Abstract: An apparatus, system and method for automatically making operation selling decisions are provided. The apparatus, system and method make use of selling policy rules established by human operators associated with a firm to guide the making of decisions to sell products and/or services. The actual decisions to sell are made automatically by the system without requiring human intervention. The decisions to sell are made by negotiating terms of sale with a customer using history information, exogenous preference information, information obtained from third parties, and the like. An initial offer of sale is provided to a customer who may then elect to modify the terms of sale of the product or service. If the customer elects to modify the terms of sale of the product or service, a negotiation engine of the present invention may automatically provide counteroffers to offers made by the customer until acceptable terms of sale are agreed upon.

Abstract: A method, computer program product, and data processing system for circumventing profiling and targeting of World Wide Web users is disclosed. A number of fictitious web “personae” are established. A user wishing to perform a particular web transaction assumes a persona that best fits the user's current needs. The user's actions are then attributed to the persona, rather than the user. When the user wishes to perform another transaction, a different persona may be assumed, depending upon the circumstances, so that any disadvantage attributable to performing the same web transaction multiple times may be eliminated. This has the dual advantage of both protecting the user's privacy and taking advantage of special offers and incentives that may be targeted to first-time customers.

Abstract: A method and system for searching for software agents or directory service agents in a distributed environment. The system employs a plurality of host computers that include software agents and/or directory service agents and that are connected to a network. The method as invoked at one of the host computers searches for other agents with a recursive search that enables one agent to locate other agents that match a given criteria. The recursive search may use cross-listed directory services, negotiated cross-listings and economic considerations.

Abstract: A method, computer program product, and data processing system for circumventing profiling and targeting of World Wide Web users is disclosed. A number of fictitious web “personae” are established. A user wishing to perform a particular web transaction assumes a persona that best fits the user's current needs. The user's actions are then attributed to the persona, rather than the user. When the user wishes to perform another transaction, a different persona may be assumed, depending upon the circumstances, so that any disadvantage attributable to performing the same web transaction multiple times may be eliminated. This has the dual advantage of both protecting the user's privacy and taking advantage of special offers and incentives that may be targeted to first-time customers.

Abstract: A digital data processing system is provided with an information extracting portion or step for extracting information from each message processed by an entity of the system, where the extracted information permits that message or a similar message to be recognized. The system further includes a storage portion or step of storing the extracted information in a database of extracted information. The database has the extracted information for each message stored in an entry associated with the message. The invention further provides a comparison portion or step for comparing each message received or originated by the entity against the database entries stored in the storage segment and, if an entry is found to be sufficiently similar to the received message, for preventing the received message from triggering the generation and forwarding of a new message, thereby avoiding the creation of a network chain reaction or a maelstrom.

Abstract: An apparatus, system and method for automatically making operation selling decisions are provided. The apparatus, system and method make use of selling policy rules established by human operators associated with a firm to guide the making of decisions to sell products and/or services. The actual decisions to sell are made automatically by the system without requiring human intervention. The decisions to sell are made by negotiating terms of sale with a customer using history information, exogenous preference information, information obtained from third parties, and the like. An initial offer of sale is provided to a customer who may then elect to modify the terms of sale of the product or service. If the customer elects to modify the terms of sale of the product or service, a negotiation engine of the present invention may automatically provide counteroffers to offers made by the customer until acceptable terms of sale are agreed upon.

Abstract: An apparatus, system and method for automatically making operation purchasing decisions are provided. The apparatus, system and method make use of purchasing policy rules established by human operators associated with a firm to guide the making of decisions to purchase products and/or services. The actual decisions to purchase are made automatically by the system without requiring human intervention. The decisions to purchase are made by evaluating the possible vendors to identify a set of vendors from which the product or service may be obtained. From this set of vendors, one or more vendors are selected from which to purchase the desired product or service. The selection of these one or more vendors may be based on the established rules, information obtained about each vendor, and the results of negotiation with the vendors. Because the actual decisions are performed automatically without human intervention, the decisions may be made much more quickly than would have been done by a human being.

Abstract: A method, system, and computer program product for providing electronic business functions for a business client is provided. In one embodiment, a host provides, on a data processing system, first level and second level services for several business clients. The first level services may include such features as storage, network connectivity, web hosting, and processing power. The second level services may include software designed to meet the specific needs of the business clients and may include such functionality as accounting services, inventory management services, price determination services, product and service ordering services, and negotiating services. The host may facilitate transactions between one business client and another business client on behalf of the clients by identifying needs of one business client and identifying the capability of another business client to fulfill those needs.

Abstract: Automatic electronic bidding for goods or services. In one embodiment, the history of bids or asks is examined to determine which have resulted in trades within a prescribed span of time. This information plus, possibly, some additional auxiliary information is used to estimate, for one or more candidate prices within a prescribed range, the likelihood for a bid or ask at that price to result in a trade; an optimal price is selected using this set of bid/ask prices and trade probabilities plus additional information about privately held information about reservation prices, etc. to compute an optimal bid/ask price or modify an existing bid/ask; and the auctioneer is sent a message conveying the chosen new or modified optimal bid/ask price.

Abstract: A method, system, apparatus, and computer program product for exchanging products (goods and services) in a non-centralized exchange system is provided. In one embodiment, a matchmaker registers with at least one of a plurality of directory services in the non-centralized exchange system. The matchmaker receives advertisements in a matchmaker determined informational format from a plurality of vendor agents. The plurality of vendor agents obtain the identity and contact information of the matchmaker from one of the directory services with which the matchmaker has registered. A consumer agent obtains the identity and the contact information for one or more matchmakers from at least one of the directory services with which the matchmakers have registered. The consumer agent chooses and receives a list of advertisements from the matchmaker for products that are of interest to the consumer agent.

Abstract: Resist materials sensitive to actinic radiation are formed from an acid generator and a material sensitive to acid. The acid from the acid generator interacts with the acid sensitive material to produce a change in solubility. Particularly useful acid generators included benzyl and naphthylmethyl sulfones.