US 7,877,288 B1 · Manufacturer's offer redemption system

Abstract

A manufacturer's offer (“coupon”) redemption system used to validate and verify a manufacturer's offer and authenticate and substantiate an offer redemption transaction while minimizing fraud. The system is a closed system in a controlled environment. The system includes a central registry where manufacturers register their offers, a manufacturer's offer redemption terminal in communication with a retailer's point-of-sale (“POS”) system, and a manufacturer's offer clearinghouse. The POS system communicates with the registry to maintain an updated database of valid offers. The POS system communicates with the manufacturer's offer redemption terminal to validate and verify offers presented for redemption. The manufacturer's offer redemption terminal includes a means to generate an encrypted identifier (“token”) which is unique to each manufacturer's offer redemption transaction. The encrypted token is attached to the purchase event transaction log, and the purchase event transaction log (including the token) is transmitted to the manufacturer's offer clearinghouse. The clearinghouse independently recreates the token based on the offer redemption record and the purchase event transaction log and authenticates the transaction as having originated under the controlled conditions imposed by the system, which includes destruction of the redeemed offer.

Claims30

Dependent claims

A manufacturer's offer redemption system for authenticating a manufacturer's offer redemption transaction, the system comprising:

a manufacturer's offer registry comprising an electronic database of manufacturer's offers capable of being redeemed, each offer having at least one redemption requirement;
a point of sale system, the point of sale system having at least one store portal and configured to generate a transaction log during a product purchase transaction;
a manufacturer's offer redemption terminal;
and
a manufacturer's offer clearinghouse;
wherein said manufacturer's offer redemption terminal generates an initial token after validation, verification and destruction of a manufacturer's offer, the initial token based upon data generated by the point of sale system during the product purchase transaction and configured to permit authentication of the manufacturer's offer redemption transaction;
and
wherein said manufacturer's offer clearinghouse creates a regenerated token based upon the data generated by the point of sale system during the product purchase transaction and compares said regenerated token with said initial token to authenticate the manufacturer's offer redemption transaction.

5 more elements

A method for verifying, validating, and authenticating a manufacturers offer redemption transaction comprising the steps of:

registering at least one manufacturers offer in a manufacturers offer registry, said manufacturers offer registry comprising an electronic database of manufacturers offers capable of being redeemed;
allowing at least one point of sale system to access said manufacturers offer registry, the at least one point of sale system having at least one store portal and configured to generate a transaction log during a product purchase transaction;
validating a presented manufacturers offer by comparing said presented manufacturers offer to said manufacturers offer registry;
verifying said presented manufacturers offer by comparing said presented manufacturers offer to the transaction log generated by the at least one point of sale system;
permanently destroying said presented manufacturers offer after said presented manufacturers offer is validated and verified using a manufacturers offer redemption terminal configured to permanently destroy said presented manufacturers offer so that said presented manufacturers offer cannot be reused;
generating an initial token after said presented manufacturers offer is permanently destroyed, said initial token generated by the manufacturers offer redemption terminal, the initial token based upon data collected during the product purchase transaction and configured to permit authentication of the manufacturers offer redemption transaction;
creating a regenerated token, said regenerated token created by a manufacturers offer clearinghouse and based upon the data collected during the product purchase transaction;
and
the manufacturers offer clearinghouse authenticating said manufacturers offer redemption transaction by comparing said initial token and said regenerated token.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Manufacturer's offer redemption system

Life of this patent

Manufacturer's offer redemption system

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims30