Settlement management device, settlement management method and program

Abstract

To enable a sales promotion effect to be further enhanced by electronic flyers.SOLUTION: A settlement management device for providing an electronic settlement service to a user in cooperation with an application program running on a terminal device of the user comprises: an electronic flyer distribution unit for distributing, to the terminal device of the user, an electronic flyer that has been issued by a member store of the electronic settlement service, and that is viewable on the terminal device of the user; and a reward granting unit for granting a reward to a user who has viewed the electronic flyer. The reward granting unit grants a first reward to the user when the user has viewed the electronic flyer, and grants a second reward based on the first reward to the user when the user who has viewed the electronic flyer makes a payment using the electronic settlement service at the member store that is an issuance source of the electronic flyer.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a payment management device, a payment management method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, electronic flyers that can be viewed on information processing devices are delivered to users' terminal devices as electronic data, and if a user who views the electronic flyer purchases a product listed in the electronic flyer, the user is given a specified incentive (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 7282226 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Conventional techniques have not always been able to sufficiently increase the likelihood that users who view an electronic flyer will make a purchase.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and one of its objects is to provide a payment management device, a payment management method, and a program that can increase the sales promotion effect of electronic flyers. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] 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 issued by a member store of the electronic payment service that is viewable on the user's terminal device, and a bonus granting unit that grants a bonus to a user who views the electronic flyer, wherein the bonus granting unit grants a first bonus to the user when the user views the electronic flyer, and grants a second bonus based on the first bonus to the user when the user who viewed the electronic flyer makes a payment using the electronic payment service at the member store that issued the electronic flyer. Effect of the Invention

[0007] 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. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration for realizing an electronic payment service. [Diagram 2] This is a sequence diagram (part 1) illustrating the general flow of electronic payment. [Diagram 3] This is a sequence diagram (part 2) illustrating the general flow of electronic payment. [Figure 4] 1 is a configuration diagram of a payment server 100 according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of user information 172. [Figure 6] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of affiliated store / store information 176. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a top screen IM1 of a payment application 20. [Figure 8]11 is a sequence chart showing an example of a process flow in which the benefit giving section 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. [Figure 9] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of an electronic flyer list screen. [Figure 10] 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. [Figure 11] 13A and 13B 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. [Figure 12] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a scratch card list screen. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, with reference to the drawings, an embodiment of the payment management device, the payment management method, and the program of the present invention will be described. Various devices for providing services to users and performing internal analysis, such as the "server", "management device", and "information providing device" that will appear below, may be realized by a group of distributed devices, and each device may be operated by a different business operator. Furthermore, the owner of the hardware of the device (the cloud server provider) and the business operator that actually operates the device may also be different. The application program and the payment server work together to provide the electronic payment service. In the following description, the application program is referred to as a payment application. 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 different from 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 an 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, processing such as payment may be carried out between the user and the store.

[0010] [Electronic payment service] Fig. 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.

[0011] 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 reception function, and a program execution function. In the following description, 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 application 20, thereby operating to provide an electronic payment service to a user in cooperation with a payment server 100. The payment application 20 is installed in the user terminal device 10 from, for example, an application store, and controls the camera, communication device, touch panel, etc.

[0012] 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).

[0013] 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, or the like. 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 corresponding to a store code image and reading a code image displayed by the user terminal device 10 by executing the app for affiliated stores.

[0014] 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 via the affiliated store server to the payment server 100. 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.

[0015] 2 and 3 are sequence diagrams illustrating the general flow of electronic payment. There may be two patterns of electronic payment: pattern 1 and pattern 2.

[0016] 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 an electronic payment service domain to which store-identifying information is added, and is associated with an affiliated store ID, a 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 the store ID corresponding to the store URL, acquires the affiliated store name and the 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 the 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 step of the user inputting the payment amount is omitted, and the information on the payment amount is included in the first payment information and transmitted to the payment server 100. Information on the affiliated store name and the store name may be included in the payment completion screen and displayed.

[0017] In the case of pattern 2 (hereinafter referred to as store scan) shown in FIG. 3, when the payment application 20 is started, when a payment operation is performed in the payment application 20, when an automatic update timing (e.g., every minute) occurs, and at other timings, the payment application 20 transmits a request for issuing a one-time code to the payment server 100 (S11). The payment server 100 generates a one-time code (S12) and transmits it to the payment application 20 (S13). The payment application 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 by an optical reading function and obtains the one-time code, etc. (S15). The first store terminal device 50 then generates payment information including the one-time code, payment amount, affiliated store ID, store ID, etc., and transmits it to the payment server 100 (S16). The payment amount information is acquired in advance by reading a barcode or manually entering it. The payment server 100 identifies the user corresponding to the one-time code based on the received information and performs electronic payment (S17). The payment server 100 then transmits a payment completion notice to the payment application 20 (S18), and the payment application 20 displays a payment completion screen (S19).

