Patent Application
20140279645
Crowdfunding sites provide mechanisms for fundraisers to solicit funding from the general public and/or other sources to fund the achievement of an objective. The crowdfunding site can provide information about such a campaign to potential sources of funding (“funders”). A funder can view information about the campaign on the crowdfunding site and decide to make a contribution (or investment) to fund the enterprise. Information about a campaign can include background information about the fundraisers, the objectives of the campaign, funding goals, consideration by the enterprise for funders, etc. For example, a fundraiser can be a musical group mounting a campaign to fund going on tour. The information about such a campaign can include information about members of the band, the prospective tour schedule, samples of music by the band, a video pitch for funding by members of the band, etc. The band may offer a discount on concert tickets to funders as consideration for funding its campaign to mount the tour.
In accordance with various implementations, a crowdfunding platform can receive information about a product including a product cost. For example, the product can be offered for sale by a vendor at a given price. The platform can receive a registration message designating the product and at least one beneficiary. The platform can provide a description of a campaign associated with the product and the beneficiary to at least one funder. The campaign can be associated with a beneficiary and at least one product associated with a product cost. Funders can contribute consideration (funding) to the campaign. The funding amount for the campaign can be stored by the platform. The platform can determine that the campaign meets or exceeds at least one campaign threshold. Examples of campaign thresholds include a time limit, a minimum funding amount, a maximum funding amount a minimum number of funders and a maximum number of funders. Based on the determining that the campaign meets or exceeds the at least one campaign threshold, the platform can cause the ownership of the product to be transferred to the beneficiary. For example, the platform can arrange to purchase the product from a product vendor and provide the purchased product to the beneficiary. Likewise, the platform can cause a third party to purchase the product for the beneficiary, for example by providing funds contributed to the campaign by funders to the third party purchaser.
In accordance with embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, a party can register with platform to crowdfund the purchase of a product for a beneficiary. The registrant can be the beneficiary or a third party. The platform can provide information to funders about a campaign to purchase the product for the beneficiary. For example, a father can register at the platform and list his son as the beneficiary for the purchase of a new car. The platform can provide information about a campaign to purchase the car for the son to actual and prospective funders, who may then fund the campaign. When the platform determines that one or more campaign thresholds are met, the product can be purchased for the beneficiary.
The purpose of the campaign can be to purchase a product, which can be a good, a service, a license (e.g., for software), a right (e.g., a down payment on a house), an obligation (e.g., pay off a loan) or anything else that can confer a benefit on the beneficiary. The term “purchase” can include any transfer of consideration for a product and can involve the transfer of actual currency, virtual currency, a trade such as a barter, a release from an obligation, a donation of a right, etc. The product can have a cost that can be expressed as anything of value, including the types of consideration mentioned above.
The platform can store a funding amount from at least one funder of the campaign, e.g., in a database. The account itself can be maintained by the platform. That is, the platform can accept payments from funders and deposit them into a campaign account. Likewise, the campaign account can be maintained by another entity and the platform can keep track of the amounts provided by each funder and/or the total amount provided by funders in the campaign account. For example, the platform can track funding amounts, and may also maintain a campaign account to store funds, from funders such as relatives of the college graduate who donate funds to the campaign to purchase the new car.
The platform can determine that the campaign meets or exceeds at least one campaign threshold. Examples of a campaign threshold can include a time limit, a minimum funding amount, a maximum funding amount, a minimum number of funders, a maximum number of funders, etc., or a combination thereof. For example, a time limit of 30 days can be set for the campaign, after which it is to be closed. That is, funders can donate money to the campaign from the time of its inception until 30 days after inception, after which the campaign can be closed to new donations. In an implementation, the campaign can be re-opened after it has been closed, or may extend the time limit while the campaign is underway. Likewise, the campaign may require a minimum or maximum number of funders, or may specify qualifications that a funder must meet to donate to the campaign. For example, the platform or a registrant such as a father may specify that only relatives (e.g., from a pre-approved list) of the beneficiary (e.g., a daughter) may donate to the campaign. Alternatively, the registrant or platform may specify particular qualifications (e.g., asset level, income level, participation in other campaigns (past, present or future), age, etc.) that a funder must meet to donate to the campaign. The funder qualifications can be included in a funder profile that can be stored by the platform. When a funder seeks to donate to a campaign, the platform can compare the funder qualifications with the campaign funder requirements and, if there is a match, accept funding from the funder. If there is not a match, the platform can prevent the funder from donating to (funding) the campaign. The campaign thresholds can also be imposed by the platform.
When the platform determines that one or more campaign thresholds have been met, the platform can cause the ownership of the product to be transferred to the beneficiary. For example, the platform can cause the product to be purchased for the beneficiary, either by a third party or the platform can purchase the product itself and transfer ownership to the beneficiary. As used herein, the term “purchase” includes obtaining the right to confer at least a part of the benefit of the product by transferring consideration of any kind to the product provider. The phrase “transfer ownership to the beneficiary” includes conferring at least a part of the benefit obtained by purchasing the product to the beneficiary. Transferring ownership of the product to the beneficiary can include, for example, transferring ownership or rental of a good, providing a service, providing a license right (e.g., for software), providing a down payment on a house, discharging an obligation (e.g., paying off all or part of a student loan, etc.)
In various implementations, the product can be provided by a vendor. For example, the registrant can be a student and the product can be a new car provided by an automobile manufacturer or a sales outlet. In an implementation, a campaign can be mounted by the automobile manufacturer itself on behalf of college graduates who have graduated within the past six months or one year.
