Information processing device, information processing method, and program

Abstract

This prevents users from mistakenly believing that electronic payments are accepted at stores that do not actually accept them, thereby improving convenience for users. [Solution] An information processing device comprising: a payment processing unit that performs electronic payment based on payment information transmitted from a store terminal device installed in the store or a user terminal device owned by the user when the user purchases goods at the store; an extraction unit that extracts stores from among a plurality of stores belonging to the merchants of the electronic payment service in which the electronic payment has not been performed for a predetermined period of time or longer as target stores; and a stop processing unit that performs a stop processing to stop the use of the electronic payment service for the target stores.

Description

Technical Field

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

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, an electronic payment service using a user terminal device owned by a user has been known. For example, in Patent Document 1, there has been proposed an electronic payment system that executes electronic payment by causing a user terminal device to display code information such as a barcode or a QR code (registered trademark) and causing a store terminal device installed in a store to read the code information.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the electronic payment system described in Patent Document 1, for example, even though a user has confirmed that a store is a store where an electronic payment service can be used using a payment application, there may be a situation where the user cannot actually use electronic payment for some reason, which may be inconvenient for the user.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and one of its purposes is to provide an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program that can prevent a user from misrecognizing that electronic payment can be used even in a store where electronic payment cannot actually be used, and can improve the convenience for the user.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] One aspect of the present invention is an information processing device comprising: a payment processing unit that performs electronic payment based on payment information transmitted from a store terminal device installed in the store or a user terminal device owned by the user when the user purchases goods at the store; an extraction unit that extracts stores from among a plurality of stores belonging to the merchants of the electronic payment service in which the electronic payment has not been performed for a predetermined period of time or longer as target stores; and a stop processing unit that performs a stop processing to stop the use of the electronic payment service for the target stores. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent users from mistakenly believing that electronic payments can be made at a store that does not actually accept them, thereby improving convenience for users. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This diagram shows an example of the configuration of an electronic payment system that enables electronic payment services. [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 diagram showing the configuration of payment server 100. [Figure 5] This figure shows an example of the contents of user information 172. [Figure 6] This figure shows an example of the contents of merchant / store information 176. [Figure 7] This figure shows an example of the map screen of payment app 20. [Figure 8] This figure shows an example of the contents of the 178-store list. [Figure 9] This flowchart shows an example of the processing for Case 1 performed by the payment server 100. [Figure 10] This figure shows an example of the content of notification email M. [Figure 11]This flowchart shows an example of the processing for Case 2, which is performed by the payment server 100. [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 servers, that appear below and are used to 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 is controlled to transition to the interface screen of the electronic payment service. In the electronic payment service, stores are treated as belonging to, for example, affiliated merchants (brands), and processing such as payment when a purchase is made at a store is mainly carried out between the user and the affiliated merchant. Alternatively, processing such as payment may be carried out between the user and the store.

[0010] [Electronic payment service] Figure 1 shows an example of the configuration of an electronic payment system that implements electronic payment services. The electronic payment service is implemented with a payment server 100 at its core. The electronic payment system that implements the electronic payment service includes, for example, one or more user terminal devices 10, one or more first store terminal devices 50, one or more second store terminal devices 70, and the payment server 100. These devices communicate with each other, for example, via a network NW. The network NW includes, for example, the Internet, LAN (Local Area Network), wireless base stations, provider equipment, etc. The merchant server 200 and the general agent server 300 are also connected to the network NW.

[0011] The user terminal device 10 is, for example, a portable terminal device such as a smartphone or tablet. The user terminal device 10 is a computer device having at least optical reading function, communication function, display function, input reception function, and program execution function. In the following description, the components for realizing these functions will be referred to as a camera, communication device, touch panel, CPU (Central Processing Unit), etc. In the user terminal device 10, the payment application 20 is executed by a processor such as the CPU, and it operates in cooperation with the payment server 100 to provide electronic payment services to the user. The payment application 20 is installed on the user terminal device 10, for example, from an application store, and controls the camera, communication device, touch panel, etc.

