Patent ID: 8712835

Claim:
A method for transmitting a promotion offer to a user location on a network, comprising the steps of: receiving a preannouncement of a promotion offer at a user location indicating that a promotion offer will be provided in a broadcast; receiving an indication within the broadcast, at the user location, of an impending stimulus to be received at the user location; responsive to receiving the preannouncement, downloading by the user, software to the user location to allow receiving of the stimulus; by use of the downloaded software, receiving the stimulus from the broadcast directed to the user location, the stimulus having unique coded information encoded therein which unique coded information has no routing information contained therein; decoding, at the user location, the unique coded information from the stimulus; using the decoded information to determine over the network at a remote location on the network, routing information defining a unique network address that defines a promotion offer location on the network, which promotion offer location is operable to transmit a promotion offer automatically to the user location in response to being accessed according to the routing information, and also using the decoded information to determine information regarding the promotion offer; receiving at the user location from the remote location the determined routing information and the determined information regarding the promotion offer; interconnecting the user location with the promotion offer location on the network in accordance with the determined routing information; in conjunction with the step of interconnecting to the promotion offer location with the unique network address, forwarding the determined information regarding the promotion to the promotion offer location from the user location; by one or more computers, generating the promotion offer, in response to and after the step of interconnection, based upon the forwarded determined information regarding the promotion and based upon the timeliness of the interconnection between the user location and the promotion location; providing a full effect of the promotion offer only after the interconnection has been determined to be timely; and transmitting the promotion offer over the network from the promotion location to the user location.