Automated dynamic negotiation of electronic service contracts

A method for conducting a negotiation between a plurality of parties, each of said parties having a computer system coupled to a communication network and one or more applications running thereon, the method comprising the steps of:

• providing a specification of machine-executable rules of negotiation for the parties for generating at least one contract;
• and
• providing a starting state for a contract, wherein the starting state is selectable from one of:
• a previous contract, a publicly defined template, and a template defined prior to the negotiation by one of the parties.

A method for conducting an automatic negotiation between a plurality of parties, each of said parties having a computer system coupled to a communication network and one or more applications running thereon, the method comprising the steps of:

• creating a template prior to the negotiation, wherein the template contains business logic for performing a negotiation electronically;
• registering the business logic, prior to the negotiation, with a server accessible by one or more parties;
• and
• implementing the business logic in a negotiation conducted automatically between computer systems over the communication network.

A method for conducting a negotiation between a plurality of parties, each of said parties having a server coupled to a communication network and one or more applications running thereon, comprising the steps of:

• providing a specification of machine-executable rules of negotiation for the parties for generating at least one contract;
• enabling an automatic negotiation to take place between the servers in accordance with the specification of machine-executable rules;
• and
• forming a meta contract for controlling a negotiation process.

A method for conducting a negotiation between a plurality of parties, each of said parties having a computer system coupled to a communication network and one or more applications running thereon, comprising the steps of:

• providing a specification of machine-executable rules of negotiation for the parties for generating at least one contract;
• forming a meta contract that specifies a negotiation protocol;
• and
• enabling an automatic negotiation to take place between the parties in accordance with the specification of machine-executable rules;
• wherein at least one of the negotiating parties is an intermediary for facilitating the automatic negotiation.

A computer program product in a computer readable medium in a first computer system for conducting a negotiation between a plurality of parties, comprising:

• first instructions for providing a specification of machine-executable rules of negotiation for the parties for generating at least one contract;
• second instructions for enabling an automatic negotiation to take place between a party located at the first computer system and a party located at a second computer system in accordance with the specification of machine-executable rules;
• and
• third instructions for negotiating a contract automatically between the parties.

A method of conducting business over the Internet, wherein parties negotiate contractual terms between two data communication network components, the method comprising the steps of:

• providing a specification of machine-executable rules of negotiation for generating at least one contract;
• forming a meta contract that specifies a negotiation protocol;
• and
• originating a negotiation at a first party in accordance with the rules of negotiation.

An article of manufacture for automating contract negotiation between a plurality of parties, comprising a machine readable medium containing one or more programs which when executed implement the steps of:

• communicating, in a preliminary step, a negotiation protocol for negotiating parties to follow;
• communicating a request to negotiate;
• and
• conducting an automatic negotiation, according to the negotiation protocol, between the one or more applications of each of the plurality of parties.