US6076070A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Apparatus and method for on-line price comparison of competitor's goods and/or services over a computer network
Assignee: Travelport Operations Inc
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Filing: 1998-07-23
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Granted: 2000-06-13
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Expires: 2018-07-23
Abstract
Abstract A method and apparatus are provided for a computer-implemented on-line price comparison method for performing price comparison and price reduction of goods and/or services sold by a vendor over a computer network, such as the Internet. The price comparison method can be selected by a customer, whereupon the computer program requests a competitor's price by transmitting a price request over the computer network. When the competitor's price is received, it is displayed to the customer. The computer program compares the competitor's price to the item price for the specified item. If the competitor's price is higher, nothing is done. If the competitor's price is lower, however, the computer program presents to the customer the option of requesting a reduced price. If the customer requests a reduced price, the computer program checks to see if the competitor's price is below a predetermined threshold. If it is, the computer program advises the customer to buy the specified item from the competitor. If the competitor's price is not below the threshold, the vendor's item price is reduced and displayed to the customer, who may now purchase the product at a price lower than that of the competition.
Inventors
- 👤 Charles Stack
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-07 19:25
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06Q; G06Q20/00; G06Q20/08; G06Q20/20; G06Q20/201; G06Q30/00; G06Q30/06
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 36
Claim 1
Independent Claim
101 words
A method for a computer-implemented on-line price comparison over a computer network of goods and/or services sold by a vendor over said computer network, comprising the steps of: requesting through said computer network from a competitor's database a price for an item sold by the competitor over said computer network; receiving from said database said competitor's price; displaying said competitor's price on a display; decreasing the price of said item sold by the vendor by a predetermined amount to create a new price if said competitor's price is less than said item price; and displaying said new price on said display.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
101 words
A method for a computer-implemented on-line price comparison over a computer network of goods and/or services sold by a vendor over said computer network, comprising the steps of: requesting through said computer network from a competitor's database a price for an item sold by the competitor over said computer network; receiving from said database said competitor's price; displaying said competitor's price on a display; decreasing the price of said item sold by the vendor by a predetermined amount to create a new price if said competitor's price is less than said item price; and displaying said new price on said display.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
20 words
The method of claim 1, wherein the step of requesting a competitor's price is in response to a customer request.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
31 words
The method of claim 1, wherein the step of decreasing comprises the further step of determining whether said competitor's price is greater than a predetermined threshold before decreasing said item price.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
18 words
The method of claim 1, wherein the step of requesting said competitor's price is initiated by a customer.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
11 words
The method of claim 1, wherein said item is a book.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
29 words
The method of claim 5, wherein the step of requesting said competitor's price further comprises requesting said competitor's price for said book using an international standard book number (ISBN).
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method of claim 1, further including the steps of detecting whether said competitor's price was received and displaying an error message on said display if said competitor's price was not received.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
33 words
The method of claim 1, wherein the step of decreasing said item price to create said new price is in response to a request by a customer to view a new vendor price.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
68 words
The method of claim 3, wherein the step of decreasing said item price further comprises the steps of: comparing said competitor's price to an item price; comparing said competitor's price to a predetermined threshold if said competitor's price is less than said item price; and decreasing said item price by a predetermined amount to create a new price if said competitor's price is less than a predetermined threshold.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
34 words
The method of claim 9, wherein the step of comparing said competitor's price to said predetermined threshold generates a predetermined message to said customer if said competitor's price is less than said predetermined threshold.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
25 words
The method of claim 1, wherein the step of displaying said new price further includes displaying a quantity of savings given by said new price.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
17 words
The method of claim 1, wherein said new price is stored in place of said item price.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
146 words
A method for a computer implemented on-line price comparison over a computer network of goods and/or services sold by a vendor over said computer network, comprising the steps of: requesting from a competitor's database a competitor's price for an item over said computer network in response to a request by a customer; detecting whether said price was received; displaying said competitor's price for said item if said competitor's price was received and displaying an error message if said competitor's price was not received; comparing said competitor's price to the vendor's item price; comparing said competitor's price to a predetermined threshold if said competitor's price is less than said item price; decreasing said item price by a predetermined amount to create a new price if said competitor's price is greater than a predetermined threshold in response to a request by said customer; and displaying said new price.
Claim 15
Independent Claim
146 words
A method for a computer implemented on-line price comparison over a computer network of goods and/or services sold by a vendor over said computer network, comprising the steps of: requesting from a competitor's database a competitor's price for an item over said computer network in response to a request by a customer; detecting whether said price was received; displaying said competitor's price for said item if said competitor's price was received and displaying an error message if said competitor's price was not received; comparing said competitor's price to the vendor's item price; comparing said competitor's price to a predetermined threshold if said competitor's price is less than said item price; decreasing said item price by a predetermined amount to create a new price if said competitor's price is greater than a predetermined threshold in response to a request by said customer; and displaying said new price.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
11 words
The method of claim 13, wherein said item is a book.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
29 words
The method of claim 14, wherein the step of requesting said competitor's price further comprises requesting said competitor's price for said book using an international standard book number (ISBN).
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
33 words
The method of claim 13, wherein the step of comparing said competitor's price to said predetermined threshold generates a message to said customer if said competitor's price is less than said predetermined threshold.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
25 words
The method of claim 13, wherein the step of displaying said new price further includes displaying a quantity of savings given by said new price.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
17 words
The method of claim 13, wherein said new price is stored in place of said stored price.
Claim 21
Independent Claim
106 words
An apparatus for performing a computer implemented on-line price comparison over a computer network of goods and/or services sold by a vendor with those of a competitor, comprising: storage means for storing an item price; input means for receiving a comparison request for a competitor's price; procurement means for procuring said competitor's price over said computer network; display means for displaying said item price and said competitor's price; comparison means for comparing said item price and said competitor's price; and adjustment means for adjusting said item price by a predetermined amount to create a new price if said item price is greater than said competitor's price.
Claim 22
Independent Claim
106 words
An apparatus for performing a computer implemented on-line price comparison over a computer network of goods and/or services sold by a vendor with those of a competitor, comprising: storage means for storing an item price; input means for receiving a comparison request for a competitor's price; procurement means for procuring said competitor's price over said computer network; display means for displaying said item price and said competitor's price; comparison means for comparing said item price and said competitor's price; and adjustment means for adjusting said item price by a predetermined amount to create a new price if said item price is greater than said competitor's price.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
11 words
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said item is a book.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
12 words
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said computer network comprises the Internet.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
15 words
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said computer network further comprises a local area network.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
15 words
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said computer network further comprises a wide area network.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
16 words
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said computer network further comprises an electronic bulletin board service.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
13 words
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said storage means comprises a computer memory.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
16 words
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said storage means stores said item price of a book.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
20 words
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said input means receives said comparison request over said computer network from a customer.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
20 words
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said procurement means will procure said competitor's price in response to a customer request.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
23 words
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said procurement means will procure said competitor's price in response to a customer access of said item.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
22 words
The apparatus of claim 20, wherein said procurement means procures said competitor's price for said book using an international standard book number.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
20 words
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said adjustment means causes said new price to be displayed on said display means.
Claim 35
Independent Claim
15 words
The apparatus of clam 19, wherein said new price is stored in said storage means.
Claim 36
Independent Claim
15 words
The apparatus of clam 19, wherein said new price is stored in said storage means.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US5873069A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2003-06-13 | 2003-12-13 | 2004-06-13 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2007-06-13 | 2007-12-13 | 2008-06-13 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2011-06-13 | 2011-12-13 | 2012-06-13 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |