WO2006073476A2 - Procede et systeme de recherche payante - Google Patents

Procede et systeme de recherche payante Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2006073476A2
WO2006073476A2 PCT/US2005/018170 US2005018170W WO2006073476A2 WO 2006073476 A2 WO2006073476 A2 WO 2006073476A2 US 2005018170 W US2005018170 W US 2005018170W WO 2006073476 A2 WO2006073476 A2 WO 2006073476A2
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WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
research
service
industry
product
analysts
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PCT/US2005/018170
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English (en)
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WO2006073476A3 (fr
Inventor
Iv David Weild
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The National Research Exchange, Inc.
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Priority claimed from US11/073,980 external-priority patent/US20050216297A1/en
Application filed by The National Research Exchange, Inc. filed Critical The National Research Exchange, Inc.
Publication of WO2006073476A2 publication Critical patent/WO2006073476A2/fr
Publication of WO2006073476A3 publication Critical patent/WO2006073476A3/fr

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    • 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

Definitions

  • This disclosure relates to paid-for business services and, more particularly, to paid-for business research services.
  • Service providers e.g., engineers, researchers, academics, contractors, and/or analysts
  • customers e.g., individuals, corporations, agents and/or sponsors
  • Examples of the services offered by the service providers include: academic evaluation, research and reporting services; engineering evaluation, research, and reporting services; financial evaluation, research, and reporting services; product evaluation, research, and reporting services; corporate evaluation research, and reporting services; and/or securities evaluation, research, and reporting services.
  • Real-world examples of the service provider / customer relationships include: the homeowner that hires a contractor to build an addition on the homeowner's house; the construction company that hires an environmental engineering company to prepare an environmental impact study with respect to a highway that is planned for construction; and the company that hires an equity analyst to perform equity research and issue a buy/sell/hold opinion concerning a specific security.
  • Equity research is a primary tool relied upon by investors and investment professionals to identify, evaluate and filter public companies as candidates for investment. Once invested, equity research may be relied upon to monitor ongoing performance of a company's stock and its potential for future performance.
  • Equity research is necessary because investors make investment decisions based upon evaluations concerning the future performance potential of a stock.
  • Equity research may also be essential to advancing the media visibility and commercial interests of a company.
  • a public company does not provide research concerning its own stock, as the research would typically be deemed conflicted and allegations could be made concerning the company's intent to mislead the public. Therefore, since the public relies upon equity research and the companies typically provide comparatively limited guidance, investors must turn to third parties (i.e., the professional research community) for predictions concerning the future performance of a company and it's stock.
  • analysts who write or comment in a way that is perceived as contrary (i.e., negative) to the interests of a company may be deprived of necessary access to the company. Specifically, analysts may be blocked from attending or asking questions on conference calls, denied entry to analyst meetings, denied access to management, or turned down on invitations to company management to attend/speak at analyst-sponsored forums, thus depriving the analyst of the ability to do their job.
  • a method of providing paid-for research includes maintaining an information resource that defines a pool of qualified analysts. Each member of the pool of qualified analysts is capable of providing paid-for research concerning a specific company. A user is allowed to contract with a third-party facilitator to have a research project produced concerning the specific company. The third-party facilitator is allowed to select, from the members of the pool of qualified analysts, one or more selected analysts to produce the research project concerning the specific company.
  • the one or more selected analysts and the user may be required to enter into a research contract that requires the one or more selected analysts to produce the research project concerning the specific company.
  • the information resource may be maintained by the third-party facilitator.
  • the research contract may include a user research contract and one or more analyst research contracts.
  • the user research contract may be entered into by the user and the third-party facilitator.
  • Each analyst research contract may be entered into by the third-party facilitator and one of the selected analysts.
  • the user may be the specific company or an agent of the specific company.
  • the specific company may be the producer of a product offered for sale and the user may be interested in obtaining paid-for research concerning the product offered for sale.
  • the product may be chosen from the group consisting of: a consumer product; a business product; a medical product; an energy product; an insurance product; a contracting product; a transportation product; a pharmaceutical product; a technological product; a telecom product; a financial product; an academic product; and an entertainment product.
  • the specific company may be the issuer of a security and the user may be interested in obtaining paid-for research concerning the security.
  • the security may be chosen from the group consisting of a stock, a derivative security of a stock, a bond, and a derivative security of a bond.
  • the specific company may be a provider of a service and the user may be interested in obtaining paid-for research concerning the service.
  • the service may be chosen from the group consisting of: a consumer service; a business service; a health care service; a hospital service; a rehabilitative service; a long-term care service; a medical service; an energy service; an insurance service; a contracting service; a transportation service; a pharmaceutical service; an entertainment service; a technological service; a telecom service; a financial service; an academic service; and an environmental service.
  • the specific company may operate within a specific business sector.
  • the specific business sector may be chosen from the group consisting of: the securities industry; the health care services industry; the business products industry; the business services industry; the consumer products industry; the consumer services industry; the medical products industry; the medical services industry; the energy industry; the insurance industry; the contracting industry; the transportation industry; the pharmaceutical industry; the environmental industry; the technology products industry; the technology services industry; the telecom products industry; the telecom services industry; the financial products industry; the financial services industry; the academic services industry; and the entertainment industry.
  • the research project may include a single research product produced by a single selected analyst chosen from the members of the pool of qualified analysts.
  • the research project may include a plurality of research products concurrently produced by a plurality of selected analysts chosen from the members of the pool of qualified analysts.
  • the research project may include a plurality of research products consecutively produced by a single selected analyst chosen from the members of the pool of qualified analysts.
  • the research project may include a plurality of research products consecutively produced by a plurality of selected analysts chosen from the members of the pool of qualified analysts.
  • the above-described method may also be implemented by a server computer and/or as a sequence of instructions executed by a processor.
  • FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic view of a service management system coupled to a distributed computing network
  • FIG. 2 is a more-detailed diagrammatic view of the service management system of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic view of an "individual" data record maintained by the service management system of FIG.1;
  • FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic view of a "firm” data record maintained by the service management system of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 5 is a flow chart of a process executed by the service management system of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 6 is a flow chart of a process executed by the service management system of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 7 is a diagrammatic view of a disclosure screen rendered by the service management system of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 8 is a diagrammatic view of a search screen rendered by the service management system of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 9 is a flow chart of a process executed by the service management system of
  • FIG. 1 A first figure.
  • FIG. 10 is a diagrammatic view of an alternative search screen rendered by the service management system of FIG.1;
  • FIG. 11 is a diagrammatic view of a result screen rendered by the service management system of FIG. 1; and FIG. 12 is a diagrammatic view of a data record rendered by the service management system of FIG. 1.
  • FIG. 1 there is shown a service management system 10 that allows users (e.g., customers 12, 14, 16) to obtain services within a specific business sector from service providers 18, 20, 22 (e.g., engineers, researchers, academics, contractors, and/or analysts, for example).
  • Users e.g., customers 12, 14, 16
  • service providers 18, 20, 22 e.g., engineers, researchers, academics, contractors, and/or analysts, for example.
  • Customers 12, 14, 16 may be individuals, corporations, agents, investors, institutions, and/or sponsors, for example.
  • Examples of the specific business sector include: the securities industry; the health care services industry; the business products industry; the business services industry; the consumer products industry; the consumer services industry; the medical products industry; the medical services industry; the energy industry; the insurance industry; the contracting industry; the transportation industry; the pharmaceutical industry; the environmental industry; the technology products industry; the technology services industry; the telecom products industry; the telecom services industry; the financial products industry; the financial services industry; the academic services industry; the entertainment industry; and the business sector(s) of various publically-traded companies, for example.
  • Examples of the services offered by the service providers include: academic evaluation, research and reporting services; engineering evaluation, research, and reporting services; financial evaluation, research, and reporting services; product evaluation, research, and reporting services; corporate evaluation research, and reporting services; securities evaluation, research, and reporting services; contracting evaluation, research, and reporting services; and/or any other services offered by a company / individual, for example.
  • Additional services may include: consumer services; business services; health care services; hospital services; rehabilitative services; long-term care services; medical services; energy services; insurance services; contracting services; transportation services; pharmaceutical services; entertainment services; technological services; telecom services; financial services; academic services; and environmental services, for example.
  • Service management system 10 typically resides on and is executed by a computer
  • Computer 24 that is connected to network 26 (e.g., the internet).
  • Computer 24 may be a web server running a network operating system, such as Microsoft Window 2000 Server tm , Novell Netware tm , or Redhat Linux ta .
  • a web server application such as Microsoft IIS t ⁇ , Novell Webserver tm , or Apache Webserver tm , that allows for HTTP (i.e., HyperText Transfer Protocol) access to computer 24 via network 26.
  • HTTP HyperText Transfer Protocol
  • Network 26 may be connected to one or more secondary networks (e.g., network 28), such as: a local area network; a wide area network; or an intranet, for example.
  • secondary networks e.g., network 28
  • network 28 such as: a local area network; a wide area network; or an intranet, for example.
  • Storage device 30 may be, for example, a hard disk drive, a tape drive, an optical drive, a RAID array, a random access memory (RAM), or a read-only memory (ROM).
  • Customers 12, 14, 16 and service providers 18, 20, 22 may access service management system 10 directly through network 26 or through secondary network (e.g., network 28). Further, computer 24 (i.e., the computer that executes service management system 10) may be connected to network 26 through a secondary network (e.g., network 28).
  • secondary network e.g., network 28
  • ⁇ typically access service management system 10 through a computer (e.g., computer 32) that is connected to network 26 (or network 28) that executes a desktop application 34 (e.g., Microsoft Internet
  • An administrator 36 typically accesses and administers service management system 10 through a desktop application 38 (e.g., Microsoft Internet Explorer TM, Netscape Navigator TM, or a specialized interface) running on an administrative computer 40 that is also connected to the network 26 (or network 28).
  • a desktop application 38 e.g., Microsoft Internet Explorer TM, Netscape Navigator TM, or a specialized interface
  • an administrative computer 40 that is also connected to the network 26 (or network 28).
  • service management system 10 includes: a data interface module 50 for accessing data stored within a database 52 (e.g., an Oracle tm database, an IBM DB2 tm database, a Sybase tm database, a Computer Associates tm database or a
  • a database 52 e.g., an Oracle tm database, an IBM DB2 tm database, a Sybase tm database, a Computer Associates tm database or a
  • Microsoft Access tm database Microsoft Access tm database
  • a searching module 54 for searching data records within database 52
  • a user interface module 56 for allowing customers 12, 14, 16, service providers 18, 20, 22 and administrator 36 to access service management system 10
  • an administration & maintenance module 58 for allowing administrator 36 to access, configure and maintain service management system 10
  • a qualification module 60 for qualifying service providers 18, 20, 22 for inclusion within database 52
  • a code module 62 for monitoring the actions of customers 12, 14, 16, and service providers 18, 20, 22 to ensure that each adheres to various codes of conduct.
  • one or more of the above-stated modules will be discussed below in greater detail. Further and as will be discussed below in greater detail, in addition to machine-executed processes and procedures performed by one or more of the aforementioned computer systems (e.g., computers 24, 32, 40), one or more of the above-stated modules may include one or more human-executed processes and procedures.
  • service providers 18, 20, 22 offer various services (e.g., academic evaluation, research and reporting services; engineering evaluation, research, and reporting services; financial evaluation, research, and reporting services; product evaluation, research, and reporting services; corporate evaluation research, and reporting services; securities evaluation, research, and reporting services; contracting evaluation, research, and reporting services; and/or any other services offered by a company / individual, for example) to customers 12, 14, 16 that are desirous of obtaining such services.
  • An example of a typical customer of service management system 10 is an IT (i.e., information technology) product evaluation company that produces quarterly publications that evaluate the newest IT products and technologies.
  • the IT product evaluation company may research and utilize (via service management system 10) engineering researchers and product researchers to generate reports concerning various IT products, such that these reports are incorporated into e.g., the quarterly publications of the IT product evaluation company.
  • service management system 10 may be employed in a variety of unrelated areas, such as: the review and evaluation of medical insurance companies, the review and evaluation of long term care facilities; the review and evaluation of securities analysis firms; the generation of environmental impact studies; the issuance of fairness opinions during merger and acquisition proceedings; the appraisal of houses offered for sale; and the review and evaluation of consumer products, for example.
  • Administration and maintenance module 58 allows administrator 36 to configure and maintain database 52 so that information concerning service providers 18, 20, 22 can be stored in a logical and searchable fashion (via searching module 54).
  • administrator 36 creates one or more data records (e.g., data record 64) that define the service provider and the expertise offered by the service provider.
  • data record 64 may include e.g., a name field 100 for defining the service provider's name, a firm field 102 for defining the firm employing the service provider, an education field 104 for defining the education of the service provider, and an expertise field 106 for defining the areas of expertise / specializations of the service provider.
  • a work history field 108 may define the previous customers for which the service provider has provided services and the type of service provided (assuming the services were't provided in confidence).
  • the number and type of fields included within a data record (e.g., record 64) may be defined / configured by administrator 36 via user interface module 56 and administration & maintenance module 58.
  • additional fields may be included that provide additional information concerning the service provider. For example, if the service provider is an expert witness in the area of psychology that testifies in criminal cases, an additional field (not shown) may be included that defines the number of times that the expert witness testified for the defense, versus the number of times that the expert witness testified for the prosecution.
  • service providers 18, 20, 22 may be individuals (e.g., engineers, researchers, academics, contractors, or analysts, for example). Additionally, service providers 18, 20, 22 may be firms (e.g., engineering firms or research firms, for example). For example, an individual service provider may be John Smith (an electrical engineer), and a firm service provider may be XYZ Engineering Consultants, a firm that employs over one hundred engineers that cover a broad spectrum of engineering disciplines. Accordingly, if a data record defines a firm (i.e., as opposed to an individual), the areas of expertise / specialization field 106 and the experience field 108 may define the expertise / specializations and experience of the firm as a whole (as opposed to the individuals within the firm). Since the individual service providers may provide services in a variety of areas
  • each data record may include a field that defines the type of service provider.
  • data record 64 includes a provider type field 110 that defines the "provider type” of John Smith as “technical analysis”.
  • the granularity of the "provider type" descriptor field may be as fine as desired by the administrator (e.g., administrator 36) configuring the data records. For example, for a broad descriptor, John Smith may be classified as “technical analysis”. A narrower descriptor may allow John Smith to define himself as a "technical analysis : electrical", or even more narrowly as “technical analysis : electrical : digital”.
  • a service provider may be categorized using more than one descriptor.
  • John Smith having an MBA
  • service provider John Smith may also use the descriptor "business analysis”.
  • the record may include a field that defines the individual members of the firm. For example and as shown in FIG. 4, a firm data record
  • data record 150 (e.g., concerning the ABC Analysis Corp.) may include a member field 152 that defines the members of the firm (e.g., Samantha Long, Alan Lee, Jack Jones, and Mary Donovan).
  • member field 152 defines the members of the firm (e.g., Samantha Long, Alan Lee, Jack Jones, and Mary Donovan).
  • provider type data field 154 defines ABC Analysis Corp. as a service provider that provides "securities research" services concerning e.g., stocks, bonds, derivative securities of stocks, and derivative securities of bonds.
  • Data record 150 may additionally include an area of expertise / specialization field 156 that defines the industry specializations and experience of the firm.
  • the areas of expertise / specializations field 156 may define e.g., experience in the areas of equity research and/or fixed income research.
  • Field 156 may further define: the median size of the company for which the research firm has performed research (e.g., in market capitalization, for example); and the existence of specialized sales forces associated with the research firm.
