Abstract:
The invention is a randomless game, as opposed to a game of chance, for a multiplicity of participants preferably using applications software and an internet web site which enables a contest to be played on-line. The winner of the contest is established by participants engaging in a series of conscious acts in each of a plurality of rounds which achieves peer selection that rather rapidly results in elimination of participants to select a winner, or at least a very few participants from which a winner is selected by an end game procedure. The series of conscious acts concern the use of profiles published to the participants so they can make decisions about the donation of tokens to qualified recipients, which are determined by contest rules. The game contemplates tokens that are distributed or sold and the winner receives a prize, such as a large amount of money. The game is also includes rules that prevent collusion between players to keep from being eliminated from the game by the peer selection process.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The present invention relates to field of competitive games involving a significant number of simultaneous participants. More specifically, it is a system for determining as arbitrarily as possible a winner of a contest, preferably played on line, without the winner being determined by chance. The system and process replace the customary “draw” of a lottery. The system emulates a game of chance, without actually being one. The system&#39;s objective is to provide an alternative for a common lottery that is actually superior thereto. It is superior because even though it appears to be a lottery it relies on the conscious conduct of the players instead of random luck, referred to herein and in the title of the application as “randomless.” While the absence of chance in the game or the randomless nature of it, could lead to an assertion that system is not subject to regulation under gambling laws, the inventor or system operator does not elect to make that assertion and is willing to submit to legal regulation under gambling laws. 
         [0003]    2. Description of the Prior Art: 
         [0004]    The prior art in regard to the present invention is characterized by its sheer volume. The contest or game art is very crowded indeed. Just a few examples will hopefully illustrate the point. One of the key features of the present invention is that while the contest initially appears to be a lottery, which would make it subject to legal regulation in most jurisdictions in the US and abroad, it is in fact not a lottery. That is because the inventive system technically bypasses the classification of gambling, which is defined by the elements: consideration, chance, and prize. Theoretically, if any one or more of these elements is missing, the game or activity can be argued not to be considered gambling. In the present system the winner is deliberately and consciously selected by the contest participants. But while chance is actually not a factor, the inventor has determined that asserting there is no gambling issue is counterproductive to marketing with a system that initially appears to be a lottery. Therefore, it is preferable to acquiesce in regulation by governmental agencies as if the system were the game of chance that it resembles. 
         [0005]    A key word in prior art references is the word “random.” Random selection of anything implies that the selection is not deliberate. The clear difference between the present invention and a great many prior art games or contests is the winner is deliberately and consciously selected by the contest participants even though they cannot vote for the winner. The winner is selected through the mechanism of the contest, which is powered by the acts of the participants, but not controlled by any of them. Becoming a winner in the present system can be asserted to result from the winner&#39;s skill, although it is really just a result of a series of conscious acts by the participants. 
         [0006]    An example of the prior art is Brasseur et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,439,997 in which a “number of user profiles are randomly selected periodically.” Brasseur also uses the term “lottery.” Lotteries are by definition games of chance, in which the winner is often randomly selected in a drawing. This can be quite sophisticated with electronics having a memory circuit, antenna, radio receiver and comparator all as a part of a lottery ticket, such as in Koza et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,453. Another example of a lottery invention involving electronics is Lewis, U.S. Pat. No. 6,948,712. An additional variation is when the winning combination is preselected, as in Philyaw, U.S. Pat. No. 6,636,892. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    Bearing in mind the foregoing, it is a principal object of the present invention to establish a system for a contest in the nature of a lottery that is not a game of chance but rather a game of a series of conscious acts by game participants. 
         [0008]    A related principal object of the present invention is the creation of software to be used by the system operator in conducting a contest that resembles a game of chance without really being one by having the selection of a winner result from the deliberate conduct of the contest participants, a randomless proceeding. 
         [0009]    Another object of the present invention is conduct of contest accessible by a large number of participants through the use of a web site on the internet such that the location of the participant has no significance. 
         [0010]    A further object of the present invention is to provide a contest in which the contest winner receives a monetary prize that is raised, at least in part, from the entry fees of the contest participants. 
         [0011]    An similar object of the present invention is to provide a system for a contest that well suited to be offered on an on-line platform. 
         [0012]    A related object of the present invention is to provide a description and drawings for a high level functional design as the nomenclature hereinafter suggests for a web based software application in the form of a contest. 
         [0013]    Another object of the present invention is to provide a format for a contest to be played on a television show or face to face live in real time. 
         [0014]    The principal advantages of the present invention are that the element of chance is replaced with randomless participant selection as a game of a series of conscious acts, in which each participant must continue giving tokens to other participants until a winner or winners is/are selected, that those participants that receive no tokens are out of the game, the game rules prohibit donations to contest relations, thus preventing passing tokens back and forth between participants in secret collaboration with each other to stay in the contest, and a profile may only select one recipient per round for donation. 
         [0015]    Other objects and advantages will be apparent to those skilled in the art. 
         [0016]    In accordance with a principal aspect of the present invention, the invention is preferably a system using applications software and a web site which enables a contest in which tokens are distributed or sold and the winner(s) receive a prize, such as a large amount of money and the winner of the contest is established by peer selection rather than chance, in a randomless proceeding. Along the lines of its rules, the invention facilitates, guides and monitors the selection of the winner of the contest game by its participants. 
         [0017]    To understand the operation of the present invention, it is first necessary to establish some definitions. The system used by the system operator of the contest also refers to the software application executing and performing the method and procedures in combination with the matching computer hardware and support software. The contest is a lottery-like game that is created by application of the system. The contest is a competitive encounter between individual participants carried on in pursuit of a prize. A contest is played over a set period of time and has a minimum number of participants. Also the contest is referred to as the game. 
         [0018]    Understanding of the present invention also requires reference to the applicable rules. The rules of the contest are a set of regulations that are enforced by the system and with which all participants must comply to be able to participate in the contest and qualify for the prize. The principal rules are set forth in the Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments hereinafter. 
         [0019]    A participant is a natural person participating in the contest. The participant may play the contest with one or more profiles. The factual personal data of the participant is stored by the system for the unique identification of the participant as well as administrative and transactional purposes between the participant and the system. This data is confidential and not shared with or accessible by other participants. 
         [0020]    A profile contains data the system discloses to other participants. The profile is created for other participants to be able to choose a recipient that matches each participant&#39;s preferences. The profile is, among other things, made of data such as demographics, personal favorites and personal traits. The profile is needed for the identification and selection of participants by other participants as well as the support the system is providing to this end. The profile is not required to be truthful, it may freely be created by the participant and can therefore be either factual, invented or a combination of the two. The term “profile” can be a synonym for a participant, and it can also often be referred as a donor or recipient, depending on the role it performs in the contest at a particular moment in real time. Profiles are referred to as a sister profiles if they belong to the same participant. 
         [0021]    A profile is referred to as recipient, if it has received at least one token from a donor or has been chosen by a donor to be given a token, under the rules of the contest. A profile is referred to as donor if it has given a token to a selected recipient, or has selected a recipient to whom a token is given under the rules of the contest. 
         [0022]    The contest is played in a series of rounds. An active profile must in each round donate all of its tokens to a recipient and at the same time hope to receive one or more tokens from other profiles acting in the role of a donor. A profile can therefore be both a recipient and a donor at the same moment during the contest, and a participant can purchase tokens for multiple profiles in same contest. 
         [0023]    A donation is the act of a profile, i.e., the participant owning the profile, of selecting and giving one or more tokens to a recipient under the rules of the system. An inadmissible donation is an intended donation, not consummated, between profiles that are prohibited from transacting together under the rules of the system. 
         [0024]    A token is an electronically issued certificate or voucher representing a certain value. The token is exclusively used for participating in the contest and is the subject of donation under the rules of the game. It is analogous to a lot played in a lottery. A token balance is the total credit of tokens belonging to a single profile. A token balance and its monetary value cannot be separated. Within the rules of the game, all tokens belonging to a single profile are accumulated and merged into a single balance that in effect must be played as a single token. 
         [0025]    As noted above, the contest is made up of a number of consecutive rounds, recurring routines executed by the system and the repetitive actions by the profiles of selecting a donor and donating the token(s) for as long as no final winner has been determined. Each round at least theoretically reduces the number of participants leading to a final winner. 
         [0026]    A contest relation is created between profiles as one or more tokens is/are donated from one profile to another. Both the donor and recipient profiles become part of the contest relation, as well as all the sister profiles of the profiles taking part in the transaction. 
         [0027]    The system compiles a list of qualified recipients for each profile, i.e., a list of profiles to which a donation can be made. This list starts in the first round with all profiles registered for the contest minus the profile&#39;s sister profiles. By selecting certain desired traits and characteristics for a prospective recipient, the donor reduces the number of recipients in the list. However, these selections can be undone, increasing the list. After contest relations have been established during play, the system deletes involved profiles from the list of qualified recipients to make sure a contest relation cannot be repeated in the course of the same contest. 
         [0028]    Qualified donors are donors that on the basis of the contest relation record are allowed to donate their tokens to another involved profile. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0029]    Various other features of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following discussion taken in conjunction with the appended drawings, in which: 
           [0030]      FIG. 1  is a flow diagram illustrating the process steps in participant registration in the system. 
           [0031]      FIG. 2  is a flow diagram illustrating the process steps in participant selection of a recipient and donation thereto of token(s) in a given round in the system. 
           [0032]      FIG. 3  is a flow diagram illustrating the process steps following participant attempts at donation in the system. 
           [0033]      FIG. 4  is a flow diagram illustrating the process steps following receipt of donations in the system. 
           [0034]      FIG. 5  is a flow diagram illustrating the process steps regarding the end game, exceptions and continuation, i.e., tests to prevent stalling of the contest when the number of remaining participants is small. 
           [0035]      FIG. 6  is a flow diagram illustrating the process steps in an alternative end game. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0036]    As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention which may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed structure. 
         [0037]    The principal rules of the contest are as follows: 
         [0038]    1. Each participant must set up one or more unique profiles and for each profile acquire at least one token. 
         [0039]    2. At the start of the contest, the profile must select a qualified recipient to whom the profile can donate the token. In reality, the participant owning the profile performs the action, but for reasons of clarity, no such distinction is generally made herein. 
         [0040]    3. If, in any round, a profile does not receive a token, the profile loses and is out of the contest. 
         [0041]    4. If, in any round, a profile receives one or more tokens, it is winning and may play another round. 
         [0042]    5. As long as the profile is in the contest, it must for each subsequent round again select a recipient to whom it must donate its token(s) from the remaining qualified recipients. 
         [0043]    6. The remaining qualified recipients excludes sister profiles (profiles belonging to the same participant). 
         [0044]    7. The remaining qualified recipients excludes previous contest relations. A contest relation is created between profiles as one or more tokens are donated from one profile to another. Both profiles become part of the contest relation. Sister-profiles of the profiles taking part in the transaction, are also considered contest relations. 
         [0045]    8. If after several rounds, a profile cannot make or receive a donation because there are no qualified recipients left, rule 7 is suspended for all profiles for the concerned round. 
         [0046]    9. Afterwards only newly established contest relations count. 
         [0047]    10. If still no donations can be made, rule 6 is suspended as well, but only for the involved profile(s). 
         [0048]    11. If only two profiles are left in the contest, the one holding the highest token balance is declared the winner and receives the tokens from the remaining profile. 
         [0049]    12. If one profile remains, it is declared the winner. 
         [0050]    13. The winner receives the monetary value that the accumulated tokens represent, less the amount retained by the system operator. 
         [0051]    Reference is now made to the drawings, wherein like characteristics and features of the present invention shown in the various figures are designated by the same reference numerals. 
         [0052]    Turning first to  FIG. 1  covering processes A, in process step A 01  at  10 , the participant registers and a record is made of the personal data of the participant. The participant registers by providing required information I 1  at  12 . The participant&#39;s personal data contains information the system needs for the unique identification of the participant as well as administrative and transactional purposes. This information is factual and concealed from other participants. It includes the following required information: first name, last name, date of birth, martial status, zip or postal code, city, state, country, email address, payment details such as credit or debit card number, username and password. The data is for instance collected by requiring the participant to enter data on-line in free fields, or make selections of variables through tick-boxes or drop down menus. Some of this information is checked to determine whether or not the participant is allowed to take part the contest Test  100  at  14  using a predetermined external process (A 02 ) at  16 . If the prospect fails Test  100 , he or she proceeds  18  to end  20 . As part of this process step, the participant must provide payment details in order to purchase at least one token at a later stage. Also the participant must certify agreement to the terms and conditions Test  110  at  22 , meaning that the participant certifies to donate the purchased token(s) to another participant or one of his/her&#39;s profiles within the restrictions of the system and by means of the system and to subsequently give received token(s) to another participant or one of his/her&#39;s profiles, until in the course of the contest the participant either does not hold any tokens anymore or is determined to be one of the winner(s) by the system. If the participant fails Test  110  at  22 , he or she proceeds  24  to end  26 . 
