The present invention provides a method and an apparatus for enabling buyers, sellers and shipping companies (or carriers) to exchange goods, services and communications, through a
system provided by a
third party entity, referred to herein as the “
mediator”. Particular to the present invention is to enable buyers to openly select their shipping method from an independent carrier to deliver goods purchased from sellers. This invention also enables sellers to relinquish their shipping operations to independent carriers to focus more on their core business. Finally, this invention enables carriers to bypass a seller of goods, as middleman, to openly promote their services to buyers. The
system allows all these parties to interact using computing devices with Web browsing capability. The
mediator provides an
electronic trading platform wherein sellers register their goods for sale, and carriers publish their shipping methods and rate charts, for buyers to choose from. When a buyer places an order, the seller is required to confirm the received order along with the
package characteristics, for example the
package weight and dimensions, which are used to compute the shipping options available for this specific
package from independent carriers. These computed shipping options are presented to the buyer, who then selects the delivery method that suits his needs. Subsequently, the selected carrier is contacted with the package shipping information, including the estimated shipping price that the carrier may agree with or adjust. When a shipping agreement is reached, the
system automatically schedules the package
pickup and delivery dates and notifies all the parties involved. The buyer makes a
payment to the
mediator, as a clearinghouse, for the purchased goods and shipping costs. Subsequently at the scheduled
pickup date, the carrier visits the seller to take the package and delivers it using the shipping method selected by the buyer. When the package is delivery, the seller is credited for the goods sold, while a credit is issued to the carrier for the shipping costs. The mediator also charges commission fees to both the seller of goods and the carrier for facilitated transactions.