IP Library Granted Patent US 8,386,328
Granted Patent B2
US 8,386,328 · App. 13/017,471 · Granted Feb 26, 2013

Automated listing management

Inventors: Hua-Ming Jin (Lexington, MA); Matthew Ackley (Rowley, MA); Ken Lin (Jamaica Plain, MA)
Assignee: eBay, Inc.
View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 8,386,328
App. No.
13/017,471
Granted
Feb 26, 2013
Kind
B2
Abstract

Disclosed is a sales system for lots of items that includes business rule definition logic. The sales system also includes offering creation logic that is operative to dynamically create different offerings for items in the lots. The offering creation logic optimizes return based on one or more of the business rules by using different offering parameter values for the different offerings.

Claims (23)

1. A method of selling items in lots, comprising:

defining, by one or more servers, machine-readable business rules based on a target recovery rate; and

automatically creating a plurality of different offerings that each offer one or more items in the lots based on the machine-readable business rules, the automatically creating optimizing financial return based on the machine-readable business rules by using different offering parameter values in creating each of the different offerings.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising adjusting an offering parameter value in a second listing based on sales results of a first listing.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the offering parameter value is a second offering value.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the offering parameter value is a second offering quantity.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the target cost recovery rate is a percentage of a cost for each item in each lot.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein defining the machine-readable business rules is based on results from prior listings.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the automatically creating comprises using exponential smoothing to derive parameters for the different offerings.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising creating fixed default falling price parameters.

9. The method of claim 2 , wherein the second listing is created for a second sales channel based on the first listing that is created for a first sales channel.

10. The method of claim 6 , wherein the results from prior listings includes financial margins from prior listings.

11. The method of claim 1 , further comprising generating a report that forecasts a future operation of the offering creation logic.

12. A system comprising:

means for defining, by one or more servers, machine-readable business rules based on a target recovery rate; and

means for automatically creating a plurality of different offerings that each offer one or more items in the lots based on the machine-readable business rules, the automatically creating optimizing financial return based on the machine-readable business rules by using different offering parameter values in creating each of the different offerings.

13. The system of claim 12 , further comprising means for adjusting an offering parameter value in a second listing based on sales results of a first listing.

14. The system of claim 12 , wherein the target cost recovery rate is a percentage of a cost for each item in each lot.

15. The system of claim 12 , wherein defining the machine-readable business rules is based on results from prior listings.

16. The system of claim 12 , wherein the automatically creating comprises using exponential smoothing to derive parameters for the different offerings.

17. The system of claim 12 , further comprising means for creating fixed default falling price parameters.

18. The system of claim 13 , wherein the second listing is created for a second sales channel based on the first listing that is created for a first sales channel.

19. The system of claim 12 , further comprising means for generating a report that forecasts a future operation of the offering creation logic.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Feb 23, 2015
From: FAIRMARKET, INC.
To: EBAY INC.
Reel/Frame 035003/0789 →
Continuity (3)
Continuation 10201586 · Jul 22, 2002
Provisional Application 60306828 · Jul 20, 2001
Related Publication 20110191201A1 · Aug 4, 2011