WO2001044892A2

WO2001044892A2 - Method and apparatus for establishing commodity markets

Info

Publication number: WO2001044892A2
Application number: PCT/US2000/042437
Authority: WO
Inventors: Arthur Roland Bushonville; Norbert Peter Schenk; Mark Rosenfeld; Adam Christopher Swift
Original assignee: Ultimate Markets, Inc.
Priority date: 1999-12-02
Filing date: 2000-12-01
Publication date: 2001-06-21
Also published as: WO2001044892A9; WO2001044892A3; AU4510501A

Abstract

A plurality of spatially diverse regions, each representing a unique commodity market, are defined within a given area (1001). Display data of the area and the constituent regions are provided (1002) such that a viewer of a visual depiction resulting from the display data can separately identify each of the regions. Based on the visual depiction, and optional textual displays (1003), selection information is provided corresponding to at least one of the regions (1004). In one embodiment, the area is an event venue, such as a stadium, theater, etc, and the regions encompass blocks of seat locations within the event venue deemed to be suitably similar as to constitute fungible commodities. The display data and the selection information are preferably conveyed via a computer communication system like the Internet. The present invention may be used to standardize various non-traditional commodities, thereby making them more suitable for trading, particularly through an on-line exchange system.

Description

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ESTABLISHING COMMODITY MARKETS

Technical Field The present invention relates generally to trading systems and, in particular, to a method and apparatus for use in establishing commodity markets based on spatially diverse regions within an area.

Background Of The Invention Exchange driven commerce systems are well-known in the art. These systems, such as the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), match buyers and sellers by offering an efficient, fair and orderly marketplace. For example, in a commodities exchange, buyers are free to submit bids on well-defined commodities and sellers likewise submit offers on the same commodities. The exchange effectuates communications that allow for the matching process between bids and offers to take place. Increasingly, such exchanges are making steps at automating their systems. Automated exchange-driven commerce systems for trading various instruments are disclosed in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,903,201 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,924,083.

Concurrently, the use of publicly-available communication networks, such as the Internet, have brought about a dramatic rise in electronically-transacted commerce, often referred to as e- commerce. For example, on-line auction sites, such as that provided by eBay, Inc., have become well-known. Such auctions are examples of seller-driven systems in which the seller defines contract terms but does not necessarily define a price for the goods to be sold. Another type of auction site is that provided by priceline.com, Inc. in which buyers are allowed to state the terms under which they are willing to complete a purchase.

Generally, almost any fungible good can be treated as a commodity. For example live cattle, random-length lumber, various foreign currencies, interest rates and stock indices, to name a few, are currently traded as commodities. In a similar vein, on-line "exchange" systems, typically dealing in "non-traditional" commodities, have also been recently developed. For example, several websites on the Internet have recently been created that provide a forum for buyers and sellers of telephone bandwidth and/or long-distance minutes.

Another type of e-commerce site has also been developed, particularly directed to the buying and selling of event tickets. In general, these sites extend the services of so-called "ticket brokers". Typically, these systems function essentially like electronic bulletin boards. That is, sellers of tickets (i.e., the ticket brokers) are able to post their offers and state the particular terms under which they would be willing to complete a transaction for event tickets. However, because these systems do not incorporate bid information by potential buyers, they are unlike true commodity markets. That is, these systems generally do not provide a method for potential buyers to submit bids for tickets, nor do they make such bid and offer information generally available thereby allowing market forces to determine prices. Furthermore, no attempt is made to match offers and bids in these on-line systems. Because such bid information is neither accepted nor provided, ticket broker e-commerce sites do not function as true markets.

Thus, it would be advantageous to provide a novel technique for establishing commodity markets that is readily adaptable of use in on-line exchange systems. A particularly useful application for such techniques is in the area of on-line exchanges dealing in tickets to a variety of events, such as sporting, theatrical and concert events.

Summary Of The Invention The present invention provides a technique for establishing commodity markets. In particular, a plurality of spatially diverse regions are defined within a given area. Each of the regions represents a unique commodity market against which bids and offers (quotes) may be submitted. The area may encompass any bounded locale of virtually any size that may be suitably sub-divided into regions such that goods pertaining to each region may be treated as a separate commodity. A visual depiction of the area sub-divided into the regions is then provided such that a viewer of the visual depiction can separately identify each of the regions. Based on the visual depiction, and optional textual displays, a viewer can provide selection information (including bids and/or offers).

In a preferred embodiment, the area thus depicted is an event venue, such as a stadium, theater, concert hall or the like. The regions in this case encompass blocks of seat locations within the event venue deemed to be suitably similar as to constitute a fungible commodity. The visual depiction and the selection information are preferably conveyed via a computer communication network such as the Internet. In this manner, the present invention may be used to standardize various non-traditional commodities, thereby making them more suitable for trading, particularly through an on-line exchange system.

Brief Description Of The Drawings

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a computer system in accordance with the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a preferred embodiment of an exchange controller in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an exchange process in accordance with the present invention.

FIG.4 illustrates an exemplary visual depiction in accordance with the present invention. FIG. 5 illustrates a preferred embodiment of a first data structure in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a preferred embodiment of a second data structure in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates a preferred embodiment of a third data structure in accordance with the present invention. FIG. 8 illustrates a preferred embodiment of a fourth data structure in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates a preferred embodiment of a fifth data structure in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart illustrating a method in accordance with the present invention. FIG. 11 is a flow chart illustrating another method in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 12 illustrates a market information display format for particular use in providing a more complete market display in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 13 illustrates a market information display format for particular use in providing a detailed market display in accordance with the present invention. FIG. 14 illustrates a market information display format for particular use in providing a market summary in accordance with the present invention.

