Method of charging for pay-per-access information over a network

US5930777A · kind A · utility

Inventor

• Timothy P. Barber · Boise, US

Key dates

• Filing date: May 23, 1997
• Grant date: Jul 27, 1999
• Expiry date: May 23, 2017

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G07F17/0014
• WIPO field: IT methods for management
• WIPO sector: Electrical engineering

Abstract

A method for charging a consumer for access, over a network, to a vendor's information; in particular, a method for this pay-per-access over the Internet. The method uses a third-party, called a banker, to mint tokens identified with particular information a consumer might want to purchase. The tokens are immediately available to the consumer because of the consumer's having already established an account with the banker, and purchased what are here called credit units, which can have a value of only a fraction of a cent, allowing vendors to charge very little for access to their information. A token is pre-authorization for a consumer to pay for access for a particular page of information. In one embodiment, when a consumer makes a purchase, i.e. chooses to access a Web page for which a vendor makes a charge, the transaction is routed through the banker, which charges in credit units (those already on account), and credits the vendor account. The vendor later redeems for payment whatever credit units have been credited to the vendor's banker account, not necessarily only those credit units resulting from transactions with a particular consumer. In another embodiment, a vendor uses…