         [0053]    Next, one or more profiles are created and entered by the participant I 2  at  28  and captured  30  by the system in step A 03  at  32 . A profile contains data the system discloses to other participants, except for the password. The profile is created for other participants to be able to choose a recipient that matches their preferences. This data is thus needed for the identification and selection of participants by other participants as well as the support the system is providing to this end. 
         [0054]    A profile is not required to be truthful. It may freely be created by the participant and can therefore be either factual, invented or a combination of the two. The entered profile must be unique, which is determined by Test  120  at  34 . If this is not the case, in A 05  at  36  the system requires  38  the participant to make changes to the entered profiles(s) back to  28 . If the profile is unique, the participant must make an entry to approve payment I 3  at  40  to purchase at least one token for the profile. The payment is processed by the system A 04  at  42  using an external payment processing application A 08  at  44 . After this the system creates a record for each profile A 06  at  46 . A participant is allowed to enter multiple profiles, as long as at least one token has been acquired for every completed profile. The data collected to set up a profile may vary per contest. It includes the following required information: username and password, first name or alias, last name or alias. It may include optional information such as: date of birth, marital status, zip or postal code, city, state, country, hobbies, nationality, place of birth, endorsements, preferences, living conditions, personal features, job, income, etc. The data is collected by (for instance) requiring the participant to enter data on-line in free fields, or make selections of variables through tick-boxes or drop down menus. 
         [0055]    There is a fixed time window in which participants may register for the contest. A minimum number of profiles must be registered before a fixed point in time for the contest to commence. After the predetermined registration window lapses A 07  at  48  the system determines whether enough participants have registered to start the contest using Test  130  at  50 . If Test  130  is failed at  52 , the system ends the contest at  54 . 
         [0056]    The contest is made up of a number of rounds. In  FIGS. 2-4  processes B 1  to B 3  describe the sequence of process steps and tests that make up a round in the contest. The number of rounds is not predetermined. The contest continues to be played until a winner has been determined. Participants must at the beginning of a round, for each of their profiles, select a single recipient to whom he or she donates his/her full balance of token(s). Starting next with  FIG. 2 , the system records the selection of desired criteria and characteristics the recipient must meet B 01  at  56 . A participant narrows the list of qualified recipients by consecutively selecting desired criteria I 4  at  58  for his/her looked-for recipient. With each selected criterion, the list of qualified recipients compiled by the system for each donor grows shorter. The list of eligible recipients, meeting the selection criteria, is compiled B 02  at  60 . Next, the system tests whether one or more of the eligible recipients are sister profiles of the donor involved Test  210  at  62 . Sister profiles are not qualified recipients, meaning they are not allowed. Sister profiles are therefore deleted from the list of qualified recipients B 03  at  64 . Next, Test  220  at  66  determines whether one or more of the eligible recipients are contest relations of the donor involved. Recall that a contest relation is created between profiles as one or more tokens is/are donated from one profile to another. Both the donor and recipient profiles become part of the contest relation, as well as all the sister-profiles of the profiles taking part in the transaction. Therefore, contest relations are not qualified recipients and are therefore deleted B 04  at  68  from the list of qualified recipients. 
         [0057]    Now that the list of eligible recipients only contains qualified recipients, the list is displayed B 05  at  70  to the participant. The participant may now either go back at  72  to B 01  at  58  to further narrow the search or change certain criteria, or the participant may enter the final selection I 5  at  74  for a specific recipient to whom to make a donation. This selection is registered by the system B 08  at  76 . After the selection is made, the system finalizes and records the donation made B 09  at  78 . A predetermined process establishes the expiration of the donation window B 10  at  80 . After the donation window has lapsed, Test  240  at  82  determines if a donation has actually been made within the donation window. If not, the profile is deleted B 12  at  84  to end  86  from the contest because of non-compliance with the contest terms and conditions. If the profile in question did make a donation as expected, the involved donation is processed. All donations are processed simultaneously B 11  at  88 . 
         [0058]    At the top of  FIG. 3 , Test  260  at  90  checks if the selected recipient has made a donation to a qualified recipient and thus complied with the rules of the contest. If not, the recipient did not comply with the rules of the contest and is deleted therefrom. This means that the intended donation to the recipient has not been processed because it has bounced. Therefore, the donor receives back the token(s) that he/she attempted to donate B 16  at  92 . 
