Abstract: An online auction that combines elements of traditional English-style (ascending price) and Dutch-style (descending price) online auction is disclosed. Such an online auction maintains simultaneous ascending lower-bound price(s) and descending upper-bounds price(s) that gradually converge, narrowing the channel between them. The auction may be for a single, many identical, or several different objects or services and ends when supply equates to demand at either the upper or lower bound prices. The rate of adjustment of each price or set of prices is determined partly in response to the demand conditions at the other price and partly with the goal of achieving rapid convergence towards an equilibrium price where supply equals demand. This online auction design combines the information revealed by an English-style online auction with the safety and planning allowed to participants in a Dutch-style online auction.

Abstract: A descending price auction associated with a number of substantially indistinguishable items may be implemented by one or more computing devices including a counter module configured to generate a series of decreasing counter values, and a matching module configured to match a bidder and a particular quantity of items at least partly in response to a bid received by the computing device. The matching module matches the bidder and the particular quantity of items based at least partly on a particular counter value active when the bidder and the particular quantity of items are matched. Additionally, the matching module removes the items from the auction based at least partly on the matching, and determines the number of items remaining in the auction.

Abstract: A method for eliciting and aggregating truthful preferences of respondents, with steps of assigning a currency budget to a respondent and generating a user interface. The user interface: displays budgets for each respondent; displays choices among alternative outcomes for each respondent and a method for allocating votes among options by paying according to a quadratic function; displays the outcome of the voting for each respondent; enables a third party to select and contact respondents; enables the third party to observe voting choices and final voting outcomes; and enables the third party to control budgets and voting options.

Abstract: A computerized raffle system provides user interface that presents market conditions and enables the market participants to allocate and re-allocate a market resource among one or more raffles of a computerized raffle system. Such a user interface allows the market participants to determine the allocation in light of the strength of their personal preferences, thereby facilitating efficient resource allocation without requiring the use of money. Presentation of the market conditions via the user interface can be choreographed by the computerized raffle system to expedite the convergence of congestion of the market to a state of equilibrium. The computerized raffle system can also send alerts to market participants when certain conditions are met. Once the congestion of the market has converged to a state of equilibrium, the computerized raffle system can distribute goods between market participants based upon the final allocation of market resource.

Abstract: A descending price auction may be implemented by one or more computing devices including a counter module configured to generate a series of decreasing counter values, and a matching module configured to match a bidder and an item at least partly in response to a bid received by the computing device. The matching module matches the bidder and the item based at least partly on a particular counter value active when the bidder and item are matched. Additionally, the matching module removes the bidder and the item from the auction based at least partly on the matching.

Abstract: A method for eliciting and aggregating truthful preferences of respondents, with steps of assigning a currency budget to a respondent and generating a user interface. The user interface: displays budgets for each respondent; displays choices among alternative outcomes for each respondent and a method for allocating votes among options by paying according to a quadratic function; displays the outcome of the voting for each respondent; enables a third party to select and contact respondents; enables the third party to observe voting choices and final voting outcomes; and enables the third party to control budgets and voting options.

Abstract: A method for eliciting and aggregating truthful preferences of respondents, with steps of assigning a currency budget to a respondent and generating a user interface. The user interface: displays budgets for each respondent; displays choices among alternative outcomes for each respondent and a method for allocating votes among options by paying according to a quadratic function; displays the outcome of the voting for each respondent; enables a third party to select and contact respondents; enables the third party to observe voting choices and final voting outcomes; and enables the third party to control budgets and voting options.