In some situations, the total amount of funding donated to a campaign may exceed a campaign threshold, such as a minimum funding amount. For example, the product (such as a new car) may cost $21,000 and the campaign may in fact raise $27,500. This may occur by the time the campaign time limit has expired. The platform can determine the difference between the amount of funding in the campaign and the cost of transferring ownership of the product to the beneficiary. This difference can be the remainder amount. The remainder amount can be disposed in any suitable way, including as actual currency, virtual currency, a credit, an upgrade to the product obtained for the beneficiary, etc. For example, part or all of the remainder amount can be disposed as a check or actual currency (e.g., dollar) deposit to a bank account, as virtual currency units to an online account, a credit at a store or service provider, as a stored value card, as an upgrade to the product, such as a “power package” or “sports package” to an automobile. All or part of the remainder can be provided to the beneficiary, to the platform, to one or more funders or to a third party, or any combination thereof. In various implementations, the registrant can send a message to the platform with instructions on how at least a part of the remainder is to be disbursed. For example, if the registrant is the beneficiary, then the beneficiary may send such a message, e.g., by selecting an upgrade or a more expensive product to be obtained for the beneficiary. Likewise, a funder can send such a message to the platform, electing to receive all or a portion of the amount the funder donated, or else to provide an amount to the beneficiary or a third party, such as a charity.
An actual currency can be a medium of exchange issued by or on behalf of a sovereign government. Examples of actual currency include dollars, euros, Swiss francs, kroner, etc. Virtual currency can include a medium of exchange issued by or on behalf of an entity other than a sovereign government. Examples of virtual currency include in-game currency such as Station Cash in Everquest II published by Sony Online Entertainment, virtual world currency such as Linden Dollars used in Second Life by Linden Lab, Facebook Credits, electronic cash such as Bitcoin, etc.
In some implementations, the platform may also determine that the campaign does not meet or exceed at least one campaign threshold. For example, when the campaign time limit expires, the campaign may not have raised enough funding to purchase the product for the beneficiary. In such a situation, at least a part of the amount of funding raised may be provided to the beneficiary, to the platform, to one or more funders or to a third party, such as another beneficiary such as a relative of the beneficiary or a charity. As for the remainder, the amount raised can be disposed in any suitable way, including as actual currency, virtual currency, a credit, an upgrade to the product obtained for the beneficiary, etc. For example, part or all of the remainder amount can be disposed as a check or actual currency (e.g., dollar) deposit to a bank account, as virtual currency units to an online account, a credit at a store or service provider, as a stored value card, as a less expensive product or version of the product.
Implementations of the presently disclosed subject matter may be implemented in and used with a variety of component and network architectures.
The fixed storage 23 may be integral with the computer 20 or may be separate and accessed through other interfaces. A network interface 29 may provide a direct connection to a remote server via a telephone link, to the Internet via an Internet Service Provider (ISP), or a direct connection to a remote server via a direct network link to the Internet via a POP (point of presence) or other technique. The network interface 29 may provide such connection using wireless techniques, including digital cellular telephone connection, Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD) connection, digital satellite data connection or the like. For example, the network interface 29 may allow the computer to communicate with other computers via one or more local, wide-area, or other networks, as shown in
Many other devices or components (not shown) may be connected in a similar manner (e.g., document scanners, digital cameras and so on). Conversely, all of the components shown in this Figure need not be present to practice the present disclosure. The components can be interconnected in different ways from that shown. The operation of a computer such as that shown in this Figure is readily known in the art and is not discussed in detail in this application. Code to implement the present disclosure can be stored in computer-readable storage media such as one or more of the memory 27, fixed storage 23, removable media 25, or on a remote storage location.
More generally, various implementations of the presently disclosed subject matter may include or be implemented in the form of computer-implemented processes and apparatuses for practicing those processes. Implementations also may be embodied in the form of a computer program product having computer program code containing instructions embodied in non-transitory and/or tangible media, such as floppy diskettes, CD-ROMs, hard drives, USB (universal serial bus) drives, or any other machine readable storage medium, wherein, when the computer program code is loaded into and executed by a computer, the computer becomes an apparatus for practicing implementations of the disclosed subject matter. Implementations also may be embodied in the form of computer program code, for example, whether stored in a storage medium, loaded into and/or executed by a computer, or transmitted over some transmission medium, such as over electrical wiring or cabling, through fiber optics, or via electromagnetic radiation, wherein when the computer program code is loaded into and executed by a computer, the computer becomes an apparatus for practicing implementations of the disclosed subject matter. When implemented on a general-purpose microprocessor, the computer program code segments configure the microprocessor to create specific logic circuits. In some configurations, a set of computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable storage medium may be implemented by a general-purpose processor, which may transform the general-purpose processor or a device containing the general-purpose processor into a special-purpose device configured to implement or carry out the instructions. Implementations may be implemented using hardware that may include a processor, such as a general purpose microprocessor and/or an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) that embodies all or part of the techniques according to implementations of the disclosed subject matter in hardware and/or firmware. The processor may be coupled to memory, such as RAM, ROM, flash memory, a hard disk or any other device capable of storing electronic information. The memory may store instructions adapted to be executed by the processor to perform the techniques according to implementations of the disclosed subject matter.
The foregoing description for purpose of explanation, have been described with reference to specific implementations. However, the illustrative discussions above are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit implementations of the disclosed subject matter to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in view of the above teachings. The implementations were chosen and described in order to explain the principles of implementations of the disclosed subject matter and their practical applications, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to utilize those implementations as well as various implementations with various modifications as may be suited to the particular use contemplated.
