Abstract:
A system and method for sponsoring sports teams or individual athletes that enables a plurality of users to use the power of accumulation to sponsor sports teams or individual athletes. Users can contribute an amount of money smaller than what is normally required to sponsor a sports team or athlete and in exchange receives recognition for the contribution. Once the contributions from multiple Users accumulates to an amount large enough to sponsor a sports team or individual athlete, the funds are transferred to the sports team or individual athlete in exchange for recognizing the host as a sponsor.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/685,558 filed May 27, 2005 herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     In the past, sports fans have not generally been able to participate in a sponsorship role. One of the barriers is the disparity between the financial amount a single fan can contribute and the financial amount that is needed by a sports team or individual athlete to meet their needs. Another barrier between the fans, the sports teams and the individual athletes, is a physical one (i.e. the fence, the wall, the gate, the yellow tape, etc.). Fans typically do not have the physical contacts through which to engage in sponsorship activity. These barriers have an adverse effect on both the fans and the sports teams and individual athletes. The fans have a strong desire to show their support through financial sponsorship. The sports teams and individual athletes require financial sponsorship in order to compete effectively.  
         [0003]     The disclosed system and method closes the gap between the fans and the sports teams and individual athletes through the creation of a cumulative sponsorship environment. This system and method brings fans closer to the sports in which they are involved by allowing the fans the opportunity to have a monetary investment in the sport. The system and method enables additional revenue sources for sports teams and individual athletes, allowing them to compete without fear of loss of funding.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     Disclosed herein is a system and method for sponsoring sports teams or individual athletes that enables a plurality of users to use the power of accumulation to sponsor sports teams or individual athletes. Users can contribute an amount of money smaller than what is normally required to sponsor a sports team or individual athlete to a host and in exchange receives recognition for the contribution from the host. Once the contributions from multiple Users accumulates to an amount large enough to sponsor a sports team or individual athlete, the funds are transferred to the sports team or individual athlete from the host in exchange for recognizing the host as a sponsor.  
         [0005]     Additional advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0006]     The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate one embodiment of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.  
         [0007]      FIG. 1  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary implementation of the disclosed method.  
         [0008]      FIG. 2  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary system implementing the disclosed method.  
         [0009]      FIG. 3  is a more detailed system flow diagram illustrating an exemplary sponsorship transaction.  
         [0010]      FIG. 4  is a high-level pictorial illustrating the relationships between the disclosed system and method and other entities.  
         [0011]      FIG. 5  is an exemplary computing environment through which the disclosed system and method can be practiced.  
         [0012]      FIG. 6  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary implementation of the disclosed method.  
         [0013]      FIG. 7  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary implementation of the disclosed method.  
         [0014]      FIG. 8  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary implementation of the disclosed method.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0015]     The present invention may be understood more readily by reference to the following detailed description of preferred embodiments of the invention and to the Figures and their previous and following description.  
         [0016]     Before the present system and method are disclosed and described, it is to be understood that this invention is not limited to specific synthetic methods, specific components, or to particular compositions, as such may, of course, vary. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting.  
         [0017]     As used in the specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a sponsor” includes mixtures of sponsors, reference to “a sponsor” includes mixtures of two or more such sponsors, and the like.  
         [0018]     Ranges may be expressed herein as from “about” one particular value, and/or to “about” another particular value. When such a range is expressed, another embodiment includes from the one particular value and/or to the other particular value. Similarly, when values are expressed as approximations, by use of the antecedent “about,” it will be understood that the particular value forms another embodiment. It will be further understood that the endpoints of each of the ranges are significant both in relation to the other endpoint, and independently of the other endpoint.  
         [0019]     “Optional” or “optionally” means that the subsequently described event or circumstance may or may not occur, and that the description includes instances where said event or circumstance occurs and instances where it does not.  
         [0020]     In this specification and in the claims which follow, reference will be made to a number of terms which shall be defined to have the following meanings:  
         [0021]     “Host” is defined as the organizational entity through which the transactions of the present system and method take place. The “host” can also refer to the internet server responsible for conducting said transactions.  
         [0022]     “Sports Team” is defined as a group of individuals cooperating to compete in sporting events. Examples include, but are not limited to, the Atlanta Braves®, the Atlanta Falcons®, and the Atlanta Hawks®.  
         [0023]     “Individual Athlete” is defined as a person trained to compete in sports. Examples include, but are not limited to, Lance Armstrong and Tiger Woods.  
         [0024]     “Sponsorship Transaction” is defined as a user transferring funds to the host and the user receiving a sponsorship award.  
