GB2363483A - An auction system and method - Google Patents

An auction system and method Download PDF

Info

Publication number
GB2363483A
GB2363483A GB0014821A GB0014821A GB2363483A GB 2363483 A GB2363483 A GB 2363483A GB 0014821 A GB0014821 A GB 0014821A GB 0014821 A GB0014821 A GB 0014821A GB 2363483 A GB2363483 A GB 2363483A
Authority
GB
United Kingdom
Prior art keywords
auction
lot
bid
price
parameters
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
GB0014821A
Other versions
GB0014821D0 (en
Inventor
Nicholas James Hedges
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
ETEATRADE Ltd
Original Assignee
ETEATRADE Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by ETEATRADE Ltd filed Critical ETEATRADE Ltd
Priority to GB0014821A priority Critical patent/GB2363483A/en
Publication of GB0014821D0 publication Critical patent/GB0014821D0/en
Priority to PCT/GB2001/002582 priority patent/WO2001097106A2/en
Priority to AU64087/01A priority patent/AU6408701A/en
Publication of GB2363483A publication Critical patent/GB2363483A/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06Q—INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • G06Q30/00—Commerce
    • G06Q30/06—Buying, selling or leasing transactions
    • G06Q30/08—Auctions

Abstract

A Dutch (aka open descending) auction is performed over a computer network such as the internet. A central auction processor stores auction parameters including a current auction price at which a lot is offered for sale, a description of each lot and a highest bid if any received. The auction parameters are transmitted to remote bidding apparatuses to allow users to bid for lots. When bids are received at the central auction processor from the bidder apparatuses, these are entered into the auction parameters. The central auction processor also updates the auction parameters by periodically decrementing the current auction price. The termination of an auction for a lot is determined by the central auction processor when a received bid matches the current auction price. The system allows for bidders to place speculative bids in advance. Bidders are notified about the start of an auction and when it ends. The system may be implemented using WAP technology.

