MARKETPLACES FOR ON-LINE CONTRACT NEGOTIATION, FORMATION AND PRICE AND AVAILABILITY QUERYING

摘要

An on-line marketplace (10) enables negotiation and formation of a contract between a buyer and seller. Through a requisition check (22), buyers are able to check the price and/or availability of goods with one or more sellers. After knowing price and availability, the buyers send orders for desired goods to the sellers through the marketplace and enter into a legally binding contract upon acceptance (56). The terms and conditions of the contract are determined from any prior agreement, from country-specific terms on the marketplace for the supplier, from technical disclaimers for data on the goods, and from any agreed upon modifications. The marketplace permits automation and expedition in the ordering process by automatically submitting orders (26) upon confirmation of the requisition check (24) and by automatically accepting orders. The marketplace offers full integration with customers' ERP system and also offers a simpler integration involving data transfer from the customer's system.