JP2001509629A - Automatic payment system and method - Google Patents

Abstract

SUMMARY An automatic payment system and method is provided to enable a merchant to reduce or eliminate the amount owed to another entity with respect to services, products and / or cash advance provided to the merchant. , Including using consumer payment approvals, clearing and checkout systems. After the customer identifier (e.g., card account number such as credit, debit, smart, credit, payment, etc.) is accepted as payment from the customer, information about the payment is sent to the merchant processor. The merchant processor obtains information about the payment, processes the information, and sends at least a portion of the payment to the payee as payment for at least a portion of the amount owed by the merchant. The payee receives the portion of the payment sent by the merchant processor and applies the portion to the amount owed by the merchant to reduce or eliminate the amount due.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is a pending patent application Ser.
No./890,398 is a continuation-in-part application.

[0001] The present invention relates to an automatic payment system and process for services or products, including the repayment of a cash advance provided to a merchant, with a fee collected by an entity processing customer payment transactions for the merchant. About.

Background Information Card (eg, credit, debit, credit, smart, etc.) transactions generally require at least a merchant, merchant processor, issuer, and cardholder. Such transactions include the approval, bill clearing, and checkout processes, and Visa to perform card payment approval, bill clearing, and clearing.
This may include using a system such as a Net or Cirrus system.

The repayment of cash advances, including loans, is generally made by payers who send periodic payments directly to another entity by mail or by electronic funds transfer through a banking system. Product and service fees are generally paid directly to the product and / or service provider by the entity receiving the product and / or service.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic payment by a business entity based on a fee collected for a customer-paid transaction between the business entity and its customer. . The payment is for a product, service and / or cash advance provided to a business entity (eg, a merchant such as a restaurant) by an organization that supplies products, services and / or cash advance to various businesses. obtain. The organization can provide discounts such as payroll services, discounted office equipment and supplies, various employee well-being programs such as travel discounts and discounted dental services, various professional services such as legal services, and marketing services. Business tools and resources. The business entity pays for the services, products and / or cash advance provided by the organization with a fee charged for card payments made by the business entity's customers. These card transactions are based on a unique identifying account number (eg, credit, debit, credit,
Payment, smart, etc. card number). The object of the present invention is
The organization prepays money to the business entity to enable the business to purchase goods and / or services provided by or supplied by the organization (or any other goods and / or services); The business entity then charges the card payment made by the customer of the business entity,
This is to repay this advance.

As an example of this aspect of the invention, an organization may make various products and / or services, including cash advance, available to small businesses and similar merchants at a fee. This fee is paid to the organization based on customer-paid transactions between the merchant and the merchant's customer. The organization may also provide the merchant with money in advance, for example, to allow the merchant to purchase various products and / or services from the organization (or products and / or services provided by any other entity). I can lend you. The advance is then repaid by the merchant based on the merchant's customer payment transaction. The merchant may be, for example, a beauty salon or restaurant for personal services, and the providing organization may provide the merchant with certain tools and resources, such as discounted advertising fees through large advertisers. Regardless of whether the merchant uses discounted advertising or any of the other products and / or services provided by the organization, once the merchant has contracted with the organization, the merchant will receive the products and / or Borrow fees from your organization to provide access to an array of services. This fee, and any other fee (s) relating to a merchant who has access to the products and / or services provided or is actually using the products and / or services, is the merchant's The merchant pays the organization (or the organization's representative, or, generally, the "fees payee") due to fees collected for card payment transactions between the customer and the customer. For example, a transaction may include the purchase of a haircut from a hairdressing salon by a customer who uses a credit card as a means of paying the haircut to the hairdressing salon. During the processing of the card transaction by the merchant processor, a portion of the purchase price of the haircut is diverted to the organization as a (partial) payment of the commission borrowed by the beauty salon to the organization. In the same manner, the hairdresser can make any outstanding cash advance payments, whether the advance is from an organization or a third party.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a unique identification account number (eg, credit, debit,
It is to provide an automatic cash advance (eg, loan) repayment system and process that is based on fees collected for payment transactions, such as payment transactions requiring credit, payment, card numbers such as smart.

