Abstract: There is disclosed a website that allows patent licenses to be easily purchased. Through the website, customers can purchase paid-up, lump-sum licenses from the vendors. The website employs standard forms that avoid risks of litigation and the burdens of negotiation.

Abstract: Methods and systems for leveraging a plurality of sensor devices distributed in a geographical area to monitor vehicle usage for assessing, pricing, and provisioning distance-based vehicle insurance. One or more sensor devices may capture information associated with a vehicle and communicate the information to an insurance provider. In aspects, the insurance provider may analyze the information to determine a distance that the vehicle travels within a particular time period. Further, the insurance provider may determine a vehicle usage unit based on the distance traveled as well as provide various insurance coverage types to a customer associated with the vehicle. Based on a selected coverage type, the insurance provider may generate an insurance quote for a policy having an amount of the vehicle usage units and may facilitate a purchase transaction with the customer for the insurance policy.

Abstract: An automated information and analysis system and methods, including methods to acquire information, which may include financial market data such as rates or prices, from one or more external sources, and to process, enhance, extend or otherwise develop that information to derive additional, different, modified or otherwise developed information which, separately or together with the original acquired information, provides to users additional, different or modified utility relative to the utility that the original acquired information provides alone.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention can provide systems and methods for on-line credit card transactions. According to one example embodiment of the invention, a method can be provided. The method can include receiving, from a data manager, credit card information of a user; storing, on a secure element, the credit card information of the user; requesting a transaction with a merchant; receiving, from the merchant, a request for the credit card information; and sending, to the merchant, the credit card information of the user and a card-present indicator.

Abstract: With respect to one order information piece in security transaction, processing of reception, transaction condition confirmation, transaction settlement and result transmission is executed serially. A transaction system is configured so as to divide a transaction including a plurality of transaction requests into predetermined units and execute resultant processing units in parallel. When such division is conducted, the sequential property is ensured. For example, the progress situation of processing is stored in a database every processing and every step. Issues, terminals, markets and servers are included as predetermined units.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to, among other things, providing resource allocation advice, configuration recommendations, and/or migration advice regarding data storage, access, placement, and/or related web services. In some examples, a web service may utilize or otherwise control a client instance to control, access, or otherwise manage resources of a distributed system. Based at least in part on one or more resource usage checks and/or configuration checks, resource usage information and/or configuration information of an account utilizing a web service, and/or user preferences and/or settings, resource allocation advice, system configuration recommendations, and/or migration advice may be provided to a user of an account. Additionally, in some examples, one or more remediation operations may be performed automatically.

Abstract: An approach is provided for utilizing recognition data in conducting service transactions.

Abstract: Disclosed herein in a preferred embodiment is an automated financial instrument brokerage system wherein a front end layer interacts with customers to generate activity requests for an intermediate layer. The intermediate layer preferably processes the activity requests and places financial instrument orders on a financial market if appropriate. A backend layer preferably provides data to the intermediate layer for processing activity requests. Multiple heterogeneous front end customer applications may be supported by the same intermediate layer. Further, multiple backend layer applications may interact with the intermediate layer in a manner transparent to the front end layer. Further, scalability can be achieved be partitioning various tasks of the intermediate layer onto separate servers, and more preferably on separate redundant servers. Load balancers may then be used in the intermediate layer to provide distributed access to these servers.

Abstract: A system and method for a money pools system is presented. The money pools system includes a plurality of financial positions that are allocated to a plurality of pools. A category may be used to contain a grouping of pools. Multiple categories allow a user to view aggregated financial positions that are common to the multiple categories. New pools and categories may be created by a user, a financial institution, and/or a third party. Pool systems may also incorporate pool templates to facilitate the creation of pools. Pool templates may also be shared over a network of interconnected money pool systems.

Abstract: A system and method for analyzing and using vehicle historical data is provided. The system and method may include obtaining vehicle history data from a vehicle history data system, and analyzing various vehicle variables to determine final factors associated with such vehicle variables. The vehicle variables may be categorized based on the age of the vehicle, the amount of time that has occurred since some event, or other time period. The final factors can be combined to score particular vehicles. Vehicle history scores can be used to evaluate risk associated with a particular vehicle, including use in underwriting and rating insurance policies, vehicle financing, or vehicle warranties.

Abstract: An auction methodology wherein the auction competition among the bidders is generated by allowing each bidder to bid for non-price bid parameters (e.g., lead time, labor rate, contract length, etc.) in addition to the price of the lot on auction. Such a multi-parameter bidding provides the buyer (i.e., the auction requester) with more diverse information when selecting the winning bidder. The buyer and each bidder participating in the electronic auction may receive a real-time feedback of the bidding activity including details on bids placed for price and non-price parameters, which allows each bidder to adjust or modify one or more of its own bids (for price and non-price bid parameters) to effectively compete in the auction.

