U.S. patent application number 13/491861 was filed with the patent office on 2012-09-27 for transaction tax settlement in personal communication devices.
This patent application is currently assigned to AMERICAN EXPRESS TRAVEL RELATED SERVICES COMPANY, INC.. Invention is credited to Fred Bishop, Robert Wilmes.
Application Number | 20120246037 13/491861 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 26757981 |
Filed Date | 2012-09-27 |
United States Patent
Application |
20120246037 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Wilmes; Robert ; et
al. |
September 27, 2012 |
TRANSACTION TAX SETTLEMENT IN PERSONAL COMMUNICATION DEVICES
Abstract
A transactional tax settlement system for use with a personal
communication device is provided. The system has particular
usefulness in determining a taxing authority and calculating a tax
rate imposed by the taxing authority in a communication network
environment. The system may be used to determine a tax authority
and corresponding tax rate for a buyer/seller transaction over a
network, e.g., the Internet. The system may also be used to
determine a tax authority and corresponding tax rate in a mobile
telecommunications network, e.g., a cellular phone. The system
includes a tax information system for determining the taxing
authorities and corresponding tax rates by evaluating factors
pertaining to the transaction such as, location, tax status, and
transaction description. In addition, the tax information system
may validate a payment modality, collect taxes, and account for the
transaction.
Inventors: |
Wilmes; Robert; (Scottsdale,
AZ) ; Bishop; Fred; (Glendale, AZ) |
Assignee: |
AMERICAN EXPRESS TRAVEL RELATED
SERVICES COMPANY, INC.
New York
NY
|
Family ID: |
26757981 |
Appl. No.: |
13/491861 |
Filed: |
June 8, 2012 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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11828230 |
Jul 25, 2007 |
8214269 |
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13491861 |
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10076337 |
Feb 15, 2002 |
7313538 |
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11828230 |
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60269108 |
Feb 15, 2001 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/31 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 30/0284 20130101;
G06Q 40/02 20130101; G06Q 40/123 20131203; G06Q 20/207
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/31 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 40/00 20120101
G06Q040/00 |
Claims
1. A method, comprising: receiving, at a tax information computer,
a tax information request from a computing device for tax
information, wherein the request comprises transaction information
related to a first transaction, wherein the transaction information
comprises location information associated with the first
transaction; determining, by the computer and based upon the
transaction information, the tax information, wherein the tax
information comprises at least one of an identification of a taxing
authority authorized to impose a tax on the first transaction; a
calculated tax for the first transaction; a tax calculation for the
first transaction; and a tax rate for the first transaction; and
transmitting, by the computer and to the computing device, the tax
information.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining the tax
information comprises determining based upon the location
information.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining the tax
information comprises determining the calculated tax, and wherein
the calculated tax comprises a plurality of calculated taxes.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein the plurality of calculated taxes
comprises calculated tax for each of a plurality of taxing
authorities.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining the tax
information comprises receiving the tax information from at least
one of a tax service and a tax directory.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the location information is
associated with at least one of the buyer, the seller, the physical
location of the computing device.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein the computing device determines
the location information.
8. The method of claim 6, wherein the computing device determines
the location information using a global positioning satellite (GPS)
feature of the computing device.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device is
associated with a buyer in the first transaction.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device is
associated with at least one of: the buyer in the first transaction
and includes software associated with the seller in the first
transaction; and the seller in the first transaction.
11. The method of claim 1, further comprising, in response to the
transmitting the tax information, receiving a selection of a
selected taxing authority from the computing device, wherein the
tax information comprises a plurality of taxing authorities.
12. The method of claim 11, further comprising determining, based
upon the selected taxing authority and the transaction information,
the detailed tax information comprising at least one of a tax rate,
a tax calculation and the calculated tax.
13. The method of claim 12, further comprising transmitting, by the
computer, the detailed tax information the computing device.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein the transmitting the detailed
tax information comprises transmitting a listing of tax rates and a
listing of tax calculation rules to the computing device.
15. The method of claim 14, wherein the computing device comprises
client software that groups a subset of the listing of tax rates
and a subset of the listing of tax calculation rules based on
whether the listing of tax rates and the listing of tax calculation
rules are not subject to modification for a predetermined period of
time.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein the computing device stores the
subset of the listing of tax rates and the subset of the listing of
tax calculation rules to create stored taxation rules.
17. The method of claim 16 further comprising: receiving a
transaction request for a second transaction , wherein the second
transaction is subject to the stored taxation rules; determining,
by the computer, a geographical location of the computing device
based upon the transaction request; searching for a tax rate and a
tax calculation rule based on the transaction request and the
geographic location; determining, by the computer, that an update
of the stored taxation rules; and in response to the determining
the update, transmitting the update to the computing device.
18. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device receives
the tax information and, based upon the tax information, at least
one of: determines a tax rate, determines a tax calculation,
calculates the calculated tax and calculates the plurality of
calculated taxes.
19. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing an
accounting of the tax information provided to the computing
device.
20. The method of claim 1, wherein the accounting is used by a
collector of a tax in a tax settlement process.
21. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device accounts
for the of the tax information provided to the computing device in
order to facilitate a tax settlement process.
22. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining the tax
information comprises receiving the tax information from a tax
directory, the a tax directory having a listing of tax authorities
stored thereon, the tax directory capable of identification of
certain of the tax authorities capable of imposing a tax on the
transaction based on a type of the first transaction, a merchant
type, and the location information, the tax directory capable of
returning the list of the identified tax authorities to the
computing device such that the computing device can allow selection
of a subset of the a list of the identified tax authorities,
wherein the tax information system does not calculate a tax
amount.
23. The method of claim 20, wherein, in response to the selection
of the subset, the computing device send a tax calculation request
to one of the identified tax authorities.
24. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device is at least
one of wireless and mobile.
25. A non-transitory, tangible computer readable storage medium
having instructions stored thereon that, in response to execution
by a tax information computer, cause the computer to be capable of
performing operations comprising: receiving, at the computer, a tax
information request from a computing device for tax information,
wherein the request comprises transaction information related to a
first transaction, wherein the transaction information comprises
location information associated with the first transaction;
determining, by the computer and based upon the transaction
information, the tax information, wherein the tax information
comprises at least one of an identification of a taxing authority
authorized to impose a tax on the first transaction; a calculated
tax for the first transaction; a tax calculation for the first
transaction; and a tax rate for the first transaction; and
transmitting, by the computer and to the computing device, the tax
information.
26. A system comprising: a tax information processor, a memory
configured to communicate with the processor, the memory having
instructions stored thereon that, in response to execution by the
processor, cause the processor to be capable of performing
operations comprising: receiving, at the processor, a tax
information request from a computing device for tax information,
wherein the request comprises transaction information related to a
first transaction, wherein the transaction information comprises
location information associated with the first transaction;
determining, by the processor and based upon the transaction
information, the tax information, wherein the tax information
comprises at least one of an identification of a taxing authority
authorized to impose a tax on the first transaction; a calculated
tax for the first transaction; a tax calculation for the first
transaction; and a tax rate for the first transaction; and
transmitting, by the processor and to the computing device, the tax
information.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of and claims priority to
U.S. application Ser. No. 11/828,230, filed on Jul. 25, 2007 and
entitled "Transaction Tax Settlement in Personal Communication
Devices". The '230 application is a divisional of and claims
priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 10/076,337, filed on Feb. 15,
2002 (U.S. Pat. No. 7,313,538 issued Dec. 25, 2007) and entitled
"Transaction Tax Settlement In Personal Communication Devices",
which application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S.
Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/269,108, filed on Feb. 15,
2001, all of which are incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The invention relates generally to facilitating transaction
tax settlement in personal communication devices, and in
particular, to a system and method for facilitating the
determination of the taxable authorities, along with calculating
and accounting transaction taxes for events associated with
personal communication devices.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The explosive popularity of the Internet combined with
advances in digital and personal communications have contributed to
an expanding, dynamic and viable commercial global market. Large
investments in personal communications, and in particular to mobile
telecommunications and devices, has provided consumers numerous
means to conduct commercial transactions in a non-traditional way.
Namely, personal communication devices, are beginning to supplement
and replace traditional "cash and carry" or "credit and carry"
commercial transactions by providing an electronic and often
"on-line" means for conducting the same transaction.
[0004] As is often the case, technological advancements are
released for public use before regulation can be enacted to govern
the new developments and issues which surface. Commercial
transactions occurring in a non-traditional sense, e.g., using
personal communication devices, are no exception to this regulation
back-log. One notable problem with the development of using
personal communication devices to conduct commercial transactions,
is the difficulty or inability to determine and collect
transactional fees and/or taxes associated with the event. For
instance, in the traditional sense of commercial transactions,
applicable taxes are calculated based on a stationary location of
the vendor and are collected from the purchaser at the time of the
sale, typically during a face-to-face sales event. However,
commercial transactions occurring via a personal computer or mobile
computing device, are currently exempt from regulation controlling
taxation due in part to extreme difficulty of tax settlement in a
"virtual" environment.
[0005] Due to the increasing number of sales occurring in the
non-traditional way and the tremendous loss of tax revenue due to,
for example. Internet sales, it is believed that the tax-exempt
status for such sales will soon cease or undergo changes. New
regulation may soon be enacted which imposes taxes on Internet
purchases of hard goods as well as "virtual goods" such as software
and music from companies outside the taxing authority's
jurisdiction. Companies selling to consumers within the
jurisdiction of taxing authorities will desire a method to
determine those taxes, even though the consumer may be in another
city, state, province or country. Accordingly, a system and method
to create a trusted, centralized directory that can provide the
location or effective location of servers that provides the
appropriate tax calculations is needed.
[0006] In a similar sense and until recently, mobile
telecommunication service, e.g., cellular phone service, was a
tax-exempt service due in part to the difficulty of determining
taxes on a non-stationary event, e.g., mobile telephone call.
However, the Mobile Telecommunications Sourcing Act of 2000 now
enables State and local governments to tax mobile telecommunication
device users for the service. The Act provides that all charges for
mobile telecommunications services that are provided by the user's
home service provider are subjected to tax, charge or fee by a
taxing authority. The authority, however, can only be within the
user's primary place of use, regardless of where the mobile
telecommunication services originate, terminate, or pass through.
In other words, the Act attempts to provide some form of tax
collection, but due to the highly mobile nature of cellular phone
use, only attaches tax to the user's primary place of use, i.e., a
billing address. However, by virtue of the mobile use of the phone,
many calls are placed outside the boundaries of the user's "primary
place" and occur within another taxing jurisdiction. Yet taxes may
only be collected by the taxing jurisdiction of the primary place
and the State and/or local government where the call is actually
taking place will not receive a taxable contribution.
[0007] It is believed that regulation will approach technology in
the area of personal communication devices and legislation will be
enacted to provide a means for collecting transactional fees and/or
taxes for events occurring on the personal communication device.
Accordingly, a system and method for determining the applicable
taxable authorities, calculating the taxes, and accounting for the
taxes in commercial transactions and personal communication
occurring on a personal communication device is needed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] The invention provides systems and methods for transaction
tax settlement in personal communication devices. In particular,
the invention provides a transaction tax settlement system and
method for determining a taxable authority and calculating a tax
rate for a transaction.
[0009] The transaction tax settlement system includes a personal
communication device configured to participate in a transaction, a
tax information system, and a communication network providing
two-way communication between the personal communication device and
the tax information system. The tax information system includes a
tax directory configured to facilitate identification of a tax
authority capable of imposing a tax on the transaction, and a tax
authority calculation configured to facilitate determination of a
tax rate on the transaction.
[0010] In one embodiment of the invention, a transactional tax
settlement system for use in a buyer/seller transaction over a
network is provided. In particular, the system includes a personal
communications device configured to initiate a purchase request
from a seller via a network, a tax information system, and an
electronic invoice representative of the purchase. The tax
information system configured to receive a request from the seller.
The request including transaction data for the tax information
system to consider in facilitating identification of a taxing
authority capable of imposing a tax on the purchase, and in
facilitating calculation of a tax rate corresponding to the taxing
authority.
[0011] In another embodiment of the invention, a transactional tax
settlement system for use in a telecommunications network is
provided. In particular, the system includes a mobile communication
device configured to communicate over a wireless telecommunication
network, a telecommunication service provider configured to
facilitate a connection to the wireless telecommunication network,
a tax information system, and a communication network providing
two-way communication between the telecommunication service
provider and the tax information system. The tax information system
includes a tax directory configured to facilitate identification of
a taxing authority capable of imposing a tax on the connection, and
a tax authority calculation corresponding to the tax authority and
configured to facilitate determination of a tax rate on the
connection.
[0012] In yet another embodiment of the invention, a transactional
tax settlement system for a peer-to-peer transaction is provided.
In particular, the system includes first and second personal
communication devices configured to participate in a peer-to-peer
transaction, a tax information system, and a communication network
providing two-way communication between one of said personal
communication devices and the tax information system. The tax
information system includes a tax directory configured to
facilitate identification of a tax authority capable of imposing a
tax on the transaction, and a tax authority calculation
corresponding to the tax authority and configured to facilitate
determination of a tax rate on the transaction.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] These and other features, aspects and advantages of
invention may be best understood by reference to the following
description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in
which like numerals represent like elements:
[0014] FIG. 1 illustrates, in block format, an exemplary
transactional tax settlement system in accordance with the
invention;
[0015] FIG. 2 is an exemplary flowchart of a transactional tax
settlement system having particular use in a network purchase
environment;
[0016] FIG. 3 illustrates, in block format, an exemplary
transactional tax settlement system, in accordance with the
invention, having particular use in a mobile telecommunication
application; and
[0017] FIG. 4 is an exemplary flowchart of the application of FIG.
3.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0018] The invention may be described herein in terms of functional
block components, screen shots, optional selections and various
processing steps. It should be appreciated that such functional
blocks may be realized by any number of hardware and/or software
components configured to perform the specified functions.
