Programs, information processing methods, servers

Abstract

Increase the opportunities for users to exchange items. [Solution] The program to be executed by the server is to have the server's communication unit receive first information regarding an item to be offered for exchange by the first user in the future, and to have the server's control unit perform first processing regarding the exchange of the first item based on the first information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a program, an information processing method, a server, etc.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, e-commerce such as free market services where users offer products has become widespread. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for exchanging products between users in a free market service.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Means for Solving the Problems

[0004] According to a first aspect of the present invention, a program for causing a server to execute includes causing the server to receive, by a communication unit of the server, first information regarding an offer for exchanging a first item that a first user will own in the future, and causing the server to perform, by a control unit of the server, a first process regarding the exchange of the first item based on the first information. According to a second aspect of the present invention, an information processing method of a server includes receiving, by a communication unit of the server, first information regarding an offer for exchanging a first item that a first user will own in the future, and performing, by a control unit of the server, a first process regarding the exchange of the first item based on the first information. According to a third aspect of the present invention, a server includes a communication unit that receives first information regarding an offer for exchanging a first item that a first user will own in the future, and a control unit that performs a first process regarding the exchange of the first item based on the first information.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0005] [Figure 1-1] A diagram showing an example of the system configuration of a communication system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-2] A diagram showing an example of a function realized by the control unit of the server according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-3] A diagram showing an example of information stored in the storage unit of the server according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-4] A diagram showing an example of account registration data related to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-5] A diagram showing an example of an account management database according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-6] A diagram showing an example of a function realized by the control unit of the terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-7] A diagram showing an example of information stored in the memory unit of the terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-8] A diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-9] A diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-10] A diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-11] A diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-12] A diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-13] A flowchart showing an example of the processing flow performed by each device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-14] A flowchart showing an example of the processing flow performed by each device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2-1] A diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a terminal according to the second embodiment. [Figure 2-2] A diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a terminal according to the second embodiment. [Figure 2-3] A flowchart showing an example of the processing flow performed by each device according to the second embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0006] <Compliance with legal matters> Please note that the disclosures described herein are subject to compliance with the laws of the implementing country, including the confidentiality of communications, which are necessary for the implementation of these disclosures.

[0007] <Embodiment> In this specification, there are instances where the phrase "for example" is used for clarity, but please note that this does not limit the content of the descriptions in those instances to the entire set of embodiments described below.

[0008] Embodiments for implementing the program etc. related to this disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0009] The production of the terminal of the claimed invention (the terminal of the claimed invention) may include the concept that, for example, a state is created in which the functions of the claimed invention become achievable in the terminal when the program described herein (e.g., an application program) is received (or received and stored in the terminal) on a terminal owned (possessed) by a user, thereby creating a state in which the functions of the claimed invention become achievable (a state is created in which the claimed invention becomes executable).

[0010] Furthermore, the production of the system of the claimed invention (the system of the claimed invention) may also include the concept that, for example, a state is created in which the function of the claimed system becomes achievable (a state is created in which the claimed invention becomes executable) by receiving a program described herein (e.g., an application program) transmitted from a server included in the system to a terminal included in the system (or by the received program being stored in the terminal).

[0011] Furthermore, in this specification, a system may be defined as having, for example, multiple devices. The plurality of devices may be a combination of devices of the same type, a combination of devices of different types, or a combination of devices of the same type and devices of different types. Note that the system can also be considered, for example, as something in which a plurality of devices cooperate to perform some processing.

[0012] Also, a system related to a client (client device) and a server can be considered, for example, as any of the following at least. (1) Terminal & Server (2) Server (3) Terminal

[0013] (1) is, for example, a system including at least one terminal and at least one server. This is an example of a client-server system.

[0014] The server is composed of, for example, the following devices, and may be a single device or a combination of a plurality of devices.

[0015] Specifically, a server may be configured with, for example, at least one processor (e.g., CPU: Central Processing Unit, GPU: Graphics Processing Unit, APU: Accelerated Processing Unit, DSP: Digital Signal Processor (e.g., ASIC: Application Specific Integrated Circuit, FPGA: Field Programmable Gate Array)), a computer device (processor + memory), a control device, an arithmetic unit, a processing unit, etc., and may be configured with multiple identical units of any one device (e.g., CPU + CPU, homogeneous multicore processor, etc.), or with multiple heterogeneous units of any one device (e.g., CPU + DSP, heterogeneous multicore processor, etc.), or with a combination of multiple devices (e.g., processor + computer device, processor + arithmetic unit, multiple devices made heterogeneous, etc.). Note that the processor may be a virtual processor.

[0016] Furthermore, when a server performs some processing, if it is configured as a single device, the processing described in the embodiment will be performed by that single device. If it is configured as having multiple devices, some processing may be performed by one device and other processing may be performed by the other devices. For example, if it is configured as having a processor and an arithmetic unit, the first processing may be performed by the processor and the second processing may be performed by the arithmetic unit. Furthermore, if the system consists of multiple devices, each device may be arranged in a location that is physically separated from the others.

[0017] Furthermore, server functionality may be provided in the form of PaaS, IaaS, or SaaS in cloud computing, for example.

[0018] Furthermore, the system's control unit can be at least one of either the terminal's control unit or the server's control unit. In other words, for example, the system's control unit can be any of the following: (1A) only the terminal's control unit, (1B) only the server's control unit, or (1C) both the terminal's control unit and the server's control unit.

[0019] Furthermore, the control and processing performed by the system's control unit (hereinafter collectively referred to as "control, etc.") may be (1A) performed solely by the terminal's control unit, (1B) performed solely by the server's control unit, or (1C) performed by both the terminal's control unit and the server's control unit. Furthermore, in (1C), for example, some of the controls that the system would normally perform may be performed by the terminal's control unit, while the remaining controls may be performed by the server's control unit. In this case, the allocation of controls may be equal, or they may be allocated in different proportions.

[0020] Furthermore, when referring to the server's communication unit, if the server is composed of a single device, it may refer to the communication unit itself provided by that single device. Also, if the server is composed of multiple devices, the server's communication unit may include the communication units provided by each of those devices. For example, if a server comprises a first device and a second device, with the first device having a first communication unit and the second device having a second communication unit, the communication unit of the server may be considered a concept that includes both the first and second communication units.