         [0025]     “Sponsorship Amount” is defined as a sum of money transferred from a user to the host for the purpose of sponsoring a sports team or individual athlete. Examples include, but are not limited to, five dollars, ten dollars, and one-hundred dollars.  
         [0026]     “Cumulative Sponsorship Amount” is defined as an amount determined by the host and sports teams and individual athletes that is a minimum acceptable sponsorship amount. Examples include, but are not limited to, five-hundred dollars, one-thousand dollars, ten-thousand dollars.  
         [0027]     “Primary Sponsor” is defined as the sponsor that is the largest most visible sponsor of a sports team or individual athlete. Examples include, but are not limited to, the United States Postal Service was a primary sponsor of Lance Armstrong, a successful cyclist, for many years.  
         [0028]     “Co-Sponsor” is defined as a sponsor that is not the largest most visible sponsor of a sports team or individual athlete.  
         [0029]     Reference will now be made in detail to the present aspects of the invention, example) of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. The system and method disclosed herein can be applied to various sports and sponsor targets. Examples of such sports include, but are not limited to, surfing, skate boarding, fishing, soccer, snow boarding, water skiing, boating, slalom down hill skiing, sailing, and all motorized and mechanized sports.  
         [0030]     In one aspect, illustrated in  FIG. 6 , a method for sponsoring is provided that comprises receiving a user selected sponsor target (step  601 ), receiving a monetary amount from the user wherein a portion of the monetary amount is contributed toward a cumulative sponsorship amount (step  602 ), sending the user a sponsorship award (step  603 ), repeating the previous steps until the cumulative sponsorship amount is reached (step  604 ), and sponsoring the user selected sponsor target (step  605 ). The user selection can be made over a network. The user selected sponsor target can be, for example, athletes, sports teams, and vehicles. The sponsor target can be, for example, an Olympic team, a Nascar® driver, and an X-Games athlete. The sponsorship award can indicate that the user sponsored the user selected sponsor target. The value of the sponsorship award is associated with the monetary amount received from the user.  
         [0031]     In a further aspect, illustrated in  FIG. 7 , a method for sponsoring is provided that comprises selecting a sponsor target (step  701 ) and transferring a monetary amount to a host wherein a portion of the monetary amount is contributed toward a cumulative sponsorship amount (step  702 ), and receiving a sponsorship award (step  703 ). The user selection can be made over a network. The user selected sponsor target can be, for example, athletes, sports teams, and vehicles. The sponsor target can be, for example, an Olympic team, a Nascar® driver, and an X-Games athlete. The sponsorship award can indicate that the user sponsored the user selected sponsor target. The value of the sponsorship award is associated with the monetary amount received from the user.  
         [0032]     In another aspect, illustrated in  FIG. 8 , a method of sponsoring is provided that comprises listing a sponsor target with a host (step  801 ), determining a cumulative sponsorship amount (step  802 ), determining a sponsorship award (step  803 ), receiving the cumulative sponsorship amount from the host (step  804 ), and recognizing the host (step  805 ). The listing can be performed over a network. The sponsor target can include, for example, athletes, sports teams, and vehicles. The sponsor target can be, for example, an Olympic team, a Nascar® driver, and an X-Games athlete. The sponsorship award can indicate that a user sponsored the sponsor target. The value of the sponsorship award can be associated with a monetary amount received from a user.  
         [0033]      FIG. 1  illustrates generally, the steps involved in the disclosed method for sponsoring sports teams or individuals (both also referred to as sponsor targets). The first step  101  of the method comprises a user selecting a Sports Team  206   a,b  or an Individual Athlete  207   a,b  to sponsor. This selection can be through the Internet  208  at a host website, at a retail location, at a sporting event, and the like. Once the user has selected a Sports Team  206   a,b  or an Individual Athlete  207   a,b  to sponsor, the user transfers the desired sponsorship amount to the host, as indicated in block  102 . The transfer can be through the internet via electronic funds transfer means such as bank accounts, credit cards, Paypal®, or the like. The transfer can also be through a point of sale transaction such as credit cards, checks, or cash. The host sends the user a sponsorship award upon receipt of the sponsorship amount, as indicated in block  103 . The award&#39;s value can be directly related to the amount of the sponsorship amount. The award can be a pen, a t-shirt, a towel, a cup, a hat, a sticker, a poster, or similar. The host will then proceed to deposit the sponsorship amount into a financial account, as indicated in block  104 . The financial account can be an interest bearing account such as, for example, a Cash Deposit (CD), a mutual fund, a checking account, or a savings account. After a sufficient number of users have contributed sponsorship amounts such that a pre-determined cumulative sponsorship amount is reached, the host will distribute the cumulative sponsorship amount to the selected Sports Team  206   a,b  or an Individual Athlete  207   a,b,  as indicated in block  105 . The cumulative amount can be determined by the Sports Team  206   a,b  or an Individual Athlete  207   a,b.  For example, Jeff Gordon, a top NASCAR® driver and team, has a minimum sponsorship amount of approximately $80,000.00. In exchange for this amount, the sponsor receives a 5×12 inch space on both sides of Jeff Gordon&#39;s race car for the racing season. The selected Sports Team  206   a,b  or an Individual Athlete  207   a,b  will recognize the host as a sponsor, as indicated in block  106 . Such recognition can include, but is not limited to, placing a host logo on a Sports Team  206   a,b  or an Individual Athlete  207   a,b  vehicle, uniform, equipment, banner at a sporting venue, and the like.  
