Information processing device, information processing method, and program

Abstract

To improve convenience for one or both service providers and service users. [Solution] An information processing device comprising: an identification unit that identifies specific users of the electronic payment service who have previously used the electronic payment service at a merchant of the electronic payment service, based on instructions regarding the creation of a first benefit that can be used at a merchant of the electronic payment service; and a processing unit that delivers the first benefit to the user terminal device of the specific user so that it can be acquired and used automatically.

Description

Technical Field

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[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a management apparatus for providing a coupon applied to a payment platform to a user has been known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Document

Patent Document

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the conventional technology, sufficient consideration has not been given to the provision of benefits to users.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and one of its objects is to provide an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program that can improve the convenience of one or both of a service provider and a service user.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] One aspect of the present invention includes a specifying unit that specifies a specific user who has used the electronic payment service at the franchise among users of the electronic payment service based on an instruction regarding creation of a first privilege available at a franchise of the electronic payment service, and a processing unit that distributes the first privilege to the terminal device of the specific user to make it automatically available.

Effects of the Invention

[0007] According to one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program that can improve the convenience of either or both a service provider and a service user. For example, a service provider can promote the use of their service by providing users with benefits that they automatically acquire. For example, a service user can experience improved convenience by automatically acquiring benefits. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This diagram shows an example of a configuration for implementing an electronic payment service. [Figure 2] This is a sequence diagram (part 1) illustrating the general flow of electronic payments. [Figure 3] This is a sequence diagram (part 2) illustrating the general flow of electronic payments. [Figure 4] This is a configuration diagram of the payment server 100 according to the embodiment. [Figure 5] This figure shows an example of the contents of user information 172. [Figure 6] This diagram shows an example of the contents of bonus information 173. [Figure 7] This figure shows an example of the contents of merchant / store information 176. [Figure 8] This figure shows an example of interface screen IF1 for creating automatically awarded rewards. [Figure 9] This flowchart shows an example of the processing flow performed by the payment server 100. [Figure 10] This is a diagram illustrating a specified period. [Figure 11] This diagram shows the interface screen IF3. [Figure 12] This diagram shows the interface screen IF4. [Figure 13] This is a diagram to explain the timing of notifications. [Figure 14] This diagram illustrates the change from regular rewards to automatically acquired rewards. [Figure 15] This is a diagram showing the interface screen IF5. [Figure 16] This diagram shows interface screens IF6 and IF7. [Figure 17] This flowchart shows an example of the processing flow performed by the payment server 100. [Figure 18] This diagram shows the interface screen IF8. [Figure 19] This diagram shows interface screens IF9 and IF10. [Figure 20] This is interface screen IF11, which includes information showing the results of statistical processing provided to designated member stores. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The following describes embodiments of the information processing apparatus, information processing method, and program of the present invention with reference to the drawings. Various devices, such as the "server" mentioned below, which provide services to users or perform internal analysis, may be implemented by a distributed group of devices, and the operators of each device may be different. Furthermore, the owner of the hardware of the devices (the provider of the cloud server) and the operator that actually operates them 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 will be referred to as the payment app. The electronic payment service is a service that supports payment for the purchase of goods and services at a store. A store is, for example, a physical store (real store) that exists in the real world, but may also include a virtual store for e-commerce. A virtual store may include one provided by an entity different from the operator of the electronic payment service. In that case, when settling a purchase at a virtual store, the user may be directed to the interface screen of the electronic payment service. In the electronic payment service, a store is treated as belonging to, for example, a merchant (brand), and processing such as payment when a purchase is made at a store is mainly carried out between the user and the merchant. 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 centering around 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 payment server 100 is an example of an "information processing device".

[0011] [User terminal device] 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, the configurations for realizing these functions are respectively referred to as a camera, a communication device, a touch panel, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and the like. In the user terminal device 10, by executing a payment application 20 by a processor such as a CPU, it operates to provide an electronic payment service to the user in cooperation with the payment server 100. The payment application 20 is installed in the user terminal device 10 from, for example, an application store, and controls a camera, a communication device, a touch panel, and the like.

[0012] [First store terminal device] 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 may include a so-called POS (Point of Sale) device, and the product price acquisition function and 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 paper or plastic media. The store code image 60 may also be displayed on a display placed in the store (which may be the display of a terminal device such as a smartphone).

[0013] [Second store terminal device] The second store terminal device 70 is used by the operator of the affiliated store. The second store terminal device 70 is a smartphone, tablet, personal computer, etc. The affiliated store interface 72 operates on the second store terminal device 70. The affiliated store interface 72 may be an affiliated store application or a browser. The affiliated store interface 72 accepts coupon settings etc. from the affiliated store operator 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 by running the affiliated store application, or reading a code image displayed by the user terminal device 10.

[0014] [Payment Server] The payment server 100 implements 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 a merchant server, in which case payment information is transmitted from the POS device to the payment server 100 via the merchant server. In the following description, this distinction will not be made, and it will be assumed that payment information is transmitted from the first store terminal device 50.

[0015] Figures 2 and 3 are sequence diagrams illustrating the general flow of electronic payments. There may be two patterns for electronic payments: Pattern 1 and Pattern 2.