[0021] (2) can be, for example, a system consisting of multiple servers (hereinafter referred to as the "server system"). In this case, the configuration described above can be applied to each server in the same way.

[0022] The control and other functions performed by the server system may be performed by (2A) only one server, (2B) only the other servers, or (2C) one server and the other servers. Furthermore, in (2C), for example, one server may perform some of the control functions that the server system would normally perform, while other servers perform the remaining functions. In this case, the allocation of the controls may be equal, or they may be allocated in different proportions.

[0023] (3) can be, for example, a system composed of multiple terminals. This system can be, for example, as follows: A system that assigns server functions to terminals (a distributed system). This can be achieved, for example, using blockchain technology. A system in which terminals communicate wirelessly with each other. This can be achieved, for example, by using short-range wireless communication technologies such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) to communicate in a P2P (peer-to-peer) manner.

[0024] Furthermore, the above applies not only to the control unit but also to each functional unit that can be a component of the system, such as the input / output unit, communication unit, memory unit, and clock unit.

[0025] In the following embodiments, for example, a system including a terminal and a server (e.g., a client-server system) is illustrated. Furthermore, it is also possible to apply the server system described in (2) above as the server.

[0026] Furthermore, instead of a system that includes terminals and servers, it is also possible to apply a system that does not include servers, such as the system described in (3) above. In this case, the embodiment can be configured based on the aforementioned blockchain technology. Specifically, for example, data stored and managed on the server described in the following embodiment is stored on the blockchain. Then, when a terminal generates a transaction to the blockchain and the transaction is approved on the blockchain, the data stored on the blockchain is updated.

[0027] Furthermore, even when the term "terminal" is used, it is not limited to the meaning of a terminal as a client device in a client-server system. In other words, the term "terminal" can sometimes include the concept of a device that is not part of a client-server relationship.

[0028] Furthermore, the expression "by communication I / F" is used as appropriate in this specification. This may, for example, indicate that the device transmits and receives various information and data via a communication I / F (via a communication unit) based on the control of a control unit (such as a processor).

[0029] Furthermore, in this specification, terms such as "related to" or "concerning" may refer to "B concerning A" or "B related to A," for example, "B" which has some kind of relationship with "A." Specific examples will be given later.

[0030] Furthermore, in this specification, when a device processes two or more things, such as "transmitting A and B" or "receiving A and B," it may include both cases where "A" and "B" are performed at the same time (hereinafter referred to as "simultaneous") and cases where "A" and "B" are performed at different times (hereinafter referred to as "non-simultaneous"). For example, when transmitting first information and second information, the concept may include both cases: transmitting first information and second information at the same time, and transmitting first information and second information at different times. Furthermore, taking into consideration lag (time lag), "simultaneous" may include "almost simultaneous."

[0031] Furthermore, even if "A" and "B" are performed at different times, this only requires that the processing targets "A" and "B," and their purposes do not necessarily have to be the same. For example, when transmitting the first piece of information and the second piece of information as described above, it is sufficient to simply transmit the first piece of information and the second piece of information, and this may include cases where the first piece of information and the second piece of information are transmitted for different purposes, as well as cases where they are transmitted for the same purpose.

[0032] In the following examples, a messaging service is given as an example of a service for users to chat (hereinafter referred to as the "chat service"). Furthermore, an application for implementing the chat service is referred to as a "chat application," and an application for implementing the messaging service is referred to as a "messaging application." A chat application, for example, can allow users to chat in a chat room.

[0033] Furthermore, messaging services (MS) (including instant messaging services: IMS) can be considered a form of social networking services (SNS). Therefore, a distinction may or may not be made between messaging services and social networking services. In other words, messaging services may be included within the definition of social networking services.

[0034] Furthermore, the following embodiment illustrates an example of a messaging service: IMS (Instant Messaging Service), which enables the sending and receiving of simple messages between multiple devices (e.g., terminals) via a server. Instant messaging applications, for example, allow users to have conversations in chat rooms.

[0035] A chat room (for example, a talk room) can be a UI (User Interface) or GUI (Graphical User Interface) that allows each user to view content sent and received between multiple users' devices.

[0036] In messaging services, users can, for example, add any account as a "friend" and exchange messages through a chat room.

[0037] Furthermore, "friends" can be defined as the relationship between a first user and a second user in a messaging application, for example, when the accounts of the first user and the second user are linked unilaterally or bidirectionally. For example, if there is a mutual association between the first user's account and the second user's account, then it can be said that the first user and the second user are "friends." Also, for example, if there is an association between the first user's account and the second user's account, then it can be said that the first user and the second user are "friends" even if there is no association between the second user's account and the first user's account.

[0038] Furthermore, the chat rooms may include one-on-one chat rooms (hereinafter referred to as "one-on-one chat rooms"), group chat rooms containing multiple users (hereinafter referred to as "group chat rooms"), and chat rooms with OA service providers (for example, businesses that partner with messaging service providers) (hereinafter referred to as "OA chat rooms").

[0039] Furthermore, a messaging application account belonging to a business rather than a regular user may be referred to as "(OA (Official Account))", and a user of such an official account may be referred to as an "official user". This may also be referred to as an "official account user" or "official account business," etc. In contrast, a messaging application account belonging to a user who is not an office automation provider is referred to as a "general account," and a user of a general account is referred to as a "general user." This may also be referred to as a "general account user," etc. In other words, messaging application accounts may include both general accounts and official accounts.

[0040] Furthermore, office automation (OA) service providers may also enable users to send and receive messages with other devices via a server, for example, by using terminals similar to those used by general account users.

[0041] Furthermore, a message (message information) may be, for example, information used in a messaging service that defines the sender and recipient, and may consist of identification information (message ID) for identifying the message and the message content. Furthermore, message content may also refer to the contents of a message excluding the message ID. Message content may consist of one or more pieces of content.