Detailed Description Of The Invention The present invention may be more fully described with reference to FIGS. 1-14. FIG. 1 illustrates a computer system 100 comprising a plurality of computers 102 in communication with each other through a communication network 104. An exchange controller 106, coupled to the communication network 104, is capable of communicating with the computers 102. In a preferred embodiment, the communication network 104 comprises a publicly-available computer network, such as the Internet or World Wide Web. However, it is understood that the present invention is not limited in this regard; the network 104 may comprise or include a private computer network. Each of the computers 102 is preferably a personal computer, typically for use in the home or office. At a minimum, each computer 102 should support a common communication protocol with the exchange controller 106, preferably the so-called TCP/IP suite of protocols used to support Internet and "ETHERNET" communications. Of course, other communication protocols could be equally used dependent, in part, upon the type of communication network 104 employed.

The exchange controller 106 serves to implement an on-line commodities exchange in accordance with the present invention and will be described in further detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. Generally, the exchange controller 106 functions to automate interface operations with potential buyers and sellers of a given commodity, to implement exchange functionality (e.g., display market information, identify potential trades, etc.) and to support settlement activities. To this end, the exchange controller 106 is in communication with one or more financial institutions 108 capable of verifying customer credit availability and limits, issuing payments, holding funds while awaiting transaction clearance and the like. The exchange controller 106 is also in communication with an exchange office 110. The exchange office 110 includes personnel required to maintain operation of the exchange controller 110, field customer inquiries where necessary, ensure order settlement and to generally administer operations of the exchange. In one embodiment of the present invention, the exchange office 110 communicates with a carrier 112 in order to facilitate settlement of completed transactions. That is, the exchange office 110 receives information regarding completed transactions (transactions in which a buyer agreed to a seller's offering price or in which a seller agreed to a buyer's bid price) from the exchange controller 106 and forwards any information necessary for a carrier, if required, to perform delivery of the desired goods. It is anticipated that communications between the exchange controller 106 and the carrier 112 can also be performed directly (as illustrated by the dotted link) such that the necessary information is forwarded directly to the carrier 112 once a transaction has been completed.

Referring now to FIG.2, a more detailed view of a preferred embodiment of the exchange controller is provided. The exchange controller comprises at least two servers 202, 204, such as "SUN" "ENTERPRISE" 250 servers, operating in combination to provided an on-line exchange system. It is understood that the present invention need not be limited to an on-line implementation, and is susceptible to other implementations. For example, communications between individuals and the exchange controller 106 could be carried out using telephone, facsimile, postal mail or other off-line methods of communication. It is further understood that other implementations (including various hardware implementations) encompassing the same functionality as described herein will be readily apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art. In the implementation shown, a first server 202 communicates via a database interface 214 with a second server configured to operate as a database 204. Techniques for configuring servers in this manner are well-known in the art. The database 204 stores all relevant information necessary to complete commodities transactions, such as buyer and seller identifications, account identifications, passwords, information regarding specific quotes (bids and/or offers), credit information, etc.

The first server 202 implements the exchange functionality 206. As shown, the exchange functionality 206 encompasses an exchange process 208, a web server 210 and a secure server 212. Although not shown, the first server 202 comprises one or more processing units (such as microprocessors, microcontrollers, etc.) executing stored, computer-readable instructions to provide the exchange functionality 206. Likewise, the various interfaces 214-218 shown incorporate hardware and software implementations, as known in the art.

The exchange process 208 implements functionality, other than user-interface functionality, necessary to provide an automated commodity exchange system including, but not limited to, providing data to the web server 210 for presentation to a user of the exchange system. The exchange process 208 will be described in further detail with regard to FIG. 3. The web server 210 handles all non-secure interactions between the exchange controller and the computers 102 residing on the computer network 104. In a preferred embodiment, data received from the exchange process 208 by the web server 210 comprises HTML-compliant data suitable for presentation via a web page. In contrast, the secure server 212 handles all secure interactions (such as would be used when providing financial account data or other confidential information to the exchange controller) between the controller 106 and computers 102.

The network interface 216 couples the controller 106 to the computer network 104. This includes support and termination of network protocols necessary to communicate via the computer network 104. In particular, the network interface 216 operates to recognize transmissions intended for the exchange controller and, in a similar manner, to ensure that communications being sent to various computers 102 are properly routed. Although shown as a separate component from the web server 210 and secure server 212, it is understood that the functionality provided by the network interface 216 could be incorporated into one or both of the servers 210, 212.

As shown, the communication interface(s) 218 allow the controller 106 to communicate with the exchange office 110, for example through the use of a dial-up line, a direct TI connection or the like, or a secure Internet connection. The communication interface(s) 118 may also be used to communicate with one or more financial institutions using, for example, a direct TI connection or the like, or a secure Internet connection. Additionally, the communication interface(s) 118 can be used to directly communicate with carriers used to settle the various transactions, although non-automated communications with such carriers are also possible and would provide, at least initially, a more easily implemented alternative. Referring now to FIG. 3, a more detailed view of the exchange process 208 of FIG. 2 is presented. The exchange process 208 is preferably implemented using computer-readable instructions and data structures stored on a computer-readable medium 302 and executed by a processor 304 (e.g., a microprocessor, microcontroller and the like). Additionally, the computer- readable medium 302 may also store data that is manipulated by the processor 304 in conjunction with the execution of the computer-readable instructions. The processor 304 is preferably resident on the first server 202, whereas the computer-readable medium 302 may reside in the first server 202, the database 204 or a combination of the two. Although the computer-readable medium 302 preferably comprises random- access memory (RAM) and/or read-only memory (ROM) resident in the exchange controller 106, the computer-readable medium 302 may also comprise other non-resident storage media, such as magnetic cassettes, floppy disks, flash memory cards, digital video disks, Bernoulli cartridges, RAMs, ROMs, and the like.

As shown, the computer-readable medium 302 comprises exchange logic 306, a selection information storage structure 314, an optional transmit program 316, quote data 318, address data 320, event data 322, seating data 324, trade data 326 and markets data 328 . The exchange logic 306 implements those functions, preferably through the use of computer-readable instructions, susceptible to automation and necessary to conduct exchange operations. Such functions include, but are not limited to, processing user accounts, providing displays of markets, receiving bids and offers, recognizing matches between submitted bids and offers, processing acceptances of bids and/or offers and other exchange-oriented processing. Those having ordinary skill in the art will recognize other functionality useful in implementing an on-line exchange system may be similarly included in the exchange logic 306. The processor 304 executes the exchange logic 306.

