Abstract:
A ticketing system is disclosed and comprises a computing facility. The facility is operable to (i) receive an order, for goods and/or services of a provider, transmitted to the facility by a remote input device; (ii) ascertain if the goods and/or services ordered are available from the provider in sufficient quantities to permit the order to be filled; (iii) transmit to the remote input device, if goods and/or services availability has been ascertained to be insufficient to fill the order, a notification as to non-availability; and (iv) if goods and/or services availability has been ascertained to be sufficient to fill the order, satisfy the order.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/912,021 filed Apr. 16, 2007. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates to the field of ticketing. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    Computerized ticketing was first popularized in the late 1970s and early 1980 by Ticket Reservation Systems, Inc., which operated a series of computerized terminals under the TICKETRON™ banner that it called “electronic box offices”. These were located in publicly accessible locations, such as banks and department stores, and securely linked to a sophisticated central private computer system that maintained an electronic “inventory” of the tickets made available to the TICKETRON system by venue operators and the like. Ticketmaster, LLC, a competitor, absorbed TICKETRON in 1991, and the merged entity remains the world&#39;s largest seller of event tickets. However, with the advent of the Internet, the network of ticket outlets has mostly vanished, and a large proportion of event tickets are now sold over the Internet to end consumers. For events, which are typically booked well in advance, this system can work well. However, ticketing is also carried out in association with items which are purchased by users on an impromptu basis, shortly before being needed, for example, tickets for a bus trip or for entry to a theme park. In these cases, users may not have access to an Internet-linked computer, such that this sales model has limitations. In these cases, ticketing in many instances is still done via the venerable “box office” model, which is limiting in terms of sales. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    A ticketing system forms one aspect of the invention. The ticketing system comprises a computing facility. The computing facility is operable to receive an order, for goods and/or services of a provider, transmitted to the facility by a remote input device; ascertain if the goods and/or services ordered are available from the provider in sufficient quantities to permit the order to be filled; transmit to the remote input device, if goods and/or services availability has been ascertained to be insufficient to fill the order, a notification as to non-availability; and, if goods and/or services availability has been ascertained to be sufficient to fill the order, satisfy the order. 
         [0005]    The system permits limited-availability tickets to be sold from remote locations, via remote input devices. The mechanism by which data flows in use of the system is sufficiently efficient to permit the system to be deployed, for example, on debit or credit card readers as are commonly possessed by merchants. As a further example, the system can be deployed on wireless debit/credit card readers, as used by merchants at festivals and the like. Merchants can thus utilize ticket sales as a supplemental source of revenue, and enterprises can use merchants and others as agents for ticket sales, even in respect of limited-availability product that would conventionally be sold via a box office. The system can be flexible, to permit the enterprises to tailor the price and availability of product from agent to agent. This, for example, permits an enterprise to sell tickets at lower prices in economically depressed areas, or in areas where a given event or product has heavier competition in comparison to other areas. A vendor might also wish to reduce prices of a product in areas geographically remote from a ticketed event, to reflect the increased travel costs to the event that ticket purchasers in such areas would bear and encourage sales from such remote areas. The system also permits enterprises to reduce the amount of currency that might otherwise be received by ticket vendors/acceptors, for example, bus drivers, to simultaneously simplify the transaction for the bus driver and reduce the risk of theft. Yet further, the system also permits enterprises to substantially discount product in the period immediately preceding the scheduled completion of the event, to avoid unsold seats, etc. 
         [0006]    Other advantages, features and characteristics of the present invention, as well as methods of operation and functions of the related elements, will become more apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description and the appended claims with reference to the accompanying drawings, the latter being briefly described hereinafter. 
     
