| 摘要 |
A method for facilitating transactions between customers and service providers enables a customer and a service provider to interact with each other through the process of multiple internet bidding for time scheduled services (i.e. appointments). The customer allocates a group of service providers by specifying the required service, location and time frame when the service is to be provided. A search engine returns a list of the service providers matching the search criteria. The customer can make as many offers as she/he likes to the different service providers he prefers based on the rating, distance or other criteria. Each offer specifies job date, job time, offer value (bid) and offer response deadline - the date and time the service provider is required to feedback the offer. The service provider in its turn receives multiple bids which may overlap in time. Based on the bid value, distance or rating the service provider accepts the offer preferred. When an offer has been accepted by one of the service providers, the system automatically updates the service provider time availability, disregards the related offers to other service providers and rejects the offers from other customers which overlap in time. |