The selection information storage structure 314 is adapted to receive selection information corresponding to the commodities being traded. Users of the exchange system, having viewed market information and/or a visual depiction and its corresponding regions, may enter selection information regarding various ones of the regions against which they desire to enter a bid or offer. Thus, the particular format of the selection information storage structure 314 is dependent, in part, upon the commodities being traded. For example, where a user selects a given region and submits a bid on commodities corresponding to that region, the selection information storage structure 314 must be able to store an identification of the selected region, a bid price and, in the event where a market may include suitable "sub-markets" (e.g., rows within a block of seats), identification of the "sub-markets" and corresponding bids. Those having ordinary skill in the art will recognize that storage for other information necessary for the proper operation of the exchange may also be included in the selection information storage structure 314. As further shown in FIG. 3, quote data 318, preferably resident in the database 204, is available to the exchange process 208. The quote data 318 comprises all pertinent information regarding quotes provided by each market participant. Data structures necessary to provide linking of quotes are maintained, among other things, within the quote data 318. A preferred data structure for use in storing the quote data 318 is discussed in further detail with regard to FIG. 5. The address data 320 comprises all data relevant to any addresses used in the system. A preferred data structure for use in storing the address data is discussed in further detail with regard to FIG. 6. The event data 322 encompasses all pertinent information regarding events being held at various event venues described in the venue data 324. Preferred data structures for use in storing the event data and the venue data are described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8, respectively. The trade data 326 includes all information relative to quotes that have been accepted. A preferred data structure for the trade data is described with reference to FIG. 9. Finally, the markets data 328 is that data used by the exchange logic 306 to keep track of and present various markets to users of the exchange system. Particular examples illustrating the use of the market data 328 are shown in FIGS. 10-14.

In one embodiment of the present invention, at least portions of the data 314-328 collectively form a data structure suitable for implementing an on-line exchange system. Such a data structure can be provided in whole or in part to a user's computer (e.g., by downloading a web page comprising the data structure) and used to gather selection information. When all of a user's selection information has been stored in the selection information storage structure 314, the selection information is conveyed back to the exchange controller. This is illustrated in FIG. 3 where the processor 304 transmits the data structure and receives the selection information. As required, elements may be added to or removed from the data structure, thereby increasing its utility for a particular application. Further still, in another embodiment of the present invention, the data structure may include the transmit program 316 in lieu of the selection information storage structure 314. The transmit program 316 is an optional program, such as a "JAVA" applet, included in the data structure that allows selection information to be transmitted to the exchange controller as it is received from the user, rather than waiting for all selection information to be received first. Those having ordinary skill in the art will recognize that other implementations are possible and are a matter of design choice. FIG. 5 illustrates a preferred data structure for the quote data described above. The data structure, residing on a computer-readable medium, comprises various records useful in maintaining and processing quotes related to a commodity exchange system. In FIGS. 5-9, the single-headed arrows between records indicate a to-one relationship (i.e., the originating record points to only one such terminating record) and the multi-headed arrows indicate a to-many relationship (i.e., the originating record can point to more than one of the terminating record). A more complete description of the use of the data structure illustrated in FIG. 5, and in particular the use of quote chain identifiers, is provided in attorney docket number 4783.82406 entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING QUOTES IN A COMMODITY EXCHANGE SYSTEM. At a minimum, the data structure illustrated in FIG. 5 comprises a quote chain record 501 and at least one of either a bid record 502 or an offer record 503. For example, each quote chain record 501 can point to multiple bid records 502 and/or multiple offer records 503; however, any one bid or offer record can point to only one quote chain record.

Each quote chain record 501 includes, at a minimum, a quote chain identifier and an account identifier. As described above, the quote chain identifier potentially defines a quote chain and the account identifier specifies the particular user account that includes the quote chain. A reference code and time stamp may also be included in each quote chain record. The reference code is used by personnel within the exchange office 110 as an internal identifier for confirmation (e.g., fulfillment) purposes. The time stamp allows office personnel to know when a particular quote chain was established.

Each of the bid records 502 includes, at a minimum, a bid identifier and a quote chain identifier. The bid identifier allows individual bids to be identified (e.g., when searches for particular types of bids are being performed) and the quote chain identifier associates the bid with a single quote chain. The bid records may also include a bid specification identifier that points to a particular bid specification record 504 describing the goods to which the bid pertains. The bid records may also include the bid price as well as a quote date and time stamp used to mark the time the bid was initially created. A quote status may also be included thereby allowing the status of a given bid to be modified. In a preferred embodiment, the quote status for a given bid may be either "active" or "hold". Active bids are those currently available for acceptance on the market. A hold status means the bid is currently not available for acceptance. A bid is placed on hold status in those instances where it is desirable to prevent it from being accepted but not to delete it entirely. For example, a bid can be put on hold to investigate the propriety of the bid where a dispute arises.

Closely following the structure of the bid records 502, each of the offer records 503 includes, at a minimum, an offer identifier and a quote chain identifier. The offer identifier allows individual offers to be identified (e.g., when searches for particular types of offers are being performed) and the quote chain identifier associates the offer with a single quote chain. The offer records may also include an offer specification identifier that points to a particular offer specification record 505 describing the goods to which the offer pertains. The offer records may also include the offer price as well as a quote date and time stamp used to mark the time the offer was initially created. A quote status, serving the same purpose as in the bid records, may also be included in the offer records.

