According to an embodiment of the present invention, techniques are
disclosed for providing promotions to users of communication networks,
such as the Internet. Information related to a plurality of promotions,
including promotions information and rules associated with the
promotions, are stored at a promotions management system. The promotions
management system receives a query from a vendor system requesting
promotions to be shown to a user browsing a particular item at the web
site of the vendor. The promotions management system responds to the
query by determining a set of promotions to be presented to the user
based on the information contained in the query, the information related
to the promotions, and other information accessible to the promotions
management system. The promotions in the set of promotions are then
presented to the user.