at the step 218 it is determined that the
current bid is lower or equal to the previous minimum winning bid,
then at a step 222 the bid is identified as unsuccessful, and a
message is sent to the user at a step 224 informing the user of the
same. If at the step 218 the bid is determined to exceed the
previous minimum winning bid, then at a step 220 the MINWIN
variable is increased to equal the new bid, and at a step 228 the
user is informed that the bid is a valid bid. At the step 228 or
the step 224, processing of the particular bid is complete.
[0090] It should be understood that an auction of options is only
one possible format. For example, an acceptable option price could
be predetermined, so that an option is purchased simply by paying
the asking price. Alternatively, the option price could be
determined based on a formula, such as one that includes as factors
various components that determine the value of the certainty of
having a ticket to the game or accommodations related thereto, such
as the number of tickets already sold, the attractiveness of the
teams involved, the likelihood (e.g., the odds) that a given team
will make it to the particular game, etc. The systems and methods
disclosed herein offer complete flexibility as to the pricing of
options and the ranking or acceptance of bids to acquire
options.
[0091] It should be understood that a variety of different
purchasing systems can be used for the options and futures markets
disclosed herein. For example, an initial sale of options could
occur by auction, with a predetermined closing time. The auction
could occur in a single day, an hour, or over a period of months.
Alternatively, available options and futures could be sold in a
series of auctions over time. In an embodiment, rather being sold
in an auction, the options and futures are simply sold for
predetermined prices. Once the options and futures are initially
allocated, they could be bought or sold in an after-market
supported by the systems and methods disclosed herein.
[0092] An exemplary data structure for the database 114 used to
store option purchase information is depicted in FIG. 7. It should
be understood that a wide variety of data structures and database
tools could be used in accordance with the principles of this
disclosure. In an embodiment, a database record 230 is depicted in
schematic format. A record 230 may include a plurality of elements
232, which may correspond to information pertinent to a particular
buyer 102 or to the buyer's bid to purchase an option. Thus, the
record 232 may include a name element 234, an address element 238,
a sport element 240, an team element 242, a round element 244, a
game element 248, a bid element 250, a desired location element
252, a home game element 254. The record 230 may also include a
unique bid identifier 258, which can be used to track the bid for
processing purposes.
[0093] The elements 232 could be stored together and associated
with a particular bid, or the elements 232 could be stored at
diverse locations in memory and retrieved at runtime for
processing. Depending on the nature of the options that are to be
sold, different records may need to be retrieved. For example, if
options for an NBA playoff game are to be sold, then an option
would need to specify the buyer's team and the desired round of the
playoffs, and, optionally, a restriction on distance to travel. In
that case, processing would require access to the team field 242,
the round field 244, and the game field 248. If only a home game is
desired, then the home field 254 could be used.
[0094] Referring to FIG. 8, a register 260 is depicted in schematic
format for tracking bids to options that are associated with a
particular event. The register 260 should be understood as one of
many conventional possible formats for storing information and
could be implemented using a variety of conventional database
programs and tools. In an embodiment of a register 260, if the
triggering event for an option is the existence of a
team-round-game (i.e., the presence of a particular team in a
particular game of a particular round of playoffs, such as the NBA
playoffs), then each possible team-round-game may be assigned a
column 262 in the register 260. Each team-round-game may have a
unique identifier 278, which may be stored at the head of the
column 262 for that team-round-game. The register 260 may further
include a plurality of rows 264. The rows may correspond to
available options, e.g., tickets or accommodations, for that team
round game. To continue the illustration, each ticket can be
assigned a unique ticket identifier 280, corresponding to a ticket
of the identified game in the identified round. The register 260
may be used to register and track bids. Thus, if a bid has been
entered by a buyer 102, then the bid identifier, bid amount, and
any other desired information about the bid can be stored in the
register 260. For example, if a first bid is entered for an option
to a team-round-game N, the bid can be stored in a register
location 268 in the column for team-round-game N and the row for
the first ticket. As additional bids are entered, additional rows
in the column may be filled. Until the number of bids equals the
number of available tickets, an entry 270 such as "NO BID" or the
like can be included in the register. Once a bid exists for each of
the available tickets, a variety of scenarios are possible. In
cases where the options are sold at auction, the bids can be
entered in descending order of the BID AMOUNT variable, so that the
BID AMOUNT for the last bid in a column for a team-round-game is
the minimum amount that must be exceeded for the next bid to be
eligible to win the auction for the option, or MINWIN 274. The
register can thus be used to track bids until the auction is
closed, at which time all buyers with bids still appearing on the
register will have purchased options for the particular
team-round-game.
