Mobile Phone Based Transactions at a Point of Sale Terminal

A method of enabling a physical point of sale (POS) system to execute a transaction associated with an Internet capable mobile device to completion without said physical point of sale (POS) system ever having received a financial account number from said Internet capable mobile device, comprising:

• receiving by a remote computer system from a physical point of sale (POS) system, a mobile transaction-specific unique code and not a financial account number, said mobile transaction-specific unique code without a financial account number having been received by said physical point of sale (POS) system from a given physical Internet capable mobile device that provided said mobile transaction-specific unique code without providing said financial account number;
• routing said mobile transaction-specific unique code without said financial account number to an accounting server for determination of a device-specific virtual account ID using device-specific mobile number identity information unique to the Internet capable mobile device and routing of the transaction to an authentication, authorization and accounting (AAA) server appropriate for the device-specific virtual account ID in a location remote from said Internet capable mobile device to authorize said physical point of sale (POS) system to execute said transaction to completion;
• and
• communicating an authorization message for the transaction without also communicating said financial account number to said physical POS system that received said mobile transaction-specific unique code without said financial account number from said Internet capable mobile device;
• wherein the mobile transaction-specific unique code is traceable to said device-specific virtual account ID;
• wherein each of said POS system and said Internet capable mobile device includes a combination of hardware and software;
• and
• wherein said authorization message facilitates said physical point of sale (POS) system to execute said transaction to completion without ever having received any financial account number from said Internet capable mobile device.

A method performed by a physical point of sale (POS) system to execute a transaction associated with an Internet capable mobile device to completion without said physical point of sale (POS) system ever having received a financial account number from said Internet capable mobile device, comprising:

• receiving from the Internet capable mobile device a mobile transaction-specific unique code without also receiving any financial account number from said Internet capable mobile device;
• routing to a remote computer system the mobile transaction-specific unique code without also routing any financial account number to said remote computer system, said mobile transaction-specific unique code including information enabling an accounting server to determine, from said mobile transaction-specific unique code without any financial account number a device-specific virtual account ID sufficient to authorize said physical point of sale (POS) system to execute said transaction to completion;
• and
• receiving an authorization message for the transaction without also receiving any financial account number from said Internet capable mobile device;
• wherein the virtual account ID is determined using device-specific mobile number identity information unique to the Internet capable mobile device;
• wherein the mobile transaction-specific unique code is traceable to said device-specific virtual account ID;
• wherein each of said POS system and said Internet capable mobile device includes a combination of hardware and software;
• and
• wherein said authorization message facilitates said physical point of sale (POS) system to execute said transaction to completion without ever having received from said Internet capable mobile device and without having ever provided to the remote computer system any financial account number.