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0007]      FIG. 1  is a diagrammatic view of the system, in overview. 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  is a diagrammatic view of a network with which the system interacts in use; 
           [0009]      FIG. 3  is a diagrammatic view of the ticket purchase aspects of the system; 
           [0010]      FIG. 4  is a diagrammatic view of the barcode generation aspects of the system; 
           [0011]      FIG. 5  is a diagrammatic view of the update management aspects of the system; 
           [0012]      FIG. 6  is a diagrammatic view of the product management aspects of the system; 
           [0013]      FIG. 7  is a diagrammatic view of the self service ticket purchase via PDA aspects of the system; 
           [0014]      FIG. 8  is a diagrammatic view of the self service ticket purchase via room service aspects of the system; 
           [0015]      FIG. 9  is a diagrammatic view of the money flow aspects of the system; and 
           [0016]      FIG. 10  is a diagrammatic view of the money flow aspects of the system. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0017]    A system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is hereinafter described in detail. In the preferred embodiment, the system is operated by an entity, denoted for simplicity throughout the description as “Proprietor”. The operator of the system, i.e. “Proprietor” may be the owner of the system, but it should be understood that the Proprietor may be a licensed user, hired manager, etc., and the word “Proprietor” should not be viewed as limiting in any way. 
       System Overview 
       [0018]    At the heart of the service is the Proprietor data centre  1  housing the servers, software, communications equipment and operations staff necessary to make the service available to customers and partners 24/7. 
         [0019]    The centre is capable of handling transaction requests such as ticket purchases from a variety of input devices such as POS Terminals  6 , Self-Serve Kiosks  7 , Bank ATMs  8 , Laptops/PCs (web browser or custom application)  9 , PDAs  10 , Cell Phones  11  and e-commerce websites  12 . These various devices are all connected to the data centre through Wireless Networks  4 , Public Switched Telephone Networks (PSTNs)  5  and the Internet  2 . 
         [0020]    Venues, merchants and sales partners are capable of managing their transaction accounts and terminals as well as generating reports through the use of a web browser  13  and the Proprietor Web portal  21 . The general public may also connect via web browser  13  to the Proprietor web portal to purchase products online and/or to locate the nearest POS Terminals  6 , Self-Serve Kiosks  7  and Bank ATMs  8  offering the service. 
         [0021]    To insure a secure and fully integrated environment where tickets are not generated until payment has been fully authorized the Proprietor service is tied to banks  16  and major credit card issuers  16  via Financial Processors  15 . The service is integrated with these institutions via Payment Gateway servers  33  that are responsible for managing the authorization of credit, debit, cheque and smart card transactions. 
         [0022]    Venue data centers  14  can be connected via secure VPN (virtual private network) or private line to the Proprietor service for the purposes of product authorization (inventory, reservation and seating control) in real-time. The connection also allows the transmission of transactional data to the Venue in real-time for accounting, reporting and other business purposes. 
       Network Layout 
       [0023]    The Secure Network Backbone  26  consists of networking devices such as routers, switches and firewalls providing a high-speed, resilient and secure communications infrastructure for the servers and databases that provide and manage the Proprietor service to customers. The Outer Firewalls  18  separate the Proprietor network from the public Internet  2  and provide the first line of defense. The Inner Firewalls  20  provide an additional layer of security in the event the servers that precede them are compromised. 
         [0024]    The Web Servers  21  perform various functions such as providing a web portal for customers and partners to manage their accounts, request reports as well as to provide e-commerce services direct to customer or “white labelled” by a partner organization. POS Gateway servers  22  are responsible for accepting requests from remote devices such as POS Terminals  6 , Self-Serve Kiosks  7  and Bank ATMs  8 , etc. Data Gateway servers  23  provide multiple functions such as providing an interface between Proprietor and Venue data centres  14  for the purposes of item purchase authorization for those items which are under inventory, seat and/or reservation control by the remote venue. They also allow for sales and transactional data to be exported from the Proprietor service in real-time to Venue and customer systems. 
         [0025]    Transaction Message Processors  28  are responsible for coordinating the transaction process. They manage Inventory  25 , Specific Seating  24 , Payment Gateway  33  and external Venue  14  servers as necessary in order to fulfil the transaction request. Inventory  25  and Specific Seating  24  servers are concerned with managing an inventory of items and seats within a venue such as a theatre, auditorium, arena, etc. 
         [0026]    Database servers  30  provide centralized storage of all data generated and required by the Proprietor service. General Message Processors  31  are responsible for handling services such as updating product databases in remote terminals and e-commerce sites, sending messages to terminals, etc. Report servers  27  accept requests from web-users and other systems to generate reports based on transactional and other data stored in the system Databases  30 . Billing servers  32  track all billable events within the system, process and summarize the information for the purposes of generating invoices and reports as well as transferring monies between accounts via EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer)/ACH (Automated Clearing House). 
         [0027]    Proprietor operations staff manage the system via the Administration Web servers  29 . 
       Ticket Purchase 
       [0028]    A ticket order  100  is entered at a POS Terminal  6 , Self-Serve Kiosk  7 , Bank ATM  8 , Laptop/PC (web browser or custom application)  9 , PDA  10 , Cell Phone  11  or an e-commerce website  12  by selecting one or more items from a menu of available products. The payment data is entered  101  and the order is transmitted  102  to the Proprietor data centre  1  via wireless networks  4 , the Internet  2 , or the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)  5 . The ticket order is received  107  at the Proprietor data centre  1  via Web server  21 , POS Gateway server  22  or Data Gateway server  23  depending on the device used to originate the order. The request is analyzed to determine if the items being requested are under inventory control  109 . If the items are not under inventory control, the items are automatically authorized  108  and processing moves onto payment authorization  111 . If however the items are under inventory control the order is sent to the Inventory/Specific Seating servers  110  where they are analyzed to determine if authorization requires transmission to an external Venue server  113 . If the items require external authorization they are transmitted  116  to the Venue&#39;s data centre  14 . The Venue&#39;s server determines if the item is available for purchase  129 , if it is the item is pulled out of inventory  130 . If the item is not available, the system will attempt to retrieve a list of alternate dates (if applicable)  132 . A response is received from the Venue&#39;s data centre  120  and checked to see if the order was approved  121 . If the order was approved processing continues with payment authorization  118 . If the order was declined the system will build a list of alternate dates  123  if received from the venue and transmit the decline to the terminal  127 . If the items do not require external Venue processing the system checks it&#39;s internal Inventory/Specific Seating servers for item availability  112 . If available, the items are transferred out of inventory  115  and processing continues with payment authorization  118 ; otherwise the system will build a list of alternate dates/seats  123  if applicable and transmit the decline to the terminal  127 . 
