AU731002B3

AU731002B3 - A method of purchasing goods and services over the internet

Info

Publication number: AU731002B3
Application number: AU48670/00A
Authority: AU
Inventors: David Thomas Tymensen; Kerry Ann Tymensen
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2000-07-18
Filing date: 2000-07-18
Publication date: 2001-03-22
Anticipated expiration: 2002-03-22

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A PETTY PATENT Name of Applicants: Actual Inventors: Address for Service: Invention Title: Kerry Ann TYMENSEN David Thomas TYMENSEN As'above CULLEN CO., Patent Trade Mark Attorneys, 239 George Street, Brisbane, QIld. 4000, Australia.

A METHOD OF PURCHASING GOODS AND SERVICES OVER THE INTERNET The following statement is a full description of this invention including the best method of performing it known to us: A METHOD OF PURCHASING GOODS AND SERVICES OVER THE

INTERNET

This invention relates to a method which allows a Purchaser to purchase goods and services over the internet without requiring a credit card to do so.

The world-wide web and the internet is growing at an exponential rate. Studies are showing that e-commerce may dominate the purchase of goods and services in the future. In the e-commerce system, a provider of goods or services Internet Seller) has a home page or is lO otherwise established on the internet. A prospective customer can access the home page, review the products and services offered for sale, and can make a purchase. This system of e-commerce is much more efficient than traditional commercial systems.

One of the most difficult issues with e-commerce is to ensure confidentiality and security when transferring funds over the internet. Most consumers are still extremely reluctant to provide credit card details over the internet through fear of the details becoming available to hackers. This has been a major retardant to the growth of e-commerce.

Another retardant on the growth of e-commerce is that many customers do not have credit cards or do not wish to use credit cards. These customers, to date, have not been able to efficiently purchase and pay for goods and services over the internet.

To date, it is common for a hybrid e-commerce system to be used where goods or services are offered for sale over the internet, and an agreement to purchase is made over the internet, but the goods or services are not released or provided until a mailed cheque or telegraphic transfer is sent from the customer to the seller. This creates considerable delays, and increased compliance costs with the need to handle and correctly deal with cheques, telegraphic transfers, and the like.

The present invention is directed to a method whereby a Purchaser can purchase goods and services over the internet and where payment can be made without requiring a credit card.

It is an object of the invention to provide a method which may overcome the abovementioned disadvantages or provide the public with a useful or commercial choice.

In one form, the invention resides in a method for a Purchaser to purchase goods and services over the Internet, the method comprising the steps of: Establishing a Central Control which accepts a payment amount from the Purchaser and issues a code means to the Purchaser, the code means allowing the payment amount to be verified, (ii) Having the Purchaser order goods or services from an Internet Seller, (iii) Having the Purchaser provide details of the code means to the Internet Seller, (iv) Having the Internet Seller contact the Central Control with details of the code means, Having the Central Control verify that the purchase amount of the goods or services is equal to or less than the payment given by the Purchaser to the Central Control, or is otherwise acceptable, (vi) Having the Central Control debit the purchase amount from the payment amount and forward the purchase amount to the Internet Seller, (vii) Having the Internet Seller release the goods or services to the Purchaser.

The Central Control may comprise a computerised Central Control and is able to accept payment or payments from a prospective Purchaser. Thus, a Purchaser will initially send a payment to the Central Control. The payment may be in respect of a single purchase of goods or services, although to minimise handling, a Purchaser may make a larger payment or pre-payment to the Central Control to allow the purchase to purchase a range of goods or services.

The Central Control issues a code means to the Purchaser.

The code means may be in the form of an electronic code or an encrypted code. The code may be in the form of encrypted numbers and/or letters. The code means may be part of a card.

The Purchaser is then able to log on to the internet and browse through Internet Sellers of goods and services.

Internet Sellers that are part of the method according to the invention, will be able to contact or communicate with the Central Control.

A prospective Purchaser can place an order for goods or services with such an Internet Seller and can transmit or otherwise make the Internet Seller aware of the code.

The Internet Seller can then contact or communicate with the Central Control to seek verification that sufficient funds or security has been given to the Central Control by the Purchaser to cover the cost of the goods or services. If this verification is given, the Central Control can send payment to the Internet Seller and the Internet Seller can release the goods or services to the Purchaser.

The Central Control can then debit the purchase amount from the payment made by the Purchaser. The Purchaser may from time to time be able to contact the Central Control to see what funds are remaining.

An embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the flow chart illustrated in Figure 1.

In the flow chart, a Purchaser will forward cash or an equivalent to a Central Control. The Central Control will issue a code to the dollar value or to an agreed dollar value. The Purchaser will be given the code and will then be able to log onto the internet. The Purchaser can order goods or services from an Internet Seller and provide the code to the Internet Seller.

The Internet Seller can provide code details to the Central Control for approval. If approval is given by the Central Control, the Central.Control can debit the amount from the code, and can release funds to the Internet Seller.

The Internet Seller is then able to arrange for the delivery of goods or conducting of the services.

The Internet Seller of the goods or services can have a prearranged contact with the Central Control such that when the Purchaser gives details of the code (which can be a pre-credited number or card) to the seller, the seller is able to record the code and with that code redeem the price of the goods or services from the Central Control typically via an immediate electronic arrangement.

The code can be used in the same way as cash in that when a purchase is made, the credit balance is reduced. Should a further purchase be made which exceeds the credit balance, the code will be rejected when the Internet Seller provides the code to the Central Control for approval.

The system is ideal for customers that wish to purchase goods or services via the net, but who do not own a credit card.

The central control can charge an amount to the Internet Seller and/or to the Purchaser for conducting its business. This can be in the form of a charge for each transaction or by way of a monthly charge.

The system prevents a Purchaser from buying above the level of payment made to the Central Control and therefore provides a level of protection to the Purchaser.

An advantage of the system according to the invention is that the code from the Central Control can contain additional information which prevents purchase of certain goods or services. For instance, the Purchaser can elect to prevent any purchase of offensive goods or services. This can be achieved by using a code which will reject any Internet Seller which contacts the Central Control for approval to purchase offensive goods or services.

By having a pre-payment made to the Central Control, it is impossible for a Purchaser to be debited for amounts in excess of the prepayment amount. This provides a level of safety to the Purchaser.

It should be appreciated that various, other changes or modifications may be made to the embodiment described and claimed.

Claims

1. A method for a Purchaser to purchase goods and services over the Internet, the method comprising the steps of: Establishing a Central Control which excludes the purchase of specified goods or services, the Central Control excepting a payment amount from the purchaser and issuing a code means to the purchaser, the code means allowing the payment amount to be verified, wherein the code means contains further information excluding the purchase of specified goods or services, Having the Purchaser order goods or services from an Internet Seller, Having the Purchaser provide details of the code means to the Internet Seller, Having the Internet Seller contact the Central Control with details of the code means, Having the Central Control check the code means to verify that the purchase amount of the goods or services is equal to or less than the payment given by the purchaser to the Central Control, and is acceptable in that it does not involve purchase. of excluded goods or services, If the Central Control determines from the code means that the purchase is for said excluded goods or services, the Central Control rejects the transaction, If the Central Control determines that the transaction is acceptable, the Central Control debits the purchase amount from the payment amount and forwards the purchase amount to the Internet Seller, Having the Internet Seller release the goods or services to the Purchaser.

2. The method of claim 1 substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying flow chart. DATED this 16" day of January 2001 Kerry Ann TYMENSEN and David Thomas TYMENSEN By their Patent Attorneys ~CULLEN CO.