Abstract:
A method of issuing a purchase card is provided. The method includes the steps of presenting a purchaser with the opportunity to buy the purchase card, determining whether the purchaser has sufficient funds to pay for the purchase card, creating a purchase card account for a recipient designated by the purchaser, and issuing the purchase card. The purchase card may also be issued in connection with another credit card, for example as a rebate for purchases on the credit card. The purchase card may also be converted to a credit card.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   This patent application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/441,067, filed on May 20, 2003 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,892,187 entitled “Debit Purchasing of Stored Value Card For Use By And/Or Delivery To Others”, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/102,0441, filed Jun. 22, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,615,189. The disclosures of these priority applications are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. 
   The present application is also related to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/987,086 filed concurrently herewith and entitled “Stored Value (Rebate),” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/987,079 filed concurrently herewith and entitled “Stored Value (Sponsor Funded),” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/987,085 filed concurrently herewith and entitled “Stored Value (Private Label Network),” U.S. patent application No. 10/987,104 filed concurrently herewith and entitled (Stored Value Card (Wu), and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/987,078 filed concurrently herewith and entitled Stored Value Card (Phelan), all claiming benefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/441,067, filed on May 20, 2003 entitled “Debit Purchasing of Stored Value Card For Use By And/Or Delivery To Others”, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/102,044, filed Jun. 22, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,615,189, the entireties of which are incorporated by reference herein. 

   FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   This invention relates to a system for purchasing or transferring of stored value or debit purchasing cards, which can be pre-arranged to be given as a gift to a designated recipient. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   On many occasions, consumers, other bank customers, credit card holders, and other persons find it is desirable to arrange for another person, perhaps a relative, to have access to a specified sum of money. For example, a parent might want to arrange for a child to have access to money when the child is taking a trip or going away to college. One may also find it desirable to mail a gift to another person who is geographically distant. In these and other cases, it is often undesirable to give away or send cash. If lost or stolen, cash is practically unrecoverable. Traveler&#39;s checks are also undesirable as they must be purchased at a bank and are not acceptable for many types of purchases. Gift certificates are also undesirable because they require the recipient to purchase from the merchant that issued the gift certificate. These and other drawbacks exist to the aforementioned alternatives. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   An object of the invention is to overcome these and other drawbacks in existing purchase schemes. 
   Another object of the invention is to provide a method for issuing a purchase card comprising: presenting a purchaser with the opportunity to buy the purchase card, determining whether the purchaser has sufficient funds to pay for the purchase card, creating a purchase card account for a recipient designated by the purchaser; and issuing the purchase card. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the recipient activates the purchase card. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the purchase card account contains a monetary amount determined by the purchaser of the purchase card. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where money can be added to the balance of an issued purchase card account. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the purchase card is activated when the issuer of the purchase card is notified that the recipient has received the purchase card. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the issuer of the purchase card notifies the purchaser that the recipient has received the purchase card. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the purchaser may designate with which merchants the purchase card may be used. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the purchase card is activated for a predetermined period of time. 
   Another object is to provide a method for issuing a purchase card as a rebate award comprising: issuing a credit card to a cardholder, said credit card being associated with a sponsor. calculating a rebate amount based upon cardholder purchases made with said credit card, issuing a purchase card to a cardholder or to a recipient designated by said cardholder, said purchase card having a purchase value determined by said rebate amount. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the recipient of the purchase card activates the card. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the recipient activates the purchase card by notifying the issuer that the recipient has received the purchase card. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the purchase card is activated for a predetermined period of time. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the rebate is calculated based on all purchases made with the credit card. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the rebate is calculated based on purchase from the sponsor made with the credit card. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the sponsor notifies the issuer of the amount of rebate due a credit card holder, and the issuer creates a purchase card in that amount. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the rebate is based on the monetary value of the purchases. 
   Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for converting a purchase card into a credit card comprising: creating a purchase card account for a recipient designated by the purchaser; issuing the purchase card; receiving a request from the recipient to convert the purchase card into a credit card; determining whether the recipient meets predetermined credit criteria to convert the purchase card into a credit card; creating a credit card account; and converting the purchase card into a credit card. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the balance of the purchase card account is transferred to the credit card account. 
   A further object of the invention is to provide a purchase card where the credit cards is immediately activated upon being converted from a purchase card. 
   Other objects and advantages exist for the present invention. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  shows a flow diagram for a portion of the purchase card system. 
       FIG. 2  shows a flow diagram for another portion of the purchase card system. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   One embodiment of the purchase card system is shown in  FIG. 1 . In this embodiment the purchase card process begins with an offer to purchase a gift card at step  100 . The offer may be in any suitable form that would notify prospective purchasers  105  of the availability of the purchase card. For example, a written solicitation may be mailed or otherwise distributed to potential purchasers  105 . The offer may also be in the form of oral notification, for example, a telephone call to prospective purchasers  105 . Alternatively, the offer may be published over a computer network, for example, on an Internet Web site. Other forms of offering the sale of a purchase card are also possible. In one embodiment of the invention, offers are made to prospective purchasers who already have a financial relationship with the offeror. Other potential purchasers may also be offered the opportunity to obtain a purchase card. 
