Business Method Patent to Allow Payers to Pay For Goods and Services Through SMS
Google Inc. has a newly patented business method that allows users to pay for goods from retailers and vending machines through SMS (Short Message Service). According to an article in www.pcworld.com, Google engineer Ramy Dodin published the US patent titled "Text message payment."
The invention – Gpay is essentially a computer-implemented method that assists in making payments. A text message from the payer is received at the computer server system, comprising a payment request containing a payment amount sent by a payer device operating independent of any server system that debits the payer account for an amount corresponding to the amount requested and crediting a payee account that is independent of the computer system. The users would be able to use the Gpay to make payments to doctors, retailers or even the landscapers.
However, the method is offered by several services, including the two companies in Philippines -Smart Communications’ Smartpadala and Globe Telecom’s Globe Gcash. It is still under speculation whether these companies have filed patents for technology in the U.S.