         [0029]    The system attempts to obtain payment authorization (cash, credit, debit etc)  111 . For all payment types not requiring external authorization (cash, voucher, etc) the system automatically issues an approval, for all other types (credit, debit, cheque, etc) the system forwards the request to the Payment Gateway servers  33  to obtain authorization from an external payment processor and/or financial institution. The system checks the result of the authorization process  114 , and if approved, a notification is sent to the Billing Engine  121  and the approval is transmitted to the terminal  124 . If declined and the server determines the item(s) were authorized by an external Venue server  125  a reversal is sent to the Venue  126  to return the item(s) back to inventory  133 . The item(s) will be returned back to inventory if authorized by internal servers  128 . In both cases a declined response is then sent back to the terminal  127 . 
         [0030]    The terminal receives a response from the Proprietor data centre  103  and checks if the request was approved  104 . For approved responses the system will generate receipts and tickets  106 . For declined responses the system will generate one or more receipts but will not generate tickets  105 . For devices equipped with a printer such as POS Terminals  6 , Self-Serve Kiosk  7 , Bank ATM  8 , Laptop/PC (web browser or custom application)  9  and e-commerce website  12  (via customer&#39;s PC) tickets and receipts will be printed. For devices such as a PDA  10  or Cell Phone  11  an electronic ticket will be transmitted to the device. 
       Barcode Generation &amp; Authentication 
       [0031]    A ticket order  200  is entered at a POS Terminal  6 , Self-Serve Kiosk  7 , Bank ATM  8 , Laptop/PC (web browser or custom application)  9 , PDA  10 , Cell Phone  11  or an e-commerce website  12  by selecting one or more items from a menu of available products and the order is transmitted to the Proprietor data centre  1  via wireless networks  4 , the Internet  2 , or the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)  5 . The ticket order is received  206  at the Proprietor data centre  1  via Web server  21 , POS Gateway server  22  or Data Gateway server  23  depending on the device used to originate the order. The request is analyzed  210  to determine if the items being requested need to be authorized externally. If the items require external authorization they are transmitted  215  to the Venue&#39;s data centre  14 . The authorization request is received by the Venue  227  and is then authorized  229  by the Venue&#39;s servers. If successfully authorized the Venue assigns serial #&#39;s and or barcode numbers  231  if applicable for the requested items. The order response is then sent to Proprietor  230 . When the order response is received  218  the active ticket information (serial # and/or barcode #) is stored  214  and a response is sent to the terminal  209 . 
         [0032]    If after analyzing the items  210  the system determines they are to be authorized internally the system then checks to see if the barcode is generated internally or by the Venue  211 . If the barcode is generated by the Venue the request is sent  216 , received by the Venue  228 , serial and/or barcode numbers are generated  231 , the response is sent to  230  and received by Proprietor  218 . The active ticket information (serial # and/or barcode #) is stored  214  and a response is sent to the terminal  209 . If the barcode is generated internally the system checks to see which coding scheme  212  is assigned to the item(s). If the coding scheme is Proprietor specific, Proprietor algorithms are applied to generate the numbers  207 . If the coding scheme is Venue specific the system checks the type of barcode  213  type to apply. If it is assigned from a block  217  the number(s) are extracted from a block of numbers previously received from the Venue; if the numbers are generated dynamically a Venue provided algorithm  208  is used to generate the number(s). Whichever internal method is used, the numbers are then stored in the active ticket database  214  and the response is sent to the terminal  209 . 
         [0033]    After receiving the response  201  the terminal prints the tickets  201  if the request was authorized. Any serial #&#39;s and/or barcode #&#39;s generated by Proprietor and/or the Venue are printed on their respective tickets. 
         [0034]    Tickets are authenticated by scanning the barcode  202  and transmitting the value to the Proprietor data centre  1  via wireless networks  4 , the Internet  2 , or the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)  5 . The code is received at the Proprietor data centre  1  via Web server  21 , POS Gateway server  22  or Data Gateway server  23  depending on the device used to originate the request. A search is performed  219  to retrieve the ticket information and based on the result of the search the system returns a decline  222  if the ticket is not found or it proceeds to terminal authorization  220  if it is found. Terminal authorization determines if the terminal that transmitted the barcode is allowed to accept this code or if it must reject it. If the terminal is not authorized to accept this code the system returns a decline  222  otherwise it analyzes the code to determine if the code was internally generated  224 . If the code is externally generated it is transmitted to the Venue&#39;s data centre  14  for authorization. The ticket information is searched  232  and based on the result  233  the ticket&#39;s information is returned with an approval status  234  if found, otherwise a decline is returned  235 . 
         [0035]    The Proprietor server analyzes the Venue&#39;s response  223  and if the response is a decline, a decline response is sent to the terminal  222 . If the response is an approval or the barcode check  224  indicated the code was internally generated the system then checks if the ticket information is to be removed  221  from the active ticket database. Tickets can have configurable lifetimes, for example: a ticket may remain active until it is used a predefined amount of times or it may remain active until an expiry date and/or time is reached. If the ticket is no longer valid it is removed from the active ticket database  225  and the approval response is returned  226 , otherwise only the approval response is returned  226  and the ticket is left in the database. 
         [0036]    When the response is received, its approval status is checked  203 . If approved the operator is informed and/or the gate is opened allowing the ticket-holder entry. If however, a decline was received the operator is informed and/or the gate remains closed barring the ticket-holder entry. 
       Update Management 
       [0037]    A customer (i.e. Venue or merchant) may update their database (products, terminal agents, etc) via the Proprietor web portal servers  21 . The changes are input  307  via web browser  13  and the request is sent to the Proprietor web portal  308 . The request received by the web portal  316  located in the Proprietor data centre  1  is processed and stored in the customer&#39;s database  317 . The version information used to synchronize the remote devices with the Proprietor servers is updated  318  to reflect that a change to the data has been made. A confirmation of the change is sent to the browser  319  that issued the change request. The response is received from the web portal  309  and displayed in the customer&#39;s web browser  310 . 
         [0038]    A remote device can receive updates in the following ways:
   1) The terminal operator requests a manual refresh of the database via the terminal&#39;s menu system.   2) The terminal calls automatically at its daily scheduled time to perform an update.   3) The user who initiated the change via the web portal can flag those changes as requiring immediate application on the terminal in which case the terminal is signalled to perform an update when it next performs a transaction.   4) The terminal receives the updates in a “trickle” fashion as it performs transactions throughout the day.   
 
