Identification of multiple billing computer systems and settlement processing

Abstract

The exchange computer system includes a billing computer relationship having a plurality of reference billing computer identifiers and a plurality of reference sensory representations, each associated with a respective reference billing computer identifier. A billing identifier receiver receives a billing identifier representing a user from the payment portal computer system. A billing identifier transmission module transmits the billing identifiers at the respective reference billing computer identifiers to the plurality of remote billing computer systems. A response receiving module receives positive responses from one or more of the billing computer systems. A sensory representation selection module determines a selective sensory representation for provision and confirmation by a user at a user computer system connected to the payment portal computer system.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] (CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS) This is an application that claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 365,388, filed May 26, 2022, all of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

[0002] (Technical field) The present invention relates to a method and system for identifying and billing users. [Background technology]

[0003] A network used for online purchases typically includes a user computer system, a payment portal computer system, and a billing computer system. The user can use the user computer system to select a product or service on the next payment portal computer system that is then provided with an interface to make a payment. The interface can have a payment service selection option for purposes of communication with the various billing computer systems. After the user selects the payment service they wish to use, they can be presented with a list of possible payment methods. The user would then select the method that he or she would prefer to have linked to them as a payer at a given time to the underlying issuer. This linking can be performed by the use of a static unique number (e.g., card payment), a unique account name (including an associated email address), or a unique image scanned by the camera of the computing device (quick response code). This first factor of authentication is often coupled with a second factor of authentication, which typically amounts to an additional provision of an element of knowledge (password), intrinsic (thumbprint scan), or possession (SMS one-time password). The payment portal computer system can then communicate with the associated billing computer system to which it can charge after it has at some point linked and authenticated with a payer.

[0004] Repeated purchases rely on user experiences that include a relatively high degree of friction for non-card payments. Users would have to identify their payment method, in the case of real-time / open banking or e-wallet payment methods, and they would be required to identify their issuer, which may be hundreds, to initiate a payment, or alternatively, rely on less secure linking mediums to the issuer (e.g., card payments). The friction created for users would lead to losses for users by merchants who force the use of the payment portal computer system. Also, due to the intricate friction, certain payment methods may have advantages over others. Retaining users during the payment process can lead to increased profits for merchants, especially when a different, less expensive payment method is selected. Reliance on methods that link payers to their issuer accounts via less secure methods (e.g., static card payments) can result in more losses for merchants in the form of refunds attached to payment disputes or unauthorized transactions. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The invention provides a method for charging a user performed by a payment portal computer system, including receiving, by an interface of the payment portal computer system, a billing identifier representing the user, communicating, by a processor of the payment portal computer system, the billing identifier to an exchange computer system, the processor of the payment portal computer system receiving a selective sensory representation from the exchange computer system in response to communicating, by the processor of the payment portal computer system, the billing identifier to the exchange computer system, receiving, by the interface of the payment portal computer system, a confirmation of the selective sensory representation from the user, and communicating, by the processor of the payment portal computer system, the confirmation to the exchange computer system.

[0006] The method can further include a processor of the payment portal computer system receiving the multiple selective sensory expressions, an interface of the payment portal computer system receiving a confirmation of one of the selective sensory expressions from the user, and the processor of the payment portal computer system communicating the confirmation of the one of the selective sensory expressions to the exchange computer system.

[0007] The method may further include, the sensory representation being a user readable name.

[0008] The method may further include the names being presented as a list using an inline frame residing in the exchange computer system.

[0009] The method may further include, the sensory representation being a user readable name.

[0010] The method may further include that the sensory representation includes "bank."

[0011] The method may further include, wherein the sensory expression includes "trust."

[0012] The method may further include, wherein the sensory representation includes at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation.

[0013] The present invention also provides a payment portal computer system including a processor, a storage device coupled to the processor, and a set of instructions on the storage device, the set of instructions including an interface adapted to receive a billing identifier representative of a user, a billing identifier transmission module executable by the processor to transmit the billing identifier to an exchange computer system, a sensory expression receiving module executable by the processor of the payment portal computer system to receive a selective sensory expression from the exchange computer system in response to transmitting the billing identifier to the exchange computer system, a confirmation receiving module executable by the processor to receive confirmation of the selective sensory expression from the user via the interface of the payment portal computer system, and a confirmation transmission module executable by the processor to transmit the confirmation to the exchange computer system.

[0014] The method may further include a processor of the payment portal computer system receiving a plurality of selective sensory expressions, an interface of the payment portal computer system receiving a confirmation of one of the selective sensory expressions from the user, and the processor of the payment portal computer system communicating the confirmation of the one selective sensory expression to the exchange computer system.

[0015] The method may further include, the sensory representation being a user readable name.

[0016] The method may further include the names being presented as a list using an inline frame present in the exchange computer system.

[0017] The method may further include, the sensory representation being a user readable name.

[0018] The method may further include that the sensory representation includes "bank."

[0019] The method may further include, wherein the sensory expression includes "trust."

[0020] The method may further include, wherein the sensory representation includes at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation.

[0021] The present invention further provides a method of charging a user executed by an exchange computer system, the method including: storing, by a processor of the exchange computer system, a charging computer relationship including a plurality of reference charging computer identifiers and a plurality of reference sensory representations each associated with a respective charging computer identifier; receiving, by the processor of the exchange computer system, a charging identifier representing the user from a payment portal computer system; storing, by the processor of the exchange computer system, the charging identifier in a storage device of the exchange computer system; communicating, by the processor of the exchange computer system, the charging identifier to a plurality of remote charging computer systems with the respective reference charging computer identifiers; receiving, by a processor of the exchange computer system, a positive response from at least one of the charging computer systems including an identifier of the charging computer system; associating, by a processor of the exchange computer system, the positive response with a charging identifier stored in a storage device; determining, by a processor of the exchange computer system, a selective sensory representation from a reference sensory representation of a charging computer associated with the identifier of the charging computer system received by the processor of the exchange computer system from the charging computer relationship; communicating, by the processor of the exchange computer system, the selective sensory representation to a payment portal computer system; receiving, by the processor of the exchange computer system, a confirmation of the selective sensory representation from the payment portal computer system; and communicating, by the processor of the exchange computer system, a fee request to the charging computer identifier associated with the selective sensory representation in the charging computer relationship.

[0022] The method may further include the exchange computer system processor receiving a positive response from each of at least two of the billing computer systems, each positive response including a billing identifier and an identifier of the respective billing computer system, the exchange computer system processor associating the positive response with the stored billing identifier in the storage device, from the billing computer relationship, the exchange computer system processor determining a selective sensory representation from the reference sensory representation of the billing computer associated with the billing computer system identifier received by the exchange computer system processor, the exchange computer system processor communicating the selective sensory representation to the payment portal computer system, the exchange computer system processor receiving confirmation of one of the selective sensory representations, and the exchange computer system processor communicating the fee request to the billing computer identifier associated with one of the selective sensory representations in the billing computer relationship.

[0023] The method may further include, the sensory representation being a user readable name.

[0024] The method may further include the names being presented as a list using an inline frame present in the exchange computer system.

[0025] The method may further include, the sensory representation being a user readable name.

[0026] The method can further include the switching computer system receiving at least one negative response from one of the billing computer systems.

[0027] The method may further include that the sensory representation includes "bank."

[0028] The method may further include, wherein the sensory expression includes "trust."

[0029] The method may further include, wherein the sensory representation includes at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation.

[0030] The present invention also provides an exchange computer system including a processor, a storage device coupled to the processor, and a set of instructions on the storage device, the set of instructions including a billing computer relationship including a plurality of reference billing computer identifiers and a plurality of reference sensory representations each associated with a respective reference billing computer identifier, a billing identifier receiver executable by the processor to receive a billing identifier representing a user from a payment portal computer system and a billing identifier storage module executable by the processor to store the billing identifier in the storage device, a billing identifier transmission module executable by the processor to transmit the billing identifier to a plurality of remote billing computer systems at each reference billing computer identifier, and a billing identifier transmission module executable by the processor to receive a positive response from at least one of the billing computer systems in response to transmitting the billing identifier to the plurality of remote billing computer systems by the billing identifier transmission module, the positive response including the billing identifier and an identifier of the billing computer system, the billing identifier storage module executable by the processor to transmit the billing identifier to the plurality of remote billing computer systems at each reference billing computer identifier. The system may include an executable response receiving module and associate a positive response with a billing identifier stored in the storage device, a processor-executable response association module and a billing computer relationship to determine a selective sensory representation from the reference sensory representation of the billing computer associated with the identifier of the billing computer system received by the processor of the exchange computer system, a processor-executable sensory representation selection module and a processor-executable sensory representation transmission module for transmitting the selective sensory representation to the payment portal computer system, a processor-executable confirmation receiving module for receiving confirmation of the selective sensory representation from the payment portal computer system, and a billing request transmission module executable by the processor to transmit the billing request to the billing computer identifier associated with the selective sensory representation in the billing computer relationship.

[0031] The system may further include the exchange computer system processor receiving a positive response from each of at least two of the billing computer systems, each positive response including a billing identifier and a respective billing computer system identifier, the exchange computer system processor associating the positive response with the billing identifier stored in the storage device, the exchange computer system processor determining a selective sensory representation from the billing computer relationship, the reference sensory representation of the billing computer associated with the billing computer system identifier received at the exchange computer system processor, the exchange computer system processor communicating the selective sensory representation to the payment portal computer system, the exchange computer system processor receiving confirmation of one of the selective sensory representations, and the exchange computer system processor communicating the charge request to the billing computer identifier associated with one of the selective sensory representations in the billing computer relationship.

[0032] The system may further include that the sensory representation is a user readable name.

[0033] The system may further include that the names are presented as a list using an inline frame residing in the exchange computer system.

[0034] The system may further include, wherein the sensory representation is a user readable name.

[0035] The system can further include the switching computer system receiving at least one negative response from one of the billing computer systems.

[0036] The system may further include that the sensory representation includes "bank."

[0037] The system may further include that the sensory expression includes "trust."

[0038] The system may further include, wherein the sensory representation includes at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation.

[0039] The present invention further provides a method of billing users executed by a billing computer system, comprising storing, by a processor of the billing computer system in a data store of the billing computer system, a plurality of reference identifiers, each representing a respective customer, receiving, by the processor of the billing computer system, a billing identifier representing the user from an exchange computer system, and determining, by the processor of the billing computer system, whether the billing identifier matches any one of the reference identifiers. If the billing identifier matches one of the reference identifiers, then communicating, by the processor of the billing computer system, a positive response to the exchange computer system including the billing identifier and an identifier of the billing computer system, which is not communicated if the billing identifier does not match one of the reference identifiers, and in response to communicating, by the billing computer system, the processor of the billing computer system, receiving from the exchange computer system a billing request, and billing, by the processor of the billing computer system, an account associated with the reference identifier that matches the billing identifier in the data store.

[0040] The method further includes, if the billing identifier does not match one of the reference identifiers and a positive response is not communicated, the processor of the billing computer system communicates a negative response to the exchange computer system.

[0041] The method may further include that the sensory representation includes "bank."

[0042] The method may further include, wherein the sensory expression includes "trust."

[0043] The method may further include the sensory representation including at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation.

[0044] The present invention also provides a billing computer system including a processor, a storage device coupled to the processor, and a set of instructions on the storage device, the set of instructions including a data store, a plurality of reference identifiers in the data store, each representing a respective customer, a billing identifier receiving module executable by the processor to receive from the exchange computer system a billing identifier representing a user, a matching module executable by the processor to determine whether the billing identifier matches any one of the reference identifiers, a response transmission module executable by the processor to transmit a positive response to the exchange computer system if the billing identifier matches one of the reference identifiers, the response transmission module including the billing identifier and an identifier of the billing computer system, and not transmitted if the billing identifier does not match one of the reference identifiers, a plurality of accounts, each account associated with a respective one of the reference identifiers, a billing request receiving module executable by the processor to receive a billing request from the exchange computer system in response to transmitting the positive response to the exchange computer system by the response transmission module, and a billing module executable by the processor to bill the accounts associated with the reference identifiers that match the billing identifiers in the data store.

[0045] The system can further include a response transmission module transmitting a negative response to the switching computer system if the billing identifier does not match one of the reference identifiers and a positive response is not transmitted.

[0046] The method may further include that the sensory representation includes "bank."

[0047] The method may further include, wherein the sensory representation includes "trust."

[0048] The method may further include, wherein the sensory representation includes at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation. The invention will further be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: [Brief description of the drawings]

[0049] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a network according to the invention that includes an exchange computer system used to determine the selected charging computer system that a user wishes to use to charge at a user computer system between a payment portal computer system and a plurality of charging computer systems. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating the functioning of the network. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a physical depiction of the interface presented to a user to confirm the institution of choice for making a payment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a machine in the form of a computer that may find application in the inventive system, according to one embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0050] FIG. 1 illustrates a computer network 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention including a user computer system 12, a payment portal computer system 14, an exchange computer system 16, and a number of billing computer systems 18A, 18B, and 18C.

[0051] User computer system 12 can be, for example, a handheld device or a desktop computer. User computer system 12 is connected to a payment portal computer system 14 via the Internet. Payment portal computer system 14 can be, for example, a merchant computer system. A consumer at user computer system 12 can make a purchase at payment portal computer system 14, for example. Alternatively, user computer system 12 can be a checkout terminal at a merchant's physical location.

[0052] The exchange computer system 16 is connected to the payment portal computer system 14 via the Internet. The payment portal computer system 14 and the exchange computer system 16 have application programmable interfaces (API's) to communicate with each other. The exchange computer system 16 can communicate with the user computer systems 12 using an inline frame that resides on the exchange computer system 16 and is provided within the website of the payment portal computer system 14.

[0053] Exchange computer system 16 is connected to billing computer systems 18A, 18B, and 18C. Each billing computer system 18A, 18B, or 18C has its own API programmed to communicate with an API on exchange computer system 16. Billing computer systems 18A, 18B, and 18C can be, for example, a billing computer system of a bank, bank trust, or organization that holds accounts for consumers identified by reference identifiers such as account numbers, credit card numbers, telephone numbers, email addresses, etc.

[0054] Figure 2 illustrates the functionality of network 10 of Figure 1. At 20, billing computer system 18A stores a number of reference identifiers in a data store. Each reference identifier represents a respective customer. The reference identifiers are of the type that would normally be memorized by a customer, such as their telephone number or email address. Each reference identifier is also associated with an account on billing computer system 18A for the respective customer. An account may be identified on billing computer system 18A by an account number, an account name, or other identifier that may not be easily memorized by a customer. Alternatively, each account may be identified by the account's reference identifier without having an account number or account name.

[0055] At 22, the exchange computer system 16 stores a charging computer relationship including a plurality of reference charging computer identifiers and a plurality of reference sensory representations. Each reference sensory representation is associated with a respective charging computer identifier. Each reference charging computer identifier identifies, on the exchange computer system 16, one of the charging computer systems 18A, 18B, or 18C in FIG. 1. The reference charging computer identifier serves as an address that the exchange computer system 16 uses for data communications to a respective one of the charging computer systems 18A, 18B, or 18C.

[0056] For the purposes of this discussion, the sensory representation is the name of an organization of one of the billing computer systems 18A, 18B, or 18C, respectively. The name can be, for example, the name of a bank, the name of a banking trust, the name of a payment processing institution, etc. In the case of a name, the name can be seen by the user and thus represents a visual sensory representation. Another visual sensory representation is, for example, a logo. Another sensory representation can be an audio sensory representation, such as the sound of the name of the payment institution when spoken and thus heard by the user, or can be a tactile sensory representation. In the given example, each billing computer system 18A, 18B, and 18C has a respective reference billing computer identifier and a respective name associated with the respective reference billing computer identifier.

[0057] At 24, the pay portal computer system 14 receives a billing identifier representing the user. The billing identifier can be, for example, the user's email address or phone number. At 26, the pay portal computer system 14 communicates the billing identifier to the exchange computer system 16. At 28, the exchange computer system 16 receives the billing identifier representing the user from the pay portal computer system 14. At 30, the exchange computer system 16 stores the billing identifier in a data store of the exchange computer system 16.

[0058] At 32, the switching computer system 16 communicates the billing identifier to a plurality of remote billing computer systems 18A, 18B, and 18C in Figure 1 at their respective reference billing computer identifiers. As noted above, the billing computer identifiers were previously stored in step 22.

[0059] At 34, billing computer system 18A receives the billing identifier from switching computer system 16. At 36, billing computer system 18A determines whether the billing identifier matches any one of the reference identifiers pre-stored at step 20. If the billing identifier matches one of the reference identifiers at 38, then billing computer system 18A communicates a positive response to switching computer system 16. The positive response includes the billing identifier and an identifier of billing computer system 18A. If the billing identifier does not match one of the reference identifiers, then no positive response is communicated. Alternatively, a negative response is communicated, or no response is communicated.

[0060] Although steps 20, 24, 36, and 38 are shown only in billing computer system 18A, it should be understood that similar steps are performed for each billing computer system 18A, 18B, and 18C. Each billing computer system 18A, 18B, and 18C stores a plurality of reference identifiers at 20. Some of the reference identifiers may overlap, while other reference identifiers may not overlap among billing computer systems 18A, 18B, and 18C.

[0061] At 40, the switching computer system 16 receives at least one positive response from one of the billing computer systems 18A, 18B, or 18C. The positive response includes a billing identifier and an identifier of the billing computer system 18A, 18B, or 18C from which the response was received. If more than one response is received, then each response includes a billing identifier and a respective identifier of the respective billing computer system 18A, 18B, or 18C. Any negative responses will also include a billing identifier and an identifier of the respective billing computer system 18A, 18B, or 18C.

[0062] At 42, the switching computer system 16 associates any positive response with a billing identifier stored in the storage device. The billing identifier is thus used to match outgoing queries at 32 with incoming queries to which it responds at 40. The switching computer system 16 can manage multiple outgoing queries at 32 and can receive multiple responses at 40, and can track responses by cross-matching the transmitted and received billing identifiers.

[0063] At 44, the exchange computer system 16 determines an optional sensory representation associated with each billing computer system 18A, 18B, and 18C for which a response was received. The optional sensory representation is determined from the billing computer relationships stored at 22. If one or more positive responses are received, then the exchange computer system 16 determines a number of optional sensory representations associated with respective identifiers of each billing computer system 18A, 18B, and 18C for which a response was received. At 46, the exchange computer system 16 communicates the optional sensory representation or representations to the payment portal computer system 14. The communicated optional sensory representation or representations include only those sensory representations from those respective billing computer systems 18A, 18B, and 18C for which a positive response was received.

[0064] At 48, the pay portal computer system 14 receives the selective sensory expression or expressions from the exchange computer system 16. The user is provided with an interface on the user computer system 12 from which the user can make a selection. At 50, the pay portal computer system 14 receives confirmation of one of the selective sensory expressions from the user. At 52, the pay portal computer system 14 communicates the confirmation to the exchange computer system 16.

[0065] At 54, the exchange computer system 16 receives confirmation of the one selective sensory representation. The exchange computer system 16 can then determine which one of the billing computer systems 18A, 18B, or 18C the user wishes to use for billing purposes for the purchase. If only one selective sensory representation is communicated at 46, then the confirmation serves as confirmation by the user that the user wishes to be displayed for billing on the billing computer system 18A, 18B, or 18C referenced by the one sensory representation. If multiple sensory representations are communicated at 46, then the confirmation serves as confirmation from the user of the selected one of the billing computer systems 18A, 18B, or 18C that the user wishes to have the bill displayed.

[0066] At 56, the exchange computer system 16 communicates the billing request to a billing computer identifier associated with one of the selective sensory representations in the billing computer relationship. The billing request includes the amount to be billed. The exchange computer system 16 can receive the billing request from the payment portal computer system 14 at step 28 or at step 54. In this example, the billing request is only communicated to billing computer system 18A. Because the billing request is only communicated to one billing computer system 18A, the billing request is not also communicated to billing computer systems 18B and 18C. At 58, the billing computer system 18A receives the billing request. At 60, the billing computer system 18A bills the account associated with the reference identifier that matches the billing identifier in the data store.

[0067] FIG 3 illustrates an interface provided to a user at user computer system 12 in FIG 1 after the pay portal computer system 14 receives a sensory representation at 48 in FIG 2. In this example, the sensory representation includes the names of the institutions to which each billing computer system 18A, 18B, and 18C belongs, and many names include "bank" or "trust." The names are the only institutions for which a positive response was received from each billing computer system 18A, 18B, or 18C. The user can then make a selection of one of the names, which serves as a confirmation received by pay portal computer system 14 at 50 in FIG 2.

[0068] The processes and steps in Figure 2 are performed by various modules as depicted in Figure 1. The payment portal computer system 14 includes: Interface -Charging identifier transmission module Sensory expression reception module Confirmation reception module Confirmation and transmission module The switching computer system 16 includes: · Billing computer relationship (reference billing computer identifier and associated reference sensory representation) Billing Identifier Receiver Billing identifier storage module -Charging identifier transmission module Response acceptance module Response-related modules Sensory Expression Selection Module Sensory Representation Transmission Module Confirmation reception module · Claim request transmission module The billing computer system includes: · Data Store - Reference Identifier - Account · Billing identifier reception module Matching module Response transmission module ·Billing request acceptance module ·Billing module

[0069] The functions of the various components and modules should be clear from the preceding description of FIG.

