Interactive demand management

US7908207B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. · US

Inventors

• Edward J. Boyle · Montclair, US
• Tom Levine · Alpharetta, US
• Pat Corbett · Spring, US
• John Berkley · Evanston, US
• Linda Birbara · New York, US
• Richard Scott Hand · Holland, US
• Dale Contratto · Scottsdale, US
• Michael Gonzales · Mountain View, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Oct 14, 2008
• Grant date: Mar 15, 2011
• Expiry date: Feb 20, 2029

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G06Q40/04
• WIPO field: IT methods for management
• WIPO sector: Electrical engineering

Abstract

A system and method is disclosed which allows the aggregation of the demands of various buyers, providing an incentive for suppliers to bid to supply those demands in an auction. The system and method operates by scanning a database which contains a listing of goods or services sought by various people or entities. Thereafter, similar goods or services are grouped together and presented to various vendors. The vendors are given the opportunity to bid on the group of similar goods or services. Such a bid may vary from the originally purchased goods or services as long as the bid is within a predetermined range. The vendor which presents the optimum bid within a predetermined period of time is selected as the provider of the goods or services and proceeds to supply the goods or services at the bid upon amount.