Abstract: In a disclosed embodiment of the invention, a customer of a vending machine is provided with an offer to establish a membership at a vending machine. After receiving an acceptance of the offer, a membership identifier is determined. The membership identifier is stored in association with the term of the membership. After the step of storing, the membership identifier is received. The term of the membership is determined. A selection of a product that the customer intends to purchase is received from the customer, and a transaction is processed at the vending machine in accordance with the term and the selection.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for forecasting aircraft fleet composition, aircraft retirements and fleet spares requirements, includes obtaining aircraft fleet data, obtaining data on independent variables, determining a cycle indicator, determining the operation type of the aircraft, estimating the model using certain estimation steps using the aircraft fleet data, examining and updating the model based on changes in the independent variables, and forecasting on a year-to-year basis by age and operation cohort.

Abstract: A method to estimate demand of a market for a service is disclosed. The method includes selecting a set of feasible service offerings to offer for sale to the market from a set of candidate service offerings, observing a response of the market to the set of feasible service offerings offered for sale, and estimating a demand of the market for the service based upon the observed response. Each service offering of the set of feasible service offerings and the set of candidate service offerings is defined by a price and a service level.

Abstract: A system and method, comprising providing a speech engine running on a computer system supporting an interface selected from the group consisting of one or more of a text-to-speech interface and a speech-to-text interface; presenting to a user through a user interface, an interactive advertisement, the interactive advertisement at least one of: presenting a speech output derived from a text file received from a server to a user; and receiving a speech input which is converted to text in dependence on a data file defining at least one of a vocabulary and a grammar, the speech input converted to text being communicated to an advertisement server.

Abstract: A method of risk management across a mission support network is provided, including identifying a mission of the mission support network, and identifying, by a computer processor, assets of the mission support network. The assets include a mission asset to support the mission and a support asset to provide support to the mission asset. Each of the assets is characterized by a criticality index value to measure how important the asset is to a performance of the mission, and a vulnerability index value to measure a vulnerability of the asset to a threat.

Abstract: Methods and computer systems for forecasting demand and availability of resources of a geographic region are provided. Physical, operational, traffic and construction data for a geographic region for a specified time period is utilized to compare the operational needs for at least one resource for a geographic region to the available resources to forecast demands and availability of the at least one resource for the geographic region over the specified time period and determine whether the demand for the at least one resource exceeds the availability of the at least one resource. The forecasted demand and availability of the at least one resource for the geographic region for the specified time period is stored and presented.

Abstract: A micro-payment system has buyers, sellers, and a broker. The buyers establish accounts with the broker and provide payment information allowing the broker to invoice the buyers. The sellers establish accounts with the brokers and specify terms for accessing items, including electronic content, available from the sellers. The sellers also provide payment information that allows the broker to credit the sellers for sales of the items. The broker aggregates the buyers' micro-payment purchases and invoices the buyers. The broker also aggregates the sellers' micro-payment sales and credits the sellers.

Abstract: The invention relates to a computer implemented method of estimating a first financial outcome. The computer implemented method involves obtaining financial data associated with an entity, selecting a first proposed financial policy impacting the entity, applying the first proposed financial policy to the financial data to estimate the first financial outcome, and presenting the first financial outcome to the entity.

Abstract: A computer system for facilitating user connectivity in a computer network includes an attention manager, an identity manager, and an introduction manager. The attention manager generates data indicative of the current interests of the user. The identity manager manages data indicative of the interests of the user. The introduction manager provides a proactive contact, content, or commerce data recommendation for the dynamic introduction of contact, content, or commerce data to the user, and may also provide bilaterally secure introductions with other users.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer readable media for facilitating the exchange of reciprocal deposits are disclosed. According to one aspect, the subject matter described herein includes a system for facilitating the exchange of reciprocal deposits. The system includes a first bank for participating in an exchange of reciprocal deposits and a control center for implementing an exchange of reciprocal deposits between the first bank and a second bank for receiving deposits. The control center receives requests for placement of reciprocal deposits, determines requirements of depositing and receiving banks, and facilitates exchange of reciprocal deposits in accordance with the requirements.

Abstract: An evaluating method for internal network performance by simulation of a flow network model with an acceptable threshold for the required flow of the internal network is applied to a computer system. The network model comprises plural nodes and document flow paths, wherein each said node corresponds to one employee of the internal network with a capacity, which is tested to get a testing result, and each said document flow path has a flow, which maps into a probability distribution data by a probability mapping function. According to the probability mapping function and operation relationship between the capacity and the flow together with the acceptable threshold and the probability distribution data, a system reliability value is calculated out and shown in a display screen.

