Entertainment event ticket purchase and exchange system

Abstract

An electronic ticket exchange system enables venue owners to sell tickets to patrons at a fair market value for each event, and patrons to more easily trade and transfer the tickets among one another after they have been purchased from the venue owner. Tickets for an event are initially offered to the public by the venue owner, using a market-making system. Patrons submit bids over a limited time period, for seats of different quality, and an initial price is established for each quality of seat. A trading system provides for a secondary market in which patrons who have purchased tickets for an event can readily transfer them to other patrons, without requiring the services of a broker or the like. In this system, physical tickets are not required. Rather, all of the rights associated with a ticket, such as entry into the venue, parking privileges, designated seating, etc., are stored in a electronic form. An electronic venue entry control system verifies that a person owns an electronic ticket property right, and authorizes the privileges associated with the ticket, such as access to parking facilities, entry to the venue, purchase of concessions and/or merchandise, and the like. A seating system is employed to determine an optimal seating configuration based upon patron-specific preferences, after the initial sale of tickets and prior to entry into the venue. The specific assigned seats are indicated to the ticket holder at the time of entry. Patrons who regularly purchase tickets can join an organization associated with the ticket exchange system. All transactions carried out within the system can then be easily accomplished through a single membership number, which is permanent and unique to the member. Each such member can be provided with a suitable device which interfaces with the entry system to provide access to the venue, and parking if appropriate.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A system for the sale and exchange of tickets for entertainment events, comprising: 
 a market-making system which establishes a price for entertainment event tickets based upon bids submitted by patrons;    a patron interface via which patrons can submit bids for event tickets and purchase electronic tickets for entertainment events;    a storage system for storing information regarding electronic tickets purchased by patrons;    a trading system via which patrons having electronic tickets stored in said storage system can transfer the electronic tickets to other patrons; and    an entry system which is responsive to the presentation of information pertaining to a patron to determine whether that patron is an owner of an electronic ticket for a given event, and to permit those patrons who are owners of electronic tickets to enter the venue at which the event is being presented.    
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1  further including a seating system which determines an allocation of seats at said venue for electronic tickets for the event.  
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 2  wherein the seats are allocated on the basis of preferences submitted by the patrons.  
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 2  wherein said entry system provides patrons with an identification of seats that are allocated to their electronic tickets at the time that entry is permitted.  
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1  including a payment system which stores information regarding payment accounts of patrons and automatically debits said accounts for purchases of electronic tickets made by patrons.  
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5  wherein said payment system automatically credits and debits said payment accounts, as appropriate, for transfers of tickets carried out via said trading system.  
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 5  wherein said payment system automatically debits said payment accounts for purchases of items made by patrons at the venue.  
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1  further including identification devices which identify patrons as members of an organization affiliated with said system, and which are used to present said information to the entry system.  
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 8  wherein said identification devices are also used to provide access to facilities associated with a venue.  
     
     
         10 . The system  claim 9  wherein said facilities including parking sites.  
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 8  wherein said identification devices are also used to purchase items at the venues.  
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 1  wherein a venue contains plural levels of seating quality, and said market-making system establishes a respective price for each level of seating quality.  
     
     
         13 . A system for the sale and exchange of tickets for entertainment events, comprising: 
 a patron interface via which patrons can purchase electronic tickets for entertainment events;    a storage system for storing information regarding electronic tickets purchased by patrons;    a trading system via which patrons having electronic tickets stored in said storage system can transfer the electronic tickets to other patrons;    a seating system which determines an allocation of seats at said venue for electronic tickets for the event; and    an entry system which is responsive to the presentation of information pertaining to a patron to determine whether that patron is an owner of an electronic ticket for a given event, and to permit those patrons who are owners of electronic tickets to enter the venue at which the event is being presented.    
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 13  wherein the seats are allocated on the basis of preferences submitted by the patrons.  
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 13  wherein said entry system provides patrons with an identification of seats that are allocated to their electronic tickets at the time that entry is permitted.  
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 13  including a payment system which stores information regarding payment accounts of patrons and automatically debits said accounts for purchases of electronic tickets made by patrons.  
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 16  wherein said payment system automatically credits and debits said payment accounts, as appropriate for transfers of tickets carried out via said trading system.  
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 16  wherein said payment system automatically debits said payment accounts for purchases of items made by patrons at the venue.  
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 13  further including identification devices which identify patrons as members of an organization affiliated with said system, and which are used to present said information to the entry system.  
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 19  wherein said identification devices are also used to provide access to facilities associated with a venue.  
     
     
         21 . The system  claim 20  wherein said facilities including parking sites.  
     
     
         22 . The system of  claim 19  wherein said identification devices are also used to purchase items at the venues.  
     
     
         23 . The system of  claim 13  wherein a venue contains plural levels of seating quality, and said trading system establishes a respective market for each level of seating quality.  
     
     
         24 . A system for the sale and exchange of tickets for entertainment events, comprising: 
 a patron interface via which patrons can purchase electronic tickets for entertainment events;    a storage system for storing information regarding electronic tickets purchased by patrons;    a trading system via which patrons having electronic tickets stored in said storage system can transfer the electronic tickets to other patrons;    a payment system which stores information regarding payment accounts of patrons and automatically debits and credits said accounts for purchases and trades of electronic tickets made by patrons; and    an entry system which is responsive to the presentation of information pertaining to a patron to determine whether that patron is an owner of an electronic ticket for a given event, and to permit those patrons who are owners of electronic tickets to enter the venue at which the event is being presented.    
     
     
         25 . The system of  claim 24  further including a seating system which determines an allocation of seats at said venue for electronic tickets for the event.  
     
     
         26 . The system of  claim 25  wherein the seats are allocated on the basis of preferences submitted by the patrons.  
     
     
         27 . The system of  claim 25  wherein said entry system provides patrons with an identification of seats that are allocated to their electronic tickets at the time that entry is permitted.  
     
     
         28 . The system of  claim 24  wherein said payment system automatically debits said payment accounts for purchases of items made by patrons at the venue.  
     
     
         29 . The system of  claim 24  further including identification devices which identify patrons as members of an organization affiliated with said system, and which are used to present said information to the entry system.  
     
     
         30 . The system of  claim 29  wherein said identification devices are also used to provide access to facilities associated with a venue.  
     
     
         31 . The system of  claim 30  wherein said facilities including parking sites.  
     
     
         32 . The system of  claim 29  wherein said identification devices are also used to purchase items at the venues.  
     
     
         33 . The system of  claim 24  wherein a venue contains plural levels of seating quality, and said trading system establishes a respective market for each level of seating quality.  
     
     
         34 . A system for the sale of tickets for entertainment events, comprising: 
 a patron interface via which patrons can submit bids for event tickets and purchase tickets for entertainment events;    a market-making system which establishes a price for entertainment event tickets based upon bids submitted by patrons; and    a notification mechanism which informs patrons who submit bids at or above the established price that their bids were successful.    
     
     
         35 . The system of  claim 34  further including a trading system via which patrons who have purchased tickets can transfer the tickets to other patrons.  
     
     
         36 . The system of  claim 35  including a payment system which stores information regarding payment accounts of patrons and automatically debits said accounts for purchases of tickets made by patrons.  
     
     
         37 . The system of  claim 36  wherein said payment system automatically credits and debits said payment accounts, as appropriate, for transfers of tickets carried out via said trading system.  
     
     
         38 . The system of  claim 34  wherein a venue contains plural levels of seating quality, and said market-making system establishes a respective price for each level of seating quality.  
     
     
         39 . A system for the sale of tickets for entertainment events, comprising: 
 a patron interface via which patrons can purchase tickets for entertainment events;    a seating system which determines an allocation of seats at said venue for tickets for the event; and    an entry system which permits those patrons who are owners of tickets to enter the venue at which the event is being presented, and provides patrons with an identification of seats that are allocated to their tickets at the time that entry is permitted.    
     
     
         40 . The system of  claim 39  wherein the seats are allocated on the basis of preferences submitted by the patrons.  
     
     
         41 . The system of  claim 1  further including a notification system which automatically provides a notification to individuals that a patron has purchased tickets to an event and such tickets are available to be transferred to said individuals.  
     
     
         42 . The system of  claim 41  wherein said notification is provided to each individual by means of a communication medium that is associated with that individual and stored in said storage system.  
     
     
         43 . The system of  claim 1  wherein said storage system stores information relating to patrons' interaction with the system, that can be analyzed for marketing efforts based upon patron behavior.  
     
     
         44 . The system of  claim 43  wherein said storage system also stores information relating to patron demographics.  
     
     
         45 . The system of  claim 43  wherein said storage system stores information relating to items purchased by patrons.  
     
     
         46 . The system of  claim 1  wherein said storage system includes a central server which stores information that identifies all electronic tickets purchased by patrons for an event.  
     
     
         47 . The system of  claim 46  wherein said central server is accessible by said entry system to determine whether a given patron is an owner of an electronic ticket.  
     
     
         48 . The system of  claim 1  wherein said patron interface enables a patron to purchase tickets for other patrons as part of a group transaction.  
     
