Method, medium, and system for auditing rates using different rate requests in a database
View Patent ↗Embodiments of the present invention provide a system, method, and computer program product for auditing rates based on server access of databases. In one embodiment, an expected rate is received, and a rate request is sent to a server, wherein the rate request promotes an entry of the rate request to access a database. A rate response is received from the server, wherein the rate response corresponds to the rate request and includes a specified rate. A sale request is sent to the server, wherein the sale request corresponds to the rate request and promotes an entry of the sale request to access the database. A sale response is received from the server, wherein the sale response corresponds to the sale request and includes a sale rate. A message is output based on the expected rate, the specified rate, and/or the sale rate.
1. A system for data audits, the system comprising:
a processor;
a memory; and
an audit component stored in the memory, wherein said audit component is executed by said processor and configured to:
a) Send a request for a rate to a database through a server, wherein said rate request promotes an entry of said rate request to access the database, and wherein said rate request is for at least one of a travel reservation, a transportation service, a shipping service, a healthcare service, an energy service, and a hospitality service;
b) Receive a rate response from said server, wherein said rate response corresponds to said rate request and comprises a specified rate;
c) Send a request for a sale rate to the database through said server, wherein said sale rate request corresponds to said rate request and promotes an entry of said sale rate request to access said database, and wherein said sale rate request is for at least one of said travel reservation, said transportation service, said shipping service, said healthcare service, said energy service, and said hospitality service;
d) Receive a sale response from said server, wherein said sale response corresponds to said sale rate request and comprises the sale rate;
e) Compare said specified rate and said sale rate to determine whether the sale rate is at least one of greater than or less than the specified rate; and
f) Create a message in response to the determination whether the sale rate is at least one of greater than or less than the specified rate and including within the message an instruction that at least one of the sale rate or the specified rate is incorrect.
2. The system of claim 1 wherein said database comprises a plurality of databases.
3. The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of said rate request and said sale rate request comprises code that emulates a manual entry of a web service request when executed by said server.
4. The system of claim 3 wherein said code comprises extensible markup language (XML) code.
5. The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of said rate request and said sale rate request comprises an identifier associated with a system user, and wherein at least one of said rate response and said sale response is based on said identifier.
6. The system of claim 5 wherein said identifier enables at least one of said rate response and said sale response to comprise information associated with at least one of products, services, travel packages, hotel reservations, rental car reservations, airline reservations, train reservations, bus reservations, and cruise reservations.
7. The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of said rate request and said sale rate request comprise access information associated with a system user, and wherein said server responds to at least one of said rate request and said sale rate request based on said access information.
8. The system of claim 7 wherein said access information enables said server to respond to at least one of said rate request and said sale rate request with information associated with at least one of products, services, travel packages, hotel reservations, rental car reservations, airline reservations, train reservations, bus reservations, and cruise reservations.
9. The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of said rate request and said sale rate request comprise a request associated with a plurality of dates.
10. The system of claim 9 wherein said plurality of dates are associated with a plurality of months.
11. The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of said rate response and said sale response comprise a description of at least one of a product, a service, a travel package, a hotel reservation, a rental car reservation, an airline reservation, a train reservation, a bus reservation, and a cruise reservation.
12. The system of claim 1 wherein said server comprises a global distribution system associated with at least one of a product, a service, a travel service, said hospitality service, said shipping service, a trucking service, a parcel delivery service, a healthcare provider, and an energy provider.
13. The system of claim 1 wherein said database comprises at least one of a database accessed directly by said server and a remote database accessed indirectly by said server.
14. The system of claim 1 wherein said database is associated with a computer reservation system that is associated with at least one of travel packages, hotel reservations, rental car reservations, airline reservations, train reservations, bus reservations, and cruise reservations.
15. The system of claim 1 wherein said sale response comprises a confirmation identifier, and wherein said message comprises said confirmation identifier.
16. The system of claim 1 wherein sending said sale rate request to said server promotes creation of a suspended-state sale.
17. The system of claim 16 wherein said audit component is further executed by said processor to send a release request to said server, wherein said release request promotes release of said suspended-state sale.
18. The system of claim 1 wherein sending said sale rate request to said server promotes creation of a sale and wherein said audit component is further executed by said processor to send a release request to said server, wherein said release request promotes release of said sale.
19. The system of claim 1 wherein said audit component is further executed by said processor to enable a system user to schedule said audit component to execute on a scheduled basis.
