Looks like IBM has joined the "just how stupid can we look" party with the stupidest patent I've ever heard of:

A method and structure for reducing customer dissatisfaction for waiting includes a queue monitoring subsystem which detects an entry of a customer into a waiting queue. A reward computing subsystem calculates a reward for the customer for being in the waiting queue, and a communication subsystem communicates the reward to the customer. At least one of subsystems is automated.

Let's list the hall of shame entrants - the three complete bozos who put their names to this application: Parijat Dube, Giuseppe A. Paleologo, and Laura Wynter.

They must be so proud to have written a legalistic sounding patent application that draws on the wisdom of the average restaurant manager - like the nice fellow at Bob Evans last night who comped a group of us for a couple of dinners that we had to wait for.

Update: And get a load out of the application language - this is just priceless:

In view of the foregoing, and other, exemplary problems, drawbacks, and disadvantages of the conventional systems, it is an exemplary feature of the present invention to provide a structure (and method) in which customer satisfaction is increased among users of contact centers or any time-shared resource situation, such as recreational facilities, restaurants or lodging facilities or numerous other time-shared resources, while reducing the likelihood that such users will leave the system while waiting for service.

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