Advertisement control system, advertisement control method, and advertisement control program

Abstract

To provide advertisement information that conforms to the policy of a virtual space.SOLUTION: An identifying unit identifies a condition associated with a virtual space in which a user's avatar is situated, among a plurality of virtual spaces, from a database that associates each of the plurality of virtual spaces with conditions for advertisements displayable in the virtual space. A determining unit determines an advertisement to be displayed based on the specified condition.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an advertisement control system, an advertisement control method, and an advertisement control program. [Background technology]

[0002] There is known a metaverse service that provides a three-dimensional virtual space. Patent Literature 1 discloses a technology in which, in the metaverse service, a product is ordered from a real store via an avatar in the virtual space. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 7217831 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] There is a need to provide advertisements by placing objects that reproduce real-world products or services in virtual space. For example, a metaverse system can display advertisement information, including the advertiser's logo, near the object to be advertised. On the other hand, virtual spaces are often constructed with policies, and it is undesirable to display advertisement information that deviates from the policies.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide an advertisement control system, an advertisement control method, and an advertisement control program that can provide advertisement information that conforms to the policy of a virtual space. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] According to an aspect of the present invention, the advertising control system includes an identification unit that identifies conditions associated with a virtual space in which a user's avatar is located from a database that associates each of a plurality of virtual spaces with conditions for advertisements that can be displayed in the virtual space, and a determination unit that determines the advertisement to be displayed in accordance with the identified conditions. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the above aspect, the advertising control system can provide advertising information that complies with the policy of the virtual space. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a metaverse system according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a server device according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a core server according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] 3 is a flowchart showing an advertisement providing method by the metaverse system according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a screen on which advertisement information according to the first embodiment is displayed. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a configuration of a computer according to at least one embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] First embodiment Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a metaverse system according to the first embodiment. The metaverse system 1 includes a server device 10 and a client terminal 30. The metaverse system 1 provides a user with a virtual space that can be explored through an avatar. Using the metaverse system 1, a company can provide an experiential advertisement that allows a user to experience a real-world product or service through an avatar. In other words, the metaverse system 1 is an example of an advertisement control system. In the metaverse system 1 according to the first embodiment, a core virtual space (base space) is linked to unique virtual spaces (service spaces) provided by various companies. This allows a user to freely move through a plurality of virtual spaces through an avatar. In the metaverse system 1 according to the first embodiment, the plurality of virtual spaces are provided by different server devices 10. Hereinafter, the server device 10 that provides the base space is referred to as a core server 10B, and the server device 10 that provides the service space is referred to as a corporate server 10C.

[0010] The server device 10 manages and controls the virtual space. The management and control of the virtual space includes the management and control of avatars arranged in the virtual space. The management and control of the virtual space is realized by a metaverse engine installed in the server device 10. The metaverse engine is middleware having functions such as drawing three-dimensional objects, determining collisions of objects, and managing a file system. The server device 10 may be a distributed system configured by a plurality of server devices or a plurality of virtualized server devices. Each server device 10 (particularly, the enterprise server 10C) may be an individual execution environment provided on the same cloud infrastructure provided by the administrator of the metaverse system 1 as a Platform as a Service (PaaS).

[0011] Among the server devices 10, the backbone server 10B in particular manages and controls the base space, and also manages users and processes payments. The enterprise server 10C manages and controls the service space. The enterprise server 10C acquires user data from the backbone server 10B, and controls avatars in the service space based on the user data.

[0012] The client terminal 30 is a terminal operated by a user. Examples of the client terminal 30 include a PC, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, and a VR headset. The client terminal 30 includes at least an input device and an output device. The output device displays an image of a virtual space according to display data of the virtual space transmitted from the server device 10. The virtual space may be drawn in the client terminal 30 or in the server device. In the metaverse system 1 according to the first embodiment, the virtual space is drawn in the server device. The client terminal 30 accepts a user's operation via the input device and transmits an operation signal to the server device 10. The user's operation includes an instruction for an avatar's action, an instruction for changing settings, and the like. Examples of the input device include a touch panel, a button, and a joystick.

[0013] The server device 10 and the client terminal 30 transmit and receive data to and from each other via a network such as the Internet.

[0014] Regarding the server device 10 FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the server device 10 according to the first embodiment. The server device 10 simulates a three-dimensional virtual space.

[0015] The server device 10 includes an asset database 11 , a placement unit 12 , a receiving unit 13 , an object control unit 14 , a drawing unit 15 , a transmitting unit 16 , and a linking unit 17 .

[0016] The asset database 11 stores data on objects placed in a virtual space. Specifically, the asset database 11 stores the object name, a three-dimensional model representing the shape of the object, and an algorithm set for the object in association with each other.

[0017] The placement unit 12 places an instance of an object in a virtual space. Hereinafter, an instance of an object is also simply called an object. The object includes an avatar, an NPC (Non Player Character), a terrain, a building, a background, and the like.

[0018] The receiving unit 13 receives an avatar operation signal from the client terminal 30 .

[0019] The object control unit 14 controls objects arranged in the virtual space. For example, the object control unit 14 determines the position and orientation of the object according to an algorithm set for the object. The object control unit 14 controls the position and orientation of the avatar object according to the operation signal received by the receiving unit 13. The object control unit 14 performs collision determination between multiple objects, and executes processing according to the algorithm based on the determination result.

[0020] The rendering unit 15 renders the virtual space based on the viewpoint of a virtual camera arranged in the virtual space. The virtual camera may be located, for example, behind the avatar (third-person viewpoint) or from the viewpoint of the avatar (first-person viewpoint).

[0021] The transmission unit 16 transmits to the client terminal 30 a display signal for displaying the image data depicting the virtual space.

[0022] The collaboration unit 17 exchanges data with other server devices 10. For example, when an avatar moves to another virtual space, the collaboration unit 17 transmits information required for control to the other server device 10 that manages the destination virtual space. For example, the collaboration unit 17 exchanges information about a user related to the avatar in order to provide a service in the virtual space.

[0023] <<About the core server 10B>> FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the core server 10B according to the first embodiment. In addition to the functions of the server device 10, the core server 10B further includes a user database 18, a user management section 19, an item database 20, an advertisement database 21, a policy database 22, and an advertisement control section .

[0024] The user database 18 stores information about users of the metaverse system 1. Specifically, the user database 18 stores the user's account name, authentication information, avatar setting data, and payment method information in association with each other.

[0025] The authentication information is data for authenticating an individual user in order to log in to the metaverse system 1. Examples of the authentication information include a password and biometric data (e.g., fingerprint data). The history data is data indicating the behavior history of the user.

[0026] The payment method information is information on virtual currency (not limited to crypto assets) held by the user and available in the metaverse system 1. When legal tender is used in the metaverse system 1, the payment method information may be credit card information or bank account information.

[0027] The user management unit 19 accepts input of an account name and authentication information from the user via the client terminal 30, and performs authentication processing for the user. If the authentication processing is successful, the user management unit 19 performs login processing to link the accessed client terminal 30 with the account of the authenticated user. After that, when the server device 10 receives an operation signal from the client terminal 30, it determines that the operation signal is an operation signal for the avatar of the user linked to the client terminal 30.

[0028] The item database 20 stores, for each avatar, information on items belonging to the avatar. An item is data used to decorate the avatar. Examples of items include objects such as clothes and cars, non-objects such as hairstyles and makeup, and avatar actions such as dance actions and poses. An item may be an object that is a three-dimensional model, or shapeless data such as texture data. Specifically, the item database 20 stores an avatar ID that identifies an avatar, an item ID that identifies an item belonging to the avatar, a company ID that identifies a company that provides the item (sponsor), and a product type in association with each other. Note that the company ID may be an optional item in the item database 20. In other words, there may be an item that does not have a sponsor. The company ID and the product type are examples of attribute information of an item.

[0029] The advertisement database 21 stores advertisement information. Specifically, the advertisement database 21 stores a company ID that identifies a company, advertisement data, and industry data in association with each other. The advertisement data is data of advertisement information to be displayed on the client terminal 30. Examples of advertisement data include a character string representing a company name, an image displaying a company logo, a moving image, and a three-dimensional model. The industry data represents the industry to which a company belongs. The industry data is data that can identify an industry at different granularities, for example, major classifications such as manufacturing, construction, retail, and service, medium classifications such as food manufacturing, beverage manufacturing, textile industry, printing, and electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing, and minor classifications such as textile industry, shirt manufacturing, underwear manufacturing, and Japanese clothing product manufacturing.

[0030] The policy database 22 stores the display policy of advertisement information in each service space. Specifically, the policy database 22 stores the ID of the service space, the display conditions of advertisements, and the application conditions in association with each other. The display conditions may be a whitelist that specifies the company ID of a company that allows the advertisement to be displayed, or a blacklist that specifies the company ID of a company that prohibits the advertisement from being displayed, or a blacklist that specifies the company ID of a company that prohibits the advertisement from being displayed. In the case of a whitelist, for example, the company ID of the company itself, the company ID of a collaborating company, etc. are specified. In the case of a blacklist, for example, the company ID of a competing company, the same industry as the company itself, an industry that does not fit the worldview of the service space, etc. are specified. The application conditions represent conditions for applying the suppression of advertisements due to the display conditions. Examples of the application conditions include applying until leaving the service space, applying for 10 minutes of stay in the service space, applying according to a user's selection, etc.

[0031] The advertisement control unit 23 determines the advertisement data to be displayed on the client terminal 30. The method of determining the advertisement data by the advertisement control unit 23 is as follows. First, the advertisement control unit 23 identifies avatars (including the avatar to be operated) that exist within the range drawn by the drawing unit 15 in the virtual space. The advertisement control unit 23 identifies sponsors of items belonging to each of the identified avatars from the item database 20. The advertisement control unit 23 refers to the policy database 22 and extracts, from the identified sponsors, those that satisfy the display conditions of advertisements in the drawn virtual space. The advertisement control unit 23 reads out advertisement data related to the extracted sponsors from the advertisement database 21. The advertisement control unit 23 places the read advertisement data in the vicinity of an avatar that has an item of the sponsor related to the advertisement data. Note that if there is no item that satisfies the display conditions among the items held by the avatar, the advertisement control unit 23 does not place the advertisement data in the vicinity of the avatar.

[0032] The advertisement control unit 23 can specify the virtual space in which the avatar exists, based on the operation signal that the receiving unit 13 receives from the client terminal 30 and the user data that the linking unit 17 receives from the company server 10C.

[0033] 《How ads are provided》 A user accesses the core server 10B using a client terminal 30. The user transmits an account name and authentication information to the core server 10B using the client terminal 30. The user management unit 19 of the core server 10B compares the combination of the account name and authentication information received from the client terminal 30 with the combination of the account name and authentication information stored in the user database 18, and performs login processing for the user.

[0034] If the login process is successful, the placement unit 12 of the core server 10B places the user's avatar in the base space. The drawing unit 15 draws the base space from a viewpoint corresponding to the avatar, and the transmission unit 16 transmits a display signal to the client terminal 30. As a result, an image of the base space is displayed on the client terminal 30. The user can operate the client terminal 30 to explore the base space.

[0035] 4 is a flowchart showing an advertisement providing method by the metaverse system 1 according to the first embodiment. The server device 10 repeatedly executes the following process while the avatar exists in the virtual space. The server device 10 receives an operation signal from the client terminal 30 according to a user's operation (step S1). The object control unit 14 controls the avatar object based on the operation signal (step S2). The object control unit 14 controls not only the avatar object but also each of a plurality of objects. The drawing unit 15 draws the virtual space from a viewpoint related to the controlled avatar (step S3).