  • specialized sales forces may include: salespeople dedicated to stocks of a specific industry (e.g., technology stocks) or a specific geographic origin (e.g., Australian stocks); or salespeople dedicated to a specific type of security (e.g., equities versus convertibles versus corporate debt versus options), for example.
  • field 156 may define: one or more marketing / promotional activities engaged in by the research firm (e.g., arranging institutional investor conferences for management, conference calls with investors, and branch visits, for example); and/or one or more style specializations offered by the research firm (e.g., fundamental versus quantitative versus qualitative, for example).
  • Additional fields within data record 150 include a name field 158 for defining the name of the service provider.
  • a performance indicator field 160 may define e.g., an overall ranking/rating/score for the analyst/firm or a ranking/rating/score for specific tasks performed by the analyst/firm.
  • the level of detail and granularity of the data included within a field may be as broad or as narrow as desired.
  • field 160 may provide data concerning the accuracy of the firm's buy/sell/hold security ratings. Continuing with the above-stated example, assume that ABC Analysis Corp. issues quarterly buy/sell/hold ratings for various securities.
  • data field 160 may be populated with numeric descriptors indicating the accuracy of these buy/sell/hold ratings.
  • ABC Analysis Corp. issues fifty "buy” ratings for fifty (50) different securities.
  • ABC Analysis Corp. would have a rating of 0.666. What is considered a correct versus an incorrect rating is subjective and may be defined by administrator 36.
  • a correct buy prediction may be defined as one that gains value at a rate greater than or equal to the rate of an index, such as the Standard & Poors 500, or the Consumer Price Index, for example.
  • an index such as the Standard & Poors 500, or the Consumer Price Index, for example.
  • a capitalization field 162 may be included that defines a market capitalization breakdown of the companies covered by the service provider, which defines the relevant experience that the service provider (i.e., the equity research firm) has concerning various market capitalization segments.
  • the market capitalization of a company is defined as the product of the total number of outstanding shares and the individual share price.
  • a micro cap security is a share of a company having a market capitalization of less than $100 million
  • a small cap security is a share of a company having a market capitalization in the range of $100 million to $1 billion
  • a mid cap security is a share of a company having a market capitalization in the range of $1 billion to $5 billion
  • a large cap security is a share of a company having a market capitalization greater than $5 billion.
  • market capitalization breakdown 162 should be updated on a regular basis. As will be discussed below in greater detail, when searching database 52, market capitalization breakdown 162 may be used to rank and/or order the analysts / research firms listed within a specific result set.
  • the market capitalization breakdown would then be broken down into the various market capitalization categories (e.g., micro cap securities, small cap securities, mid cap securities, and large cap securities).
  • fields may also be defined and included within these data records 64, 150.
  • fields may be included that define: a) the float of one or more securities covered by the service provider; b) the average daily trading volume of one or more securities covered by the service provider; c) a list of the indices in which one or more securities covered by the service provider are included; d) the total number of pages of research generated for one or more securities covered by the service provider; e) the industry grouping of one or more securities covered by the service provider; f) the periodicity of research written concerning one or more securities covered by the service provider; g) the report characteristics of the coverage produced concerning one or more securities covered by the service provider; and/or h) the universe of ratings issued by the service provider (e.g., buy, sell, hold), and the breakdown of each.
  • Each of these fields may be used to rank and/or order the analysts / research firms listed within a specific result set.
  • a service provider Prior to being entered into database 52 (i.e., admitted into the pool of qualified service providers), a service provider must be pre-qualified and deemed to meet or exceed the standards of database 52.
  • the standards of the database are defined by a third-party facilitator 42 and administered and configured by administrator 36, who is typically an employee or agent of third-party facilitator 42.
  • An example of such a third-party facilitator is The National Research Exchange of New York, NY (www.TheNRE.com).
  • Database 52 may be a local database or a remote database maintained by third-party facilitator 42. Additionally or alternatively, database 52 may be maintained by and/or the property of a third party (e.g., an equity research firm).
  • a third party e.g., an equity research firm
  • a service provider typically enters into a contract with third-party facilitator 42, is entered into database 52 and becomes a member of a service management organization 44 maintained and administered by third-party facilitator 42. Additionally and as will be discussed below, customers 12, 14, 16 wishing to obtain paid-for services must also enter into a contract with third-party facilitator 42 and become a member of service management organization 44, prior to being allowed to utilize a service provider (e.g., service providers 18, 20, 22) listed within database 52.
  • a service provider e.g., service providers 18, 20, 22
  • the membership requirement for entry into database 52 varies depending on the area of expertise in which the service provider provides services.
  • the service provider is a general contractor that provides construction / improvement services to residential customers
  • the membership requirement may include: the requirement that the general contractors carry a specified amount of insurance, the requirement that all the individuals employed by the general contractor are covered by disability insurance, and/or the requirement that the general contractor has a specified minimum number of years experience, for example.
  • there may be additional requirements such as compliance with certain state or federal standards (e.g., OSHA certifications), and membership in or utilization of certain trades unions.
  • the membership requirements may include: admission into certain bars /jurisdictions; the requirement that the lawyer carry a specified amount of malpractice insurance, the requirement that the lawyer be in good standing in all of the jurisdictions in which they practice, the requirement that the lawyer has never been the subject of disciplinary action; and the requirement that a malpractice claim has never been filed against the lawyer, for example.
  • the service provider may be required to illustrate a defined level of mastery within their area of expertise (i.e., equity research).
  • the mastery level may equate to e.g., a minimum requirement being defined for one or more performance statistics associated with the "buy", "sell” and “hold” ratings issued by the service provider over a defined period of time.
  • the mastery level may illustrate that the service provider is in compliance with all governmental agencies and SROs (i.e., self-regulatory organizations)
  • service provider 18 an equity research provider
  • Third-party facilitator 42 may examine the "buy”, "sell” and
  • qualification module 60 allows administrator 36 to monitor 200 the total number of recommendations previously made by the service provider. These recommendations are then categorized 202 into correct recommendations and incorrect recommendations and one or more performance statistics are determined 204. As discussed above, this categorization may be dependant upon e.g., the time frame being analyzed and may include e.g., compensation for rates of inflation.
  • the performance statistics are typically numerical ratios (e.g., 0.573) that define the number of correct recommendations versus the total number of recommendations. Once these performance statistics are determined, the accuracy statistic is compared 206 to one or more statistical ranges; a determination 208 is made concerning the appropriate action to be taken; and the action is executed 210.
  • the decision to deny admission 212 or grant admission 214 need not be a binary decision, as additional performance ranges may be established. For example, three ranges may be established, namely: an unacceptable range of 0.000-0.399; a probationary range of 0.400-0.499; and an acceptable range of 0.500-1.000. Therefore, if the performance statistic for service provider 18 is determined to be within the unacceptable range, service provider 18 is denied admission 212 to database 52. And if the performance statistic is determined to be within the acceptable range, service provider 18 is granted admission 214 to database 52. However, if the performance statistic for service provider
  • service provider 18 may be granted a probationary admission 216 to database 52.
  • the service provider may be required e.g., to raise their performance statistic so that it is within the acceptable range within a defined period of time (e.g., one year).
  • service provider 18 may automatically be granted a probationary admission to database 52.
  • third party facilitator 42 may either affirm or deny the admission of service provider 18, based upon whether service provider 18 met certain baseline performance benchmarks during the probationary period.
  • qualification module 60 may also be used to maintain database 52. For example, once admitted to database 52, a service provider (e.g., service provider 18) may be required to maintain an acceptable level of performance or else risk being placed on probation 216, being suspended 218 from database 52 , being expelled 220 from database 52, or being prevented 222 from renewing their membership within database 52 (i.e., the pool of qualified analysts).
