Controlled access queue-based gating based on cooperative detection of viable registration

Abstract

Before tickets for an event go onsale, users are allowed to register for the event. The registration requires completion of verification steps useful for discriminating between human and robot users. Due to the complexity of the first verification step, it can be estimated that registered users are more likely than other users to be human. Registered users are allowed to electronically submit requests for tickets for the event prior to the tickets going on sale. Unregistered users must wait to request tickets until a later time (e.g., when the tickets are onsale) and may—at that time—complete similar or simpler verification steps, further delaying receipt of their requests. Requests from registered users may further be preferentially served simply due to the registrations. Thus, tickets can be preferentially provided to users estimated to be more likely to be human.

1 . A ticket management system for offering tickets to an event to users in an iterative and prioritized manner, the ticket management system comprising:
 a ticket offerer that, prior to a beginning of an onsale period during which tickets for the event are sold:
 electronically presents information about the event to a set of users, the set of users including a first user and a second user, and 
 electronically presents the first user with an invitation to electronically register for the event; 
   a ticket requestor that:
 prior to the beginning of the onsale period, receives, from the first user, a first request to register for the event; 
 facilitates a first electronic presentation of a verification step at a first electronic device associated with the first user, the verification step including a Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart (CAPTCHA) test; 
 determines, based on the verification step, that the first user is a human and not a robot; 
 upon determining that the first user has completed the verification step:
 registers the first user for the event prior to the beginning of the onsale period, and 
 electronically presents the first user, but not the second user, with an interface to request a ticket for the event prior to the beginning of the onsale period, wherein the second user has not completed the verification step prior to the beginning of the onsale period and the interface is not presented to the second user prior to the beginning of the onsale period due to the second user not having completed the verification step, and 
 
 receives a first request from the first user and a second request from the second user, wherein each of the first request and the second request is a request for the ticket to the event, wherein the first request is received prior to the beginning of the onsale period, and wherein the second request is received after the beginning of the onsale period; 
   a queue engine that, using one or more processors, places the first request in a queue and the second request in the queue queue, the first request being prioritized over the second request due to the first user having completed the verification step prior to the onsale period and the second user not having completed the verification step prior to the onsale period; and   a ticket browser that, using the one or more processors, after the beginning of the onsale period:
 accesses the queue, 
 performs a first search of a ticket database, the first search being responsive to the first request, 
 performs a second search of the ticket database, the second search being responsive to the second request, wherein the second search is performed after the first search due to the first request being prioritized over the second request, and 
 receives results for the first search that includes an identification of one or more tickets for the event. 
   
     
     
         2 . The ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 1 , wherein the ticket browser further offers the first user a first ticket found in response to the first search, and wherein the ticket browser modifies the ticket database such that the first ticket is at least temporarily identified as not being available to offer to other users. 
     
     
         3 . The ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 1 , wherein:
 the ticket requestor further facilitates a second electronic presentation of the verification step at a second electronic device associated with the second user;   the verification step is presented after the second request is received, and   the ticket browser only performs the second search when the verification step is completed by the second user.   
     
     
         4 . The ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 1 , wherein completion of the verification step includes performing an act that requires access to an electronic system independent from the ticket management system. 
     
     
         5 . (canceled) 
     
     
         6 . The ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 1 , wherein:
 the queue engine further generates a first score for the first request and a second score for the second request,   the generation of the first score depending on at least how the first user performed the verification test   the generation of the second score depending on at least how the second user performed the verification test; and   the queue engine prioritizes the first request and the second request at least partly based on the first and second scores.   
     
     
         7 . The ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 6 , wherein the generation of the first and second scores further depends on whether the respective first and second users are registered for the event. 
     
     
         8 . The ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 1 , wherein the presenting of the verification step includes presenting a set of suggested verification steps, and wherein the ticket requestor determines that the first user has completed the verification step by determining that the first user has completed a sufficient number of the suggested verification steps. 
     
     
         9 . The ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 1 , wherein the second user's access to any results from the second search is artificially inhibited, the artificial inhibition being separate from any first delay based on the placement of the second request in the queue and from any second delay attributable to performing the second search. 
     
     
         10 . A method for offering tickets to an event to users in an iterative and prioritized manner, the method comprising:
 prior to a beginning of an onsale period during which tickets for the event are sold, electronically presenting information about the event to a set of users, the set of users including a first user and a second user;   electronically presenting the first user with an invitation to electronically register for the event;   prior to the beginning of the onsale period, receiving, from the first user, a request to register for the event;   facilitating a first electronic presentation of a verification step at a first electronic device associated with the first user, the verification step including a Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart (CAPTCHA) test;   determining, based on the verification step, that the first user is a human and not a robot;   upon determining that the first user has completed the verification step:
 registering the first user for the event prior to the beginning of the onsale period; and 
 electronically presenting the first user, but not the second user, with an interface to request a ticket for the event prior to the beginning of the onsale period, wherein the second user has not completed the verification step prior to the beginning of the onsale period and the interface is not presented to the second user prior to the beginning of the onsale period due to the second user not having completed the verification step; 
   receiving a first request from the first user and a second request from the second user, wherein each of the first request and the second request is a request for the ticket to the event, wherein the first request is received prior to the beginning of the onsale period, and wherein the second request is received after the beginning of the onsale period;   placing the first request in a queue and the second request in the queue, the first request being prioritized over the second request due to the first user having completed the verification step prior to the onsale period and the second user not having completed the verification step prior to the onsale period;   after the beginning of the onsale period, performing a first search of a ticket database, the first search being responsive to the first request;   performing a second search of the ticket database, the second search being responsive to the second request, wherein the second search is performed after the first search due to the first request being prioritized over the second request, and   receiving results for the first search that includes an identification of one or more tickets for the event.   
     