As noted above, the bid specification records 504 and the offer specification records 505 describe the particular goods to which a bid or offer, respectively, pertains. The format of the bid specification records 504 and the offer specification records 505 depends upon the types of goods being traded. Preferred formats for the bid specification records 504 and the offer specification records 505, particularly suited for use in an exchange system dealing in event venue seats as commodities, are illustrated in FIG. 5. Each of the bid specification records 504 comprises, in addition to the bid specification identifier, fields identifying the particular event being bid upon, a quantity of seats being bid upon, and a particular region (i.e., a locale within which seats are deemed fungible) being bid upon. In a preferred embodiment, a bid may also specify a "maximum row" such that any seat in the maximum row or a better row (i.e., any row in the same region generally considered as providing more favorable seating) may be used to fulfill the bid. Thus, a maximum row indication may also be included in the bid specification records 504. Although not shown, it is also possible to include a field for specifying individual rows. The offer specification records 505 differ from the bid specification records 504 in two respects. First, an offer specification identifier is used. Second, only a row indication (as opposed to a maximum row indication) is provided because a seller can only describe the goods that he or she has to sell. The offer tickets record 508 and the tickets record 509 provide a means for identifying the specific tickets, down to the particular seats, within a given offer. These records allow support personnel to quickly identify the exact tickets being offered in the event of, for example, a dispute over which party has the right to offer certain tickets for sale. Finally, the data structure may comprise accounts records 511, credit card records 512 and card type records 513. The account records 511 are uniquely associated with individual users of the exchange system. As shown, each account record comprises information needed to identify and contact individual users and financial information needed to charge customers that engage in transactions. A user name field is provided as a means for identifying users by a unique name. In a preferred embodiment, the user name for each user is an email address. Because users may have multiple accounts, separate credit card records 512 are provided in the event that a single credit card is used in conjunction with more than one account. The credit types records 513 identify the particular type of credit card used, e.g., Visa, American Express, etc. Although a specific type of data structure has been described with regard to FIG. 5, those having ordinary skill in the art will recognize that other data structures incorporating similar information and organization may be used and are a matter of design choice.

FIG. 6 illustrates a preferred data structure for the address data described above. The data structure, residing on a computer-readable medium, comprises various records useful in maintaining address information, such as billing and shipping addresses, for users of a commodity exchange system. The data structure comprises a postal addresses record 601 comprising a postal address identifier, street address fields, a city identifier and a zip code field, as know in the art. In turn, the postal addresses record 601 makes reference to a string of cities, states and countries records 602-604. The cities records 602 specify a city identifier for each particular city record, a state identifier corresponding to a particular city, and a name of the particular city. The states records 603 specify a state identifier for each particular state record, a country record corresponding to a particular state, a name of the particular state and an abbreviation of the particular state (such as the two letter postal abbreviations). The countries records 604 specify a country identifier for each particular country record and a name of a particular country. Finally, as shown, each of the cities, states and countries records 602-604 includes references to one or more cities, states and countries aliases records 606-608, respectively. The respective aliases records 606-608 include the identifier of the corresponding city, state or country and a name field of an alias for that particular city, state or country, e.g., New York city as the "Big Apple".

FIG. 7 illustrates a preferred data structure for the events data described above. The data structure, residing on a computer-readable medium, comprises various records useful in maintaining events information, such as specific concert, theatrical and sporting events for use in a commodity exchange system. The data structure comprises events records 701 corresponding to individual events. An event identifier uniquely identifies each event using a numerical (and thereby more readily searchable) string, whereas an event code comprises a textual identifier for the event. An event category identifier identifies a particular class of events to which the event belongs, e.g., baseball game, football game, rock concert, opera performance, etc. The event date specifies the date on which a particular event is to take place and a seating plan identifier identifies a particular seating plan to be used for the event.

Each event record 701 refers to an event category record 702 comprising the event category identifier described above, a name associated with the event category and a parent category identifier, e.g., sports, concerts, theater, etc. In turn, each event category record 702 refers to one or more event category alias records 703 comprising, in addition to the event category identifier, an alias for that particular event category. Where an image is to be associated with a particular event category (for example, when displaying a list of the available event categories), each event category record 702 may also refer to one or more event category image records 704 comprising, in addition to the event category identifier, an image identifier for readily identifying and locating the required image. Likewise, each event category record 702 may also be associated with one or more performer event category records 705 that comprise a performer identification. Such performer identifications may be used as the basis for searches, for example, where a user wishes to see all available event for a given performer.

Each of the event records 701 refers to one or more event alias records 707 comprising alias information associated with the event. Any given event may be a part of a series of events, for example where a given music concert at a particular event venue on a particular date is part of a larger series of concerts in a national tour. In this case, the event record 701 may refer to a subordinate data structure comprising an event series record 709, event series event records 710 and event series alias records 711. The even series record 709 comprises an event series identifier and a name associated with the event series. Each event series event record 710, comprising the event and event series identifiers, provides a link between the individual event record 701 and the event series record 710. As with the other alias records, the event series alias records 711 set forth aliases for the event series.

Finally, each event record 701 refers to one or more event performers records 713 that associate the event identifier with a performer identifier and a performer role identifier. The particular type of data included in the performer identifier and a performer role identifier data fields depends on the type of event, i.e., an individual actor in a theater production versus a sports team in a sporting event. Where relevant, each event performers record 713 refers to a performer roles record 714 setting forth a name of a particular role. Additionally, where necessary, each event performers record 713 refers to a performer record 715 identifying a particular performer by name and alias through association with one or more performer alias records 716.

Referring now to FIG. 8, there is illustrated a preferred data structure for the venue data described above. The data structure, residing on a computer-readable medium, comprises various records useful in maintaining venue information corresponding to events in a commodity exchange system. The data structure comprises venue records 801 each corresponding to a unique venue and comprising a venue identifier, a name of the venue, and information identifying location of the venue including a street address, city identifier and a postal code. One or more venue alias records 802 are associated with each venue record 801.

A given venue may often be configured in different ways to accommodate various events therein, resulting in different seating plans depending on the event. As such, each venue record 801 refers to one or more seating plan records 803. Each seating plan record 803 comprising a seating plan identifier, a seating plan name identifier, the venue identifier, an image identifier and a nomenclature identifier. The image identifier uniquely identifies display data (such as bitmap files, JPEG files and the like) in an image record 812. Each image record 812 includes an image identifier, a name of the image and an image type identifier. Each image record 812, in turn, refers to an image type record 813 comprising the image type identifier and a name for the image type. The display data stored in this manner is suitable for causing a visual depiction of one or more areas to be rendered on a computer display. Generally, the areas thus represented include any locales receptive to the establishment of multiple commodity markets based in part upon spatially diverse regions. In an application where seats at event venues are treated as commodities, the areas depicted in the display data files comprise aerial views of seating information for the event venues identified in the event records 801. An example of a visual depiction 400 is illustrated in FIG. 4 where a sports stadium (in this example, Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois) is shown.

