Appeal No. 2002-2174
Application No. 09/263,166 Page 14
unit with direction from the end user (col. 8, lines 61-63).
Johnson further discloses that the interface unit may be an
attachment incorporated into the end user's terminal equipment or
may be software defined portion of the terminal equipment (col.
9, lines 7-10), and that if the terminal equipment is a PC or
microprocessor-containing equipment, the (bid) decision may be
software implemented (col. 9, lines 18-21).
From the disclosure of Johnson, we find that the interface
may be a computer that decides on which bid to accept, and is
operated by the end user (consumer). As we found with respect to
claim 1, the Moderator meets the claimed incentive information
computer, and that the database which the processed bids are
entered into by the Moderator (col. 3, lines 41-43) meets the
claimed incentive database. We further find that the interface,
which receives the bid data from the Moderator, accesses the
incentive information. Because the value of the incentive is
based on factors such as the date and time of the call, and where
the caller is calling from, we find that the displayed incentive
existence message (received bid which is displayed) indicating
the existence of the incentive in the incentive system meets the
claimed “wherein the consumer computer is programmed to display
an incentive existence message indicating the existence of the
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