System and method for a targeted payment system discount program

A system for implementing a targeted payment system discount program at a processing institution comprising:

• (a) means for data storing in a computer memory consumer information concerning participating consumer, which is supplied by one or more payment systems institutions each of which supplies payment means to a subset of the participating consumers;
• (b) means for data storing in a computer memory, information on merchant discount offers from at least one merchant or acquirer which includes discount information, transaction requirements, and consumer targeting criteria;
• (c) means for identifying qualifying consumers for a merchant discount offer by computer matching the consumer target criteria for the merchant discount offer with the consumer information concerning participating consumers;
• (d) means for comparing consumer transactions of qualifying consumers with the transaction requirements of the merchant discount offer;
• and
• (e) means for returning a calculated discount to qualifying consumers who meet the transaction requirements of merchant discount offer via a payment systems institution.

A computer-implemented method at a processing institution of targeting offers for merchant discounts to consumers, comprising:

• receiving consumer information for at least one consumer, said consumer information being received from one or more consumer payment institutions;
• receiving merchant discount offer information respecting one or more offers for merchant discounts, said merchant discount offer information received from one or more merchants or acquirers, said merchant discount offer information comprising targeting criteria for determining, at least in part, whether said one or more offers for merchant discounts will be available for said at least one consumer;
• determining, responsive to said consumer information and said merchant discount offer information, if at least one of said offers for merchant discounts will be available to said at least one consumer;
• and
• providing said merchant discount to said at least one consumer via one of said one or more consumer payment institutions.

A computer-implemented method at a processing institution of fulfilling a discount on a sale made by a merchant to a consumer, said merchant one of a plurality of merchants, said consumer one of a plurality of consumers, said plurality of merchants determined responsive to merchant discount offer information received from one or more merchants or acquirers, said merchant discount information comprising targeting criteria for determining, at least in part, consumers to which offers should be made available, said plurality of consumers determined responsive to consumer information from one or more consumer payment institutions and said merchant discount information, said computer-implemented method comprising:

• receiving transaction data for said sale, said transaction data transmitted by said merchant;
• determining whether said discount is eligible on said sale by said merchant based on said transaction data;
• determining whether said consumer qualifies for said discount, and, if so:
• generating a credit in the amount of said discount in favor of said consumer;
• and
• transmitting transaction information for said credit to an interchange, which then processes the credit transaction information.

In a system for providing offers for merchant discounts to consumers, said system including a processing institution, wherein in said system consumer information is supplied by one or more payment systems institutions to said processing institution, merchant discount offers are supplied by at least one merchant or acquirer to said processing institution and include consumer targeting criteria and transaction requirements criteria, consumer transactions that qualify for said merchant discount offers are determined responsive to, at least, said consumer targeting criteria and said transaction requirements criteria, and said discount is returned through one of said one or more payment systems institutions, a method carried on by one of said merchants comprising:

• providing information about a discount offer, said information comprising transactions for which said discount should be made available and targeting criteria for determining consumers to which said discount should be offered;
• participating in a said sales transaction, said sales transaction being one for which said discount is made available, said sales transaction with one of said consumers to which said discount is offered;
• and
• reporting said sales transaction to said processing institution, whereupon said processing institution determines if said consumer qualifies for said discount offer for said sales transaction and said processing institution provides an indication via an interchange for one of said one or more payment systems institutions to provide said discount to said consumer.

In a system for providing offers for merchant discounts to consumers, said system including a processing institution, wherein in said system consumer information is supplied by one or more payment systems institutions to said processing institution, merchant discount offers are supplied by at least one merchant or acquirer to said processing institution and include consumer targeting criteria and transaction requirements criteria, consumer transactions that qualify for said merchant discount offers are determined responsive to, at least, said consumer targeting criteria and said transaction requirements criteria, and said discount is returned through one of said one or more payment systems institutions, a method carried on by one of said payment systems institutions comprising:

• extracting information respecting prior transactions of consumers;
• providing said information respecting prior transactions of consumers to said processing institution, whereupon said processing institution generates a record for an offer for a discount at a merchant available for one of said consumers;
• receiving from said processing institution via an interchange, an indication to grant a credit to said one of said consumers for said discount;
• granting said credit in favor of said one of said consumers for providing said discount.

In a system for providing targeted offers for discounts by merchants to consumers and including a processing institution for selecting said offers, a method comprising:

• providing first information respecting a first group, said first information provided by a first information provider, wherein said processing institution selects discounts for transactions that will be offered by selected merchants to selected consumers responsive to said first information and second information, second information provided by a second information provider;
• wherein said first information and said second information, taken together, comprise consumer targeting criteria, transaction requirement criteria, and previous transaction information for at least one of said selected consumers;
• and
• wherein a discount is returned to one of said selected consumers upon participating in one of said transactions with one of said merchants, by a payment system institution for said one of said consumers.