[0018] Note that electronic payment may be performed 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 application 20 may display a code image generated based on the user's account ID. In this case, the payment server 100 identifies the user corresponding to the account ID instead of identifying the user corresponding to the one-time code.

[0019] [Payment server] FIG. 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 (a storage device with a non-transient storage medium) such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or flash memory, 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.

[0020] The storage unit 170 is a HDD, a flash memory, a 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.

[0021] 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.

[0022] The payment content providing unit 120 has, for example, a function of a Web server, 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 appropriately reads necessary content from the payment content information 174 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.

[0023] 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.

[0024] FIG. 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 post-payment setting, a post-payment limit, a post-payment usage amount, a post-payment available amount, a payment method setting, a bank account, a credit card number, charge history information, payment history information, acquired scratch information, acquired privilege 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). Similarly, the email address, and the name, address, and date of birth are 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's instance (electronic payment account) to which this information is associated will be referred to as an account.

[0025] The charge balance is information indicating the balance of electronic money that is set by a user by transferring money to an 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 deferred payment available 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. Although only one deferred payment limit is shown in the figure, 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 perform electronic payment using the charge balance or payment by deferred payment at that time. The bank account and credit card number are information on the bank account or credit card number (account number, card number) that can be used to deposit funds into the electronic payment service. The charge history information is a history of the user's previous transfers to the electronic payment service 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.).

[0026] The acquired scratch card information is information about a scratch card that a 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 in a hidden state before use, and the hidden 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 a 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, a specific benefit that becomes clear by the use of the first benefit is hereinafter referred to as a second benefit.

[0027] 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 obtain it. In the example of the scratch card, the specific benefit content 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 viewpoint 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.

[0028] 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 having 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 updates the electronic flyer viewing status of the user by marking the electronic flyer as having been viewed.

[0029] The following describes the case in this embodiment where the first benefit is a scratch card, but the first benefit is not limited to being in the form of a scratch card as long as the content of the second benefit is revealed by its use (including both the case where the second benefit is determined when the first benefit is used and the case where the content of the second benefit, which has been determined in advance, is kept secret until the first benefit is used).

[0030] 6 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of affiliated store / store information 176. The 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, the affiliated store / store information 176 may also include information such as the category of the affiliated store or store, the location of the store, and payment patterns.

[0031] 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 new records, edits, deletes, etc. for the user information 172 and affiliated store / store information 176. The information management unit 140 also communicates with a management terminal (not shown) of 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.

[0032] The benefit providing unit 150 performs a process of providing a first benefit and a second benefit to a user of the electronic payment service. More specifically, the benefit providing unit 150 provides a scratch card (first benefit) to a user who has viewed an electronic flyer distributed by the electronic payment service. In addition, the benefit providing unit 150 performs a process of providing an actual benefit (second benefit) to the user in response to the use of the scratch card. The scratch card may be used by a user's operation, or may be used automatically at a predetermined timing without a user's operation. For example, the benefit providing unit 150 may be configured to automatically use a part or all of a scratch card held by the user without a user's operation when the user makes a payment using the electronic payment service. In addition, the user may be configured to be able to switch between enabling and disabling the automatic use of the scratch card by a setting.

[0033] The granting condition when the scratch card is granted to the user and the granting condition when the scratch card is used to grant the second privilege to the user may be set in advance in the privilege management information 177 by the operator of the electronic payment service. The privilege management information 177 may also include the content of the privilege that may be granted to the user as the second privilege. The privilege management information 177 may also include a condition (use condition) under which the user who has been granted the first privilege (scratch card) can use the first privilege. For example, the use condition of the first privilege may be that the user who has been granted the first privilege has made a payment at an affiliated store linked to the first privilege. For example, the use condition of the first privilege may be that the user who has viewed an electronic flyer and been granted the first privilege has made a payment for the purchase price of a product listed in the electronic flyer. The privilege granting unit 150 may grant the first privilege and the second privilege based on the privilege management information 177.

[0034] Electronic flyer distribution unit 160 performs processing to distribute electronic flyers to users of the electronic payment service. The operator of the affiliated store registers in advance in payment server 100 information on the electronic flyers to be distributed and the conditions of the users to whom the flyers are to be distributed. This registered information is stored in storage unit 170 as electronic flyer information 178 by information management unit 140. Based on electronic flyer information 178, electronic flyer distribution unit 160 identifies users to whom the registered electronic flyers are to be distributed, and distributes the electronic flyers to the user terminal devices 10 of the identified users.

[0035] [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 used as electronic money itself, 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.