  • a service provider e.g., service provider 18
  • third-party facilitator 42 may take one of many actions, such as: placing service provider 18 on probation 216 for a defined period of time, during which the service provider must raise their performance statistic to the acceptable level; suspending 218 service provider 18 from database 52 for a defined period of time, during which the service provider (working outside of service management organization 44) must raise their performance statistic to the acceptable level; expel 220 service provider 18 for a defined period of time, after which the service provider may reapply for admission; expel 220 service provider 18 permanently; or prevent 222 service provider 18 from renewing their membership in organization 44.
  • Accuracy statistic 160 may include more than one statistic.
  • one of the typical performance statistics for equity research service providers is a statistic that defines their accuracy of the service provider concerning their buy / sell / hold recommendations.
  • a first performance statistic may be defined for buy recommendations
  • a second performance statistic may be defined for sell recommendations
  • a third performance statistic may be defined for hold recommendations.
  • the performance statistic may be quantified based on one or more time frames.
  • the performance statistic may include a current performance statistic (i.e., 164, FIG. 4) and a long-term performance statistic (i.e., 166,
  • a current performance statistic may only concern recommendations made within the last 12 months, while a long-term performance statistic may concern: all of the recommendations made by the service provider since they became a member of organization 44; or all of the recommendations ever made by the service provider.
  • third-party facilitator 42 may determine the performance statistic by monitoring how often a recommended stock hits a target price within a stated / estimated time period.
  • performance statistics are typically recalculated on a periodic basis, such as daily, weekly, monthly, per fiscal quarter, per fiscal year, or per a defined period of time (e.g., a performance statistic that defines the performance level of a service provider during the previous year is recalculated annually).
  • qualification module 60 may monitor the pass / fail ratio of building inspections performed by the building inspector. And, in this scenario, the ranges may be that for all initial inspections performed, the inspection pass rate must be
  • the pass rate must be 0.950, as the general contractor has already been put on notice concerning the issues that need to be addressed.
  • code module 62 prior to being allowed to join organization 44 (i.e., prior to a service provider 18, 20, 22 being admitted into database 52; and prior to a customer 12, 14,16 being allowed to utilize a service provider within database 52), code module 62 requires 224 all service providers and all customers to contractually agree (i.e., in a membership contract with third-party facilitator 42) to adhere to and be bound by a code of conduct, which regulates the actions and interactions of customers 12, 14, 16, service providers 18, 20, 22, and third-party facilitator 42. Additionally, service provider 18, 20, 22 and/or customer 12, 14, 16 may be required to periodically attest (e.g., on a quarterly or annual basis, for example) to their compliance with the code of conduct.
  • a service provider is a firm (as opposed to an individual)
  • the firm may be allowed / required to contractually bind (to the code of conduct) all of the individual members employed by the firm. Therefore, if a firm enters into a contract with third-party facilitator 42 and agrees to be bound by the code of conduct, each of the individual members employed by the firm may be bound by the code of conduct, even though each did not enter into a contract with third-party facilitator 42.
  • AIMR AIMR
  • National Inventor Relations Institute i.e., the National Inventor Relations Institute
  • the members of organization 44 i.e., the service providers listed in database 52 and the customers that choose to utilize service providers listed within database 52
  • the code of conduct may prohibit any general contractor included in database
  • the code when defining a code of conduct, the code is tailored to ensure the integrity of the end product produced. Therefore, the code of conduct (and the enforcement thereof) is designed to prohibit 226 undesirable behavior and require 228 desirable behavior (on the part of the service provider and/or the customer).
  • the service provider is an equity analyst
  • the analysts' code of conduct is tailored such that high-quality, independent and unbiased securities analysis is produced. Therefore, for an equity analyst, prohibited undesirable behavior may include: the user acting in a manner that will knowingly mislead the analyst or the general public; the user retaliating against the analyst; the user disclosing the identity of a known research sponsor; the user inquiring as to the identity of an unknown research sponsor; and the user discriminating against a potential analyst based on previously-generated research, for example.
  • the required desirable behavior may include: the user having a reasonable basis for making an allegation concerning a violation of the analyst code of conduct by the analyst; the user taking remedial action to correct known violations of the user code of conduct; and the user disclosing potentially-suspect third-party business relationships (to be discussed below in greater detail), for example.
  • the contractors' code of conduct may be tailored such that a high-quality construction project is produced using high-quality construction services / techniques; and if the service provider is an engineering research firm, the researchers' code of conduct may be tailored such that high-quality technical research is produced.
  • Tailoring a code of conduct typically includes: a) identifying membership classes (e.g., contractors, analysts, researchers, and/or customers, for example) that may have significant input and/or influence over the end product produced (e.g., the analysis report, the research report, and/or the project, for example); b) binding these membership classes in a way that incentivizes ethical behavior and disincentivizes unethical behavior; and c) creating disclosures that better protect consumers of the end product.
  • identifying membership classes e.g., contractors, analysts, researchers, and/or customers, for example
  • binding these membership classes in a way that incentivizes ethical behavior and disincentivizes unethical behavior
  • c) creating disclosures that better protect consumers of the end product Typically, when third-party facilitator 42 is defining a code of conduct, a series of diagnostic questions may be asked, such as:
  • three membership classes are created, namely: a) subject companies and their managers (i.e., the issuer of the security being analyzed); research providers and their analysts (i.e., the company or individual actually performing the equity research); and research sponsors and their managers and/or analysts (i.e., the company / individual / institution sponsoring the equity research), which may include direct sponsors (i.e., entities that fund third-party facilitator 42 to pay for specified research) and/or indirect sponsors (i.e., entities that directly pay research providers with payments that are sufficiently large enough that a "reasonable person" could foresee a conflict of interest).
  • direct sponsors i.e., entities that fund third-party facilitator 42 to pay for specified research
  • indirect sponsors i.e., entities that directly pay research providers with payments that are sufficiently large enough that a "reasonable person" could foresee a conflict of interest.
  • third-party facilitator 42 By regulating the interaction of the membership classes via a code of conduct, third-party facilitator 42 minimizes the potential for inter-party conflicts that, if left unchecked, would likely degrade the integrity of the end product (e.g., the analysis report, the research report, or the project) and, therefore, undermine public interest. Accordingly, through the use of a code of conduct, services rendered under the auspices of third-party facilitator 42 and organization 44 are typically viewed by the general public to be more trustworthy.
  • a code of conduct includes multiple governance layers.
  • a typical code of conduct for equity research may include four governance layers, including: A) a reciprocal code of conduct; B) an honor code / infraction-reporting obligation; C) a dispute resolution procedure; and D) one or more disclosure procedures that may include: Dl) point of consumption disclosures (incorporated onto the cover of the end product) and D2) web-based disclosures for both members and non-members or the organization; each of which is discussed below in greater detail.
  • Every member of a membership class within organization 44 has a responsibility not to interfere with the ability of members of other membership classes to fulfill their legal, ethical and professional responsibilities.
  • the reciprocal code of conduct outlines these inter-membership-class responsibilities.
  • a typical reciprocal code of conduct for security analysis is as follows:
  • the subject company shall not engage in behavior that will knowingly mislead research providers (i.e., analysts) or the general public; 2) the subject company shall take corrective action to ensure that misleading statements or behaviors are corrected immediately and in a manner which is in compliance with the law;
  • the subject company shall not retaliate against other members of the organization (especially research providers) except to pursue due process via the dispute resolution process described below, wherein retaliation includes: i) not having a "reasonable basis" for initiating any and all complaints against other members of the organization; and
  • the subject company may actively discriminate against non-members of the organization, provided such discrimination does not knowingly mislead research providers or the general public.
  • the subject company shall not inquire into the identity of the research sponsor; 3) the subject company shall not disclose fact or detail about their sponsorship activities, if any, except as required by law;
  • the subj ect company shall not inquire as to the sponsorship activities of others.