[0016] In the case of Pattern 1 shown in Figure 2 (hereinafter referred to as User Scan), the user terminal device 10, with the payment application 20 running, decodes the store code image 60 using its optical reading function (S1). The store code image 60 contains information about the store URL (Uniform Resource Locator). This store URL is an electronic payment service domain to which information that can identify the store has been added, and is associated with the merchant ID and store ID, etc., at the payment server 100 (described later). The payment application 20 sends the first payment information, including the store URL and account ID, to the payment server 100 (S2). The payment server 100 searches for store information (described later) from the merchant ID and store ID corresponding to the store URL, obtains the merchant name and store name information (S3), and sends it to the payment application 20 (S4). The user enters the payment amount into the user terminal device 10 on the screen where the merchant name and store name are displayed (S5). The user terminal device 10 then generates second payment information, including at least the payment amount, and sends 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 sends a payment completion notification (information for displaying the payment completion screen) to the payment application 20 (S8), and the payment application 20 displays the payment completion screen (S9). If the store code image 60 is displayed on a display placed in the store, the store code image 60 may include payment amount information as well as the store URL. In this case, the procedure for the user to enter the payment amount is omitted, and the payment amount information is included in the first payment information and sent to the payment server 100. Merchant name and store name information may be included and displayed on the payment completion screen.

[0017] In the case of Pattern 2 shown in Figure 3 (hereinafter referred to as Store Scan), when the payment app 20 is launched, when a payment operation is performed in the payment app 20, when it is time for an automatic update (for example, every minute), and at other times, the payment app 20 sends a request to the payment server 100 to issue a one-time code (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 barcode that was generated based on the one-time code (S14). The user holds the display surface of the user terminal device 10 over the first store terminal device 50 (presents it), and the first store terminal device 50 decodes the code image using its 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, merchant ID, store ID, etc., and sends it to the payment server 100 (S16). The payment amount information is obtained in advance by barcode scanning or manual input. Based on the received information, the payment server 100 identifies the user corresponding to the one-time code and performs the electronic payment (S17). The payment server 100 then sends a payment completion notification to the payment app 20 (S18), and the payment app 20 displays a payment completion screen (S19).

[0018] Furthermore, electronic payment may be performed using only one of the above patterns. Also, the "account ID" explained in Figure 2 may be other information that can be used as user identification information (for example, a phone number). In addition, the issuance of a one-time code may be omitted during store scanning, 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 will identify the user corresponding to the account ID instead of identifying the user corresponding to the one-time code.

[0019] [Payment Server] Figure 4 is a configuration diagram of a payment server 100 according to an embodiment. The payment server 100 includes, for example, a communication unit 110, a content provision unit 120, a payment processing unit 130, a specific unit 140, a distribution unit 150, an information processing unit 160, and a storage unit 170. Components other than the communication unit 110 and the storage unit 170 are realized, for example, by 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 LSI (Large Scale Integration), ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), and GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or by the cooperation of software and hardware. The program may be stored in advance on a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or flash memory (a storage device equipped with a non-transient storage medium), or it may be stored on a removable storage medium such as a DVD or CD-ROM (a non-transient storage medium) and installed on the storage device when the storage medium is inserted into a drive device. One or both of the "distribution unit" and the "information processing unit" are examples of "processing units". Each function included in the payment server 100 may be distributed among multiple functions.

[0020] The storage unit 170 can be an HDD, flash memory, RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. The storage unit 170 may also be a NAS (Network Attached Storage) device that can be accessed by the payment server 100 via the network. The storage unit 170 stores information such as user information 172 including benefit information 173, content information 174, and merchant / store information 176.

[0021] The communication unit 110 is a communication interface for connecting to a network NW. The communication unit 110 is, for example, a network interface card.

[0022] The content provision unit 120, for example, has the functionality of a web server and provides information (content) for displaying various screens of the electronic payment service to the user terminal device 10. The content provision unit 120 reads the necessary content from the content information 174 as appropriate and provides it to the user terminal device 10. The user terminal device 10 accepts various inputs from the user while the content is being played by the payment application 20 and transmits the aforementioned payment information and other data to the payment server 100.

[0023] The payment processing unit 130 performs payment processing based on 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] [User information] Figure 5 shows an example of the contents of User Information 172. User Information 172 is an example of user registration information. User Information 172 includes, for example, user URL, account ID, telephone number, password, as well as information such as email address, user ID, name, address, date of birth, registration date, charge balance, credit payment settings, credit payment limit, credit payment amount, available credit payment amount, payment method settings, bank account, credit card number, charge history information, and payment history information. The user URL is used for money transfer processing between users. When registering for a new electronic payment service, registration of a telephone number and password is mandatory. The account ID is issued to the user by the payment server 100, and the user ID is an ID that the user can set at will (or does not have to set). Similarly, the email address and name, address, and date of birth are also information that the user can set at will (or does not have to set). The registration date is the date the user registered for the electronic payment service (the date the account was created). Hereafter, the user 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 set by the user by sending money to their account in advance. Methods of sending money include sending from an ATM (Automatic Teller Machine) of a designated provider (bank) and sending from a registered bank account. The credit payment setting indicates whether or not the user has completed the settings to enable electronic payments by credit card, and is set to either "Completed" or "Not Completed". The credit payment limit is the monthly limit for credit payments, the credit payment amount is the amount already used for credit payments in the current month, and the available credit payment amount is the amount available for credit payments in the current month, calculated by subtracting the credit payment amount from the credit payment limit. While the diagram shows only one credit payment limit, in reality there are also daily limits, and the lower of these may be set as the credit payment limit. Further details on credit payments will be described later. The payment method setting indicates whether the user will use electronic payment with the charge balance or payment by credit card at that time. The bank account and credit card number information, respectively, refers to the bank account or credit card number (account number, card number) to which funds can be deposited into the electronic payment service. The charge history information is a record of when the user has previously sent money to the electronic payment service to increase the charge balance. The payment history information shows the details of each payment made by the user (date and time, store ID of the store where the purchase was made, payment amount, payment method, etc.).