According to the present invention, regardless of whether the payment makes up for all or part of the fee for the product and / or service, or makes up for all or part of the unpaid cash advance, The merchant processor is used. The merchant processor may be, for example, a third party entity (ie, an entity other than the merchant or organization). As an example, on some credit cards, the merchant processor may be a third party. As another example, for some cards, such as American Express credit cards, the merchant processor may be the same as (or at least closely related to) the card issuer. In general, a "merchant processor" is any entity that acquires a merchant transaction or is dedicated to acquiring and processing a merchant transaction, such as a bank or other financial institution. In general, acquiring a merchant transaction means receiving payment information from or on behalf of the merchant, obtaining authorization for payment from the card issuer, sending the authorization to the merchant, then making the payment to the merchant and submitting the payment. , And closing the transaction by receiving payment from the issuer. For this service, the merchant processor typically charges the merchant a fee. This fee is a percentage of the transaction amount paid. Generally, the payment information sent to the merchant processor will include some product (s) and / or
Or relating to a customer identifier submitted to the merchant as payment for the service (s). The identifier may then be, for example, an account number associated with a debit card, smart card, credit card (eg, a visa or master card), credit card (eg, an American Express card), and the like.

Accordingly, the present invention is directed to an automatic payment system and process for services, products and / or cash advance provided by an organization to a merchant. The systems and processes of the present invention allow a merchant to make payment for services, products and / or cash advance provided by an organization using a consumer payment transaction with the merchant. Typically, a percentage of the payment from the consumer to the merchant (e.g., by credit card) is used to pay the amount the merchant owes from the organization. In one embodiment of the present invention, a merchant that has received a cash advance from an organization and / or has been provided with certain services and / or products by the organization may have a customer identification account number (
For example, a credit, credit, payment, or debit card number) is accepted as payment from the customer, and information about the payment is sent to the merchant processor. Acceptance of this type of payment from a customer may be made, for example, at a merchant location (eg, a retail store), over a telephone, or on behalf of the merchant or the merchant, for example, via the World Wide Web. May be performed electronically. The merchant processor then obtains information about the payment transaction, processes the information, and rents at least a portion of the transaction amount to the merchant for the goods, services, and / or cash advance provided to the merchant. Send to the organization as repayment of at least a portion of the amount.
Alternatively, the payment may be accumulated until a predetermined amount is reached, in which case at least a portion of the accumulated payment is sent to the organization (or a designee by the organization). In another embodiment, the merchant processor may periodically send at least a portion of the payment (s) to the organization or designee. For example, the merchant processor may send the payment amount monthly, or may send it based on the amount, such as each time a transaction worth $ 1,000 ($ 1000) is made. The organization or nominee (eg, a bank or other institution, or an entity that collects payments on behalf of the organization) receives a portion of the payment sent by the merchant processor and uses that amount to owe the amount owed by the merchant To reduce unpaid amounts accrued for products, services and / or cash advance provided to the merchant, whether or not it is owed by the merchant.

The system according to the present invention includes means for accepting a customer identification account number as a payment from a customer and for sending information regarding the payment to a merchant processor. In one embodiment, the merchant is a VeriFon of Redwood City, California, such as an electronic card swipe machine.
e Inc. May be used to facilitate card transactions by customers. The merchant processor includes a means for receiving information about the payment and a means for sending the payment to the organization.

[0010] Accordingly, the present invention provides a method for paying for a product (s) and / or a service (s) as a customer identification account number (eg, a credit card).
Provide a simple and efficient automated mechanism that allows the receiving merchant to pay for the amount owed by the merchant for the services, products and / or cash advance provided to the merchant. The merchant uses one or more familiar payment transaction processing systems to make the payments required by the service, product and / or cash advance provider. The present invention makes advance payment, payment of goods and / or services simple and efficient for both merchants and organizations.

[0011] The above and other objects, aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following drawings, specification, and claims.

In the drawings, like reference numbers between different drawings generally refer to the same parts. In addition, the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, and where the principles of the invention are illustrated are generally emphasized.