[0070] FIG. 4 illustrates a diagrammatic representation of a machine in an exemplary form of a computer system 900 upon which a set of instructions may be executed to cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. In alternative embodiments, the machine may operate as a stand-alone device or may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networked arrangement, the machine may operate as a server or a client machine in a server-client network environment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The machine may be a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a personal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile phone, a web appliance, a network router, a switch, or a bridge, or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that manifest actions taken by the machine. Moreover, although only a single machine is described, the term "machine" may also be considered to include any collection of machines upon which a set (or sets) of instructions may be executed individually or together to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

[0071] A typical computer system 900 includes a processor 902 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), or both), a main memory 904 (e.g., read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, dynamic random access memory (DRAM), such as synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM) or Rambus dynamic random access memory (RDRAM), etc.), and a static memory 906 (e.g., flash memory, static random access memory (SRAM), etc.), which communicate with each other via a bus 908.

[0072] The computer system 900 may further include a video display 910 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer system 900 also includes an alphanumeric input device 912 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor control device 914 (e.g., a mouse), a disk drive 916, a signal generating device 918 (e.g., a speaker), and a network interface device 920.

[0073] The disk drive 916 includes a machine-readable medium 922 having stored thereon one or more sets of instructions 924 (e.g., software) embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein. The software may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory 904 and / or within the processor 902 during execution therefrom by the computer system 900, with the main memory 904 and the processor 902 also constituting machine-readable media.

[0074] The software can further be transmitted or received across a network 928 via the network interface device 920 .

[0075] While the machine-readable medium 924 appears to be a single medium in an exemplary embodiment, the term "machine-readable medium" should be considered to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and / or associated caches and servers) that store one or more sets of instructions. The term "machine-readable medium" will also be considered to include any medium that can store, encode, or process a set of instructions for execution by a machine and cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies of the present invention. The term "machine-readable medium" will therefore be considered to include, but is not limited to, solid-state memories, optical or magnetic media, and carrier wave signals.

[0076] While certain exemplary embodiments have been described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that such embodiments are merely illustrative of the present invention and are not limiting, and since modifications may occur to those skilled in the art, the invention is not limited to the specific constructions and arrangements shown and described.

Claims

1. 1. A method of billing a user executed by a payment portal computer system, comprising: receiving, via an interface of said payment portal computer system, a billing identifier representative of a user; communicating, by a processor of the payment portal computer system, the billing identifier to an exchange computer system; receiving, by a processor of the payment portal computer system, a selective sensory representation from the exchange computer system in response to communicating, by the processor of the payment portal computer system, the billing identifier to the exchange computer system; receiving, via the interface of the payment portal computer system, a confirmation of the selective sensory expression from the user; transmitting, by the processor of the payment portal computer system, the confirmation to the exchange computer system; The method includes:

2. The processor of the payment portal computer system receives a plurality of selective sensory representations; the interface of the payment portal computer system receives a confirmation of one of the selective sensory expressions from the user; 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the processor at the payment portal computer system communicates the confirmation of the one selective sensory representation to the exchange computer system.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the sensory representation is a user-readable name.

4. 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the names are presented as a list using an inline frame residing on the exchange computer system.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the sensory representation is a user-readable name.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the sensory representation includes "bank."

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the sensory expression includes "trust."

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the sensory representation comprises at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation.

9. The payment portal computer system A processor; a storage device coupled to the processor; a set of instructions on the storage device; The set of instructions comprises: an interface adapted to receive a billing identifier representative of a user; a billing identifier communication module executable by said processor for communicating said billing identifier to a switching computer system; a sensory expression receiving module executable by the processor of the payment portal computer system to receive a selective sensory expression from the exchange computer system in response to communicating the billing identifier to the exchange computer system by the processor of the payment portal computer system; a confirmation receiving module executable by the processor to receive confirmation of the selective sensory expression from the user via an interface of the payment portal computer system; a confirmation communication module executable by said processor for communicating said confirmation to said switching computer system; a payment portal computer system including:

10. The processor of the payment portal computer system receives a plurality of selective sensory representations; the interface of the payment portal computer system receives a confirmation of one of the selective sensory expressions from the user; 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the processor at the payment portal computer system communicates the confirmation of the one selective sensory representation to the exchange computer system.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the sensory representation is a name that is readable by the user.