[0042] Furthermore, the information set as identification information for identifying a message is called the "message ID." It can be argued that message content contained within messages with the same message ID is identified by that message ID. Therefore, the identification information used to identify a message can be considered substantially synonymous with the identification information used to identify message content. Alternatively, you may or may not set individual identification information (message content ID) for each message content.

[0043] Content may include, for example, text content in text format, image content in image format (including at least one of still images or moving images), and sound content in sound format (including voice). In addition, other elements such as buttons and icons for user interaction, and link content such as URIs (including URLs) may also be included.

[0044] The text may include, for example, at least one of the following: national characters represented by character codes, extended characters, machine-dependent characters, numbers, symbols, figures, and codes. Note that the text does not have to include at least one of the above characters, extended characters, machine-dependent characters, numbers, symbols, figures, and codes, but may include other text.

[0045] An image can contain at least one of several types of image information, such as icons, buttons, stamps, emojis, or banner images.

[0046] Contrary to the definition above, it is also acceptable to define "message" as a higher-level concept than "content," or to define "content" and "message" as synonymous, or not to define them in this way.

[0047] <Embodiment> For example, there are sales methods where the contents of a product are random, and the user cannot check the contents until they purchase it. In such sales methods, the contents of the product may be what the user wanted, or they may be different from what the user wanted. Hereafter, such sales methods will be referred to as "random sales methods," "random sales," etc.

[0048] Furthermore, in such random sales, there is a certain period of time between the user purchasing the product, checking what they received, and the product actually arriving in their hands. As mentioned earlier, if the product is different from what the user wanted, the user is not only left with a product they didn't want, but also has to wait a certain period of time before it arrives.

[0049] Furthermore, when a user sells (including trades) goods using an application or similar tool, there is a method of selling (trading) goods that the user already owns. However, services that allow users to sell items they already own may not be sufficient for all users.

[0050] This embodiment relates to a service that allows users to sell (exchange) not only items they already own, but also items they do not yet own, using an application or the like. Hereinafter, such a service will be appropriately referred to as a "flea market service," "flea market service," etc.

[0051] [Flea market service] A flea market service is a service that allows one user to buy or sell goods with another user via the internet. In a flea market service, the service in which one user buys goods with another user via the internet will be appropriately referred to as a "sales service," etc. Also, in a flea market service, the service in which one user exchanges goods with another user via the internet will be appropriately referred to as an "exchange service," etc.

[0052] In this embodiment, the contract for the flea market service (sales service and exchange service) shall be defined as follows: In the context of a flea market service's sales contract, a sales contract is an agreement in which one user transfers an asset (goods) to another user in exchange for receiving money (cash, electronic money, etc.). Furthermore, an exchange contract in a flea market service's exchange service is an agreement in which one user transfers an asset (goods) to another user and, in return, receives an asset (goods) other than money that is equivalent to the transferred asset.

[0053] In the following, in the flea market service of this embodiment, users who list items for sale will be referred to as "sellers," "selling users," "listers," "listing users," etc. as appropriate, users who purchase (or intend to purchase) the listed items will be referred to as "buyers," "buying users," etc. as appropriate, and the company that operates the flea market service will be referred to as "operators," "business operators," etc. as appropriate.

[0054] Furthermore, in the exchange service of the flea market service in this embodiment, users who list items for exchange will be appropriately referred to as "sellers," "listing users," etc., users who exchange items listed for their own items (those intending to exchange items) will be appropriately referred to as "exchangers," "exchange users," etc., and the company that operates the flea market service will be appropriately referred to as "operator," "business operator," etc.

[0055] Furthermore, in the sales service of the flea market service, items listed by sellers and items purchased by buyers will be referred to as "products," "listed items," etc., as appropriate.

[0056] Furthermore, in the exchange service of the flea market service, items listed by sellers (items that sellers wish to exchange) will be referred to as "listed items," "exchange items," etc. as appropriate, and items sought by sellers (items that sellers wish to obtain through exchange) will be referred to as "sought items," "items desired for exchange," etc. as appropriate.

[0057] Furthermore, in the exchange service of the flea market service, the items offered for exchange by the exchanger (the items the exchanger wants to exchange) will be referred to as "exchange items," etc., as appropriate. Therefore, when the "item being sought" (the item the seller wants to exchange) and the "exchange item" that the exchanger wants to offer match, an exchange (exchange reservation) will be made. In this specification, items in exchange services may also be referred to as "products" or similar terms for convenience.

[0058] An account on a flea market service may be an account created by an individual user (in an individual's name), a single account operated by multiple users (in a group's name), or an account for a store or other entity, regardless of whether it is an individual's or a group's name.

[0059] (Sales service flow) As an example, the sales service of a flea market service will be provided in the following manner. (1) The seller sells the goods (lists them for sale) (2) The buyer purchases the product (purchase request) (3) The buyer pays the price of the goods to the operator (payment) (4) The seller ships the goods (shipping) (5) The buyer checks the received product (check) (6A) If the buyer has no problems with the product, the operator will pay the seller and the transaction will be completed (Completion A). (6B) If the buyer has any problems with the product, the operator will terminate the transaction using an appropriate method (Termination B). (For example, the operator instructs the buyer to return the item, has the seller check the condition of the returned item, and if there are no problems, refunds the buyer's money and closes the transaction.)

[0060] (Exchange service flow) The exchange service offered by the flea market service will follow the process outlined below. (1) The seller presents the items they are selling and the items they are looking to sell (listing). (2) The exchanger offers to exchange (exchange request). (3) The seller ships the listed item (shipping) (4) The exchanger sends the exchange item (the item being sought). (5A) The exchange party confirms the received item (confirmation) (5B) The seller confirms the received replacement item (confirmation) (6A) If there are no problems with the items received by both the seller and the exchanger, the operator will close the transaction (closed). (6B) If either the seller or the exchanger has any problems with the received items, the operator will terminate the transaction using appropriate means. (For example, the operator instructs both parties to send back the items that arrived, has both parties check the condition of the returned items, and if there are no problems with either party, the transaction is terminated.) Please note that the order of (5A) and (5B) above may change depending on the recipient's place of residence and the current transportation situation.