(Embodiment of the Invention) Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, a purchase transaction (for example, a credit card transaction)
Generally, as shown by arrow 12, cardholder 10 provides merchant 20 with a customer identifier () to pay for the goods and / or services purchased by the customer.
Typically provide a unique identification account number (such as an identification account number on a credit card such as a Visa card or MasterCard, a credit card such as a debit card, a smart card, a credit card such as an American Express card, etc.) Start with. A merchant can be any company that accepts such forms of payment for goods and / or services provided to customers by the company.
The cardholder 10 may present the card to the merchant 20 by himself,
The cardholder 10 may provide the merchant with the card number via telephone or electronically by computer (eg, via the World Wide Web WWW). The cardholder 10 may also provide the card number to an entity acting on behalf of the merchant, such as a WWW provider that sets up and maintains the merchant's web page (s).
However, once the customer identifier (eg, card number) reaches the merchant or the merchant's agent, approval must be obtained before payment can be accepted and the purchase transaction can be terminated.

As shown in FIG. 1A, approval requires an approval request to reach merchant processor 30, as indicated by arrow 22. The request generally reaches the merchant processor 30 electronically, for example, by transmission over a telephone system and / or some other network (eg, the Internet and / or an intranet). Then, the merchant processor 30 (the merchant processor, also known as the acquirer, to acquire the merchant transaction) points to arrow 3
The authorization request is routed through the network 40 to the card issuer 50, as shown at 2 and 42. In some embodiments, merchant processor 30 (300 in FIGS. 2 and 3A) is the bank of merchant 20 and card issuer 5
0 is the cardholder's bank. This routing is generally in the manner described above (ie, 1
Electronically (via one or more public and / or private networks). The network 40 may be, for example, a VisaNet system. Other examples of the network 40 include a debit card processing network system (for example, Ci
russ), the American Express Card Network, and the Discover (Novus) Card Network. It may be possible to bypass the network 40 and send an authorization request directly from the merchant processor 30 to the card issuer 50. In some cases, card issuer 50 also performs the function of winning a merchant transaction (American Express is an example). Also, the merchant processor 30 and the card issuer 50 may be combined into one, and in that case, the approval request reaches only the merchant processor 30. Merchant Processor 3
Since 0 and the card issuer 50 are now the same entity, the merchant processor 30 itself can then grant or deny the request. The network 40 is used, and the card issuer 50 and the merchant processor 30 (
If it is (organically and / or physically) a separate entity, card issuer 50 receives the authorization request via network 40 and approves or rejects the request. An example of a case where the card issuer 50 can reject the approval request is a case where the card holder 10 has reached the maximum amount of the card or a case where the card number has been obtained illegally. Assuming that the request is authorized, the card issuer 50 sends an authorization authorization to the merchant processor 30 via the network 40, as indicated by arrows 44 and 34. The merchant processor 30 then sends an authorization to the merchant, as indicated by arrow 24. With this authorization, a second part of the card transaction can now occur. This return path (ie, arrow 44,
34 and 24) can also be achieved by electronic transmission via one or more private and / or PSTN systems. In general, the arrows in FIGS. 1A, 1B and 2 all represent electronic transmissions, except possibly arrows 12, 22, 24, 26, 52 and 54. Arrows 12, 22, 24, 26, 52 and 54 indicate physical delivery (eg, a card handed by cardholder / customer 10) or mail (eg,
Other types of transmission may be required, such as a bill sent to the cardholder 10 via the United States Postal Service or other carriers, or a telephone.

Referring to FIG. 1B, to complete the purchase transaction, as indicated by arrow 26,
The customer's purchase in dollars is sent by merchant 20 to merchant processor 30. The merchant processor 30 pays the merchant 20 an amount that is somewhat less than the amount submitted to the merchant processor 30. Merchant Processor 3
0 typically charges a fee to process the purchase transaction. This fee is often called the discount rate. For example, a customer's purchase may be $ 100. If the discount rate is 1.9%, the merchant 20 has the merchant processor 3
$ 98.10 by 0 (ie $ 100 minus 1.9% discount)
Will be paid. The merchant processor 30 submits the customer's purchase total to the card issuer 50 via the network 40, as indicated by arrows 36 and 46. Similarly, in this case, the network 40 may not be provided, and the functions of the merchant processor and the card issuer may be included in one entity. When the network 40 is included and the functions of the merchant processor and the card issuer are separate, the card issuer 50
Pay the merchant processor 30 over the network 40 some amount less than the amount submitted at 0, as indicated by arrows 48 and 38. This deducted amount reflects another fee charged by card issuer 50 for the transaction. This fee is often called the exchange fee. Exchange fees are often part of the discount rate. The merchant processor 30 may then, as indicated by the arrow 28, release some amount less than the customer's initial purchase amount (eg, by sending a payment to a bank having an account maintained by the merchant 20). Pay merchant 20. For example, the initial customer purchase is $ 100 and the exchange fee is 1.
In the case of 4%, the merchant processor 30 has the card issuer 50 pay $ 98.
. 60 (ie, $ 100 minus a 1.4% exchange fee) is paid. This amount is further reduced by merchant processor fees. Thus, in this example where the first customer purchase is $ 100, the merchant 20 is paid $ 98.10 by the merchant processor 30, the merchant processor 30 earns $ 0.50, and the card issuer's The profit is $ 1.40. In other words, merchant 20 pays 1.9% for the ability to provide card payment convenience to the customer, and the 1.9% commission or surcharge is added to merchant 20 to provide merchant 20 with that ability. Processor 30 (0.5%) and card issuer (
1.4%).

The card issuer 50 charges the customer or cardholder 10 for the full amount of the initial purchase (eg, $ 100), and gives the cardholder 10 any interest and other fees on that amount. Is paid in full or in installments. Also, if the network 40 is used, generally the merchant processor 30
And the card issuer 50 both pay a fee to the provider of the network 40. For example, in the case of VisaNet, the merchant processor can pay VisaNet $ 0.069 as a card service fee, and the card issuer 50
$ 0.059 may be paid to VisaNet as a card service and transaction fee. These payments from the merchant processor 30 and the card issuer 50 to the provider of the network 40 reduce the amount of additional deductibles charged to the merchant 20 (eg, 1.9%).

Having described the environment in which the present invention operates with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B, an automatic payment system and process according to the present invention will now be described with reference to FIGS.
This will be described with reference to FIG.

Referring to FIG. 2, the organization 60 has a merchant 20 as indicated by arrow 62.
And / or organization 60 may also provide advance payments (eg, loans) to, for example, payroll services, discounted office equipment and supplies, travel discounts, discounted dentistry, as also indicated by arrow 62. Various products, services, and / or business tools and resources are provided to merchant 20, such as various employee benefits programs such as services, various professional services such as legal services, and marketing services. Advance loan is for merchant 20 and organization 6
0 may be for the purpose of allowing to purchase and / or have access to various products, services, and / or business tools and resources. Alternatively, the merchant 20 may use the advance for another purpose. The various products, services, and / or business tools and resources provided by the organization 60 to the merchant 20 do not include card processing services typically performed by merchant processors.

When a cash advance is made, the merchant 20 must then reimburse at least the advance amount and usually an additional amount, such as a fee associated with the advance. Currently, merchant 20 typically repayes advance payments in periodic installments (e.g., monthly installments for 5 years). Merchant 20 may make these payments to organization 60 or some other payee. In FIG. 2, the payee is identified as organization 60. According to the present invention, the purchase transaction occurs as shown in FIG. 1B, except that the final step in which the merchant processor pays the merchant changes. That is, the payment indicated by the arrow 28 changes. The present invention requires a merchant processor 300. Merchant Processor 30
0 represents at least a portion of the amount that would otherwise reach merchant 20, as indicated by arrow 29, at least the amount that merchant 20 owes in services, products and / or cash advance provided to merchant 20. It is designed to pay the organization 60 as part of the payment. The organization 60 then receives the portion of the payment sent by the merchant processor 300 and applies it to the outstanding amount owed by the merchant to reduce that amount. Thus, the merchant processor 300 pays the merchant 20 an amount slightly less than the amount received by the merchant 20 in the configuration of FIG. 1B, as indicated by the arrow 27 in FIG. For example, continuing with the embodiment introduced above with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B, instead of paying merchant 20 $ 98.10 for an initial card purchase of $ 100, merchant processor 300 may provide merchant 20 $ 88.10 to the tissue 60 and another $ 10.00 to the tissue 60.