Description

363483 I AUCTION SYSTEM AND METHOD The present invention generally relates
to an auction system and process.
The main economic efficiency objectives in the design of an auction are twofold: to maximise the allocative efficiency of the auction outcome; and to maximise the seller's revenues. These objectives are believed to be best accomplished by adhering to four fundamental guidelines. First, an auction should be structured so that the price paid by the winning bidder is as independent as possible of that bidder's own bids. This provides each participant with full incentive to truthfully bid his value for the objects in the auction, without any shading of bids. Second, an auction should be structured so as to maximise the information that is available to each bidder at the time that the bids are placed. This is believed to cause bidders to bid aggressively, since bidders recognise the common-value component reflected in their competitor's bids. Third, an auction should be structured so as to avoid as much as possible, the need for the highest bidder to reveal his true value. This prevents the seller, and other buyers from using this information against him, thus giving high bidders the confidence to bid up to their true values. Fourth, it is assumed that an auction is held when the auction host does not have the precise knowledge of the market value for their goods. On this basis an auction should not require the host to indicate an expected price range for their goods.
From a technological communications perspective, particularly regarding the conduct of electronic auctions via communications networks such as the Intemet, and Intranet or an Extranet, other factors are also important when constructing an efficient auction format. An auction mechanism should avoid a surge of bids which will occur close to the known closing time of the auction. This surge can have a significant impact on central server processing. Also, the time at which bids are placed should be as non-critical to the bidder as possible. The reason for this is that there is a time lag associated with 2 electronic communications. In a dynamic bidding process, where success is determined by the first participant to place the most competitive offer, a bidder should not be penalised for the late entry of a bid due solely to electronic time lag, There are a number of auction mechanisms that are known in the art. The English auction format, also known more descriptively as the standard open ascending-bid method, is a mechanism by which each bidder is allowed to place a bid greater than the previous bid on any object, and is aware of all prior bids. Well known examples of the use of this method are the open-outcry auctions held by Christie's and Sotheby's of London. The disadvantages of this format are that the price paid by a bidder for the object that he wins depends on the bidder's own bids. Consider any bidder who demands a considerable proportion of the object being auctioned, the bidder has an incentive to engage in "demand reduction" and to "shade" his bids to what the objects are worth to him. This may result in an inefficient allocation of the objects being auctioned, as well as a reduction in the seller's auction revenues. Secondly, an auction host is generally required to set a start price for their goods thus giving away an indication of the price that they are expecting. This is contrary to the reason for the auction which is to establish a price where the market value for goods is unknown.
The electronic implementation of an English auction suffers from a number of further disadvantages. Firstly, an English auction with a predetermined end time will encourage a high number of bids at the closing minutes of the auction. As already discussed, this will have a negative impact on server performance and will not guarantee fair allocation due to unequal time lapse amongst the participants. Where an English auction does not have a predetermined close time, it is possible to use an interval of inactivity as the reason for closure as the familiar open-outcry auctions referred to earlier. The disadvantage of this system is that there is no way of determining the time which the auction will close. This makes time-management difficult for participants, especially when an auction event includes multiple consecutive lots. In the scenario where multiple lots are auctioned concurrently, an English auction mechanism becomes 3 difficult to manage for bidders, as bids from other participants will be placed in a fairly random manner across all lots.
Another auction format, the Dutch auction format is a mechanism by which an auction host sets an unrealistically high start price for their goods. This price is then automatically reduced by regular price decrements until one of the bidders accepts the current price. The auction is most widely associated with the fresh flower auctions held in the Netherlands. The benefit of the Dutch format to the English format is that the auction has a maximum duration i.e., the point at which the price on offer is the lowest the auction host is willing to sell at (the reserved price). Since the price is being decremented at regular intervals and reserved prices are generally made public, the bidder can easily calculate at what point in time the reserved price will be arrived at. In a scenario where an auction event included multiple concurrent lots and the start price for each lot is equal, a bidder will further be able to anticipate the time at which each lot will arrive at their bidding range, making management of a large number of lots easier. The auction is further curtailed when a bidder bids for the lot, since each bid represents a purchase and unless the auction allows the division of individual lots the auction will conclude on this basis. Furthermore, since the auction host sets a start price that is unrealistically high, they do not suffer from giving an indication of their anticipated value for the goods. Thus from a technological point of view, since only one bid need be placed in an auction, the server processing requirements are greatly reduced and electronic time lag becomes a less critical factor. The major disadvantage of this format of auction are that the structure is not designed to maximise the information available to the bidder at the time at which their bid is placed to an extent that the winning bid is entirely based on the bidders own position independent of the market value of the goods. Also, the bidder is required to disclose their real value for the goods which can then be used against the bidder by both host and other bidders at a later date.
It is thus an ob ect of the present invention to provide an improved electronic auction and process.
The present invention provides an auction process and system in which at the start of an auction a starting auction price is used as a current auction price and this is gradually decremented as the auction proceeds. Thus in a similar way to a Dutch auction, there is an unrealistic price initially at which auction participants can purchase a lot. This price is gradually reduced throughout the period of the auction. However, in addition, there is the ability for auction participants to enter bids which are below the current auction price. These bids are made available to all auction participants. The auction thus concludes when an auction participant places a bid which is equal to the current auction price. This bid may have been placed earlier and the current auction price has been decremented to match this bid. Alternatively, the auction participant can submit a bid equal to the current auction price.
Thus the advantage of the present invention is that, as with the Dutch auction, there is a fixed time period for the auction. This allows for efficient auction management. Also, the process allows the auction participants to place speculative bids below the current auction price which are visible to other auction participants in a similar manner to the English auction. Thus this provides all the benefits of the English auction but the provision of the decrementing current auction price ensures that the time at which the auction will close for a lot becomes apparent to the auction participants as the bids and the current auction price converge. This provides a benefit to the auction participants in that information is made available to provide an enhanced interface to an electronic auction and thus provide an enhanced auction experience. With regard to the central processing carried out, the benefit is that there is a known maximum time at which the auction for a lot will have completed. Also, in the electronic auction system a surging of bids near a fixed time of the auction is avoided. Closing time for an auction of a bid is entirely dependent upon auction participant bidding behaviour and thus for a lot, the bids can be more widely distributed in time thereby reducing the load on a central processing system at any one time.
in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the auction system and process provides for the auctioning of multiple lots simultaneously. The system can receive bids for different lots and maintain information on the highest bidder for each lot separately. For multiple lots a single current auction price is used during the auction. Thus, where the value of the lots is different, the point of termination in time of the auction for each lot will be different. The bids for the lots during an auction will thus be distributed providing for an efficient usage of an electronic auction processing system.
In an embodiment of the present invention, a reserve price is stored as a parameter for an auction for each lot. This represents the minimum price the seller is prepared to accept. When the current auction is decremented to match the reserve price, if the auction is not finished before this time by the reception of a bid, the auction will finish since no bid above the reserve price has been received. The reserved price can be made public to the auction participants to give an indication of the minimum acceptable price. However, if the seller wishes to keep this secret, this information need not be made available to the auction participants. The auction participants will simply see that the auction has concluded. They need not be infori-ned as to whether this was due to a bid matching the current auction price or due to other reasons. It is simply sufficient for the auction participants to know that the lot is no longer for sale: the auction for the lot has concluded. Of course, the auction for other concurrently auctioned lots can continue.
In an embodiment of the present invention, bids can be submitted which are below the current auction price. If a bid is entered which matches or exceeds the current auction price, then the auction concludes and the bidder has successfully purchased the lot. At any time during the auction for a lot, in an embodiment of the present invention, the auction participant can enter a request to buy the lot at the current auction price rather than entering a bid below the current auction price. This secures purchase of the lot.
As the auction progresses, bids are received and the current auction price decreases.
Thus an auction participant using terminal apparatus will need to receive the updated auction parameters. In one embodiment this can be achieved manually by the auction participant requesting the updated parameters from a central auction processing system. In an alternative embodiment, the terminal apparatus automatically and periodically 6 updates the auction parameters which are output to the auction participant. This automated embodiment ensures that the auction participant is kept abreast of the developments in the bidding during the auction. Another method for ensuring the auction participant receives updated auction parameters is for the central auction processing system to automatically transmit the updated parameters to the terminal apparatus used by the auction participant.
In an embodiment which provides for auctioning of multiple lots simultaneously, multiple successive auctions can be provided for by allocating each lot to an auction which is identified by a start time, a starting auction price and an auction price decrement parameter identifying the rate of decrease of the current auction price for that auction. If a seller wishes to enter a lot into the auction processing system for auctioning, the seller enters auction parameters for a lot which can include a description and a reserve price. The lot is then allocated to an auction and is therefore associated with an auction start time, a starting auction price and auction price decrement parameter. In a specific embodiment, a user can also enter a nominal value for a lot to use as a guidance to what he considers the lot may be worth. This can be used in order to allocate the lot to a particular auction to ensure that there is a distribution of nominal values for lots in each auction. In this specific embodiment, it is ensured that the load on the communications between ten-ninal apparatuses and the central auction processor will be distributed since bids for lots are likely to be distributed in time as the different value lots are bid for in each auction.
In one embodiment of the present invention, an auction participant can access the auction processor in order to determine the future lots to be auctioned. A selection can thus be made of the lots for which the auction participant wishes to bid. If the selected lots are not in a current auction, the auction participant can request to be notified when the auction for the lot is due to start.
In an embodiment of the present invention the identities of the bidders can be sent with the bid data to the central auction processor and stored in the auction parameters. Thus 7 the identity for the highest bidders for lots can be made available to the auction participants.
In an embodiment of the present invention, if a bid is entered by an auction participant which is equal to or greater than the current auction price, the auction participant can be requested to confirm their bid. This confirmation process can either take place locally at the terminal apparatus or at the central auction processor. The bid will only be accepted if the auction participant enters a confirmation that the bid is a desired bid.
The present invention is particularly suited to implementation over a communications network such as the Internet, Intranet or an Extranet. Thus preferably the terminal apparatus comprises a general purpose computer implementing appropriate software and the central auction processor comprises a server computer implementing appropriate server programmes. Thus the present invention can be embodied as computer programme code. The present invention thus encompasses computer programme code which can be implemented at the client computer or the server computer. Computer programmes can be provided to the computers by any conventional carrier medium such as a storage medium, e.g. floppy disk, CD ROM, programmable memory device or a magnetic tape device or by a signal such as an electrical signal carrying the computer programme over a communications network such as the Internet.
An embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a generalised embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a specific embodiment of the present invention, Figure 3 is a flow diagram illustrating a steps of entering the auction parameters in a specific embodiment of the present invention, Figure 4 is a flow diagram illustrating the auction process in the specific embodiment of the present invention, Figure 5 is a flow diagram illustrating the visual output of the user interface, and Figure 6 is a graph illustrating the progress of an auction in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
A generalised embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to Figure 1.
Bidder terminals 100 are provided connected to a communications network 300. The bidder terminals 100 are operable by auction participants who wish to enter bids for lots being auctioned. A communications interface 400 is provided connected to the communications network 300 and connected to the communications interface 400 is an auction processor 500 and a configuration processor 600. Both the auction processor 500 and the configuration processor 600 have access to a data store 700. A seller terminal 200 is also connected to the communications network 300.
