Groupon, Inc.

Andrew Mason

Jeffrey Alan Holden

Ian McIntyre Silber

Ruslan Gilfanov

Eric Vadon

Jordan Fulghum

Don Albert Chennavasin

Mihir Shah

Suneel K Gupta

Yishai Lerner

David Jesse

Brett R Keintz

Brian M Stolte

The pull-type searching system provides an effective and efficient way to navigate deals and assist the user in identifying a deal for selection. The pull-type searching system further enables identification of one or more alternative deals to present to the user when no deals are identified for the selected search criteria. The pull-type searching system includes a method and apparatus. The method includes communicating ordered selectable search criteria, the search criteria including one or more categories, subcategories and deal types based on a user profile or available deals, or redemption goals. The method further includes receiving a selection from the search criteria and searching a deals database for results associated with the selection. Further, the method includes communicating the results associated with the selection, one or more alternative categories, or one or more alternative deals. A similar apparatus is provided.

Pull-type searching system

A system and methods to mutually satisfy a consumer with a discount and a vendor with a minimum number of sales by establishing a tipping point associated with an offer for a good or service. If the tipping point is met, the sale of the good or service is executed and the consumer is charged and receives an indication of the discounted sale, such as a certificate. If the tipping point is not met, the discount offer is abandoned and the consumer is not charged. Once the tipping point is established, the vendor receives a payment, even before the consumer uses the certificate.

System and methods for discount retailing

A system and methods to mutually satisfy a consumer with a discount and a vendor with a minimum number of sales by establishing a tipping point associated with an offer for a good or service. If the tipping point is met, the sale of the good or service is executed and the consumer is charged and receives an indication of the discounted sale, such as a certificate. If the tipping point is not met, the discount offer is abandoned and the consumer is not charged. Once the tipping point is established, the vendor receives a payment, even before the consumer uses the certificate. The system and methods also include a reward or loyalty program, an exchange or secondary market for the purchased deals, and a matching algorithm that matches customers to relevant goods or services.

Systems and methods are disclosed that provide offers for goods or services based on the locations of potential customers and the geographic locations of the merchant. The offers may be limited in quantity and acceptance and redemption of the offers may be limited in time. A unique identifier may be associated with each accepted offer. A merchant may have at least some control over the creation and rendering of one or more offers for the merchant's goods and services.

System and methods for providing location based discount retailing

Growing community of inventors

Chicago, IL, United States of America

Andrew Mason