[0019] For example, the invention may employ various integrated
circuit components, e.g., memory elements, processing elements,
logic elements, look-up tables, and the like, which may carry out a
variety of functions under the control of one or more
microprocessors or other control devices. Similarly, the software
elements of the invention may be implemented with any programming,
scripting language or web service protocols such as C, C++, Java,
COBOL, assembler, PERL, SOAP, XML, UDDI, OFX, or the like, with the
various algorithms being implemented with any combination of data
structures, objects, processes, routines or other programming
elements. Further, it should be noted that the invention may employ
any number of conventional techniques for data transmission,
signaling, data processing, network control, and the like, e.g.,
TCP/IP, IPX, Appletalk, IP-v6, NetBIOS, OSI or any number of
existing or future protocols. For additional information on
communication systems, network programming, web services, and
security, refer to Gilber Held, "Understanding Data
Communications," (1996); Dilip Naik, "Internet Standards and
Protocols," (1998); and Java 2 Complete, various authors (Sybex
1999); and "Cryptography & Network Security: Principles &
Practice" by William Stalling, published by Prentice Hall; all of
which are incorporated by reference.
[0020] The system may include a host server or other computing
systems including a processor for processing digital data, a memory
coupled to said processor for storing digital data, an input
digitizer coupled to the processor for inputting digital data, an
application program stored in said memory and accessible by said
processor for directing processing of digital data by said
processor, a display coupled to the processor and memory for
displaying information derived from digital data processed by said
processor and a plurality of databases, said databases including
data that could be used in association with the invention. As those
skilled in the art will appreciate, a personal computing or
communication device may include an operating system (e.g., Windows
NT, 95/98/2000, Linux, Solaris, etc.) as well as various
conventional support software and drivers typically associated with
computers.
[0021] Database may be any type of database, such as relational,
hierarchical, object-oriented, and/or the like. Common database
products that may be used to implement the databases include DB2 by
IBM (White Plains, N.Y.), any of the database products available
from Oracle Corporation (Redwood Shores, Calif.), Microsoft Access
by Microsoft Corporation (Redmond, Wash.), or any other database
product. Database may be organized in any suitable manner,
including as data tables or lookup tables. Association of certain
data may be accomplished through any data association technique
known and practiced in the art. For example, the association may be
accomplished either manually or automatically. Automatic
association techniques may include, for example, a database search,
a database merge, GREP, AGREP, SQL, and/or the like. The
association step may be accomplished by a database merge function,
for example, using a "key field" in each of the manufacturer and
retailer data tables. A "key field" partitions the database
according to the high-level class of objects defined by the key
field. For example, a certain class may be designated as a key
field in both the first data table and the second data table, and
the two data tables may then be merged on the basis of the class
data in the key field. In this embodiment, the data corresponding
to the key field in each of the merged data tables is preferably
the same. However, data tables having similar, though not
identical, data in the key fields may also be merged by using
AGREP, for example.
[0022] Exemplary system components are provided below to facilitate
understanding of the invention and its best mode. It should be
recognized that various other components may be used without
departing from the spirit of the invention as intended. For the
sake of brevity, conventional techniques for signal processing,
data transmission, signaling and network control, and other
functional aspects of the systems (and components of the individual
operating components of the systems) may not be described in detail
herein. Furthermore, the connecting lines shown in the various
figures contained herein are intended to represent exemplary
functional relationships and/or physical couplings between the
various elements. It should be noted that many alternative or
additional functional relationships or physical connections may be
present in a practical network communications system.
[0023] The invention may be embodied as a method, a data processing
system, a device for data processing, and/or a computer program
product. Accordingly, the invention may take the form of an
entirely software embodiment, an entirely hardware embodiment, or
an embodiment combining aspects of both software and hardware.
Furthermore, the invention may take the form of a computer program
product on a computer-readable storage medium having
computer-readable program code means embodied in the storage
medium. Any suitable computer-readable storage medium may be
utilized, including hard disks, CD-ROM, optical storage devices,
magnetic storage devices, and/or the like.
[0024] The subject matter of the invention is particularly suited
for facilitating the settlement of transaction tax and is
conveniently described in that context. However, the invention has
equal application to various other levies, such as any tax, charge,
fee, fine, surcharge, appraisal or any other levy imposed by an
authorized authority. In addition, the invention may equally apply
to determining, calculating and accounting for subsidies, rewards
and the like, imposed by an authority.
[0025] In general, the invention provides a system and method for
facilitating transaction tax settlement in personal communication
devices and, in particular to a system and method for determining
the taxable authorities, along with calculating and accounting
transaction taxes for events occurring in association with a
personal communication device. Various types of personal
communication devices may be used to connect to one or more
communication networks. For example, the Internet is one such
network which is readily accessible by a wide variety of personal
devices and thus, the following examples will often be described in
this context. The system includes one or more taxing databases in
communication with the personal device to provide applicable tax
and/or fee information. Such information may include the taxing
authorities applicable to the particular event, and a calculation
or formula for determining the applicable taxes/fees. The system
may further include a location determining apparatus to facilitate
the request for applicable taxing authorities based on, for
example, the location of the event. Additionally, the system may
include an optional authorization authority providing payment
authorization to a seller, telecommunication service provider, or
the like. Thus, as will become apparent from the following
descriptions, the system and methods of the invention may be used
to determine, calculate and/or account for taxes, fees, charges and
other levies, due in a wide variety of applications.
[0026] FIG. 1 illustrates, in block format, an exemplary
transaction tax settlement system 100 of the invention. System 100
includes one or more personal communication devices 102, a
communication network 104, and a tax information system which
includes a tax directory 106, a tax authority calculation 108, and
an optional authorization authority 110. Used herein, "personal
communication device" may include any communication device,
portable or stationary, wireless or wired, preferably capable of
two-way communication. Examples of suitable personal communication
devices include, but not limited to, a cellular phone, laptop or
portable computer, personal digital assistant ("PDA"), stationary
personal computer, messaging device, handheld computer (e.g., Palm
Pilot.RTM.), on-premise wireless gateway system, electronic
wristwatch device, electronic wallet, and various other
communication devices.
[0027] Communication network 104 may include one or more networks
communicating via wireless or wired protocols. For example, in one
particular embodiment, personal communication device 102 may
include a wireless remote device which typically connects to a
wireless cellular network. The wireless remote device may also
connect to the Internet. In this manner, communication network 104
may include multiple networks capable of two-way communication
between the networks. In this particular embodiment, as well as
others, personal communication device 102 may include a
web-compliant personal communication device suitably capable of
processing web pages and multimedia information (i.e., text,
graphics, video and/or audio), and may include a remote multimedia
device or personal computer having web-client software, an audio
processor, a visual display, and/or an audio transducers,
Web-compliant personal communication device 102 may be of a type
capable of establishing a packet communication link via the
Internet using a common protocol, e.g., Hyper-Text Transfer
Protocol (HTTP), the operation of which is beyond the scope of this
invention and will not be described in detail.
[0028] Communication network 104 may include any suitable
transmission network as may be needed for a particular application
of the invention. For example, network 104 may include, but not
limited to, any known or discovered system for exchanging data or
transacting business, such as a telephone network (land or
wireless), Internet, intranet, extranet, WAN, LAN, satellite
communications and/or the like. It should be appreciated that,
although not shown or described, additional connections, links
and/or adapter interfaces may occur between personal communication
device 102 and network 104 such as connection to a wireless base
station, web translation server, IP router, and/or a coordinator
system to drive IP routing within the system.