[0026] [Bonus Information] Figure 6 shows an example of the contents of reward information 173. Reward information 173 is information about the rewards that the user has acquired. Reward information 173 is information that associates, for example, regular rewards, automatically acquired rewards, and the contents of each reward with the user's identification information. In addition to the above, various other information such as whether or not the rewards have been used and identification information of the participating merchants where they can be used may also be associated with reward information 173. Regular rewards are rewards distributed from the payment server 100 (merchant) and can be acquired by the user by performing an operation to acquire the reward. For example, the user can acquire regular rewards by operating the payment application 20 (user terminal device 10) and performing an operation to acquire regular rewards on the reward acquisition interface screen provided by the payment server 100 and the payment application 20.

[0027] Automatically acquired rewards are rewards distributed from the payment server 100 (merchant), as described later, and can be acquired by the user without any action required to acquire them. Users can acquire rewards without taking any action to acquire them.

[0028] The identification unit 140 identifies specific users of the electronic payment service who have previously used the electronic payment service at participating merchants, based on instructions regarding the creation of automatically earned rewards (first rewards) that can be used at participating merchants of the electronic payment service. The identification unit 140 identifies specific users by referring to user information 172 (usage history information), which includes information on the participating merchants where the user used the electronic payment service. Further details will be described later.

[0029] The distribution unit 150 distributes automatically earned rewards to specific users. For example, the distribution unit 150 provides information to the user terminal device 10 (payment app 20) of a specific user indicating that they have earned an automatically earned reward. Distribution means displaying that a regular reward is available on the reward acquisition interface screen provided by the electronic payment service, or providing information to a specific user indicating that they have earned an automatically earned reward.

[0030] The information processing unit 160 allows a specific user to acquire an automatically acquired reward so that the reward becomes available automatically. For example, the information processing unit 160 associates the automatically acquired reward with the specific user's identification number in the reward information 173 and makes it available for use in electronic payments.

[0031] [Franchise / Store Information] Figure 7 shows an example of the contents of the merchant / store information 176. The merchant / store information 176 includes, for example, a first table 176A in which the merchant ID and store ID are associated with the store URL, a second table 176B in which the merchant name and sales amount (as described above) are associated with the merchant ID, and a third table 176C in which the store name is associated with the store ID. In addition to this information, the merchant / store information 176 may also include information such as the merchant or store category, the store's location, and payment patterns.

[0032] The information processing unit 160 manages user information 172 and affiliated store / store information 176 based on information obtained from the user terminal device 10 and the second store terminal device 70. The information processing unit 160 performs operations such as adding, editing, and deleting new records for user information 172 and affiliated store / store information 176.

[0033] [Electronic payment] When the payment processing unit 130 obtains payment information from the user terminal device 10 or the first store terminal device 50, it refers to the user information 172 to obtain the user's "payment method setting". For users 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, which is managed in association with the user ID, and increasing the value of the merchant's sales proceeds item. For example, the value of the merchant's sales proceeds item is not used as electronic money itself, but rather the amount corresponding to the value of the sales proceeds item is transferred to the bank account in a cycle according to the agreement between the merchant and the electronic payment service.

[0034] The payment processing unit 130 performs electronic payment as follows for users whose "settings information" is set to "credit payment". Credit payment is a payment method in cooperation with a credit card company, which is a separate entity from the electronic payment service operator. The electronic payment service operator acts as the donor and allows electronic payment within the credit limit, without relying on the charge balance. In order to use the credit payment service, users may be required to obtain a credit card provided by the electronic payment service operator. The amount used by credit payment is settled in a lump sum for the month on the payment date of the following month, for example, by withdrawal from a bank account. In this case, the payment processing unit 130 performs a provisional settlement by adding the settlement amount to the amount used by credit payment and subtracting the same amount from the available credit payment limit. When the closing date arrives, it processes the payment for the current month to be withdrawn on the payment date of the following month as described above, or requests the credit card company operator to perform the said process. If the settlement amount exceeds the available credit payment limit at the time of provisional settlement, an error notification is sent back to the payment app 20.

[0035] [Using benefits with electronic payments] The payment server 100 automatically grants automatically earned rewards to specific users and automatically applies these rewards when those users make electronic payments at participating merchants. In other words, after the automatically earned rewards are delivered to a specific user, the payment server 100 automatically applies the rewards when that user makes electronic payments at a participating merchant without the user having to take any action to claim the rewards.

[0036] The payment server 100 will not apply the regular benefits if the user has received the benefits, which become available at the merchant after the user performs the necessary actions to earn them, but the user does not perform the necessary actions to earn the benefits and uses electronic payment at the merchant. The payment server 100 will apply the regular benefits if the user has received the benefits, performs the necessary actions to earn them, and then uses electronic payment at the merchant.

[0037] As described above, the payment server 100 automatically applies automatically acquired benefits in electronic payments without requiring any action to acquire them, while regular benefits are automatically applied in electronic payments after an action is taken to acquire them.

[0038] [Create a reward] Merchants can create rewards (regular rewards and automatically earned rewards) by operating the merchant interface 72. For example, the merchant interface 72 works in conjunction with the payment server 100 to display an interface screen for creating regular rewards and automatically earned rewards on the display unit of the second store terminal device 70. For example, when a merchant enters the details of the reward and budget on the interface screen and requests review, the entered information is sent to the payment server 100 or an unillustrated review server to determine whether the reward meets pre-set conditions. If the conditions are met, the payment server 100 distributes (publishes) the reward so that users can earn it. Note that if a reward with similar content has been generated in the past and has already been reviewed, the review may be omitted.

[0039] Figure 8 shows an example of interface screen IF1 for creating automatically earned rewards. The merchant interface 72 displays interface screen IF1 on the display unit of the second store terminal device 70 in response to the merchant's operation to create rewards. When button B1, which instructs to create automatically earned rewards on interface screen IF1, is operated, the merchant interface 72 displays interface screen IF2 on the display unit.

[0040] Interface screen IF2 includes, for example, the number of users who will receive the automatically acquired reward (number of distributors) and a checkbox to request that the automatically acquired reward be distributed. When the checkbox is checked and the prescribed operation is performed, the reward created in this process will be distributed to the user as an automatically acquired reward. The users (distributors) to whom the automatically acquired reward is distributed will be described later.

[0041] Furthermore, users who are not eligible to receive automatically acquired benefits can acquire the benefits created as automatically acquired benefits as regular benefits, as described above. For example, users can acquire them as regular benefits on the benefits list screen of the electronic payment service, or on the screen introducing merchants of the electronic payment service.

[0042] For example, the information processing unit 160 of the payment server 100 generates an automatically acquired reward (first reward) that can be used at merchants of the electronic payment service based on instructions (for example, the operation of button B1 in Figure 8), and generates correspondence information that associates the generated automatically acquired reward with the identification information of the user of the electronic payment service. If the above instructions include instructions for setting up automatic acquisition so that the automatically acquired reward is delivered to the user's user terminal device 10 and automatically acquired so that it can be used, the payment server 100 associates the automatically acquired reward with the identification information of the user who is the target of the automatic acquisition setting. As a result, the automatically acquired reward is associated with the user's identification information in the user information 172.

[0043] The payment server 100, for example, refers to the payment history information of user information 172 to identify a specific user of the electronic payment service who has previously used the electronic payment service at the merchant in question. If the instruction includes an instruction for setting up automatic rewards, the payment server 100 performs a process to associate the automatically earned rewards with the identification information of the specific user.

[0044] The payment server 100 generates regular rewards based on instructions for creating regular rewards that are different from automatically earned rewards available at merchants. If the instructions include instructions for creating regular rewards (for example, instructions for merchants to perform an operation to create regular rewards), the payment server 100 performs a process to associate the regular rewards with the user identification information related to the operation, in accordance with the user's operation to earn regular rewards in the electronic payment service.

[0045] [Flowchart for creating rewards] Figure 9 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow performed by the payment server 100. This processing may also be performed by the merchant interface 72 (second store terminal device).

[0046] First, the payment server 100 determines whether or not it has received a request to create an automatically awarded reward (S100). If it has received a request to create an automatically awarded reward, the identification unit 140 of the payment server 100 derives the number of distributors (S102). Next, the content provision unit 120 of the payment server 100 provides the content, including the number of distributors, to the merchant interface 72 (S104). At this time, the merchant decides on the budget and design of the reward. Next, the payment server 100 provides the automatically awarded reward to the user in response to the merchant's operation on the merchant interface 72 (S106). This completes one routine of this process flowchart.

[0047] As described above, the payment server 100 refers to the history of past users' use of the electronic payment service to derive the number of specific users and displays the derived number of specific users on the display unit of the second store terminal device 70. For example, the payment server 100 derives the number of distributors and provides the merchant with information on the number of distributors (e.g., interface screen IF2). The merchant can check the number of distributors and decide whether or not to provide the automatically earned reward to the user, and can allow the user to earn the automatically earned reward.

[0048] [Regarding the number of streamers] The payment server 100 refers to user information 172 to identify users who meet the conditions and designates these identified users as recipients of the distribution. These designated users are, for example, users who have used electronic payment at a participating merchant.

[0049] In addition to meeting the above conditions, a designated user may also be subject to the following conditions: for example, having used electronic payment during a specified period. The payment server 100 identifies users who have used electronic payment at a merchant during a specified period as designated users. The specified period is any period, such as the past month, the past six months, or the past year. See Figure 10 (1). Figure 10 is a diagram illustrating the specified period.

[0050] The specified period may be the period from the first period to the second period in the past (one year to one month). See Figure 10 (2). For example, as described above, the target may be dormant users who used the service more than the specified period ago but have not used the service recently (users who used electronic payment between one year and one month in the past, but have not used electronic payment in the past month). This makes it possible to provide automatically earned benefits to dormant users.

[0051] A specified user may be a user whose frequency of making payments at the merchant is above or below a threshold. The payment server 100 identifies specified users based on the frequency of electronic payments at the merchant. The payment server 100 may also extract users who satisfy either or both of the above-mentioned period and / or frequency as specified users. For example, the payment server 100 may determine that users who have made electronic payments during a predetermined period and whose frequency is above a threshold are specified users.

[0052] Furthermore, the payment server 100 may adjust the period based on the number of users specified by the merchant. For example, among users who have used electronic payment at the merchant but have not used electronic payment for more than one month in the past (users who have not used electronic payment during a certain period), users with high usage frequency may be given priority. For example, users with high usage frequency may be prioritized to determine specific users so that the number of specific users reaches a specified number, or users whose timing of electronic payment is at a high priority (for example, users who have used electronic payment within the past three months) may be prioritized to determine specific users.

[0053] The above-mentioned period or frequency may be set by the user or by the payment server 100. For example, the payment server 100 may set the period or frequency based on attributes such as the merchant's industry or type. The frequency of electronic payments varies depending on the merchant's attributes. For example, "low frequency" for a merchant with a naturally high frequency might mean not using electronic payments for several days, while "low frequency" for a merchant with a naturally low frequency might mean not using electronic payments for more than a year. The payment server 100 may also automatically identify specific users using an appropriate frequency threshold based on the merchant's attributes as described above.

[0054] The payment server 100 may recommend a period to the merchant by referring to the overall usage frequency of users who have used the target merchant. For example, the payment server 100 may derive a standard frequency from the overall usage frequency based on a predetermined algorithm or criteria, and recommend a period of the derived standard frequency to the merchant. For example, if electronic payments are usually made every week, the payment server 100 may recommend a predetermined period from the past XX to the past week in order to identify users who have not made an electronic payment for a week as target users.

[0055] In the above explanation, a specific user is described as a user who has used electronic payment; however, it may also be a user who has used services provided by the electronic payment service. Using a service typically includes users who have received rewards or users who have evaluated participating merchants.

[0056] When the payment server 100 identifies a specific user as described above, it provides the merchant with information on the number of specific users (number of distributors) (see interface screen IF2). This allows the merchant to easily recognize the number of distributors of automatically earned rewards.

[0057] [Interface screen provided by the merchant interface] When a merchant creates a reward, the payment server 100 displays an interface screen IF3 on its display unit that shows the status of the reward. Figure 11 is a diagram of the interface screen IF3. The interface screen IF3 includes, for example, a button for creating a reward, the status of rewards created so far, and the type of reward (regular reward, automatically acquired reward). The status of the reward includes, for example, whether the reward is publicly available (in a state where it can be acquired by users) or whether it is under review.

[0058] As described above, merchants can easily recognize the type and status of the rewards they have created.

[0059] [Notification to users] When the payment server 100 automatically grants an automatically earned reward to a user, it notifies the user so that the user is aware that the automatically earned reward has been acquired. The notification may be a push notification, or it may be information indicating that the automatically earned reward has been acquired displayed on the interface screen IF4 that is shown when the user operates the payment app 20. Figure 12 shows the interface screen IF4. The interface screen IF4 includes, for example, the name of the merchant and information indicating that the automatically earned reward from that merchant has been acquired. The interface screen IF4 is, for example, a screen (popup screen) that is displayed when the user tries to display the reward list screen which shows a list of rewards offered by the electronic payment service.

[0060] For example, if the payment server 100 is presumed not to have seen the information indicating that the automatically earned reward has been acquired, it may send another notification after a predetermined period following the first notification. For example, if the payment server 100 cannot confirm from the user's operation history that the screen displaying the automatically earned reward in response to the notification has been open for a predetermined period of time or longer, it may send another notification.

[0061] Furthermore, the notification screen mentioned above may include map information of participating stores where the automatically earned rewards can be used, as well as information on the distance and route from the user's current location to the participating stores.

[0062] Furthermore, if the notification is for the acquisition of multiple automatically acquired rewards, the payment server 100 may notify the user of the number of automatically acquired rewards, and when the user performs an operation to check the details included in the notification, it may display a screen showing a list of automatically acquired rewards and details of each automatically acquired reward.

[0063] Furthermore, the payment server 100 may notify the user that the expiration date of the automatically earned reward is approaching a predetermined time before the expiration date. For example, the payment server 100 provides notifications regarding the expiration date for regular rewards as described above, but for automatically earned rewards, it may increase the frequency of these notifications or provide notifications regarding the expiration date even earlier.

[0064] As described above, the payment server 100 notifies the user to recognize that they have received an automatically earned reward. This allows the user to recognize that they have received an automatically earned reward, thereby encouraging them to use the merchant's services.

[0065] [Notification timing] The payment server 100 may notify the user of the acquisition of an automatically earned reward at predetermined intervals. If the user acquires multiple automatically earned rewards within a predetermined period, the payment server 100 may notify the user terminal device 10 of the acquisition of multiple automatically earned rewards at a predetermined time, rather than notifying the user of each reward individually.