     
         49 . The system of  claim 48  wherein said interface displays a list of patrons who are affiliated with a given patron, to permit said given patron to selectively purchase tickets for any one or more of said listed patrons at the time of placing a bid and/or purchasing tickets to an event.  
     
     
         50 . The system of  claim 49  wherein said interface permits individual patrons to selectively add or delete their names on lists created for other patrons.  
     
     
         51 . The system of  claim 1  wherein said trading system provides for direct patron-to-patron payments for the sale of a ticket from one patron to another.  
     
     
         52 . The system of  claim 1  wherein said market-making system provides patrons who qualify as season ticket holders with a right of first refusal to purchase tickets for a new season at the established price if their bids were below said price.  
     
     
         53 . The system of  claim 52  wherein said right is only provided to season ticket holders whose bids are within a predetermined range of said established price.  
     
     
         54 . The system of  claim 52  wherein said market-making system provides season ticket holders with the right to purchase playoff tickets at a fixed price value, without bidding.  
     
     
         55 . The system of  claim 13  further including a notification system which automatically provides a notification to individuals that a patron has purchased tickets to an event and such tickets are available to be transferred to said individuals.  
     
     
         56 . The system of  claim 55  wherein said notification is provided to each individual by means of a communication medium that is associated with that individual and stored in said storage system.  
     
     
         57 . The system of  claim 13  wherein said storage system stores information relating to patrons' interaction with the system, that can be analyzed for marketing efforts based upon patrons' purchasing behavior.  
     
     
         58 . The system of  claim 57  wherein said storage system also stores information relating to patron demographics.  
     
     
         59 . The system of  claim 57  wherein said storage system stores information relating to items purchased by patrons.  
     
     
         60 . The system of  claim 13  wherein said storage system includes a central server which stores information that identifies all electronic tickets purchased by patrons for an event.  
     
     
         61 . The system of  claim 60  wherein said central server is accessible by said entry system to determine whether a given patron is an owner of an electronic ticket.  
     
     
         62 . The system of  claim 13  wherein said patron interface enables a patron to purchase tickets for other patrons as part of a group transaction.  
     
     
         63 . The system of  claim 62  wherein said interface displays a list of patrons who are affiliated with a given patron, to permit said given patron to selectively purchase tickets for any one or more of said listed patrons at the time of purchasing tickets to an event.  
     
     
         64 . The system of  claim 63  wherein said interface permits individual patrons to selectively add or delete their names on lists created for other patrons.  
     
     
         65 . The system of  claim 13  wherein said trading system provides for direct patron-to-patron payments for the sale of a ticket from one patron to another.  
     
     
         66 . The system of  claim 34  wherein said market-making system provides patrons who qualify as season ticket holders with a right of first refusal to purchase tickets for a new season at the established price if their bids were below said price.  
     
     
         67 . The system of  claim 66  wherein said right is only provided to season ticket holders whose bids are within a predetermined range of said established price.  
     
     
         68 . The system of  claim 66  wherein said market-making system provides season ticket holders with the right to purchase playoff tickets at a fixed price value, without bidding.  
     
     
         69 . A system for the sale and dissemination of tickets for entertainment events, comprising: 
 a patron interface via which patrons can purchase tickets for entertainment events;    a storage system for storing information regarding tickets purchased by patrons;    a notification system which automatically provides a notification to individuals that a patron has purchased tickets to an event and such tickets are available to be transferred to said individuals; and    an entry system which is responsive to the presentation of information pertaining to an individual to determine whether that individual is an valid holder of a ticket for a given event, and to permit those individuals who are valid holders of electronic tickets to enter the venue at which the event is being presented.    
     
     
         70 . The system of  claim 69  wherein said notification is provided to each individual by means of a communication medium that is associated with that individual and stored in said storage system.  
     
     
         71 . A system for the sale of tickets for entertainment events, comprising: 
 a patron interface via which patrons can purchase tickets to entertainment events for both themselves and other patrons as part of a group transaction;    a storage system for storing information regarding tickets purchased by patrons; and    an entry system which is responsive to the presentation of information pertaining to a patron to determine whether that patron is an owner of an electronic ticket for a given event, and to permit those patrons who are owners of electronic tickets to enter the venue at which the event is being presented.    
     
     
         72 . The system of  claim 71  wherein said interface displays a list of patrons who are affiliated with a given patron, to permit said given patron to selectively purchase tickets for any one or more of said listed patrons at the time of purchasing tickets to an event.  
     