When a seller operating a seller ten-ninal 200 wishes to sell goods, they use the seller terminal 200 to access the configuration processor 600 via the communications network 300 and the communications interface 400 and enter auction parameters. The configuration processor 600 receives and configures the auction parameters and stores them in the data store 700. These parameters can include a description of the lot, a starting auction price and a price decrement rate. This information is then used by the auction processor 500 to transmit auction parameters to the bidder terminals 100 via the communications interface 400 and the communications network 300. The auction processor 500 uses the starting auction price and the price decrement rate in order to calculate a current auction price which is transmitted to the bidder terminals 100. Thus at the bidder terminals 100 what is the output to the auction participant is information identifying a lot, a current auction price at which the lot can be bought, and any current
9 highest bids submitted by bidders. Bidders can thus enter bids which are processed by the auction processor 500. If the entered bid is higher than the current highest bid, it is entered as the current highest bid in the data store 700. If the entered bid matches the current auction price, the auction for the lot is terminated. The auction parameters within the data store 700 can be appropriately updated to indicate that the lot is no longer available for auction and this information can be conveyed to the bidder terminals 100.
When an auction participant wishes to join an auction, where there are multiple lots being simultaneously auctioned, the configuration processor 600 can be accessed from the bidder terminals 100 in order to receive information on the lots available for auction. The auction participant can then select the lots they wish to bid for. The configuration processor 600 will then pass this information to the auction processor 500 which will retrieve the auction parameters relevant to the auction participants selections from the data store 700 and send this information to the appropriate bidder terminal 100. Where the auction system operates successive auctions of multiple lots, and the selective lot is not being auctioned in a current auction, the user can request that the configuration processor 600 notify the bidder ten-ninal 100 when the auction for the selected lot is due to start.
In the embodiment of Figure 1, the communications interface 400, the auction processor 500, the configuration processor 600 and the data store 700 can be provided in a single processing system such as a general purpose computer.
A specific embodiment of the present invention will now be described in more detail with reference to Figures 2 to 6.
This embodiment of the present invention is implemented over the Internet using the worldwide web. Auction participants operate conventional general purpose computers 1, 2, and 3 which implement web browser software to provide a web interface. The terminals 1, 2 and 3 are connected over the Internet 4 to a Java web server 5 at a central auction processing system. The Java web server 5 generates web pages which are downloaded to the terminals 1, 2 and 3 for interpretation by the browsers implemented thereon. The Java web server 5 can generate web pages using administration HTML and Java code stored in storage device 6 to provide an administration interface, or it can implement auction HTML and Java code stored in the storage device 7 to provide an interface to an auction.
Within the central auction system there is provided an auction server 8 which interfaces with the Java web server 5 in order to implement the auction processing. The auction server 8 has access to an auction database 10. Also an administration server 9 is interfaced to the Java web server 5 to perforin administration and configuration processes. The administration server 9 also has access to the auction database 10 and to an administration database 11. Also the administration server 9 communicates with the auction server 8.
It is well known and would be understood by a skilled person in the art that servers can comprise a computer programme application implemented on a dedicated machine, or they can comprise the computer programme application which is one of many implemented by a machine. Thus in an embodiment of the present invention in Figure 2, the Java web server, the auction server 8 and the administration server 9 can be implemented on a single computer (server) or separate computers (servers) with appropriate storage capacity for the auction database 10, the administration database 11, the auction HTML and Java storage 7 and the administration HTML and Java storage 6.
The operation of the specific embodiment of the present invention will now be described initially with reference to Figure 3 which outlines the process of entering auction parameters for an auction.
Figure 3 illustrates the process of entering auction parameters by a seller of goods who wishes to enter the goods as a lot in an auction. The seller can use any one of the ten-ninals 1, 2 and 3 and simply needs to use a web browser to access the Java web I I server 5 using the appropriate URL. Thus in step Sl the auction web site entry page is requested by the seller and it is loaded on the seller's machine. The sellers user name and password is then entered into the seller's machine in the appropriate boxes on the web page in step S2 and the user name and password are transmitted to the server 5 (step S3). The Java web server 5 passes the user name and password to the administration server 9 for validation. The administration server 9 accesses the administration database I I to compare the entered user name and password with stored data. If the entered user name and password are valid, this information is passed back to Java web server 5 which will then use the HTML and Java code stored in the storage device 6 to generate an auction parameter entry page which is transmitted to and loaded on the seller's machine (step S4). Using this interface a seller is able to enter auction parameters such as a description of the goods, and a reserve price. The user may also enter a nominal value which they consider the goods may be worth. The auction parameters are then transmitted to the Java web server 5. The Java web server 5 passes the parameters to the administration server 9 for entry into the auction database 10. The auction parameters for a lot can simply be entered into the next available auction. Alternatively, if the user has entered a nominal value for the lot, the administration server 9 can determine the next appropriate auction in which the lot of that nominal value should be placed. This determination process takes into consideration the nominal value of other lots in the auction and ensures that multiple lots in an auction have distributed values to thereby ensure that the bidding will be distributed in time during the auction.
Once the auction parameters have been entered into the auction database in step S6, the step S7 the auction is now accessible to auction participants using the terminals 1, 2, and 3.
The process implemented by a buyer using the buyer's machine, i.e. a terminal 1, 2 and 3 can now be described with reference to the flow diagram of Figure 4. In step S 10 the web browser of the terminal 1, 2 and 3 is directed to the URL for the auction web site entry page and thus the browser requests this page and it is loaded on the buyer's 12 machine. On this web page the buyer is able to enter their user name and password in step S I I and this is then transmitted to step S 12 to the Java web server 5. The Java web server 5 then passes the user name and password to the administration server 9 for validation. The administration server 9 accesses the administration database I I in order to confirm that the user name and password are valid. If the user name and password are valid, this information is passed back to the Java web server 5 so that the Java web server 5 uses the administration HTML and Java code in the storage device 6 in order to construct an auction information web page which is loaded onto the buyer's machine in step S 13. The auction participant is then able to select lots from the auction information page and thus auction selections are entered into the buyer's machine in step S 14. These auction selections are transmitted into the Java web server 5 in step S15 and passed to the administration server 9. The administration server 9 will then access the auction database 10 to determine whether any of the selected lots are not in a current auction. If this is case, it not time for the selected auction (step S 16) and an e-mail notification is set up in step S 17 so that an e-mail will be sent to the auction participant when the relevant auction is about to begin. Details on the appropriate e-mail address can be stored in the administration database I I for each auction participant.
If the auction participant has selected a lot which is in a current auction, the step S 18 the administration server informs the auction server that the auction participant wishes to receive auction parameters and the auction server 8 accesses the auction database 10 to retrieve the relevant auction parameters. These are then passed to the Java web server 5 which uses the auction HTML and Java code in the storage device 7 to construct an auction web page and transmit this to the buyer's machine (step S 19).
The auction web page loaded on the buyer's machine in this embodiment includes an applet which continously retrieves updated auction parameters (step S20). The Java web server 5 will construct the auction web page by requesting from the auction server 8 the latest auction parameters which are retrieved from the auction database 10. In this way the buyer's machine is kept informed of the progress of the auction.
The auction parameters comprise an identification of the lot, a description of the lot, the current highest bid, optionally an identification of the current highest bidder, and the auction price at which a lot can be purchased. In step S2 1, whilst no bids are received, the auction server 8 will monitor and determine whether the auction is finished. If the auction is not finished, the auction server will wait for a request for updated auction parameters from the buyer's machine and the process returns to step S20. If a bid is entered, this is transmitted to the Java web server 5 (step S23) which passes this to the auction server 8. The auction server 8 then processes the bid in step S24 and determines whether the bid matches the current auction price in step S25. If not, in step S26 it is determined whether the entered bid is the highest bid. If so, in step S27 the auction server 8 updates the highest bid in the auction parameters in the auction database 10 and the process returns to step S20 whereby the auction parameters at the buyer's machine are updated. If in step S26 it is determined that the entered bid is not the highest bid, the bid is ignored and the process returns to step S20.
If a bid was entered and it is determined that this bid matches the current auction price (step S25) or no bid was entered but the highest bid now matches the decremented current auction price in (step S22) in step S28 the auction server updates the auction database to show that the auction has finished. In step S29 the updated auction parameters are read by the auction server 8 from the auction database 10 and passed to theJava web server 5 for transmission to the buyer's machine. In this way the auction participants are informed when a lot has been successfully bid for.
Figure 5 illustrates the display output to an auction participant on the web browser at the terminals 1, 2 and 3. The display indicates the auction which in this case comprises the auction taking place on Wednesday. The current time is indicated together with the current auction price. There is then a list of the lots that the auction participant is interested in bidding for. Each lot is identified by a lot identifier (1, 2 or 3). Each lot also includes a description. The highest bid for each lot is also given together with an identification of the bidder. An indication is also given for each lot as to whether the auction participant is currently the highest bidder i.e., whether the auction participant is "winning". Further, there is provided against each lot a window into which a bid can be placed for the lot. A "submit" button is also provided which can be clicked on to submit the bid to the Java web server 5. A further button is provided labelled "buy" and when this button is clicked on, a signal is transmitted to the Java web server 5 indicating that the auction participant wishes to buy the lot at the current auction price which is $4 as illustrated in Figure 5.
Figure 6 is a graph illustrating the progress of an auction. The graph illustrates bids made for a single lot: lot 3. As can be seen in the display illustrated in Figure 5, at 9.30am the auction price starts at $4. For lot 3 the current highest bid is 80 cents. As the auction progresses during the day, the auction price decrements steadily. During the day various bids are made for lot 3 and eventually at around 11. 1 Oam, the highest bid matches the current auction price at around $2. It is at this time that the auction for lot 3 terminates. The auction for the other lots are likely to have terminated earlier because they are higher value items. It can also be seen from this that the auction can take place for multiple lots. However, at the any time the number of lots which can be bid for can vary depending upon the number of lots which have been successfully bid for. The time at which bidding closes for each lot will vary depending upon the perceived value of the lots by the bidders. In this way, the bids made during the auction for the lots are distributed throughout the day.
It can thus be seen from the foregoing embodiment that the invention allows auction hosts to place lots at an unrealistic high starting price that decrements in value automatically as in the Dutch format. Decrements can be of predetermined equal value and automatically administered within the central auction system. Auction participants then have the choice of bidding the current auction price and winning the lot or making a speculative bid below the current auction price. The bid is reordered and becomes active at the point the set price reaches it. All speculative bids are transmitted back to all bidders in the system. In this way each bidder is able to access the relative position of their own bids and make further competitive counterbids if they are outbid. The auction can be run as single lot or a multiple lot event. A multiple lot event enables an auctioneer at the central auction system to automate the process extremely efficiently. All lots are given the same high value starting price and identical decrement structures thus recognising auction hosts are rarely the best determinants of an indicative price for their products. Bidders are then able to manage their bidding activity based on the relative times in which each lot enters their acceptable bidding range. For a bidder with a keen desire to secure particular lots, fulfilment can be guaranteed by making an offer at the prevailing auction price.
In an electronic auction system, the present invention allows bidding for multiple lots to be dispersed over a longer time frame whilst enabling a lower number of bids to be made for each lot. This reduces the technical complications associated with multiple concurrent activities occurring on one database server and reduces the negative impact of user time lag between entering a bid at a bidder terminal and the bid being registered by the system.
Although in the specific embodiment described here and above Intemet, and specifically web technology is used, this is not essential to the present invention. The present invention can be applied to an application shared between machines which communicate with each other e.g. over a network. Although in the specific embodiment the network uses the Internet, the present invention is applicable to any network whether it be a conventional landline network or a wireless network. The present invention is applicable to the Internet, Intranets, Extranets, local area networks, any wide area network or the new wireless application protocol (WAP).
Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described here and above as an electronic auction process, the present invention encompasses any method by which the auction process can be carried out such as in accordance with the conventional manual auction process wherein an auctioneer will gradually reduce the current auction price e.g. using a clock, and bidders will manually make bids.
16 Modifications which lie within the spirit and scope of the present invention will be apparent to a skilled person in the art.

