Patent ID: 6016504
Filing Date: 2000-01-18
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
A method for tracking a purchase of a product supplied by merchant; the purchase being made by a customer through a virtual outlet; the merchant, virtual outlet, and customer each having a computer connected through the Internet; the method comprising:receiving at the virtual outlet computer from the customer computer a request for a virtual outlet Web page, the virtual outlet Web page having an indication of the product and a link associated with the product, the link identifying a merchant Web page of the merchant computer, identifying the virtual outlet, and identifying a virtual outlet return Web page;sending from the virtual outlet computer to the customer computer the virtual outlet Web page;displaying at the customer computer the virtual outlet Web page;receiving from the customer at the customer computer a selection of the product;sending from the customer computer to the merchant computer a request for the merchant Web page identified by the link associated with the selected product, the request including an indication of the virtual outlet;receiving at the merchant computer the request for the merchant Web page;upon receiving the request for the merchant Web page,under control of the merchant computer, modifying the merchant Web page to contain a return link based on the indication of the virtual outlet included in the request so that upon completion of the purchase, the customer computer displays the virtual outlet return Web page identified by the return link; andsending from the merchant computer to the customer computer the modified merchant Web page;displaying at the customer computer the modified merchant Web page, wherein after the customer purchases the product from the merchant, the merchant credits the virtual outlet identified by the link; andupon completion of the purchase, displaying at the customer computer the virtual outlet return Web page identified by the return link in the modified merchant Web page.