Patent ID: 7839883

Claim:
A computer readable memory device tangibly embodying a program of machine-readable instructions executable by a digital processing apparatus of a computer system to perform operations for managing an advance resource reservation system, the operations comprising: receiving from one of a plurality of potential resource users, an advance reservation request that specifies a set of reservation fulfillment requirements that comprises multiple reservation fulfillment options indicating various ways in which a resource provider may satisfy the set of reservation fulfillment requirements, wherein a business value is assigned to each of the multiple reservation fulfillment options; and analyzing the received advance reservation request to determine if a reservation can be granted that specifies at least one of the multiple reservation fulfillment options, where analyzing comprises at a predetermined time pre-allocating a resource among the plurality of potential resource users submitted advance reservation requests, the resource pre-allocation being based at least in part on a pre-determined value allocation criterion applied to the business values associated with the multiple reservation fulfillment option from the one potential user and from others of the plurality of potential resource users submitting advance reservation requests.