         [0043]    Once a transaction has been completed, scenario 3 follows the same procedure as scenarios 1 and 2. The procedure for these scenarios is as follows: The terminal sends an update request  304  to the Proprietor data centre  1  and the system determines if any updates are pending  313  for this terminal. If updates are pending they are retrieved  314  from the database and transmitted  315  to the terminal, otherwise the system transmits  315  a signal to the terminal indicating it is up-to-date. After receiving the data the terminal determines whether it has received all the data successfully  305  and if it has, the updates are applied to it&#39;s internal database  306 . Otherwise the terminal retains what updates it received and contacts Proprietor again to obtain the remaining updates  304  and follows the same procedure until successful or until it exhausts it&#39;s allowed retry attempts. 
         [0044]    The procedure for scenario 4 is as follows: A ticket order  300  is sent to the Proprietor data centre  1  and after receiving the order  311 , it is processed  312 . Whether the order is approved or declined the system will check for pending updates  313  and retrieve a small portion  314  of the data to return to the terminal  315  along with the order authorization response. If no changes are pending only the order&#39;s authorization response is returned. The amount of update data pending for a terminal can be quite large so in order to not delay the transaction request only a small portion is sent with each transaction. As the terminal receives each transaction response and any pending changes it checks to see if all updates have been received  305  and if this is true it updates it&#39;s internal database  306 . If transmission of pending updates has not yet completed the terminal will wait until it&#39;s next transaction to receive more data or alternatively the remaining updates may be received if scenarios 1, 2 or 3 occur. 
       Product Management via Web Portal 
       [0045]    The web portal system allows merchants (tour operators, venues, attractions, etc) to manage their product catalogue from a centralized location via a web browser  13  enabled device. The product data entered/updated on the system is then made available to various devices such as: POS Terminal  6 , Self-Serve Kiosk  7 , Bank ATM  8 , Laptop/PC (web browser or custom application)  9 , PDA  10 , Cell Phone  11 , e-commerce website  12 , Interactive Television  34  and Interactive Telephone  35 . 
         [0046]    The user (merchant) begins the management session by logging into  800  the web management portal hosted on web servers  21  at the Proprietor data center  1 . The product management module is selected  801  presenting the user with an interface screen providing methods to create, update, delete, search for, view and report on products within the catalogue. The catalogue may be private containing only the products the user wishes to sell on devices under his/her control (POS Terminal  6 , Self-Serve Kiosk  7 , etc). The catalogue may also be global, containing products from multiple vendors available to many devices (POS Terminal  6 , Self-Serve Kiosk  7 , Cell Phone  11 , etc) where most if not all devices are not under control of the user. In the global catalogue, a user is only allowed to manage products created by himself/herself. 
         [0047]    The user selects the create/update  802  feature to begin creating/editing product information. If the user selects “create”, a blank form containing fields (text boxes, check boxes, lists, etc) to allow the building of a new product is displayed. If “update” is selected the form will display with the data currently defined for the chosen product. Once displayed, the user can enter/modify basic data  803  such as the product name, product lookup codes, product category, discounts and printing options such as: printing a ticket, barcode, custom text, disclaimer, etc. 
         [0048]    The location (physical street address) of devices and systems such as: POS Terminal  6 , Self-Serve Kiosk  7 , etc are recorded in the Proprietor system when they are assigned access to the network. These locations are then grouped into regions such as city district, city, state/province, country and continent. Personal mobile devices such as: Cell Phone  11 , PDA  10 , etc transmit their physical location as mentioned in other parts of this document. The transmitting at the time of transaction of this location is used to assign the device to the region groupings previously mentioned. In the case of e-commerce websites the location of the customer utilizing the website is determined by the IP (Internet Protocol) address assigned to the customer&#39;s Laptop/PC  9 . Again, as with the Cell Phone  11  and PDA  10 , this location is then used to assign the customer to a region. 
         [0049]    The system allows a user to control in which locations and/or regions the product is available for sale  804 . The administrator of the global product catalogue assigns on a per user basis which regions the user is allowed to offer product within. Any device(s) and/or system(s) located outside of the region(s) defined by the user will not have access to the product. Any requests received by the Proprietor system from a device or system not authorized to sell the product (outside an authorized region) will be declined by the system. When entering pricing for the product  805  the user has the option to assign one price for all locations/regions or to tailor the price for as many locations/regions as desired. 
         [0050]    If the product is under inventory control  806  the user has the option to update inventory information  807 . When updating inventory information  808  the user will be presented with a series of forms that allows for setting the available quantity (seats, widgets, etc) for tours, events, line runs, flights, product lines, etc. If the item is not under inventory control or the user chooses not to modify inventory data the system provides the option to issue text messages  809  to supported devices. The message could convey that special sale pricing is now in effect, provide instructions to agents selling the product and/or advertisements to the end customer. In the case where messages would be potentially sent to devices not under the control of the user, the operator of such devices could choose to configure their account not to accept messages. 
         [0051]    As mentioned in the “Update Management” sections of this document, the software supports different modes of pulling updates from the Proprietor servers. When entering product data the user has the option to select the update priority mode  810 . The user can choose to force the update immediately the next time a device connects to the system, to allow the terminal to pull the changes at it&#39;s next scheduled call in time (once daily) and various other degrees of priority in between. As with messaging, the user can only perform this function on devices under his/her control or on those devices for which their operators allow this action. 
       Self-Service Ticket Purchase on Personal Mobile Device 
       [0052]    The system provides a series of interfaces to allow customers at any time and from any location to use their cell phones  11 , mobile palm top computers  10 , PDAs (personal digital assistants)  10 , laptops  9  and other devices capable of interacting with the Proprietor service. The customer can interact with the service via the device&#39;s built-in web browser or an application provided by Proprietor and downloaded to the device where possible. 
         [0053]    The user (customer) begins by activating the Proprietor application (where applicable) or by utilizing the device&#39;s built-in web browser and accessing a public website address. During the sign-on process the user has the option of logging on with an account or as a guest user. Users with accounts will be able to take advantage of various promotional offers made available from time to time. 
         [0054]    The user begins the process by signing on to the service  600  with an optional username, password and geographical location. The geographical location is determined in order of preference by Global Positioning System (where available), Cell Network Triangulation (where available), Cell Tower ID (where available), a series of user prompts that narrow the user&#39;s location to a country, state/province and city. The Sign-on request is sent to Proprietor and authenticated  606 . If the user provided an account (username &amp; password) the profile for this account is retrieved, otherwise the user is logged in as a guest. The system initializes the product catalogue  610  and tailors the initial list of items based on user preferences from the profile and the geographical location (if supplied). The system transmits a portion of the catalogue  607  to the user allowing he/she to browse it  601  on the mobile device as well as specify search criteria to filter unwanted items. The user continues browsing  601  and the system continues serving the requests  607  until the user has completed selecting the product(s)/service(s) or the user quits. 
         [0055]    Once all products have been selected the user is required to enter their payment data  602 . Payment can be made via credit card entry on the device either manually via the keyboard or electronically where applicable. The user also has the option of having the item(s) billed to the wireless account associated with the device. 
         [0056]    The order is received by the Proprietor servers for processing  608 : the tickets are authorized  611 , payments are authorized  612  and the ticket data such as barcodes, serial numbers, confirmation numbers, etc are transmitted to the device  609 . The mobile device receives the data and displays the result to the user as well as stores any applicable data (barcodes, serial numbers, etc)  603 . 
         [0057]    The user upon arriving at the venue is required to present proof of purchase  604  to gain entry to the venue. The type of data (proof) provided depends on the capability of the device and capabilities of staff and/or equipment at the venue. The forms of data presented to the venue can be but are not limited to:
   Barcode displayed on the device&#39;s screen.   Wireless transmission via short/medium range technology: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, RFID, contactless smartcard, etc. Or long range communication via GPRS, CDMA, etc.   Device phone number.   Customer credit card (used as identification for transaction).   Confirmation number provided during purchase.   
 