  • the subject company shall not discriminate between analysts on the basis of the conclusions and/or recommendations, including such items as: i) ratings (buy / sell / hold); ii) price targets; and iii) estimates (e.g., revenue, earnings, and cash flow, for example); 2) the subject company shall disclose its policies concerning how it treats analysts and the subject company shall publish these policies in a manner such that they are accessible by other members of the organization;
  • the subject company shall catalog and record empirical evidence substantiating that the subject company does not discriminate or retaliate against analysts on the basis of their conclusions and/or recommendations, such that the empirical evidence demonstrates: i) fair access to senior management for investor visits and conference calls; ii) fair access to senior management for sell-side conferences; invitation to and awareness of all analyst events; and iii) equal opportunity to ask questions on conference calls with management (e.g., quarterly earnings conference calls and web casts) wherein fair access shall be interpreted to mean that the subject company shall provide the same access and support (both quantitatively and qualitatively) to analysts that provide negative opinions as they do to those analysts that provide positive opinions (i.e., those analysts that are perceived to be supportive of the subject company and its management).
  • the subject company shall disclose all commercial relationships with research providers including (but not limited to) those concerning: i) investment banking; ii) commercial banking, including: a) lending; and b) treasury / cash management; iii) money / investment management, including: a) firm; and b) senior officers; iv) any other commercial relationship that may be deemed material to evaluating the independence of research.
  • the research provider shall take corrective action to ensure that misleading statements / behaviors are corrected immediately and in a manner that is in compliance with the law;
  • the research provider shall not inquire into the identity of a research sponsor; 2) the research provider shall not ask or speculate as to the identity of the research sponsor; and
  • the research provider shall take immediate action to correct material mistakes / omissions in research.
  • the research provider shall not engage in an investment banking business with the subject company until at least six months after the research contract has expired;
  • the research provider shall disclose all commercial relationships including (but not limited to) those concerning: i) commercial banking, including: a) lending; and b) treasury / cash management; ii) money / investment management, including: a) firm; and b) senior officers; and iii) any other commercial relationship that may be deemed material to evaluating the independence of research.
  • the research provider may further be required to be in compliances with all federal, state, agency and SRO rules & regulations.
  • the research sponsor shall take corrective action to ensure that misleading statements / behaviors are corrected immediately and in a manner that is in compliance with the law;
  • the research sponsor shall not retaliate against other members of the organization (e.g., subject companies and research providers) except to pursue due process via the dispute resolution procedures described below, wherein retaliation includes: i) failing to have a "reasonable basis" for initiating any and all complaints against other members of the organization; and
  • the research sponsor may actively discriminate (i.e., deny access) against non-members of the organization, as non-members are not bound to the code of conduct and the dispute resolution procedures of the organization.
  • the research sponsor shall keep confidential their research sponsorship activities except in those instances where the research sponsor is a public company, in which case the public company would disclose conflicts only in its capacity as a "subject company”.
  • Institutional Investors i.e., entities such as insurance companies, investment companies, pension funds, and/or trust departments that invest large sums of money in the securities market
  • analysts at sell-side providers
  • Institutional Investors may still assert undue influence upon analysts and research firms. For example, buy-side analysts and portfolio managers may make threats to sell-side analysts concerning e.g., the cutting of commissions and/or the withholding of votes in the various institution investors polls, for example.
  • Institutional Investors will never contract with third-party facilitator 42 for the performance of services (e.g., the generation of research), an Institutional Investor may wish to become a member of organization 44 for the sole purpose of acknowledging that they are willing to be bound by a code of conduct and, therefore, be held accountable for their actions. Accordingly, Institutional Investors are typically governed by rules similar to those of Research Sponsors.
  • the institutional investor shall not retaliate against other members of the organization (e.g., subject companies, research providers, and research sponsors) except to pursue due process via the dispute resolution procedures described below, wherein retaliation includes: i) failing to have a "reasonable basis" for initiating any and all complaints against other members of the organization; and
  • the institutional investor may actively discriminate (i.e., deny access) against non-members of the organization, as non-members are not bound to the code of conduct and the dispute resolution procedures of the organization.
  • code module 62 requires 230 that each member of organization 44 contractually agree to utilize a dispute resolution procedure to settle allegations concerning violations of the code of conduct. Further, every member of a membership class (i.e., both customers and service providers of organization 44) is required 232 to report (to third-party facilitator 42) any and all observed infractions of the reciprocal code of conduct caused by another member of organization 44 or by a non-member of organization 44.
  • the accusing member may initiate 234 a complaint (which is filed with and received 236 by third-party facilitator 42) that outlines the conduct (engaged in the accused member / non-member) that is alleged to violate the code of conduct.
  • these complaints are electronically submitted by organization members via code module 62 and a secure website (to be discussed below), in which the organization member making the allegation and the member / non-member that is the target of the allegation are identified, and the specifics of the alleged event are outlined.
  • the complaint may be filed in writing with third-party facilitator 42.
  • the complaint is typically reviewed and the technical sufficiency of the complaint is verified 238 (e.g., verifying that the accused member / non-member is identified, verifying that the accusing member is identified, and verifying that the conduct taken by the accused member / non-member may indeed violate the code of conduct, for example) by code module 62.
  • accusations of conduct code infractions may concern the actions of both members and/or non-members of organization 44.
  • third party facilitator 42 serves 242 a copy of the complaint on the accused non-member.
  • This service 242 of complaint is typically similar to that used in civil proceedings (e.g., a process server delivers a copy of the complaint to the accused non-member).
  • the accused non-member may be offered 244 the opportunity to become a member of service management organization 44 maintained and administered by third-party facilitator 42. If the accused non-member agrees to become a member of service management organization 44, the dispute resolution procedure (described below in greater detail) is initiated to investigate and resolve the dispute.
  • the accused non-member may be offered 246 the opportunity to participate in the dispute resolution procedure (described below in greater detail) so that the substance of the complaint can be investigated and resolved.
  • the accused non-member may typically participate in the dispute resolution procedure at no cost.
  • third party facilitator 42 may issue 248 a public service announcement that publicly discloses: the allegation made against the accused non-member; and the fact that the accused non-member was given the opportunity but refused to participate in the dispute resolution procedure.
  • this public service announcement is made via e.g., a web site maintained by the third-party facilitator 42, a press release, a trade publication /journal, and/or a general or industry-specific newspaper / magazine, for example.
  • the dispute resolution procedure (described below in greater detail) is initiated to investigate and resolve the dispute.
  • the honor code is tailored (based on business sector) to ensure the integrity of the end product produced. Therefore, if the service provider is an equity analyst, the analysts' honor code is tailored such that high-quality securities analysis and research is produced, and apportioned with respect to the various membership classes. For example, a typical honor code for security analysis is as follows:
  • any accusations that jeopardize the integrity of the end product provided by the service provider should be disclosed and adjudicated swiftly to curtail damage to the offended member (e.g., the service provider and/or the customer) and the general public that relies on the integrity of the end product.
  • a two-part dispute resolution procedure which includes: a mandatory non-binding resolution period; and a mandatory binding resolution period.
  • a mandatory non-binding resolution period (e.g., fourteen days) is typically initiated 250 (by code module 62) to assist the parties involved in privately and confidentially settling the dispute amongst themselves (prior to having the dispute elevated to a higher level).
  • third party facilitator 42 may issue 254 a public service announcement that publicly discloses: the allegation made against the accused member / non-member; that the parties are currently in a dispute that cannot be internally settled; and that either or both of the parties refused to enter into the mandatory binding resolution period.
  • this public service announcement is made via e.g., a web site maintained by the third-party facilitator 42, a press release, a trade publication / journal, and/or a general or industry-specific newspaper / magazine, for example.
  • This mandatory binding resolution period may include adjudication, binding arbitration, and/or any other commonly recognized forms of binding alternative dispute resolution. Further, this mandatory binding resolution period is typically an expedited procedure (e.g., twenty-eight days), and the adjudicators / arbitrators employed are typically members of an alternative dispute resolution organization, such as the American Arbitration Association. Alternatively, the service providers and customers may be contractually obligated to act as adjudicators / arbitrators and assist in settling disputes arising between other service providers and customers.