   The offer may be accepted by a purchaser  105  by notifying a customer service center  110 . The acceptance may be in any form acceptable to the customer service center  110 . For example, the purchaser may mail, fax, or otherwise transmit a written acceptance, telephone an acceptance, or electronically transmit, for example, via Web Site, an acceptance by computer or other suitable device. At step  120 , the customer service center  110  receives pertinent information to identify the purchaser  105  and the purchaser&#39;s desired spending limit for the purchase card. For example, the customer service center may identify the purchaser  105  by name, address, credit card account number, social security number, other unique identifiers or a combination of identifiers. 
   At step  130 , the customer service center  120  is checked to verify that the caller or purchaser was included in the solicitations for this program. If the caller or purchaser was not originally solicited, customer service  120  determines whether to extend an offer in step  135 . 
   If the caller or purchaser was solicited  130 , certain purchaser  105  information may be accessed at  140 . If, for example, the purchaser wishes to pay for the purchase card with a credit card, the purchaser&#39;s credit card account information may be accessed. For example, the purchaser&#39;s available credit limit may be accessed at  145  to verify that sufficient credit is available to cover the spending amount of the purchase card. If the available credit is insufficient, the purchaser  105  may be so informed at  150 . The purchaser  105  may be given the opportunity to modify the purchase card spending amount, at  155 , in order to ensure that the purchase amount does not exceed the available credit. 
   The process may terminate at  160  if, for example, the purchaser  105  does not wish to modify the purchase amount. 
   After it has been determined that the purchaser&#39;s available credit is sufficient, a transaction may be posted to the purchaser&#39;s credit card for the amount of the purchase at  170 . In another embodiment of the present invention, a purchaser may use a check, cash, or other financial methods to obtain a purchase card. Regardless of the purchasing method, the issuer of the purchase card must determine whether the purchaser has sufficient funds to purchase the card. 
   When the purchase card is paid for by credit or bank account, the purchaser&#39;s account balance is updated at  175  to reflect the purchase. The account balance information, as well as information identifying the purchaser  105  and the recipient, may be stored in a retrievable and accessible fashion. For example, the information may be stored in computer database  180 . After the purchaser  105  has paid (or authorized payment) for the purchase card, and it is posted to a credit card account, the acceptance process is complete and the acceptance process terminates at  160 . 
   An account for the purchase card is created at  190 . This may be performed by a third party processor that establishes and manages purchase card accounts. for example, at  200 . Creation of the purchase card account may comprise various actions, such as, recording the recipients  215  name, address and phone number, imprinting a card with an account number, a recipient name and an expiration date, encoding the card to record the purchase value stored thereon, and other actions, such as, for example, preparing account fulfillment documents (e.g. card carrier activation, etc.). 
   When the purchase card account is complete, the card is delivered. In one embodiment of the invention, card may be affiliated with a particular network, such a credit network, or debit network. For example, a card may be affiliated with the VISA® network. The delivery may be to the purchaser  105  or to the recipient  215 , as shown at  210 . The place of delivery may be arranged during the initial purchase of the card or other suitable time before delivery. 
   Information regarding an account is sent to account file  220 , where an account can be monitored. In one embodiment, account file  220  allows monitoring of the current balance of an account, any activity in the account, including debits and credits, transaction updates, and the like. Other information about an account, such as purchase dispute resolutions, the history provided by the customer, and account status, may also be monitored. 
   Before the purchase card can be used to make purchases, it must be activated as shown in  FIG. 2  at  230 . Activation may be accomplished in any suitable manner. For example, the recipient  215  of the card may place a telephone call to an activation center  240 . Activation center  240  may act as a telemarketing vendor by verifying information about the recipient (i.e. name, address, telephone number, etc.) before the purchase card is activated. The activation center  240  may then transmit the data about the recipient to Data Service  200  to activate the purchase card for use. Activation center  240  may also modify information about a recipient, such as, for example, a change of address. Other forms of activation, such as by computer network may also be used. 
   During activation certain verifications may be made at  250  to ensure that the intended recipient  215  is the person attempting to activate the purchase card. These security checks  250  may entail questions about personal information (e.g., name, address, telephone number, etc.) or may utilize other well known methods of authenticating the recipient  215 . If the person attempting to activate the purchase card does not pass the security check  250 , the purchase card will be denied activation at  255  and the activation process may terminate at  260 . If the person attempting to activate the purchase card passes the security check  250 , they may be prompted at  252  for more information. The information may be used for subsequent security checks, should they be required, or to verify or complete the purchase card account information. 