[0036] 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 a 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, a credit card provided by the operator of the electronic payment service may be required. The amount used for deferred payment is settled on the payment date of the following month, for example, by debiting from a bank account, for one month. 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.

[0037] [Top page] 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, the area A3 may include 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. Also, for example, the area A3 may include an icon for displaying a list of scratch cards that have been acquired, or an icon for displaying a list of second benefits granted by using a scratch card. The illustrated icon C1 is an icon for displaying a list of viewable electronic flyers (hereinafter referred to as "electronic flyer list").

[0038] [Scratch card allocation (part 1)] FIG. 8 is a sequence chart showing an example of a process flow in which the benefit 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 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).

[0039] 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 acquires the requested electronic flyer information from the electronic flyer information 178 stored in the storage unit 170 and transmits it to the payment application 20 that made the request (S37), and also grants 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).

[0040] Fig. 9 is a diagram showing an example of an electronic flyer list screen. The example in Fig. 9 shows a state in which the 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 the electronic flyers EF1 to EF3. In addition to these, information indicating that a scratch card can be obtained by viewing the electronic flyers EF1 to EF3 or that a scratch card has already been obtained may be displayed on the electronic flyers EF1 to EF3. For example, in Fig. 9, icon IC1 indicates that a scratch card will be given to a user who has viewed the electronic flyer EF1, and icon IC2 indicates that the user has already obtained the electronic flyer EF2.

[0041] [Granting scratch cards (part 2)] FIG. 10 is a sequence chart showing an example of a process flow in which, as a second mode of granting a scratch card to a user, the benefit granting unit 150 grants a scratch card to a user who has made an electronic payment at the affiliated store that issued the electronic flyer (target affiliated store) after viewing the electronic flyer. Here, the explanation starts from the point where the payment server 100 executes 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 already viewed the electronic flyer issued by the target affiliated store before the electronic payment, and this fact is managed by the payment server 100.

[0042] When the payment processing unit 130 executes an electronic payment for a user (S41), the benefit granting unit 150 judges whether the user has already viewed an electronic flyer of the target affiliated store (S42). Here, when it is judged that the user has already viewed an electronic flyer of the target affiliated store, the benefit granting unit 150 executes a process (scratch card granting process) for granting a scratch card to the user (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 a predetermined granting condition, or may be determined by a method combining both. The benefit granting unit 150 notifies the user terminal device 10 of the completion of the electronic payment in S41 (payment completion notice), 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).

[0043] On the other hand, if it is determined in S42 that the user has not yet viewed the electronic flyer, the benefit granting unit 150 skips the scratch card granting process and transmits a payment completion notice for the electronic payment in S41 to the user terminal device 10 (S45). Note that the payment completion notices transmitted 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.

[0044] 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), and determines 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 that (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.

[0045] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of screen transition when a winning screen is displayed together with a payment completion notification in the payment application 20. When a scratch card is given to a user in a scratch card giving process during electronic payment, for example, the payment application 20 is configured to perform screen transitions in the order of a payment completion screen IM3, a first bonus screen IM4, and a second bonus screen IM5. The payment completion screen IM3 is a screen displayed at S9 in FIG. 2 in the user scan method, and is a screen displayed at S19 in FIG. 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 the payment, the amount paid, a message indicating that the payment of the amount has been completed, and the like. When a scratch card is given to a user, the payment completion screen IM3 automatically transitions to the first bonus screen IM4.

[0046] The first benefit screen IM4 is a screen for notifying the user that a scratch card has been awarded as the first benefit in the immediately preceding electronic payment. FIG. 11 shows an example in which the first benefit screen IM4 is displayed superimposed on the front side of the payment completion screen IM3. For example, the first benefit screen IM4 displays a message that a scratch card has been awarded (won), 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 select "scratch later" (use later) without using it now. Here, when the button BT21 is operated, the first benefit screen IM4 transitions to the second benefit screen IM5.

[0047] The second bonus screen IM5 is a screen that notifies the user of the result of using the scratch card provided in the immediately preceding electronic payment. The example of FIG. 11 shows the second bonus screen IM5 displayed in a manner 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 together 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. The payment application 20 may be configured to display a production such as an animation that excites the user during the transition from the payment completion screen IM3 to the first bonus screen IM4 or / and during the transition from the first bonus screen IM4 to the second bonus screen IM5.

[0048] Furthermore, when button BT22 is operated on first benefit screen IM4, payment application 20 may transition first benefit 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 already acquired by the user. The example of FIG. 12 shows a situation where scratch card list screen IM6 displays a list of scratch cards SC1 to SC3 already acquired by the user. For example, each of scratch cards SC1 to SC3 displays information about affiliated stores, target stores, and validity period, the number of scratch cards owned, and buttons BT31 to BT33 that accept operation to use the scratch card.