  • the first seven day period may employ mediation (i.e., low pressure and not binding on the parties); the second seven day period may employ non-binding arbitration (i.e., higher pressure and not binding on the parties); and, if still not resolved, the last fourteen day period may employ binding arbitration (i.e., higher pressure and binding on the parties).
  • the last fourteen day period may employ binding arbitration (i.e., higher pressure and binding on the parties).
  • the dispute must be resolved.
  • third party facilitator 42 may issue 260 a public service announcement (e.g., a press release) that publicly discloses: the allegation made against the accused member / non-member; the decision of the dispute resolution procedure; and the refusal of the accusing member and/or the accused member / non-member to abide by the decision of the dispute resolution procedure.
  • a public service announcement e.g., a press release
  • this public service announcement is made via e.g., a web site maintained by the third-party facilitator 42, a press release, a trade publication / journal, and/or a general or industry-specific newspaper / magazine, for example.
  • third party facilitator 42 may issue 264 a public service announcement (e.g., a press release) that publicly discloses: the allegation made against the accused member / non-member; the decision of the dispute resolution procedure; and the refusal of the accusing member and/or the accused member / non-member to continue to abide by the decision of the dispute resolution procedure.
  • a public service announcement e.g., a press release
  • this public service announcement is made via e.g., a web site maintained by the third-party facilitator 42, a press release, a trade publication /journal, and/or a general or industry-specific newspaper / magazine, for example.
  • Disclosures help protect the public and the integrity of an end product by compelling both members and non-members (of organization 44) within the market that produced the end product to demonstrate a higher-level of integrity in their dealings with other market participants.
  • Point of Consumption Disclosures are included within the end product produced by members (i.e., service providers) of organization 44.
  • the cover of the research report may include an annotation or seal stating that the product was produced by members of organization 44. This notation or seal may further state that the members of organization
  • the end product produced is an addition on a house
  • the customer may be presented with a certificate that certifies that the addition was constructed by members of organization 44. This certificate may then be used, during resale of the house, to bolster the sale price.
  • the annotation/seal may be placed on the front cover of the report, informing the reader that the report was prepared by a member of organization 44, who is/are bound by a code of conduct. Further, the annotation/seal may provide information about that analyst(s) performance statistics (as described above) or the analyst's market capitalization breakdown (as described above), for example.
  • Web-based Disclosures harness market forces to put pressure on, encourage and provide incentives for behavior that improves the integrity of the end product produced.
  • Disclosure screen 280 is a portion of the secure website (not shown) maintained by third-party facilitator 42.
  • the reporting of these accusations may be mandatory (i.e., the member is required to report) or voluntary (i.e., the member may choose to report).
  • third-party facilitator 42 may institute sanctions (e.g., against service provider 18, 20, 22 and/or customer 12, 14, 16) if a false / misleading claim is filed.
  • Disclosure screen 280 allows a member to make a disclosure by e.g., providing their Member ID (via field 282) and Member Password (via field 284) for identification and authentication purposes. Additionally, website 280 allows the member to identify (via field 286) the other member or non-member that is allegedly violating the code of conduct and/or acting in a manner that may potentially jeopardize the integrity of an end product. Further, website 280 allows the accusing member to summarize the suspect behavior within field 288.
  • the member may select the "submit" button 292 (via a screen pointer 290 that is controllable by a pointing device such as a computer mouse, not shown), which completes the submission process.
  • Code module 62 then initiates the dispute resolution process described above.
  • the member may abort the submission process by selecting the "cancel" button 294 with screen pointer
  • a service provider As discussed above, once a service provider is deemed qualified for admission into database 52, the service provider enters into a contract with third-party facilitator 42 to become a member of organization 44. Once a member of organization 44, administrator 36 configures and populates one or more database records with the pertinent information required to properly identify the service provider within database 52. Additionally and as discussed above, when a customer (e.g., customers 12, 14, 16) wishes to obtain paid-for services from one of the service providers (e.g., service providers 18, 20, 22) listed within database 52, the customer must enter into a contract with third-party facilitator 42 and become a member of service management organization 44.
  • a customer e.g., customers 12, 14, 16
  • paid-for services from one of the service providers e.g., service providers 18, 20, 22
  • searching module 54 When researching service providers listed within database 52, the customer (e.g., customer 12) accesses service management system 10 via customer computer 32 that is connected to network 26 (or network 28). Customer computer 32 (via user interface module 56) accesses searching module 54, which allows customer 12 to define queries for searching database 52.
  • Searching module 54 may include: a traditional search engine (e.g., a localized version of the Google tm or Yahoo tm search engines); or a standard SQL (i.e., Structured Query Language) search engine that allows customer 12 to compose structured search strings. Referring also to FIGS. 8 and 9, once searching module 54 is accessed by customer
  • search screen 300 (which is rendered by user interface module 56) that includes the various data fields 302, 304, 306, 308, 310, 312 that may be used by customer 12 to define 320 a query (using query generation module 330 of searching module 54).
  • wild card descriptors e.g., "*", and " ! ", for example
  • a blank field may be interpreted as a field wild card descriptor. Therefore, if all fields within search screen 300 are left blank and "search" button 314 is selected using screen pointer 290, the result set generated by searching module 54 would typically include each data record within database 52. Accordingly, it may be desirable to narrowly construe searches so that the result sets generated are manageable in size.
  • one or more of the search fields may include drop-down menus that allow the customer to select from a defined number of choices.
  • drop down menu 350 allows customer 12 to scroll (using scroll bar 352) through the possible choices concerning e.g., data field 302' (i.e., the provider-type field). The customer may then select the desired choice from drop down menu 350, thus populating the "provide type" data field 302'.
  • searching module 54 executes 322 the query (using query execution module 332) by searching the data records of database 52 and generating 324 a result set (using result generation module 334 of searching module 54) from which the customer may select 326 a service provider.
  • Result screen 400 typically includes a list of records 402 that match the search criteria entered by the member.
  • List of records 402 may be apportioned into columns (e.g., columns 404, 406, 408) that define e.g., the firm name, individual name, and address of the service provider(s).
  • a vertical scroll bar 410 allows customer 12 to scroll through the list of records 402 if the result set is large enough to fill more than one result screen.
  • customer 12 may select 326 one or more of the line items (e.g., line item 412) included within the list of records 402 of result screen 400.
  • list of records 402 is shown to include three columns, this is for illustrative purposes only, as other configurations are possible.
  • other columns may also be included in result screen 400 that e.g., correspond to the various terms defined in the query.
  • the various data records (e.g., data record 150) included within database 52 may include fields corresponding to a market capitalization breakdown 162, a current performance statistic 164, and/or a long-term performance statistic 166. Accordingly, when result screen 400 is rendered, the list of records 402 may include columns corresponding to these fields.
  • a horizontal scroll bar 414 allows customer 12 to view obscured columns not currently viewable on result screen 400.
  • list of records 402 may be sorted based on any of the columns included within the list of records, thus allowing the user to alter the manner in which the line items in list of records 402 are ranked. For example, while the records included in list of records 402 are sorted in accordance with the firm name (i.e., column 404), list of records 402 may also be sorted based on individual name (i.e., column 406), business address (i.e., column 408), market capitalization breakdown (not shown), current performance statistic (not shown) or long-term performance statistic (not shown), for example.
  • Service management system 10 may also include an API (i.e., application program interface; not shown) that allows third-party users (i.e., third-party user 46, FIG. 1) to retrieve data stored within database 52. Third-party user 46 may then incorporate this retrieved data into various products offered by third-party user 46. For example, third-party user 46 may retrieve (from database 52) market capitalization breakdown data for inclusion in a report concerning the top ten U.S. research firms.
  • API i.e., application program interface; not shown
  • the data record 450 corresponding to that line item is rendered by user interface module 56 for review by the customer.