In order to commoditize seats within event venues, the present invention defines spatially diverse regions within areas. This is illustrated in FIG. 8 where each seating plan record 803 refers to one or more region records 804. Each region record 804 includes information defining the spatially diverse regions included within the area to be depicted. In particular, each region defines a portion of the area in which a given commodity may be regarded as fungible, and thus constitutes a separate commodity against which a market may be formed. In effect, regions are an overlay to an area that may otherwise comprise predefined sections, as is typically found in many event venues for example. To this end, each region record 804 comprises a region identifier identifying a particular region within an area, the seating plan identifier of the parent seating plan record, a color identifier for the region, a region name identifier and a region type identifier. Each region record 804 may refer to one or more section records 805 that identify predefined sections within a given region, each section record 805 comprising a section identifier, a section name, a seating area identifier and the region identifier of the parent region. Each region record 804 also refers to a region type record 805 that identifies the region's type by name, and to a region name record 807 that identifies the region's name.

The region records 804 may also support the use of color codes such that each region or separate groups of regions are represented by distinct colors. To this end, each region record 804 refers to a color record 808 comprising a color identifier and name. Thus, when incorporated into, or used to modify, display data for a given area or venue, the color records 808 cause the separate regions or groups of regions to be displayed in accordance with the assigned color. For example, the background, border or similar indicia of a given region or group of regions could be displayed using a corresponding color, which color is preferably distinct from an adjacent region or group of regions. Regardless, the region data included in the region records 804 and their progeny, when overlaying or incorporated into the display data, enables a visual depiction to be provided in which various spatially diverse markets are defined, thereby facilitating transactions through, for example, an on-line exchange-driven system.

Referring again to the stadium example illustrated in FIG. 4, a plurality of such regions 402-454 is illustrated. Table 1 below describes each of the regions shown in FIG. 4 by region names according to corresponding reference numerals.

Description Region (by ref. numeral)

Club Boxes Left Field 402

Club Boxes Third Base 404

Club Boxes First Base 406

Club Boxes Right Field 408

Field Boxes Left Field 410

Field Boxes Third Base 412

Field Boxes First Base 414

Field Boxes Right Field 416

Super Suites Left Field 418

Mezzanine Suites Left Field 420

Mezzanine Suites Right Field 422

Super Suites Right Field 424

Terrace Boxes Left Field 426

Terrace Boxes Third Base 428

Terrace Boxes First Base 430

Terrace Boxes Right Field 432

Upper Deck Boxes Left Field 434

Upper Deck Boxes Third Base 436

Upper Deck Boxes First Base 438

Upper Deck Boxes Right Field 440

Upper Deck Left Field 442

Upper Deck Third Base 444

Upper Deck First Base 446

Upper Deck Right Field 448 Family 450

Bleachers 452

Group 454

Table 1. Referring again to FIG. 8, each seating plan record 803 refers to one or more seating area records 809 each comprising a reference to the seating plan identifier of the parent record, a seating area identifier and seating area name identifier. The seating area name identifier is used to identify a seating area names record 810 comprising the name of the particular seating area. The seating area identifiers are used to associate each seating area record 809 with one or more sections records 805. In this manner, each seating area within a given seating plan may be completely specified. Finally, each seating plan record 803 refers to a seating plan name record 815 comprising a name for the parent seating plan, and to a nomenclature record 817. The nomenclature records 817 are used to store names relevant to describing a given venue's seating plan. For example, what some even venues would refer to as a section may be termed an aisle in a different event venue. In order to ensure that a system user is provided with the correct terminology, the nomenclature records 817 may be referenced when presenting seating plan information.

It should be noted that the name data included in any of the records 801-817 may be used as textual data to differentiate each of the regions. Thus, the textual data may be used in place of, or as a supplement to, the visual depictions described above in order to describe each of the regions. Where a color coding scheme (as described above) is employed, the textual descriptions may also be displayed in accordance with the color coding scheme. That is, suitable background colors, border colors, font colors or other indicia reflective of the color coding scheme may be used, thereby reinforcing the correlation between the regions displayed in a visual depiction and their corresponding textual descriptions.

FIG. 9 illustrates a preferred data structure for trade data used to track and memorialize specific trades that have occurred through the commodity exchange system. A trade is a sale of a commodity by a seller to a buyer effectuated through the commodity exchange system described herein. To support such trades, the data structure comprises a trade record 901 with one more references to trade ticket records 902. Each trade record 901 comprises a trade identifier that uniquely identifies each trade made within the commodity exchange system. Also included are a price field and a quantity field. In the context of seats within event venues, the quantity field comprises a number of seats (tickets) being purchased and the price field reflects the per seat price agreed to by the parties. A buyer account identifier and a seller account identifier uniquely identify account records of the buyer and seller, respectively. A trade date field comprises a date and time when agreement was reached between the parties to enter into the trade. Finally, each trade record 901 includes a reference code which is used as an internal identifier for purposes of database and system management. The trade tickets records 902 afford a means for quickly identifying the specific tickets associated with a given trade. This is accomplished through the inclusion of a ticket identifier field that refers to a tickets record 509.