         [0034]      FIG. 2  illustrates generally, an exemplary system implementing the disclosed method. This exemplary system is only an example of a system and is not intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use or functionality of system architecture. Neither should the system be interpreted as having any dependency or requirement relating to any one or combination of components illustrated in the exemplary system.  FIG. 2  illustrates the primary components and relationships of the disclosed system and method. A User  201  interacts with a host server  202  via the Internet  208  through an internet-enabled computer connection. The User  201  interacts with the host server  202  via an internet enabled personal computer running a standard web-browser. The User  201  can also interact with the host server  202  via standard Point of Sale transactions. An example of such Point of Sale transactions includes conducting a sponsorship transaction at a physical location such as a sporting goods store, a sport specialty store, or a sporting event. The User  201  is also capable of interacting with the host server  202  through a plurality of internet enabled kiosks at various physical locations. The host server  202  is capable of conducting a plurality of sponsorship transactions with a plurality of Users  201 . Through the host server  202 , the User  201  is able to view a host website and browse and search a plurality of Sports Teams  206   a,b  or Individual Athletes  207   a,b  to sponsor. The host server  202  supports a plurality of User  202  profile databases, Sports Team  206   a,b  and Individual Athlete  207   a,b  databases, Primary Sponsor and Co-sponsor  406  databases, and credit card and other financial transaction processing. It will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that the databases can be any suitable database management system such as Oracle, Informix, Sybase, SQL Server, Access, mySQL, PostgreSQL, or the like. Once the User  201  selects a Sports Teams  206   a,b  or Individual Athlete  207   a,b  to sponsor, the User  201  can electronically transfer funds to the host through the host server  202  via a Financial Transaction System  204 . The Financial Transaction System  204  can implement electronic funds transfers between a multitude of financial accounts as is known to one skilled in the art. The host server  202  can interact with a User Award System  203  to send the User  201  a sponsorship award. The User Award System can vary depending upon the Sports Teams  206   a,b  or Individual Athlete  207   a,b.  By way of example, and not limitation, there can be three levels of sponsorship Silver, Gold, and Platinum. The Silver level can be reached by contributing $200.00. The User  201  can receive a hat and t-shirt with the host logo, access to messages from their team keeping them up to date with team happenings, offers for discount tickets and travel to events, and the right to say they sponsored the Sports Teams  206   a,b  or Individual Athlete  207   a,b.  Gold level can be reached by contributing $500.00. The User  201  can receive the benefits of the Silver level, plus “behind the scenes” passes, t-shirt and hats with the name of the Sports Teams  206   a,b  or Individual Athlete  207   a,b  they are sponsoring. The Platinum level can be reached by contributing $1,000.00. The User  201  can receive the benefits of the Silver and Gold levels, plus a jacket with the Sports Teams  206   a,b  or Individual Athlete  207   a,b,  autographed posters, license plates frames, key chains, and “VIP” lunches at selected events hosted by the host. These benefits will vary based on the particular sporting events. The host server  202  electronically transfers the sponsorship amount through the Financial Transaction System  204  into a Financial Account  205 . Once a cumulative sponsorship amount has been reached for a sports team or individual, the cumulative sponsorship amount is transferred from the Financial Account  205  to the Sports Team  206   a,b  or Individual Athlete  207   a,b  selected by the User  201 .  