[0012] The first store terminal device 50 is installed, for example, in a store. The first store terminal device 50 is a computer device having at least a product price acquisition function, an optical reading function, a program execution function, and a communication function. The first store terminal device 50 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] The second store terminal device 70 is used by the operator of the franchise store. The second store terminal device 70 is a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a personal computer, or the like. In the second store terminal device 70, an interface 72 for the franchise store operates. The interface 72 for the franchise store may be an application for the franchise store or a browser. The interface 72 for the franchise store receives settings of campaigns and coupons by the operator of the franchise store and transmits them to the settlement server 100. The second store terminal device 70 which is a smartphone has functions of displaying a code image corresponding to the store code image or reading the code image displayed by the user terminal device 10 by executing an application for the franchise store.

[0014] The settlement server 100 realizes electronic settlement based on the settlement 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 franchise store server. In that case, the settlement information is transmitted from the POS device to the settlement server 100 via the franchise store server. In the following description, this is not particularly distinguished, and it is assumed that the settlement information is transmitted from the first store terminal device 50.

[0015] The franchise store server 200 is a server installed in the franchise store and operated by the person in charge of the franchise store. The franchise store is an individual or a corporation that contracts with an operator of an electronic settlement service to introduce the electronic settlement service into the store. The franchise store server 200 is communicably connected to the settlement server 100 and the comprehensive agency store server 300 via the network NW.

[0016] The comprehensive agency server 300 is a server installed at the comprehensive agency and operated by the person in charge of the comprehensive agency. The comprehensive agency is an agency that acts as an agent for the procedures between the operator of the electronic payment service and the franchisee. For example, in the case of a relatively large franchisee that has a predetermined number or more of stores, there is a comprehensive commission agency between the operator of the electronic payment service and the franchisee. On the other hand, when the franchisee has only one store (so-called individual store), there is no comprehensive commission agency between the operator of the electronic payment service and the franchisee. The comprehensive agency server 300 is communicably connected to the settlement server 100 and the franchisee server 200 via the network NW.

[0017] FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 are sequence diagrams illustrating a rough flow of electronic payment. There may be two patterns, Pattern 1 and Pattern 2, in electronic payment.

[0018] 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.

[0019] 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).

[0020] 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.

[0021] [Payment Server] Figure 4 is a diagram of the configuration of the payment server 100. The payment server 100 includes, for example, a communication unit 110, a payment content provision unit 115, a payment processing unit 120, an information management unit 125, an extraction unit 130, a stop processing unit 135, a notification unit 140, a list generation unit 145, a location information acquisition unit 150, a map information provision unit 155, a release 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), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and SOC (System On Chip), 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 the drive device.

[0022] 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 the payment server 100 can access via the network. The storage unit 170 stores information such as user information 172, payment content information 174, merchant / store information 176, map information 177, and target store list 178.

[0023] 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.

[0024] The payment content provider unit 115, 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 payment content provider unit 115 reads the necessary content from the payment content information 174 as appropriate and provides it to the user terminal device 10. The user terminal device 10 accepts various inputs from the user with the content being played by the payment application 20 and transmits the aforementioned payment information to the payment server 100. The above content may also be generated by the payment application 20. In this case, the payment content provider unit 115 provides the payment application 20 with the information necessary for generating the content.

[0025] The payment processing unit 120 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 120 performs payment processing while referring to the user information 172.

[0026] 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 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 not set). Similarly, the email address and name, address, and date of birth are also information that the user can set at will (or not 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.

[0027] 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.).

[0028] Figure 6 shows an example of the contents of the merchant / store information 176. The merchant / store information 176 includes the first table 176A, the second table 176B, and the third table 176C. For example, the first table 176A contains information that associates the merchant ID and store ID with the store URL.

[0029] Table 2, 176B, contains information that associates the merchant ID with the merchant name, sales amount (as mentioned above), and contact information. The contact information basically indicates the merchant's contact details (e.g., email address). However, if there is a general agent between the merchant and the electronic payment service provider, the contact information may indicate the general agent's contact details.

[0030] Table 3, 176C, contains information that associates a store ID with the store name, location information, payment history information, and status. Location information indicates the store's location and may consist of, for example, latitude and longitude. Payment history information shows the details of each payment made at the store (date and time, account ID of the user who made the purchase, and payment amount, etc.). The status indicates whether or not a suspension process (blocking) has been performed on the store. A suspension process is a process that prevents the use of electronic payment services at the store. If a suspension process has been performed on the store, the status will be "Stopped". Conversely, if a suspension process has not been performed on the store, the status will be "Continuing".

[0031] In addition to the above information, the merchant / store information 176 may also include information such as the merchant or store category, store location, and payment patterns. The above merchant name may be, for example, information registered by the merchant, or information registered by the administrator of the electronic payment service. The above merchant name and store name may be managed in an integrated manner. The above merchant name may be, for example, a combination of the merchant name and store name. The above merchant name is preferably the official name or detailed name. In the merchant / store information 176, the merchant ID or store ID may be associated with the merchant icon, other detailed information about the merchant, etc.

[0032] The Information Management Unit 125 acquires information provided by other server devices and terminal devices. Based on the information acquired from the user terminal device 10 and the second store terminal device 70, the Information Management Unit 125 manages user information 172 and affiliated store / store information 176. The Information Management Unit 125 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 120 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 120 performs electronic payment as follows: For example, the payment processing unit 120 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. The merchant's sales proceeds item value is not used as electronic money itself, for example, but rather the amount corresponding to the sales proceeds item value 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 120 performs electronic payment as follows for users whose "settings information" is set to "credit payment". Credit payment is a payment method that is carried out in cooperation with a credit card company, which is a separate entity from the operator of the electronic payment service. The operator of the electronic payment service acts as the donor and allows electronic payment that does not depend on the charge balance within the credit payment limit. In order to use the credit payment service, it may be required to obtain a credit card provided by the operator of the electronic payment service. 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 120 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 operator of the credit card company 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 application 20.

[0035] Furthermore, the memory unit 170 stores map information 177. Map information 177 is wide-area map information that covers the entire area where the electronic payment service provider operates. The map information provision unit 155 provides map information, including information about stores around the user terminal device 10, to the payment application 20 (user terminal device 10). The payment application 20 displays the map information provided by the map information provision unit 155 on the user terminal device 10. This allows the user to check nearby stores and maps through the payment application 20.

[0036] Specifically, the location information acquisition unit 150 acquires the location information of the user terminal device 10. The location information may be latitude and longitude information obtained by the GPS function installed in the user terminal device 10. The map information provision unit 155 provides the user terminal device 10 with map information including information about stores in the vicinity of the location indicated by the location information of the user terminal device 10. For example, the map information provision unit 155 generates map information of the vicinity of the location indicated by the location information based on map information 177. The map information provision unit 155 also acquires information about stores in the vicinity of the location indicated by the location information from the affiliated store / store information 176. Specifically, the map information provision unit 155 may extract stores in the vicinity of the user terminal device 10 based on the location information (store location information) in the third table 176C of the affiliated store / store information 176. The map information provision unit 155 also provides the user terminal device 10 with map information including information about stores in the vicinity of the user terminal device 10.

[0037] Figure 7 shows an example of the map screen of the payment application 20. Based on the map information provided by the payment server 100, the payment application 20 displays the map screen shown in Figure 7 on the user terminal device 10.

[0038] As shown in Figure 7, the map screen includes a map display area 21, a button 22, and a sheet 23. The map display area 21 is an area where map information including information about stores around the user terminal device 10 is displayed. Pins are displayed in the map display area 21 at the locations where stores exist. The pins may display an image indicating the store category (e.g., gourmet, shopping). When the user selects (tap) any of the pins, detailed information about the store corresponding to the selected pin is displayed. Also, when the user taps (selects) the button 22, map information including information about stores around the user terminal device 10 is displayed in the map display area 21. The sheet 23 displays multiple icons 24 corresponding to multiple categories. When the user taps (selects) one of the multiple icons 24, the stores displayed in the map display area 21 are narrowed down to the category corresponding to the tapped icon. This allows the user to easily find the desired store. The sheet 23 may also display a list of stores displayed in the map display area 21.

[0039] Figure 8 shows an example of the contents of the target store list 178. As will be explained in detail later, the target store list 178 is a list of stores that will have their use of the electronic payment service suspended, and is generated by the list generation unit 145. The target store list 178 includes the merchant ID, store ID, merchant name, and store name. This information is the same as the information included in the merchant / store information 176 shown in Figure 6.

[0040] The extraction unit 130 of the payment server 100 extracts target stores from among multiple stores belonging to the electronic payment service's member stores that have not performed electronic payments for a predetermined period of time or longer. The list generation unit 145 generates a target store list 178, which is a list of stores (target stores) that will have their use of the electronic payment service suspended. The suspension processing unit 135 performs suspension processing to suspend the use of the electronic payment service based on the target store list 178. However, the processing flow differs depending on whether the member store has only one store (a so-called individual store) or whether the member store is a relatively large-scale member store with a predetermined number of stores or more. Therefore, the specific processing flow will be explained in the following two cases.

[0041] [Flowchart for Case 1] First, let's explain the processing flow of the payment server 100 in Case 1. Case 1 is the case where a merchant has only one store (a so-called independent store). In Case 1, electronic payments are often made by user scanning. This is because the user scanning method has low implementation costs and is widely adopted by small stores such as independent stores. Also, in Case 1, there is no comprehensive agency between the electronic payment service provider and the merchant. Based on these premises, the flowchart for Case 1 will be explained below.

[0042] Figure 9 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing in Case 1 performed by the payment server 100. The processing shown in Figure 9 may be performed periodically at predetermined intervals, or it may be performed based on instructions from the person in charge of operating the payment server 100.

[0043] First, the extraction unit 130 of the payment server 100 extracts stores as target stores where electronic payments (first electronic payments) made by user scanning have not been performed for at least one period (S101). Specifically, the extraction unit 130 may refer to the payment history information from the third table 176C of the merchant / store information 176 and calculate the period during which electronic payments (first electronic payments) made by user scanning have not been performed. For example, the extraction unit 130 may set the first period to two years. In this case, the extraction unit 130 will extract as target stores stores where electronic payments by user scanning have not been performed for at least two years from the last payment date. At this time, the extraction unit 130 may extract the store ID of the target stores.

[0044] Next, the list generation unit 145 generates a target store list 178, which is a list of target stores (S102). Specifically, the list generation unit 145 obtains the store name associated with the store ID of the target store extracted by the extraction unit 130 from the third table 176C of the affiliated store / store information 176. The list generation unit 145 also obtains the affiliated store ID associated with the store ID of the target store from the first table 176A of the affiliated store / store information 176. Furthermore, the list generation unit 145 obtains the affiliated store name associated with the affiliated store ID from the second table 176B of the affiliated store / store information 176. Subsequently, the list generation unit 145 generates the target store list 178 (Figure 8) based on the store ID of the target store extracted by the extraction unit 130, and the store name, affiliated store ID, and affiliated store name obtained from the affiliated store / store information 176.

[0045] Next, the notification unit 140 sends a notification email M indicating that the target store is subject to suspension of use of the electronic payment service (S103). As mentioned above, if a merchant has only one store (a so-called individual store), there is no comprehensive agency between the electronic payment service provider and the merchant. For this reason, the notification unit 140 sends the notification email M to the merchant, not to a comprehensive agency. Specifically, the notification unit 140 obtains the merchant's email address from the contact information item in the second table 176B of the merchant / store information 176, and sends the notification email M to the merchant's email address. The person in charge at the merchant receives the notification email M using the merchant server 200 and confirms the contents of the notification email M.

[0046] Figure 10 shows an example of the content of notification email M. As shown in Figure 10, notification email M includes the reason for suspending the use of the electronic payment service. For example, even if a user can confirm that a store is eligible for the campaign using the payment app 20, they may not actually be able to use electronic payment. Also, in the case of stores (especially individual stores) that have not used electronic payment for a long period of time, fraudulent use such as the hijacking of merchant IDs or store IDs may occur. To prevent such problems, the use of electronic payment services will be suspended for stores that have not used electronic payment for a long period of time.

[0047] Furthermore, the notification email M includes the target stores whose service will be suspended, the scheduled suspension date, and a link L to an application form for those who do not wish to have their service suspended. The merchant's representative reviews the contents of the notification email M and decides whether or not to accept the suspension of electronic payment services for the target stores. If the merchant's representative does not accept the suspension of electronic payment services for the target stores, they submit an exclusion application to remove the target stores from the suspension of electronic payment services. For example, the merchant's representative displays the notification email M using the merchant server 200, selects the link L in the notification email M to display the application form on the display unit (not shown) of the merchant server 200, and enters the necessary information (such as the reason for not wishing to have the service suspended) into the application form. The merchant server 200 then sends the exclusion application to the payment server 100.

[0048] Returning to the explanation of Figure 9, the list generation unit 145 determines whether or not an exclusion request has been made for the target store to exclude it from the suspension of use of the electronic payment service (S104). If no exclusion request has been made, the list generation unit 145 proceeds to S106, which will be described later. On the other hand, if an exclusion request has been made, the list generation unit 145 removes the target store for which an exclusion request has been made from the list of target stores (S105). This removes the target store from the suspension of use of the electronic payment service.

[0049] Next, the stop processing unit 135 determines whether the second period has elapsed since the sending of the notification email M (S106). For example, the stop processing unit 135 may set the second period to three months. If the second period has not elapsed since the sending of the notification email M, the stop processing unit 135 returns to S104 as described above. On the other hand, if the second period has elapsed since the sending of the notification email M, the stop processing unit 135 performs the stop process based on the target store list 178 (S107) and terminates the process according to this flowchart. Specifically, the stop processing unit 135 rewrites the status associated with the store ID of the target store included in the target store list 178 to "Stopped" in the third table 176C of the merchant / store information 176. The payment processing unit 120 of the payment server 100 prohibits the use of the electronic payment service for stores whose status is "Stopped".

[0050] [Flowchart for Case 2] Next, we will explain the processing flow of the payment server 100 in Case 2. Case 2 is the case of a relatively large merchant with more than a certain number of stores. In Case 2, electronic payments are often made by store scanning, and a comprehensive agency exists between the electronic payment service provider and the merchant. Based on these premises, the flowchart for Case 2 will be explained below.

[0051] Figure 11 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing in Case 2 performed by the payment server 100. The processing shown in Figure 11 may be performed periodically at predetermined intervals, or it may be performed based on instructions from the person operating the payment server 100.

[0052] First, the extraction unit 130 of the payment server 100 extracts stores as target stores where electronic payments (second electronic payments) made by store scanning have not been performed for at least one period (S201). Specifically, the extraction unit 130 may refer to the payment history information from the third table 176C of the merchant / store information 176 and calculate the period during which electronic payments (second electronic payments) made by store scanning have not been performed. For example, the extraction unit 130 may set the first period to two years. In this case, the extraction unit 130 will extract stores as target stores where electronic payments by store scanning have not been performed for at least two years from the last payment date. At this time, the extraction unit 130 may extract the store ID of the target stores.

[0053] Next, the list generation unit 145 generates a target store list 178, which is a list of target stores (S202). Specifically, the list generation unit 145 obtains the store name associated with the store ID of the target store extracted by the extraction unit 130 from the third table 176C of the affiliated store / store information 176. The list generation unit 145 also obtains the affiliated store ID associated with the store ID of the target store from the first table 176A of the affiliated store / store information 176. Furthermore, the list generation unit 145 obtains the affiliated store name associated with the affiliated store ID from the second table 176B of the affiliated store / store information 176. Subsequently, the list generation unit 145 generates the target store list 178 (Figure 8) based on the store ID of the target store extracted by the extraction unit 130, and the store name, affiliated store ID, and affiliated store name obtained from the affiliated store / store information 176.

[0054] Next, the notification unit 140 sends a notification email M indicating that the target store is subject to suspension of use of the electronic payment service (S203). As mentioned above, in the case of a relatively large merchant with more than a certain number of stores, a comprehensive agency exists between the electronic payment service provider and the merchant. For this reason, the notification unit 140 sends the notification email M to the comprehensive agency, not to the merchant. Specifically, the notification unit 140 obtains the comprehensive agency's email address from the contact information item in the second table 176B of the merchant / store information 176, and sends the notification email M to the comprehensive agency's email address. The person in charge at the comprehensive agency receives the notification email M using the comprehensive agency server 300 and confirms the contents of the notification email M.

[0055] Next, the list generation unit 145 determines whether or not an exclusion request has been made for the target store to exclude it from the suspension of use of the electronic payment service (S204). If no exclusion request has been made, the list generation unit 145 proceeds to S206, which will be described later. On the other hand, if an exclusion request has been made, the list generation unit 145 removes the target store for which an exclusion request has been made from the list of target stores (S205). This removes the target store from the suspension of use of the electronic payment service.

[0056] Next, the stop processing unit 135 determines whether the second period has elapsed since the sending of the notification email M (S206). For example, the stop processing unit 135 may set the second period to three months. If the second period has not elapsed since the sending of the notification email M, the stop processing unit 135 returns to S204 as described above. On the other hand, if the second period has elapsed since the sending of the notification email M, the stop processing unit 135 performs the stop process based on the target store list 178 (S207) and terminates the process according to this flowchart. Specifically, the stop processing unit 135 rewrites the status associated with the store ID of the target store included in the target store list 178 to "Stopped" in the third table 176C of the merchant / store information 176. The payment processing unit 120 of the payment server 100 prohibits the use of the electronic payment service for stores whose status is "Stopped".

[0057] The specific processing flow in Case 1 and Case 2 has been explained above. As explained here, if there is no comprehensive agent between the merchant to which the target store belongs and the electronic payment service provider (Case 1), the notification unit 140 sends notification email M to the merchant to which the target store belongs. On the other hand, if there is a comprehensive agent between the merchant to which the target store belongs and the electronic payment service provider (Case 2), the notification unit 140 sends notification email M to the comprehensive agent. This allows the notification unit 140 to send notification email M to the appropriate recipient.

[0058] Furthermore, in the case of a merchant with only one store (Case 1), the extraction unit 130 extracts stores as target stores where electronic payments made by user scanning (first electronic payment) have not been performed for a predetermined period of time or longer. On the other hand, in the case of a merchant with more than a predetermined number of stores (Case 2), the extraction unit 130 extracts stores as target stores where electronic payments made by store scanning (second electronic payment) have not been performed for a predetermined period of time or longer. In this way, the extraction unit 130 can appropriately extract target stores while taking into account the payment methods used at each store.

[0059] In cases 1 and 2, the map information provision unit 155 may exclude information about stores that have undergone a shutdown process from the map information provided to the user terminal device 10. This prevents information about stores that have undergone a shutdown process from being displayed on the map screen (Figure 7) of the payment application 20. For example, the map information provision unit 155 may not provide the user terminal device 10 with information about stores whose status is "shut down" in the third table 176C of the merchant / store information 176. This prevents, for example, a problem from occurring where a store is displayed as a store where electronic payment services can be used on the map screen (Figure 7) of the payment application 20, but in reality, electronic payment cannot be used at that store.

[0060] Furthermore, in S101 of Figure 9 and S201 of Figure 11, the extraction unit 130 extracts the store ID of the target store, but other information may also be extracted. For example, the extraction unit 130 may extract the merchant ID status, store ID status, last settlement date, period of inactivity, industry, and the status of holding other active merchant IDs. The merchant ID status is information indicating whether the merchant ID is valid or not. The extraction unit 130 may extract only merchant ID statuses that are valid. The store ID status is information indicating whether the store ID is valid or not. The extraction unit 130 may extract only store ID statuses that are valid. The last settlement date is information indicating the date on which the last electronic payment was made at the target store. The period of inactivity is the period from the last settlement date to the date on which data extraction was performed by the extraction unit 130. The industry is information indicating the industry of the merchant to which the target store belongs. The status of other active merchant IDs indicates the number of active electronic payment service contracts under the same corporate / individual contract as the inactive merchant to which the target store belongs. A store may be considered "active" if it has used the electronic payment service during the most recent specified period (e.g., one year).

[0061] Furthermore, in S107 of Figure 9 and S207 of Figure 11, the stop processing unit 135 performs the stop process based on the target store list 178, but it is not limited to this. For example, the stop processing unit 135 may also perform a hide process based on the target store list 178. The hide process is, for example, a process to hide the target store on the map screen (Figure 7) of the payment application 20. The stop processing unit 135 may also perform the stop process after a predetermined period has elapsed since the hide process. This prevents users from mistakenly believing that electronic payment is available at a store that does not actually accept electronic payments, thereby improving convenience for users.

[0062] Furthermore, the payment server 100 may accept a reuse application from a store that has been suspended, in order to allow it to use the electronic payment service again. The reuse application may be made through a prescribed application form. The release processing unit 160 may also determine whether a reuse application has been made for a store that has been suspended, and may perform a release process to release the suspension for stores for which a reuse application has been made. Specifically, the release processing unit 160 can release the suspension by changing the status associated with the store ID of the store for which a reuse application has been made to "Continued" in the third table 176C of the merchant / store information 176. Stores for which the suspension has been released will also be displayed on the map screen (Figure 7) of the payment application 20. This allows stores that have had their use of the electronic payment service suspended to resume using the electronic payment service.

[0063] According to the embodiment described above, the payment server (information processing device) 100 comprises a payment processing unit 120, an extraction unit 130, and a stop processing unit 135. When a user purchases goods at a store, the payment processing unit 120 performs electronic payment based on payment information transmitted from a first store terminal device 50 installed at the store or a user terminal device 10 owned by the user. The extraction unit 130 extracts stores from among a plurality of stores belonging to the electronic payment service's member stores that have not performed electronic payments for a predetermined period of time or longer as target stores. The stop processing unit 135 performs a stop processing for the target stores to stop the use of the electronic payment service. This prevents users from mistakenly believing that electronic payment is available at a store that does not actually accept electronic payments, thereby improving convenience for users.

[0064] 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]

[0065] 10. User terminal device 20 Payment Apps 50. First store terminal device 100 Payment Servers 110 Communications Department 115 Payment Content Provision Department 120 Payment Processing Unit 125 Information Management Department 130 Extraction part 135 Stop Processing Unit 140 Announcement Department 145 List generation section 150 Location information acquisition section 155 Map Information Provision Department 160 Release Processing Unit 170 Storage section 200 Merchant Servers 300 Comprehensive Distributor Servers

Claims

1. A payment processing unit that performs electronic payment when a user purchases goods at a store, based on payment information transmitted from a store terminal device installed at the store or from a user terminal device owned by the user, An extraction unit that selects target stores from among multiple stores belonging to the electronic payment service merchants, in which the aforementioned electronic payment has not been performed for a predetermined period of time or longer. A stop processing unit that performs a stop process to stop the use of the electronic payment service at the target store, An information processing device equipped with the following features.

2. The system further includes a notification unit that sends a notification email indicating that the target store is subject to the suspension of use of the electronic payment service. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

3. The aforementioned notification section, If there is no comprehensive agent between the merchant to which the aforementioned target store belongs and the provider of the aforementioned electronic payment service, the aforementioned notification email will be sent to the merchant to which the aforementioned target store belongs. If a comprehensive agent exists between the merchant to which the aforementioned target store belongs and the provider of the aforementioned electronic payment service, the notification email shall be sent to the comprehensive agent. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2.

4. The system further includes a list generation unit that generates a list of target stores, which is a list of the aforementioned target stores. The stop processing unit performs the stop processing based on the target store list. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

5. The list generation unit determines whether an exclusion application has been made to exclude the target store from the suspension of use of the electronic payment service, and removes the target store for which an exclusion application has been made from the target store list. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4.

6. A location information acquisition unit that acquires location information of the user terminal device, The system further comprises a map information providing unit that provides the user terminal device with map information including information about stores in the vicinity of the location indicated by the location information, The map information provision unit excludes information relating to the store from which the stop process was performed. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

7. The system further includes a release processing unit that determines whether an application for reuse has been made to allow the use of the electronic payment service again for stores where the aforementioned suspension process has been performed, and performs a release processing to lift the suspension process for stores where such reuse application has been made. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

8. The aforementioned electronic payment includes a first electronic payment performed by a user scan in which the user terminal device reads a code image installed in the store, and a second electronic payment performed by a store scan in which the store terminal device reads a code image displayed on the user terminal device. The extraction unit is In the case of a merchant with only one store, stores where the first electronic payment has not been performed for the specified period or longer are selected as the target stores. In the case of a merchant group with more than a predetermined number of stores, stores where the second electronic payment has not been performed for the predetermined period or longer are selected as the target stores. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

9. The stop processing unit performs a hiding process to hide the target store on the map screen of the electronic payment service application, and performs the stop processing after a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the hiding process. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

10. Information processing device, When a user purchases goods at a store, electronic payment is made based on payment information transmitted from a store terminal device installed at the store or from a user terminal device owned by the user. Among multiple stores belonging to the electronic payment service, stores where the aforementioned electronic payment has not been performed for a specified period of time are selected as target stores. The following steps are taken to stop the use of the electronic payment service at the target store: Information processing methods.

11. In an information processing device, When a user purchases goods at a store, electronic payment is made based on payment information transmitted from a store terminal device installed at the store or from a user terminal device owned by the user. Among multiple stores belonging to the electronic payment service, stores where the aforementioned electronic payment has not been performed for a specified period of time are selected as target stores. The aforementioned target store shall be instructed to perform a suspension process to stop the use of the aforementioned electronic payment service. program.

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