Regardless of whether the merchant 20 is provided with a cash advance, if the organization 60 provides the merchant 20 with various products, services, and / or business tools and resources, the merchant 20 You have to pay the commission. In general, regardless of whether merchant 20 utilizes various products, services, and / or business tools and resources provided by organization 60, merchant 20 may be provided by organization 60 once contracted with organization 60. A fee is borrowed from organization 60 to provide access to an array of products and / or services to be provided. Currently, the merchant 20 typically pays the fee in one lump to the organization 60 or some other fee payee. According to the present invention, the purchase transaction occurs as shown in FIG. 1B, except that the final step in which the merchant processor pays the merchant changes. That is, the payment indicated by the arrow 28 changes. The present invention requires a merchant processor 300. As indicated by arrow 29, merchant processor 300 allocates a portion of the money that would otherwise reach merchant 20 to merchant 2
0 pays at least a portion of the fee owed to organization 60 (or
Commission payee). The organization 60 then receives the portion of the payment sent by the merchant processor 300 and
The merchant may use any outstanding fees owed to the organization 60 to reduce or eliminate the outstanding amount. Thus, merchant processor 300 indicates that arrow 2 in FIG.
As shown at 7, the arrangement of FIG. 1B pays merchant 20 an amount that is somewhat less than the amount that merchant 20 receives. For example, continuing with the embodiment introduced above with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B, instead of paying merchant 20 $ 98.10 for the first card purchase $ 100, merchant processor 300
Can send $ 88.10 to Merchant 20, and another $ 10.00 to Organization 6
Can be sent to 0.

In accordance with the present invention, there can be many variations on when and how merchant processor 300 pays organization 60. For example, merchant processor 300 may accumulate payments received from card issuer 50 (via arrows 48 and 38) until a predetermined dollar amount is reached, and then merchant processor 300 may accumulate the payment. At least a portion of the payment may be sent to the organization 60. As another example, merchant processor 300 may periodically send payment to organization 60, such as sending a payment every other payment received from card issuer 50.

Referring to FIG. 3A, a merchant processor 300 according to the present invention typically comprises
At least a processor 302, a memory 304, and an input / output (I / O) device 306.
And a merchant account database 308 and a bus 310 or other means for enabling these components to communicate. The I / O module 306 allows the merchant processor 300 to electronically communicate with the other components of the card transaction processing system shown (eg, merchant 20, network 40, card issuer 50, and organization 60). enable. Processor 302 and memory 304 cooperate with each other and with other components of merchant processor 300 to perform all functions described herein. In one embodiment, merchant processor 300 executes the appropriate software to perform all functions described herein. In another embodiment,
Some or all of the functions described herein may be accomplished with dedicated electronics that are hard-wired to perform the functions described. The merchant account database 308 may include information (eg, at least a plurality of unique merchant code numbers) identifying all merchants 20 for which the merchant processor 300 has authorized the transaction, and the merchant account database 308 may include Also, regarding which organizations 60 are associated with each of the approved merchants 20, and how the merchant processor 300 will pay the organizations 60 (eg, dollar amounts and times). May be included. The merchant processor 300 according to the present invention may be a suitably programmed computer, such as a mainframe, minicomputer, PC, or Macintosh computer, and a plurality of computers cooperating to perform the functions described herein. Of such computers. Similarly, the other components of the card transaction system according to the present invention (eg, merchant 20, network 40, card issuer 50, and organization 60) typically implement the functions described herein. For one or more appropriately programmed computers.