12. 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the names are presented as a list using an inline frame residing on the switching computer system.

13. The method of claim 9 , wherein the sensory representation is a name that is readable by the user.

14. The method of claim 9 , wherein the sensory representation includes "bank."

15. The method of claim 9 , wherein the sensory expression includes "trust."

16. The method of claim 9 , wherein the sensory representation comprises at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation.

17. 1. A method for billing a user implemented by a switching computer system, comprising: storing, by a processor of the exchange computer system, a charging computer relationship including a plurality of reference charging computer identifiers and a plurality of reference sensory representations each associated with a respective reference charging computer identifier; receiving, by a processor of the exchange computer system, a billing identifier representing a user from the payment portal computer system; storing, by the processor of the switching computer system, the billing identifier in a storage device of the switching computer system; communicating, by the processor of the switching computer system, the billing identifier to a plurality of remote billing computer systems at the respective reference billing computer identifiers; receiving, by the processor of the switching computer system, in response to communicating, by the processor of the switching computer system, the billing identifier to the plurality of remote billing computer systems, the positive response from at least one of the billing computer systems, the positive response including the billing identifier and an identifier of the billing computer system; associating, by the processor of the switching computer system, the positive response with the billing identifier stored in the storage device; determining, by the processor of the switching computer system, a selective sensory representation from the reference sensory representation of the charging computer associated with the identifier of the charging computer system received by the processor of the switching computer system from the charging computer relationship; transmitting, by the processor of the exchange computer system, the selective sensory representation to the payment portal computer system; receiving, by the processor of the exchange computer system, a confirmation of the selective sensory expression from the payment portal computer system; transmitting, by the processor of the switching computer system, a billing request to the billing computer identifier associated with the selective sensory representation in the billing computer relationship; The method includes:

18. the processor at the switching computer system receiving a positive response from each of at least two of the billing computer systems; each positive response includes the billing identifier and an identifier of the respective billing computer system, and the processor of the switching computer system associates the positive response with the billing identifier stored in the storage device; The processor of the switching computer system determines from the charging computer relationship a selective sensory representation from the reference sensory representation of the charging computer associated with the identifier of the charging computer system received by the processor of the switching computer system; the processor at the exchange computer system communicates the selective sensory representation to the payment portal computer system; the processor of the switching computer system receives a confirmation of one of the selective sensory representations; 20. The method of claim 17, wherein the processor of the switching computer system communicates a billing request to the billing computer identifier associated with one of the selective sensory representations in the billing computer relationship.

19. The method of claim 18 , wherein the sensory representation is a name that is readable by the user.

20. 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the names are presented as a list using an inline frame residing on the switching computer system.

21. The method of claim 17 , wherein the sensory representation is a name that is readable by the user.

22. 20. The method of claim 17, wherein the switching computer system receives at least one negative response from one of the billing computer systems.

23. The method of claim 17 , wherein the sensory representation includes “bank.”

24. The method of claim 17 , wherein the sensory expression includes “trust.”

25. The method of claim 17 , wherein the sensory representation comprises at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation.

26. The switching computer system A processor; a storage device coupled to the processor; a set of instructions on the storage device; The set of instructions comprises: a charging computer relationship including a plurality of reference charging computer identifiers and a plurality of reference sensory representations each associated with a respective reference charging computer identifier; a billing identifier receiver executable by said processor to receive a billing identifier representing a user from a payment portal computer system; a billing identifier storage module executable by the processor to store the billing identifier in the storage device; a billing identifier transmission module executable by said processor for transmitting said billing identifier to a plurality of remote billing computer systems at each of said reference billing computer identifiers; a response receiving module executable by the processor to receive, in response to transmitting the billing identifier to the plurality of remote billing computer systems by the billing identifier transmitting module, a positive response from at least one of the billing computer systems, the positive response including the billing identifier and an identifier of the billing computer system; a response association module executable by the processor that associates the positive response with the billing identifier stored in the storage device; a sensory representation selection module executable by the processor to determine, from the charging computer relationship, a selective sensory representation from a reference sensory representation of a charging computer associated with the identifier of the charging computer system received by the processor of the switching computer system; a sensory representation communication module executable by the processor to communicate the selected sensory representation to the payment portal computer system; a confirmation receipt module executable by the processor to receive confirmation of the selective sensory expression from the payment portal computer system; a billing request transmission module executable by the processor to transmit a billing request to the billing computer identifier associated with the selected sensory representation in the billing computer context; A switching computer system.

