System and method for reallocating and/or upgrading and/or rewarding tickets, other event admittance means, goods and/or services7031945Abstract A method, system, server architecture and/or tangible medium upgrade and award admittance of events to an event customer, preferably via a data communication network. The method includes, for example, receiving a communication from the event customer, the communication including a request to obtain admittance to at least one event, the communication also including an identifier associated with the event customer, admitting the event customer at the point of sale system after verification of the request, and updating a database indicating that the request was processed. The method also includes determining first predetermined criteria associated with the event indicative of at least one other event customer not attending the event, releasing an allocation associated with the at least one other event customer, and notifying at least another of the event customers to perform the upgrade and/or reallocation. Claims What is claimed is: Description FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The viability of these projections depends on the power of the underlying technology drivers and the attractiveness of m-commerce applications. To compete in a marketplace dominated by wireless devices, businesses must devise effective m-commerce strategies. Building successful strategies begins by recognizing the forces driving m-commerce's emergence. The US Federal Communication Commission's auctioning of personal communication-service spectrum space in the mid-1990s triggered the current rush to wireless communication methods. Wireless communication now encompasses not only telephones but appliances, including personal digital assistants (PDAs). Internet use has grown on the strength of PC networks. According to Yankee Group projections, the installed base of PCs will reach 500 million by 2003, as FIG. 10 shows. This huge base is essential to continued growth in electronic commerce and other communications applications. Moreover, because these systems will have greater power and storage capability, as well as the best ever price-performance ratios, more powerful and sophisticated applications will likely emerge for desktop computing and the Internet. Although these expectations are impressive, PCs still have two limiting characteristics. First, users must sit in front of them. Second, even portable-notebook PCs have to load software, dial into and connect with a network service provider, and await completion of the handshaking process before they can launch an Internet application. This sequence is understandable, but at best it seems a tolerable nuisance. Hence, the dominant applications are still those that are worth the trouble it takes for a user to follow this access sequence or, at least, to keep the computer and applications running. The aggregate PC installation is substantial, but even more mobile communication devices are in use. The Gartner Group and other research firms project that by 2004, the installed base of mobile phones worldwide will exceed 1 billion more than twice the number of PCs. In addition, the number of other wireless mobile devices will also increase dramatically. Wireless PDA use will more than triple in the next three years. Unlike PCs, these wireless devices require no boot sequence, so people can use them as soon as they turn them on-making them attractive for quick-hit applications. Just as the transmission control protocol/Internet protocol and the general purpose browser were principal drivers of Internet growth, letting disparate devices interconnect and communicate, similar factors will simplify the interconnectivity and communication of heterogeneous wireless devices. As FIG. 11 shows, mobile network carriers have relied on a variety of incompatible wireless access standards. Recently, however, a common communications technology and uniform interface standard for presenting and delivering wireless services on mobile devices-wireless application protocol (WAP)—have emerged. WAP specifications include a microbrowser; scripting similar to JavaScript; access functions; and layered communication specifications for sessions, transport, and security. These specifications enable interface-independent and interoperable applications. Most wireless handset and device manufacturers, as well as several service and infrastructure providers, have adopted the WAP standard. Current access technologies, including TDMA (time division multiple access), CDMA (code division multiple access), and GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication), transmit at 9.6 to 19.2 Kbps. These speeds are dramatically slower than the dial-up rates of desktop PCs connecting to the Internet. Although m-commerce is possible at these bandwidth rates, the slow speeds are not conducive to creating widespread business or consumer participation. 3G (third-generation) wireless technology will also be available. In addition to having greater bandwidth rates, with speeds up to 2 Mbps, 3G will support multimedia transmission. Integrating voice, data, and one- or two-way video will let m-commerce run over any wireless device. M-commerce applications fall into three main categories: transaction management, digital content delivery, and telemetry services. Users will increasingly initiate a wide range of business transactions from mobile devices. Online shopping sites tailored to mobile phones and PDAs including browsing, selection, purchase, payment, and delivery—have already emerged. These sites include all the necessary shopping features, such as online catalogs, shopping carts, and back office functions. Online booksellers are among the firms that have already implemented wireless shopping transactions. Another class of m-commerce transactions involves using wireless devices to initiate and pay for purchases and services in real time. These kinds of transactions will likely increase as users gain the capability—and become comfortable enough—to manage them. The highest m-commerce transaction volume will probably occur in micro transactions. When individuals reach for their e-cash—equipped mobile phones or PDAs-rather than coins—to settle transactions such as subway fees, widespread use of digital cash will be a reality. Digital content delivery uses the wireless channel's distribution characteristics. These m-commerce activities include information browsing-instant retrieval of status information (weather, transit schedules, sports scores, ticket availability, and market prices)—and directory services. The CNN Wireless news subscription service and the UPS PDA-linked package tracking and locator service are representative of emerging content delivery services. Digital products easily transport to and from wireless devices. Hence, downloading entertainment products—for example, MP3 music—is likely to become even more commonplace when 3G arrives. Transferring software, high resolution images, and full-motion advertising messages will also become common activities. The emergence of high-quality display screens and greater bandwidth will undoubtedly trigger the development of innovative video applications. Individuals will use wireless devices to access, retrieve, store, and display high-resolution video content for entertainment, product demonstration, and distance learning. The transmission and receipt of status, sensing, and measurement information-telemetry services-form the basis for a wide range of new applications involving mobile devices. Innovations in this area let people use wireless phones and appliances to communicate with various devices from their homes, offices, or in the field. For instance, delivery drivers will "ping" intelligent dispensing machines or store computers to determine where their rolling inventory is needed most or which locations need immediate service. Similarly, users will transmit messages to activate remote recording devices or service systems. Active m-commerce applications function only when someone directly initiates them by transmitting payment details, requesting information, receiving specific content, or retrieving status information. In contrast, passive applications occur without the user taking any action—for example, the automatic collection of toll charges with dedicated cash cards. Integrating digital cash into mobile devices would make these cash cards unnecessary. These wireless devices would facilitate and record payment of toll, mass-transit, fast-food, and other transactions without the user authorizing or entering identification information for each individual transaction. Users could arrange to have their cash chips update automatically by directing the wireless device to contact their money source and download additional digital cash whenever necessary. Popular in Europe, short messages text messages, up to 160 characters in length, that show up on the recipient's display as they arrive—are examples of passive content delivery. As digital convergence becomes more commonplace, all forms of mail will passively go to wireless devices, including digitized voice mail, fax documents, and e-mail. Passive security, intrusion, and emergency telemetry services will refine the monitoring of facilities and individuals. Any unusual event or unacceptable condition will trigger user notification, regardless of location. Airlines are testing technology that will let them alert passengers, especially frequent fliers, to seat upgrades, schedule changes, and so on, through wireless devices. Some airlines already have prototype telemetry systems that transmit this kind of information to passengers as soon as they enter the airport or pass near a kiosk-like device. Passive m-commerce telemetry is the