[0066] Figure 13 is a diagram illustrating the timing of notifications. It shows the timing of notifications for a particular user. The payment server 100 sends a notification at predetermined intervals (each time indicated by a bell in the diagram) indicating that the user has acquired an automatically acquired reward. Assume that the automatically acquired rewards for the user are created between the timing of the first notification and the timing of the second notification. After the automatically acquired rewards are created, the payment server 100 delivers the automatically acquired rewards to the user after predetermined processing such as review has been completed, so the user acquires the automatically acquired rewards. For example, assume that the user acquires the automatically acquired rewards between the timing of the second notification and the timing of the third notification. At the timing of the third notification, which occurs after the delivery of the three automatically acquired rewards (C1, C2, C3), the payment server 100 notifies the user that they have acquired all three automatically acquired rewards (C1, C2, C3) at once.

[0067] As described above, the payment server 100 can provide effective notifications while minimizing inconvenience to users by sending notifications in batches.

[0068] [Change from regular rewards to automatically acquired rewards] In response to a request from a merchant, the payment server 100 may change a regular reward to an automatically acquired reward. After the payment server 100 distributes a regular reward that becomes available at the merchant when the user performs an operation to acquire it, based on the merchant's instructions, if the merchant performs an operation to change the regular reward to an automatically acquired reward, the payment server 100 will allow a specific user to acquire the automatically acquired reward and will notify the user terminal device 10 of the acquisition at a predetermined time. In this case, even if it is changed to an automatically acquired reward, it may be controlled to remain a regular reward, making it available for acquisition by users other than the specific user.

[0069] Figure 14 is a diagram illustrating the change from a regular reward to an automatically acquired reward. The payment server 100 sends a notification to the user who has received the automatically acquired reward at predetermined intervals (at the timing of the bell in the figure) indicating that the automatically acquired reward has been acquired. Assume that the merchant has created reward C11 and that its use has then begun. Assume that after the timing of the second notification, the merchant has changed the regular reward to an automatically acquired reward. Subsequently, when the payment server 100 delivers the automatically acquired reward to the user, the user acquires the automatically acquired reward. At the timing of the third notification, the payment server 100 sends a notification to the user indicating that the automatically acquired reward has been acquired. Note that the change to an automatically acquired reward may be conditional on being made at least a predetermined time before the end date of use of the reward.

[0070] As described above, participating merchants can change regular rewards to automatically awarded rewards, taking into account the merchants' acquisition and usage of regular rewards. This improves convenience for participating merchants.

[0071] [Interface screen for benefits] The payment server 100 displays an interface screen IF5 on its display unit, which shows the rewards earned in response to the user's actions. Figure 15 shows the interface screen IF5. The interface screen IF5 includes, for example, the name of the merchant where the reward can be used, information indicating whether the reward is a regular reward or an automatically earned reward, and filter buttons. By operating the filter buttons, the user can prioritize the display of regular rewards or automatically earned rewards.

[0072] For example, when a user performs an operation on interface screen IF5 to check the details of an automatically earned reward, the payment server 100 displays the interface screen shown in Figure 16 on the display unit of the user terminal device 10. Figure 16 shows interface screens IF6 and IF7. Interface screen IF6 includes, for example, information indicating that the reward is an automatically earned reward, an explanation of the automatically earned reward, and a button to authorize future notifications. When a predetermined operation is performed, interface screen IF7 is displayed on the display unit. Interface screen IF7 includes, for example, information about the automatically earned reward and a button to proceed to payment. When the button to proceed to payment is pressed, the payment server 100, in cooperation with the payment application 20, displays an interface screen for executing electronic payment on the display unit of the user terminal device 10.

[0073] As described above, the payment server 100 makes the user aware that they have received an automatically earned reward and that they can make an electronic payment using the automatically earned reward. This improves user satisfaction and encourages merchants to use the service.

[0074] [flowchart] Figure 17 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow executed by the payment server 100. The payment server 100 determines whether the merchant has executed the process of distributing the automatically acquired reward (S200). If the merchant has executed the process of distributing the automatically acquired reward, the payment server 100 executes a process to associate the automatically acquired reward with the identification information of the user who received the reward (S202). As a result, the reward information 173 is generated or updated. Next, the payment server 100 notifies the user terminal device 10 of information indicating that the automatically acquired reward has been acquired in accordance with the process in S202 (S204). This completes one routine of this flowchart.

[0075] The above payment server 100 improves user convenience because users can automatically receive automatically earned rewards.

[0076] [Interface screen for introducing affiliated stores] The payment server 100 displays an interface screen IF8 introducing the merchant on the display unit of the user terminal device 10 in response to user operations. Figure 18 shows the interface screen IF8. The interface screen IF8 displays, for example, detailed information about the merchant, merchant ratings, benefits, and announcements. If a user viewing the interface screen IF8 has already received the above benefits as automatically acquired benefits, the payment server 100 displays information indicating that the benefits have been automatically acquired. If the benefits have not been acquired as automatically acquired benefits (in the case of a user who is not a specific user), they are displayed as regular benefits and the user can acquire them through operation.