Claims (62)

  1. CLAIMS:
    I An auction processing system comprising:
    storage means for storing auction parameters for at least one lot; wherein the auction parameters include a current auction price at which the lot is offered for purchase, lot data representing information on the or each lot, and bid data representing at least a highest bid, if any, received for the or each lot; transmitting means for reading the stored auction parameters and for transmitting auction parameters to at least one bidder apparatus; receiving means for receiving bid data from at least one said bidder apparatus; and auction processing means for updating the auction parameters stored in said storage means by periodically decrementing the current auction price and by updating the stored bid data in response to received bid data, and for determining that the action for a lot is over and when a received bid represented by the received bid data matches the current auction price.
  2. 2. An auction processing system according to Claim I wherein said storage means is adapted to store auction parameters for a plurality of lots, said transmitting means is adapted to transmit auction parameters for a plurality of lots, and said receiving means is adapted to receive bid data for a plurality of lots.
  3. 3. An auction processing system according to Claim I or Claim 2 wherein said auction processing means is adapted to update an auction-over indicator in the auction parameters for a lot, when it is determined that the auction for the lot is over.
  4. 4. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim wherein said storage means is adapted to store reserve price data representing a reserve price for the or each lot, and said auction processing means is further adapted to determine that the auction for a lot is over when the current auction price matches the reserve price.
  5. 5. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim wherein said receiving means is adapted to receive said bid data representing a bid lower than the current auction price or a bid at the current auction price.
  6. 6. An auction processing system according to Claim 5 wherein said receiving means is adapted to receive said bid data comprising speculative bid data representing bids below the current auction price and buy data representing a request to buy the lot at the current auction price.
  7. 7. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim wherein said transmitting means is adapted to transmit the auction parameters when updated by said auction processing means.
  8. 8. An auction processing system according to Claim 7 wherein said transmitting means is adapted to transmit the updated auction parameters automatically.
  9. 9. An auction processing system according to Claim 7 wherein said transmitting means is adapted to transmit the updated auction parameters to a said bidder apparatus in response to a request from said bidder apparatus.
  10. 10. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim including bidder configuration means for transmitting data representing information on lots to a bidder apparatus and for receiving data representing lot selections from the bidder apparatus, wherein said transmitting means is adapted to transmit auction parameters for the selected lots to said bidder apparatus.
  11. 11. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim including parameter receiving means for receiving auction parameters for a lot from a seller apparatus and for storing the received auction parameters in said storage means.
  12. 12. An auction processing system according to Claim I I wherein the system provides for successive auctions of multiple lots, said storage means is adapted to store, said auction parameters for multiple auctions of multiple lots including each auction start time, a starting auction price, and an auction price decrement; said auction processing means is adapted to determine said current auction price for an auction using said starting auction price and said auction price decrement parameter; and said parameter receiving means is further adapted to determine a next available auction for the lot for which auction parameters have been received and to store the received auction parameters associated with the start time, starting auction price and auction price decrement parameter for the determined auction.
  13. 13. An auction processing system according to Claim 12 wherein said parameter receiving means is adapted to receive auction parameters including a nominal value for the lot, and to determine the next available auction to achieve a distribution of nominal values for lots in each auction.
  14. 14. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim wherein said storage means is adapted to store said auction parameters which include data identifying said bidding apparatus and/or a user of said bidding apparatus from which a highest bid was received, said receiving means being adapted to receive data identifying said bidder apparatus and/or a user of said bidder apparatus from which bid data is received.
  15. 15. An auction processing system according to Claim 14 including a database of infori-nation on possible bidding apparatuses and/or users of said bidding apparatuses, wherein said auction processing means is adapted to use said database to send information to a bidder apparatus to indicate that a lot has been bought as a result of bid data transmitted from said bidder apparatus.
  16. 16. An auction processing system according to Claim 12 or Claim 13 wherein said receiving means is adapted to receive a request to receive a notification of a specified auction for a lot from a said bidder apparatus, and including notification means for generating a said notification for transmission to said bidder apparatus by said transmitting means when the starting time for the auction stored in said storage means arrives.
  17. 17. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim wherein said auction processing means is adapted to generate a request for confirmation signal for transmission by said transmitting means to a bidder apparatus if bid data received from said bidder apparatus represents a bid equal to or exceeding the current auction price, and to only accept the bid if a confirmation signal is received in response from said bidder apparatus.
  18. 18. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim wherein said transmitting means and said receiving means are adapted for connection to a communication network to transmit the auction parameters and receive the bid data respectively over the communication network.
  19. 19. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim for implementation using the worldwide web, wherein said receiving means and said transmitting means comprise a web server and said auction processing means comprises an application server, said web server being arranged to transmit said auction parameters as a web page.
  20. 20. An auction terminal for use in an electronic auction system, the auction terminal comprising:
    auction parameter receiving means for receiving auction parameter data from a remote auction processor, the auction data including price data and representing a current price for at least one lot at which the or each lot is offered for purchase, lot data representing information on the or each lot, and bid data representing at least a highest bid for the or each lot; outputting means for outputting the auction parameters to indicate to an auction participant both the current auction price and the highest bid, if any, for the or each lot; inputting means for inputting bid data representing a bid from the auction participant; and transmitting means for transmitting the input bid data to the remote auction processor.
  21. 21. An auction terminal according to Claim 20 wherein said auction parameter receiving means is arranged to receive the auction parameters which include data indicating that the auction of a lot is over.
  22. 22. An auction terminal according to Claim 20 or Claim 21 wherein said inputting means is adapted for inputting bid data representing a speculative bid below the current auction price and a buy request to buy the lot at the current auction price.
  23. 23. An auction terminal according to any one of Claims 20 to 22 wherein said transmitting means is arranged to transmit a request for auction parameters to the remote auction processor.
  24. 24. An auction terminal according to Claim 23 wherein said transmitting means is responsive to an input from said inputting means requesting auction parameters to transmit said request to the remote auction processor.
  25. 25. An auction terminal according to Claim 23 or Claim 24 wherein said transmitting means is arranged to transmit said request to the remote auction processor.
  26. 26. An auction terminal according to any one of Claims 20 to 25 wherein said auction parameter receiving means is adapted to receive data representing information on a plurality of lots to be auctioned, said outputting means is adapted to output the received information, said inputting means is adapted to input auction participant selection data represented lots selected by an auction participant, and said transmitting means is adapted to transmit the selection data to the remote auction processor.
  27. 27. An auction ten-ninal according to Claim 26 including notification receiving means for receiving a notification from the remote auction processor that an auction for a selected lot is due to start.
  28. 28. An auction terminal according to any one of Claims 20 to 27 wherein said transmitting means is further adapted to transmit information identifying the auction terminal and/or the auction participant to the remote auction processor.
  29. 29. An auction terminal according to any one of Claim 20 to 28 including bid processing means for generating a request for confirmation signal if the input bid data represents a bid equal to or exceeding the current price, said output means is arranged to output a message to request confirmation from the user in response to the request for confin-nation signal, said input means is adapted to input a confirmation signal, and said bid processing is adapted to control said transmitting means to only transmit the input bid when said confirmation signal is input.
  30. 30. An auction terminal according to any one of Claims 20 to 28 wherein said auction parameter receiving means is further arranged to receive a request for confirmation signal from the remote auction processor when the transmitted bid equals or exceeds the current price, said inputting means is adapted to input a confin-nation signal, and said transmitting means is adapted to transmit said confirmation signal to the remote auction processor.
  31. 31. An auction process carried out in an auction processing system having stored auction parameters for at least one lot, wherein the auction parameters include a current auction price at which the or each lot is offered for sale, lot data representing information on the or each lot, and bid data representing at least a highest bid of any received bids for the or each lot, the auction process comprising:
    reading the stored auction parameters; transmitting the real auction parameters to at least one bidder apparatus; receiving bid data from at least one said bidder apparatus; updating the stored auction parameters by periodically decrementing the current auction price and by updating the stored bid data in response to received bid data; and detennining that the auction for a lot is over when a received bid represented by said received bid data matches the current auction price.
  32. 32. An auction process according to Claim 31 wherein the auction parameters are stored for a plurality of lots, auction parameters for a plurality of lots are transmitted to at least one bidder apparatus, and bid data for a plurality of lots is received from at least said bidder apparatus.
  33. 33. An auction process according to Claim 31 or Claim 32 wherein the updating step comprises updating an auction-over indicator in the auction parameters for a lot when it is determined that the auction for a lot is over.
  34. 34. An auction process according to any one of Claims 31 to 33 wherein the determining step includes determining that the auction lot is over when the current price matches a reserve price for the lot.
  35. 35. An auction process according to any one of Claims 31 to 34 wherein the bid data received represents a bid lower than the current auction price or a bid at the current auction price.
  36. 36. An auction process according to Claim 35 wherein the received bid data comprises speculative bid data representing bids below the current auction price and buy data representing a request to buy the lot at the current auction price.
  37. 37. An auction process according to any one of Claims 31 to 36 wherein the auction parameters are transmitted when updated.
  38. 38. An auction process according to Claim 37 wherein the updated auction parameters are transmitted automatically.
  39. 39. An auction process according to Claim 37 wherein the updated auction parameters are transmitted to a said bidder apparatus in response to a request from said bidder apparatus.
  40. 40. An auction process according to any one of Claim 31 to 39 including transmitting data representing information on lots to a bidder apparatus, receiving data representing lot selections from the bidder apparatus, and transmitting auction parameters for the selected lots to said bidder apparatus.
  41. 41, An auction process according to any one of Claims 31 to 40 including receiving auction parameters for a lot from a seller apparatus and storing the received auction parameters.
  42. 42. An auction process according to Claim 41 wherein the process provides for successive auctions of multiple lots, the stored auction parameters comprise auction parameters or multiple auctions of multiple lots and a start time, a starting auction price and an auction price decrement parameter for each auction, the deten-nining step comprises determining the current auction price for an auction using said starting auction price and said auction price decrement parameter, the auction process including determining a next available auction for the lot for which auction parameters have been received, and storing the received auction parameters associated with the start time, starting auction price and auction price decrement parameter for the determined auction.
  43. 43. An auction process according to Claim 42 wherein the received auction parameters include a nominal value for the lot, the auction process including the next available auction to achieve a distribution of nominal values for lots in each auction.
  44. 44. An auction process according to any one of Claims 31 to 43 wherein said auction parameters include data identifying said bidding apparatus and/or a user of said bidding apparatus from which a highest bid was received, the auction process including receiving data identifying said bidder apparatus and/or a user of said bidder apparatus from which bid data is received.
  45. 45. An auction process according to Claim 44 including using a database of information on possible bidding apparatuses and/or users of said bidding apparatuses to send inforination to a bidding apparatus to indicate that a lot has been bought as a result of bid data transmitted from said bidder apparatus.
  46. 46. An auction process according to Claim 42 to Claim 43 including receiving a request to receive a notification of a specified auction for a lot from a said bidder apparatus and generating and a transmitting a said notification to said bidder apparatus when the starting time for the auction arrives.
  47. 47. An auction process according to any one of Claims 31 to 46 including generating and transmitting a request confirmation signal to a bidder apparatus if bid data received from said bidder apparatus represents a bid equal to or exceeding the current auction price, and only accepting the bid if a confirmation signal is received in response from said bidder apparatus.
  48. 48. An auction process according to any one of Claim 31 to 47 wherein the transmission and reception of signals takes place over a communications network.
  49. 49. An auction process according to any one of Claims 31 to 48 implemented over the Internet wherein the transmitting and receiving steps are implemented in a web server and the reading, updating and determining steps are implemented in an application server, wherein the auction parameters are transmitted as web pages to at least one bidder apparatus comprising a web client.
  50. 50. A bidding process for use in an auction terminal in an electronic auction system, a bidding process comprising; 26 receiving auction parameter data from a remote auction processor, the auction data including price data representing a current price for at least one lot at which the or each lot is offer for purchase, lot data representing information on the or each lot, and bid data representing at least a highest bid for the or each lot; outputting the auction parameters to indicate to a auction participant both the current auction price and the highest bid, if any for the or each lot; inputting bid data representing a bid from the auction participant; and transmitting the input bid data to the remote auction processor.
  51. 51. The bidding process according to Claim 50 wherein the received auction parameters include data an indicator that the auction for a lot is over.
  52. 52. The bidding process according to Claim 50 or Claim 51, wherein the inputting step comprises inputting bid data representing a speculative bid below the current auction price or a buy request to buy the lot at the current auction price.
  53. 53. The bidding process according to any one of Claim 50 to Claim 52, including transmitting a request for auction parameters to the remote auction processor.
  54. 54. A bidding process according to Claim 53 including inputting and transmitting the request for auction parameters.
  55. 55. A bidding process according to Claim 53 or Claim 54 wherein the request for auction parameters is automatically generated and transmitted to the remote auction processor.
  56. 56. A bidding process according to any one of Claims 50 to 55 including receiving data representing inforination on a plurality of lots to be auctioned, outputting the received information, inputting auction participant selection data representing lots selected by an auction participant, and transmitting the selection data to the remote auction processor.
  57. 57. A bidding process according to Claim 56 including receiving a notification from the remote auction processor that an auction for a selected lot is due to start.
  58. 58. A bidding process according to any one of Claims 50 to 57, including transmitting information identifying the auction terminal and/or the auction participant to the remote auction processor.
  59. 59. A bidding process according to any one of Claims 50 to 58, including generating a request for confirmation signal if the input bid data represents a bid equal to or exceeding the current price, outputting a message to request confirmation from the user in response to the request for a confirmation signal, inputting a confirmation signal, and transmitting the input bid only when said confirmation signal is input.
  60. 60. A bidding process according to any one of Claims 50 to 58, including receiving a request for confirmation signal from the remote auction processor when the transmitted bid equals or exceeds the current price, inputting a confin-nation signal, and transmitting said confirmation signal to the remote auction processor.
  61. 61. Computer programme code for controlling a computer to carry out the process according to any one of Claims 31 to 60.
  62. 62. An auction process according to Claim 61 including terminating the auction for a lot when the current price matches a reserved price for the lot.
    62. A carrier medium carrying the computer programme code according to Claim 61.
    63. An auction server, comprising:
    a storage device storing auction parameters for at least one lot, wherein the auction parameters include a current auction price at which said at least one lot is offered for purchase, lot data representing information on said at least one lot, and bid data representing at least a highest bid of any received bids for the or each lot; 28 a network interface connecting the auction server to a network to which at least one auction client is connected; and a processor programmed to: read the stored auction parameters and control said network interface to transmit the read auction parameters to at least one said auction client; received bid data via said network interface from at least one said auction client, update the stored auction parameters by periodically decrementing the current auction price and by updating the stored bid data in response to received bid data, and determine that the auction for a lot is over when a received bid represented by received bid data matches the current auction price.
    64. An electronic auction process comprising:
    configuring an auction processor to store auction parameters comprising a current auction price at which one or more lots being auctioned can be purchased, infori-nation on the or each lot in the auction, and at least a highest bid of any received bids for the or each lot; reading and transmitting auction parameters to at least one remote bidding apparatus; outputting the auction parameters to an auction participant at the or each bidding apparatus; inputting a bid for one or more lots to the bidding apparatus; transmitting the input bid to the auction processor; receiving the input bid and updating the stored bids according to said auction processor; periodically decrementing the stored current auction price at said auction processor and deten-nining at said auction processor when the auctioning of a lot is completed when an input bid matches the current auction price and updating the stored auction parameters accordingly.
    65. An auction process for auctioning at least one lot, the process comprising:
    29 indicating a current auction price to potential bidders; decrementing the current auction price for the or each lot; receiving bids for the or each lot from one or more bidders; and terminating the auction for a lot when a received bid matches the current auction price.
    66. An auction process according to Claim 65 including terminating the auction for a lot when the current price matches a reserved price for the lot.
    3 4C) Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows 1. An auction processing system for implementing an auction comprising:
    storage means for storing auction parameters for at least one lot; wherein the auction parameters include a current auction price at which the lot is offered for purchase, lot data representing information on the or each lot, and bid data representing at least a highest bid, if any, received for the or each lot from bidder apparatus, the highest bid being below the current auction price; transmitting means for reading the stored auction parameters and for transmitting the read auction parameters to at least one bidder apparatus; receiving means for receiving bid data from at least one said bidder apparatus during the auction, said bid data representing a bid at or below the current auction price; and auction processing means for updating the auction parameters stored in said storage means by periodically decrementing the cur-rent auction price during the auction and by updating the stored bid data in response to received bid data if the bid represented by the received bid data is above the highest bid represented by the stored bid data, and for determining that the auction for a lot is over and when the highest bid represented by the stored bid data matches the current auction price.
    2. An auction processing system according to Claim I wherein said storage means is adapted to store auction parameters for a plurality of lots, said transmitting means is adapted to transmit auction parameters for a plurality of lots, and said receiving means is adapted to receive bid data for a plurality of lots.
    3. An auction processing system according to Claim I or Claim 2 wherein said auction processing means is adapted to update an auction-over indicator in the auction parameters for a lot, when it is determined that the auction for the lot is over.
    4. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim wherein said storage means is adapted to store reserve price data representing a reserve price for the -5 131r or each lot, and said auction processing means is further adapted to determine that the auction for a lot is over when the current auction price matches the reserve price.
    5. An auction processing system according to Claim 1 wherein said receiving means is adapted to receive said bid data comprising speculative bid data representing bids below the current auction price and buy data representing a request to buy the lot at the current auction price.
    6. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim wherein said transmitting means is adapted to transmit the auction parameters when updated by said auction processing means.
    7. An auction processing system according to Claim 6 wherein said transmitting means is adapted to transmit the updated auction parameters automatically.
    8. An auction processing system according to Claim 6 wherein said transmitting means is adapted to transmit the updated auction parameters to a said bidder apparatus in response to a request from said bidder apparatus.
    9. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim including bidder configuration means for transmitting data representing information on lots to a bidder apparatus and for receiving data representing lot selections from the bidder apparatus, wherein said transmitting means is adapted to transmit auction parameters for the selected lots to said bidder apparatus.
    10. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim including parameter receiving means for receiving auction parameters for a lot from a seller apparatus and for storing the received auction parameters in said storage means.
    11. An auction processing system according to Claim 10 wherein the system provides for successive auctions of multiple lots, said storage means is adapted to store, said auction parameters for multiple auctions of multiple lots including each auction -? 2 2 YK start time, a starting auction price, and an auction price decrement; said auction processing means is adapted to determine said current auction price for an auction using said starting auction price and said auction price decrement parameter; and said parameter receiving means is further adapted to determine a next available auction for the lot for which auction parameters have been received and to store the received auction parameters associated with the start time, starting auction price and auction price decrement parameter for the determined auction.
    12. An auction processing system according to Claim I I wherein said parameter receiving means is adapted to receive auction parameters including a nominal value for the lot, and to determine the next available auction to achieve a distribution of nominal values for lots in each auction.
    13. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim wherein said storage means is adapted to store said auction parameters which include data identifying said bidding apparatus and/or a user of said bidding apparatus from which a highest bid was received, said receiving means being adapted to receive data identifying said bidder apparatus and/or a user of said bidder apparatus from which bid data is received.
    14. An auction processing system according to Claim 13 including a database of information on possible bidding apparatuses and/or users of said bidding apparatuses, wherein said auction processing means is adapted to use said database to send information to a bidder apparatus to indicate that a lot has been bought as a result of bid data transmitted from said bidder apparatus.
    15. An auction processing system according to Claim I I or Claim 12wherein said receiving means is adapted to receive a request to receive a notification of a specified auction for a lot from a said bidder apparatus, and including notification means for generating a said notification for transmission to said bidder apparatus by said transmitting means when the starting time for the auction stored in said storage means arrives.
    3 3 e2T 16. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim wherein said auction processing means is adapted to generate a request for confirmation signal for transmission by said transmitting means to a bidder apparatus if bid data received from said bidder apparatus represents a bid equal to or exceeding the current auction price, and to only accept the bid if a confirmation signal is received in response from said bidder apparatus.
    17. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim wherein said transmitting means and said receiving means are adapted for connection to a communication network to transmit the auction parameters and receive the bid data respectively over the communication network.
    18. An auction processing system according to any preceding claim for implementation using the worldwide web, wherein said receiving means and said transmitting means comprise a web server and said auction processing means comprises an application server, said web server being arranged to transmit said auction parameters as a web page.
    19. An auction terminal for use in an electronic auction system, the auction terminal comprising:
    auction parameter receiving means for receiving auction parameter data from a remote auction processor during the auction, the auction data including price data and representing a current price for at least one lot at which the or each lot is offered for purchase, lot data representing information on the or each lot, and bid data representing at least a highest bid for the or each lot; outputting means for outputting the auction parameters to indicate to an auction participant both the current auction price and the highest bid, if any, for the or each lot; inputting means for allowing an auction participant to input bid data representing a speculative bid below the current auction price or a buy request to buy the lot at the current auction price during the auction; and transmitting means for transmitting the input bid data to the remote auction processor.
    20. An auction terminal according to Claim 19 wherein said auction parameter receiving means is arranged to receive the auction parameters which include data indicating that the auction of a lot is over.
    21. An auction terminal according to Claim 19 or Claim 20 wherein said transmitting means is arranged to transmit a request for auction parameters to the remote auction processor.
    22. An auction terminal according to Claim 21 wherein said transmitting means is responsive to an input ftom said inputting means requesting auction parameters to transmit said request to the remote auction processor.
    23. An auction terminal according to Claim 21 or Claim 22 wherein said transmitting means is arranged to transmit said request to the remote auction processor.
    24. An auction tenninal. according to any one of Claims 19 to 23 wherein said auction parameter receiving means is adapted to receive data representing information on a plurality of lots to be auctioned, said outputting means is adapted to output the received information, said inputting means is adapted to input auction participant selection data represented lots selected by an auction participant, and said transmitting means is adapted to transmit the selection data to the remote auction processor.
    25. An auction terminal according to Claim 24 including notification receiving means for receiving a notification from the remote auction processor that an auction for a selected lot is due to start.
    26. An auction terminal according to any one of Claims 19 to 25 wherein said transmitting means is further adapted to transmit information identifying the auction terminal and/or the auction participant to the remote auction processor.
    -35 /21' 27. An auction terminal according to any one of Claim 19 to 26 including bid processing means for generating a request for confirmation signal if the input bid data represents a bid equal to or exceeding the current price, said output means is arranged to output a message to request confirmation from the user in response to the request for confirmation signal, said input means is adapted to input a confirmation signal, and said bid processing is adapted to control said transmitting means to only transmit the input bid when said confirmation signal is input.
    28. An auction terminal according to any one of Claims 19 to 26 wherein said auction parameter receiving means is ftirther arranged to receive a request for confirmation signal from the remote auction processor when the transmitted bid equals or exceeds the current price, said inputting means is adapted to input a confirmation signal, and said transmitting means is adapted to transmit said confirmation signal to the remote auction processor.
    29. An auction process carried out in an auction processing system having stored auction parameters for at least one lot, wherein the auction parameters include a current auction price at which the or each lot is offered for sale, lot data representing information on the or each lot, and bid data representing at least a highest bid of any received bids for the or each lot, the highest bid being below the current auction price, the auction process comprising:
    reading the stored auction parameters; transmitting the read auction parameters to at least one bidder apparatus; receiving bid data from at least one said bidder apparatus, the bid data representing a bid at or below the current auction price; updating the stored auction parameters by periodically decrementing the current auction price during the auction and by updating the stored bid data in response to received bid data if the bid represented by the received bid data is above the highest bid represented by the stored bid data; and determining that the auction for a lot is over when the highest bid represented by said stored bid data matches the current auction price.
    30. An auction process according to Claim 29 wherein the auction parameters are stored for a plurality of lots, auction parameters for a plurality of lots are transmitted to at least one bidder apparatus, and bid data for a plurality of lots is received from at least said bidder apparatus.
    31. An auction process according to Claim 29 or Claim 30 wherein the updating step comprises updating an auction-over indicator in the auction parameters for a lot when it is determined that the auction for a lot is over.
    32. An auction process according to any one of Claims 29 to 31 wherein the determining step includes determining that the auction lot is over when the current price matches a reserve price for the lot.
    33. An auction process according to any one of Claims 29 to 32 wherein the received bid data comprises speculative bid data representing bids below the current auction price and buy data representing a request to buy the lot at the current auction price.
    34. An auction process according to any one of Claims 29 to 33 wherein the auction parameters are transmitted when updated.
    35. An auction process according to Claim 34 wherein the updated auction parameters are transmitted automatically.
    36. An auction process according to Claim 34 wherein the updated auction parameters are transmitted to a said bidder apparatus in response to a request from said bidder apparatus.
    37. An auction process according to any one of Claim 29 to 36 including transmitting data representing information on lots to a bidder apparatus, receiving data representing lot selections from the bidder apparatus, and transmitting auction parameters for the selected lots to said bidder apparatus.
    3 7 -24,- 38. An auction process according to any one of Claims 29 to 37 including receiving auction parameters for a lot from a seller apparatus and storing the received auction parameters.
    39. An auction process according to Claim 38 wherein the process provides for successive auctions of multiple lots, the stored auction parameters comprise auction parameters or multiple auctions of multiple lots and a start time, a starting auction price and an auction price decrement parameter for each auction, the determining step comprises determining the current auction price for an auction using said starting auction price and said auction price decrement parameter, the auction process including determining a next available auction for the lot for which auction parameters have been received, and storing the received auction parameters associated with the start time, starting auction price and auction price decrement parameter for the determined auction.
    40. An auction process according to Claim 39 wherein the received auction parameters include a nominal value for the lot, the auction process including the next available auction to achieve a distribution of nominal values for lots in each auction.
    41. An auction process according to any one of Claims 29 to 40 wherein said auction parameters include data identifying said bidding apparatus and/or a user of said bidding apparatus from which a highest bid was received, the auction process including receiving data identifying said bidder apparatus and/or a user of said bidder apparatus from which bid data is received.
    42. An auction process according to Claim 41 including using a database of information on possible bidding apparatuses and/or users of said bidding apparatuses to send information to a bidding apparatus to indicate that a lot has been bought as a result of bid data transmitted from said bidder apparatus.
    43. An auction process according to Claim 39 or Claim 40 including receiving a request to receive a notification of a specified auction for a lot from a said bidder 3 2-6' apparatus and generating and a transmitting a said notification to said bidder apparatus when the starting time for the auction arrives.
    44. An auction process according to any one of Claims 29 to 43 including generating and transmitting a request confirmation signal to a bidder apparatus if bid data received from said bidder apparatus represents a bid equal to or exceeding the current auction price, and only accepting the bid if a confirmation signal is received in response from said bidder apparatus.
    45. An auction process according to any one of Claim 29 to 44 wherein the transmission and reception of signals takes place over a communications network.
    46. An auction process according to any one of Claims 29 to 45 implemented over the Internet wherein the transmitting and receiving steps are implemented in a web server and the reading, updating and determining steps are implemented in an application server, wherein the auction parameters are transmitted as web pages to at least one bidder apparatus comprising a web client.
    47. A bidding process for use in an auction terminal in an electronic auction system, a bidding process comprising; receiving auction parameter data from a remote auction processor during the auction, the auction data including price data representing a current price for at least one lot at which the or each lot is offer for purchase, lot data representing information on the or each lot, and bid data representing at least a highest bid for the or each lot, the highest bid being below the current auction price; outputting the auction parameters to indicate to a auction participant both the current auction price and the highest bid, if any for the or each lot; inputting bid data representing a bid at or below the current auction price from the auction participant; and transmitting the input bid data to the remote auction processor.
    3 '( 48. The bidding process according to Claim 47 wherein the received auction parameters include data an indicator that the auction for a lot is over.
    49. The bidding process according to Claim 47 or Claim 48, including transmitting a request for auction parameters to the remote auction processor.
    50. A bidding process according to Claim 49 including inputting and transmitting the request for auction parameters.
    51. A bidding process according to Claim 49 or Claim 50 wherein the request for auction parameters is automatically generated and transmitted to the remote auction processor.
    52. A bidding process according to any one of Claims 47 to 51 including receiving data representing information on a plurality of lots to be auctioned, outputting the received information, inputting auction participant selection data representing lots selected by an auction participant, and transmitting the selection data to the remote auction processor.
    53. A bidding process according to Claim 52 including receiving a notification from the remote auction processor that an auction for a selected lot is due to start.
    54. A bidding process according to any one of Claims 47 to 53, including transmitting information identifying the auction terminal and/or the auction participant to the remote auction processor.
    55. A bidding process according to any one of Claims 47 to 54, including generating a request for confirmation signal if the input bid data represents a bid equal to or exceeding the current price, outputting a message to request confirmation from the user in response to the request for a confirmation signal, inputting a confirmation signal, and transmitting the input bid only when said confirmation signal is input.
    <(-O 1?711- 56. A bidding process according to any one of Claims 47 to 54, including receiving a request for confirmation signal from the remote auction processor when the transmitted bid equals or exceeds the current price, inputting a confirmation signal, and transmitting said confirmation signal to the remote auction processor.
    57. Computer programme code for controlling a computer to carry out the process according to any one of Claims 29 to 56.
    58. A carrier medium carrying the computer programme code according to Claim 57.
    59. An auction server for implementing an auction, comprising:
    a storage device storing auction parameters for at least one lot, wherein the auction parameters include a current auction price at which said at least one lot is offered for purchase, lot data representing information on said at least one lot, and bid data representing at least a highest bid of any received bids for the or each lot, the highest bid being below the current auction price; a network interface connecting the auction server to a network to which at least one auction client is connected; and a processor programmed to:
    read the stored auction parameters and control said network interface to transmit the read auction parameters to at least one said auction client; received bid data during the auction via said network interface from at least one said auction client, the bid data representing a bid at or below the current auction price; update the stored auction parameters by periodically decrementing the current auction price during the auction and by updating the stored bid data in response to received bid data if the bid represented by the received bid data is above the highest bid represented by the stored bid data; and determine that the auction for a lot is over when the highest bid represented by stored bid data matches the current auction price.
    60. An electronic auction process comprising:
    configuring an auction processor to store auction parameters comprising a current auction price at which one Or more lots being auctioned can be purchased, information on the or each lot in the auction, and at least a highest bid of any received bids below the current auction price for the or each lot; reading and transmitting auction parameters to at least one remote bidding apparatus; outputting the auction parameters to an auction participant at the or each bidding apparatus; inputting a bid for one or more lots to the bidding apparatus during the auction; transmitting the input bid to the auction processor; receiving the input bid and updating the stored bids if the input bid is above the highest bid; periodically decrementing the stored current auction price at said auction processor during the auction; and determining at said auction processor when the auctioning of a lot is completed when the stored highest bid matches the current auction price and updating the stored auction parameters accordingly.
    61. An auction process for auctioning at least one lot, the process comprising:
    indicating a current auction price to potential bidders during the auction; periodically decrementing the current auction price for the or each lot during the auction; receiving bids for the or each lot from one or more bidders during the auction; and terminating the auction for a lot when a received bid matches the current auction price.
GB0014821A 2000-06-16 2000-06-16 An auction system and method Withdrawn GB2363483A (en)