20. A method for rate audits, the method comprising:
a) Sending a request for a rate to a database through a server, wherein said rate request promotes an entry of said rate request to access the database, and wherein said rate request is for at least one of a travel reservation, a transportation service, a shipping service, a healthcare service, an energy service, and a hospitality service;
b) Receiving a rate response from said server, wherein said rate response corresponds to said rate request and comprises a specified rate;
c) Sending a request for a sale rate to the database through said server, wherein said sale rate request corresponds to said rate request and promotes an entry of said sale rate request to access said database, and wherein said sale rate request is for at least one of said travel reservation, said transportation service, said shipping service, said healthcare service, said energy service, and said hospitality service;
d) Receiving a sale response from said server, wherein said sale response corresponds to said sale rate request and comprises the sale rate;
e) Auditing by an electronic processor said specified rate and said sale rate to determine whether the sale rate is at least one of greater than or less than the specified rate; and
f) Creating a message in response to the determination whether the sale rate is at least one of greater than or less than the specified rate and including within the message an instruction that at least one of the sale rate or the specified rate is incorrect.
21. The method of claim 20 wherein at least one of said rate request and said sale rate request comprises an identifier associated with a system user, and wherein at least one of said rate response and said sale response is based on said identifier.
22. The method of claim 20 wherein sending said sale rate request to said server promotes creation of a sale and wherein said audit component is further executed by said processor to send a release request to said server, wherein said release request promotes release of said sale.
23. The method of claim 20 wherein at least one of said rate request and said sale rate request comprises a geographic area.
24. The method of claim 23 wherein said geographic area is based on a specified distance and a geographic location, wherein at least one of said specified distance and said geographic location is selectable by a user.
25. A tangible computer readable storage medium storing computer executable program code that, when executed by a processor, causes said computer executable program code to perform a method comprising:
a) Sending a request for a rate to a database through a server, wherein said rate request promotes an entry of said rate request to access the database, and wherein said rate request is for at least one of a travel reservation, a transportation service, a shipping service, a healthcare service, an energy service, and a hospitality service;
b) Receiving a rate response from said server, wherein said rate response corresponds to said rate request and comprises a specified rate;
c) Sending a request for a sale rate to the database through said server, wherein said sale rate request corresponds to said rate request and promotes an entry of said sale rate request to access said database, and wherein said sale rate request is for at least one of said travel reservation, said transportation service, said shipping service, said healthcare service, said energy service, and said hospitality service;
d) Receiving a sale response from said server, wherein said sale response corresponds to said sale rate request and comprises the sale rate;
e) Auditing said specified rate and said sale rate to determine whether the sale rate is at least one of greater than or less than the specified rate; and
f) Creating a message in response to the determination whether the sale rate is at least one of greater than or less than the specified rate and including within the message an instruction that at least one of the sale rate or the specified rate is incorrect.
26. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 25 wherein said method further comprises receiving an expected rate.
27. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 26 wherein said message further comprises a result based on at least one of comparing said expected rate to said specified rate and comparing said expected rate to said sale rate.
28. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 26 wherein said message further sends corrective data to said server based on at least one of said auditing or a comparison that indicates that at least one of the specified rate is greater than the expected rate and the sale rate is greater than the expected rate.
29. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 25 wherein said database comprises a remote database, and wherein said message is output to at least one of a user associated with a potential sale and a user associated said remote database.
30. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 25 wherein said method further comprises storing at least one of said rate response and said sale response as historical data in a database.
31. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 25 wherein said message indicates at least one of an absence of a confirmation identifier and a time delay beyond a threshold value in receiving said sale response from said server.
32. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 25 wherein said method further comprises:
a) Sending at least one of said rate request and said sale request to a plurality of servers that comprise said server; and
b) Receiving at least one of said rate response and said sale response from said plurality of servers.
33. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 32 wherein said message comprises a report based on receiving at least one of said rate response and said sale response from a combination of said plurality of servers.
34. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 33 wherein said method further comprises enabling a user to customize said report.
35. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 33 wherein said method further comprises storing said report as historical data in a database for comparison to subsequent reports.
36. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 33 wherein said method further comprises comparing said report with historical data in a database.
37. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 25 wherein said method further comprises enabling a user to customize said message.
38. The tangible computer readable storage medium of claim 25 wherein said method further comprises sending at least one of said specified rate and said sale rate to said server prior to sending said rate request to said server.