[0077] The above payment server 100 will display that the reward has been automatically earned if it has already been earned, thereby improving user convenience.

[0078] [Payment screen] When an automatic reward is applied in an electronic payment, the payment server 100 displays information indicating that the automatic reward has been applied on the display unit of the user terminal device 10. When a user makes an electronic payment at a merchant and an automatic reward is applied, the payment server 100 displays interface screens IF9 and IF10 on the display unit of the user terminal device 10 indicating that the automatic reward has been applied. Figure 19 shows interface screens IF9 and IF10. Interface screen IF9 is the screen that the payment server 100 and the payment application 20 display on the display unit of the user terminal device 10 after the electronic payment is completed. Interface screen IF9 displays the payment amount, information about the merchant where the electronic payment was made, information indicating that the automatic reward has been applied, and the reward (30 points) obtained through the automatic reward, etc.

[0079] After interface screen IF9 is displayed, interface screen IF10 is displayed after a predetermined time or after a predetermined operation is performed. Interface screen IF10 includes, for example, information on points earned, including information on points obtained through the application of automatic point acquisition benefits and information on points obtained based on predetermined rules of the electronic payment service.

[0080] As described above, the payment server 100 displays a notification on the display unit when an automatically earned reward is used, so that the user can recognize that it has been used. This improves user satisfaction and encourages merchants to use the rewards.

[0081] Furthermore, in the case of a user scan where the user captures the merchant's code information with the camera of the user terminal device 10 to make an electronic payment, the payment server 100 may display information on which automatically earned rewards are applied on the screen that appears after capturing the code information (for example, the payment amount input screen). This allows the user to recognize the application of automatically earned rewards even when performing a user scan.

[0082] [Information regarding benefits offered to participating merchants] The payment server 100 may perform statistical processing on the information regarding the benefits and display the results of the statistical processing on the display unit of the second store terminal device 70. The payment server 100 may also display information on a display unit visible to the merchant that shows the number or degree to which users utilized the automatically acquired benefits (for example, an indicator such as the utilization rate) out of the total number of users who acquired the automatically acquired benefits.

[0083] Figure 20 shows interface screen IF11, which includes information showing the results of statistical processing provided to a designated merchant. Interface screen IF11 includes, for example, information about regular benefits such as the number of people who received regular benefits and their usage rate, and information about automatically obtained benefits such as the number of people who received automatically obtained benefits and their usage rate.

[0084] The interface screen IF11 may include information such as the number of people who recognized they had earned an automatically acquired reward and used it, as well as the usage rate. The payment server 100 stores history information in the storage unit 170, such as when a user displayed a notification screen indicating that they had earned an automatically acquired reward, or when they viewed an automatically acquired reward on the reward list screen, and derives the above number of people and usage rate by referring to the information stored in the storage unit 170.

[0085] As described above, the payment server 100 can provide merchants with information about each reward, allowing merchants to refer to this information and consider promotional strategies such as the distribution of rewards.

[0086] According to the embodiments described above, the payment server 100 can improve the convenience of either or both the service provider and the service user by, based on instructions regarding the creation of a first benefit that can be used at merchants of the electronic payment service, identifying specific users of the electronic payment service who have used the electronic payment service at a merchant, and distributing the first benefit to the specific user's terminal device so that it can be acquired and used automatically.

[0087] Although embodiments for carrying out the present invention have been described above using examples, the present invention is not limited in any way to these embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0088] 10. User terminal device 20 Payment Apps 100 Payment Servers 120 Content Provision Department 130 Payment Processing Unit 140 Specific section 150 Distribution Department 160 Information Processing Section 173 Bonus Information

Claims

1. Based on instructions regarding the creation of the first benefit usable at merchants of the electronic payment service, an identification unit identifies specific users of the electronic payment service who have previously used the electronic payment service at the merchants of the electronic payment service, A processing unit that delivers the first benefit to the user terminal device of the specified user and allows it to be acquired and used automatically, An information processing device equipped with the following features.

2. The identifying unit identifies the identified user by referring to usage history information, which includes information about the merchants that used the electronic payment service. The processing unit obtains the first benefit by associating it with the identification information of the user of the electronic payment service. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

3. The processing unit automatically grants the first benefit to the specified user, and automatically applies the first benefit when the specified user uses the electronic payment at the affiliated store. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The aforementioned processing unit, After the first benefit is delivered to the specified user, if the specified user uses the electronic payment at the merchant without performing an operation to claim the first benefit, the first benefit will be automatically applied. If, after the user has received a second benefit that can be used at the merchant after performing the operation to acquire the second benefit, the user uses the electronic payment at the merchant without performing the operation to acquire the second benefit, the second benefit will not be applied. After the second benefit is delivered to the user, if the user performs an operation to acquire the second benefit and uses the electronic payment method at the merchant, the second benefit will be applied. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.

5. The processing unit identifies users who have used the electronic payment service at the merchant in the past period as specific users. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.

6. The processing unit identifies the specific user based on the frequency of electronic payments at the affiliated store. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.

7. When the processing unit automatically grants the first reward to the user, it notifies the specific user of information indicating that the first reward has been granted. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.