[0029] Tax directory 106 may be implemented as a database located
on a server within the system. In general, a request for tax
information is sent to tax directory 106 from either a personal
communication device 102 via the network 104 or from the seller
(this embodiment will be discussed below) via the network 104.
Suitable programming within the system, and specifically within tax
directory 106, reviews the request to determine whether any
existing taxing authorities can impose a levy on the particular
event or transaction. The request may provide pertinent information
which the tax directory can consider in deciding which tax
authorities, if any, may pertain to the transaction. This function
will be discussed in greater detail below.
[0030] In one embodiment, tax directory 106 return the location
information (e.g., network addresses) to personal communication
device 102 or requester of each taxing authority eligible to
receive a levy from the transaction. Depending upon the particular
application of the invention, tax directory 106 may provide
location information of applicable taxing authorities based on one
or more of the city, state, country, and multi-national of a buyer
and/or a seller, location information of special taxing authority
government levels for specific transaction goods, such as food,
hotels, etc., and trusted delivery of tax tables (e.g., a server or
web site could be used to download tax tables).
[0031] Tax authority calculator 108 may be implemented as a
database located on a server within the system, and may be locally
owned by a service or located on a network, such as the Internet.
It should be realized that a plurality of tax authority calculator
108 systems may exist with each one corresponding to a taxing
authority. Alternatively, multiple taxing authorities may coexist
on a single server. In general, a request is made to each tax
authority calculator 108 for tax information via the network 104.
The request may contain pertinent information for tax authority
calculator 108 to use in determining the applicable levy due. For
example, the information may include, but not limited to, the
spatial location of the transaction, quantity ordered, service or
merchandise type, or seller and purchaser identification codes. In
one particular embodiment, for each request sent to an appropriate
tax authority calculator 108, a response consisting of the
applicable tax rate as well as payment modality will be returned,
e.g., to personal communication device 102 or the requester. Used
herein, "payment modality" refers to the type, form or kind of
payment, e.g., electronic cash wallet, credit card, debit card,
etc, or the protocol, conditions and category of the payment, e.g.,
electronic payment, c.o.d., bank check, etc. The response returned
to the personal communication device or seller may contain one or
more of an IP address of each tax authority calculator (e.g., tax
authority calculator 108), DNS name of each tax authority
calculation, Universal Resource Identifier to be used at tax
authority calculation, message identifier of the request to be
made, list of fields to be sent, and version of the message, will
be returned, e.g., to personal communication device 102.
Recognizing that different tax authorities may provide the service
on a unified or consolidated basis, a single composite tax rate may
be returned for a single transaction request that represents a
total tax due for the transaction.
[0032] In one particular embodiment, recognizing that some tax
rates are relatively static and may not regularly change or only a
few times a year per location, the system may utilize universally
coordinated time stamps provided by a location signal, such as a
GPS signal or confirming the date and time is valid on a sellers
server. The timestamps are compared with a similarly maintained
timestamp by tax authority calculation 108 indicating the last
changed timestamp for the date and time of tax changes. This may
help to minimize the network protocol overhead by allowing the last
set of frequently used tax rates to be cached on personal
communication device 102 or seller's web site.
[0033] In yet another embodiment, tax authority calculation 108 may
return either one or more calculated tax amounts, or one or more
rules for calculating the taxes. The rules may be especially useful
when the taxation of the location, good, etc. does not change from
sale to sale. The rules, tax rate tables, or the like, may be
stored on personal communication device 102 or on a local
database.
[0034] In still another embodiment, tax authority calculation 108
may return either one or more calculated subsidiary amounts, or one
or more rules for calculating the amounts. This embodiment permits
taxing authorities or other authorized authorities to subsidize
certain purchases and usages within their jurisdiction. For
example, in a mobile telephone application, which will be discussed
in detail below, taxes and/or service fees imposed for use of a
telecommunications network may be subsidized, for example, for
certain classes of users, calls (e.g., emergency use), or within
certain boundary limits.
[0035] In one particular embodiment, the location information
provided by tax directory 106 includes a specific implementation
for the Internet such as use of a high-level domain name qualifier,
e.g., ".tax". For example, tax directory 106 may be located as
www.taxdirectory.tax. This domain may be owned and operated by a
single entity (e.g., Directory Service Manager ("DSM")) which could
control updates to domain name service (DNS) updates. The DMS may
only allow legitimate taxing authorities to be present in the .tax
domain by verifying the legitimacy of the requesting taxing
authority before adding or changing their records in the .tax
domain. In this manner, the tax authority calculation 108 can be
trusted. The trust level of tax directory 106, when implemented as
a DNS, can be improved by use of Secure DNS as defined by the
Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). For further understanding
of the systems and methods of Secure DNS, refer to the proceedings
and publications concerning DNSSEC by the IETF located at the IETF
web site which is hereby incorporated by reference for the general
functionality of general DNS. A trusted tax authority calculation
service, once verified, may be provided an interface to the .tax
DNS to make modifications to the records without repeated
verification. The DNS may also have a standard address format, so
that the form of the trusted tax authority calculation service can
be independently arrived at by logical extrapolation.
[0036] For example, a trusted tax authority for a U.S. city may be,
www.ci.peoria.il.us.tax, where "ci" indicates a city, "peoria"
indicates the name of the city, "il" indicates the regional
abbreviation, "us" indicates a standard country abbreviation, and
finally "tax" indicates the domain.
[0037] In another embodiment, tax directory 106 may include a
service that proxies for tax authority calculation 108. Instead of,
or in conjunction with, sending back an address to personal
communication device 102 or seller, tax directory 106 queries the
tax authority calculation 108 directly and just passes the
calculation result or method back to device 102 or seller. In this
particular embodiment, a .tax domain may not be needed because tax
directory service 106 would be a known and trusted service.
[0038] In yet another embodiment, tax directory 106 may locally
store tax information which is used often or that does not change
often, to provide the tax calculation result or method directly to
the personal communication device 102 or seller. This reduces
network overhead and may increase efficiency.
[0039] In one particular embodiment, system 100 includes
authorization authority 110 which may be implemented as a database
located on a server within the system. In general, authorization
authority 110 provides an approval for the funds or payment
modality to be levied as a result of the transaction. For example,
a seller in a goods transaction may submit a credit card number and
dollar amount to authorization authority 110 for approval of the
transaction. Typically, authorization authority 110 receives the
request, verifies the request, and returns a response (e.g.,
approved or denied) to the requester.
[0040] In yet another particular embodiment, tax directory 106
includes tax calculation and approval from authorization authority
110 which may be implemented as a database located on a server
within the system. This provides the seller or personal
communication device 102 with a single request to tax directory
106, which in turn returns the applicable taxes and authorization
approval for the full amount. For example, a seller in a goods
transaction may submit a credit card number and dollar amount to
tax directory 106 for tax calculations and approval of the
transaction. Typically, authorization authority 110 receives the
request, verifies the request, and returns a response (e.g.,
approved or denied) to the requester.