         [0035]      FIG. 3  illustrates a more detailed view of the sponsorship transaction process. The User  201  uses an internet-enabled computer to access the host server  202  via the Internet  208 . As indicated in block  301 , User  201  browses and searches through the host website and queries various Sports Team  206   a,b  and Individual Athlete  207   a,b  databases. The User  201  can view the name of the Sports Team  206   a,b  and Individual Athlete  207   a,b  along with the sponsorship award that the User  201  can receive based on a sponsorship amount. The User  201  selects the specific Sports Team  206   a,b  and/or individual Athlete  207   a,b  to sponsor and, as indicated in block  302 , the User  201  then enters their User  201  profile into a user profile database on the host Server  202 . A User  201  profile can contain pertinent information such as, but not limited to, name, address, phone number, email address, and sport preferences. The User  201  will only need to enter this information once, as their information is stored and is accessible by the User  201  via a password. The User  201  profile will be associated with the Primary Sponsor and Co-sponsors  406  associated with the Sports Team  206   a,b  or Individual Athlete  207   a,b  that the User  201  selected to sponsor. As shown in block  310 , the User  201  profile can be transmitted to the primary sponsor and co-sponsors for various marketing uses. Such marketing uses can include, but are not limited to, direct product marketing to Users  201 , providing discounts to Users  201 , and the like. As indicated in block  303 , after the User  201  has entered their profile information, the User  201  enters payment information to transfer the desired sponsorship amount to the host. Payment information can include, but is not limited to, credit cards, bank account and routing numbers, Paypal® accounts, and the like. The payment is processed and the sponsorship amount is deposited into a host financial account as indicated in block  304 . The host financial account can be, for example, a checking account, a savings account, a mutual fund, and the like. A sponsorship award is sent to the User  201 , as shown in block  305 . The sponsorship award can include pens, t-shirts, towels, posters, tickets to sporting events, and the like. The host financial account is monitored to determine when a pre-determined cumulative sponsorship amount has been reached for each Sports Team  206   a,b  or Individual Athlete  207   a,b,  as indicated in block  306 . As shown in block  307 , if the cumulative sponsorship amount has not been reached, the process continues with the same or other Users  201  until the cumulative sponsorship amount is reached. As shown in block  307 , if the cumulative sponsorship amount has been reached, the cumulative sponsorship amount is transferred to the appropriate Sports Team  206   a,b  or Individual Athlete  207   a,b,  as shown in block  308 . Such distributions can be made, for example, by mailing a check to the Sports Team  206   a,b  or Individual Athlete  207   a,b,  automatically electronically depositing funds, and the like. As indicated in block  309 , the Sports Team  206   a,b  or Individual Athlete  207   a,b  will recognize the receipt of the cumulative sponsorship amount by promoting the host. Such promotion of the host can be made by, for example, placing a host logo on a team vehicle, uniform, banner, website, and the like,  
         [0036]      FIG. 4  describes examples of synergies generated by the disclosed system and method. The User  402  benefits through having the ability to sponsor their favorites sports teams and individual athletes. This allows the User  402  to show their support through financial contribution and ensures the success of the sport as a whole. The Individual Athlete  403  benefits through receiving sponsorship funds that might not have been received otherwise, thus ensuring the Individual Athlete  403  can continue to participate in the sport. Nascar®  404  benefits through receiving sponsors for the drivers and their teams, thus connecting the fans to the sport more intimately, ensuring fan loyalty. Olympic Teams  405  benefit through receiving much needed funding to cover training and travel costs, allowing the teams to concentrate on their sport. Primary and Co-sponsors benefit by receiving invaluable marketing information. This information can allow targeted advertising and product offering. These benefits are conveyed by and through the host  401 , serving as the medium through which all the aforementioned benefits flow.  
         [0037]      FIG. 5  illustrates an example of a suitable computing system environment in which the system and method may be implemented. The computing system environment is only one example of a suitable computing environment and is not intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use or functionality of the invention. Neither should the computing environment be interpreted as having any dependency or requirement relating to any one or combination of components illustrated in the exemplary operating environment. In particular, the environment is an example of computerized devices that can implement the system and method as has been described.  
         [0038]     The system and method are operational with numerous other general purpose or special purpose computing system environments or configurations. Examples of well known computing systems, environments, and/or configurations that may be suitable for use with the system and method include, but are not limited to, personal computers, server computers, laptop devices, and multiprocessor systems. Additional examples include set top boxes, programmable consumer electronics, network PCs, minicomputers, mainframe computers, distributed computing environments that include any of the above systems or devices, and the like.  
         [0039]     The system and method may be described in the general context of computer instructions, such as program modules, being executed by a computer. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The system and method may also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located in both local and remote computer storage media including memory storage devices.  