         [0063]    The data is captured  614  by venue staff and/or equipment and the system determines  617  if the items are authorized locally or remotely by Proprietor servers. If remote authorization is required, the request is sent to and processed by Proprietor  613 . If authorized  618  the customer is granted access  615  and enters the venue  605 . Otherwise the user is denied entry  616 . 
       Self-Service Ticket Purchase via In-Room Service 
       [0064]    The service is for use by hotels, motels, resorts, cruise ships and other similar locations. Access to the service is made accessible to the user in-room via a device capable of interfacing to the system. Examples include, but are not limited to: interactive television  34  (i.e. as is currently available to select movies, videogames), interactive phone  35 , in-room computer  9 , personal laptop  9 , etc. 
         [0065]    The user begins the process by signing on to the service  700  with an optional username and password. 
         [0066]    The username and password provides the user with an account through which promotional offers are made available from time to time and it allows the system to be tailored to the user&#39;s preferences. If the user does not have an account he/she is logged in as a guest. This does not include the added benefits of an account but still allows product to be purchased. The geographical location is determined by street address where the location is fixed (i.e. hotel), by Global Positioning System where the location is mobile (i.e. cruise ship) and/or by a series of user prompts that narrow the user&#39;s location to a country, state/province and city. The Sign-on request is sent to Proprietor and authenticated  706 . If the user provided an account (username &amp; password) the profile for this account is retrieved, otherwise the user is logged in as a guest. The system initializes the product catalogue  710  and tailors the initial list of items based on user preferences from the profile and the geographical location (if supplied). The system transmits a portion of the catalogue  707  to the user allowing he/she to browse it  701  as well as specify search criteria to filter unwanted items. The user continues browsing  701  and the system continues serving the requests  707  until the user has completed selecting the product(s)/service(s) or the user quits. 
         [0067]    Once all products have been selected the user is required to enter their payment data  702 . Payment can be made via credit or debit card entry on the device either manually via the keyboard/screen or electronically where applicable. The user also has the option of having the item(s) billed directly to the room. The order is received by the Proprietor servers for processing  708 : the tickets are authorized  711 , payments are authorized  712  and the ticket data such as barcodes, serial numbers, confirmation numbers, etc are transmitted to the device  709 . 
         [0068]    The data is received from the Proprietor servers  703 . Depending on the capabilities of the system at the customer&#39;s location any of the following will occur with the confirmation data:
   Tickets are printed in the room where a printing device is provided.   Tickets are printed in a central location and are either delivered by staff to the customer&#39;s room or they are kept for customer pickup (i.e. a mailbox for the room, hotel front desk, etc).   Systems with printers (such as kiosks, computers, etc) are provided in a central location where the customer can logon to have the tickets printed immediately.   The Proprietor servers transmit the ticket data to a mobile device (cell phone, PDA, etc) specified by the customer during the sale process.   The system displays a confirmation number to the user at purchase time to be given to the venue staff in exchange for tickets/admission to venue.   The tickets are tied to the customer&#39;s credit card for identification purposes. The credit card is presented at the venue as authorization for tickets/admission to the venue.   
 
