Method and apparatus for ordering goods, services, and content over an internetwork using a virtual payment account

Abstract

A secure, closed virtual payment system comprising registered buyers and sellers for ordering and paying for goods, services, and content over an internetwork is disclosed. A buyer becomes registered by applying for a virtual payment account. A seller becomes registered by applying for a seller account. A credit processing component ( 53 ) immediately evaluates the buyer's application and assigns a credit limit to the account. Once an account is established, a digital certificate is stored on the registered participant's computer. The buyer can then order goods, services, or content from a seller and charge it to the virtual payment account. When the product is shipped, the seller notifies a commerce gateway component ( 52 ), which, in turn, notifies the credit processing server, which applies the charges to the buyer's virtual payment account.

1 . A method for creating a virtual payment account for a buyer which may be used to pay for products ordered over an internetwork, the method comprising:
 in response to receiving application data from said buyer, determining a credit score for said buyer based upon the application data;   determining whether the credit score exceeds a threshold credit score;   in response to determining that the credit score exceeds the threshold credit score, establishing a virtual payment account associated with the buyer at a commerce gateway; and   installing a digital certificate on a buyer computer associated with the buyer that uniquely identifies the buyer as the registered holder of the virtual payment account.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 in response to receiving application data from the buyer, determining an identity score for the buyer based upon the application data;   determining whether the identity score exceeds a threshold identity score; and   in response to determining that the identity score exceeds the threshold identity score, proceeding to determining a credit score.   
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein determining an identity score for the buyer comprises:
 requesting identity information from an identity bureau based on the application data;   receiving the identity information from the identity bureau; and   combining the identity information with the application data to determine the identity score for said buyer.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein determining an identity score for the buyer comprises requesting the identity score from an identity bureau based on the application data. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising generating a public key encryption pair that includes a private key and a public key. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein installing a digital certificate comprises:
 transmitting the public key to the commerce gateway, the commerce gateway certifying the public key to generate the digital certificate; and   receiving the digital certificate from the commerce gateway.   
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1  wherein installing a digital certificate comprises storing the certificate on a secure token. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising, in response to determining that the credit score does not exceed the threshold credit score, establishing a prepaid virtual payment account associated with the buyer at the commerce gateway. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein determining a credit score for the buyer comprises:
 requesting credit information for the buyer from a credit bureau based on the application data;   receiving the credit information from the credit bureau; and   combining the credit information with the application data to determine the credit score for said buyer.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein reward points associated with the virtual payment account accrue based upon the volume of purchases charged to the virtual payment account. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the virtual payment account comprises a main account and at least one sub-account created by the buyer. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the sub-account has a set spending limit set by the buyer. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the sub-account is associated with a second buyer. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the sub-account is configured by the buyer to accept charges only from a predetermined list of sellers.