[0095] The register 260 can also be used in cases where options are
sold at a fixed price. Rather than using a MINWIN variable, the
bids can be stored in rows until all options are accounted for. In
this case, the BID AMOUNT variable would not be necessary.
[0096] The register could also be used to establish a minimum price
in the auction scenario, so that a bid is not registered unless it
exceeds a previously established MINWIN amount. Different registers
could be used to embody different allocation schemes, such as those
involving home games at specific locations, games appearing within
a particular span of dates, and the like.
[0097] The systems and methods disclosed herein may further provide
buyers to trade or resell options that are purchased through the
host. Thus, the host may serve as a secondary market for buying and
selling the options by third parties.
[0098] It should be understood that local, state and other legal
and regulatory requirements, to such as anti-scalping regulations,
may restrict certain types of transactions in sporting event
tickets. Accordingly, the systems and methods disclosed herein are
intended to provide the host with flexibility as to the nature of
the options provided, the rules for allocation of options, and
rules regarding availability of resale. For example, the host could
require the buyer 102 to agree not to resell the option, or the
host could limit the price at which the buyer could resell the
option, such as to the same price the buyer paid for the
option.
[0099] Referring to FIG. 9, the benefits of the methods and systems
disclosed herein to participants in markets associated with
sporting events can be observed by reference to a schematic diagram
282. Upon the occurrence of an contingency event 284, such as
presence of a team in a particular game of a particular round of
the playoffs, or the like, a set of contingent needs are set in
motion. First, a ticket 288 for the event is needed, as disclosed
above. However, once the ticket has been secured (or simultaneously
with securing the ticket) a need emerges for a wide range of other
goods and services. Thus, a need may exist for transportation from
a transportation provider 290, such as an airline, travel agent,
charter air services, bus line, train line, or the like, all of
which will be needed to get the buyer 102 to the event 284. A need
may exist for dining services from a dining services provider 292,
such as a restaurant or caterer. Thus, the provider 292 could
provide reservations or catering services. A need emerges for
accommodations from an accommodations provider, such as a hotel
294, motel, bed and breakfast, or other provider of accommodations.
A need emerges for a rental car from a rental car agency 298 in the
locale of the event. A need emerges for tickets to local
attractions 300. A need emerges for certain particular goods 304,
such as printed T-shirts memorializing the event and other
souvenirs and mementos of the event. A range of other services can
also be predicted to be needed, such as retail shopping and the
like. Thus, upon occurrence of the contingency, each of the
providers can identify a need.
[0100] By providing options or futures based on the triggering in
advance, the methods and systems disclosed herein permit all of the
participants, whether local businesses or national providers of
goods and services, to plan well in advance of the event, rather
than attempting to put in place plans in the short time between the
emergence of the contingency and the actual event. Providers can
also identify packages of goods and services that can be sold along
with the tickets. Thus, not only options and futures to purchase
tickets, but options and futures to purchase packages of other
goods and services can be purchased, sold, traded and otherwise
supported by the systems and methods disclosed herein. For example,
a buyer 102 could purchase an option to attend the Super Bowl, stay
in a Marriott Hotel in the city hosting the game, fly on a charter
airline from the buyer's home city to the game city, and have
dinner reservations at a leading restaurant in the city, all
contingent on the buyer's team being present in the game. A variety
of different combinations could be made available as packages, or
the individual goods and services could be provided as separate
options or futures contracts, so that the buyer 102 can choose
which goods and services he wishes to commit to purchase, or wishes
to have available to purchase, if his or her team appears in the
designated event.