   After activation the purchase card is ready for use. In some embodiments of the invention the activation process will end at this point. The recipient  215  may now use the purchase card to make purchases where ever, for example, VISA® cards are accepted. Each time a purchase is made using the card, the amount of the purchase will be debited from the card&#39;s available balance. The purchase card will continue to operate as long as a positive balance remains on the card. Some embodiments of the purchase card may have the capacity to have additional purchase value added to them after they have been activated. 
   If the recipient of a purchase card is someone other than the purchaser, the issuer of the card may notify the purchaser regarding various aspects of the card. For example, in one embodiment of the invention, the issuer could notify the purchaser that the purchase card has been received and activated by the intended recipient. An issuer may also notify a purchaser where the purchase card is being used, or what products are being purchased with the purchase card. 
   Some embodiments of the purchase card will include an expiration date. After the expiration date has passed the purchase card will be de-activated and cease to operate. In another embodiment of the present invention, a recipient or a purchaser of a purchase card may add to the balance of the purchase card account. This may take place in a manner substantially similar to the original purchasing of the purchase card. For example, a recipient of a purchase card may request that an amount be posted to the recipient&#39;s credit card and that the same amount then be credited to the recipient&#39;s purchase card account. Other methods of adding to the balance of a purchase card account may also be used. 
   Another embodiment of the invention allows the recipient  215  to convert the purchase card into a credit card. Conversion may be accomplished in the following manner. The recipient  215  calls the activation center  240  to activate the purchase card and the security check  250  may be performed in the usual manner. After passing the security check, the age of the recipient  215  is determined at  270 . If the recipient  215  is an adult (e.g., over the age of  18 ) an offer to convert the purchase card into a credit card may be extended at  271 . At step  275  the recipient  215  may decline the offer to convert, in which case the process may terminate at  280 . If the recipient  215  elects to convert the purchase card to a credit card the activation center  240  may capture additional data  285  from recipient  215 , in order to complete a credit card application. At step  290  the credit card application data is forwarded to a credit decisioning office  300 . The credit decisioning office  300  may make inquiries to a credit bureau  305 , for example, obtaining a credit report on the recipient  215 . At  310  the decision is rendered whether to approve the credit card application. If the application for a credit card is declined at  315 , the recipient  215  may be notified at  320 . Notification may be in any suitable form, for example, a letter explaining the declined application may be mailed at  320  to the recipient  215 . Other forms of notification may also be used to notify recipient  215  of the declined application. 
   Even though the credit card application is declined at  310 , the purchase card is activated for use. At  330 , the account settings allowing a card to be used at merchants are sent to the data service  200  and the card will be activated as a purchase card account. Information pertaining to the purchase card account is stored in a retrievable and accessible manner. For example, the purchase card account information may be stored in a computer  332 . 
   If the decision at  310  is to accept the application for a credit card, the recipient  215  may be notified at  340 . Again, notification may be in any suitable form, for example, a letter or other suitable notification. Regardless of the decision whether to convert the purchase card into a credit card, the purchase card is activated at the end of the activation call. If the purchase card is not already active, it may be activated at  345 . At  350  the purchase card is converted to a credit card. The credit card will function in a manner usual for such credit instruments. For example, a credit limit may be assigned, periodic account activity statements may be generated and finance charges may be applied to any outstanding balance. In one embodiment, any remaining balance from the purchase card account may be transferred and applied to the credit card account. At  355  an update is sent to a retrievable data storage system, for example, computer  360 . The update  355  sends credit card application decisions into a database. 
   In another embodiment of the purchase card, a financial institution (e.g., a bank) issues a credit card to a cardholder. The card may be a co-branded card issued in cooperation with a sponsor. In this embodiment, the sponsor offers a rebate to the cardholder based upon the dollar value amount of purchases made with the co-branded credit card. The rebate may apply to all purchases made or just to purchases made from the sponsor. The rebate may be calculated in a manner specified by the terms of the cardholder agreement or other disclosures to the cardholder. In one embodiment of the invention, disclosure about the rebate is provided to the cardholder in a separate form included with the cardholder agreement. For example, the sponsor may offer a flat percentage rebate for purchases made. In one embodiment of the invention, the card issuer calculates the rebate due the cardholder based on the balance paid. 
   In another embodiment, the sponsor notifies the financial institution of the amount of rebate to be awarded to the cardholder. The financial institution will then issue a purchase card for the amount of the rebate. The purchase card may be used for purchases in the above described manner, for example, everywhere VISA® is accepted, or the purchase card may be used for purchases solely with the sponsor or other designated entities. 
   Other embodiments and uses of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the invention disclosed herein. The specification and examples should be considered exemplary only. The scope of the invention is only limited by the claims appended hereto.