Abstract: A method of providing financial advice that includes presenting financial related questions to a user, recording answers to the presented questions and preparing and displaying an advice report by simultaneously displaying one of the recorded answers and a benchmark that represents a predetermined level of practice corresponding to the one of the recorded answers, wherein advice on how to achieve a desired level of practice is rendered by such simultaneous displaying. Providing advice to the user based on the advice report so that the user achieves the desired level of practice.

Abstract: Information provided with a direct deposit, a deposited check, or other negotiable instrument may be used to determine state, city, county, and/or other local income tax liability. Based on information associated with the deposit, the financial institution may determine where a user performed the work that triggered the income payment, where the income payment took place, what type of work is associated with the income payment, etc. This information may be used by the financial institution to provide income itemization and income tax liability information to the user via a user computing device.

Abstract: System and methods for reducing the risks involved in trading multiple spread trading strategies in an electronic trading environment are provided. Specifically, reducing the risks involved in trading multiple spreads that share a leg by, among other things, quoting a single order in the shared leg instead of quoting orders for each of the corresponding spread legs. Based on the computed quote price for the single order, associating the single order with the leaned on price that results in the price closest to the inside market in the shared leg. The single quote order is based on the market conditions in the spread legs and the desired spread price. Once the single order fills, a hedge order is sent to the leg that obtains the most advantageous price for the spread based on the other spread options.

Abstract: A system and associated methods are provided for use of fractional pay-up ticks in relation to offset orders being sent for a trading strategy that involves trading a first tradeable object and at least a second tradeable object. According to one example method, when an indication is received that a quantity at a first price for the first tradeable object is filled, a plurality of offset orders for the second tradeable object is sent to an electronic order book of the second tradeable object. The plurality of offset orders is placed at a plurality of price levels determined based on at least one fractional pay-up tick value, the first price, and the desired spread price. A quantity for each order is determined based on a quantity divider rule that is applied to an offset quantity to offset the fill.

Abstract: Systems, methods and computer program products for enabling a holder of a transaction account linked to a financial transaction instrument to delegate management of the transaction account to an assistant. Information relating to the transaction account, including at least identification information relating to the holder of the transaction account, is stored in a database. The database stores financial transaction data relating to financial transactions performed using the financial transaction instrument. A designation of at least one assistant to manage the transaction account on behalf of the holder is accepted and stored. Assistant management authentication data associated with the transaction account is established, to be used by the assistant to execute management instructions at a designated level of management access. An instruction from the assistant is accepted to access transaction data associated with the transaction account.

Abstract: Systems, methods and computer program products stored on a computer readable medium or media are described for providing pricing of mortgage-backed securities and other financial instruments. Multiple cashflow paths resulting from different interest rate development scenarios are consolidated into a single cashflow path. A continuously compounded interest rate spread (“equivalent cc spread”) corresponding to the option adjusted spread prevailing at the market is determined, as is a relationship between the two. Reformulating computations of option adjusted spreads and prices using an equivalent cc spread and factoring out assumption changes approximates individual cashflow path and interest rate path calculations and allows use of consolidated cashflows calculations as a very good approximation.

Abstract: A system, method and computer program product creates an index based on accounting data, or a portfolio of financial objects based on the index where the portfolio is weighted according to accounting data. Indexes may be built with metrics other than market capitalization weighting, price weighting or equal weighting. Financial and non-financial metrics may be used to build indexes to create passive investment systems. A combination of financial non-market capitalization metrics may be used with non-financial metrics to create passive investment systems. Once built, the index may be used as a basis to purchase securities for a portfolio. Specifically excluded are widely-used capitalization-weighted and price-weighted indexes, in which price of a security contributes in a substantial way to calculation of weight of that security in the index or the portfolio, and equal weighting weighted indexes. The indexes may be constructed to minimize volatility.

Abstract: Methods and systems for an interactive media guidance application to prevent a user from experiencing an episodic advertisement out of order. Each episodic advertisement includes a plurality of advertisements intended to be viewed in an ordered sequence, and each advertisement of the sequence is part of a story that the episodic advertisement tells. The interactive media guidance application determines whether the user's viewing activity may cause the user to experience a particular advertisement of an episodic advertisement out of order, identifies an alternative advertisement of the episodic advertisement to present in place of the particular advertisement, and presents the alternative advertisement so as to prevent the user from experiencing the particular advertisement out of the ordered sequence of advertisements.

Abstract: A system and method for post closing and custody services is disclosed. The method may comprise: receiving loan documents directly from a closing agent upon closing of a loan; imaging at least a portion of the loan documents; making one or more of the imaged documents accessible to one or more post closing users; and performing a custody review of the loan documents prior to other post closing services associated with the loan.