[0049] [Conditions for receiving scratch cards] The benefit providing unit 150 may set a validity period as a condition for providing a scratch card. For example, in this case, the benefit providing unit 150 may provide a scratch card with a validity period equal to the publication period of the corresponding electronic flyer. For example, the publication period of each electronic flyer is defined by electronic flyer information 178. In this case, the benefit providing unit 150 refers to electronic flyer information 178 when providing a scratch card, and recognizes the publication period of the target electronic flyer. The benefit providing unit 150 provides the scratch card to the user with the recognized publication period as the validity period. In this case, the validity period of the scratch card provided to the user is registered in acquired scratch card information of user information 172 by, for example, the information management unit 140.

[0050] 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 a scratch card and the number of scratch cards granted vary based on the viewing history of the electronic flyer and / or payment history information. For example, the benefit granting unit 150 may grant a scratch card under any of the following conditions, or may grant a scratch card under any combination of one or more of the following conditions. - 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.

[0051] The condition for granting the scratch card may be a probability (award probability). The award probability may be 1 (always awarded) as long as it is greater than 0. The award probability may be fixed or variable. For example, the reward granting unit 150 may vary the award probability based on the browsing history and / or payment history information of the electronic flyer. For example, the reward granting unit 150 may increase the award probability when the user makes an electronic payment at a certain affiliated store for the first time. For example, the reward granting unit 150 may increase the award 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 reward granting unit 150 may increase the award 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.

[0052] [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 referred to here may include fully automatic use in which a scratch card is used without the need for a user's confirmation operation, and 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 the scratch card when a user who has viewed an electronic flyer makes an electronic payment for purchasing a product during a predetermined time period during the business hours of a target affiliated store.

[0053] [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 may be provided in an amount according to the total payment amount, 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.

[0054] 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, which in turn increases the sales promotion effect of the electronic flyer.

[0055] <Modification> The control of various screens displayed on the payment application 20 may be mainly performed by the payment application 20 or may be mainly performed by the payment server 100. For example, when the payment application 20 holds definition information of the screen configuration for various screens (data arrangement, static information, etc.), 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.

[0056] In the above embodiment, a scratch card is basically given to a user when he / she views an electronic flyer of an affiliated 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 affiliated store that issued the electronic flyer (target affiliated store), or may be a coupon that can be used at a specific affiliated store other than the target affiliated store.

[0057] When 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 application 20 of the check result as necessary. For example, when there is an unused scratch card whose validity period has not expired, the reward granting unit 150 may notify the payment application 20 of the date and time when the validity period expires, the number of days, time, etc. until the validity period expires.

[0058] 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 within the scope that does not deviate from the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0059] 10 User terminal device 20. Payment App 50 First store terminal device 60 Store Code Image 70 Second store terminal device 72 Merchant Interface 100 Payment Server 110 Communications Department 120 Payment Contents Provider 130 Payment processing unit 140 Information Management Department 150 Benefits Granting Department 160 Electronic Flyer Distribution Department 170 Storage section 172 User information 174 Payment Content Information 176 Affiliated Stores / Store Information 177 Benefit Management Information 178 Electronic flyer information

Claims

1. 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; a reward provision unit that provides a reward to a user who has viewed the electronic flyer; Equipped with the benefit provision unit provides a first benefit to the user when the user views the electronic flyer, and provides a second benefit based on the first benefit to the user when the user who has viewed the electronic flyer makes a payment by the electronic payment service at an affiliated store that is an issuer of the electronic flyer. Payment management device.

2. 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 depending on the use of the first benefit. The payment management device according to claim 1 .

3. 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 2.

4. 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 2.

5. the benefit granting unit grants the second benefit when a 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 .

6. 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 .

7. 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, for each electronic flyer displayed on the list screen, displays first information indicating that the electronic flyer is an electronic flyer for which the first benefit will be given when viewed, in association with the electronic flyer, and displays second information indicating that the electronic flyer is an electronic flyer for which the first benefit has been given when viewed in the past, in association with the electronic flyer. The payment management device according to claim 1 .

8. 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; A reward giving process for giving a reward to a user who has viewed the electronic flyer; Run In the benefit provision process, a first benefit is provided to a user when the user views the electronic flyer, and a second benefit based on the first benefit is provided to the user when the user who viewed the electronic flyer makes a payment by the electronic payment service at an affiliated store that has issued the electronic flyer. Payment management methods.

9. 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; A reward giving process for giving a reward to a 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, and grants a second benefit based on the first benefit to the user when the user who viewed the electronic flyer makes a payment by the electronic payment service at an affiliated store that has issued the electronic flyer. program.

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