Searching for a seller of a product

#This invention relates to a method, system and computer program for searching for a seller of a product.

#There currently exist many providers of Internet search engines. Most of these providers present a user (or searcher) with a web-based interface through which the user enters one or more keywords. The keywords relate to the information that the user is searching for. A search engine then returns, as the results of the search, the webpages that appear to be relevant, which are then presented to the user, usually as a list of links to the webpages.

#Whilst such Internet searches can provide useful results when the search is very targeted (i.e. when very specific keywords are used), it is often the case that keyword based searches return results which contain many webpages that are of no interest to the user.

#Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, and without limitation, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

#FIG. 1 illustrates the Internet;

#FIG. 2 illustrates a search system according to an embodiment of the invention;

#FIG. 1 illustrates the Internet. A search system 100 according to an embodiment of the invention is connected to the Internet 102. A number of users 104 are also connected to the Internet 102, for example, via personal computers. Additionally, a number of sellers 106 are connected to the Internet 102, for example, via server computers. The term “seller” is taken to include, amongst other things, a merchant of a product, a third party selling a product on behalf of a current owner of the product, and an advertiser advertising a product for sale.

#A seller 106 may provide a webpage that the users 104 can visit and which contains information about one or more products that the seller 106 is offering for sale. The term “product” is taken to include both goods and services. Indeed, the webpage may allow a user 104 to perform a financial transaction with the seller 106 via the Internet 102 to purchase a product that the seller 106 is selling. However, many users 104 currently prefer not to perform a financial transaction via the Internet 102 and would rather perform a financial transaction in person at a store or other physical location of the seller 106. Additionally, a user 104 may wish to see and/or try a product that a seller 106 is selling prior to actually purchasing the product. The user 104 would therefore need to visit a store of the seller 106 prior to purchasing the product. To this end, the search system 100 not only enables a user 104 to search for a seller 106 that sells a particular product, but also enables a user 104 to search for a seller of a product who is located (or who has a store located) within a distance, or search range, from a particular geographical search location. Suitable geographical search locations may be, for example, the home or business address of the user 104 or a current address of the user 104.

#As will be described in more detail below, the search system 100 receives, from the user 104: (i) an indication of the geographical search location and (ii) an indication of a search product that the user 104 is interested in. The user 104 may also specify to the search system 100 the search distance. Alternatively, or if the user 104 does not specify a search distance, the search distance may be a predetermined default distance (for example, a 5 mile radius from the geographical search location). The search system 100 will return a results list to the user 104 containing details of any sellers 106 that it has found which sell the desired product and which are located within the search distance of the geographical search location.