Referring to FIG. 3B, merchant 20 typically connects to consumer data input device 316, transaction data input device 318, memory 320, and input / output (I / O) device 322 via bus 314. And at least one computer unit 312, such as a microprocessor and associated peripherals, in communication with the computer. The consumer data input device 316 is located in the point of sale management of merchandise or services from the merchant to the consumer. Device 316 may include a keyboard used to enter the consumer's account number / identifier, or device 316 may read a magnetic stripe on a plastic card inserted into a magnetic card reader. A magnetic card reader may be included. In such a magnetic stripe card, the stripe encodes an identifier (eg, a customer's visa credit card account number). If such a plastic card is used,
Device 316 may also include a keyboard for entering a personal identification number (PIN) to match a code stored on or on the card. A transaction data entry device 318 is also located in the point-of-sale, and is typically used by, for example, a clerk to determine the dollar value of goods or services purchased by a customer and possibly other related information. It includes a keyboard and the like used for inputting information. Device 318 may include a cash register.
In some embodiments, devices 316 and 318 may share a single keyboard. Consumer and transaction data entered via devices 316 and 318 may be temporarily stored in memory 320. Memory 320 may also include merchant data along with software for directing the operation of computer 312. The merchant data typically includes at least a merchant code number to identify the merchant, and the merchant data may also include, for example, information indicating the time or location of the sale and / or clerks involved in the purchase transaction. May be included. Merchant 20 may have more than one point-of-sale location, and each such location may include consumer and transaction data entry devices 316 and 318. Similarly, memory 320 and I / O device 322 may be duplicated at each point of sale location of merchant 20. In one embodiment, at the merchant 20, only the devices 316 and 318 are duplicated, so only one computer 312 is required for each merchant location. For example, VeriFone Inc. of Redwood City, California. Provides such merchant location equipment.

Referring now to both FIGS. 3A and 3B, merchant processor 300 and merchant 20 may communicate via I / O devices 306 and 322. These devices 306 and 322 may be, for example, modems.

Although the figure shows only one merchant 20 and one organization 60,
Generally, in accordance with the present invention, a plurality of merchants 20
It should be understood that the merchant processor 300 may interact with one or more organizations 60. Different merchants 20 are generally one of various organizations 60.
You have a variable amount payable borrowed from more than one. For simplicity and understandability, the present invention has been shown and described with reference to one merchant 20 and one organization 60. Also, as described above, merchant processor 300 and card issuer 50 may be separate entities (generally as in the case of visa card processing) and (as in the case of American Express card processing). It may be the same entity, or at least a related entity.

Variations, modifications, and other implementations of what is described herein will occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the claimed invention. Accordingly, the invention is to be defined not by the preceding illustrative description but instead by the spirit and scope of the following claims.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram of a payment transaction from approval (FIG. 1A) to settlement (FIG. 1B).

FIG. 1B is a schematic diagram of a payment transaction from approval (FIG. 1A) to settlement (FIG. 1B).

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a merchant processor making payments to both merchants and organizations in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 3A is a diagram of a merchant processor system according to the present invention.

FIG. 3B is a diagram of a merchant location.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of front page (81) Designated country EP (AT, BE, CH, CY, DE, DK, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, IE, IT, LU, MC, NL, PT, SE ), OA (BF, BJ, CF, CG, CI, CM, GA, GN, ML, MR, NE, SN, TD, TG), AP (GH, GM, KE, LS, MW, SD, SZ, UG, ZW), EA (AM, AZ, BY, KG, KZ, MD, RU, TJ, TM), AL, AM, AT, AU, AZ, BA, BB, BG, BR, BY, CA, CH, CN, CU, CZ, DE, DK, EE, ES, FI, GB, GE, GH, GM, GW, HU, ID, IL, IS, JP, KE, KG, KP, KR , KZ, LC, LK, LR, LS, LT, LU, LV, MD, MG, MK, MN, MW, MX, NO, NZ, PL, PT, RO, RU, SD, SE, SG, SI, SK, SL, TJ, TM, TR, TT, UA, UG, UZ, VN, YU, ZW

Claims (63)

