Pre-paid card system and method

A pre-paid card system to enable customers to purchase pre-paid cards at retail establishments and to use such pre-paid cards to obtain goods or services, comprising:

• a plurality of cards, each of said cards having a security number associated therewith that must be entered to obtain goods and services using the prepaid card;
• a host computer including at least one input port and a database for storing security numbers;
• a plurality of data terminals located at the retail establishments remote from the host computer and each connectable to the input port for associating, at the host computer, a purchasing limit amount with a security number of a pre-paid card using data transmitted between the data terminal and the host computer during one or more charging transactions, the means for associating of each data terminal including:
• means for reading a calling card to determine the security number;
• means, operative during any initial transaction and any recharge transaction, for entering a monetary amount corresponding to the purchasing limit amount;
• means for transferring to the host computer the security number corresponding to the purchasing limit amount and the purchasing limit amount;
• and
• means responsive to the transfer for receiving a verification message from the host computer authorizing receipt by the retail establishment of the monetary amount to thereby associate at the host computer the call authorization amount with the security number, wherein the prepaid card does not store the purchasing limit amount;
• wherein the database includes a record for each prepaid card security number, the record including the initial authorization amount and any recharge authorization amount, a balance, and data terminal identification codes identifying the data terminals of the plurality of data terminals at which the initial and any recharge authorization amounts are issued;
• and
• a main processor running on the host computer and responsive to entry of the security number for authorizing a user to purchase goods or services up to the selectively determined purchasing limit using the authorized card, the main processor using the balance in the record associated with the security number for monitoring total amount of purchases and disallowing purchases when the balance is exhausted.

A method to enable customers to purchase calling cards at predetermined locations and to use such calling cards to access a telephone network having at least one telephone, each of said calling cards having a security number associated therewith that must be entered at a telephone to obtain access to the telephone network, comprising the steps of:

• in response to one or more predetermined requests, transferring information from a data terminal to a remote host computer having a database, the information including data identifying a calling card to be activated or recharged;
• associating, at the host computer, an amount of call authorization to a security number of the calling card using the information transferred;
• transmitting a verification message from the host computer to the data terminal;
• maintaining in the database a record for each calling card security number having a call authorization amount associated therewith, the record including a balance;
• and
• using the balance in the record associated with the security number for monitoring call progress;
• and
• terminating access to the telephone network when the balance is exhausted.

A method to enable customers to purchase and use cards to access a network having at least one access device, each of said cards having a security number associated therewith that must be entered at an access device to obtain access to the network, comprising the steps of:

• in response to one or more requests, transferring information from a communications device to a remote host computer having a database, the information including data identifying a card to be activated or recharged;
• associating, at the host computer, an amount of access authorization to a security number of the card using the information transferred;
• transmitting a verification message from the host computer to the communications device;
• maintaining in the database a record for each card security number having an access authorization amount associated therewith, the record including a balance;
• and
• using the balance in the record associated with the security number for monitoring usage of the network from the access device;
• and
• terminating access to the network when the balance is exhausted.

A method, using one or more remote communications devices connectable to a host computer having a database, to enable customers to acquire credit to be used to purchase good or services, comprising the steps of:

• in response to one or more requests, transferring information from a communications device to the host computer, the information including data identifying a card to be activated or recharged, the card having an identifying number;
• associating, at the host computer, an amount of purchase authorization to the identifying number of the card using the information transferred from the communications device;
• maintaining in the database a record for each card identifying number having an purchase authorization amount associated therewith, the record including a credit balance;
• and
• adjusting the credit balance in the record associated with the identifying number as goods or services are purchased.

A method, using one or more remote communications devices connectable to a host computer having a database, to enable customers to acquire call authorization credit, comprising the steps of:

• in response to one or more requests, transferring information from a communications device to the host computer, the information including data identifying a card to be activated or recharged, the card having an identifying number;
• associating, at the host computer, an amount of call authorization to the identifying number of the card using the information transferred from the communications device;
• maintaining in the database a record for each card identifying number having a call authorization amount associated therewith, the record including a call authorization balance;
• and
• adjusting the call authorization balance in the record associated with the identifying number as the card is used to obtain network access.