         [0075]    The user upon arriving at the venue is required to present proof of purchase  704  to gain entry to the venue. The forms of data presented to the venue can be but are not limited to:
   Printed ticket.   Confirmation number verbally given by customer.   Customer&#39;s credit-card   If the customer had the proof of purchase sent to a mobile device then the following are also possible where supported:
       Barcode displayed on the device&#39;s screen   Wireless transmission via short/medium range technology such as: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, RFID, contact-less smart card, etc. Or long range communication technology such as: GPRS, CDMA, etc.   Device&#39;s phone number.   
       
 
         [0083]    The data is captured  714  by venue staff and/or equipment and the system determines  717  if the items are authorized locally or remotely by Proprietor servers. If remote authorization is required, the request is sent to and processed by Proprietor  713 . If authorized  718  the customer is granted access  715  and enters the venue  705 . Otherwise the user is denied entry  716 . 
       Money Flow 
       [0084]    A ticket order is received  400  at a server responsible for ticket authorization (i.e. web server  21 , POS gateway server  22  or a Data gateway server  23 ) in the Proprietor data centre  1 . The ticket order is processed  401  followed by the authorization of payment(s)  402  and if the order and payment are approved a notification of this transaction is sent  403  to the billing servers  32 . The approval response is transmitted  404  to the terminal that originated the order. Credit and debit transactions that are authorized result in money transferred from the customer&#39;s account to a merchant account. 
         [0085]    The transaction notification is received by a billing server  405  and the transaction data is retrieved  406  from the transaction database. Charges imposed by Proprietor for processing the transaction are calculated  407  and extracted from the total amount brought in by the transaction. Any splits that may be pending for the transaction for partners such as: Venue, Merchant, ISO, Processor/Bank, etc are calculated  408  and extracted from the remaining amount. All calculated values are written to the billing database  409  for further processing and reporting. 
         [0086]    The Billing servers  32  periodically scan the billing database to determine if any transactions that have been successfully processed require funds to be transferred from a merchant account to other accounts (for example Proprietor&#39;s account to cover processing fees). If transactions are found the billing records are retrieved  411  and processed  412  to assign the account numbers involved for each billing record and to group if possible common records to reduce the costs incurred by electronic fund transfers. The processed data is then transformed via a data file building algorithm to produce an ACH (Automated Clearing House) or EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) file  413  and this file is transmitted to a Bank  16  or Processor  15  for processing at which point the funds are all transferred to their respective accounts. 
         [0087]    A response file is received from the Bank  16  or Processor  15  indicating the success or failure of each transfer request. The system checks each request to determine if it was approved  415 . Any transfer that was approved is marked as paid  417 . Any transfer that was declined is logged  416  and flagged for analysis by accounting staff  418 . After all responses have been handled the system checks for any remaining transactions that require processing  419 . If more are found they are processed  412 , otherwise the system goes idle. 
       Payment Integration 
       [0088]    A ticket order  500  is entered at a POS Terminal  6 , Self-Serve Kiosk  7 , Bank ATM  8 , Laptop/PC (web browser or custom application)  9 , PDA  10 , Cell Phone  11  or an e-commerce website  12  by selecting one or more items from a menu of available products. The payment data is entered  501  and the order is transmitted  502  to the Proprietor data centre  1  via wireless networks  4 , the Internet  2 , or the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)  5 . The ticket order is received  507  at the Proprietor data centre  1  via Web server  21 , POS Gateway server  22  or Data Gateway server  23  depending on the device used to originate the order. 
         [0089]    Any items or tickets received with the request are submitted for authorization  508 , the authorization status is checked  509  and if authorized proceeds to payment authorization. If the items/tickets were not authorized a declined is transmitted to the terminal  522 . 
         [0090]    The system determines if the payment types received are internal  511  such as cash or external such as credit, debit, etc. If internal, they are authorized  510  and an approval is transmitted to the terminal  523 . If the payment types are external the system retrieves the necessary merchant information  512  required by the processor/gateway to complete the transaction. The data is transformed into the message format  513  required and transmitted to the processor/gateway  514 . The request is received  515  and submitted for authorization  519  and the result is transmitted  521  to Proprietor. 
         [0091]    The response is received  520  and the data is parsed (transformed)  518  out of the processor/gateway format. The message is analyzed to determine if payment(s) was authorized  517 . If not, any authorized items are reversed (cancelled)  516  and a decline is transmitted to the terminal  522 . If authorization was received an approval is transmitted to the terminal  523 . 
         [0092]    The terminal receives the response  503  from Proprietor and analyzes the response to determine if it was approved  504 . If approved any required tickets are printed  506 , otherwise a declined notice is printed  505 . 
         [0093]    Although but a single preferred embodiment of the system has been herein described, it should be understood that various modifications can be made thereto. Accordingly, the invention should be understood to be limited only by the accompanying claims, purposively construed. 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
             
               
               
               
             
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
               
               
                 Table of Entities 
               
             
          
           
               
                 Number 
                 Entity Name 
                 Description 
               
               
                   
               
             
          
           
               
                 1 
                 Proprietor data center. 
                 The facility housing the servers which provide the 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Proprietor ticketing service to all remote devices and PCs. 
               
               
                 2 
                 Internet 
                 A global network of networks and computers. 
               
               
                 3 
                 ISP 
                 Internet Service Provider - A company specializing in 
               
               
                   
                   
                 connecting clients to the global internet via dial-up, DSL, 
               
               
                   
                   
                 cable, leased line and/or wireless networks. 
               
               
                 4 
                 Wireless Networks 
                 Local, wide area and global networks providing 
               
               
                   
                   
                 communications through the air such as: GPRS, Mobitex, 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Datatac, WiFi, Bluetooth and CDPD. Future wireless 
               
               
                   
                   
                 networks will be supported when available. 
               
               
                 5 
                 P.S.T.N 
                 Public Switched Telephone Network - The phone network 
               
               
                   
                   
                 service provided to all homes and businesses. 
               
               
                 6 
                 POS Terminal 
                 A Point-Of-Sale terminal capable of being loaded with 
               
               
                   
                   
                 custom application software to access the Proprietor 
               
               
                   
                   
                 service, accepting payments, printing tickets and receipts. 
               
               
                 7 
                 Self-Serve Kiosk 
                 A device having the same capabilities as a Point-Of-Sale 
               
               
                   
                   
                 terminal, however it is designed to be rugged and used by 
               
               
                   
                   
                 the end customer without a merchant/agent in attendance. 
               
               
                   
                   
                 The software in the device is designed to guide the 
               
               
                   
                   
                 customer through the transaction process and optionally 
               
               
                   
                   
                 provide promotional information about venues and 
               
               
                   
                   
                 products through video and/or audio. 
               
