Patent ID: 6925446

Claim:
An auction server, for accepting a price bid for a product put up for auction via a communication network in support of a network auction sale, comprising: information opening means for opening, to intending purchasers, information concerning said product put up for auction; price bid acceptance means for accepting purchase price bids tendered by said intending purchasers; and winning bid determination means for employing said accepted purchase price bids to calculate a standard purchase price, the standard purchase price being based on amounts of all bids received for said product put up for auction, the winning bid determination means being configured to award a sale to the intending purchasers in: a number equivalent to the count of individual units of the product put up for auction, and an arranged structure, the arranged structure including the number of intending purchasers whose purchase price bid is closest, both above and below to said standard purchase price, wherein the arranged structure includes a number of intending purchasers whose purchase price bid is closest and above said standard purchase price approximately equal to a number of intending purchases whose purchase price bid is closest and below said standard purchase price.