     
         11 . The method for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 10 , further comprising:
 offering the first user a first ticket found in response to the first search, and modifying the ticket database such that the first ticket is at least temporarily identified as not being available to offer to other users.   
     
     
         12 . The method for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 10 , further comprising:
 facilitating a second electronic presentation of the verification step at a second electronic device associated with the second user,   wherein the second search is only performed when the verification step is completed by the second user.   
     
     
         13 . (canceled) 
     
     
         14 . The method for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 10 , further comprising:
 generating a first score for the first request and a second score for the second request, wherein:
 the generation of the first score depending on at least how the first user performed the verification test, 
 the generation of the second score depending on at least how the second user performed the verification test, 
 the first request and the second request are prioritized at least partly based on the first and second scores. 
   
     
     
         15 . The method for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 14 , wherein the generation of the first and second scores further depends on whether the respective first and second users are registered for the event. 
     
     
         16 . The method for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 10 , wherein the presenting of the verification step includes presenting a set of suggested verification steps, and wherein the ticket requestor determines that the first user has completed the verification step by determining that the first user has completed a sufficient number of the suggested verification steps. 
     
     
         17 . A ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner, the ticket management system comprising:
 one or more processors; and   one or more memories coupled with the one or more processors, wherein the one or more processors and one or more memories are configured to:
 prior to a beginning of an onsale period during which tickets for the event are sold, electronically present information about the event to a set of users, the set of users including a first user and a second user; 
 electronically present the first user with an invitation to electronically register for the event; 
 prior to the beginning of the onsale period, receive, from the first user, a request to register for the event; 
 facilitates a first electronic presentation of a verification step at a first electronic device associated with the first user, the verification step including a Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart (CAPTCHA) test; 
 prior to the beginning of the onsale period, determines, based on the verification step, that the first user is a human and not a robot; 
 upon determining that the first user has completed the verification step:
 register the first user for the event prior to the beginning of the onsale period, and 
 present the first user, but not the second user, with an interface to request a ticket for the event prior to the beginning of the onsale period, wherein the second user has not completed the verification step prior to the beginning of the onsale period and the interface is not presented to the second user prior to the beginning of the onsale period due to the second user not having completed the verification step; and 
 
 receive a first request from the first user and a second request from the second user, wherein each of the first request and the second request is a request for the ticket to the event, wherein the first request is received prior to the beginning of the onsale period, and wherein the second request is received after the beginning of the onsale period; 
 place each of the first request and the second request in a single queue, the first request being prioritized over the second request due to the first user having completed the verification step prior to the onsale period and the second user not having completed the verification step prior to the onsale period; and 
 after the beginning of the onsale period:
 perform a first search of a ticket database, the first search being responsive to the first request; 
 perform a second search of the ticket database, the second search being responsive to the second request, wherein the second search is performed after the first search due to the first request being prioritized over the second request, and 
 receive results for the first search that includes an identification of one or more tickets for the event. 
 
   
     
     
         18 . The ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 17 , wherein the one or more processors and one or more memories are further configured to:
 offer the first user a first ticket found in response to the first search, and   modify the ticket database such that the first ticket is at least temporarily identified as not being available to offer to other users.   
     
     
         19 . The ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 17 , wherein the one or more processors and one or more memories are further configured to:
 present the second user with the verification step after the second request is received,   wherein the second search is performed when the verification step is completed by the second user.   
     
     
         20 . The ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 17 , wherein:
 the one or more processors and one or more memories are further configured to generate a first score for the first request and a second score for the second request,   the generation of the first score depending on at least how the first user performed the verification test;   the generation of the second score depending on at least how the second user performed the verification test; and   the first request and the second request are prioritized at least partly based on the first and second scores.   
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the second user's access to any results from the second search is artificially inhibited, the artificial inhibition being separate from any first delay based on the placement of the second request in the queue and from any second delay attributable to performing the second search. 
     
     
         22 . The ticket management system for offering tickets to the event to users in the iterative and prioritized manner as recited in  claim 17 , wherein the second user's access to any results from the second search is artificially inhibited, the artificial inhibition being separate from any first delay based on the placement of the second request in the queue and from any second delay attributable to performing the second search.