         [0059]    However, under normal circumstances, the token(s) donated is/are added to the token balance of the selected recipient B 17  at  94 . The successful donation brings about a new contest relation which is registered and added to the record of the donor profile B 18  at  96 . Subsequently, the system verifies whether involved recipient has sister profiles Test  270  at  98 . If so, these profiles are also added 100 to the profile&#39;s record and labeled a Tcontest relation B 19  at  102 . 
         [0060]    Now that all donations have been processed,  FIG. 4  begins with the system testing whether each remaining profile, besides making a donation, has also received one or more donation(s) Test  280  at  104 . If the answer is yes, the received donation(s) of token(s) are added to that profile&#39;s token balance B 20  at  106 . The donor(s) of these tokens is/are new contest relation(s) and is/are added as such to profile&#39;s record B 21  at  108 . Subsequently, the system also verifies Test  300  at  110  whether involved donor(s) have sister profiles. If so, these sister profiles are also labeled as a contest relation(s) and are added to the profile&#39;s records as well B 24  at  112 . Going back to Test  280  at  104 , if the relevant profile did not receive any donation, the system, at Test  290  at  114 , needs to determine if the balance of tokens for each of the involved profiles is still positive (larger than 0). If not for a given profile, that profile can no longer be part of the contest. The profile has consequently lost and is deleted from the contest B 22  at  116  to end  118 . To complete this part of the process, all remaining participants simultaneously receive notification of their profiles&#39; new token balance(s) B 25  at  120 . Note that if the relevant profile passes Test  290  at  114  it passes  122  to B 25  at  120  to receive its new token balance. 
         [0061]      FIG. 5  shows the end game, some exceptions and continuation. Continuation refers to a number of tests that have been included to prevent the contest from stalling when the number of remaining profiles drops to only a few. Test  350  at  124  determines if the number of remaining participants (not profiles) is equal to a very small predetermined number, e.g., 2 or 3. If true, the winner has been determined. The rules of the contest state that if only a few (a predetermined number) participants remain, the profile holding the highest token balance is declared the winner and is entitled to receive the token balance from the other remaining profiles of the remaining participants B 30  at  126 . If false, Test  360  at  128  establishes whether the remaining participants equals 1. If true, this of course also means that the winner has been selected B 31  at  130 . 
         [0062]    As a result of either B 30  or B 31 , the winner receives the payout of the “jackpot” B 32  at  132  which is the monetary value of the represented by the accumulated tokens and the contest is ended at  134 . If Tests  350  at  124  and  360  at  128  prove to be false, a winner has not been determined and the contest moves to the next round. 
         [0063]    Preceding the next round, Test  310  at  136  determines if the remaining qualified recipients for each donor is larger than zero (or another predetermined number). If not true, the contest relations records for all profiles is cleared in step B 26  at  138 . Next, Test  330  at  140  determines if the number of qualified donors for a recipient is larger than zero, or any other predetermined number. If not true, the contest relations records for all profiles is cleared by the system B 28  at  142 . Then participants are invited to start a new round B 33  at  144  by returning to process step B 01  at  56  as seen in  FIG. 2 . 
         [0064]    Finally turning to  FIG. 6 , the system operator may choose to vary the “end game” by allowing more than one winner. The alternative determination of multiple winners brings about the following changes to the system. Starting process B 3 , alternative Test  380  at  146  establishes whether the number of remaining profiles in the contest is less than the predetermined maximum number of winners. If true, the remaining profiles are established winners B 35  at  148 . The price to be paid out to all remaining profiles is established B 36  at  150 . This is either the monetary value that the profiles&#39; token balance represents, or alternatively the accumulated monetary value all tokens in the contest represent divided by the number of remaining profiles. The price is paid out to the winning profiles B 37  at  152  ending the contest at  154 . If Test  380  at  146  proves false, the process continues at Test  310  at  136  as described in regard to  FIG. 5 . 
         [0065]    While the invention has been described, disclosed, illustrated and shown in various terms or certain embodiments or modifications which it has assumed in practice, the scope of the invention is not intended to be, nor should it be deemed to be, limited thereby and such other modifications or embodiments as may be suggested by the teachings herein are particularly reserved especially as they fall within the breadth and scope of the claims here appended.