JP7477696B1 - Payment management device, payment management method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] It is possible to further increase the sales promotion effect of electronic flyers. [Solution] A payment management device that provides an electronic payment service to a user in cooperation with an application program running on the user's terminal device includes an electronic flyer distribution unit that distributes to the user's terminal device an electronic flyer that is issued by a member store of the electronic payment service and can be viewed on the user's terminal device, and a benefit granting unit that grants a benefit to a user who has viewed the electronic flyer, the benefit granting unit granting a first benefit to the user when the user has viewed the electronic flyer, and granting a second benefit based on the first benefit to the user when the user who has viewed the electronic flyer makes a payment using the electronic payment service at the member store that issued the electronic flyer. [Selected Figure] Figure 4

Description

The present invention relates to a payment management device, a payment management method, and a program.

Conventionally, electronic flyers that can be viewed on an information processing device as electronic data are distributed to users' terminal devices, and if a user who has viewed the electronic flyer purchases a product that is listed in the electronic flyer, the user is given a predetermined incentive (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Patent No. 7282226

Conventional technology may not be able to sufficiently increase the likelihood that users who view electronic flyers will make a purchase.

The present invention has been made in consideration of these circumstances, and one of its objectives is to provide a payment management device, a payment management method, and a program that can increase the sales promotion effect of electronic flyers.

One aspect of the present invention is a payment management device that provides an electronic payment service to a user in cooperation with an application program running on the user's terminal device, and includes an electronic flyer distribution unit that distributes to the user's terminal device an electronic flyer that is issued by a member store of the electronic payment service and can be viewed on the user's terminal device, and a bonus granting unit that grants a bonus to a user who has viewed the electronic flyer, in which the bonus granting unit grants a first bonus to the user when the user has viewed the electronic flyer, and grants a second bonus based on the first bonus to the user when the user who has viewed the electronic flyer makes a payment using the electronic payment service at the member store that issued the electronic flyer.

According to one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide a payment management device, a payment management method, and a program that can further enhance the sales promotion effect of electronic flyers.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration for realizing an electronic payment service. FIG. 1 is a sequence diagram (part 1) illustrating an example of a general flow of electronic payment. FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram (part 2) illustrating an example of a general flow of electronic payment. FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a payment server 100 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of user information 172. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of affiliated store/store information 176. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a top screen IM1 of a payment application 20. 11 is a sequence chart showing an example of a process flow in which the benefit giving unit 150 gives a scratch card to a user who has viewed an electronic flyer, as a first mode of giving a scratch card to a user. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of an electronic flyer list screen. As a second mode of granting a scratch card to a user, this is a sequence chart showing an example of the process flow in which the bonus granting unit 150 grants a scratch card to a user who has viewed an electronic flyer and then made an electronic payment at the affiliated store (target affiliated store) that issued the electronic flyer. 13A to 13C are diagrams illustrating an example of a screen transition when a winning screen is displayed together with a payment completion notification in payment application 20. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a scratch card list screen.

The following describes an embodiment of the payment management device, payment management method, and program of the present invention with reference to the drawings. Various devices for providing services to users and performing internal analysis, such as the "server," "management device," and "information providing device" that appear below, may be realized by a group of distributed devices, and each device may be operated by a different business. The owner of the hardware of the device (the cloud server provider) and the business that actually operates the device may also be different. The application program and the payment server work together to provide an electronic payment service. In the following description, the application program is referred to as a payment app. The electronic payment service is a service that supports payments related to the purchase of goods and services at a store. The store is, for example, a physical store (real store) that exists in the real world, but may also include a virtual store for electronic commerce. The virtual store may include one provided by an entity other than the operator of the electronic payment service. In that case, when making a payment for shopping at the virtual store, the screen is controlled to transition to the interface screen of the electronic payment service. In the electronic payment service, the store is treated as belonging to, for example, an affiliated store (brand), and processing such as payment when a purchase is made at the store is mainly performed between the user and the affiliated store. Alternatively, payment and other transactions may be handled between the user and the store.

[Electronic payment service]
1 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration for realizing an electronic payment service. The electronic payment service is realized mainly by a payment server 100. The payment server 100 communicates with, for example, one or more user terminal devices 10, one or more first store terminal devices 50, and one or more second store terminal devices 70 via a network NW. The network NW includes, for example, the Internet, a LAN (Local Area Network), a wireless base station, a provider device, and the like.

The user terminal device 10 is, for example, a portable terminal device such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal. The user terminal device 10 is a computer device having at least an optical reading function, a communication function, a display function, an input acceptance function, and a program execution function. In the following description, the components for realizing these functions are referred to as a camera, a communication device, a touch panel, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), etc. In the user terminal device 10, a processor such as a CPU executes a payment app 20, which operates in cooperation with the payment server 100 to provide electronic payment services to users. The payment app 20 is installed in the user terminal device 10 from, for example, an application store, and controls the camera, communication device, touch panel, etc.