Referring now to FIG. 10, a method for establishing commodity markets is illustrated. The method illustrated in FIG. 10 is preferably implemented by an exchange controller, as described above. At step 1001, spatially diverse regions within an area are defined. In practice, this is done prior to putting the exchange controller on-line and is preferably done once in order to standardize the commodities to be traded. However, it is anticipated that step 1001 may need to be repeated from time to time for a given area to reflect market forces. For example, under one definition of regions for an area could result in heavy trading volume for one or more regions, but little or no trading volume for one or more other regions. In this case, the regions may need to be redefined in order to reflect the willingness of market participants to deal in certain markets but not others. The manner in which the regions are initially defined could be on an ad-hoc basis to reflect the anticipated market needs, or on a historical basis, if such information exists, to reflect established market patterns. Further still, after regions have been established, it is anticipated that statistics regarding actual trading based on the regions could be used to continually readjust the region definitions. In this manner, the highest level of trading possible can be realized and increase the likelihood that each market will accurately determine fair prices for a given commodity. Regardless, once the spatially diverse regions for a given area have been defined, region data based on the region definitions is created using known techniques. In particular, the region data reflects the region definitions at least relative to the display data for the area. For example, if a given area is a stadium, and the display data is a bitmap file illustrating the stadium, the region data would delineate the regions relative to the dimensions of the visual depiction resulting from the bitmap file.

Once the regions have been defined, the display data is provided at step 1002. In the context of the present invention, display data may comprise any of the information included in the data structures illustrated in FIGS. 5-9. At a minimum, the display data comprises data suitable for causing a visual depiction of one or more areas to be rendered on a computer display. For example, in an embodiment of the present invention the exchange controller will be responsive to a given identification, such as an Internet or World Wide Web address (i.e., a URL). When a user accesses the exchange controller using the controller identification and requests information regarding a given area, the controller responds by transmitting at least the display data that gives rise to a visual depiction of the area. The display data may incorporate the region data directly, or the region data may be simultaneously transmitted with the display data and used to modify the visual depiction produced by the display data. Referring to the example in FIG.4, the display data would at least include data sufficient to render the visual depiction 400 without the regions 402-454 indicated. The display data could incorporate the region data directly (e.g., by modifying the bitmap file to include the region data). Alternatively, the visual depiction rendered by the display data could be modified to reflect the region data.

At step 1003 , textual data is optionally provided substantially contemporaneously with the display data provided at step 1002. The textual data, if provided, results at least in textual descriptions corresponding to the regions being rendered on a display. Examples of such textual data are illustrated in FIGS. 12-14 below.

At step 1004, the exchange controller receives selection information provided by a user. At a minimum, the selection information comprises identification of at least one selected region. In an embodiment of the present invention in which the area corresponds to an event venue, the identification of the at least one selected region corresponds to one or more blocks of seats and, optionally, at least one row in any of the selected blocks. Additionally, the selection information comprises quote information (i.e., information regarding bids and/or offers) corresponding to the at least one selected region. Bid information comprises a quantity specification and a per unit price (i.e., the per unit price the buyer would be willing to pay). Offer information comprises details regarding particular tickets being offered for sale (section, row, seats numbers) and a per unit prices (i.e., the per unit price the seller would be willing to accept).

Responsive to the selection information, additional textual data is provided. The additional textual information is indicative of the selected regions described in the selection information. In a preferred alternative, the exchange controller, at step 1005, optionally provides additional display data. The additional display data reflects the selection information provided by the user. Thus, the at least one selected region would be visually highlighted in the additional display data. The manner in which a region is highlighted is a matter of design choice and those having ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that a variety of techniques may be used. It is recognized that a similar procedure may be similarly applied to offers. That is seller of a commodity may describe the goods that they wish to sell and, based on the description, one or more regions are identified. Market information for those particular regions can then be displayed.

FIG. 11 illustrates another method, complementary to the method illustrated in FIG. 10, for establishing commodity markets. A computer operated by a user of the exchange controller, i.e., a buyer or seller of a commodity, preferably implements the method of FIG. 11. At step 1101, display data corresponding to an area is received, preferably in response to a query regarding the area. As described above, the display data is either directly augmented with region data describing a plurality of spatially diverse regions, or accompanied by the region data such that a visual depiction rendered based on the display data may be modified to reflect the region data. At step 1102, textual data is optionally received. Again, the textual data comprises textual descriptions corresponding to the regions.

At step 1103, a user of the computer provides selection information regarding the area and the regions defined within the area. Any of a variety of methods for achieving this may be employed. For example, the visual depiction resulting from the display data itself may serve as a basis for providing the selection information. In this embodiment, the user, through a variety of selection devices such as a cursor, touch screen, voice activation or similar apparatus, may perform selection operations directly upon the visual depiction. Using known programming techniques, any activation of the selection device relative to the visual depiction can be translated into coordinate information indicating where the selection device was activated relative to the visual depiction. Again referring to the example of FIG. 4, a user can point a cursor using a mouse or similar device to any of the regions 402-454 and select one or more regions by "clicking" the mouse. Translating the coordinates of the cursor at the time the mouse was clicked, a particular region may be identified as a selected region. In another embodiment, in which the visual depiction is not used to directly obtain selection information, a user may refer to the textual descriptions accompanying the visual depiction. Based on the textual descriptions, the user may use any of a number of known techniques to selection one or more regions. Referring to the example of FIG. 12, post bid buttons 1213 and post offer buttons 1215 may be provided next to descriptions of each market/region such that a user may submit selection information. Other techniques include the use of pull down menus, forms, the highlighting of multiple rows in a table, dragging an item into a personalized "shopping cart" (represented, for example, by an icon) or other similar techniques.

As described above, the selection information at least comprises identification of at least one selected region. Also, quote information regarding each of the selected regions is also provided. At step 1104, in response to the selection information, additional display data reflecting the selected regions indicated in the selection data is optionally provided.

FIG. 12 illustrates a complete market display 1200 in which both the bid and offer sides of markets are displayed. The display 1200 is provided to a user that has chosen a particular event and is either deciding whether to take a position in a given market, or who has already taken a position and wishes to see a more complete market representation. A market selection region 1202, functionally identical to the market selection regions 1002, 1102 described above, is provided. Likewise, market information regarding particular markets is also provided. The market information provided in the complete market display 1200 comprises listings for different regions and rows, as well as the highest bid and lowest offers for each of these markets. However, the complete market display also includes, for each market displayed a number of buyers currently having outstanding bids and a number of sellers currently having outstanding offers. In this manner, the complete market display provides a user with a greater sense of the depth of each market.

