Payment method and system

An apparatus configured to facilitate payment for a product or service by a user using a mobile device to purchase the product or service, the apparatus comprising:

• a memory that includes information about the product or service that is being offered for purchase to the user;
• an electronic user interface (UI) to be used by the user for providing a phone number of the user's mobile device to the apparatus, or a wireless machine-to-machine interface (MMI) for wirelessly receiving the phone number of the user's mobile device to the apparatus;
• at least one processor;
• and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code co-operating with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to:
• provide the user with the product or service for free in response to, and based on, analysis of the phone number received from the user via the electronic UI or the wireless MMI, wherein the analysis includes determining whether, and confirming that, the phone number has not been used previously to obtain the product or service for free, thereby preventing multiple uses of the same phone number for the product or service;
• and
• transmit or cause transmission of a funds transfer instruction message that is a short messaging service text message to the phone number of the user's mobile device directing the user to open an electronic purse or account to be used for debiting for future products or services to be authorized by payment approval using the user's mobile device,
• wherein the apparatus further comprises a communication module for communication with external devices, the communication module being configured to:
• transmit a funds transfer instruction message that is a short messaging service text message to the phone number requesting the user to open the electronic purse or account;
• and
• communicate with a server including providing the phone number to the server to cause the server to transmit the funds transfer instruction message that is a short messaging service text message to the phone number of the user's mobile device suggesting to the user to open an electronic purse or account to be used for debiting for the future products or services,
• wherein the communication module sends a suggestion message that is a short messaging service text message to the phone number suggesting alternative amounts of monetary funds to be transferred to the electronic purse or account, and receives a response message that is a short messaging service text message from the user's mobile device indicating the selection of the amount of the alternative amounts of monetary funds, and
• wherein the funds transfer instruction message, the request message and the suggestion message are included in messages that are sent from or received at a plurality of reply addresses by a server, wherein each message of the messages correspond to one of the plurality of reply addresses, the server prepares the messages by selecting a reply address from the plurality of reply addresses that corresponds to each message of the messages for each of the messages, and using the selected reply addresses as a sender's address for the messages, the server performs message sending by sending the messages to the user's mobile device via the communication network, and the server receives a reply message from the user's mobile device via the communication network at one of the selected reply addresses, and
• wherein the server identifies whether the reply message corresponds to the funds transfer message, the request message or the suggestion message based on the one of the selected reply addresses at which the reply message is received and based on the phone number of the mobile device that sent the reply message.

A server configured to facilitate payment for a product or service by a user using a mobile device to purchase the product or service, the server being coupled to a communication network and providing an interface between the user's mobile device and at least one application coupled to the communication network, the server comprising:

• a memory that includes information about the product or service that is being offered for purchase to the user;
• an electronic user interface (UI) to be used by the user for providing a phone number of the user's mobile device to the server, or a wireless machine-to-machine interface (MMI) for wirelessly receiving the phone number of the user's mobile device to the server;
• at least one processor;
• and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code co-operating with the at least one processor, to cause the server to:
• provide the user with the product or service for free in response to, and based on, analysis of the phone number received from the user via the electronic UI or the wireless MMI, wherein the analysis includes determining whether, and confirming that, the phone number has not been used previously to obtain the product or service for free, thereby preventing multiple uses of the same phone number for the product or service;
• and
• transmit or cause transmission of a funds transfer instruction message that is a short messaging service text message to the phone number of the user's mobile device directing the user to open an electronic purse or account to be used for debiting for future products or services to be authorized by payment approval using the user's mobile device,
• wherein the server further comprises a communication module for communication with external devices, the communication module being configured to:
• transmit a funds transfer instruction message that is a short messaging service text message to the phone number requesting the user to open the electronic purse or account;
• and
• communicate with a server including providing the phone number to the server to cause the server to transmit the funds transfer instruction message that is a short messaging service text message to the phone number of the mobile device suggesting to the user to open an electronic purse or account to be used for debiting for the future products or services,
• wherein the communication module sends a suggestion message that is a short messaging service text message to the phone number suggesting alternative amounts of monetary funds to be transferred to the electronic purse or account, and receives a response message that is a short messaging service text message from the user's mobile device indicating the selection of the amount of the alternative amounts of monetary funds, and
• wherein the funds transfer instruction message, the request message and the suggestion message are included in messages that are sent from or received at a plurality of reply addresses by a server, wherein each message of the messages correspond to one of the plurality of reply addresses, the server prepares the messages by selecting a reply address from the plurality of reply addresses that corresponds to each message of the messages for each of the messages, and using the selected reply addresses as a sender's address for the messages, the server performs message sending by sending the messages to the user's mobile device via the communication network, and the server receives a reply message from the user's mobile device via the communication network at one of the selected reply addresses, and
• wherein the server identifies whether the reply message corresponds to the funds transfer message, the request message or the suggestion message based on the one of the selected reply addresses at which the reply message is received and based on the phone number of the mobile device that sent the reply message.