  • line item 412 i.e., the line item that corresponds to John Smith
  • data record 64 is accessed (by data interface module 50) from database 52 and rendered (by user interface module 56) for review by customer 12.
  • Customer 12 may then review the qualifications of the selected service provider (i.e., John Smith) to decide whether the customer wishes to enter into a contract with third-party facilitator 42 to have service provider "John Smith" perform one or more services for customer 12.
  • the contract process may e.g., be initiated electronically by selecting (via screen pointer 290) the "contract button" 452. Alternatively, the contract process may be initiated by contacting third-party facilitator 42 in writing or telephonically.
  • the service provider is typically contacted by third-party facilitator 42.
  • the contact may be made by simultaneously sending messages to both the third-party facilitator and the selected service provider concerning the customer's desire to obtain services from the selected service provider.
  • customer 12 is required to enter into a user research contract with third-party facilitator 42.
  • service provider 18 is required to enter into an analyst research contract with third-party facilitator 42.
  • a single three party contract may be executed, in which the parties to the contract are the customer, the service provider, and the third-party facilitator.
  • the contract(s) entered into by the customer and the service provider require: the service provider to provide services to the customer for a defined period of time; and require the customer to accept the services rendered by the service provider for the defined period of time; with all the contracting parties being subject to the terms and conditions of the code of conduct (as discussed above).
  • system 10 and the code of conduct (specifically) are configured to ensure the integrity of the end product produced by the service provider(s).
  • a customer may be surcharged 266 if the contract is renewed within the terminal portion of the contract.
  • administrator 36 typically defines the terminal portion of a contract. This terminal portion may be a fixed amount of time e.g., a contract cannot be renewed within six months of the expiration date of the contract.
  • the terminal portion of a contract may be configured such that the terminal portion is defined to be a percentage (e.g., 50%) of the contracting period.
  • the customer is typically allowed 268 to renew the contract during any portion of the contract term, the customer is typically surcharged when renewing the contract during the terminal portion.
  • the surcharge associated with renewing the contract during the terminal portion may be as high as 100% of the contract amount.
  • each contract entered into by the customer may require 270 that the customer accept multiple bundles of services (i.e., multiple discrete service projects) from the service provider during the term of the contract.
  • customer 12 i.e., a publicly-traded company that issues stocks
  • service provider 18 i.e., a securities analyst
  • customer 12 and service provider 18 are required to enter into contracts for multiple recommendations (e.g., issuing a buy/sell/hold recommendation twice per year for two years), the ability of the service provider to be unbiased is enhanced, as the service provider may issue an unfavorable recommendation (i.e., a hold/sell recommendation) without fear of the customer deciding not to renew the research contract. Additionally, as the service provider is somewhat shielded from the threat of not renewing the contract, the customer is less likely to try to intimidate the service provider into issuing a favorable (i.e., buy) recommendation.
  • a favorable i.e., buy
  • the contract entered into by the service provider may prohibit 272 (and/or require the disclosure of) potentially-suspect third-party business relationships, such as: investment banking relationships; commercial banking relationships; money management relationships; investment management relationships; and any other commercial relationship that may be deemed material to evaluating the independence of research, for example.
  • third-party business relationships such as: investment banking relationships; commercial banking relationships; money management relationships; investment management relationships; and any other commercial relationship that may be deemed material to evaluating the independence of research, for example.
  • administration and maintenance module 58 allows administrator 36 to configure and maintain database 52 so that information concerning service providers 18, 20, 22 can be stored in a logical and searchable fashion (via searching module 54).
  • the customer e.g., customer 12
  • the customer typically accesses service management system 10 via customer computer 32 that is connected to network 26 (or network 28).
  • the customer may then define 320 and execute 322 a query and generate 324 a result set to search database 52 for a qualified service provider.
  • the customer may then select 326 one or more qualified service providers and contract with them to perform services. Examples of typical customers include individuals, corporations, agents, investors, institutions, and/or sponsors, for example.
  • the customer may not be interested in searching for, qualifying, and selecting one or more service providers. Further, being system 10 (generally) and the code of conduct (specifically) are configured to ensure the integrity of the end product produced by the service provider(s), the customer may be apprehensive about selecting the service provider.
  • database 52 defines a pool of qualified analysts, each of which is capable of providing paid-for research concerning a specific company.
  • This pool of qualified analysts may include every analysts listed within database 52, or only a portion thereof. Accordingly, separate pools of qualified analysts may be established for various technology sectors, business sectors, or market capitalization ranges, for example.
  • the specific company may operate within a specific business sector, such as: the securities industry; the health care services industry; the business products industry; the business services industry; the consumer products industry; the consumer services industry; the medical products industry; the medical services industry; the energy industry; the insurance industry; the contracting industry; the transportation industry; the pharmaceutical industry; the environmental industry; the technology products industry; the technology services industry; the telecom products industry; the telecom services industry; the financial products industry; the financial services industry; the academic services industry; and the entertainment industry.
  • the securities industry such as: the securities industry; the health care services industry; the business products industry; the business services industry; the consumer products industry; the consumer services industry; the medical products industry; the medical services industry; the energy industry; the insurance industry; the contracting industry; the transportation industry; the pharmaceutical industry; the environmental industry; the technology products industry; the technology services industry; the telecom products industry; the telecom services industry; the financial products industry; the financial services industry; the academic services industry; and the entertainment industry.
  • the customer may be interested in having a research project produced concerning the specific company.
  • customer 12 may be uncomfortable with selecting the specific analyst(s) to perform the research project.
  • customer 12 may not feel qualified to make the selection, or may not have time to perform the required research.
  • customer 12 may wish to have a neutral third-party make the selection in order to avoid any appearance of impropriety.
  • customer 12 may delegate the selection process to third-party facilitator 42 so that third-party facilitator 42: defines 320 the query; executes 322 the query (generating 324 the result set); and selects 326 one or more analysts (from the pool of qualified analysts) to produce the research project concerning the specific company. Accordingly, by allowing third-party facilitator 42 to select the analysts, the potential for market manipulation is minimized and the public is better protected, as the probability of the research project being unbiased is enhanced.
  • the selection process is handled by a neutral selection panel/board within third-party facilitator 42.
  • the individual member within the neutral selection panel/board may be e.g., appointed or elected (depending on the particular manner in which third-party facilitator 42 is organized).
  • the research project may require the generation of one or more discrete research products.
  • the research project may concern securities analysis and may require: • the generation of a single buy/sell/hold recommendation for a single security issued by the specific company;
  • the customer e.g., customer 12
  • the selected analysts e.g., service providers 18, 20, 22
  • the selected analysts are each typically required to enter into an analyst research contract with third-party facilitator 42.
  • a single multi-party contract may be executed, in which the parties to the contract are the customer (e.g., customer 12), each of the service providers (e.g., service providers 18, 20, 22), and third-party facilitator 42.
  • the specific company may be the producer of a product offered for sale and the customer (e.g., customer 12) may be interested in obtaining paid-for research concerning the product offered for sale.
  • the product offered for sale include: a consumer product; a business product; a medical product; an energy product; an insurance product; a contracting product; a transportation product; a pharmaceutical product; a technological product; a telecom product; a financial product; an academic product; and an entertainment product.
  • the specific company may be a provider of a service and the customer (e.g., customer 12) may be interested in obtaining paid-for research concerning the service.
  • the service include: a consumer service; a business service; a health care service; a hospital service; a rehabilitative service; a long-term care service; a medical service; an energy service; an insurance service; a contracting service; a transportation service; a pharmaceutical service; an entertainment service; a technological service; a telecom service; a financial service; an academic service; and an environmental service.
  • the above-described system is said to include a database, this is for illustrative purpose only. As is known in the art, other configurations are possible and any data structure may be used. For example, as opposed to a record-based database, table-based data files may be employed.
  • a printed publication may be produced by third-party facilitator 42 on a periodic basis (e.g., weekly or monthly, for example).
  • This publication would allow potential customers to review the qualifications of the individual service providers who are members of organization 44.
