Patent ID: 8231470
Filing Date: 2012-07-31
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
1. A system for conducting a contest, comprising: a computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable process steps; and a processor coupled to the storage medium, retrieving and executing said process steps, wherein said process steps comprise: (a) providing a contest that is played by a plurality of players across a communications network, in which the players compete to earn points awarded by a central contest administrator and the individual players are ranked based on their total number of points; and (b) allowing individual ones of the players to select a sponsor from a set of previously identified sponsors, wherein the players also can earn points, which contribute to their totals for ranking purposes, from the sponsors they have selected, and wherein individual ones of the sponsors in the set are allocated points and have individual discretion regarding how to award their allocated points to the players that have selected them.