[0041] In still another embodiment, tax directory 106 may obtain an
approval, or the like, from authorization authority 110 for taxes
on behalf of the taxing authority calculated by tax authority
calculation 108. Taxes may be determined, calculated, authorized,
and collected on behalf of multiple entities and remitted to the
each individual entity. In this manner, the taxing authority may
receive taxes directly from tax directory 106, while other entities
receive tax payments from the seller or telecom service provider.
Tax directory 106 may collect payment for the authorized amount and
remit the collected taxes individually or in aggregate to the
taxing authority on a scheduled or unscheduled basis.
Purchase Over a Network Application
[0042] In one particular embodiment and application of the
invention, the system and methods of the invention are used to
determine, calculate, and account for taxation of purchases over a
network, e.g., an open network like the Internet. With continued
reference to FIG. 1 (in combination with the following flowchart
200), system 100 will be described in detail for use in a network
purchasing application. In this embodiment, system 100 is
particularly useful in an Internet or web-based environment in
which taxes may be collected for purchases made over the Internet,
thus communication network 104 may be conveniently described in
that context.
[0043] In a buyer/seller transaction, there is typically both a
buyer and a seller. As previously mentioned, personal communication
device 102 may include one or more devices, even though not
depicted on the present Figure. Thus, it should be assumed that in
this embodiment, a personal communication device 102 exists for the
buyer and either a personal communication device, a web site, or
other means for supplying a sale service exists for the seller.
Purchase Over a Network Application Flowchart
[0044] FIG. 2 is a flowchart 200 describing an exemplary embodiment
for transaction tax settlement in a network purchase environment.
For ease of understanding, flowchart 200 is conveniently
illustrated and described in connection with the Internet, however
it should be appreciated that various other networks are suitably
applicable.
[0045] In general, the buyer initiates a purchase request from the
seller (step 202). Depending on the particular environment of the
buyer and the seller, the request may be in the form of a purchase
order on a seller's web site from the buyer's personal
communication device 102.
[0046] In a conventional sales transaction, the location of the
sale is often a key factor in determining the applicable tax
authority and tax. It is believed that transaction tax due on
purchases or sales transactions via a network may also consider the
location in determining the taxing authorities and tax. In this
manner, taxes may be incurred based on the location of the buyer
requesting the purchase (or the individual's personal communication
device), the location of the seller receiving the purchase request
or fulfilling the purchase request, the location of the point of
presence providing access to the network (e.g., ISP or telecom
service), the "doing business" location of either party in
communication, the billing address of the buyer, shipping address
of the buyer or the seller, or any combination thereof.
[0047] The location(s) may be determined (step 204) by providing
location data to the tax information system. The location data may
include data from the personal communication device (e.g., stored
thereon or presented by the user at the time of transaction), data
from a seller's point of presence, or data from a participating
third party. Location data may also be obtained from a
communications service. For example, suitable communication
services may include, but not limited to, device based solutions,
such as, a GPS satellite system signal, Network Assisted GPS
(A-GPS), or Enhanced Observed Time Difference (E-OTD) methods, and
network based solutions, such as Cell Global Identity Timing
Advance (CGI-TA) and Uplink Time of Arrival (TOA). The details of
determining the location using the above techniques is beyond the
scope of this invention and thus will not be described in
detail.
[0048] The seller may then request a determination of the
applicable taxing authorities from a tax directory, e.g., tax
directory 106 (step 206). The request may include pertinent
information relating to the transaction which tax directory 106 may
use to determine the taxing authorities. For example, the request
may include any or all of the location information as previously
described, the date and time of the transaction, the category of
good being purchased, the sales prices, and the tax status of the
parties involved. To facilitate the calculation of taxes for a
plurality of transactions, this request can include identification
information, which provides a method of determining the tax status
of the individual purchaser from information stored on tax
directory 106, personal communication device 102, seller, or an
independent third party such as Microsoft.RTM. passport. Such
identification information could include, for example, whether the
purchaser was tax exempt for some transactions based on personal
characteristics such as being a member of a clergy, a certain age,
nationality, or being a member of a protected class (e.g., Native
American tribe). This identification information may affect the
calculation of a tax for a specific transaction. Some elements of
this information may be implicitly defined, such as all users of a
cellular phone plan being taxed for service at the same rate. Other
elements of information, being explicitly defined and stored as
part of tax directory 106, personal communication device 102,
seller, or an independent third party, would apply to individual
purchasers, whether they are acting as individuals or agents for a
corporate entity making a purchase. If at least one taxable
authority is identified (step 208), then the location(s) of the
authorities are returned to the seller. If, however, no taxable
authorities are identified, then the buyer may be presented with an
invoice (step 212), a process which will be discussed in detail
below.
[0049] In one embodiment, the location of the identified tax
authorities is returned to the seller. The location may include,
for example, an IP address of each tax authority, DNS name of each
tax authority, URI to be used at tax authority calculation 108,
message identifier of the request to be made, list of fields to be
sent to tax authority calculation 108, and the version of the
message. In one particular embodiment, tax directory 106 may
include a specific implementation suitable for the Internet such as
use of a high-level domain name qualifier such as ".tax". In this
manner, a tax rate associated for a location based on, for example,
postal zip codes, such as "85254-6419", would be associated with an
address, e.g., "852546419.tax." Tax directory 106 may then return
tax information applicable to the tax rates associated with such a
location. Other embodiments may include access paths based on the
GPS location such as latitude-longitude-altitude, for example,
"75-05-29-12N-82-57-10-19W.tax", might represent 75 degrees, 5
minutes, 29.12 seconds north latitude, 82 degrees, 57 minutes,
10.19 seconds west longitude.
[0050] The seller then requests a calculation of the applicable
taxes from a tax authority calculation, e.g., tax authority
calculation 108 (step 210). This request may contain information
presented to the seller in the tax directory response, the parties
locations, date, time, category of goods, sales price, quantity
ordered, or any other pertinent tax or sales information used to
calculate the applicable tax. In one particular embodiment, the
seller receives the calculated tax, however, the seller may also
receive rules for calculating the tax, payment modality, and any
other information as previously discussed.
[0051] The buyer may then be presented with an electronic invoice
of the proposed transaction (step 212) on personal communication
device 102. The electronic invoice may contain a detailed
itemization of the transaction including charges for goods and
services, taxes, and optional items such as a tip. The buyer then
selects an appropriate payment modality and initiates completion of
the sales transaction.
[0052] Personal communication device 102 sends a client server
request to the seller's device. The tax payment modality allows for
flexibility on the part of the taxing authority to specify any
variable options that the buyer might want to select. The buyer can
exclude certain items based on intent to resell, the location of
another delivery address, or special treatment based on location
specific tax laws.
[0053] The seller receives the completed order and may then request
authorization for payment from, for example, authorization
authority 110. The authorization may include an acceptance or
denial of the payment amount, payment modality, etc., depending
upon the parties credit or credit arrangements. If the payment is
denied or otherwise not accepted (step 213), the seller may
re-present the invoice and the buyer may modify the order.
Alternatively, the process may end. If, however, the payment was
authorized (step 214), the seller may complete the sale.
[0054] Finally, the process may include an accounting procedure to,
for example, either bill the seller or the buyer and/or collect the
funds (step 216). This accounting may occur at the seller's
location or as previously discussed, may occur at tax directory
106.
