Patent ID: 7945501
Filing Date: 2011-05-17
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
1. A method for constraining a consumer's ability to take delivery of a price protected commodity, comprising: presenting to a consumer a price protection contract for the purchase of a commodity, wherein the price protection contract specifies a locale and at least one lock price, quantity or delivery time frame such that commodity may be purchased at the lock price at one of a plurality of locations within the locale; setting up an account associated with the price protection contract for the consumer at a price protection system accessible by the consumer over a network via one or more computing devices; associating a virtual reserve of the price protected commodity with the account; and specifying a time frame during which all or a predetermined portion of the virtual reserve is to be depleted, wherein the time frame comprises a plurality of time segments and each of the plurality of time segments is associated with a predefined quantity of the virtual reserve of the price protected commodity that is to be depleted correspondingly.