Patent EA-004001-B1 (EA)
Title: Method and system for redeeming product marketing rebates
IPC: G06Q20/40
Filed: 2000-09-15
Abstract: 1. A method for processing a product marketing rebate claim submitted by a consumer in satisfaction of one or more rebate offers each having a value, the consumer having purchased one or more designated products in one or more qualified transactions, each qualified transaction having a transaction serial number assigned thereto, the transaction serial number recorded in a point-of-sale data processing and storage system and recorded on a receipt issued to the consumer, the method comprising the steps of: (a) providing a designated site connected to a computer information network and accessible by the consumer; (b) receiving the rebate claim on the designated site, the rebate claim comprising (i) at least one transaction serial number corresponding to a qualified transaction, and (ii) identifying information corresponding to the consumer; (c) storing as a stored data record the at least one transaction serial number and the identifying information corresponding to the consumer; (d) receiving an electronic file transfer from the data processing and storage system, the electronic file transfer including at least one purchase data record comprising at least (i) the transaction serial number corresponding to the qualified transaction in which the at least one designated product was purchased by the consumer, and (ii) an identification of each designated product purchased by the consumer; (e) associating each stored data record with a corresponding purchase data record having an identical transaction serial number; (f) processing the stored data record and the corresponding purchase data record associated therewith to validate the rebate claim; and (g) transferring to the consumer the value of the rebate offers claimed. 2. The method of claim 1 wherein step (a) comprises providing the designated site accessible by the consumer through one of: a computer connected to the computer information network; a computerized telephone answering system connected to the designated site and accessible by calling a designated telephone number with a telephone; or a combination thereof. 3. The method of claim 1 wherein receiving the rebate claim on the designated site in step (b) comprises receiving a rebate claim entered by one of: the consumer via access to the designated site through a personal computer connected to the computer information network; the consumer via access to the designated site through a computer located at a retail establishment and connected to the computer information network; the consumer via access to the designated site through a touch-tone telephone; a fulfillment administrator from information transcribed from a rebate claim submitted by the consumer in a paper format; or a combination thereof. 4. The method of claim 1 wherein step (g) comprises transferring the cash value of the rebates to the consumer in the form of a check. 5. The method of claim 1 wherein step (g) comprises transferring the cash value of the rebates to the consumer in the form of one of: (i) a credit to a smart card, (ii) a credit to a bank account or to a credit card, or (iii) a certificate for redemption at a participating member of a retail network. 6. The method of claim 1 wherein receiving the rebate claim on the designated site in step (b) comprises receiving information entered by the consumer during access to the designated site, step (b) further comprising, while the consumer has access to the designated site, interactively prompting the consumer to choose whether to proceed to step (t) immediately or to delay-performing step (t) until one of: a future instruction by the consumer to proceed, or expiration of a qualifying time period. 7. The method of claim 6 wherein in step (b) the consumer chooses to delay step (t) until expiration of the qualifying time period and in which steps (b) and (c) are repeated before expiration of the qualifying time period, subsequent step (b) comprising receiving on the designated site additional transaction serial numbers of additional qualified transactions, and subsequent step (c) comprising modifying the stored data record to include the additional transaction serial numbers. 8. The method of claim 7 wherein subsequent step (b) comprises receiving only a portion of the identifying information received in a prior step (b) and identifying, based on the portion of identifying information received, the consumer from the stored data record stored in a prior step (c). 9. The method of claim 7 wherein in step (b) the consumer chooses to wait until the end of the qualifying time period, and in which steps (f) and (g) are performed after expiration of the qualifying time period. 10. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of: (a) compiling a marketing record for each consumer, the marketing record comprising the identifying information about the consumer and one or more consumer purchasing preferences derived from the purchase data records of the qualified transactions for which corresponding transaction serial numbers were received in step (a), the method further comprising providing the marketing record to a marketing agent. 11. The method of claim 1 wherein the consumer purchased the one or more designated products using a smart card, the smart card having a computerized data storage means having stored as computerized data thereon a smart card number and the transaction serial number, in which: step (b) comprises receiving on the designated site the rebate claim entered by the consumer using a smart card reader to automatically download the card number and the stored transaction serial number from the smart card into a card reader, the card number comprising the identifying information; and step (g) comprises transferring the cash value of the rebate claim to the consumer by crediting the smart card. 12. The method of claim 1 wherein the computer information network is a global computer information network. 13. A method for processing a plurality of product marketing rebate claims submitted by a plurality of consumers in satisfaction of a plurality of rebate offers each having a value, each consumer having purchased one or more designated products in one or more qualified transactions, each qualified transaction having a transaction serial number assigned thereto, the transaction serial number recorded in a point-of-sale data processing and storage system and recorded on a receipt issued to each consumer, the method comprising the steps of: (a) providing a designated site connected to a computer information network and accessible to the plurality of consumers; (b) receiving a plurality of rebate claims on the designated site, each rebate claim comprising (i) at least one transaction serial number corresponding to one or more qualified transactions, and (ii) identifying information corresponding to the consumer, at least one rebate claim having been entered by a fulfillment administrator from information transcribed from a rebate claim submitted by the consumer in a paper format, and at least one rebate claim entered by one of: the consumer via access to the designated site through a personal computer connected to the global computer information network, the consumer via access to the designated site through a computer located at a retail establishment and connected to the global computer information network, or the consumer via access to the designated site through a telephone; (c) storing a plurality of stored data records, each stored data record comprising the identifying information corresponding to one consumer, and at least one transaction serial number related to a rebate claim from that consumer; (d) receiving an electronic file transfer from the data processing and storage system, the electronic file transfer comprising a plurality of purchase data records, each purchase data record comprising at least (i) a transaction serial number corresponding to a qualified transaction in which at least one designated product was purchased by a consumer, and (ii) an identification of each designated product purchased by the consumer in the qualified transaction; (e) associating each stored data record with a corresponding purchase data record having an identical transaction serial number; (f) processing each stored data record and the corresponding purchase data record associated therewith to validate the rebate claim; and (g) transferring to each of the plurality of consumers the value of the rebate offers claimed by the consumer. 14. The method of claim 13 wherein: step (b) comprises receiving at least one rebate claim from a designated card consumer who purchased said one or more designated products using a designated card and having a card number, the designated card comprising one of: a credit card having a corresponding credit account, a debit card having a corresponding bank or debit account, or a smart card having computerized data storage means; step(c) comprises storing at least one designated card stored data record comprising personal information about the designated card consumer and retrievable by the designated card number; step (d) comprises receiving in the electronic file transfer at least one transaction data record comprising the designated card number and the corresponding transaction serial number for the qualified transaction in which the one or more designated products were purchased by the designated card consumer using the designated card; step (e) further comprises the fulfillment administrator associating the transaction data record with the corresponding designated card stored data record and updating the designated card stored data record to include the transaction serial number; and step (g) comprises the fulfillment administrator transferring the cash value of the rebate claims to the designated card consumer by crediting one of: the corresponding credit account, the corresponding bank or debit account, or the smart card computerized data storage means. 1