[0036] The advertisement control unit 23 identifies the virtual space in which the user's avatar is located (step S4). The advertisement control unit 23 reads out the display conditions and application conditions associated with the identified virtual space from the policy database 22 (step S5).

[0037] The advertisement control unit 23 identifies avatars present in the drawing range (step S6). The advertisement control unit 23 selects the avatars identified in step S6 one by one (step S7), and executes the following processes from step S8 to step S11 for the selected avatar.

[0038] The advertisement control unit 23 identifies a company ID associated with one or more items belonging to the selected avatar (step S8). The advertisement control unit 23 determines whether or not there is a company that satisfies the display conditions and application conditions read in step S5 among the identified company IDs (step S9). If there is a company that satisfies the conditions (step S9: YES), the advertisement control unit 23 determines companies that will display advertisements from among the companies that satisfy the conditions, up to a predetermined upper limit (step S10). The advertisement control unit 23 reads advertisement data related to the determined company from the advertisement database 21, and places it in the vicinity of the avatar selected in step S7 among the drawn images (step S11). On the other hand, if there is no company that satisfies the conditions (step S9: NO), the advertisement control unit 23 does not place advertisement data near the avatar selected in step S7.

[0039] When the advertisement data is placed near each of the avatars identified in step S6, the transmitter 16 transmits a display signal to the client terminal 30 (step S12). As a result, an image in which the advertisement information is placed near the avatars is displayed on the client terminal 30, as shown in Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a screen on which the advertisement information according to the first embodiment is displayed.

[0040] Thus, according to the first embodiment, the metaverse system 1 identifies conditions associated with the virtual space in which the user's avatar is located from a database that associates each of a plurality of virtual spaces with conditions for advertisements that can be displayed in the virtual space, and determines the advertisement to be displayed according to the identified conditions. This allows the metaverse system 1 to provide advertisement information that conforms to the policy of the virtual space.

[0041] Other Embodiments Although one embodiment has been described in detail above with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to the above, and various design changes are possible. That is, in other embodiments, the order of the above-mentioned processes may be changed as appropriate. Also, some of the processes may be executed in parallel.

[0042] The metaverse system 1 according to the embodiment described above renders the virtual space on the server device 10, but is not limited to this. For example, the metaverse system 1 according to another embodiment may perform the rendering process on the client terminal 30. In the first embodiment, the advertisement control unit 23 identifies an avatar present in the rendering range in step S6, but when rendering the virtual space on the client terminal 30, the advertisement control unit 23 may identify, for example, a user's avatar or an avatar present within a predetermined distance from the camera. Then, the transmission unit 16 may transmit to the client terminal 30 the three-dimensional model before rendering and data indicating the relationship between the advertisement data to be displayed and the corresponding avatar.

[0043] The advertisement control unit 23 of the metaverse system 1 according to the embodiment described above refers to the item database 20 and the advertisement database 21 to identify the company to which the item belongs and its industry, but is not limited to this. For example, in the metaverse system 1 according to another embodiment, the item ID itself may represent the type of company and product. For example, when the item ID is expressed by six alphanumeric characters such as "A100TM", the first alphabet character may represent the major category of the industry, the second to fourth numbers may represent the medium category of the industry, the fifth alphabet character may represent the company, and the sixth alphabet character may represent the type of product. Also, in the metaverse system 1 according to another embodiment, the company ID may represent the industry of the company.

[0044] The metaverse system 1 according to the embodiment described above displays advertisement information near each drawn avatar, but is not limited to this. For example, the metaverse system 1 according to another embodiment may display advertisement information near the user's avatar, but not near other avatars. Also, for example, the metaverse system 1 according to another embodiment may display advertisement information not only near the avatar, but also near NPC objects and non-human objects.

[0045] The metaverse system 1 according to the embodiment described above provides a series of metaverses by linking a base space and a service space, which are virtual spaces constructed in different coordinate spaces, but is not limited to this. For example, the service space according to the metaverse system 1 according to another embodiment may be a partial area of ​​the base space. The service space for each company provided on the base space in this way is also an example of a plurality of virtual spaces. In this case, the advertisement control unit 23 can identify in which service space the avatar exists based on the coordinates in the base space where the avatar exists.

