System and method for enhancing buyer and seller interaction during a group-buying sale

The method of 1, further comprising:

• receiving from buyers counteroffers to the hypothetical offer;
• processing the counteroffers;
• and
• providing the processed counteroffers to the seller.

The method of 1, further comprising:

• transmitting a second voting request from a seller to the buyers asking the buyers to vote on a second hypothetical offer for the product at a second price from the seller;
• receiving voting responses to the second voting request from the buyers;
• processing voting responses to the first request from buyers together with voting responses to the second voting request from the buyers;
• and
• providing the processed voting responses to the seller.

A computer-readable medium including computer-executable instructions for facilitating communications between a seller and buyers participating together as a buying group during an on-line group-buying sale of a product offered by the seller, the instructions for:

• providing an electronic negotiation room to the buyers through which a message from one buyer to another buyer can be transmitted during the on-line group-buying sale;
• transmitting a voting request from a seller to the buyers asking the buyers to vote on a hypothetical offer for the product at a price from the seller;
• receiving and processing voting responses from the buyers to the voting request, wherein the responses comprise hypothetical acceptances and hypothetical rejections of the hypothetical offer;
• and
• providing the processed responses to the seller.

The medium of 8, further comprising instructions for:

• receiving from buyers counteroffers to the hypothetical offer;
• processing the counteroffers;
• and
• providing the processed counteroffers to the seller.

The medium of 8, further comprising instructions for:

• transmitting a second voting request from a seller to the buyers that asks the buyers to vote on a second hypothetical offer for the product at a second price from the seller;
• receiving voting responses to the second voting request from the buyers;
• processing voting responses to the first request from buyers together with voting responses to the second voting request from the buyers;
• and
• providing the processed voting responses to the seller.

A system for facilitating communications between a seller and buyers participating together as a buying group during an on-line group-buying sale of a product offered by the seller, the system comprising:

• a data processing system configured to provide an on-line negotiation room in which buyers can transmit and receive messages during the on-line group-buying sale;
• a voting request transmitter that provides a voting request from a seller to the buyers that asks the buyers to vote on a hypothetical offer for the product at a price from the seller;
• and
• a voting mechanism configured to receive voting responses from the buyers to the voting request, processing the responses, and providing the processed responses to the seller, wherein the responses comprise hypothetical acceptances and hypothetical rejections of the hypothetical offer.