8. The aforementioned processing unit, If the user acquires multiple of the above-mentioned first benefits within a predetermined period, instead of issuing a notification for each acquisition, the user terminal device is notified collectively at a predetermined time that the user has acquired multiple of the above-mentioned first benefits. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7.

9. The processing unit, when the first benefit is applied in the electronic payment, causes the display unit of the user terminal device to display information indicating that the first benefit has been applied. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.

10. The processing unit causes the merchant to display information on a display unit that can be viewed by the merchant, indicating the number or degree to which users utilized the first benefit out of the total number of users who obtained the first benefit. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.

11. The processing unit, after delivering a second benefit that becomes available at the affiliated store when the user performs an operation to acquire it, based on the instructions of the affiliated store, and then, if the affiliated store performs an operation to change the second benefit to the first benefit, allows the specific user to acquire the first benefit and sends a notification regarding the acquisition to the user terminal device at a predetermined timing. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.

12. When the processing unit receives instructions regarding the creation of the first benefit from the merchant's merchant terminal device, it refers to the past usage history of the user's electronic payment service to derive the number of the specified user, and displays the derived number of the specified user on the display unit of the merchant terminal device. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.

13. A first benefit that can be used at the merchant of the electronic payment service, obtained from the merchant terminal device of the merchant, is automatically acquired by the user without the user having to perform any operation to acquire it, and is automatically applied at the merchant, and a specific unit identifies a specific user among the users of the electronic payment service who has previously used the electronic payment service at the merchant, based on instructions for creating the first benefit, A processing unit that causes the number of identified specific users to be displayed on the display unit of the affiliated store terminal device, An information processing device equipped with the following features.

14. The processing unit causes the display unit to display information indicating the number or degree to which users utilized the first benefit out of the total number of users who obtained the first benefit. The information processing apparatus according to claim 13.

15. A processing unit that generates a first benefit that can be used at a merchant of an electronic payment service, based on instructions for creating the first benefit, and generates correspondence information that associates the generated first benefit with the identification information of a user of the electronic payment service, If the instruction includes an instruction for automatic acquisition settings to deliver the first benefit to the user's user terminal device so that it can be acquired and used automatically, a processing unit that associates the first benefit with the identification information of the user to whom the automatic acquisition settings are applied, An information processing device equipped with the following features.

16. The system includes a special unit that identifies specific users of the aforementioned electronic payment service who have previously used the electronic payment service at the aforementioned merchant. If the instruction includes an instruction for setting up automatic acquisition, the processing unit executes a process to associate the first benefit with the identification information of the specific user. The information processing apparatus according to claim 15.

17. The processing unit generates the benefit based on instructions regarding the creation of a benefit different from the first benefit available at the affiliated store. If the instructions include instructions to create the reward, the system will perform a process to associate the reward with the user's identification information related to the operation, in response to the user performing an operation to acquire the reward in the electronic payment service. The information processing apparatus according to claim 15 or 16.

18. Computers Based on instructions regarding the creation of the first benefit usable at merchants participating in the electronic payment service, the process involves identifying specific users of the electronic payment service who have previously used the electronic payment service at the merchants participating in the electronic payment service, A process of distributing the first benefit to the user terminal device of the specified user so that it can be acquired and used automatically, An information processing method that performs the following.

19. On the computer, Based on instructions regarding the creation of the first benefit usable at merchants participating in the electronic payment service, the process involves identifying specific users of the electronic payment service who have previously used the electronic payment service at the merchants participating in the electronic payment service, A process of distributing the first benefit to the user terminal device of the specified user so that it can be acquired and used automatically, A program that executes the command.

20. Computers A first benefit that can be used at the merchant of the electronic payment service, obtained from the merchant terminal device of the merchant, which is automatically acquired by the user without the user having to perform any operation to acquire it, and which is automatically applied at the merchant, and a process to identify a specific user among the users of the electronic payment service who has previously used the electronic payment service at the merchant, The process of displaying the number of identified specific users on the display unit of the merchant terminal device, An information processing method that performs the following.

21. On the computer, A first benefit that can be used at the merchant of the electronic payment service, obtained from the merchant terminal device of the merchant, which is automatically acquired by the user without the user having to perform any operation to acquire it, and which is automatically applied at the merchant, and a process to identify a specific user among the users of the electronic payment service who has previously used the electronic payment service at the merchant, The process of displaying the number of identified specific users on the display unit of the merchant terminal device, A program that executes the command.

22. Computers Based on instructions regarding the creation of a first benefit usable at merchants of the electronic payment service, the first benefit is generated, and correspondence information is generated that associates the generated first benefit with the identification information of the user of the electronic payment service. If the instruction includes an instruction for automatic acquisition settings that deliver the first benefit to the user's user terminal device so that it can be acquired and used automatically, the process of associating the first benefit with the user identification information of the user targeted by the automatic acquisition settings is executed. Information processing methods.

23. On the computer, Based on instructions regarding the creation of a first benefit usable at merchants of the electronic payment service, the first benefit is generated, and correspondence information is generated that associates the generated first benefit with the identification information of the user of the electronic payment service. If the instruction includes an instruction for automatic acquisition settings that deliver the first benefit to the user's user terminal device so that it can be acquired and used automatically, the instruction will be made to perform a process that associates the first benefit with the identification information of the user to whom the automatic acquisition settings are applied. program.

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