The first store terminal device 50 is installed, for example, in a store. The first store terminal device 50 is a computer device having at least a product price acquisition function, an optical reading function, a program execution function, and a communication function. The first store terminal device 50 includes a so-called POS (Point of Sale) device, and the product price acquisition function and the optical reading function may be realized by the POS device. The store code image 60 is placed in the store, and is a code image such as a QR code (registered trademark) printed on a paper or plastic medium. The store code image 60 may be displayed on a display placed in the store (which may be the display of a terminal device such as a smartphone).

The second store terminal device 70 is used by the operator of the affiliated store. The second store terminal device 70 is a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a personal computer, etc. An interface 72 for affiliated stores runs on the second store terminal device 70. The interface 72 for affiliated stores may be an app for affiliated stores or a browser. The interface 72 for affiliated stores accepts coupon settings and the like made by the operator of the affiliated store and transmits them to the payment server 100. The second store terminal device 70, which is a smartphone, has the function of displaying a code image equivalent to a store code image and reading a code image displayed by the user terminal device 10 by executing the app for affiliated stores.

The payment server 100 realizes electronic payment based on payment information received from the user terminal device 10 or the first store terminal device 50. The first store terminal device 50 may include a POS device and an affiliated store server, in which case the payment information is sent from the POS device to the payment server 100 via the affiliated store server. In the following explanation, no distinction is made between these two, and it is assumed that the payment information is sent from the first store terminal device 50.

Figures 2 and 3 are sequence diagrams illustrating the general flow of electronic payment. There may be two patterns for electronic payment: pattern 1 and pattern 2.

In the case of pattern 1 (hereinafter referred to as user scan) shown in FIG. 2, the user terminal device 10 with the payment application 20 activated decodes the store code image 60 by the optical reading function (S1). The store code image 60 includes store URL (Uniform Resource Locator) information. This store URL is the domain of the electronic payment service to which information capable of identifying the store is added, and is associated with the affiliated store ID, store ID, etc. in the payment server 100 (described later). The payment application 20 transmits the first payment information including the store URL and the account ID to the payment server 100 (S2). The payment server 100 searches for store information (described later) from the affiliated store ID and store ID corresponding to the store URL, acquires the affiliated store name and store name information (S3), and transmits it to the payment application 20 (S4). The user inputs the payment amount into the user terminal device 10 on the screen on which the affiliated store name and store name are displayed (S5). Then, the user terminal device 10 generates second payment information including at least the payment amount and transmits it to the payment server 100 (S6). The payment server 100 performs electronic payment based on the received second payment information (S7). The payment server 100 then transmits a payment completion notice (information for displaying a payment completion screen) to the payment application 20 (S8), and the payment application 20 displays the payment completion screen (S9). Note that when the store code image 60 is displayed on a display installed in the store, the store code image 60 may include not only the store URL but also information on the payment amount. In this case, the procedure in which the user inputs the payment amount is omitted, and the first payment information is transmitted to the payment server 100 with the information on the payment amount included. Information on the affiliated store name and store name may be included and displayed on the payment completion screen.

In the case of pattern 2 (hereinafter referred to as store scan) shown in FIG. 3, when the payment app 20 is started, when a payment operation is performed in the payment app 20, when the automatic update timing (for example, every minute) occurs, and at other timings, the payment app 20 sends a request to issue a one-time code to the payment server 100 (S11). The payment server 100 generates a one-time code (S12) and sends it to the payment app 20 (S13). The payment app 20 displays a code image such as a QR code or a barcode generated based on the one-time code (S14). The user holds (presents) the display surface of the user terminal device 10 over the first store terminal device 50, and the first store terminal device 50 decodes the code image using an optical reading function and obtains the one-time code, etc. (S15). Then, the first store terminal device 50 generates payment information including the one-time code, payment amount, affiliated store ID, store ID, etc., and sends it to the payment server 100 (S16). The payment amount information is acquired in advance by reading a barcode or manually entering it. Based on the received information, the payment server 100 identifies the user corresponding to the one-time code and performs electronic payment (S17). The payment server 100 then sends a payment completion notice to the payment application 20 (S18), and the payment application 20 displays a payment completion screen (S19).

Note that electronic payment may be made using only one of the above patterns. Furthermore, the "account ID" described in FIG. 2 may be other information (e.g., a phone number) that can be used as user identification information. Furthermore, issuance of a one-time code may be omitted in the store scan, and the payment app 20 may display a code image generated based on the user's account ID. In that case, the payment server 100 identifies the user corresponding to the account ID instead of identifying the user corresponding to the one-time code.

[Payment server]
4 is a configuration diagram of the payment server 100 according to the first embodiment. The payment server 100 includes, for example, a communication unit 110, a payment content providing unit 120, a payment processing unit 130, an information management unit 140, a privilege granting unit 150, an electronic flyer distribution unit 160, and a storage unit 170. The components other than the communication unit 110 and the storage unit 170 are realized by, for example, a hardware processor such as a CPU executing a program (software). Some or all of these components may be realized by hardware (including circuitry) such as an LSI (Large Scale Integration), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or may be realized by cooperation between software and hardware. The program may be stored in advance in a storage device such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or flash memory (a storage device with a non-transient storage medium), or may be stored in a removable storage medium (non-transient storage medium) such as a DVD or CD-ROM, and installed in the storage device by inserting the storage medium into a drive device.