[0101] Once a market is established for options and futures to
purchase goods and services the need for which is contingent upon
the occurrence of a sporting event with a particular team (or other
contingency), a variety of other benefits are available. Among
other things, the host or the providers could then target
advertising for related goods and services to the purchasers of the
options. Thus, the market, once established, could support the
delivery or a range of goods and services related to the entire
locale of the sporting event, not just the event itself. Also, the
purchasers would readily be identified as loyal fans of a
particular team, which would permit additional targeting of
advertisements for related goods and services.
[0102] If the host wishes to provide options at a predetermined
price, rather than at auction, initial pricing of options and
futures that are contingent on the existence of a particular
sporting event having certain characteristics can be based in part
on the odds that the sporting event (e.g., the identity of the
participants) will occur. For many sports, the odds for or against
a team appearing in a particular event can be calculated by various
means known in the art. These odds can constitute a probabilistic
factor that can be considered in determining an appropriate option
price.
[0103] By way of example, and not limitation, a host can determine
that a certain ticket for the Super Bowl is worth a given amount,
say $5,000. Since a buyer could assure obtaining the ticket by
purchasing options for tickets for all of the teams in one of the
conferences, the sum total of the prices for all options for that
conference cannot exceed $5,000. However, certain teams are much
more likely to make it to the game. For example, if the odds
against the New York Jets making the Super Bowl are 4-1, and the
odds against the Indianapolis Colts making the Super Bowl are 12-1,
then an option to purchase a ticket if the Jets are in the Super
Bowl should initially cost about three times as much, because the
probability of a favorable outcome is three times higher. An
appropriate initial pricing formula would satisfy the constraint
that the sum of the price for all options be less than or equal to
the certain price for the game: P1+P2+ . . . +Pn=CERTAIN PRICE
[0104] and the constraint that the ratio of an individual option
price to the total price be inversely proportional to the odds
against that team making it to the event: P1 CERTAIN PRICE/ODDS
AGAINST
[0105] Of course, actual option prices could be much higher,
reflecting individual evaluations of the value of a ticket if a
particular team is present.
[0106] While the foregoing embodiment depicts establishment of
options and futures to purchase tickets and other goods and
services related to sporting events, it should be understood that
many other contingent events may be made the basis of options and
futures.
[0107] In an embodiment, the contingent event may be defined by
party seeking an option or futures contract. That is, the systems
and methods disclosed herein may establish a marketplace in which a
person seeking an options or futures contract may define and post a
request, such as on a host Internet site, including a contingency
event, a desired good or service the desire for which is dependent
on the contingency and an offer or bid for an option or futures
contract to acquire the goods or services if the contingency event
occurs. Potential providers of the goods, services, or other items
identified in the request could then respond by accepting the
request or by offering a different price. Similarly, providers of
goods and services could identify and post offers, such as on an
Internet site, including a contingency event, a good, service, or
other item the supply or demand for which is dependent on the
contingency event, and the price at which the seller is willing to
enter into a provide the good, service or other item at a
predetermined price. Pricing of the option could be varied to
provide a range of option prices to obtain a range of goods or
services at a range of prices. Thus, a general marketplace can be
established for permitting users, including buyers and sellers, to
define and negotiate contingency event-based options and futures
contracts.
[0108] Also, once systems and methods are established whereby an
option or future may be defined, offered and sold, the same systems
and methods can be used as a secondary marketplace for the options
or futures, as well as for the underlying goods, services,
information and other items to which the options and futures
relate. An option or futures contract for a contingent event ticket
would have a different value, depending on the probability of the
contingent event's actually occurring. For example, if a particular
team loses a game, then the probability of that team's making the
playoffs is reduced, thus reducing the value of the option or
futures contract for a ticket to that game involving that team. As
the values diminish, option holders may be willing to sell the
options to recover some of the original purchase price. Similarly,
others may be willing to buy at a lower price. Thus, a marketplace
can be established where purchasers and sellers trade in options
that are based on contingent events. Trading can be expected in any
case where there are marketplace events that change the value of
options; i.e., events that change the likelihood of a contingency
emerging. Where contingencies emerge after a chain of many related
marketplace events (such as the progression of a sports season), an
active marketplace can be established for the trading of options
and futures contracts based on the events.