foundation of still another form of interactive marketing. Stores will be able to market their products and services by transmitting promotional coupons and messages to passers by: "Come in and enjoy a complimentary cup of our new coffee blend," or "Get half off, if you make your purchase within the next 30 minutes." This type of marketing may give rise to a new challenge: managing m-junk messages without turning off your wireless device. The technology to facilitate m-commerce is within reach, even as barriers to its development fall away. Applications and wireless devices promise to evolve together, each driving the introduction of innovative and powerful features in the other. The opportunity and challenge is for business to develop strategies that capitalize on the strengths of mobile commerce, thereby helping it to compete in an increasingly digital marketplace. The greatest challenge to structuring such a strategy may be creating the innovations that will meet the needs and expectations of consumers and commercial participants. Additional details regarding the above may be found in James A. Senn, The Emergence of M-Commerce, IEEE COMPUTER (December 2000), incorporated herein by reference and all references cited there incorporated herein by reference. Mobile device and computer users increasingly face the management of many computing devices. One reason is the expansion of computing environments in the home and office, as printers, scanners, digital cameras, and other peripherals are integrated into networked environments. Another reason is the proliferation of mobile devices such as laptop and palm-sized computers, cellular phones, and pagers. Because these devices trade functionality for suitable form factors and low power consumption, they are necessarily "peripheral-poor" and must therefore establish connections to neighboring devices for storage, faxing, high-speed network access, and printing. It is easy to become frustrated when dealing with the configuration and interaction of such a multitude of devices. Service discovery technologies were developed to reduce this frustration and to simplify the use of mobile devices in a network by allowing them to be "discovered," configured, and used by other devices with a minimum of manual effort. Although most of these "service discovery suites" promise similar functionality•namely, reduced configuration hassles, improved device cooperation, and automated discovery of required services•they come at the problem from different philosophical and technical approaches. Since none of these technologies is a superset of the others and none is mature enough to dominate the market, interoperation among them will require bridging mechanisms. Five competing technologies are described that may be used in conjunction with the present invention, however, other technologies may also or alternatively be used. Thus, to address the above and other needs of the prior art, it is a feature and advantage of the present invention to provide users with the ability to be awarded, reallocated, upgraded and/or reprovisioned purchase items including tickets and concessions and/or other merchandise and/or services online. By doing so, the present invention allows these users to proceed directly to the event and/or receive the goods and/or services, thereby bypassing any box offices. In addition, the present invention allows purchases of a variety of items such as movie tickets, concessions, movie merchandise, and/or other goods or services using the processes and architecture described herein or other standard platforms. The present invention facilitates these purchases and the subsequent provisioning thereof by utilizing an identification device associated with a user's account which, in turn, is readable by a reader at a point of sale location for verifying the purchases made by the user. The identification device can be, for example, a smart card and/or wireless device with infrared and/or bluetooth enabled, or other standard wireless device, including those described herein. It is also another optional feature and advantage, alone or in combination with one or more other features, of the present invention to facilitate the provisioning of demographic information to program sponsors. By having each user register demographic information such as age and interests during, for example an initialization process, the present invention compiles information for advertising and marketing use. Using this information, the present invention allows event sponsors to create custom offerings to users. Similarly, the invention allows a sponsor to leverage user and market information to create programs that address evolving user needs for targeting and acquiring new customers. It is another optional feature and advantage of the present invention to provide marketing opportunities for the events themselves and/or event related merchandise at an entertainment site. This allows users to shop for tickets, concessions, and event-related merchandise at a single time and location. It is yet another optional feature and advantage of the present invention to apply these concepts to a wide variety of venues such as movies, concerts, sporting events, cultural activities, reserved seating events, events requiring advanced ticket purchase, and/or other similar and analogous events or settings where goods and/or services can be sold, including upgraded, awarded and/or reprovisioned. To accomplish the above and other features, in one embodiment of the present invention invention, a user first visits a leading portal, for example, Yahoo!, and selects an event and a desired time. Next, the user is linked to a server, where he or she purchases a ticket and/or concessions and other merchandise with, for example, a credit card, in a secure transaction. The event ticket is then transferred to the user's account, which in turn is associated with a smart card and/or wireless device in the possession of the user. With the smart card/wireless device in hand, the user avoids any box office lines and proceeds directly to an attendant or a point of sale (POS) server or system. The user then presents the smart card to the attendant or POS who reads the smart card using a reading device. After reading the smart card, the attendant or POS accesses the user's account and verifies that a ticket has indeed been purchased before admitting the user. Once the user is at the event, as described below, the user has the functionality to be upgraded, reallocated and/or rewarded tickets. For example, in one embodiment of the invention, the process begins as all tickets are checked in, for example, as the patrons enter the reserved seating area, such as a stadium or theater, through, for example, bar code readers, scanners, infrared readers, and/or manually or other method where the patron is checked in, either at the gate, seat or other location. For example, patrons can optionally check in a predetermined time before the event through a wireless device, Internet connection, manual or voice recognition telephone, or other manner. The important point is to provide a standard manner for allowing patrons to check in, and if the patron fails to check in using a predetermined procedure to allow that seat to be provided to another willing patron in accordance with a process to be described below. The patron may check in either a predetermined time before or after the event begins. Currently, such a process is impossible and unthinkable in view of the difficulty reserved seating events have in simply getting the patrons seated prior to the beginning of the event. The present invention represents a revolutionary process to enhance event enjoyment, earn patron loyalty and optionally provide additional revenues to the theater/stadium or optionally other patrons with the desirable ticket. The check in procedure continues for a predetermined period of time until a predetermined time period has expired, for example, 5 minutes before the event begins, 10 minutes after the event begins, after a predetermined event, such as the second act of a play, and the like. Once the predetermined time period or event has been completed, the check in procedure may be considered completed to begin the seat re-allocation process. To begin the seat re-allocation process, a re-allocation algorithm is used to re-assign seat for patrons that are willing or interested in different or better seats. Such re-allocation processes or algorithms may include a random process, a process where priority patrons are given priority for re-assignment of seat, a process where patrons are willing to pay additional for the re-assignment to either the theater or the individual patron whose seat is being provided to another patron, frequent event patrons, season ticket patrons, or other predetermined process. If the patron that is identified by the re-allocation process is determined to be present in the theater or event, for example, via mobile telephone, wireless device, and/or manual verification, an optional sub-process determines whether the patron's optional profile is also satisfied with the available seating. If the optional subscriber profile is not satisfied, then the re-allocation process searches for another possible patron. If the optional profile sub-process is satisfied, then the eligible patron is notified via one or means, such as announcement, manually, wireless device, mobile telephone, bulletin board, and/or other means. The patron is then notified and presented with the option of moving for free, use of award points, additional money to the theater and/or patron to whose seat is being provided, or other predetermined criteria to obtain the seat. Optionally, a bidding process may be initiated that allows various patrons to bid against