The storage unit 170 is a HDD, flash memory, RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. The storage unit 170 may be a NAS (Network Attached Storage) device that the payment server 100 can access via a network. The storage unit 170 stores information such as user information 172, payment content information 174, affiliated store/shop information 176, benefit management information 177, and electronic flyer information 178.

The communication unit 110 is a communication interface for connecting to the network NW. The communication unit 110 is, for example, a network interface card.

The payment content providing unit 120 has, for example, a web server function, and provides information (content) for displaying various screens of the electronic payment service to the user terminal device 10. The payment content providing unit 120 reads out necessary content from the payment content information 174 as appropriate and provides it to the user terminal device 10. The user terminal device 10 accepts various inputs by the user while the content is being played by the payment application 20, and transmits the above-mentioned payment information and the like to the payment server 100.

The payment processing unit 130 performs payment processing based on the payment information transmitted by the user terminal device 10 or the first store terminal device 50. The payment processing unit 130 performs payment processing while referring to the user information 172.

5 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of the user information 172. The user information 172 is an example of the registration information of a user. The user information 172 is, for example, a user URL, an account ID, a telephone number, a password, as well as an email address, a user ID, a name, an address, a date of birth, a registration date, a charge balance, a deferred payment setting, a deferred payment limit, a deferred payment usage amount, a deferred payment available amount, a payment method setting, a bank account, a credit card number, charge history information, payment history information, acquired scratch information, acquired bonus information, and an electronic flyer viewing status, and other information is associated with the user information. The user URL is used for a remittance process between users. When registering for the electronic payment service, it is necessary to register a telephone number and a password. The account ID is issued to the user by the payment server 100, and the user ID is an ID that can be set by the user at will (does not have to be set). The email address, and the name, address, and date of birth are also information that can be set by the user at will (does not have to be set). The registration date is the date on which the user registered for the electronic payment service (the date on which the account was created). Hereinafter, the user instance (electronic payment account) to which this information is associated will be referred to as an account.

The charge balance is information indicating the balance of electronic money that is set by the user by transferring money to the account in advance. The means of transfer include transfer from an ATM (Automatic Teller Machine) of a designated company (bank) and transfer from a registered bank account. The deferred payment setting is information indicating whether or not the setting for enabling electronic payment by deferred payment has been completed, and is set to either "completed" or "not completed." The deferred payment limit is the limit of deferred payment that can be used each month, the deferred payment usage amount is the amount of deferred payment that has already been used in the current month, and the available deferred payment amount is the amount of deferred payment that can be used in the current month, which is calculated by subtracting the deferred payment usage amount from the deferred payment limit. In the figure, only one deferred payment limit is shown, but in reality, there is also a daily upper limit, and the lower of these may be set as the deferred payment limit. Further details of deferred payment will be described later. The payment method setting is setting information indicating whether the user will make electronic payment using the charge balance or payment by deferred payment at that time. The bank account and credit card number are information on a bank account or credit card number (account number, card number) that can be used to deposit funds into an electronic payment service. The charge history information is a history of the user transferring funds to the electronic payment service in advance to increase the charge balance. The payment history information is information that indicates the details of payments made by the user for each payment (date and time, store ID of the store where the purchase was made, payment amount, payment method, etc.).

The acquired scratch card information is information about a scratch card that the user has acquired. In general, a scratch card is a card-shaped physical medium on which secret information is written on the surface, and the secret information is hidden before use, and the secret state can be changed to a public state by a simple manual operation. For example, the secret information is hidden by an opaque sticker or paint, but the user can confirm the secret information by peeling off the sticker or scraping off the paint. The use of the scratch card here means that the secret information is made public by a manual operation. In this embodiment, such a scratch card of a physical medium is simulated by information processing. The acquired scratch card information may include, for example, information such as the type and number of scratch cards acquired by the user, and the validity period. Here, the scratch card is an example of a first benefit given to the user. The first benefit is a type of benefit whose specific content (which may include the presence or absence of the benefit) becomes clear by its use (including automatic use). In contrast, the specific benefit that becomes clear by the use of the first benefit is referred to as the second benefit below.

The acquired benefit information is information about the second benefit acquired by the user by using the scratch card. The acquired benefit information may include, for example, information about the content and quantity of the second benefit acquired by the user, and how to acquire it. In the example of a scratch card, the content of the specific benefit is made confidential information, so that the user who uses the scratch card (first benefit) can be given a benefit whose content is indicated by the confidential information as the second benefit. From the perspective of information processing, the content of the second benefit may be determined before the scratch card is used (but is kept confidential until the scratch card is used), as with a scratch card on a physical medium, or may be determined by a probabilistic lottery process when the scratch card is used.