[0109] Once a marketplace is established, it is possible to
establish another level of options, futures or other derivative
securities. Thus, for each type of options or futures contract
described herein, there can exist still another class of options
and futures contracts to acquire the options or futures. Thus,
while there may only be a fixed number of available tickets, and
only a fixed number of options can actually result in delivery of
the ticket, a far larger number of individuals may purchase and
sell options than can actually provide or take delivery on the
tickets. Individuals who have a delivery obligation, but cannot
ultimately deliver tickets, will be required to "cover," by paying
the purchasers the value of the promised options (as measured, for
example, by the trading price of an option or futures contract as
of a fixed date). Thus, as in trading markets for commodities, many
more options and futures are traded than underlying commodities are
delivered. Additional levels of "options on options" could be
envisioned and are encompassed by the present disclosure.
[0110] A wide variety of possible contingent event-based options
and futures, related secondary markets, and options on options can
be enabled by systems and methods disclosed herein. The following
examples are intended to illustrate some examples of contingent
events on which such options and markets can be based, but are by
no means exhaustive. Other embodiments evident to those of ordinary
skill in the art are intended to be encompassed by the present
disclosure.
[0111] A contingency event may be any event that is expected to
occur, but the outcome of which is unpredictable.
[0112] In one embodiment of the invention, the contingency event is
related to weather. It can be predicted that weather will be
relevant to a wide range of goods, services, and activities, but
the weather itself cannot be predicted with a high range of
long-term accuracy. Thus, a buyer 102 could purchase an option or
futures contract for delivery of a weather-dependent good or
service, with the purchase contingent upon the occurrence of a
measurable weather event at a given time. Weather-dependent goods
and services that could be made the subject of weather-contingent
options and futures contracts include, but are not limited to air
travel, skiing, weddings, parties, concerts, sports events,
vacation packages, hotel reservations, all outdoor events and
activities, hiking, camping, golf, surfing, swimming, amusement
park attendance, and many others. Thus, for example, a purchaser
could purchase an option to purchase a vacation package to a
Carribean island, contingent on the absence of any hurricanes in
the Atlantic ocean one week before the date of departure.
Similarly, a skier could purchase an option to have a hotel room
and lift ticket at a given price, if there is a predetermined
minimum amount of snow on the selected mountain a given number of
days before the date of the ski trip. The options would allow
buyers to purchase with diminished uncertainty, while sellers would
have advance notice of potential demand. As with sports event
options described above, the advance notice would permit planning,
marketing of related goods and services, and, in some cases, the
sale of multiple options for the same good or services. For
example, many individuals are highly interested in bad weather. For
example, a weather expert, newsperson, or weather buff might have a
strong desire to have the opportunity to observe a hurricane close
hand, while a vacationer might have no desire to vacation during
the same storm. Thus, an option or futures contract for a travel
package could be sold to each of them, with the former getting the
package if a hurricane was identified as being within a given
distance from the location at a given time, and the latter getting
the package otherwise. Similarly, many non-ski attractions have
arising around ski resorts, such as outlet shopping, family
entertainment complexes and the like. However, during the peak
season, price rise, and non-skiers typically avoid these locations.
If there is no snow, there is substantial unused capacity at a
given time. In order to help fill the unused capacity, options and
futures contracts can be established to permit one person
(presumably a skier) to have a hotel room, dinner reservation, or
the like if there is a predetermined amount of snow and to permit
another person (presumably a non-skier) to have the same item
(presumably at a "non-peak" price) if there is less than the
predetermined amount of snow. In other words, the systems and
methods enable vendors to offer the same item to different
individuals, depending on different tastes for weather-related
goods and services. Weather related options and futures contracts
would be particularly effective in booking off-peak times, such as
early and late season skiing, golf, beach vacations, and the like.
Thus, vendors could identify interested parties who would commit to
purchase a package of items if the weather, as of a given date, is
appropriate for the particular activity. For example, a skier could
commit to a ski package in October or May, which would be
contingent on the presence of snow. Knowing the skier might arrive,
the vendor could target advertising for a host of related products
and services, even if the skier doesn't end up purchasing the
package.