one another. Any standard bidding process may optionally be used. The patron, of course has the option to decline, and if so, the process continues and returns to the re-allocation process to attempt to locate another possible patron. If the patron accepts, payment of money or other means may be effectuated on the spot via the wireless device, credit card, debit card, points, and the like, and the patron may now move to the other seat. The patron's seat may then optionally be made available as an empty seat to the re-allocation process. If a predetermined period of time has not expired, then the re-allocation process may be run again to optionally continuously re-allocate seats. The patron may optionally store the up-graded ticket on a wireless device for proof of entrance to the better seating area. Optionally, the seat and/or row and/or section, includes a separate reader device to receive optionally the original ticket that is now re-allocated to a better seat, or a new ticket that may optionally be received by the patron via the wireless device and/or manually via a worker in the theater or stadium. In another aspect of the invention, a registration form is first completed by the user in an initialization process. Subsequently, the user selects an event and pays for the ticket with, for example, a credit card in a secure e-commerce transaction. Then, in this embodiment, a bar coded ticket or receipt is generated and printed by the user. With the bar coded ticket or receipt in hand, the user avoids the box office lines and proceeds directly to an attendant or POS who collects the ticket, verifies the purchase optionally automatically via a bar code reader, and admits the user to the movie screen. The user is then eligible to participate in the reallocation, upgrade and/or reward process described herein. In alternate embodiments, a scanner is utilized by, for example, an attendant who, rather than tearing the ticket stub in half, simply scans the bar code with the scanner to verify that a ticket purchase has indeed been made by the user. Similar processes may be used for the purchase of merchandise and concessions. Furthermore, to eliminate fraud, once a ticket has been scanned into the real time point of sale system, it cannot be used again. Alternatively, the present invention is implemented in a fully automated setting without human intervention, except in the event of a failure or when assistance is needed. In other embodiments, the present invention utilizes credit cards, smart cards, or cards with memory media embedded therein, or other portable devices, such as wireless phones, wireless pagers, personal digital assistants, or Internet-ready watches as an alternative or in addition to the printed tickets. In one embodiment, the present invention relates to upgrading and/or reallocating for the purchasing and provisioning an item utilizing a server linked to a client via a data communication network. This embodiment includes receiving a communication at the server from the client. The communication includes an order for a purchase of the item and an identifier associated with an identification device. This embodiment also includes updating an account associated with the identifier to reflect the purchase, accessing the account by utilizing the identifier at a point of sale server upon presentation of the identification device to verify the purchase, and provisioning the item at the point of sale server after verification of the purchase. In another embodiment, the present invention also relates to reallocating, upgrading and/or awarding for the purchasing and/or provisioning an item utilizing a server linked to a client via a data communication network. This embodiment includes receiving a communication at the server from the client. The communication includes an order for a purchase of the item. This embodiment also includes transmitting an identifier associated with an account from the server to the client for storage on an identification device, updating the account to reflect the purchase, accessing the account at a point of sale server upon presentation of the identification device by utilizing the identifier to verify the purchase, and provisioning the item at the point of sale server after verification of the purchase. The purchaser is then optionally eligible for the reallocating, upgrading and/or awarding process described herein. In yet another embodiment, the present invention relates to purchasing and provisioning an item utilizing a server linked to a client via a data communication network. This embodiment includes transmitting a communication from the client to the server. The communication includes an order for a purchase of the item and causes an account to be updated thereby reflecting the purchase. The purchase and the account are associated with an identifier stored on an identification device. The account is accessible upon presentation of the identification device for verifying and provisioning the item. The purchaser is then optionally eligible for the reallocating, upgrading and/or awarding process described herein. In still yet another embodiment, the present invention relates to purchasing and provisioning an item utilizing a server linked to a client via a data communication network. This embodiment includes transmitting an order for a purchase of the item from the client to the server, associating an identifier with the purchase order and with an identification device in the possession of or to be transferred to a user, updating an account associated with the identifier to include the purchase, accessing the account at a point of sale server upon presentation of the identification device by utilizing the identifier to verify the purchase, and provisioning the item at the point of sale server after verification of the purchase order. The purchaser is then optionally eligible for the reallocating, upgrading and/or awarding process described herein. In yet another embodiment, the present invention relates to purchasing and provisioning an item utilizing a server linked to a client via a data communication network. This embodiment includes receiving a communication from a user including a purchase order request. In this embodiment, the user is associated with an identifier. This embodiment also includes updating an account associated with the identifier to reflect the purchase order, and provisioning the purchase upon presentation of the identifier. The user is then optionally eligible for the reallocating, upgrading and/or awarding process described herein. In one embodiment of the invention, a method at least one of reallocates, upgrades and awards admittance to events to an event customer via a data communication network. The data communication network optionally comprises a server, workstations operably connectable to the server, one or more databases operably connectable to the server and the workstations where the workstations optionally include a web browser interface facilitating communication with the server, a point of sale server operably connectable to the server, a point of sale system operably connectable to the point of sale server, and wireless devices operably connectable to the server. The wireless devices include at least one of a smart card, a personal digital assistant, a mobile telephones, and a mobile data device, and the wireless device comprising at least one of transmitting and receiving means and transceiver means for receiving and transmitting signals. According to one embodiment, the method includes the sequential, non-sequential and sequence independent steps of receiving a communication from the event customer, the communication including a request to obtain admittance to at least one event, the communication also including an identifier associated with an identification device, updating an account associated with the identifier to reflect the request, accessing the account by utilizing the identifier stored on the identification device at the point of sale system upon presentation of the identification device to verify the request, admitting the event customer at the point of sale system after verification of the request, determining a predetermined time period associated with the event indicative of another event customer from event customers not attending the event in accordance with first predetermined criteria, releasing an allocation associated with the another event customer and notifying at least one of the event customers that are at least one of currently attending the event and registered for the at least one of reallocating, reprovisioning, upgrading and awarding responsive to the releasing the allocation, and accepting by at least one of the event customers the at least one of reallocating, reprovisioning, upgrading and awarding in accordance with second predetermined criteria. The communication optionally includes at least one of payment information, an event selection, a venue selection, a concession selection, and a merchandise selection. The identification device optionally comprises a memory medium for storing the identifier. The accessing optionally further comprises reading the identifier from the identification device with a reading device. The account is optionally stored in at least one of the server, the identification device, and the point of sale server. The account optionally includes a list of purchased items. The request optionally comprises at least one of a movie ticket, a sporting event ticket, a concession, or merchandise. In other embodiments of the present invention, demographic information is received from the event customer. In addition, the identification device optionally comprises at least one of a smart card, a credit card, a ticket, a wireless phone, a personal digital