Mobile Telephone Application
[0055] In another particular embodiment and application of the
invention, the system and methods of the invention are used to
determine, calculate, and account for any usage of a
telecommunications network, e.g., a cellular phone use. FIG. 3
illustrates, in block format, an exemplary transaction tax
settlement system 300 of the invention. System 300 is particularly
useful in a mobile telephone application in which taxes and/or
service fees may be collected for use of a telecommunications
network. System 300 includes a telecommunication ("telecom")
service provider 301; a personal communication device 302; a
communication network 303 and 304; a tax information system having
a tax directory 306, a tax authority calculation 308, and an
optional authorization authority 310; a positional location 312;
and a spatial location 314. Telecom service provider 301 may
include a local telephone company, a cellular communication
provider or any similar telephone service provider. In general,
telecom service provider 301 represents the local communication
provider for the physical location of personal communication device
302.
[0056] Personal communication device 302 may be of any type
previously described for device 102 having two-way audio/voice
capabilities. For example, personal communication device 302 may be
a mobile communication device, such as a cellular phone. As such,
the following description will be conveniently described with
reference to a cellular phone, however this is not intended to
limit the scope in any way.
[0057] In this particular embodiment, communication network 303 and
304 include a wireless communication network and the Internet,
respectively. Wireless communication network 303 provides
connection service for wireless devices, such as cellular phone
302. Wireless communication network 303 also provides connection to
telecom service provider 301. Internet 304 provides the network
connectivity between the system's taxation information and cellular
phone 302 and/or telecom service provider 301.
[0058] The tax information system having tax directory 306, tax
authority calculation 308, and authorization authority 310 are
similar to previously described tax information system of system
100, thus these elements will not be repeated.
[0059] Positional location 312 and spatial location 314 provide the
location of cellular phone 302. For example, positional location
312 may provide the physical location of cellular phone 302 and
spatial location 314 may provide the geopolitical location of
cellular phone 302. Used herein, "geopolitical location" is the
geographic boundaries that relates to political factors, and it
should be appreciated that the boundaries may overlap. A GPS
(global positioning system) or GPS-like system may be used alone or
in combination with cellular phone towers to determine the position
of the originating call, Taxes or service fees may be incurred
based on a variety of factors, such as the location of the cellular
phone placing the call, the location of the service provider
providing the point of presence, and the "doing business" location
of the parties in communication, or any combination thereof.
[0060] In one embodiment, system 300 may be useful in a Voice over
Internet (VOIP) protocol or other similar Internet protocols. In
this particular application, an Internet Service Provider (ISP) may
provide service in a similar manner as telecom service provider
301. The ISP may make similar requests to determine the applicable
taxing authorities, calculation of tax, payment authorization, and
so forth, as previously described for telecom service provider 301.
As previously mentioned, the tax is often determined based on the
location of the user, event, or any number of factors. For this
embodiment, the request to tax directory 306 may include, for
example, the location of the ISP initiating the connection, the ISP
receiving the connection, the protocol being used (e.g., VOIP), the
location of the users, or any combination of the above. The tax may
be different depending on the service or protocol being provided by
the ISP and used by the customer. That is, VOIP may be taxed at
telecom rates, Internet Relay Chat (IRC) at a different rate, and
HTTP may be tax-free.
Mobile Telephone Application Flowchart
[0061] FIG. 4 is a flowchart 400 describing an exemplary embodiment
for transaction tax settlement for a mobile telephone application
in accordance with the invention. For ease of understanding,
flowchart 400 is conveniently illustrated and described in
connection with a cellular phone. Therefore, reference is made
herein to cellular modules, routines, and the like.
[0062] The transaction tax settlement process for a mobile
telephone application generally begins with the cellular phone user
placing a call on a cellular communication device via the wireless
communication network. For this example, it is assumed that the
user is outside of the users primary service provider's boundaries
and is requesting communication from a local telecom service
provider (step 402). If the communication request is permitted by
the local telecom service provider, then the provider begins the
process of determining, calculating and accounting for any taxes
due.
[0063] As previously mentioned, taxes may be incurred depending on
one or more locations. For this example, it is assumed that the
pertinent location is of the originating call or cellular phone
device. The telecom service provider may issue a request via a
wireless network or wired network to determine the location of the
cellular phone device (step 404). The location may be internally
calculated by the device and transmitted to the service provider or
obtained from a location service provider. For example, a GPS
satellite may in communication with the telecom service provider
and the cellular phone and transmit position information
corresponding to the cellular phone directly to the telecom service
provider. Of course other means of determining the position of the
cellular phone are equally applicable and may be suitably
implemented. The telecom service provider may further request the
geopolitical location of the cellular phone from, for example, a
spatial location service (step 404).
[0064] Once the location information is determined, the telecom
service provider may then request a determination of the applicable
taxing authorities (step 406) relative to the location information.
The request may include various information used by a tax directory
(e.g., tax directory 106) to determine the tax authorities. For
example, the request may include one or more of the cellular phone
location, telecom service provider location, cellular phone call
recipient location, date and time of call, length of call. It
should be noted that steps included in flowchart 300 may be
performed before or after a call has been placed.
[0065] If the tax directory determines that at least one taxing
authority has jurisdiction over the communication, then the
location of each tax authority is returned to the telecom service
provider (step 408). If, however, no tax authorities have
jurisdiction (step 407), then the process may end (step 409). The
location message received by the telecom service provider may
contain one or more of an IP address of each tax authority
calculation (e.g., tax authority calculation 108), DNS name of each
tax authority calculation, URI to be used at tax authority
calculation, message identifier of the request to be made, list of
fields to be sent, and version of the message.
[0066] The telecom service provider may then transmit a request to
each of the identified tax authorities to provide a calculation of
the applicable tax due (step 410).
[0067] A tax authority calculation may receive pertinent
information, as previously described, to determine the amount of
tax due. If all the tax authority calculations determine that no
tax is due, then the process may end. If, however, a tax is due,
the amount of the calculated tax is transmitted back to the telecom
service provider.
[0068] The telecom service provider may then request a payment
authorization from an authorization authority (e.g., authorization
authority 110). This may be a billing service provider or the like.
If the payment (or billing) is authorized (step 412), then an
accounting may take place, otherwise the process may end (step
411). Finally, to account for the tax (step 414), the amount may be
processed on a monthly billing statement provided by the local
telecom service provider, or alternatively, the local provider may
bill the user's primary service provider. The amount may also be
collected by the user at the time of the call or stored on the
users device for later payment. It should be realized that many of
the steps, such as those provided herein, may be performed at a
later time, for example during a monthly billing cycle, such as
calculation of the tax, authorization of the payment, and payment
of the tax. It should also be realized that functions can be
combined in one server, for example the tax directory may also
directly provide either or both the tax authority calculation or
authorizations as one or more transaction messages with the telecom
service provider.
Purchase Using a Mobile Telephone
[0069] In still another particular embodiment and application of
the invention, the system and method of the invention are used to
determine, calculate, and account for any taxation for purchases
using a mobile telephone over a telecommunications network. This
particular embodiment is similar in structure to system 300 and
thus reference to FIGS. 3 and 4 will be conveniently made.