27. the processor at the switching computer system receiving a positive response from each of at least two of the billing computer systems, the response including the billing identifier and an identifier of the respective billing computer system; the processor at the switching computer system associates the positive response with the billing identifier stored in the storage device; The processor of the switching computer system determines, from the charging computer relationship, a selective sensory representation from the reference sensory representation of the charging computer associated with the identifier of the charging computer system received by the processor of the switching computer system; the processor at the exchange computer system communicates the selective sensory representation to the payment portal computer system; the processor of the switching computer system receives a confirmation of one of the selective sensory representations; 27. The system of claim 26, wherein the processor of the switching computer system communicates a billing request to the billing computer identifier associated with one of the selective sensory representations in the billing computer relationship.

28. 30. The system of claim 27, wherein the sensory representation is a name that is readable by the user.

29. 30. The system of claim 28, wherein the names are presented as a list using an inline frame residing on the exchange computer system.

30. 27. The system of claim 26, wherein the sensory representation is a name that is readable by the user.

31. 27. The system of claim 26, wherein the switching computer system receives at least one negative response from one of the billing computer systems.

32. 27. The system of claim 26, wherein the sensory representation includes "bank."

33. 27. The system of claim 26, wherein the sensory representation includes "trust."

34. 27. The system of claim 26, wherein the sensory representation includes at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation.

35. A method of billing a user implemented by a billing computer system, storing, by a processor of said billing computer system, in a data store of said billing computer system, a plurality of reference identifiers, each representing a respective customer; receiving, by the processor of the billing computer system, a billing identifier representing a user from a switching computer system; determining, by the processor of the billing computer system, whether the billing identifier matches any one of the reference identifiers; if the billing identifier matches one of the reference identifiers, then transmitting, by the processor of the billing computer system, a positive response to the switching computer system including the billing identifier and an identifier of the billing computer system, the positive response not being transmitted if the billing identifier does not match one of the reference identifiers; receiving, by said processor of said charging computer system, from said switching computer system, a billing request in response to said processor of said charging computer system communicating said positive response to said switching computer system; billing, according to the processor of the billing computer system, an account associated with the reference identifier in the data store that matches the billing identifier; The method includes:

36. 36. The method of claim 35, wherein the processor of the billing computer system communicates a negative response to the switching computer system if the billing identifier does not match one of the reference identifiers and a positive response is not communicated.

37. The method of claim 35 , wherein the sensory representation includes “bank.”

38. The method of claim 35 , wherein the sensory expression includes “trust.”

39. 36. The method of claim 35, wherein the sensory representation includes at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation.

40. 1. A billing computer system, comprising: Processor and a storage device coupled to the processor; a set of instructions on the storage device, The set of instructions comprises: A data store; a plurality of said reference identifiers in said data store, each of said reference identifiers representing a respective customer; a billing identifier receiving module executed by said processor for receiving a billing identifier representing a user from a switching computer system; a matching module executable by the processor to determine whether the billing identifier matches any one of the reference identifiers; a response transmission module executable by said processor for transmitting a positive response to said switching computer system, if said billing identifier matches one of said reference identifiers, then said response including said billing identifier and an identifier of said billing computer system, which is not transmitted if said billing identifier does not match one of said reference identifiers; a plurality of accounts, each associated with a respective one of said reference identifiers; a billing request receiving module executable by said processor to receive a billing request from said switching computer system in response to said response transmitting module transmitting said positive response to said switching computer system; a billing module executable by the processor for billing an account associated with the reference identifier that matches the billing identifier in the data store; Including, the system.

41. 41. The method of claim 40, wherein the response transmission module transmits a negative response to the switching computer system if the billing identifier does not match one of the reference identifiers and a positive response is not transmitted.

42. The method of claim 40, wherein the sensory representation includes "bank."

43. The method of claim 40, wherein the sensory expression includes "trust."

44. 41. The method of claim 40, wherein the sensory representation comprises at least one of a visual representation, an audio representation, and a tactile representation.

Images