  • a publication would include a resource index that allows the potential customers to search the publication for qualified service providers.
  • the customer may be required to enter into a membership contract with the third-party facilitator 42 in order to review the publication.
  • the service provider would typically be required to enter into a membership agreement with third-party facilitator 42 in order to be listed within the publication.
  • all potential services providers may be listed within the publication (regardless of whether they entered into a membership agreement with third-party facilitator 42).
  • the service provider prior to performing a service for a customer, the service provider would be required to enter into a membership agreement with third-party facilitator 42.
  • performance indicator field 160 is defined above as including numerical descriptors associated with the "buy”, “sell” and “hold” ratings issued by the service provider, other configurations are possible, such as: the addition of e.g., “strong buy” and “strong sell” ratings; numerical descriptors associated with an outperform recommendation, a market perform recommendation, and an under-perform recommendation; or the consolidation of the numeric descriptors, in which a single descriptor is used to define cross-spectrum (i.e., buy, sell and hold) rating accuracy.
  • cross-spectrum i.e., buy, sell and hold
  • While the system is described above as requiring a customer to become a member of organization 44 (i.e., enter into a contract with third-party facilitator 42) prior to being able to search database 52, this is for illustrative purpose only and other configurations are possible.
  • the customer may be allowed to search database 52 and review the qualifications of the individual service providers (e.g., service providers 18, 20, 22) prior to entering into a contract with third-party facilitator.
  • the customer may be required to become a member of organization 44.
  • Membership in organization 44 and entering into a contract with third-party facilitator 42 may be mutually exclusive.
  • a customer may be required to enter into a membership contract with third-party facilitator 42 prior to being able to review database 52, and may be required to enter into a service contract prior to being able to receive services from a service provider.
  • a service provider may be required to enter into a membership contract with third-party facilitator 42 prior to being listed within database 52, and may be required to enter into a service contract prior to being able to perform services for a customer.
  • performance statistics are described above as being statistical averages (e.g., an unacceptable range of 0.000-0.499 and an acceptable range of 0.500-1.000) that are associated with the "buy", "sell” and “hold” ratings issued by the service provider over a defined period of time, this is for illustrative purposes only and other configurations are possible.
  • the performance statistics may be letter-based grades (e.g., "A”,
  • the performance statistics may be based on a common scenario that is applied to all service providers that are being rated.
  • An example (concerning securities analysis service providers) may be the determination of what the current market value for a $10,000 investment would be if: (a) the investment was made a defined period of time ago (e.g., one year, five years, or ten years, for example); and (b) the investor had followed all of the service provider's buy / sell / hold recommendations.
  • system 10 may be configured so that allegation are reported in writing or telephonically to third-party facilitator 42.
  • system 10 may be configured so that the reporting process is voluntary.
  • market capitalization breakdown is described above as being a graphical bar chart, this is for illustrative purposes only and other configurations are possible.
  • a graphical pie chart or a text-based table may be displayed.

Landscapes

  • Business, Economics & Management (AREA)
  • Strategic Management (AREA)
  • General Business, Economics & Management (AREA)
  • Economics (AREA)
  • Finance (AREA)
  • Marketing (AREA)
  • Accounting & Taxation (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Development Economics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
  • Financial Or Insurance-Related Operations Such As Payment And Settlement (AREA)
  • Management, Administration, Business Operations System, And Electronic Commerce (AREA)
  • Computer And Data Communications (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne un procédé, un produit logiciel et un ordinateur serveur permettant de maintenir une ressource d'informations qui définit un groupe d'analystes qualifiés. Chaque membre du groupe d'analystes qualifiés peut fournir un service de recherche payante concernant une entreprise spécifique. Un utilisateur peut passer un contrat avec un tiers facilitateur pour un projet de recherche concernant l'entreprise spécifique. Le tiers facilitateur peut sélectionner, parmi les membres du groupe d'analystes qualifiés, un ou plusieurs analystes sélectionnés pouvant assurer le projet de recherche concernant l'entreprise spécifique.
PCT/US2005/018170 2004-12-30 2005-05-23 Procede et systeme de recherche payante WO2006073476A2 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (18)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US64064904P 2004-12-30 2004-12-30
US60/640,649 2004-12-30
US11/073,980 US20050216297A1 (en) 2004-03-05 2005-03-07 Paid-for research method and system
US11/073,977 2005-03-07
US11/073,994 2005-03-07
US11/073,990 US20050203895A1 (en) 2004-03-05 2005-03-07 Data structure with performance descriptors
US11/073,993 US20050216491A1 (en) 2004-03-05 2005-03-07 Data structure with code of conduct
US11/074,142 US20050216323A1 (en) 2004-03-05 2005-03-07 Paid-for research method and system
US11/073,977 US20050203894A1 (en) 2004-03-05 2005-03-07 Paid-for research method and system
US11/074,142 2005-03-07
US11/073,980 2005-03-07
US11/073,993 2005-03-07
US11/073,994 US20050203896A1 (en) 2004-03-05 2005-03-07 Analyst search engine method and system
US11/073,809 US20050203769A1 (en) 2004-03-05 2005-03-07 Data structure with market capitalization breakdown
US11/074,084 2005-03-07
US11/074,084 US20050216322A1 (en) 2004-03-05 2005-03-07 Data structure with experience descriptors
US11/073,809 2005-03-07
US11/073,990 2005-03-07

Publications (2)

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WO2006073476A2 true WO2006073476A2 (fr) 2006-07-13
WO2006073476A3 WO2006073476A3 (fr) 2007-12-13

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PCT/US2005/018170 WO2006073476A2 (fr) 2004-12-30 2005-05-23 Procede et systeme de recherche payante
PCT/US2005/018637 WO2006073480A2 (fr) 2004-12-30 2005-05-23 Procede et systeme de resolution de dispute
PCT/US2005/027137 WO2006073498A2 (fr) 2004-12-30 2005-07-29 Procede et systeme de controle
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PCT/US2005/027137 WO2006073498A2 (fr) 2004-12-30 2005-07-29 Procede et systeme de controle
PCT/US2005/027058 WO2006073494A1 (fr) 2004-12-30 2005-07-29 Procede et systeme de recherche payante

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WO2002027606A2 (fr) * 2000-09-26 2002-04-04 D.E. Shaw & Co., Inc. Systeme et procede de negociation electronique et d'execution de transactions de blocs d'actions destines a des investisseurs institutionnels
US20030069868A1 (en) * 2001-06-29 2003-04-10 Vos Jules Jakob Distributed decision processing system
US20030055779A1 (en) * 2001-09-06 2003-03-20 Larry Wolf Apparatus and method of collaborative funding of new products and/or services
EP1324069B1 (fr) * 2001-12-21 2009-09-02 STMicroelectronics S.r.l. Dispositif de détection des distances utilisant des signaux chaotiques
AU2003213021A1 (en) * 2002-02-11 2003-09-04 Zoe Boza Multiparty transaction system
WO2003098386A2 (fr) * 2002-05-14 2003-11-27 Bank Of New York Systeme de gestion des commissions
US20040034585A1 (en) * 2002-08-14 2004-02-19 Saunders James A. Charitable donation system integrated with brokerage account
US20040236660A1 (en) * 2003-05-19 2004-11-25 Thomas T. Randal Multiparty transaction system
US20050021437A1 (en) * 2003-06-02 2005-01-27 Matthias Bock Method and system for structuring a trade convention for financial institutions
US20050246264A1 (en) * 2004-04-30 2005-11-03 Instinet L.L.C. Method of managing research/advisory service provider payments

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Also Published As

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WO2006073480A2 (fr) 2006-07-13
WO2006073498A2 (fr) 2006-07-13
WO2006073498A3 (fr) 2007-03-29
WO2006073480A3 (fr) 2009-05-28
WO2006073494A1 (fr) 2006-07-13
WO2006073476A3 (fr) 2007-12-13

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