The electronic flyer viewing status is information indicating the viewing status of an electronic flyer by a user. An electronic flyer is a flyer that is displayed as an image on a device with a display function such as the user terminal device 10. The electronic flyer is distributed to the user terminal device 10 by the electronic flyer distribution unit 160. The payment application 20 displays a list of electronic flyers that can be viewed by the user and accepts an operation to select an electronic flyer, obtains detailed information of the selected electronic flyer from the electronic flyer distribution unit 160, and displays it on the user terminal device 10. When the electronic flyer distribution unit 160 distributes detailed information of an electronic flyer to a certain user, the information management unit 140 marks the electronic flyer as having been viewed and updates the electronic flyer viewing status of the user.

The following describes the case where the first benefit in this embodiment is a scratch card, but the first benefit is not limited to being a scratch card as long as the content of the second benefit is revealed by its use (including both cases where the second benefit is determined when the first benefit is used, and cases where the content of the second benefit, which has been determined in advance, is kept secret until the first benefit is used).

Figure 6 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of affiliated store/store information 176. Affiliated store/store information 176 includes, for example, a first table 176A in which an affiliated store ID and a store ID are associated with a store URL, a second table 176B in which an affiliated store name and sales amount (described above) are associated with an affiliated store ID, and a third table 176C in which a store ID is associated with a store name. In addition to this information, affiliated store/store information 176 may also include information such as the affiliated store or store category, the store's location, and payment patterns.

The information management unit 140 manages user information 172 and affiliated store/store information 176 based on information acquired from the user terminal device 10 and the second store terminal device 70. The information management unit 140 adds, edits, and deletes new records for the user information 172 and affiliated store/store information 176. The information management unit 140 also communicates with a management terminal (not shown) for the electronic payment service, and manages benefit management information 177 and electronic flyer information 178 based on information acquired from the management terminal. The information management unit 140 may also manage benefit management information 177 and electronic flyer information 178 based on information acquired from the second store terminal device 70.

The reward unit 150 performs a process of granting a first reward and a second reward to a user of the electronic payment service. More specifically, the reward unit 150 grants a scratch card (first reward) to a user who has viewed an electronic flyer distributed by the electronic payment service. In addition, the reward unit 150 executes a process of granting an actual reward (second reward) to the user in response to the use of the scratch card. The scratch card may be used by the user's operation, or may be used automatically at a predetermined timing without the user's operation. For example, the reward unit 150 may be configured to automatically use a part or all of the scratch card held by the user without the user's operation when the user makes a payment using the electronic payment service. In addition, the automatic use of the scratch card may be configured to be enabled or disabled by the user through settings.

The conditions for providing a scratch card to a user and the conditions for providing a second benefit to a user by using the scratch card may be set in advance in the benefit management information 177 by the operator of the electronic payment service. The benefit management information 177 may also include the contents of the benefit that may be provided to a user as the second benefit. The benefit management information 177 may also include the conditions (use conditions) under which a user who has been provided with a first benefit (scratch card) can use the first benefit. For example, the use condition of the first benefit may be that a user who has been provided with the first benefit has made a payment at an affiliated store linked to the first benefit. For example, the use condition of the first benefit may be that a user who has been provided with the first benefit by viewing an electronic flyer has made a payment for the purchase price of a product listed in the electronic flyer. The benefit providing unit 150 may provide the first benefit and the second benefit based on the benefit management information 177.

The electronic flyer distribution unit 160 performs a process to distribute electronic flyers to users of the electronic payment service. The operator of the affiliated store registers in advance in the payment server 100 information on the electronic flyers to be distributed and the conditions of the users to whom they are to be distributed. This registered information is stored in the storage unit 170 as electronic flyer information 178 by the information management unit 140. The electronic flyer distribution unit 160 identifies users to whom the registered electronic flyers are to be distributed based on the electronic flyer information 178, and distributes the electronic flyers to the user terminal devices 10 of the identified users.

[Electronic Payment]
When payment information is acquired from the user terminal device 10 or the first store terminal device 50, the payment processing unit 130 refers to the user information 172 to acquire the "payment method setting" of the user. For a user whose "payment method setting" is set to "charge balance", the payment processing unit 130 performs electronic payment as follows. For example, the payment processing unit 130 performs electronic payment by decreasing the charge balance managed in association with the user ID and increasing the item value of the affiliated store's sales. The item value of the affiliated store's sales is not itself used as electronic money, for example, and an amount corresponding to the item value of the sales is transferred to a bank account in a cycle according to an agreement between the affiliated store and the electronic payment service.

The payment processing unit 130 performs electronic payment for users whose "setting information" is set to "deferred payment" as follows. Deferred payment is set separately from "credit payment" in cooperation with a credit card company, which is a separate entity from the operator of the electronic payment service, and the operator of the electronic payment service acts as the creditor and allows electronic payment that is not dependent on the charge balance within the deferred payment limit. In order to receive the deferred payment service, it may be required to obtain a credit card provided by the operator of the electronic payment service. The amount used for deferred payment is settled on the payment date of the following month in a lump sum for one month, for example, by debiting from a bank account. In this case, the payment processing unit 130 performs provisional payment by adding the payment amount to the deferred payment amount and subtracting the same amount from the available deferred payment amount, and when the closing date comes, it performs processing to debit the payment for the current month on the payment date of the following month as described above, or requests the operator of the credit card company to perform such processing. In addition, if the payment amount exceeds the available deferred payment amount at the time of provisional payment, an error notification is returned to the payment application 20.

[Top screen]
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the top screen IM1 of the payment application 20. For example, the top screen IM1 of the payment application 20 includes an area A1 including code images such as barcodes and QR codes (registered trademarks) used in smartphone payment, an area A2 in which icons for instructing main operations in smartphone payment such as charging and scanning are set, and an area A3 in which icons for calling up various functions in the electronic payment service are set. For example, icons for calling up various setting screens related to the electronic payment service, such as setting a payment method in card payment, setting an auto-charge, and setting the priority order for multiple payment methods, may be arranged in the area A3. Also, for example, an icon for displaying a list of scratch cards that have been acquired may be arranged in the area A3, or an icon for displaying a list of second benefits granted by using a scratch card may be arranged. The illustrated icon C1 is an icon for displaying a list of electronic flyers that can be viewed (hereinafter referred to as "electronic flyer list").

[Giving scratch cards (part 1)]
8 is a sequence chart showing an example of a process flow in which the privilege granting unit 150 grants a scratch card to a user who has viewed an electronic flyer as a first mode of granting a scratch card to a user. First, in the user terminal device 10, the payment application 20 accepts an operation to display a list of electronic flyers (S31). For example, the payment application 20 accepts an operation of an icon C1 for displaying a list of electronic flyers among the icons arranged in the area A3 of the top screen IM1. In response to the operation of the icon C1, the payment application 20 requests the payment server 100 for information (electronic flyer list information) for displaying the list of electronic flyers in the payment application 20 (S32). In response to this request, the payment server 100 recognizes electronic flyers that can be viewed by the requesting user, and returns the list information to the requesting payment application 20 (S33). In the user terminal device 10, the payment application 20 generates and displays an electronic flyer list screen based on the electronic flyer list information received from the payment server 100 (S34).

The payment application 20 accepts an operation by the user to select an electronic flyer to be viewed from among the electronic flyers displayed on the electronic flyer list screen (S35). The payment application 20 requests information (electronic flyer information) for displaying details of the selected electronic flyer from the payment server 100 (S36). In response to this request, the payment server 100 retrieves the requested electronic flyer information from the electronic flyer information 178 stored in the memory unit 170 and transmits it to the payment application 20 that made the request (S37), and also issues a scratch card to the requesting user (S38). In the user terminal device 10, the payment application 20 displays the contents of the electronic flyer selected by the user to be viewed based on the electronic flyer information received from the payment server 100 (S39).

Figure 9 is a diagram showing an example of an electronic flyer list screen. The example in Figure 9 shows a situation in which electronic flyer screen IM2 displays a list of electronic flyers EF1 to EF3 that can be viewed by the user. For example, buttons BT11 to BT13 for displaying affiliated stores, target stores, information on validity period, and the contents of the electronic flyer are displayed on each of electronic flyers EF1 to EF3. In addition to this, information indicating that a scratch card can be obtained by viewing electronic flyers EF1 to EF3 or that a scratch card has already been obtained may be displayed on electronic flyers EF1 to EF3. For example, in Figure 9, icon IC1 indicates that a scratch card will be given to a user who views electronic flyer EF1, and icon IC2 indicates that the user has already obtained electronic flyer EF2.

[Giving scratch cards (part 2)]
10 is a sequence chart showing an example of a process flow in which the benefit providing unit 150 provides a scratch card to a user who has viewed an electronic flyer and then made an electronic payment at the affiliated store that issued the electronic flyer (target affiliated store), as a second mode of providing a scratch card to a user. Here, the explanation begins with the payment server 100 executing an electronic payment for a user of the target affiliated store (S41). The electronic payment in S41 may be the user scan type electronic payment (S7) described in FIG. 2, or the store scan type electronic payment (S17) described in FIG. 3. It is also assumed that the user to be processed here has viewed the electronic flyer issued by the target affiliated store before the electronic payment, and this fact is managed by the payment server 100.

When the payment processing unit 130 executes an electronic payment for a user (S41), the reward granting unit 150 judges whether the user has already viewed the electronic flyer of the target affiliated store (S42). Here, when it is judged that the user has already viewed the electronic flyer of the target affiliated store, the reward granting unit 150 executes a process for granting a scratch card to the user (scratch card granting process) (S43). For example, the scratch card granting process is a process for determining matters such as whether or not to grant a scratch card and/or how many scratch cards to grant. In the scratch card granting process, these matters may be determined by a probabilistic lottery, may be determined based on predetermined granting conditions, or may be determined by a method that combines both. The reward granting unit 150 notifies the user terminal device 10 of the completion of the electronic payment in S41 (payment completion notification), and also notifies the user terminal device 10 of the execution result of the scratch card granting process in S43 (whether or not a scratch card has been granted, the number of granted cards, etc.) (S44).