assistant, and a wireless device. The method optionally includes the step of generating at least one of a physical receipt, a confirmation, and an electronic confirmation with at least one of the identification device and the point of sale server. The method optionally includes the step of generating at least one of a physical receipt, a confirmation, and an electronic confirmation with at least one of the identification device and the point of sale server, and the at least one of the physical receipt, the confirmation, and the electronic confirmation comprises at least one of reserved seating and purchase information. The second predetermined criteria optionally includes the event customer willing to pay at least one of a predetermined price and the highest price, and wherein the method further comprises the step of billing the event customer in at least one of real-time or at a later time for the at least one of reallocating, reprovisioning, upgrading and awarding in accordance with the second predetermined criteria. The method optionally includes the step of releasing an allocation associated with the another event customer and the notifying at least one of the event customers that are at least one of currently attending the event and registered for the at least one of reallocating, reprovisioning, upgrading and awarding is performed in accordance with a predetermined algorithm. The first predetermined criteria optionally includes at least one of agreement with one or more of the event customers, the event customer not providing notice of non-attendance a first predetermined time period prior to the event, the event customer not providing notice of non-attendance a second predetermined time period after start of the event, the event customer leaving the event early, and other predetermined criteria. In another embodiment of the invention, a method is provided of upgrading and awarding admittance to events to an event customer via a data communication network. The data communication network optionally comprises a server, workstations operably connectable to the server, one or more databases operably connectable to the server and the workstations, the workstations optionally including a web browser interface facilitating communication with the server, a point of sale system, and wireless devices operably connectable to the server, the wireless devices including at least one of a smart card, a personal digital assistant, a mobile telephone, and a mobile data device, and the wireless device comprising at least one of transmitting and receiving means and transceiver means for receiving and transmitting signals to and from the server. The method includes the sequential, sequence independent and non-sequential steps of receiving a communication from the event customer, the communication including a request to obtain admittance to at least one event, the communication also including an identifier associated with an identification device, processing the request including accessing an account by utilizing the identifier stored on the identification device at the point of sale system upon presentation of the identification device to verify and process the request, and updating a database indicating that the request was processed, admitting the event customer at the point of sale system after verification of the request, determining a predetermined time period associated with the event indicative of at least one other event customer not attending the event in accordance with first predetermined criteria, releasing an allocation associated with the at least one other event customer and notifying at least one of the event customers that are at least one of currently attending the event, previously submitted a request to attend the event and registered for the event to perform the at least one of upgrading and awarding responsive to the releasing the allocation, and accepting by the at least one of the event customers the at least one of upgrading and awarding in accordance with second predetermined criteria. In another embodiment of the invention, a method is provided of upgrading and awarding admittance to events to an event customer via a data communication network. The data communication network optionally includes a server, workstations operably connectable to the server, one or more databases operably connectable to the server and the workstations, the workstations optionally including a web browser interface facilitating communication with the server, a point of sale system, and wireless devices operably connectable to the server, the wireless devices including at least one of a smart card, a personal digital assistant, a mobile telephone, and a mobile data device, the wireless device comprising at least one of transmitting and receiving means and transceiver means for receiving and transmitting signals to and from the server. The method includes the sequential, non-sequential or sequence independent steps of receiving a communication from the event customer, the communication including a request to obtain admittance to at least one event, the communication also including an identifier associated with the event customer, admitting the event customer at the point of sale system after verification of the request, and updating a database indicating that the request was processed, determining first predetermined criteria associated with the event indicative of at least one other event customer not attending the event, releasing an allocation associated with the at least one other event customer responsive to the determining step, and notifying at least another of the event customers to perform the at least one of upgrading and awarding responsive to the releasing the allocation, and accepting by the at least another of the event customers the at least one of upgrading and awarding in accordance with second predetermined criteria. In another embodiment of the invention, a system is provided to upgrade and award admittance to events to an event customer. The system includes a server comprising a processor and a memory medium, the server connected to a data communication network, the memory medium containing instructions for controlling the processor, wherein the processor receives a communication from the event customer, the communication including a request to obtain admittance to at least one event, the communication also including an identifier associated with the event customer, updates a database indicating that the request was processed, determines first predetermined criteria associated with the event indicative of at least one other event customer not attending the event, releases an allocation associated with the at least one other event customer responsive to the determining step, and notifies at least another of the event customers to at least one of upgrade and award the at least another of the event customers with the allocation. The system also includes a plurality of wireless devices operably connectable to the server, the wireless devices including at least one of a smart card, a personal digital assistant, a mobile telephone, and a mobile data device, the wireless device comprising at least one of transmitting and receiving means and transceiver means for receiving and transmitting signals to and from the server, including accepting by the at least another of the event customers the at least one of the upgrade and award for the reallocation via at least one of the wireless devices. In another embodiment of the invention, a system is provided for upgrading and awarding admittance to events to an event customer. The system includes means for receiving a communication from the event customer, the communication including a request to obtain admittance to at least one event, the communication also including an identifier associated with the event customer, means for admitting the event customer at the point of sale system after verification of the request, and updating a database indicating that the request was processed, means for determining first predetermined criteria associated with the event indicative of at least one other event customer not attending the event, means for releasing an allocation associated with the at least one other event customer responsive to the determining step, and notifying at least another of the event customers to perform the at least one of upgrading and awarding responsive to the releasing the allocation, and means for accepting by the at least another of the event customers the at least one of upgrading and awarding in accordance with second predetermined criteria. In another embodiment of the invention, a method, system, server architecture and/or tangible medium upgrade and award admittance of events to an event customer, preferably via a data communication network. The method includes the sequential, sequence independent and non-sequential steps of, for example, receiving a communication from the event customer including a request to obtain admittance to at least one event, admitting the event customer, determining first predetermined criteria associated with the event indicative of at least one other event customer not attending the event, releasing an allocation associated with the at least one other event customer, and notifying at least another of the event customers to perform the upgrade and/or reallocation. In another embodiment of the invention, a method, system, server architecture and/or tangible medium upgrades or awards purchases for a customer. The method includes the sequential, sequence independent and non-sequential steps of, for example, receiving a communication from the customer including a request to purchase an item, determining first predetermined criteria associated with the purchase associated with at least one other