Abstract: A multiple agency transaction accounting system includes a plurality of point of service stations that conduct, for multiple agencies, respective agency transactions that are associated with various reporting requirements, fees and commissions. A universal transaction encoding subsystem encodes the agency transaction data received from the plurality of stations into universal transaction data and supplies the encoded data to a universal transaction settlement subsystem that parses and aggregates the universal transaction data into encoded agency-specific transaction data and provides the encoded agency-specific transaction data to the respective agencies to complete the transaction accounting. The accounting system may also include a money management subsystem that processes fees and commissions associated with the agency transactions in bulk for the respective agencies. The money management subsystem may process the agency transactions as either credit card transactions or bank account transactions.

Abstract: A method to identify technological solutions for user-centric product designs is disclosed. The method includes acquiring knowledge of a user-centric product goal and a user outcome, identifying actions that may achieve the desired user outcome, and identifying tasks pertaining to each action. Upon identifying actions that may be necessary to achieve the desired outcome and identifying tasks corresponding to each action, technology may then be considered and technological solutions for performing the tasks may be determined. A visual depiction of the technological solutions charted to the corresponding tasks may be provided to assist with designing a product best suited for product users. The identified technological solutions may be implemented into the product design to produce a user-centric product.

Abstract: An improved method for managing advertising campaigns is provided. The method includes defining an advertising campaign, uploading a multi-media file of each member of the campaign; linking each of the multi-media files of the advertisements and associating the media files with a data capture template based on the media type; configuring the scheduling and promotion details for display of the media ad; associating survey questions with respondent incentives; calculating the present cost of the campaign; capturing consumer responses to individual members of the campaign; aggregating and analyzing the cumulative responses; making program adjustments to the type, location, and schedule for the campaign members based on these real-time results; and transmitting the revised campaign management instructions and adjusted media files to remote systems at the media channels thereby optimizing in real-time the overall ad campaign.

Abstract: A method for performing a market analysis may include collecting survey data, which may include evaluation data for desired outcomes, the desired outcomes consisting of attributes of one or more products or services. The desired outcome evaluation data may include importance and satisfaction data. Further, the survey data may include evaluation data for potential features. The potential features evaluation data may include desirability data indicative of the affinity survey participants have for potential features. The method may further include processing the collected survey data using a computer processor. The processing may include calculating, based on the importance and satisfaction data, opportunity scores for the individual desired outcomes. The processing may also include correlating potential features with desired outcomes. In addition, the processing may include ranking the potential features based on the collected desirability data and the calculated opportunity score.

Abstract: Online advertisement selection techniques are described. In an implementation, data is obtained which describes interaction of one or more clients with television content. At least one online advertisement is selected to be output in conjunction with online content based on the interaction with the television content described in the obtained data.

Abstract: Methods and systems for hosting business and other e-commerce application services are provided which provide secure shared computing resources to multiple instances of e-commerce or other business applications. The shared computing resources are dynamically allocated among the instances of the applications, and the instances of the applications are logically separated from one another to provide additional security.

Abstract: The information providing system accurately predicts a behavior pattern of a user, selects and provides the optimal information at individual points in time. Provision information files (F1, F2, . . . ) for a number of stores are stored in the file storage section (100). When a user accesses the retrieval condition enter section (130) from a cellular phone (10) and transmits a retrieval condition including the position information and a keyword, the retrieval executing section (120) retrieves a file whose degree of accordance to the retrieval condition is a certain reference level or more. The list presentation section (140) comprises tables showing statistical degrees of interest of users in association with respective geographical areas, respective time periods, and respective store genres.

Abstract: An educational tuition securities system is provided. An educational institution can securitize tuition or course credits into tuition shares. Tuition shares in an educational institution can be purchased for a student and redeemed for payment of tuition credits or education costs at the educational institution. Tuition shares for an educational institution can be traded for tuition shares of another institution. Redeemed tuition shares can be used to pay for undergraduate and graduate education costs, or could be redeemed for cash. The invention provides a mechanism for paying future education costs, as well as for investing in educational institutions.

Abstract: A loss reporting system and method for tracking, monitoring and evaluating loss in an enterprise is provided. The system receives product data from enterprise facilities, stores the product data, calculates performance information from the product data, and compares the performance information to a predetermined performance standard. The system can generate a viewable report using the comparison between the performance information and the predetermined performance standard.