Automated negotiation with multiple parties

摘要

Automated negotiation with multiple sellers in order to buy a quantity of a good or service, can be achieved by determining two or more alternative options for purchasing the quantity; setting a target price for purchasing the quantity and hence target prices for each negotiation required to complete each alternative option; providing the target price for each negotiation to a party carrying out said negotiation; receiving information on the progress of each negotiation, redetermining the target prices and providing redetermined target prices for at least some of the negotiations to the party carrying out that negotiation; and detecting a completion condition and providing information to the party carrying out any negotiation still in progress for terminating that negotiation.