On the other hand, if it is determined in S42 that the user has not yet viewed the electronic flyer, the reward giving unit 150 skips the scratch card giving process and sends a payment completion notice to the user terminal device 10 for the electronic payment in S41 (S45). Note that the payment completion notices sent in S44 and S45 correspond to S8 in FIG. 2 in the user scan method and to S18 in FIG. 3 in the store scan method.

Next, in the user terminal device 10, the payment application 20 receives the payment completion notification received in S44 or S45 and displays a payment completion screen (S46), while determining the result of the scratch card granting process (S47). If it is determined that a scratch card has been granted in the scratch card granting process, the payment application 20 displays a winning screen indicating this (S48). On the other hand, if it is determined in S47 that a scratch card has not been granted in the scratch card granting process, the payment application 20 ends the series of processes related to electronic payment without displaying the winning screen.

Figure 11 is a diagram showing an example of screen transitions when a winning screen is displayed together with a payment completion notification in the payment application 20. When a scratch card is issued to a user in the scratch card issuing process during electronic payment, for example, the payment application 20 is configured to perform screen transitions in the order of payment completion screen IM3, first bonus screen IM4, and second bonus screen IM5. The payment completion screen IM3 is the screen displayed in S9 of Figure 2 in the user scan method, and is the screen displayed in S19 of Figure 3 in the store scan method. For example, the payment completion screen IM3 displays the affiliated store to which the payment is made, the time of payment, the amount paid, a message to the effect that the payment of the amount has been completed, and the like. When a scratch card is issued to a user, the payment completion screen IM3 automatically transitions to the first bonus screen IM4.

The first bonus screen IM4 is a screen that notifies the user that a scratch card has been awarded as the first bonus in the most recent electronic payment. FIG. 11 shows an example in which the first bonus screen IM4 is displayed superimposed on the front side of the payment completion screen IM3. For example, the first bonus screen IM4 displays a message that a scratch card has been awarded (a winner), as well as a button BT21 for accepting an operation to "scratch now" (use now) the awarded scratch card, and a button BT22 for accepting an operation to "scratch later" (use later) rather than using the card now. Here, when button BT21 is operated, the first bonus screen IM4 transitions to the second bonus screen IM5.

The second bonus screen IM5 is a screen that notifies the user of the result of using the scratch card provided in the previous electronic payment. The example of FIG. 11 shows the second bonus screen IM5 displayed superimposed on the front side of the payment completion screen IM3, similar to the first bonus screen IM4. For example, the second bonus screen IM5 displays a button BT23 for accepting an operation to use the provided second bonus, along with a message notifying the content of the second bonus determined by using the scratch card. The example of FIG. 11 shows a case where a coupon is provided as the second bonus. In this case, when the button BT23 is operated, the payment application 20 may transition the second bonus screen IM5 to a coupon list screen. Note that the payment application 20 may be configured to display a performance such as an animation that excites the user during the transition from the payment completion screen IM3 to the first bonus screen IM4 and/or during the transition from the first bonus screen IM4 to the second bonus screen IM5.

Furthermore, when button BT22 is operated on first bonus screen IM4, payment application 20 may transition first bonus screen IM4 to a scratch card list screen. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of scratch card list screen IM6. Scratch card list screen IM6 is a screen that displays a list of scratch cards that the user has already acquired. The example of FIG. 12 shows a situation in which scratch card list screen IM6 displays a list of scratch cards SC1 to SC3 that the user has already acquired. For example, each of scratch cards SC1 to SC3 displays information about affiliated stores, target stores, validity period, number of scratch cards owned, and buttons BT31 to BT33 that accept operations to use the scratch card.

[Conditions for receiving scratch cards]
The bonus granting unit 150 may set a validity period as a condition for granting a scratch card. For example, in this case, the bonus granting unit 150 may grant a scratch card with the posting period of the corresponding electronic flyer as the validity period. For example, the posting period of each electronic flyer is defined by electronic flyer information 178. In this case, the bonus granting unit 150 refers to electronic flyer information 178 when granting a scratch card, and recognizes the posting period of the target electronic flyer. The bonus granting unit 150 grants the scratch card to the user with the recognized posting period as the validity period. In this case, the validity period of the scratch card granted to the user is registered in acquired scratch card information of user information 172 by, for example, the information management unit 140.

The condition for granting a scratch card may be merely that an electronic flyer has been viewed, or the condition may be set such that the presence or absence of granting and the number of granting cards vary based on the viewing history of the electronic flyer and/or the payment history information. For example, the benefit granting unit 150 may grant a scratch card with any one of the following conditions as the granting condition, or may grant a scratch card with a combination of one or more of the following conditions as the granting condition.
- The user viewed the target electronic flyer for the first time.
- The user is located within a specified range of the participating store.
- The user has viewed the electronic flyer a specified number of times.
- The user has made a specified number of electronic payments.
These conditions may be used as conditions for whether or not to grant scratch cards, or may be associated with the number of scratch cards to be granted. For example, the privilege granting unit 150 may grant two scratch cards when the target electronic flyer is viewed for the first time, and thereafter grant one scratch card for each predetermined number of views.