Priority Applications (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB0014821A GB2363483A (en) 2000-06-16 2000-06-16 An auction system and method
PCT/GB2001/002582 WO2001097106A2 (en) 2000-06-16 2001-06-13 Auction system and method
AU64087/01A AU6408701A (en) 2000-06-16 2001-06-13 Auction system and method

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB0014821A GB2363483A (en) 2000-06-16 2000-06-16 An auction system and method

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
GB0014821D0 GB0014821D0 (en) 2000-08-09
GB2363483A true GB2363483A (en) 2001-12-19

Family

ID=9893842

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GB0014821A Withdrawn GB2363483A (en) 2000-06-16 2000-06-16 An auction system and method

Country Status (3)

Country Link
AU (1) AU6408701A (en)
GB (1) GB2363483A (en)
WO (1) WO2001097106A2 (en)

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US7062460B1 (en) * 1999-10-12 2006-06-13 Enduse.Com Llc On-line auction method and system facilitating the sale of multiple product units at prices varying with volume

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2005079131A1 (en) * 2004-02-25 2005-09-01 Jean-Guy Moya Network auction system and method

Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO1997037315A1 (en) * 1996-03-29 1997-10-09 Onsale, Inc. Method and system for processing and transmitting electronic auction information
EP0828223A2 (en) * 1996-09-04 1998-03-11 Hitachi, Ltd. Automatic auction method
US5890138A (en) * 1996-08-26 1999-03-30 Bid.Com International Inc. Computer auction system
US6026383A (en) * 1996-01-04 2000-02-15 Ausubel; Lawrence M. System and method for an efficient dynamic auction for multiple objects

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6026383A (en) * 1996-01-04 2000-02-15 Ausubel; Lawrence M. System and method for an efficient dynamic auction for multiple objects
WO1997037315A1 (en) * 1996-03-29 1997-10-09 Onsale, Inc. Method and system for processing and transmitting electronic auction information
US5890138A (en) * 1996-08-26 1999-03-30 Bid.Com International Inc. Computer auction system
EP0828223A2 (en) * 1996-09-04 1998-03-11 Hitachi, Ltd. Automatic auction method

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US7062460B1 (en) * 1999-10-12 2006-06-13 Enduse.Com Llc On-line auction method and system facilitating the sale of multiple product units at prices varying with volume

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
AU6408701A (en) 2001-12-24
GB0014821D0 (en) 2000-08-09
WO2001097106A2 (en) 2001-12-20

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
US11188979B2 (en) Systems and methods for automated internet-based auctions
US6609112B1 (en) System and method for providing proxy-based online Dutch auction services
US8010415B2 (en) System for interactive participation by remote bidders in live auctions
US7555445B2 (en) Network auction system and method
US7219080B1 (en) Continuous online auction system and method
Sandholm et al. Nomad: mobile agent system for an internet-based auction house
US6665649B1 (en) Smooth end of auction on the internet
US20060200401A1 (en) Online descending bid auction
US20150332389A1 (en) Real time electronic commerce telecommunication system and method
US20090076926A1 (en) Method For Selling Multiple Like-Items In A Single Auction
US20050234806A1 (en) System and method for a continuous auction market with dynamically triggered temporal follow-on auctions
KR100318209B1 (en) Method for automatically extending bidding period in auction system using computer network
GB2363483A (en) An auction system and method
WO2001008072A1 (en) Internet-based interactive market for sale of products and services
JP3997129B2 (en) Network real-time auction method
AU2011100530A4 (en) Systems and methods for allocating units to users in an online environment
WO2008000025A1 (en) Real-time sales system
US20200051160A1 (en) Negotiation portal
JP2003016307A (en) Method and server for auction on network, and information processing method
KR20030084142A (en) Auction method of agricultural products through communication network
KR20040068765A (en) System and Method for Mobile Subscription and Auction
WO2001020505A2 (en) Electronic method and apparatus for dynamically facilitating yield management

Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
WAP Application withdrawn, taken to be withdrawn or refused ** after publication under section 16(1)