     
         73 . The system of  claim 72  wherein said interface permits individual patrons to selectively add or delete their names on lists created for other patrons.  
     
     
         74 . A system for the sale of tickets for entertainment events, comprising: 
 a patron interface via which patrons can submit bids for event tickets and purchase tickets for entertainment events;    a market-making system which establishes a price for entertainment event tickets based upon bids submitted by patrons; and    a notification mechanism which informs patrons who submit bids at or above the established price that their bids were successful and provides patrons who qualify as season ticket holders with a right of first refusal to purchase tickets for a new season at the established price if their bids were below said established price.    
     
     
         75 . The system of  claim 74  wherein said right is only provided to season ticket holders whose bids are within a predetermined range of said established price.  
     
     
         76 . The system of  claim 74  wherein said market-making system provides season ticket holders with the right to purchase playoff tickets at a fixed price value, without bidding.  
     
     
         77 . A system for controlling access to entertainment events, comprising: 
 a patron interface via which patrons can enter information which authorizes them for access to at least one entertainment event;    a storage system for storing information regarding the patrons who are authorized for access to said event; and    an entry system which is responsive to the presentation of information pertaining to a patron to check the information stored in said storage system and determine whether that patron is authorized for access to said event, and to permit those patrons who are authorized to enter a venue at which the event is being presented.    
     
     
         78 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the identification device is selected from the group comprising wireless devices, PDAs, smart cards and magnetic cards.  
     
     
         79 . The system of  claim 19 , wherein the identification device is selected from the group comprising wireless devices, PDAs, smart cards and magnetic cards.  
     
     
         80 . The system of  claim 29 , wherein the identification device is selected from the group comprising wireless devices, PDAs, smart cards and magnetic cards.  
     
     
         81 . The system of  claim 1  wherein said storage system stores a token that identifies an electronic ticket purchased by a patron, and said entry system determines whether a patron is an owner of an electronic ticket by detecting whether said storage system has a token stored in association with the patron.  
     
     
         82 . The system of  claim 81  wherein said storage system stores information in connection with a first patron that associates said first patron with a given token, and said trading system transfers said information from said first patron to a second patron when said first patron trades the electronic ticket to the second patron.  
     
     
         83 . The system of  claim 81  wherein said token identifies the patron who purchased the electronic ticket, and said trading system cancels said token and creates a new token that identifies a second patron when the electronic ticket is transferred to said second patron.  
     
     
         84 . The system of  claim 81  further including means for enabling a purchasing patron to transfer ownership of a purchased electronic ticket to a second patron, and for associating said token with said second patron upon such a transfer.  
     
     
         85 . The system of  claim 8  wherein said identification devices include a memory that stores a token which identifies that a member has purchased an electronic ticket, and said entry system determines whether a patron is an owner of an electronic ticket by detecting whether a token is stored in an identification device.  
     
     
         86 . The system of  claim 12  or  38 , wherein said trading system provides a respective market for each level of seating quality.  
     
     
         87 . The system of  claim 77  further including a portable identification device that is carried by a patron and contains data that identifies the patron, wherein the information entered via the patron interface includes said data.  
     
     
         88 . The system of  claim 87  wherein said data is stored in said identification device in an electronic form, and is electronically transmitted to said entry system to present said information thereto.  
     
     
         89 . The system of  claim 88  wherein said identification device comprises one of a wireless device, a PDA, a smart card and a magnetic card.  
     
     
         90 . The system of  claim 88 , wherein said identification device can be used by the patron to purchase items at said venue.  
     
     
         91 . The system of  claim 77  wherein said patron interface comprises an Internet web site.  
     
     
         92 . A system for controlling access to entertainment events, comprising: 
 a plurality of portable identification devices each of which contains data that identifies a respective patron as a member of an organization affiliated with said system;    a storage system for storing information regarding the patrons who are members of the organization; and    an entry system which is responsive to the presentation of one of said identification devices to check the information stored in said storage system and determine whether that patron is authorized for access to an event, and to permit those patrons who have authorized access to enter a venue at which the event is being presented.    
     
     
         93 . The system of  claim 92 , further including a payment system which stores information regarding payment accounts of members of the organization, and automatically debits an account for an event when a patron is authorized to access the event.  
     
     
         94 . The system of  claim 92  wherein said data is stored in said identification device in an electronic form, and is electronically transmitted to said entry system to present said information thereto.  
     
     
         95 . The system of  claim 94  wherein said identification device comprises one of a wireless device, a PDA, a smart card and a magnetic card.  
     
     
         96 . The system of  claim 92 , wherein said identification device can be used by the patron to purchase items at said venue.