Importance

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Abstract

An electronic statement presentment (ESP) system replaces the preparation and mailing of paper statements and invoices from a biller with electronic delivery. Electronic statements have the same look as paper statements as well as including video, audio, graphics, and custom enclosures. Statements are segmented into mandatory and optional components to minimize download time. The ESP system operates independently or is an enhancement to any suitable electronic bill payment system. A central switch computer coordinates template storage, validation, routing and message passing between billers, workstations and consumer financial institutions (CFI). A template authoring workstation (TAWS) creates a template of static biller information to serve as a basis for the electronic statement. The template is stored in a template library at the switch. The switch validates the template by sending it to a template validation workstation (TVAL). Batches of customer statement data are sent from a biller's legacy invoicing system to a statement origination workstation (SORG) along with a template identifier. The switch sends the template to the SORG where the customer data is validated by comparison to the template identified. The batch of customer statement data is sorted by a statement generation workstation (SGEN) identifier associated with each customer record. The sorted batches are sent to the switch where they are routed to the appropriate SGEN based upon the SGEN identifier. Each SGEN generates an electronic statement for each customer from the statement data and the appropriate template. A CFI associated with each SGEN delivers each electronic statement to the appropriate customer using a customer identifier in the statement data and uses any chosen medium.

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