[Claims] 1. An automatic payment method for a service, comprising: (A) collecting a fee and providing the service to an entity; and (B) communicating between the entity and at least one customer of the entity. Receiving at least a portion of the fee for the service based on at least one payment transaction, the receiving step comprising: (i) receiving a customer identifier as a payment from the customer; Sending to the merchant processor; (ii) at the merchant processor, obtaining the information about the payment and sending at least a portion of the payment to a service fee payee for the service provided to the entity; Paying at least a portion of a fee; (iii) the service fee payee Receiving the partial of the payment sent by the merchant Processor, a partial, a step to devote to the commission of the services provided to the entity is performed by the encompassing process, method. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting a credit card number as said customer identifier. 3. The method of claim 1, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting a debit card number as said customer identifier. 4. The method of claim 1, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting a smart card including said customer identifier. 5. The method of claim 1, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting a credit card number as said customer identifier. 6. The method of claim 1, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting said customer identifier at a merchant location. 7. The method of claim 1, wherein said accepting step comprises electronically accepting said customer identifier. 8. The step performed at the merchant processor further comprises storing the payment until a predetermined amount is reached, and then sending at least a portion of the stored payment to the service fee payee. , Claim 1
The method described in. 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the steps performed at the merchant processor include sending at least a portion of the payment periodically to the service fee payee. 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the providing step includes providing the service to the entity including a merchant. 11. An automatic payment method for a product, comprising: (A) collecting a commission and providing the product to an entity; and (B) communicating between the entity and at least one customer of the entity. Receiving at least a portion of the fee for the product based on at least one payment transaction, the receiving step comprising: (i) receiving a customer identifier as a payment from the customer; Sending to the merchant processor; (ii) at the merchant processor, obtaining the information about the payment and sending at least a portion of the payment to a product fee payee to provide the merchant processor with the product Paying at least a portion of a fee; (iii) the product fee payee, the merchant processor; Receive partial more sent the payment, the partial, a step to devote to the commission of the provided the product to the entity it is performed by the encompassing process, method. 12. The method of claim 11, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting a credit card number as said customer identifier. 13. The method of claim 11, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting a debit card number as said customer identifier. 14. The method of claim 11, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting a smart card including said customer identifier. 15. The method of claim 11, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting a credit card number as said customer identifier. 16. The method of claim 11, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting said customer identifier at a merchant location. 17. The method of claim 11, wherein said accepting step comprises electronically accepting said customer identifier. 18. The step performed at the merchant processor further comprises the step of storing the payment until a predetermined amount is reached, and then sending at least a portion of the stored payment to the product fee payee. , Claim 11
The method described in. 19. The method of claim 11, wherein the steps performed at the merchant processor include sending at least a portion of the payment periodically to the product fee payee. 20. The method of claim 11, wherein providing comprises providing the product to the entity including a merchant. 21. An automatic payment system for a service, comprising means for accepting a customer identifier as a payment from a customer and sending information about the payment to a merchant processor, wherein the entity associated with the payment comprises: Means for borrowing a fee for services provided to the entity and receiving, at the merchant processor, the information regarding the payment;
Means for sending at least a portion of the payment to a service fee payee to pay at least a portion of the fee for the service provided to the entity;
The system. 22. The system according to claim 21, wherein said receiving means includes means for receiving a credit card number as said customer identifier. 23. The system according to claim 21, wherein said accepting means includes means for accepting a debit card number as said customer identifier. 24. The system of claim 21, wherein said means for accepting includes means for accepting a smart card including said customer identifier. 25. The system of claim 21, wherein said receiving means includes means for receiving a credit card number as said customer identifier. 26. The system of claim 21, wherein the means for receiving includes means for receiving the customer identifier at a merchant location. 27. The system of claim 21, wherein said means for receiving includes means for electronically receiving said customer identifier. 28. The means at the merchant processor comprising: means for accumulating the payment until a predetermined amount is reached; means for sending at least a portion of the accumulated payment to the service fee payee. 22. The method of claim 21, further comprising:
System. 29. The system of claim 21, wherein said means for sending at said merchant processor includes means for periodically sending said portion of said payment to said service fee payee. 30. The system of claim 21, wherein the means for sending at the merchant processor includes means for sending the portion of the payment including the percentage of the payment to the service fee payee. 31. The system of claim 21, wherein said entity comprises a merchant. 32. An automatic payment system for a product, comprising means for accepting a customer identifier as a payment from a customer and sending information about the payment to a merchant processor, wherein the entity associated with the payment comprises: Means for borrowing a commission for the product provided to the entity and receiving, at the merchant processor, the information regarding the payment;
Means for sending at least a portion of the payment to a product fee payee to pay at least a portion of the fee for the product provided to the entity. 33. The system of claim 32, wherein said accepting means includes means for accepting a credit card number as said customer identifier. 34. The system of claim 32, wherein said accepting means includes means for accepting a debit card number as said customer identifier. 35. The system of claim 32, wherein said accepting means comprises means for accepting a smart card including said customer identifier. 36. The system of claim 32, wherein said accepting means includes means for accepting a credit card number as said customer identifier. 37. The system of claim 32, wherein the means for receiving includes means for receiving the customer identifier at a merchant location. 38. The system of claim 32, wherein said receiving means includes means for electronically receiving said customer identifier. 39. The means at the merchant processor comprises: means for accumulating the payment until a predetermined amount is reached; means for sending at least a portion of the accumulated payment to the product fee payee. 33. The system of claim 32, further comprising: 40. The means for sending at the merchant processor includes means for periodically sending the portion of the payment to the product fee payee.
3. The system according to 2. 41. The system of claim 32, wherein the means for sending at the merchant processor includes means for sending the portion of the payment to the product fee payee, including a percentage of the payment. 42. The system of claim 32, wherein said entity comprises a merchant. 43. A method of automatically repaying a cash advance, comprising: (A) providing the cash advance to an entity; and (B) at least a communication between the entity and at least one customer of the entity. Receiving at least a portion of the cash advance based on one payment transaction, the receiving step comprising: (i) accepting a customer identifier as a payment from the customer and merchantizing information regarding the payment. And (ii) at the merchant processor obtaining the information regarding the payment, sending at least a portion of the payment to repay at least a portion of the cash advance provided to the entity. Performed by a process that includes
Method. 44. The method of claim 43, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting a credit card number as said customer identifier. 45. The method of claim 43, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting a debit card number as said customer identifier. 46. The method of claim 43, wherein the accepting step comprises accepting a smart card including the customer identifier. 47. The method of claim 43, wherein said accepting step comprises accepting a credit card number as said customer identifier. 48. The method of claim 43, wherein the accepting step comprises accepting the customer identifier at a merchant location. 49. The method of claim 43, wherein said accepting step comprises electronically accepting said customer identifier. 50. The method of claim 43, wherein the steps performed at the merchant processor further comprise storing the payment until a predetermined amount is reached, and then sending at least a portion of the stored payment. the method of. 51. The method of claim 43, wherein the steps performed at the merchant processor include periodically sending at least a portion of the payment. 52. The method of claim 43, wherein the providing step includes providing the cash advance to the entity including a merchant. 53. An automatic cash advance repayment system comprising means for accepting a customer identifier as a payment from a customer and sending information about the payment to a merchant processor. An entity provided with the cash advance, means at the merchant processor for receiving the information regarding the payment;
Means for sending at least a portion of the payment to repay at least a portion of the cash advance provided to the entity. 54. The system of claim 53, wherein said accepting means includes means for accepting a credit card number as said customer identifier. 55. The system of claim 53, wherein said accepting means includes means for accepting a debit card number as said customer identifier. 56. The system of claim 53, wherein said accepting means includes means for accepting a smart card including said customer identifier. 57. The system of claim 53, wherein said means for accepting includes means for accepting a credit card number as said customer identifier. 58. The system of claim 53, wherein the means for receiving includes means for receiving the customer identifier at a merchant location. 59. The system of claim 53, wherein said means for receiving includes means for electronically receiving said customer identifier. 60. The means at the merchant processor further comprises means for accumulating the payment until a predetermined amount is reached, and means for sending at least a portion of the accumulated payment. 53. The system according to 53. 61. The system of claim 53, wherein the means for sending at the merchant processor includes means for periodically sending the portion of the payment. 62. The system of claim 53, wherein the means for sending at the merchant processor includes means for sending the portion of the payment, including a percentage of the payment. 63. The system of claim 53, wherein said entity comprises a merchant.