[0061] (Items I do not own) In this embodiment, the flea market service may list not only items that the user does not currently own, but also items that the user does not currently own. Items that a user does not currently own that can be listed on the flea market service are items that the user does not own at the time of listing, but which the user is certain to own in the future. Listing such items that the user does not currently own on the flea market service is referred to as "pre-listing," etc., and listing items that the user already owns on the flea market service is referred to as "regular listing," etc. In the following, items owned by such users will be referred to as "owned goods," "owned items," etc., as appropriate, and items not owned by such users will be referred to as "unowned goods," "unowned items," "items to be owned," "items to be owned," "items to be owned," "items to be owned," "items to be owned," "items to be owned," "items to be owned," "items to be owned," "items to be owned," etc., as appropriate.

[0062] In the sales service of a flea market service, items that are confirmed to be owned may be listed as items for sale. Also, in the exchange service of a flea market service, items that are confirmed to be owned may be listed as items for sale, or items that are confirmed to be owned may be offered as items for sale (items that are confirmed to be owned may be offered for exchange as items for exchange).

[0063] Therefore, in this embodiment, transactions on the flea market service will be conducted using the following combinations. (A) Sales Services • Items for sale (personal belongings) • Items for sale (items not owned) (B) Exchange service • Items for sale (owned items), items for exchange (owned items) • Items for sale (owned items), items for exchange (unowned items) • Items for sale (not owned), items for exchange (owned) • Items for sale (not owned), items for exchange (not owned)

[0064] Examples of items whose ownership is confirmed include items sold through random distribution. For example, suppose there is a product that sells acrylic stands (hereinafter referred to as "acrylic stands") featuring multiple character designs at random, and because this product is popular and has many buyers, it is sold by lottery. Also, suppose that there is a certain period of time (for example, one month) between the time of purchase and the actual delivery of the product (physical item) to the user.

[0065] If a user wins the lottery for this product and is able to purchase it, the store will provide the user with a ticket (paper ticket, electronic ticket, etc.) containing the following information (A) to (C) at the time of purchase. (A) Proof of winning (B) Character name (of the acrylic stand) (C) Time of exchange for the physical item (including shipping time) Such tickets may be referred to as "winning tickets" or "winning vouchers" as appropriate, and since they are items that are not currently owned but whose future ownership is certain, they may be included as one of the items that are confirmed to be owned.

[0066] In this embodiment, in the exchange service of the flea market service, it is possible to list items for sale that are guaranteed to be owned, such as winning tickets for the random sale of acrylic stands as described above.

[0067] For example, let's say there was a user AA who wanted an acrylic stand of character X in a random sale of acrylic stands, but instead won an acrylic stand of character Y. In this scenario, using the exchange service of a flea market platform, user AA can list a winning ticket for character Y in search of a user willing to exchange it for character X's acrylic standee. This allows for an exchange with another user who also wanted character Y's acrylic standee but instead won character X's.

[0068] With this configuration, if a user receives a product that is different from what they wanted, and there is another user who owns (or plans to own) the same product that is different from what they wanted, they can exchange it if their desires match, even if they do not own the item. This increases the chances of obtaining the desired product and prevents wasted time while waiting for the product to arrive, thus providing a very beneficial service for users.

[0069] <First Example> The first embodiment is an example in a flea market service where, when a user lists an item they do not own, other users can manually search for and purchase or exchange the item from among the items they have listed. The contents described in the first embodiment are equally applicable to any of the other embodiments and any of the other modifications.

[0070] Furthermore, the following forms can be applied to implement a flea market service: (A1) A form in which the flea market service function is incorporated as a feature of the messaging application. (A2) A form in which a messaging service function is provided as one of the features of a flea market application that provides a flea market service. (B1) Forms of an application that has messaging service functionality and flea market service functionality (integrated application) (C1) A configuration in which the flea market application is configured as a separate application from the messaging application. (C2) A configuration in which a messaging application is configured as a separate application from the flea market application. (D) A form in which the flea market application is configured as a standalone application.

[0071] In the forms of (A1), (A2), and (B1), for example, the messaging service provider can be the same provider as the flea market service provider. In this case, one possible approach is to use a common account for both the user account in the messaging application and the user account in the flea market application. Alternatively, in this case, the user's account in the messaging application and the user's account in the flea market application can be automatically associated (linked).

[0072] In the forms (C1) and (C2), for example, the messaging service provider can be a different business from the flea market service provider. Furthermore, in the (C1)~(C2) configurations, it is possible to perform a process that associates (links) a user's account in the messaging application with a user's account in the flea market application.

[0073] In the following explanation, we will assume, for example, that the server 10 providing the flea market service is operated and managed by a flea market service provider, following the configuration of (D).

[0074] Furthermore, in the following explanation, the user of terminal 20A communicating with server 10 will be referred to as "User AA," the user of terminal 20B as "User BB," the user of terminal 20C as "User CC," and so on.

[0075] <System Configuration> Figure 1-1 shows an example of the system configuration of the communication system 1 in this embodiment. In the communication system 1, for example, a server 10 and one or more terminals 20 (terminal 20A, terminal 20B, terminal 20C, ...) are connected via a network 30.

[0076] Server 10 has the function of providing, for example, a flea market service to terminals 20 owned by users via the network 30. Server 10 can also be described as a flea market service server, etc. In this embodiment, for example, the user of Server 10 is a company that provides a flea market service (a flea market service provider). Note that the number of Servers 10 and Terminals 20 connected to Network 30 are not limited to those described above. In this embodiment, "flea market service" refers to a service provided by a business operator (server 10) such as a company that provides flea market services, and may be provided, for example, to a user (user's terminal 20).

[0077] Terminal 20 (Terminal 20A, Terminal 20B, Terminal 20C, ...) can be any information processing terminal capable of realizing the functions described in each embodiment. Terminal 20 includes, for example, smartphones, mobile phones (feature phones), computers (e.g., desktops, laptops, tablets, etc.), media computer platforms (e.g., cable, satellite set-top boxes, digital video recorders), handheld computer devices (e.g., PDAs (personal digital assistants), email clients, etc.), wearable devices (glasses-type devices, watch-type devices, etc.), VR (Virtual Reality) terminals, smart speakers (voice recognition devices), or other types of computers or communication platforms. Terminal 20 may also be referred to as an information processing terminal.

[0078] The configurations of terminals 20A, 20B, and 20C can, for example, be identical. Furthermore, if necessary, the terminal used by user X may be referred to as terminal 20X, and user information in a predetermined service associated with user X or terminal 20X may be referred to as user information X, or not. User information refers to information about a user associated with an account used by that user in a given service. User information includes, for example, information associated with the user, such as the user's name, user icon image, user's age, user's gender, user's address, user's hobbies and preferences, and user identifier, which are entered by the user or assigned by the given service. It may consist of any one of these items, a combination thereof, or no combination thereof.

[0079] Network 30 plays the role of connecting each device that constitutes communication system 1. In other words, network 30 refers to a communication network that provides connection paths so that the various devices described above can send and receive data after they have been connected.

[0080] One or more parts of network 30 may or may not be wired or wireless networks. Network 30 may include, for example, an ad hoc network, an intranet, an extranet, a virtual private network (VPN), a local area network (LAN), a wireless LAN (WLAN), a wide area network (WAN), a wireless WAN (WWAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), part of the internet, part of a public switched telephone network (PSTN), a mobile phone network, an integrated service digital network (ISDN), wireless LAN, LTE (long term evolution), CDMA (code division multiple access), Bluetooth (registered trademark), satellite communications, or two or more combinations thereof. Network 30 may include one or more networks 30.

[0081] Server 10 (not limited to, but an example of a server, information processing device, or information management device) has the function of providing a predetermined service (in this embodiment, a flea market service) to terminals 20, etc. Server 10 may be any information processing device that can realize the functions described in each embodiment. Server 10 includes, for example, a server device, a computer (e.g., desktop, laptop, tablet, etc.), a media computer platform (e.g., cable, satellite set-top box, digital video recorder), a handheld computer device (e.g., PDA, email client, etc.), or other types of computers or communication platforms. Server 10 may also be referred to as an information processing device. If it is not necessary to distinguish between Server 10 and Terminal 20, Server 10 and Terminal 20 may or may not be referred to as information processing devices.

[0082] [Hardware configuration of each device] The hardware configuration of each device included in communication system 1 will be described below.

[0083] (1) Terminal hardware configuration Figure 1-1 shows an example of the hardware configuration of terminal 20. Terminal 20 includes, for example, a control unit 21 (CPU: central processing unit), a storage unit 28, a communication interface 22, an input / output unit 23, a clock unit 29A, and a position calculation information detection unit 29B. Each hardware component of terminal 20 is interconnected via, for example, bus B. It is not necessary for terminal 20's hardware configuration to include all components. For example, terminal 20 may have a configuration in which individual components or multiple components are removed, or it may not.

[0084] The communication interface 22 transmits and receives various types of data via the network 30. Communication may be performed via wired or wireless connections, and any communication protocol may be used as long as communication between the interfaces is possible. The communication interface 22 has the function of communicating with various devices, such as the server 10, via the network 30. The communication interface 22 transmits various types of data to the server 10 and other devices according to instructions from the control unit 21. The communication interface 22 also receives various types of data transmitted from the server 10 and other devices and transmits them to the control unit 21. The communication interface 22 may also be simply referred to as the communication unit. Furthermore, if the communication interface 22 is composed of a physically structured circuit, it may be referred to as the communication circuit.

[0085] The input / output unit 23 includes devices for inputting various operations to the terminal 20, and devices for outputting processing results processed by the terminal 20. The input / output unit 23 may have an integrated input unit and an output unit, or it may have separate input and output units, or it may not have to be integrated.

[0086] The input unit is implemented by any or a combination of any type of device capable of receiving user input and transmitting the information related to the input to the control unit 21. The input unit includes, for example, hardware keys such as touch panels, touch displays, and keyboards, pointing devices such as mice, cameras (operation input via video), and microphones (operation input via voice).

[0087] The output unit is implemented by any or a combination of any type of device capable of outputting the processing results processed by the control unit 21. The output unit includes, for example, a touch panel, a touch display, a speaker (for audio output), a lens (for example, 3D output or hologram output), a printer, and the like.

[0088] This is just one example, but the input / output unit 23 may include, for example, a display unit 24, an audio input unit 25, an audio output unit 26, and an imaging unit 27.

[0089] The display unit 24 is implemented by any or a combination of any type of device capable of displaying data according to the display data written to the frame buffer. The display unit 24 includes, for example, touch panels, touch displays, monitors (e.g., liquid crystal displays and OLEDs (organic electroluminescence displays)), head-mounted displays (HDMs), projection mapping, holograms, and devices capable of displaying images, text information, etc., in air (which may or may not be a vacuum). These display units 24 may or may not be capable of displaying display data in 3D.

[0090] The sound input unit 25 is used for inputting sound data (including voice data; the same applies hereinafter). The sound input unit 25 includes a microphone, etc. The sound output unit 26 is used for outputting sound data. The sound output unit 26 includes a speaker and the like. The imaging unit 27 is used to acquire image data (including still image data and moving image data; the same applies hereinafter). The imaging unit 27 includes a camera, etc.

[0091] If the input / output unit 23 is a touch panel, the input / output unit 23 and the display unit 24 may be arranged facing each other and have substantially the same size and shape.

[0092] The clock unit 29A is the built-in clock of the terminal 20 and outputs time information (timing information). The clock unit 29A is configured to include, for example, a clock using a crystal oscillator. The clock unit 29A can also be described as, for example, a timing unit or a time information detection unit.

[0093] The clock unit 29A may or may not have a clock that conforms to the NITZ (Network Identity and Time Zone) standard, etc.

[0094] The position calculation information detection unit 29B is a functional unit that detects (measures) information necessary for the control unit 21 to calculate (measure) the position of its own terminal 20 (hereinafter referred to as "position calculation information"). The position calculation information detection unit 29B can also be described as, for example, a position calculation sensor unit.

[0095] The position calculation information detection unit 29B includes, for example, a satellite positioning sensor (satellite positioning unit) which is a sensor or unit for calculating the position of the terminal 20 using a satellite positioning system such as GPS (Global Positioning System), an inertial measurement sensor (inertial measurement unit (IMU)) which is a sensor or unit for calculating the position of the terminal 20 using an inertial navigation system, and a UWB positioning sensor (UWB positioning unit) which is a sensor or unit for calculating the position of the terminal 20 using UWB (Ultra Wide Band).

[0096] The satellite positioning unit includes, for example, an RF receiving circuit that converts RF (Radio Frequency) signals, including positioning satellite signals transmitted from positioning satellites received by an antenna (not shown), into digital signals, and a baseband processing circuit that performs correlation calculations on the digital signals output from the RF receiving circuit to capture positioning satellite signals, and outputs information such as satellite orbit data and time data extracted from the positioning satellite signals as position calculation information.

[0097] The inertial measurement unit has inertial sensors, which are sensors that detect information necessary to calculate the position of terminal 20 by inertial navigation calculations. The inertial sensors include, for example, a 3-axis accelerometer and a 3-axis gyroscope, and output the acceleration detected by the accelerometer and the angular velocity detected by the gyroscope as position calculation information.

[0098] The UWB positioning unit includes, for example, an ultra-wideband RF (Radio Frequency) receiving circuit that converts an ultra-wideband RF signal, including a positioning ultra-wideband pulse signal transmitted from a positioning beacon received by an antenna (not shown), into a digital signal, and a relative position calculation processing circuit that calculates the relative position between the terminal 20 and the positioning beacon based on the digital signal output from the ultra-wideband RF receiving circuit. For example, the UWB positioning unit may or may not make terminal 20 function as a positioning beacon by transmitting an ultra-wideband RF signal including a positioning ultra-wideband pulse signal from an antenna (not shown).

[0099] The control unit 21 calculates the position of its own terminal 20 at regular or specific intervals, for example, based on the position calculation information detected by the position calculation information detection unit 29B. The position of the terminal is referred to as the "terminal position," and the calculated terminal position is referred to as the "calculated terminal position." The control unit 21 may or may not store the calculated terminal position in the storage unit 28 as calculated terminal position history data, associated with the date and time the calculated terminal position was calculated.

[0100] The control unit 21 has physically structured circuitry to perform functions realized by code or instructions contained within the program, and is realized, for example, by a data processing device built into the hardware. Therefore, the control unit 21 may or may not be described as a control circuit.

[0101] The control unit 21 includes, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a processor core, a multiprocessor, an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit), and an FPGA (field programmable gate array).

[0102] The storage unit 28 has the function of storing various programs and data necessary for the operation of the terminal 20. The storage unit 28 includes various storage media such as HDD (hard disk drive), SSD (solid state drive), flash memory, RAM (random access memory), and ROM (read-only memory). The storage unit 28 may or may not be referred to as memory.

[0103] Terminal 20 stores program P in storage unit 28, and by executing program P, the control unit 21 executes the processing of each part included in the control unit 21. In other words, program P stored in storage unit 28 enables terminal 20 to realize the various functions executed by the control unit 21. Furthermore, this program P may or may not be described as a program module.

[0104] (2) Server hardware configuration Figure 1-1 shows an example of the hardware configuration of server 10. Server 10 includes, for example, a control unit 11 (CPU), a storage unit 15, a communication interface 14, an input / output unit 12, a display unit 13, and a clock unit 19. Each component of the server 10's hardware is interconnected, for example, via bus B. It should be noted that the server 10's hardware configuration does not necessarily include all components. For example, the server 10's hardware may be configured to exclude individual components or multiple components, or it may not.

[0105] The control unit 11 has physically structured circuitry to perform functions realized by code or instructions contained within the program, and is realized, for example, by a data processing device built into the hardware.

[0106] The control unit 11 is typically a central processing unit (CPU), but may also be a microprocessor, processor core, multiprocessor, ASIC, FPGA, or otherwise. In this disclosure, the control unit 11 is not limited to these.

[0107] The storage unit 15 has the function of storing various programs and data necessary for the operation of the server 10. The storage unit 15 is implemented using various storage media such as HDDs, SSDs, and flash memory. However, in this disclosure, the storage unit 15 is not limited to these. Also, the storage unit 15 may or may not be referred to as memory.

[0108] The communication interface 14 transmits and receives various types of data via the network 30. Communication may be performed via wired or wireless connections, and any communication protocol may be used as long as communication between the interfaces is possible. The communication interface 14 has the function of communicating with various devices, such as terminals 20, via the network 30. The communication interface 14 transmits various types of data to various devices, such as terminals 20, according to instructions from the control unit 11. The communication interface 14 also receives various types of data transmitted from various devices, such as terminals 20, and transmits them to the control unit 11. The communication interface 14 may also be simply referred to as the communication unit. Furthermore, if the communication interface 14 is composed of a physically structured circuit, it may be referred to as the communication circuit.

[0109] The input / output unit 12 includes devices for inputting various operations to the server 10, and devices for outputting processing results processed by the server 10. The input / output unit 12 may have an integrated input unit and an output unit, or it may have separate input and output units, or it may not have to be integrated.

[0110] The input unit is implemented by any or a combination of any type of device capable of receiving user input and transmitting the information related to the input to the control unit 11. The input unit is typically implemented by hardware keys such as a keyboard or a pointing device such as a mouse. The input unit may or may not include, for example, a touch panel, a camera (operation input via video), or a microphone (operation input via voice).

[0111] The output unit is implemented by any or a combination of any type of device capable of outputting the processing results processed by the control unit 11. The output unit includes, for example, a touch panel, a touch display, a speaker (sound output), a lens (e.g., 3D output or hologram output), a printer, and the like.

[0112] This is just one example, but the input / output unit 12 may include, for instance, a display unit 13.

[0113] The display unit 13 is implemented by a display or the like. Typically, the display is implemented by a monitor (for example, a liquid crystal display or an OLED (organic electroluminescence display)). The display may also be a head-mounted display (HDM) or not. These displays may or may not be capable of displaying data in 3D. In this disclosure, the display is not limited to these.

[0114] The clock unit 19 is the built-in clock of the server 10 and outputs time information (timing information). The clock unit 19 is configured to include, for example, a hardware clock such as an RTC (Real Time Clock) or a system clock. The clock unit 19 can also be described as, for example, a timing unit or a time information detection unit.

[0115] (3) Others Server 10 stores program P in storage unit 15, and by executing program P, the control unit 11 performs the processing of each part included in the control unit 11. In other words, program P stored in storage unit 15 enables server 10 to realize each function executed by the control unit 11. This program P may or may not be described as a program module. The same applies to other devices.

[0116] Each embodiment of this disclosure is described as being realized by the CPU of terminal 20 and / or server 10 executing program P. The same applies to other devices.

[0117] Furthermore, the control unit 21 of terminal 20 and / or the control unit 11 of server 10 may implement each process not only with a CPU having a control circuit, but also with logic circuits (hardware) or dedicated circuits formed on an integrated circuit (IC (Integrated Circuit) chip, LSI (Large Scale Integration)), etc., or they may not. Also, these circuits may be implemented by one or more integrated circuits, and the multiple processes shown in each embodiment may be implemented by a single integrated circuit, or they may not. In addition, LSIs are sometimes called VLSI, Super LSI, Ultra LSI, etc., depending on the degree of integration. For this reason, the control unit 21 may or may not be described as a control circuit. The same applies to other devices.

[0118] Furthermore, the program P (e.g., a software program, a computer program, or a program module) of each embodiment of the present disclosure may or may not be provided stored on a computer-readable storage medium. The storage medium is a “non-temporary tangible medium” capable of storing the program P. Also, the program P may or may not be for the purpose of implementing some of the functions of each embodiment of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the program P may or may not be a so-called differential file (differential program) that can implement the functions of each embodiment of the present disclosure in combination with a program P already recorded on the storage medium.

[0119] The storage medium may include one or more semiconductor-based or other integrated circuits (ICs) (e.g., field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) or application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs)), hard disk drives (HDDs), hybrid hard drives (HHDs), optical disks, optical disk drives (ODDs), magneto-optical disks, magneto-optical drives, floppy diskettes, floppy disk drives (FDDs), magnetic tapes, solid-state drives (SSDs), RAM drives, secure digital cards, or drives, any other suitable storage medium, or any two or more suitable combinations thereof. The storage medium may be volatile, non-volatile, or a combination of volatile and non-volatile, where appropriate. The storage medium is not limited to these examples and may be any device or medium capable of storing program P. The storage medium may or may not be referred to as memory.

[0120] The server 10 and / or terminal 20 can realize the functions of the multiple functional units shown in each embodiment by reading the program P stored in the storage medium and executing the read program P. The same applies to other devices.

[0121] Furthermore, the program P of this disclosure may or may not be provided to the server 10 and / or terminal 20 via any transmission medium capable of transmitting programs (such as a communication network or broadcast waves). The server 10 and / or terminal 20 realize the functions of the multiple functional units shown in each embodiment by executing the program P downloaded, for example, via the Internet. The same applies to other devices.

[0122] Furthermore, each embodiment of this disclosure can also be realized in the form of a data signal in which the program P is embodied by electronic transmission. At least part of the processing on server 10 and / or terminal 20 may or may not be implemented by cloud computing consisting of one or more computers. The configuration may be such that at least some or all of the processing on terminal 20 is performed by server 10, or it may not be so. In this case, the configuration may be such that at least some or all of the processing of each functional unit of the control unit 21 of terminal 20 is performed by server 10, or it may not be so. The configuration may be such that at least some or all of the processing in the server 10 is performed by the terminal 20, or it may not be so. In this case, the configuration may be such that at least some or all of the processing of each functional unit of the control unit 11 of the server 10 is performed by the terminal 20, or it may not be so. Unless otherwise explicitly stated, the configuration of the determination in the embodiments of this disclosure is not mandatory, and a predetermined process may be performed if the determination condition is met, or if the determination condition is not met, or not.

[0123] The programs disclosed herein are implemented using, for example, scripting languages ​​such as ActionScript and JavaScript®, compiled languages ​​such as Objective-C and Java®, and markup languages ​​such as HTML Living Standard.

[0124] [Functional Configuration of Each Device] (1) Server Functional Configuration Figure 1-2 shows an example of a function realized by the control unit 11 of the server 10 in this embodiment. The control unit 11 includes, for example, an application management processing unit 111 as a functional unit.

[0125] The application management processing unit 111 has the function of executing application management processing according to an application management processing program 151 stored in the storage unit 15, for example.

[0126] Figure 1-3 shows an example of the information stored in the storage unit 15 of the server 10 in this embodiment. The storage unit 15 stores, for example, an application management processing program 151 that is executed as an application management process, account registration data 153, and an account management database 155.

[0127] The account registration data 153 is registration data related to an application account (in this embodiment, a flea market application), and an example of its data structure is shown in Figure 1-4. The account registration data 153 stores, for example, the username, application ID, and other registration information in association with each other.

[0128] The username is the name of the account on device 20 using this application. For example, the name registered by the user of device 20 when using the application is stored.

[0129] An application ID is information used to identify an application account, or the account itself. This application ID is preferably a unique value for each account, for example, a unique value (unique value) is set and stored for each account by the server 10. The Application ID is information associated with terminal 20 or the user of terminal 20, and is an example of information about the terminal or the user of the terminal.

[0130] Other registration information may include, for example, identification information to identify terminal 20, the phone number of terminal 20 (terminal phone number), email address (terminal email address), and authentication information such as passwords used for various authentications in the application (login password, authentication password, etc.).

[0131] Identification information for identifying terminal 20 can be, for example, a terminal ID (e.g., IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity)).

[0132] For example, user information may be associated with and stored in other registration information.

[0133] Note that you may or may not use a "User ID" instead of an "Application ID". Also, if the application can only register one account per terminal 20, then for example, "Identification information for identifying terminal 20 = Identification information for identifying the user of terminal 20 = Application ID" can be used.