               
                 8 
                 Bank ATM 
                 An automated teller machine (automated banking 
               
               
                   
                   
                 machine) capable of being loaded with custom application 
               
               
                   
                   
                 software to access the Proprietor service, accepting 
               
               
                   
                   
                 payments, printing tickets, receipts and guiding the 
               
               
                   
                   
                 customer through the transaction process. Where possible 
               
               
                   
                   
                 the system will also provide promotional information 
               
               
                   
                   
                 about venues and products through video and/or audio. 
               
               
                 9 
                 Laptop/PC 
                 A standard laptop or PC accessing the Proprietor service 
               
               
                   
                   
                 over the web using a standard web browser or a custom 
               
               
                   
                   
                 application. Where applicable, the laptop/PC will be 
               
               
                   
                   
                 interfaced to necessary hardware to allow accepting credit, 
               
               
                   
                   
                 debit and smartcard payments as well as printing a ticket. 
               
               
                 10 
                 PDA 
                 Personal Data Assistant. A hand-held computing device 
               
               
                   
                   
                 capable of accessing the Proprietor service over the web 
               
               
                   
                   
                 using a standard web browser. Payments can be accepted 
               
               
                   
                   
                 via credit card or where applicable charged to the 
               
               
                   
                   
                 customers wireless phone/data account. 
               
               
                 11 
                 Cell Phone 
                 A cell phone capable of accessing the Proprietor service 
               
               
                   
                   
                 over the web using a standard web browser. Payments are 
               
               
                   
                   
                 via credit card or charged to customer&#39;s wireless phone 
               
               
                   
                   
                 account. 
               
               
                 12 
                 E-Com Website 
                 An E-Commerce website hosted by Datarax Technologies 
               
               
                   
                   
                 or a 3 rd -party site authorized by Proprietor technologies to 
               
               
                   
                   
                 use and perform transactions with the Proprietor service. 
               
               
                   
                   
                 The website(s) will be capable of accessing the product 
               
               
                   
                   
                 catalogue on the Proprietor service, displaying information 
               
               
                   
                   
                 and promotional material about the products and allow the 
               
               
                   
                   
                 purchase of the products. 
               
               
                 13 
                 Web Browsers 
                 The general public accessing the Proprietor web portal to 
               
               
                   
                   
                 view the products available for purchase, the locations of 
               
               
                   
                   
                 kiosks, Bank ATMs and merchants where the products can 
               
               
                   
                   
                 be purchased or purchasing the products directly from the 
               
               
                   
                   
                 web portal. 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Partners such as ISOs, Venues and Merchants accessing 
               
               
                   
                   
                 the Proprietor web portal to manage their accounts, 
               
               
                   
                   
                 products and access transaction and business reports. 
               
               
                 14 
                 Venue Data Center 
                 Where required the Proprietor service can be interfaced to 
               
               
                   
                   
                 a Venue&#39;s data center to allow the Venue&#39;s existing 
               
               
                   
                   
                 inventory and reservation infrastructure to authorize and 
               
               
                   
                   
                 manage ticket sales as well as notify Proprietor 
               
               
                   
                   
                 electronically when tickets are submitted via the ticket&#39;s 
               
               
                   
                   
                 identification barcode. Where required, this interface can 
               
               
                   
                   
                 be used to stream transactional data directly into the 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Venue&#39;s accounting/financial systems. 
               
               
                 15 
                 Financial Processor 
                 An organization providing the service of authorizing 
               
               
                   
                   
                 credit, debit, check and smart-card transactions and 
               
               
                   
                   
                 transferring the funds from the customer to the merchant&#39;s 
               
               
                   
                   
                 bank account electronically. 
               
               
                 16 
                 Banks, Visa, MC, Amex 
                 Financial institutions providing the credit, debit, cheque 
               
               
                   
                   
                 and smart-card authorization networks utilized by 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Financial Processors. 
               
               
                 17 
                 Proprietor Corporate 
                 The internal Proprietor network used by it&#39;s employees to 
               
               
                   
                 Network 
                 access internal corporate resources, communicate and 
               
               
                   
                   
                 access internet resources. 
               
               
                 18 
                 Outer Firewall 
                 An application running on a server or a purpose specific 
               
               
                   
                   
                 appliance designed to filter network traffic and provide 
               
               
                   
                   
                 controlled access to the network resources it is tasked with 
               
               
                   
                   
                 protecting. 
               
               
                   
                   
                 The outer firewall sits between the Proprietor transaction 
               
               
                   
                   
                 network and an external, possibly insecure and untrusted 
               
               
                   
                   
                 network such as the internet. The firewall allows 
               
               
                   
                   
                 connections both in-bound and out-bound as long as they 
               
               
                   
                   
                 satisfy the firewall&#39;s security rules. 
               
               
                 19 
                 Outer Firewall 
                 An application running on a server or a purpose specific 
               
               
                   
                 (Outbound Only) 
                 appliance designed to filter network traffic and provide 
               
               
                   
                   
                 controlled access to the network resources it is tasked with 
               
               
                   
                   
                 protecting. 
               
               
                   
                   
                 The outer firewall sits between the Proprietor transaction 
               
               
                   
                   
                 network and an external, possibly insecure and untrusted 
               
               
                   
                   
                 network such as the internet. The firewall allows only out- 
               
               
                   
                   
                 bound connections as long as they satisfy the firewall&#39;s 
               
               
                   
                   
                 security rules. 
               
               
                 20 
                 Inner Firewall 
                 An application running on a server or a purpose specific 
               
               
                   
                   
                 appliance designed to filter network traffic and provide 
               
               
                   
                   
                 controlled access to the network resources it is tasked with 
               
               
                   
                   
                 protecting. 
               