         [0040]     The systems of  FIGS. 2 , and  3 , can include a general-purpose computing device in the form of a computer  501 . The components of the computer  501  can include, but are not limited to, one or more processors or processing units  503 , a system memory  512 , and a system bus  513  that couples various system components including the processor  503  to the system memory  512 .  
         [0041]     The system bus  513  represents one or more of several possible types of bus structures, including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, an accelerated graphics port, and a processor or local bus using any of a variety of bus architectures. By way of example, such architectures can include an Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, a Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, an Enhanced ISA (EISA) bus, a Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, and a Peripheral Component Interconnects (PCI) bus also known as a Mezzanine bus. This bus, and all buses specified in this description can also be implemented over a wired or wireless network connection. The bus  513 , and all buses specified in this description can also be implemented over a wired or wireless network connection and each of the subsystems, including the processor  503 , a mass storage device  504 , an operating system  505 , application software  506 , data  507 , a network adapter  508 , system memory  512 , an Input/Output Interface  510 , a display adapter  509 , a display device  511 , and a human machine interface  502 , can be contained within one or more remote computing devices  515   a,b,c  at physically separate locations, connected through buses of this form, in effect implementing a fully distributed system.  
         [0042]     The computer  501  typically includes a variety of computer readable media. Such media can be any available media that is accessible by the computer  501  and includes both volatile and non-volatile media, removable and non-removable media.  
         [0043]     The system memory  512  includes computer readable media in the form of volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM), and/or non-volatile memory, such as read only memory (ROM). The system memory  512  typically contains data such as data  507  and and/or program modules such as operating system  505  and application software  506  that are immediately accessible to and/or are presently operated on by the processing unit  503 .  
         [0044]     The computer  501  may also include other removable/non-removable, volatile/non-volatile computer storage media. By way of example,  FIG. 5  illustrates a mass storage device  504  which can provide non-volatile storage of computer code, computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, and other data for the computer  501 . For example, a mass storage device  504  can be a hard disk, a removable magnetic disk, a removable optical disk, magnetic cassettes or other magnetic storage devices, flash memory cards, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD) or other optical storage, random access memories (RAM), read only memories (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), and the like.  
         [0045]     Any number of program modules can be stored on the mass storage device  504 , including by way of example, an operating system  505  and application software  506 . Each of the operating system  505  and application software  506  (or some combination thereof) may include elements of the programming and the application software  506 . Data  507  can also be stored on the mass storage device  504 .  
         [0046]     A user can enter commands and information into the computer  501  via an input device (not shown). Examples of such input devices include, but are not limited to, a keyboard, pointing device (e.g., a “mouse”), a microphone, a joystick, a serial port, a scanner, and the like. These and other input devices can be connected to the processing unit  503  via a human machine interface  502  that is coupled to the system bus  513 , but may be connected by other interface and bus structures, such as a parallel port, game port, or a universal serial bus (USB).  
         [0047]     A display device  511  can also be connected to the system bus  513  via an interface, such as a display adapter  509 . For example, a display device can be a monitor or an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display). In addition to the display device  511 , other output peripheral devices can include components such as speakers (not shown) and a printer (not shown) which can be connected to the computer  501  via Input/Output Interface  510 .  
         [0048]     The computer  501  can operate in a networked environment using logical connections to one or more remote computing devices  515   a,b,c.  By way of example, a remote computing device can be a personal computer, portable computer, a server, a router, a network computer, a peer device or other common network node, and so on. Logical connections between the computer  501  and a remote computing device  515   a,b,c  can be made via a local area network (LAN) and a general wide area network (WAN). Such network connections can be through a network adapter  508 . A network adapter  508  can be implemented in both wired and wireless environments. Such networking environments are commonplace in offices, enterprise-wide computer networks, intranets, and the Internet  208 .  
         [0049]     For purposes of illustration, application programs and other executable program components such as the operating system  505  are illustrated herein as discrete blocks, although it is recognized that such programs and components reside at various times in different storage components of the computing device  501 , and are executed by the data processor(s) of the computer. An implementation of application software  506  may be stored on or transmitted across some form of computer readable media. Computer readable media can be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, computer readable media may comprise “computer storage media” and “communications media.” “Computer storage media” include volatile and non-volatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information such as computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data. Computer storage media includes, but is not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD) or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which can be used to store the desired information and which can be accessed by a computer.  
         [0050]     It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present system and method without departing from the scope or spirit of the system and method. Other embodiments of the system and method will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the system and method disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spirit of the system and method being indicated by the following claims.