METHOD IN A SELECTIVE CALL SYSTEM INCLUDING A PRIMARY STATION WITH MEANS FOR SENDING A QUALIFYING CALL FROM WHICH DATA CAN BE DETERMINED AT A SECONDARY STATION

摘要

A selective call system comprising a primary station (10) and a plurality of secondary stations (12), such as paging receivers, has provision for the primary station sending to a predetermined secondary station a qualifying call from which data, for example loyalty points, can be determined and credited to the user of a secondary station. In one embodiment the primary station (10) receives the data and compiles a point-to-point qualifying call which includes a field containing the data and the identity code of the predetermined secondary station. Optionally a security field and a checksum may also be included in the qualifying call compiled. The addressed secondary station (12) decodes the received qualifying call and determines the data which is stored in a non-volatile store (48) which accumulates the items of the data. The user of the secondary station is able to display the data held in the non-volatile store (48) on the secondary station's own display panel (42). The user can spend or exchange some or all of the accumulated specified data and the total held in the non-volatile store (48) is adjusted by an over-the-air message. In another, non-illustrated, embodiment the data is determined from the identity code of the secondary station.