Patent ID: 7769630

Claim:
A method of operating a reward system in conjunction with a computer network, the computer network interconnected to at least one issuing bank computer operated by an issuing bank that issues a token to a user, said token comprising a user payment account ID for a user payment account at the issuing bank computer that is used to pay for purchase transactions, the method comprising: a. providing a reward account database in a central reward server computer that interoperates with the computer network, the reward account database storing (i) a first user reward account for transactions between the user and a first merchant and (ii) a second user reward account for transactions between the user and a second merchant, both the first user reward account and the second user reward account being identified with the user payment account ID; b. a user executing a first transaction with the first merchant by presenting the token to the first merchant for payment of at least part of the first transaction; c. a first merchant computer operated by the first merchant transmitting a first instruction to the central reward server computer to add a first set of rewards to the first user reward account using an identification of the first merchant and the user payment account ID; d. the user executing a second transaction with the second merchant by presenting the token to the second merchant for payment of at least part of the second transaction; e. a second merchant computer operated by the second merchant transmitting a second instruction to the central reward server computer to add a second set of rewards to the second user reward account using an identification of the second merchant and the user payment account ID; f. establishing a user reward exchange account on the central reward server computer; g. a user computer operated by the user providing instructions to the central reward server computer for selecting rewards from the first user reward account and from the second user reward account for exchange into the user reward exchange account; and h. the central reward server computer exchanging, in response to said instructions, the selected rewards from the first user reward account and the second user reward account into the user reward point exchange account.