customer, and notifying at least another of the event customers regarding the at least one of upgrade, award and purchase. In another embodiment of the invention, a method, system, server architecture and/or tangible medium combines, upgrades and/or awards purchases for a customer. The method includes the sequential, sequence independent and non-sequential steps of, for example, receiving a communication from the customer including a request to purchase an item, determining first predetermined criteria associated with the purchase and associated with at least one other customer, and notifying the at least one other customer regarding the at least one of upgrade, award and purchase. In another embodiment of the invention, a system is provided for purchasing, upgrading and awarding an item to a customer. The system includes means for receiving a communication from the customer, the communication including a request to obtain the item, the communication also including an identifier associated with the customer, means for associating the customer at the point of sale system after verification of the request, and updating a database indicating that the request was processed, means for determining first predetermined criteria associated with the item indicative of at least one other customer associated or interested in the item, means for releasing an allocation associated with the at least another customer, and notifying at least another of the customers to perform the at least one of purchasing, upgrading and awarding for the item, and means for accepting by the at least another of the customers the at least one of purchasing, upgrading and awarding in accordance with second predetermined criteria. Thus, any or all of the following advantages may be provided by the present invention: decrease costs incurred via printing fewer tickets; decrease the number of employees at the events as a result of increased home based printing, wireless device and/or smart card usage; increase efficiency at concession stands; provide another method and outlet to sell tickets and concessions; sell more tickets using e-mail messages; improve sales of tickets and concessions from key demographic information; receive a portion of advertisement sales; improve safety due to the decrease in the amount of cash handled at the theatres; ensure that parents' money given to children is actually spent on the concessions; shorter lines; greater convenience at the concession stand and point of sale; advance sales; more information about events before purchase of ticket; easy way to control a family budget; greater access to merchandise; improve demographic information to improve sales; direct marketing; higher impact for advertising via e mail messages; and/or more focused advertising. There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto. In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially the scientists, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application. The abstract is neither intended to define the invention of the application, which is measured by the claims, nor is it intended to be limiting as to the scope of the invention in any way. These together with other objects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there is illustrated preferred embodiments of the invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is directed to a prior art Internet capable browser dispenser architecture; FIGS. 2-3 are illustrations of a prior art interactive game system; FIG. 4 is an illustration of a prior art portable computing device for organizing a sports team; FIG. 5 is a prior art illustration of a portable computerized pari-mutuel sports entertainment system; FIG. 6 is an illustration of a prior art method and apparatus for a cryptographically assisted commercial network system designed to facilitate buyer-driven conditional purchase offers; FIGS. 7-9 show a prior art radio frequency (RF) transmission system; FIG. 10 is an illustration of Yankee Group projections for an installed base of PCs that will reach 500 million by 2003; FIG. 11 shows that mobile network carriers have relied on a variety of incompatible wireless access standards; FIG. 12 shows the standard Bluetooth protocol stack; FIG. 13 illustrates the standard discovery and registration process for Jini clients and services; FIG. 14 shows the three fundamental components in the Salutation architecture: functional units, salutation managers, and transport managers; FIG. 15 is an illustration of a control point sending a multicast request to a network; FIG. 16 is an illustration of a service location protocol (SLP) which is an IETF protocol for service discovery and advertisement; FIG. 17 is an illustration of the Bluetooth stack differing from the classical seven-layer networking model; FIG. 18 is an illustration viewing standard L2CAP as the data plane of the Bluetooth link layer; FIG. 19 is an illustration of a Bluetooth transmitter that upconverts the baseband information to the frequency-modulated carrier; FIG. 20 illustrates one embodiment of the logical architecture for the security services, where authentication verifies a claimant's identity; FIG. 21 is an illustration showing once the ticket arrives at the Web browser, it must be secured from tampering; FIG. 22 illustrates the logic for implementing the ticket-issuance service and its interaction with the authentication and user profile services; FIG. 23 is a flowchart of an embodiment of the invention that incorporates one or more of the architectures or communications methods described above; FIGS. 24-37 are flowcharts of various embodiments of the process of the present invention; FIG. 38 is an illustration of a main central processing unit for implementing the computer processing in accordance with a computer implemented embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 39 illustrates a block diagram of the internal hardware of the computer of FIG. 38; FIG. 40 is a block diagram of the internal hardware of the computer of FIG. 38 in accordance with a second embodiment; FIG. 41 is an illustration of an exemplary memory medium which can be used with disk drives illustrated in FIGS. 38-40; FIG. 42 is an illustration of the functional operation of the main central processing unit illustrated in FIGS. 38-41; FIG. 43 is a block diagram of an alternative computer system suitable for implementing the invention; FIG. 44 is a block diagram showing a portion of the computer system of FIG. 43 in more detail; FIG. 45 is an illustration of the architecture of the combined internet, POTS, and ADSL architecture for use in the present invention in accordance with a first embodiment; FIG. 46 is an illustration of the architecture of the combined internet, POTS, and ADSL architecture for use in the present invention in accordance with a second embodiment; FIG. 47 is an illustration of the architecture of the combined internet, POTS, and ADSL architecture for use in the present invention in accordance with a third embodiment; and FIG. 48 is an illustration of the architecture of the combined internet, POTS, and ADSL architecture for use in the present invention in accordance with a fourth embodiment. DESCRIPTION OF BEST MODE OF THE INVENTION Reference now will be made in detail to the presently preferred embodiments of the invention. Such embodiments are provided by way of explanation of the invention, which is not intended to be limited thereto. In fact, those of ordinary skill in the art may appreciate upon reading the present specification and viewing the present drawings that various modifications and variations can be made. For example, features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be used on other embodiments to yield a still further embodiment. Additionally, certain features may be interchanged with similar devices or features not mentioned yet which perform the same or similar functions. It is therefore intended that such modifications and variations are included within the totality of the present invention. Driven by a widespread understanding of the Internet's capabilities, the power of electronic commerce, and advances in wireless technologies and devices, mobile commerce (m-commerce) is rapidly approaching the business forefront. According to independent research findings, m-commerce—the conduct of business and services over portable, wireless devices-will soon be a dominant force in business and society. For example:
The viability of these projections depends on the power of the underlying technology drivers and the attractiveness of m-commerce applications. To compete in a marketplace dominated by wireless devices, businesses must devise effective m-commerce strategies. Building successful strategies begins by recognizing the forces driving m-commerce's emergence. The US Federal Communication Commission's auctioning of personal communication-service spectrum space in the mid-1990s triggered the current rush to wireless communication methods. Wireless communication now encompasses not only telephones but appliances, including personal digital assistants (PDAs). Internet use has grown on the strength of PC networks. According to Yankee Group projections, the installed base of PCs will reach 500 million by 2003, as FIG. 10 shows. This huge base is essential to continued growth in electronic commerce and other communications applications. Moreover, because these systems will have greater power and storage capability, as well as the best ever price-performance ratios, more powerful and sophisticated applications will likely emerge for desktop computing and the Internet. Although these expectations are impressive, PCs still have two limiting characteristics. First, users must sit in front of them. Second, even portable-notebook PCs have to load sof tware, dial into and connect with a network service provider, and await completion of the handshaking process before they can launch an Internet application. This sequence is understandable, but at best it seems a tolerable nuisance. Hence, the dominant applications are still those that are worth the trouble it takes for a user to follow this access sequence or, at least, to keep the computer and applications running. The aggregate PC installation is substantial, but even more mobile communication devices are in use. The Gartner Group and other research firms project that by 2004, the installed base of mobile phones worldwide will exceed 1 billion more than twice the number of PCs. In addition, the number of other wireless mobile devices will also increase dramatically. Wireless PDA use will more than triple in the next three years. Unlike PCs, these wireless devices require no boot sequence, so people can use them as soon as they turn them on-making them attractive for quick-hit applications. Just as the transmission control protocol/Internet protocol and the general purpose browser were principal drivers of Internet growth, letting disparate devices interconnect and communicate, similar factors will simplify the interconnectivity and communication of heterogeneous wireless devices. As FIG. 11 shows, mobile network carriers have relied on a variety of incompatible wireless access standards. Recently, however, a common communications technology and uniform interface standard for presenting and delivering wireless services on mobile devices-wireless application protocol (WAP)—have emerged. WAP specifications include a microbrowser; scripting similar to JavaScript; access functions; and layered communication specifications for sessions, transport, and security. These specifications enable interface-independent and interoperable applications. Most wireless handset and device manufacturers, as well as several service and infrastructure providers, have adopted the WAP standard. Current access technologies, including TDMA (time division multiple access), CDMA (code division multiple access), and GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication), transmit at 9.6 to 19.2 Kbps. These speeds are dramatically slower than the dial-up rates of desktop PCs connecting to the Internet. Although m-commerce is possible at these bandwidth rates, the slow speeds are not conducive to creating widespread business or consumer participation. 3G (third-generation) wireless technology will also be available. In addition to having greater bandwidth rates, with speeds up to 2 Mbps, 3G will support multimedia transmission. Integrating voice, data, and one- or two-way video will let m-commerce run over any wireless device. M-commerce applications fall into three main categories: transaction management, digital content delivery, and telemetry services. Users will increasingly initiate a wide range of business transactions from mobile devices. Online shopping sites tailored to mobile phones and PDAs including browsing, selection, purchase, payment, and delivery—have already emerged. These sites include all the necessary shopping features, such as online catalogs, shopping carts, and back office functions. Online booksellers are among the firms that have already implemented wireless shopping transactions. Another class of m-commerce transactions involves using wireless devices to initiate and pay for purchases and services in real time. These kinds of transactions will likely increase as users gain the capability—and become comfortable enough—to manage them. The highest m-commerce transaction volume will probably occur in micro transactions. When individuals reach for their e-cash-equipped mobile phones or PDAs—rather than coins—to settle transactions such as subway fees, widespread use of digital cash will be a reality. Digital content delivery uses the wireless channel's distribution characteristics. These m-commerce activities include information browsing-instant retrieval of status information (weather, transit schedules, sports scores, ticket availability, and market prices)—and directory services. The CNN Wireless news subscription service and the UPS PDA-linked package tracking and locator service are representative of emerging content delivery services. Digital products easily transport to and from wireless devices. Hence, downloading entertainment products—for example, MP3 music—is likely to become even more commonplace when 3G arrives. Transferring software, high resolution images, and full-motion advertising messages will also become common activities. The emergence of high-quality display screens and greater bandwidth will undoubtedly trigger the development of innovative video applications. Individuals will use wireless devices to access, retrieve, store, and display high-resolution video content for entertainment, product demonstration, and distance learning. The transmission and receipt of status, sensing, and measurement information-telemetry services-form the basis for a wide range of new applications involving mobile devices. Innovations in this area let people use wireless phones and appliances to communicate with various devices from their homes, offices, or in the field. For instance, delivery drivers will "ping"intelligent dispensing machines or store computers to determine where their rolling inventory is needed most or which locations need immediate service. Similarly, users will transmit messages to activate remote recording devices or service systems. Active m-commerce applications function only when someone directly initiates them by transmitting payment details, requesting information, receiving specific content, or retrieving status information. In contrast, passive applications occur without the user taking any action—for example, the automatic collection of toll charges with dedicated cash cards. Integrating digital cash into mobile devices would make these cash cards unnecessary. These wireless devices would facilitate and record payment of toll, mass-transit, fast-food, and other transactions without the user authorizing or entering identification information for each individual transaction. Users could arrange to have their cash chips update automatically by directing the wireless device to contact their money source and download additional digital cash whenever necessary. Popular in Europe, short messages text messages, up to 160 characters in length, that show up on the recipient's display as they arrive—are examples of passive content delivery. As digital convergence becomes more commonplace, all forms of mail will passively go to wireless devices, including digitized voice mail, fax documents, and e-mail. Passive security, intrusion, and emergency telemetry services will refine the monitoring of facilities and individuals. Any unusual event or unacceptable condition will trigger user notification, regardless of location. Airlines are testing technology that will let them alert passengers, especially frequent fliers, to seat upgrades, schedule changes, and so on, through wireless devices. Some airlines already have prototype telemetry systems that transmit this kind of information to passengers as soon as they enter the airport or pass near a kiosk-like device. Passive m-commerce telemetry is the foundation of still another form of interactive marketing. Stores will be able to market their products and services by transmitting promotional coupons and messages to passers by: "Come in and enjoy a complimentary cup of our new coffee blend," or "Get half off, if you make your purchase within the next 30 minutes." This type of marketing may give rise to a new challenge: managing m-junk messages without turning off your wireless device. The technology to facilitate m-commerce is within reach, even as barriers to its development fall away. Applications and wireless devices promise to evolve together, each driving the introduction of innovative and powerful features in the other. The opportunity and challenge is for business to develop strategies that capitalize on the strengths of mobile commerce, thereby helping it to compete in an increasingly digital marketplace. The greatest challenge to structuring such a strategy may be creating the innovations that will meet the needs and expectations of consumers and commercial participants. Additional details regarding the above may be found in James A. Senn, The Emergence of M-Commerce, IEEE COMPUTER (December 2000), incorporated herein by reference and all references cited there incorporated herein by reference. In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, the process begins as all tickets are checked in, for example, as the patrons enter the reserved seating area, such as a stadium or theater, through, for example, bar code readers, scanners, infrared readers, and/or manually or other method where the patron is checked in, either at the gate, seat or other location. For example, patrons can optionally check in a predetermined time before the event through a wireless device, Internet connection, manual or voice recognition telephone, or other manner. The important point is to provide a standard manner for allowing patrons to check in, and if the patron fails to check in using a predetermined procedure, to allow that seat to be provided to another willing patron in accordance with a process to be described below. The patron may check in either a predetermined time before or after the event begins. Currently, such a process is impossible and unthinkable in view of the difficulty reserved seating events have in simply getting the patrons seated prior to the beginning of the event. The present invention represents a revolutionary process to enhance event enjoyment, earn patron loyalty and optionally