Having viewed the market information, users may choose to enter new bids or offers, or change existing bids/offers, in selected markets using the bid and offer fields 1210, 1211 provided. Where a user has not previously entered a bid or offer, they may enter their bid or offer in the appropriate field 1210, 1211 and select a post bid or offer button 1213, 1215. Alternatively, where the user has previously entered a bid or offer, that bid or offer will already be displayed in the appropriated bid or offer field 1210, 1211. However, the user can change any such bid or offer and select the change bid or offer button 1212, 1216. If a user decides that he or she wants to cancel all of his or her bid and/or offers, he or she may select either or both of the cancel all bids button 1222 and the cancel all offers button 1224. In yet another alternative, after viewing the market information, the user may select buy or sell buttons 1214, 1217 for a particular market and immediately enter into a transaction. Where the user selects a sell button, they are first required to enter the necessary offer specification information needed to make a valid offer. In addition to the complete market display 1200, a user may select a market detail market display using any one of the details links 1218, in which case they are provided with a market detail display 1300. Conversely, a less detailed market summary may be selected using a summary link 1220, in which case a market summary display 1400 is provided. The market detail display 1300 comprises similar information as the complete market display 1200, including bid and offer fields, as well as post/change bid, post/change offer, buy, sell and cancel buttons, as described above. However, the market detail display 1300 further breaks down, for each market within a given quantity-differentiated market, the existing offers and bids and the number of market participants for each. This is illustrated in FIG. 13, where, for any given market, the N highest bids and the M lowest offers are displayed, where N is not necessarily equal to M. It is understood that various constraints may be placed on the values of N and M (e.g., they must always be equal and should be no greater than the smaller of the two) and is a matter of design choice. As an example, the market for tickets in region 'A', any row is shown at the top of FIG. 13. In the example shown, the current best bid is $95/ticket with only one buyer at that price. However, there are 5 buyers at $93/ticket, 3 buyers at $90/ticket and 8 buyers at $85/ticket. Note that the parenthetically enclosed numbers next to a number of buyers indicates the ranking, relative to the other bids at that price, at which the current user's bid will be fulfilled. Thus, the parenthetical ' 1 ' next to the current user' s bid at $90/ticket for the region 'A' , any row market indicates that the user' s bid at this price will be the first to be fulfilled if accepted by a seller. Alternatively, the user's bid at $25/ticket for the region 'C, any row market will be the sixth to be fulfilled if accepted by sellers. A similar convention may be applied to offers.

Continuing with the example of the region 'A', any row market, the best offer is currently at $99/ticket with only one seller at that price. However, there are 4 sellers at $105/ticket and 3 sellers at $115/ticket. For any given market in the market detail display 1300, an ideal market price (the price at which buyers and seller would ideally always agree to a trade) may be represented by an imaginary horizontal line (none shown). In order to emphasize the current depth and spread of the market, the outstanding bids for that market are shown in descending order below the imaginary horizontal line, whereas the outstanding offers for that market are shown in ascending order above the imaginary horizontal line. In this manner, a market participant or an interested non-participant may readily gauge the depth and spread of a given market.

Furthermore, color coding may be incorporated into the market detail display 1300. The dotted boxes 1301-1304 surrounding the detailed market information for each market represent this. In this manner, the information included in the color records 808 for a given region may be reflected in the market detail display 1300, or any of the other market displays discussed herein.

Finally, in FIG. 14, a market summary display 1400 is illustrated. In this display, all of the quantity-differentiated markets 1404 for a given event are listed, with the current best bids and offers corresponding to each available region 1402 shown in tabular form. The significant difference between the market summary display 1400 and the previous displays 1200, 1300 is that no mechanisms exist for a user to enter a competing bid or offer. In this manner, a user may obtain a quick overview of each market for a given event, thereby allowing them to better gauge the individual markets and decide whether they wish to enter, or remain in, any markets at all.

The present invention facilitates the establishment of commodity markets, particularly when applied to an on-line exchange system. This is achieved by defining spatially diverse regions within an area, each region delimiting a separate commodity market. Through the use of a visual depiction of the regions, selection information may be obtained from buyers and/or sellers. The present invention can be used to establish markets for non-traditional commodities, such as seat locations within event venues. However, what has been described is merely illustrative of the application of the principles of the present invention. Other arrangements and methods can be implemented by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. That is, the principles of the present invention may be equally applied to any goods susceptible to trading as a commodity based on spatial diversity between the goods. For example, the present invention may be equally applied to an exchange dealing in real estate in which a geographic area such as a city is divided into regions of differing quality, e.g., office buildings having favorable locations, to establish separate markets. Taking this idea even further, individual floors within buildings may comprises submarkets within such markets. Other examples are readily identifiable and would benefit from application of the present invention.

Claims

ClaimsWhat is claimed is:

1. A method for establishing commodity markets, the method comprising steps of: defining spatially diverse regions within an area, each of the spatially diverse regions defining a separate commodity market; providing display data of the area, wherein each of the spatially diverse regions is separately identifiable by a viewer of a visual depiction resulting from the display data; and receiving selection information corresponding to at least one selected spatially diverse region.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the selection information comprises bid information for the at least one selected spatially diverse region.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising a step of: responsive to the step of receiving the selection information, providing additional display data of the area in which the at least one selected spatially diverse region is highlighted.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising a step of: providing textual data that comprises at least a textual description corresponding to the spatially diverse regions.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the spatially diverse regions are displayed as part of the visual depiction of the area in accordance with at least one display color code, and wherein the textual description, when displayed as part of a textual display, is displayed in accordance with the at least one display color code.

6. A computer-readable medium comprising computer-executable instructions for performing the steps recited in claim 1.

7. In a computer system comprising a plurality of computers in communication with each other via a communication network, a method for establishing commodity markets, the method comprising steps of: defining non-overlapping blocks of seat locations within an event venue, each of the blocks defining a separate commodity market; providing, to a first computer via the communication network, display data of the event venue, wherein each of the blocks is separately identifiable via the first computer by a viewer of a visual depiction resulting from the display data; and receiving, from the first computer via the communication network, selection information corresponding to at least one selected block.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the selection information comprises identification of the at least one selected block.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the selection information comprises identification of at least one row within any of the at least one selected block.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the selection information comprises bid information for the at least one selected block.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein at least a portion of the selection information results from selection operations performed, via the first computer, upon the visual depiction.