[0046] Computer Configuration FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a configuration of a computer according to at least one embodiment. The computer 90 comprises a processor 91, a main memory 93, a storage 95, and an interface 97. The above-mentioned server device 10 is realized by one or more computers 90. The operations of the above-mentioned processing units are stored in the storage 95 in the form of a program. The processor 91 reads the program from the storage 95, loads it in the main memory 93, and executes the above-mentioned processes according to the program. The processor 91 also secures storage areas in the main memory 93 corresponding to the above-mentioned storage units according to the program. Examples of the processor 91 include a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphic Processing Unit), and a microprocessor.

[0047] The program may be for realizing a part of the functions to be performed by the computer 90. For example, the program may be for realizing the functions by combining with other programs already stored in the storage or by combining with other programs implemented in other devices. In another embodiment, the computer 90 may include a custom LSI (Large Scale Integrated Circuit) such as a PLD (Programmable Logic Device) in addition to the above configuration or instead of the above configuration. Examples of PLDs include PAL (Programmable Array Logic), GAL (Generic Array Logic), CPLD (Complex Programmable Logic Device), and FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array). In this case, a part or all of the functions realized by the processor 91 may be realized by the integrated circuit. Such an integrated circuit is also included in an example of a processor. In another embodiment, the computer 90 may be virtualized on one or more computers.

[0048] Examples of the storage 95 include a magnetic disk, a magneto-optical disk, an optical disk, a semiconductor memory, etc. The storage 95 may be an internal medium directly connected to the bus of the computer 90, or an external medium connected to the computer 90 via the interface 97 or a communication line. In addition, when the program is distributed to the computer 90 via a communication line, the computer 90 that receives the program may load the program into the main memory 93 and execute the above-mentioned processing. In at least one embodiment, the storage 95 is a non-transitory tangible storage medium.

[0049] The program may be for realizing part of the above-mentioned functions. Furthermore, the program may be a so-called differential file (differential program) that realizes the above-mentioned functions in combination with another program already stored in the storage 95. [Explanation of symbols]

[0050] 1...Metaverse system 10...Server device 10B...Core server 10C...Corporate server 11...Asset database 12...Placement unit 13...Reception unit 14...Object control unit 15...Drawing unit 16...Transmission unit 17...Collaboration unit 18...User database 19...User management unit 20...Item database 21...Advertisement database 22...Policy database 23...Advertisement control unit 30...Client terminal 90...Computer 91...Processor 93...Main memory 95...Storage 97...Interface

Claims

1. an identification unit that identifies, from a database in which each of a plurality of virtual spaces is associated with conditions of advertisements that can be displayed in the virtual space, a condition associated with a virtual space in which a user's avatar is located among the plurality of virtual spaces; a determination unit that determines a display advertisement according to the specified condition; An advertising control system comprising:

2. The conditions include the designation of the company to which the advertisement relates. The advertising control system of claim 1 .

3. The determination unit determines the display advertisement based on attribute information of an item belonging to the avatar and the condition. The advertising control system of claim 1 .

4. The attribute information includes information about a company that provides the item, Among the advertisements that satisfy the condition, an advertisement related to a company related to an item belonging to the avatar is determined as a displayed advertisement. The advertising control system of claim 3.

5. The display advertisement is displayed in the vicinity of the avatar to which the item belongs.

5. The advertising control system according to claim 3 or 4.

6. Identifying conditions associated with a virtual space in which the user's avatar is located from a database that associates each of the plurality of virtual spaces with conditions for advertisements that can be displayed in the virtual space; determining a display advertisement in accordance with the identified criteria; An advertisement control method comprising:

7. On the computer, Identifying conditions associated with a virtual space in which the user's avatar is located from a database that associates each of the plurality of virtual spaces with conditions for advertisements that can be displayed in the virtual space; determining a display advertisement in accordance with the identified criteria; An advertising control program for executing the above.

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