System and method to determine and deliver quotes for distance-sensitive communication links from multiple service providers
To facilitate real-time pricing, an embodiment of the invention retrieves multiple quotes from multiple databases associated with multiple service providers. Information regarding a customer's location, and the locations of multiple service providers are used to determine the cost of services associated with each of the multiple service providers in real-time. The retrieved quotes are compared, and quotes below a pre-determined price threshold are provided to a user in real-time (e.g., via the Internet). The user can select a desired quote from the quotes provided, and purchase or request more information regarding the desired quote online.
1. A method, comprising:
receiving information via a communication network in a first format associated with a distance-sensitive communication link of a first service provider, the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider being received in response to a first service request sent to the first service provider;
receiving information via the communication network in a second format associated with a distance-sensitive communication link of a second service provider, the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider being received in response to a second service request sent to the second service provider;
converting at least one of the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider or the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider into a common format; and
outputting at a display device the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider in the common format at a first time; and
outputting at the display device the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider in the common format at a second time substantially the same as the first time.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
the converting is at a processor operatively coupled to the communication network.
3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
storing at a first database the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider; and
storing at a second database the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider.
4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving information in a third format associated with a distance-sensitive communication link of a third service provider, the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider being received in response to a third service request sent to the third service provider; and
suppressing output of the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the third service provider at the display device based on a user preference associated with the third service provider.
5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
storing at a database the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider and the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider in the common format.
6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
accessing, before the outputting, the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider and the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider at a database.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider includes a first distance-dependent price; and
the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider includes a second distance-dependent price.
8. A method, comprising:
receiving, at a first time, a data set associated with a distance-sensitive communication link of a first service provider;
receiving, at a second time after the first time, a data set associated with a distance-sensitive communication link of a second service provider;
receiving, at a third time after the second time, a data set associated with a distance-sensitive communication link of a third service provider;
defining a matrix including the data set associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider, the data set associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider and the data set associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the third service provider such that the data set associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider is located before the data set associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider within the matrix; and
displaying to a user a portion of the matrix including at least a portion of the first data set and at least a portion of the second data set such that the third data set is not displayed based on a display preference.
9. The method of claim 8 , wherein:
the matrix includes pricing information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider;
the matrix includes pricing information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider; and
the matrix includes pricing information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the third service provider.
10. The method of claim 8 , wherein:
the data set associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider is received in a first data format, the data set associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider is received in a second data format, and the data set associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the third service provider is received in a third data format,
the method further comprising converting, before the defining, the data set associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider, the data set associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider, and the data set associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the third service provider into a common data format.
11. The method of claim 8 , wherein:
the display preference is stored at a portion of a database, the portion of the database associated with a user profile.
12. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
sending at least a portion of the matrix to a user via a communications network.
13. The method of claim 8 , wherein:
the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider includes a first distance-dependent price; and
the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider includes a second distance-dependent price.
14. The method of claim 8 , wherein:
a first row of the matrix is associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider, the first row including a reference to additional information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider; and
a second row of the matrix is associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider, the second row including a reference to additional information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider.
15. A method, comprising:
receiving via a communications network, at a first time, information associated with a distance-sensitive communication link of a first service provider in response to a first service request sent to the first service provider;
storing the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider at a database;
receiving via the communications network customer location information at a second time after the first time;
receiving, after the second time, information associated with a distance-sensitive communication link of a second service provider in response to a second service request sent to the second service provider;
accessing at the database, after the second time, the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider; and
outputting information based on the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider and the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider.
16. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:
defining, before the outputting, a matrix including the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider and the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider such that pricing information included in the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider and pricing information included in the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider are aligned within the matrix.
17. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:
calculating at a processor, before the outputting, pricing information associated with the customer location information based on the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider and the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider, the pricing information being output during the outputting.
18. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:
calculating at a processor, before the outputting, pricing information associated with the customer location information based on the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider and the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider, the calculating including determining a distance between a central office to a point of presence of the first service provider and determining a distance between the central office to a point of presence of the second service provider.
19. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:
sending at least a portion of the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the first service provider and a portion of the information associated with the distance-sensitive communication link of the second service provider in a common format to a user via the communications network.
20. The method of claim 15 , wherein:
the second service request is sent to the second service provider in response to the receiving the customer location information.