Patent ID: 8504464

Claim:
A method for facilitating freight shipment in a computer-implemented freight shipment system having a computer network between a first geographic location and a second geographic location, the method comprising: displaying in a first data section of a browser window, by said computer-implemented freight shipment system, said browser window being configured to be accessible via said computer network, derivative contract data pertaining to shipment capacity offered by carriers between, said first geographic location, and said second geographic location, said derivative contract data being associated with at least one shipping mode; displaying in a second data section of said browser window, by said computer-implemented freight shipment system, forecast data pertaining to demand forecasts pertaining to shipment capacity between said first geographic location and said second geographic location, said forecast data being provided by shippers, said second data section being configured to be viewed simultaneously with said first data section, receiving, by said computer-implemented freight shipment system, shipper assessment of accuracy of said forecast data pertaining to said demand forecasts pertaining to shipment capacity between said first geographic location and said second geographic location from said shippers; sorting, by said computer-implemented freight shipment system, said forecast data by geography; sorting, by said computer-implemented freight shipment system, actual shipment data by geography; comparing, by said computer-implemented freight shipment system, said forecast data with said actual shipment data to calculate a forecast quality index; and calculating, by said computer-implemented freight shipment system, a forecast quality index utilizing said comparing of said forecast data with said actual shipment data.