provide additional revenues to the theater/stadium or optionally other patrons with the desirable ticket. The check in procedure continues for a predetermined period of time until a predetermined time period has expired, for example, 5 minutes before the event begins, 10 minutes after the event begins, after a predetermined event, such as the second act of a play, and the like. Once the predetermined time period or event has been completed, the check in procedure may be considered completed to begin the seat re-allocation process. To begin the seat re-allocation process, a re-allocation algorithm is used to re-assign seat for patrons that are willing or interested in different or better seats. Such re-allocation processes or algorithms may include a random process, a process where priority patrons are given priority for re-assignment of seat, a process where patrons are willing to pay additional for the re-assignment to either the theater or the individual patron whose seat is being provided to another patron, frequent event patrons, season ticket patrons, or other predetermined process. If the patron that is identified by the re-allocation process is determined to be present in the theater, for example, via mobile telephone, wireless device, and/or manual verification, an optional sub-process determines whether the patron's optional profile is also satisfied with the available seating. If the optional subscriber profile is not satisfied, then the re-allocation process searches for another possible patron. If the optional profile sub-process is satisfied, then the eligible patron is notified via one or means, such as announcement, manually, wireless device, mobile telephone, bulletin board, and/or other means. The patron is then notified and presented with the option of moving for free, use of award points, additional money to the theater and/or patron to whose seat is being provided, or other predetermined criteria to obtain the seat. Optionally, a bidding process may be initiated that allows various patrons to bid against one another. Any standard bidding process may optionally be used. The patron, of course has the option to decline, and if so, the process continues and returns to the re-allocation process to attempt to locate another possible patron. If the patron accepts, payment of money or other means may be effectuated on the spot via the wireless device, credit card, debit card, points, and the like, and the patron may now move to the other seat. The patron's seat may then optionally be made available as an empty seat to the re-allocation process. If a predetermined period of time has not expired, then the re-allocation process may be run again to optionally continuously re-allocate seats. The patron may optionally store the up-graded ticket on a wireless device for proof of entrance to the better seating area. Optionally, the seat and/or row and/or section, includes a separate reader device to receive optionally the original ticket that is now re-allocated to a better seat, or a new ticket that may optionally be received by the patron via the wireless device and/or manually via a worker in the theater or stadium. In accordance with one observation of the present invention, mobile device and computer users increasingly face the management of many computing devices. One reason is the expansion of computing environments in the home and office, as printers, scanners, digital cameras, and other peripherals are integrated into networked environments. Another reason is the proliferation of mobile devices such as laptop and palm-sized computers, cellular phones, and pagers. Because these devices trade functionality for suitable form factors and low power consumption, they are necessarily "peripheral-poor" and must therefore establish connections to neighboring devices for storage, faxing, high-speed network access, and printing. It is easy to become frustrated when dealing with the configuration and interaction of such a multitude of devices. Service discovery technologies were developed to reduce this frustration and to simplify the use of mobile devices in a network by allowing them to be "discovered," configured, and used by other devices with a minimum of manual effort. Although most of these "service discovery suites" promise similar functionality•namely, reduced configuration hassles, improved device cooperation, and automated discovery of required services•they come at the problem from different philosophical and technical approaches. Since none of these technologies is a superset of the others and none is mature enough to dominate the market, interoperation among them will require bridging mechanisms. Five competing technologies are described that may be used in conjunction with the present invention, however, other technologies may also or alternatively be used. Bluetooth is a low-power, short-range, wireless radio system being developed by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group, and industry consortium whose member companies include Ericsson, Nokia, and IBM. The radio has a range of 10 meters and provides up to seven 1-megabit-per-second links to other Bluetooth devices. Bluetooth operates in the 2.4-GHz industrial scientific and medical (ISM) band to maximize international acceptance and employs a frequency-hopping system to minimize interference. The low-level communications are detailed in the Bluetooth specification. Bluetooth has a small form factor; complete systems can be as small as 2-cm square. The technology supports both isochronous and asynchronous services. A simple isochronous application might link a cellular phone and wireless headset, where the headset and base are both Bluetooth devices. More complicated applications include automatic discovery of wireless network connections and automatic synchronization of data between several Bluetooth devices. FIG. 12 shows the Bluetooth protocol stack. At the bottom, the radio and baseband layers provide the short-range, frequency-hopping radio platform. The link manager protocol (LMP) handles data link setup and provides authentication and encryption services. The logical link control and adaptation protocol (L2CAP) supports multiplexed connectionless and connection-oriented communication over the LMP layer. L2CAP is proprietary, but other network protocols, such as IP, can be built on top of it. L2CAP is also used by higher level protocols. For example, FIG. 12 shows links to the Hayes-compatible AT (ATtention) protocol, which provides a standard interface for controlling remote cellular phones and modems; RFComm, which emulates an RS-232 serial interface; a simple object exchange protocol (OBEX), which enhances Bluetooth's interoperability with IrDA; and Bluetooth's service discovery protocol (SDP). Groups of up to eight Bluetooth devices can form ad hoc networks called piconets to communicate, share services, and synchronize data. In each piconet, a master device coordinates the other Bluetooth devices (including setting the 1,600-hops-per-second frequency-hopping pattern). Individual devices can participate in more than one piconet at a time and can be in one of several states:
The Bluetooth SDP provides a simple API for enumerating the devices in range and browsing available services. It also supports stop rules that limit the duration of searches or the number of devices returned. Client applications use the API to search for available services either by service classes, which uniquely identify types of devices (such as printers or storage devices), or by matching attributes (such as a model number or supported protocol). Attributes that describe the services offered by a Bluetooth device are stored as a service record and are maintained by the device's SDP server. The distinction between service classes and descriptive attributes is not well defined, but service classes generally define broad device categories, such as Printer, Color Printer, and PostScriptPrinter, while attributes allow a finer level of description. Manufacturers must eventually standardize these service classes for maximal interoperability between Bluetooth devices. Unlike higher level service discovery technologies such as Jini, Bluetooth's SDP does not provide a mechanism for using discovered services•specific actions required to use a service must be provided by a higher level protocol. However, it does define a standard attribute ProtocolDescriptorList, which enumerates appropriate protocols for communicating with a service. Bluetooth devices provide data security through unique 48-bit identifiers, 128-bit authentication keys, and 8- to 128-bit encryption keys. Strong authentication is possible because no international restrictions prevent it, but Bluetooth devices must negotiate encryption strength to comply with laws restricting encryption. Note that Bluetooth devices must be paired to provide them with matching secret keys that will support authentication. Once paired, Bluetooth devices can authenticate each other and protect sensitive data from snooping. Regardless of encryption strength, Bluetooth's fast frequency-hopping scheme makes snooping difficult. Jini is a service discovery and advertisement system that relies on mobile code and leverages the platform independence of the Java language. The current Jini implementation is based on TCP and UDP, but implementations based on other network protocols are certainly possible. The major requirements are reliable, stream-oriented communication and a multicast facility. Jini's language-centric approach allows a flexible definition of service; for example, a service can be implemented entirely in software and, after discovery, can be downloaded and executed entirely on the client. Examples of such algorithmic services might include an implementation of a proprietary