Method of and apparatus for managing and redeeming bar-coded coupons displayed from the light emitting display surfaces of information display devices

An information storage and display device comprising:

• a computing platform for running one or more computer applications;
• a light emitting display surface interfaced with said computing platform for displaying digital images including graphics, bar code symbols, and graphical patterns in response to at least one computer application running on said computing platform;
• wherein during the running of at least one said application, a bar-coded coupon including a bar code symbol is to be displayed on said light emitting display surface and read by a laser scanning bar code symbol reader, said application displaying said bar code symbol on said light emitting display surface in a pulse code modulation (PCM) format;
• wherein a substantial portion of the pixels on said light emitting display surface are energized and de-energized to emit red-wavelengths of light energy at a rate which temporally corresponds to the spatial frequency of the bars and spaces of said bar code symbol so that said laser scanning bar code symbol reading device can read said PCM formatted bar code symbol displayed from said light emitting display surface without the generation of a laser scanning beam from said laser scanning bar code symbol reader;
• and
• wherein said at least one application running on said computing platform allows said information storage and display device to capture a digital image of a bar-coded coupon including a bar code symbol present on the Internet or printed on a physical substrate, convert said digital image of the bar-coded coupon into a PCM formatted bar code symbol, and display a PCM formatted bar code symbol on said light emitting display surface in the form of pixels on said light emitting display surface energized and de-energized to emit red-wavelengths of light energy at a rate which temporally corresponds to the spatial frequency of the bars and spaces of said bar code symbol so that said laser scanning bar code symbol reading device can read said PCM formatted bar code symbol displayed from said light emitting display surface without the generation of a laser scanning beam from said laser scanning bar code symbol reader.