The condition for granting the scratch card may be a probability (granting probability). The granting probability may be 1 (always awarded) as long as it is greater than 0. The granting probability may be fixed or variable. For example, the bonus granting unit 150 may vary the granting probability based on the browsing history and/or payment history information of the electronic flyer. For example, the bonus granting unit 150 may increase the granting probability when the user makes an electronic payment at a certain affiliated store for the first time. For example, the bonus granting unit 150 may increase the granting probability according to the cumulative number of times the user has viewed electronic flyers, including past electronic flyers, for a certain affiliated store. In addition, the bonus granting unit 150 may increase the granting probability when a user who has viewed an electronic flyer purchases a product listed in the electronic flyer at a target affiliated store, compared to when the user purchases a product not listed in the electronic flyer at the target affiliated store.

[Automatic scratch card use]
The reward granting unit 150 may be configured to automatically use a scratch card acquired by a user when a predetermined automatic use condition is satisfied. The automatic use here may include a fully automatic use in which a scratch card is used without a user's confirmation operation, and a semi-automatic use in which a process for encouraging a user to use a scratch card (e.g., a process for displaying a screen for selecting either use or non-use) is automatically executed, and the scratch card is used when the user performs an operation for using the scratch card (an operation for selecting use of the scratch card). For example, the reward granting unit 150 may automatically use a scratch card that is currently within its valid period (e.g., at the time of electronic payment). Also, for example, the reward granting unit 150 may control the automatic use of the scratch card based on the user's payment history information. For example, the reward granting unit 150 may automatically use a scratch card when a user who has viewed an electronic flyer makes an electronic payment to purchase a product listed in the electronic flyer. Also, for example, the reward granting unit 150 may automatically use a scratch card when a user who has viewed an electronic flyer makes an electronic payment to purchase a product during a predetermined time period during the business hours of a target affiliated store.

[Contents of the second benefit]
The benefit granting unit 150 may grant the user a coupon for receiving a cashback (e.g., XX% of the payment amount) according to the total payment amount at the target affiliated store as the second benefit. The total payment amount here is the total amount paid in one payment, and may include the purchase amount of one or more products. The amount of cashback may be determined as a percentage of the total payment amount, or as a percentage of the total purchase amount of the products eligible for cashback. The products eligible for cashback may be specific products or specific types of products designated by the affiliated store, or products with a sales price of a predetermined amount or more. In addition, a cashback amount according to the total payment amount may be provided, or a fixed cashback rate (or cashback amount) may be set for a range of the payment amount. In addition, the products eligible for cashback may be limited to products listed in the electronic flyer viewed by the user. In addition, the products eligible for cashback may be randomly selected from the products purchased by the user.

According to the embodiment described above, it is possible to increase the motivation of users who have viewed an electronic flyer to make a purchase. In other words, according to the above embodiment, it is possible to further increase the sales promotion effect of electronic flyers.

<Modification>
The control of various screens displayed on the payment application 20 may be performed mainly by the payment application 20 or mainly by the payment server 100. For example, when the payment application 20 holds definition information (such as data layout and static information) of the screen configuration for various screens, the payment application 20 may realize various screen displays by combining information acquired from the payment server 100 with the definition information. Conversely, the payment server 100 may generate various screens and provide the display information to the payment application 20. In this case, the payment application 20 may display various screens on the user terminal device 10 by rendering the display information provided from the payment server 100.

In the above embodiment, a scratch card is basically given to a user when he or she views an electronic flyer from a member store, and the scratch card is automatically used when the user pays the purchase price of a product listed in the electronic flyer by electronic payment. However, the second benefit given by the automatic use of the scratch card may be given as an application to the electronic payment, or may be given at the time of the next electronic payment after the electronic payment. In addition, the second benefit may be a coupon that can be used at the member store that issued the electronic flyer (target member store), or may be a coupon that can be used at a specific member store other than the target member store.

If there is an unused scratch card that the user has acquired, the reward granting unit 150 may be configured to check the validity period of the unused scratch card at a predetermined timing (e.g., once a day at XX o'clock, etc.) and notify the payment app 20 of the check result as necessary. For example, if there is an unused scratch card whose validity period has not expired, the reward granting unit 150 may notify the payment app 20 of the date and time when the validity period expires, the number of days or hours until the validity period expires, etc.

The above describes the form for carrying out the present invention using an embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and various modifications and substitutions can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

10 User terminal device 20 Payment application 50 First store terminal device 60 Store code image 70 Second store terminal device 72 Member store interface 100 Payment server 110 Communication unit 120 Payment content providing unit 130 Payment processing unit 140 Information management unit 150 Benefit granting unit 160 Electronic flyer distribution unit 170 Storage unit 172 User information 174 Payment content information 176 Member store/store information 177 Benefit management information 178 Electronic flyer information

Claims (12)

A payment management device that provides an electronic payment service to a user in cooperation with an application program running on a terminal device of the user,
an electronic flyer distribution unit that distributes to the user's terminal device an electronic flyer that is issued by a member store of the electronic payment service and can be viewed on the user's terminal device;
an information management unit that manages information indicating the viewing status of the electronic flyer and information indicating a history of payments made using the electronic payment service;
a reward provision unit that determines whether or not a user has viewed the electronic flyer based on the information indicating the viewing state and provides a reward to the user who has viewed the electronic flyer;
Equipped with
the benefit granting unit grants a first benefit to a user when the user views the electronic flyer, determines whether or not the user who viewed the electronic flyer has made a payment using the electronic payment service at the affiliated store that issued the electronic flyer based on information indicating the payment history, and grants a second benefit based on the first benefit to the user when the user who viewed the electronic flyer has made a payment using the electronic payment service at the affiliated store that issued the electronic flyer ,
the electronic flyer distribution unit causes a terminal device of a user to display information indicating that the first benefit has been granted to the user who has viewed the electronic flyer and been granted the first benefit.
Payment management device. the first benefit is a scratch card;
The second benefit is a specific benefit given to the user, the content of which is disclosed to the user when the user performs an operation of scratching the scratch card.
The payment management device according to claim 1 . the benefit provision unit sets, for the first benefit, a validity period during which the first benefit can be used;
the validity period is set as a period during which an electronic flyer corresponding to the first benefit is posted;
The payment management device according to claim 1 . the benefit granting unit grants the first benefit to a user who has viewed the electronic flyer when the user is located within a predetermined range from a member store that has issued the electronic flyer.
The payment management device according to claim 1 . The first benefit is a benefit whose amount is determined based on a result of a probabilistic lottery,
The second benefit is a benefit whose content is determined or presented to the user by using the first benefit.
The payment management device according to claim 1 . the privilege granting unit automatically uses the first privilege without any operation by the user when the user to whom the first privilege has been granted makes a payment using the electronic payment service.
The payment management device according to claim 5 . the benefit provision unit, when the user to whom the first benefit has been provided makes a payment using the electronic payment service, executes a process for prompting the user to use the first benefit, and uses the first benefit when the user performs an operation for using the first benefit.
The payment management device according to claim 5 . the benefit granting unit grants the second benefit when the user who has viewed the electronic flyer purchases a product published in the electronic flyer at an affiliated store that issues the electronic flyer by using the electronic payment service.
The payment management device according to claim 1 . the benefit granting unit grants the first benefit or the second benefit to the user based on a condition related to a history of the user viewing an electronic flyer of the affiliated store or a history of a payment made by the user using the electronic payment service;
The payment management device according to claim 1 . the electronic flyer distribution unit causes the terminal device to display a list screen of electronic flyers that can be viewed by the user;
the electronic flyer distribution unit displays, for each electronic flyer displayed on the list screen, first information indicating that the electronic flyer is an electronic flyer for which the first benefit is to be given by viewing the electronic flyer, in association with the electronic flyer , and displays, for each electronic flyer, second information indicating that the electronic flyer is an electronic flyer to which the first benefit is given, in association with the electronic flyer.
The payment management device according to claim 1 . A payment management method in which a payment management device cooperates with an application program running on a user's terminal device to provide an electronic payment service to the user, comprising:
an electronic flyer distribution process for distributing, to the terminal device of the user, an electronic flyer that is issued by a member store of the electronic payment service and can be viewed on the terminal device of the user;
an information management process for managing information indicating the viewing status of the electronic flyer and information indicating a history of payments made using the electronic payment service;
a reward provision process for determining whether or not a user has viewed the electronic flyer based on the information indicating the viewing state, and providing a reward to the user who has viewed the electronic flyer;
Run
The benefit granting process grants a first benefit to a user when the user views the electronic flyer , determines whether or not the user who viewed the electronic flyer has made a payment using the electronic payment service at the affiliated store that issued the electronic flyer based on information indicating the payment history, and grants a second benefit based on the first benefit to the user when the user who viewed the electronic flyer has made a payment using the electronic payment service at the affiliated store that issued the electronic flyer,
displaying information indicating that the first benefit has been granted to a user who has viewed the distributed electronic flyer and been granted the first benefit on a terminal device of the user;
Payment management methods. A program for causing a payment management device to provide an electronic payment service to a user in cooperation with an application program running on a terminal device of the user,
an electronic flyer distribution process for distributing, to the terminal device of the user, an electronic flyer that is issued by a member store of the electronic payment service and can be viewed on the terminal device of the user;
an information management process for managing information indicating the viewing status of the electronic flyer and information indicating a history of payments made using the electronic payment service;
a reward provision process for determining whether or not a user has viewed the electronic flyer based on the information indicating the viewing state, and providing a reward to the user who has viewed the electronic flyer;
The above is executed.
The benefit granting process grants a first benefit to a user when the user views the electronic flyer, determines whether or not the user who viewed the electronic flyer has made a payment using the electronic payment service at the affiliated store that issued the electronic flyer based on information indicating the payment history, and grants a second benefit based on the first benefit to the user when the user who viewed the electronic flyer has made a payment using the electronic payment service at the affiliated store that issued the electronic flyer ,
execute a process of displaying information indicating that the first benefit has been granted to a user who has viewed the distributed electronic flyer and been granted the first benefit on a terminal device of the user;
Program for .

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