A method of performing computer-based on-line commerce in which a client computer issues a group of interrelated commercial requests and each one of a plurality of server computers is available to service at least one of said requests, said method, performed by an intelligent agent, comprising steps of: receiving the group of interrelated commercial requests from said client computer; and finding servers which will satisfy said group of requests using client preference levels indicating for each request at least one preferred value which the client would like the agent to use in finding a server to satisfy that request; characterized in that said finding step also uses a client significance level indicating for a corresponding request the relative significance of this request in comparison to the other requests in the group.
One embodiment of the present invention is a system and method of determining the age of an item recipient, such as a gift recipient. The age range for the gift recipient is estimated based at least in part on a customer order history of gifts purchased by the customer for the gift recipient. At a first date, a customer order for a first gift for the recipient is received, where the first gift is associated with a first age appropriateness designation. At a second date, a customer order for a second gift for the recipient is received, where the second gift is associated with a second age appropriateness designation. An age range associated with the recipient is then estimated based upon at least the first age appropriateness designation and the second age appropriateness designation.
One embodiment of the present invention is a system and method of determining the age of an item recipient, such as a gift recipient. The age range for the gift recipient is estimated based at least in part on a customer order history of gifts purchased by the customer for the gift recipient. At a first date, a customer order for a first gift for the recipient is received, where the first gift is associated with a first age appropriateness designation. At a second date, a customer order for a second gift for the recipient is received, where the second gift is associated with a second age appropriateness designation. An age range associated with the recipient is then estimated based upon at least the first age appropriateness designation and the second age appropriateness designation.
A system and method for grouping and selling products or services using a computer system, potentially connected to a network. The computer system includes a computer with multiple terminals, potentially instantiated as a server computer or computers and distributed client computers. The computer system presents a sales interface on some terminals. The sales interface shows products or services and groups of products and/or services that are for sale. The computer system presents a back end interface on some terminals, which can be used to enter new products, services and groupings of products and/or services to be offered for sale on the sales interface. Descriptions of the products or service offerings are entered into the computer system either by data entry operators using the back end interface or by a program reading product or service descriptions from external computer systems. The method groups these products or services according to an affinity algorithm. The groupings may then potentially be reviewed and approved or selected by human operators using the back end interface before being offered for sale on the sales interface. One advantageous application is the dynamic packaging of perishable items such as travel goods and services (e.g., airline tickets, rental cars, hotel rooms, entertainment opportunities, etc.).
Upon receiving a request for preparing a recommended CD list in Step S71, the experience/preference information providing server stores the member ID of the user requested a recommended CD list as remarkable member in Step S72. Then, in Step S73, the experience/preference information providing server extracts members having a taste similar to that of the remarkable member as taste sharing members (members who like CDs (music) similar to those the remarkable member likes). In Step S74, the experience/preference information providing server prepare a synthetic experience/preference list by collecting experience/preference element data of the taste sharing members. In Step S75, the experience/preference information providing server 14 prepares a recommended experience (CD) list best adapted to the user from the synthetic experience/preference list and transmits it to the terminal unit of the remarkable member.
A computer system for extrapolating from relatively small amounts of information provided by a consumer to generate a wide range of travel options that are still associated with the information provided by the consumer. For example, the system includes processes for generating or finding travel packages with exactly matching travel dates and destinations supplied by the consumer. In addition, the system includes processes for varying the dates of travel by several days, or proximate weekends, and the destination of travel with nearby or regional destinations, so as to generate or find additional travel options. Further, the system can be configured to extract a theme of the consumer requested information and to use this theme to construct or find travel packages with similar or matching themes.