12. The method of claim 7, further comprising a step of: responsive to the step of receiving the selection information, providing, to the first computer via the communication network, additional display data of the area in which the at least one selected block is highlighted.

13. The method of claim 7, further comprising a step of: providing, to the first computer via the communication network, textual data that comprises at least a textual description corresponding to the blocks.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the blocks are displayed as part of the visual depiction of the event venue in accordance with at least one display color code, and wherein the textual description, when displayed as part of a textual display, is displayed in accordance with the at least one display color code.

15. A computer-readable medium comprising computer-executable instructions for performing the steps recited in claim 7.

16. An apparatus for establishing commodity markets, the apparatus comprising: a storage device comprising information defining spatially diverse regions within an area, each of the spatially diverse regions defining a separate commodity market; means, coupled to the storage device, for providing display data of the area, wherein each of the spatially diverse regions is separately identifiable by a viewer of a visual depiction resulting from the display data; and means for receiving selection information corresponding to at least one selected spatially diverse region.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the means for receiving further functions to receive bid information for the at least one selected spatially diverse region.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising a step of: means, responsive to the selection information, for providing additional display data of the area in which the at least one selected spatially diverse region is highlighted.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising a step of: means for providing textual data that comprises at least a textual description corresponding to the spatially diverse regions.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the spatially diverse regions are displayed as part of the visual depiction of the area in accordance with at least one display color code, and wherein the textual description, when displayed as part of a textual display, is displayed in accordance with the at least one display color code.

21. An apparatus for use in a computer system comprising a plurality of computers in communication with each other and the apparatus via a communication network, the apparatus for use in establishing commodity markets and further comprising: a storage device comprising information defining non-overlapping blocks of seat locations within an event venue, each of the blocks defining a separate commodity market; means, coupled to the storage device, for providing, to a first computer via the communication network, display data of the event venue, wherein each of the blocks is separately identifiable via the first computer by a viewer of a visual depiction resulting from the display data; and means for receiving, from the first computer via the communication network, selection information corresponding to at least one selected block.

22. The apparatus of claim 21 , wherein the means for receiving further functions to receive identification of the at least one selected block.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the means for receiving further functions to receive identification of at least one row within any of the at least one selected block.

24. The apparatus of claim 21 , wherein the means for receiving further functions to receive bid information for the at least one selected block.

25. The apparatus of claim 21 , wherein at least a portion of the selection information results from selection operations performed, via the first computer, upon the visual depiction.

26. The apparatus of claim 21, further comprising: means, responsive to the selection information, for providing, to the first computer via the communication network, additional display data of the area in which the at least one selected block is highlighted.

27. The apparatus of claim 21 , further comprising: means for providing, to the first computer via the communication network, textual data that comprises at least a textual description corresponding to the blocks.

28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the blocks are displayed as part of the visual depiction of the event venue in accordance with at least one display color code, and wherein the textual description, when displayed as part of a textual display, is displayed in accordance with the at least one display color code.

29. A data structure for use by a computer in establishing commodity markets, the data structure comprising: at least one display data file comprising computer-readable data suitable for causing a visual depiction of an area to be rendered on a display of the computer; region data comprising information regarding spatially diverse regions depicted in the visual depiction, wherein each of the spatially diverse regions defines a separate commodity market; and a selection information storage structure for storing selection information corresponding to at least one selected spatially diverse region.

30. The data structure of claim 29, further comprising: a textual data file comprising computer-readable data suitable for causing a textual description of the area to rendered on the display.

31. The data structure of claim 30, wherein separate entries forming a part of the textual description uniquely correspond to the spatially diverse regions, wherein the spatially diverse regions are displayed as part of the visual depiction of the area in accordance with at least one display color code, and wherein the textual description, when displayed as part of a textual display, is displayed in accordance with the at least one display color code.

32. The data structure of claim 29, wherein the area comprises an event venue and each of the spatially diverse regions comprises a block of seat locations within the event venue.

33. The data structure of claim 32, wherein the selection information comprises identification of at least one block of seat locations.

34. The data structure of claim 33 , wherein the selection information comprises identification of at least one row within any of the at least one block of seat locations.

35. The data structure of claims 29, wherein the selection information comprises bid information for the at least one selected spatially diverse region.

36. The data structure of claim 29, wherein the data structure forms at least a part of a web page resident on a server.

37. A computer-readable medium comprising the data structure of claim 29.

38. A data structure for use by a computer in establishing commodity markets, the data structure comprising: at least one display data file comprising computer-readable data suitable for causing a visual depiction of an area to be rendered on a display of the computer; region data comprising information regarding spatially diverse regions depicted in the visual depiction, wherein each of the spatially diverse regions defines a separate commodity market; and means for transmitting selection information corresponding to at least one selected spatially diverse region.

39. The data structure of claim 38, further comprising: a textual data file comprising computer-readable data suitable for causing a textual description of the area to rendered on the display.

40. The data structure of claim 39, wherein separate entries forming a part of the textual description uniquely correspond to the spatially diverse regions, wherein the spatially diverse regions are displayed as part of the visual depiction of the area in accordance with at least one display color code, and wherein the textual description, when displayed as part of a textual display, is displayed in accordance with the at least one display color code.

41. The data structure of claim 38, wherein the area comprises an event venue and each of the spatially diverse regions comprises a block of seat locations within the event venue.

42 The data structure of claim 41 , wherein the selection information comprises identification of at least one block of seat locations.

43. The data structure of claim 42, wherein the selection information comprises identification of at least one row within any of the at least one block of seat locations.

44. The data structure of claims 38, wherein the selection information comprises bid information for the at least one selected spatially diverse region.

45. The data structure of claim 38, wherein the data structure forms at least a part of a web page resident on a server.

46. A computer-readable medium comprising the data structure of claim 38.