Additionally, this embodiment includes some of the processes
described in both the previous examples (purchases and mobile
telephone use) therefore, some of the steps may not be repeated
herein, but should be understood and referenced to the previous
examples.
[0070] In general, a buyer using a personal communication device,
such as cellular phone 302, a PDA, or any other device as
previously mentioned, may request communication over a local
telecommunication network (this generally occurs by placing a
call). The buyer may be requesting to purchase a good or service
which is unique to the telecom industry, such as prepaid phone
minutes. The seller or telecom service provider may contact tax
directory 306, in the manner as previously described, request the
applicable taxing authorities. The request may include the
pertinent information to both the sale and the use of the
telecommunications network. Recognizing that this is a purchase of
telecommunication service, tax directory 306 may indicate that
there is no tax or indicate a different tax then is normally
returned for placing a call on the network. Tax directory 306 may
also return the addresses of relevant tax authority calculations
for the actual purchase of the service (e.g., prepaid phone
minutes).
[0071] The telecom user or buyer in this example may still receive
bills for the communication tax and/or an invoice for the
purchase.
Peer-to-Peer Application
[0072] In still yet another particular embodiment and application
of the invention, the system and methods of the invention are used
to determine, calculate, and account for any taxation between two
or more individuals in a peer-to-peer relationship (i.e., personal
communication device-to-personal communication device). This
embodiment is particularly useful in a peer-to-peer application in
which taxes may be charged for a particular transaction. The system
and process of this embodiment are similar in nature to system 100,
except that there would be at least two personal communication
devices 102 in communication with each other. Additionally,
third-party systems in communication with one or both of the
personal communication devices may be included to facilitate
transactions.
[0073] In general, wireless services are used to exchange messages
between personal communication devices. The messages may include
transfer of funds and sale of goods and services. In this manner,
one device may be considered the donor (e.g., transfers money,
goods, services) and one device the recipient (e.g., receives the
transfer). One of the personal communication devices or a
third-party may initiate the request to tax directory 106 for
determination of any taxable authorities. For example, a taxing
authority may levy a fee in a peer-to-peer sharing by individuals
of music or other multi-media files similar to the fees collected
by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) when
recording media is sold.
[0074] Various other taxes may be imposed as previously mentioned,
for example based on the location of the parties, goods sold, sales
price, etc. Tax authority determination, calculation and payment
authorization may be performed in a similar manner as previously
described with information being sent to either one of the personal
communication devices or a third party. The payment could be in the
form of a portion of a pre-paid service, such as a card with a
personal identification number, currently used for example as
pre-paid cellular telephone access cards. Other payment forms may
be by third-party systems, such as PayPal.RTM., transferring of
funds directly to consumer credit card accounts, and transferring
funds between credit cards. For a description of the latter, refer
to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/704,379, filed Nov. 2, 2000
and entitled, "System and Method for Facilitating Commercial
Transactions Between Parties Residing at Remote Locations."
[0075] In the case of third-party systems, the third party may
query the location of both devices and request the tax information
from the tax directory and tax authority calculation on behalf of
the transacting parties. Third-party systems often provide a secure
environment for the transfer of funds or payments.
VARIOUS APPLICATIONS OF THE INVENTION
[0076] As is readily apparent from the preceding description,
various other embodiments and applications of the systems and
methods of the invention are possible. For instance, the following
examples provide brief descriptions of various applications that
may benefit from the invention and are not intended to limit the
scope of the invention, but provided merely to demonstrate the
versatility of the invention.
Example 1
Ad-Valorum Taxes
[0077] Ad-valorum taxes based on the value of a sales transaction
could also be calculated, based on the jurisdiction of the taxing
authorities as previously described. In this example, the amount of
tax is again based on the jurisdictions where the mobile device is
located.
Example 2
Customs Duties or Taxes
[0078] The invention may also be used to determine customs duties
or taxes for shipments arriving in a location using various methods
of transport. For example, a material such as lumber may be taxed
at different ports of entry at different rates. A personal
communication device located at each port of entry could use the
location criteria to supply the tax calculation services with the
data as a parameter to the calculation. For purposes of efficiency
in the collection of taxes, the embodiment in this form, could
include very small implementations of wireless devices embedded in
products which would self-identify themselves based on a received
command, for purposes of tracking the shipment through a customs
house. Similar fees might include taxes collected for way station
inspections for fruit or cargo carried by a transportation
vehicle.
Example 3
Transit or Transportation Taxes
[0079] The invention may also calculate taxes based for transit or
transportation. For example, a passage on a ferryboat or a toll
across a bridge, might be automatically calculated based on the
location of a vehicle in which a mobile commerce electronic device
was positioned. The direction of movement, such as tolls on north
bound traffic only on a bridge, or tolls associated with a
direction of a ferry's passage might be calculated based on
direction or movement. Another use in a transportation scenario
might occur in areas where public transit fees are collected in
zone systems. For example, a subway system may associate different
fees by zones of travel, such as the distance of rings around a
core. A personal communication device, might calculate a tax based
on the location of movement within these zones or rings of
distance.
Example 4
Transactions Between an Individual and a Fixed Location Device
[0080] This embodiment is between a personal communication device
and a fixed location device such as a vending machine. In this
instance, the vending machine would supply a location or a tax
amount which is used to determine the tax rate.
Example 5
Purchase of Confidential Property Over a Wireless Network
[0081] A tax could also be calculated based on the protection of
intellectually protected property, such as music in the form of MP3
files, which are delivered over a wireless network to a mobile
device. The location of the device could determine which entity
receives payment for the material as well as any taxes associated
with the delivery of the intellectually protected property.
Example 6
Access to Controlled Facilities
[0082] Another embodiment of the invention, involves the use of
calculation of a tax based on access to a controlled facility such
as a sports venue or entertainment event. For an example of a
ticket system, see U.S. Pat. No. 6,067,532, which is incorporated
by reference. In this example, the location of access, such as a
special portal or gate, or the location of the participant in the
venue may determine the tax rate. A sports or entertainment venue
might sell tickets or access passes in the form of electronic
messages which are transmitted to the wireless device. The value of
the tickets would then be taxed at either the time of purchase or
the location or time of use. For example, an electronic ticket for
a movie theater could be purchased over the Internet for access to
an entire movie theatre chain. Use of the pass at a movie theater
in New York could be taxed at a different rate then a theater in
Nebraska. Another example, could include taxes for rides or
amusements within a large scale entertainment venue, which
incorporates different locations with a larger community. For
example, a venue so large a ride could be located miles from
another ride owned or operated as one commercial enterprise, thus
selling a common book of tickets. For example, an electronic ticket
which allows entrance to a zoo, or a Ferris wheel within a large
geographic area. This may also include a tax on location based
entertainment services, such as interactive devices which
wirelessly communicate with the entertainment venue, based on
proximity of location. For example, a tax could be calculated based
on delivery of information or reservations made with a restaurant
within a two block area. A tax could also be calculated with a
mobile commerce wireless device which interacts with an
entertainment attraction such as a device which controls an
animated statue based on the proximity of location to the mobile
commerce electronic device.
Example 7
Subscription Services which Occur at Multiple Locations
[0083] Another embodiment of the invention involves the delivery of
subscription or temporally periodic services which may occur in
different locations based on the point of delivery of the
subscriber at any specific instance of the service or products. An
example of this embodiment could include a fee which was collected
by a tax entity based on monthly use within a location. For
example, the State of California could require a tax be paid based
on the actual number of miles driven by a commercial vehicle, which
would be reported on a periodic basis to the taxing authority. In
this case, the vehicle may not physically be located in the taxing
authority for the entire period or at the time the report is made,
but the mobile commerce electronic device would record entry and
egress into various taxing authorities and record them
periodically.
Example 8
Services Based on Direction of Physical Movement
[0084] An embodiment of the invention which relies on directional
movement between two points which bases the tax calculation based
on the direction of movement could also be calculated. For example,
a network of toll roads or bridges could calculate the value of the
tax based on the direction of travel. Highly congested directions
such as traffic onto an island, might be taxed at a higher rate
than traffic away from an island.
Example 9
Services Based on Time of Day and Location
[0085] Because of technological improvement, tax authorities may
tax events based on time of day and location. A wireless device
capable of providing the time of day as well as location, may tax
limited services at different rates according to demand. The seller
or telecom service provider will also be able to determine the time
of a transaction for usage in calculating taxes.
Example 10
Services Based on Altitude and Location
[0086] An embodiment which incorporates altitude information from
the GPS system could also be used to tax airborne services at
different rates. For example, telephone calls from aircraft could
be taxed at a different rate based on the cost of providing
infrastructure for such calls. This could include different rates
for electronic communication services made within aircraft while on
the ground within an airport facility.
Example 11
Services Broadcast to Mobile Devices Based on Location
[0087] Broadcasting to mobile commerce wireless devices could also
be embodied by taxes based on services, such as taxes on
advertisements delivered to such devices. Wireless broadcasting,
based on location, which may include games, advertising, or
location specific services may be subject to tax based on location
and content. For example, differentiated services, such as
multilingual interpretative material could be broadcast at a
historic location to a mobile commerce electronic device. Such as
device could calculate a tax based on the number of advertisements
displayed or played.
Example 12
Services Using Cryptographic Schemes Based on Location
[0088] A tax might also be calculated based on a cryptographic
scheme which includes location information. For example, a
cryptographically encoded signal code be broadcast at a specific
location which can only be decrypted using the location and time of
day as part of the cryptographic keys. Such as service could
include a taxable component which could vary by location of
delivery of the service. For example, a satellite could transmit
radio content to drivers in vehicles over a large geographic area.
The content of the satellite signal could include advertising which
would be decrypted based on location and time.
Example 13
Self Identifying Products Using Wireless Communications
[0089] Inventory management applications which incorporate a tax
for storage, transportation or sale. Articles of commerce such as
packaged goods for sale are equipped with mobile commerce
electronic devices which provide self-identification. In this mode,
a transponder broadcasts a signal requesting an identification
reply. The identification reply is then sent to a tax calculation
process as previously described, and a tax is levied on the
movement, storage, transportation or sale of the article of
commerce.
Example 14
Gaming or Lotteries
[0090] This example is particularly useful where the wagering
locations are physically separated from the gaming or lottery
locations. Personal communication devices could also use location
based services for the calculation of taxes involved in gaming or
lottery events, where the location of the device determines the
appropriate taxable entities. In this example, a mobile commerce
electronic device may use the location calculated by satellite,
radio triangulation, or fixed device reporting to determine whether
a gaming or lottery transaction is legally available under the laws
of the appropriate jurisdiction in which the device is located. If
wager is successful, a tax can be made on the winnings based on the
location of the device and the type of wager made.
Example 15
Taxes Based on the Physical Movement of Goods or Articles
[0091] Taxes based on the physical movement of goods can be made
extremely efficient using mobile commerce electronic devices. For
example, sales taxes based on delivery of parcels could be assessed
and collected if done at the time of pickup or delivery by a
package service.
Example 16
Parking Taxes or Fees
[0092] A further embodiment would be using a personal communication
device as a mechanism for paying fees for services such as parking
based on location, access direction or group identification. For
example, a municipality may wish to tax all local residents for
parking at a different rate than non-residents. A mobile commerce
electronic device could provide a signal which asserts the
residents identification at a parking gate or metered area.
Example 17
Taxes Related to the Sales of Fuels or Mobile Insurance
[0093] An additional embodiment related to transit occurs when
taxes are levied on specific goods or services, such as "pay at the
pump automobile insurance." In this embodiment, drivers would
possess a mobile commerce electronic device which would identify
themselves at a gas station or energy supply station. Based on a
driver's identification number which is supplied to the tax
directory, a risk adjusted tax would be assessed for insurance for
driving the number of miles based on fuel consumption. For example,
a particular driver would pay a tax based on previous loss records,
number of miles purchased based on the amount of fuel purchased and
the location of the purchase. Urban drivers in high accident areas
would then be assessed higher taxes for insurance that rural
drivers in low accident rural areas. Usage taxes or highway fees
could be charged based on the location where a vehicle is used by
including a GPS or other tracking device on a vehicle.
Example 18
Taxes Related to Sources of Pollution
[0094] Another example involves taxes relating to sources of
pollution based on location in environmentally sensitive areas. For
example, purchases of energy in areas of concentrated pollution may
be taxes. Daytime purchases of gasoline in a high ozone area may be
taxed based on location, time of day, direction of travel, speed,
energy consumed, number of passengers or a variety of inputs. This
information may be communicated to the tax authority calculation
using a personal communication device.
Example 19
Taxes on Wavelength or Network Path of a Wireless Device
[0095] An interesting embodiment of taxation based on mobile
services and location is the taxation of wavelength or network path
usage based on location. For example, a mobile commerce electronic
device may access a public network using a wireless technology in
an unlicensed, and therefore unregulated band, such a 802.11b (2.4
Ghz), 802.11a (5 Ghz), Bluetooth (2.4 Ghz) or other unregulated
spectrum. A grid of unlicensed nodes providing wireless services
might be deployed as a computing infrastructure where functionality
is partitioned between the mobile commerce electronic device and
services provided by computational engines on the grid. In this
embodiment, taxes would be based on the purchase of services to a
wireless grid network. For example, a public facility such as an
airport, a college campus or a shopping district (a concentration
of stores within short distance of one another) may decide to offer
wireless services based on a common grid or area. An identification
would be supplied by the grid to mobile commerce electronic
devices, which are used in identification classification within the
tax directory. In this way, the supplied location is not the point
location of the mobile commerce electronic device, but the area of
the grid of services provided by the common district or
facility.
Example 20
Combinations
[0096] Not excluding any of the individual examples of use just
described, this invention also recognizes that the functionality of
using location of a wireless device to determine that tax rate,
performing a tax calculation and collecting and delivering of such
taxes will occur using elements of any combination of the above
examples or others not listed.
[0097] While the principles of the invention have now been made
clear in illustrative embodiments, there will be immediately
obvious to those skilled in the art many modifications of
structure, arrangements, proportions, the elements, materials and
components, used in the practice of the invention which are
particularly adapted for a specific environment and operating
requirements without departing from those principles. These and
other changes or modifications are intended to be included within
the scope of the invention, as expressed in the following
claims.
* * * * *
References