algorithm for shading a polygon or formatting a document to meet an organizational standard. On the other hand, Jini also requires each device either to run a Java virtual machine or to associate itself with a device that can execute a JVM on its behalf. For example, a Jini "device chassis" might Jini-enable a number of "dumb" devices, making their services available to Jini clients. Jini entities consist of services, look up servers that catalog available services, and clients that require services. A service can also be a client; for example, a telescope might provide pictures to a PDA as a service and look for printing services as a client. All service advertisements and requests go through a lookup server. FIG. 13 illustrates the discovery and registration process for Jini clients and services. To register service availability or to discover services, a service or client must first locate one or more lookup servers by using a multicast request protocol. This request protocol terminates with the invocation of a uni cast discovery protocol, which clients and services use to communicate with a specific lookup server. The unicast protocol culminates in the transfer of an instance of the ServiceRegistrar class, a "remote control" for the lookup server. A lookup server can use the multi-cast announcement protocol to announce its presence on the network. When a lookup server invokes this protocol, clients and services that have registered interest in receiving announcements of now lookup services are notified. These three protocols are encapsulated in a set of Jini classes. For example, to find lookup services, a client or service need only create an instance of LookupDiscovery. Jini uses Java's remote method invocation (RMI) facility for all interactions between either a client or a service and the lookup server). Once a lookup server has been discovered and an instance of ServiceRegistrar is available, services can register their availability, and clients can search for needed services by involving ServiceRegistrar methods. Jini associates a proxy, or remote control object, with each service instance. A service advertises its availability by registering its object in one or more lookup servers via the register( ) method. This method takes several arguments, including an instance of Serviceitem, which contains a universally unique identifier for the service, its attribute set, and its remote control object. This object may either implement the service entirely (in the case of an algorithmic service such as the implementation of a polygon-shading algorithm), or provide methods for accessing the service over the network. The lease duration parameter of register( ) specifies the service's intended lifetime. The service is responsible for renewing the lease within the time specified to maintain its listing. The lookup server is free to adjust the lease time, which is returned in a ServiceRegistration object. When a service first contacts a lookup server, the server generates a unique identifier for it; the service uses this ID in all future registrations. The service identifier lets clients request a specific service explicitly and recognize when services reported by different lookup servers are identical. To use a service, a device must first secure an instance of the proxy object for it. From a client point of view, the location of the service proxied by this remote control object is unimportant, because the object encapsulates the location of the service and the protocol necessary to operate it. Clients use the lookup( ) method in ServiceRegistrar to discover services. This method takes a single argument, an instance of ServiceTemplate. The ServiceTemplate constructor takes several arguments. The first is the service identifier. If the service identifier is null, then arrays of types (Java classes, typically interfaces) and attributes (attribute objects) are used to match services. A service matches if its class matches of the classes in the types array and if, for each of the attribute objects, and all non-null members match one of the service's registered attributes. The return value from lookup( ) is an instance of ServiceMatches, which contains an array of remote control objects for the services that match. Finally, the notify( ) method allows a client to request an asynchronous notification when services matching a ServiceTemplate instance become available. This method uses Jini's distributed events mechanism, which extends Java's infrastructure for eventing across JVMs. Jini depends on Java's security model, which provides tools like digital certificates, encryptionm and control over mobile code activities such as opening and accepting socket connections, reading and writing to specific files, and using native methods Systems administrators can establish different policies depending on where the Java code originated (for example, the local file system or a remote machine). Salutation is an architecture for service discovery under development by the Salutation Consortium, which includes members from both industry and academia. The consortium's goal is to build a royalty-free architecture for service advertisement and discovery that is independent of a particular network transport. FIG. 14 shows the three fundamental components in the Salutation architecture: functional units, salutation managers, and transport managers. From a client's point of view, a functional unit defines a service. Functional units already specified or under consideration by the Salutation Consortium include printing, faxing, and document storage. There is also work on a functional unit specification to allow discovery of Hewlett-Packard JetSend-enabled devices. The specifications define attributes that characterize a service (for example, in the case of a printer, double-sided capability, color, and so on). The functional unit Doc Storage defines file attributes that can be used to find information in temporary or long-term storage. For, example, a client can search for operating system-specific drivers or software necessary to interact with a newly discovered device. The client simply queries a Salutation manager for the necessary Doc Storage functional unit, extracts the application or device driver and installs it, thus providing limited code mobility. Salutation managers function as services brokers; they help clients find needed services and let services register their availability. Services and register and unregister functional units with the local Salutation manager by using the API calls slmRegisterCapabilities( ) and slmUnregisterCapabilities( ), respectively. A client can use the slmSearchCapability( ) call to determine if Salutation managers have registered specific functional units. Under the current version of the architecture, applications can query only the local Salutation manager. Future versions will allow remote Salutation managers to be specified. Once a functional unit is discovered, slmQueryCapability( ) can be used to verify that a functional unit has certain capabilities. The API also includes calls for initialization/version checking, availability checking, and communication between clients and services. (An API simulator is available at http://www.salutation.org/simulate.htm.) Salutation managers fill a role similar to lookup servers in Jini, but they can also manage the connections between clients and services. A Salutation manager can operate in one of the three "personalities":
A transport manager isolates the implementation of the Salutation manager from particular transport-layer protocols and thereby gives Salutation network transport independence. To support a new network transport requires a new transport manager to be written, but does not require modifications to the Salutation manager. Like Jini (and UPnP), Salutation requires a network transport protocol that supports reliable, stream-oriented communication. Initial implementations are based on IP and IrDA because of their widespread use. Transport managers also locate the Salutation managers on their respective network segments via either multicast, static configuration, or reference to a centralized directory. Discovery of other Salutation managers allows a particular Salutation managers to determine which functional units have been registered and to allow clients access to these remote services. Communication between Salutation managers is based on remote procedure call (RPC). This interaction between remote Salutation managers contrasts with other registry-based service discovery mechanisms (for example, Jini and Service Location Protocol), where clients would be responsible for locating remote registries. The Salutation specification currently does not address security issues. A lightweight version of Salutation, called Salutation-Lite, has been developed for resource-limited devices. It is based primarily on IrDA to leverage the large number of infrared-capable devices. Salutation-Lite focuses primarily on service discovery. It uses the functional units OpEnvironment and Display to describe the operating system, processor class, amount of memory and display characteristics of palm-sized devices. By noting the particular characteristics of the device, servers can provide appropriate drivers and software wirelessly. Salutation-Lite implementations can be down-loaded free from the Salutation website at http://www.salutation.org. UPnP is a proposed architecture for service advertisement and discovery supported by the UPnP Forum, headed by Microsoft. Unlike Jini, which depends on mobile code, UPnP aims to standardize the protocols used by devices to communicate, using XML. The UPnP specifications is still in an preliminary stage; major issues like security have not yet been addressed. UPnP's devi | ||||||