               
                   
                   
                 The inner firewall sits between the Proprietor transaction 
               
               
                   
                   
                 network and the outer firewall. It is intended for additional 
               
               
                   
                   
                 protection in the event that the outer firewall or the servers 
               
               
                   
                   
                 in between the two firewalls are mis-configured or 
               
               
                   
                   
                 compromised. 
               
               
                 21 
                 Web Servers 
                 A cluster of web-servers providing the Proprietor web 
               
               
                   
                   
                 portal and e-commerce capabilities to customers and 
               
               
                   
                   
                 partners. 
               
               
                 22 
                 POS Gateway Servers 
                 A cluster of servers that accept and manage connections 
               
               
                   
                   
                 from non-web based devices such as point-of-sale 
               
               
                   
                   
                 terminals, bank ATMs, Kiosks, etc. 
               
               
                 23 
                 Data Gateway Servers 
                 A cluster of servers providing an interface between the 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Proprietor network and a Venue&#39;s data center. For 
               
               
                   
                   
                 example, these servers provide the following services: 
               
               
                   
                   
                 interface to Venue&#39;s inventory/reservation systems, export 
               
               
                   
                   
                 data to Venue&#39;s accounting/financial/reporting 
               
               
                   
                   
                 applications, etc. 
               
               
                 24 
                 Specific Seating Servers 
                 A cluster of servers providing the business logic necessary 
               
               
                   
                   
                 to facilitate the selection and sale of seats in theatres, 
               
               
                   
                   
                 stadiums, arenas, etc. The servers either manage the seats 
               
               
                   
                   
                 within the Proprietor network or connect via the Data 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Gateway Servers to a Venue&#39;s seat management system. 
               
               
                 25 
                 Depleting Inventory 
                 A cluster of servers providing the business logic necessary 
               
               
                   
                 Servers 
                 to facilitate an inventory control system for tickets and 
               
               
                   
                   
                 products. The servers either manage the products within 
               
               
                   
                   
                 the Proprietor network or connect via the Data Gateway 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Servers to a Venue&#39;s inventory control system. 
               
               
                 26 
                 Secure Network Backbone 
                 A secured network within the Proprietor Data Center which 
               
               
                   
                   
                 consists of redundant network paths, switches, routers, etc 
               
               
                   
                   
                 to carry sensitive transactional information. 
               
               
                 27 
                 Report Servers 
                 A cluster of servers providing business report generation 
               
               
                   
                   
                 on a scheduled basis or on-demand via the web portal for 
               
               
                   
                   
                 partner Venues, ISOs and Merchants. 
               
               
                 28 
                 Transaction Message 
                 A cluster of servers providing the business logic necessary 
               
               
                   
                 Processors 
                 to manage the processing of transaction requests. These 
               
               
                   
                   
                 servers interface with depleting inventory, specific seating 
               
               
                   
                   
                 and payment gateway servers when necessary to complete 
               
               
                   
                   
                 the transaction. 
               
               
                 29 
                 Admin Web Servers 
                 A cluster of web servers providing administrative control 
               
               
                   
                   
                 over the network and servers for use by the Proprietor 
               
               
                   
                   
                 network operations team. 
               
               
                 30 
                 Databases 
                 A cluster of database servers housing all the data 
               
               
                   
                   
                 necessary to drive the Proprietor service and the data 
               
               
                   
                   
                 captured during the process of authorizing transactions. 
               
               
                 31 
                 General Message Processors 
                 A cluster of servers providing non-transactional services to 
               
               
                   
                   
                 devices utilizing the Proprietor service. Some of the 
               
               
                   
                   
                 services offered by these servers are remote updates for 
               
               
                   
                   
                 those devices containing custom software and product 
               
               
                   
                   
                 databases on-board as well as sending text messages to 
               
               
                   
                   
                 devices. 
               
               
                 32 
                 Billing Servers 
                 A cluster of servers responsible for capturing billable 
               
               
                   
                   
                 events from other servers in the system, processing and 
               
               
                   
                   
                 summarizing these events for the purpose of generating 
               
               
                   
                   
                 invoices and transferring money to and from Proprietor 
               
               
                   
                   
                 accounts via EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer)/ACH 
               
               
                   
                   
                 (Automated Clearing House). 
               
               
                 33 
                 Payment Gateway Servers 
                 A cluster of servers responsible for providing a uniform 
               
               
                   
                   
                 interface to payment processors and payment gateways for 
               
               
                   
                   
                 the purpose of authorizing credit, debit, check and smart- 
               
               
                   
                   
                 card transactions. 
               
               
                 34 
                 Interactive Television 
                 A television system as is typically found in modern hotels, 
               
               
                   
                   
                 resorts and other related locations that allow customers to 
               
               
                   
                   
                 access for example the following services: 
               
               
                   
                   
                 On-Demand movies 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Order room service 
               
               
                   
                   
                 On-Demand Videogames 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Extend stay/Check-out 
               
               
                   
                   
                 These systems generally provide the user with a graphical 
               
               
                   
                   
                 interface to allow them to navigate and select the desired 
               
               
                   
                   
                 services. The ticketing system would be available as 
               
               
                   
                   
                 another option on the system and once selected the 
               
               
                   
                   
                 catalogue would be made available. The system could 
               
               
                   
                   
                 also be used to direct advertisements related to products 
               
               
                   
                   
                 available on the service. 
               
               
                 35 
                 Interactive Telephone 
                 As IP-Phone technology becomes more mainstream 
               
               
                   
                   
                 devices are being produced that provide additional 
               
               
                   
                   
                 services such as video conferencing, access to email, web 
               
               
                   
                   
                 browsing and the capability to access services in much the 
               
               
                   
                   
                 same way as a Laptop, Cell Phone or mobile computing 
               
               
                   
                   
                 device such as a PDA can do now. 
               
               
                   
                   
                 The service will be made available on such devices and 
               
               
                   
                   
                 operate much the same as it would on a mobile device or 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Interactive TV.