[0113] In other embodiments, the contingent event may consist of a
blending of one or more contingencies, including any of the
contingencies identified herein. Thus, for example, a skier might
purchase an option to acquire a hotel room and lift ticket on a
particular mountain in May, if there is adequate snow, and if the
price is lower than a predetermined amount.
[0114] In other embodiments, the contingency may be the
unavailability or limited availability of a particular good or
service. Thus, a user might purchase an option of futures contract
to purchase a good, service, or other item if that item is sold out
in the user's area, or if the price of the good in that area
exceeds a predetermined price. Such a contract could identify a
particular good or suite of goods of a given type. Examples might
include popular toys, CDs, and other consumer items. For example, a
buyer might purchase an option to acquire a particular item (or any
of a group of items) offered by a major toy store, if the item or
one of the items is sold out on December 20 of a given year.
Similarly, a buyer could purchase an option to purchase tickets to
a particular event, if the event is sold out. A buyer could
purchase an option to acquire services, if the market rate for the
services exceeds a certain rate, or if there are no individuals
offering the services at a given time. The services could be a wide
range of services, such as professional services, contracting
services, legal services, accounting services, consulting services,
plumbing services, development services, design services,
engineering services and the like.
[0115] More generally, contingency events may include any events
where different outcomes are possible, and where different
purchasers are capable of benefiting from the different outcomes.
Thus, any goods or services where buyer tastes vary depending on
the outcome, such as weather, sporting events, performances, and
the like.
[0116] In another embodiment, the contingency event may be the
popularity of a particular item. For example, television programs
are rated according to number of households and percentage of
viewing households for each program. Those ratings reflect the
popularity of a particular program. Whether a particular program
has a particular popularity rating can be a contingency event upon
which an option to purchase advertising time or space is based.
Similar options and futures can be established for advertising in
periodicals and books based on the circulation of the same. Similar
options and futures can be established for Internet space. Since
demographic information is often made available, options and
futures can be established where the contingency event is the
establishment of a particular rating in a particular demographic.
Thus, for example, an advertiser could purchase air time at a given
price and time if a particular television show has achieved an
average of a twenty percent audience share among women aged twenty
to thirty. As with other embodiments, a secondary market can be
established, with market information arising each time ratings are
announced, encouraging trading of options based on the ratings.
Also, secondary services and goods can be targeted to particular
advertisers, based on what they are seeking to advertise.
[0117] The methods and systems established herein can also be used
to establish options and futures for non-traditional goods and
services, where a future need is known and the buyer wishes to lock
in the current price. Any goods or services can be covered, ranging
from appliances, to home repairs, to fixtures, to automobiles, to
concert tickets, to automobiles, to antiques, to collectibles, to
used cars, to computers, to real estate, and many others.
[0118] In an embodiment, the contingent event may be defined by
party seeking an option or futures contract. That is, the systems
and methods disclosed herein may establish a marketplace in which a
person seeking an options or futures contract may define and post a
request, such as on a host Internet site, including a contingency
event, a desired good or service the desire for which is dependent
on the contingency and an offer or bid for an option or futures
contract to acquire the goods or services if the contingency event
occurs. Potential providers of the goods, services, or other items
identified in the request could then respond by accepting the
request or by offering a different price. Similarly, providers of
goods and services could identify and post offers, such as on an
Internet site, including a contingency event, a good, service, or
other item the supply or demand for which is dependent on the
contingency event, and the price at which the seller is willing to
enter into a provide the good, service or other item at a
predetermined price. Pricing of the option could be varied to
provide a range of option prices to obtain a range of goods or
services at a range of prices. Thus, a general marketplace can be
established for permitting users, including buyers and sellers, to
define and negotiate contingency event-based options and futures
contracts.
[0119] Also, once systems and methods are established whereby an
option or future may be defined, offered and sold, the same systems
and methods can be used as a secondary marketplace for the options
or futures, as well as for the underlying goods, services,
information and other items to which the options and futures
relate.
[0120] While the invention has been disclosed in connection with
the preferred embodiments shown and described in detail, various
modifications and improvements thereon will become readily apparent
to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the spirit and scope of
the present invention is to be limited only by the following
claims.
* * * * *