[0134] Furthermore, for example, it may or may not be possible to assign multiple terminal IDs to a single application ID. In this case, it may or may not be possible to launch the application simultaneously on multiple terminals 20 using a single application ID as the target for identification (login).

[0135] Furthermore, it is possible to apply a method of managing accounts using information such as the terminal's phone number instead of various IDs such as application IDs. In this case, instead of storing information such as the application ID in the account registration data 153, information such as the terminal phone number can be stored in the account registration data 153. Alternatively, the application ID information may be associated with the terminal phone number information on a one-to-one basis, or it may not be necessary to do so.

[0136] For the sake of simplicity, in the following embodiment, it will be assumed that one account is registered for each terminal 20. Furthermore, in this case, as described above, "identification information for identifying terminal 20 = identification information for identifying the user of terminal 20 = application ID," therefore, the term "user of the account" used in the following explanation may or may not be considered synonymous with "terminal of the account."

[0137] The account management database 155 is a database for managing information related to listings in sales and exchange services in a flea market service, for example, and an example of its data structure is shown in Figure 1-5. The account management database 155 stores account management data as management data for each account.

[0138] Each account management data entry stores associated information such as the application ID, listed product management data, and exchange product management data.

[0139] The application ID is information used to identify an account managed in the account management data. For example, the application ID registered in account registration data 153 is stored there.

[0140] The listed product management data is used to store the details of the products that this account has listed on the selling service. The product listing management data stores, for example, the listing ID, product name, price, and other listing information in association with each other.

[0141] The listing ID is information used to identify, for example, a listing made by this account on an application (in this example, the selling service of a flea market service).

[0142] The product name is, for example, the name of the product corresponding to the listing ID, and can be set arbitrarily by the user.

[0143] The price is, for example, the price of the product corresponding to the listing ID, and can be set arbitrarily by the user.

[0144] Other listing information may include, for example, information corresponding to the listing ID, such as information about the product category (product category information), information about when the product can be shipped (shipping availability information), information about product photos (photo information), detailed product information including descriptions of the product size and condition (product details information), and information about the shipping method (shipping method information).

[0145] The exchange item management data is used to store information about items that this account has listed for exchange (listed items) and items that it wishes to exchange (items being sought) within the exchange service. The exchange item management data stores information such as the exchange ID, the name of the item to be exchanged, the name of the item to be exchanged, the exchange availability period, and other listing information, all linked together.

[0146] The exchange ID is information used to identify, for example, the exchange listings made by this account on the application (in this example, the exchange service of a flea market service).

[0147] The exchange item name is, for example, the name of the item (listed item) that is put up for exchange and corresponds to the exchange ID, and can be set arbitrarily by the user.

[0148] The "Item Name for Exchange" is, for example, the name of the item (item being offered) that the user wishes to exchange, corresponding to the Exchange ID, and can be set arbitrarily by the user.

[0149] The redemption period is information regarding the time when the item listed for exchange (the item being offered for exchange), corresponding to the exchange ID, actually reaches the seller, and can be set arbitrarily by the user.

[0150] In this embodiment, as mentioned above, it is possible to list items that the user does not own at the time of listing, such as items whose ownership has been confirmed. When such items are listed, there is a certain period of time before the user, who is the seller, actually owns the item, so this item for redemption period is set.

[0151] Other listing information may include, for example, information corresponding to the exchange ID, information about the product category (product category information), information about when the product can be shipped (shipping availability information), information about product photos (photo information), detailed product information including descriptions of the product size and condition (product details information), and information about the shipping method (shipping method information).

[0152] The account management data shown at the very front of the drawing is for user AA (Application ID: U0001). For example, in the listed product management data, if the listing ID is "MS0947", it indicates that the product name is "Frill Skirt" and the price is "1,500 yen". In the exchange product management data, if the exchange ID is "ME0032", it indicates that the product name for exchange is "○○ Acrylic Stand (Chronos)", the product name for the desired exchange is "○○ Acrylic Stand (Uranus)", and the exchange date is "December 1, 2024".

[0153] (2) Terminal Functional Configuration Figure 1-6 shows an example of a function realized by the control unit 21 of the terminal 20 in this embodiment. The control unit 21 includes, for example, an application processing unit 211 as a functional unit for executing application processing according to an application processing program 281 stored in the storage unit 28.

[0154] Figure 1-7 shows an example of data stored in the storage unit 28 of the terminal 20 in this embodiment. The memory unit 28 stores, for example, an application processing program 281 that is executed as application processing, and an application ID 283 that corresponds to the terminal 20 or the user account of the terminal 20.

[0155] <Display screen> The following describes examples of display screens. The screen transitions described below are merely examples of screen transitions for implementing the method of this disclosure. Some screens may be omitted or additional screens may be added to the screen transitions exemplified below. Furthermore, the terminology used in the display screens described below may differ from the terminology used in the processes described later (some terms may not be consistent).

[0156] In the following example, we will describe a case where terminal 20 is a smartphone equipped with a vertically oriented display unit 24. The smartphone has, for example, a touch panel that functions as an input unit, positioned opposite its display, to form a touchscreen. When an element such as an icon, button, item, or input area is displayed on the display, and a part of the touch panel that is opposite the area on which the element is displayed is operated by the user, the program associated with that element or a subroutine of that program may be executed.

[0157] In addition, the flow of screen transitions may be explained by showing predetermined screens displayed on different terminals 20, either within a single drawing or across multiple drawings. In this case, for example, the predetermined screen may be displayed on different terminals 20 based on (or triggered by) at least one of the following: • Automatically displayed • When a notification (including push notifications, etc.; the same applies hereinafter) is sent to device 20, and the user takes action in response to the notification, it will be displayed. • No notification is sent to device 20, but it will be displayed when the user performs a specific action on the application. • A notification is sent to terminal 20, and the user performs a specified action on the application that sent the notification, which then displays the message.

[0158] The following example illustrates an account used to list items for sale in a flea market application's exchange service, specifically using user AA's terminal 20A. Furthermore, in the exchange service of a flea market application, an example of an account wishing to exchange a listed item is given as user BB's terminal 20B. In this example, the name of the flea market application is given as "Marketplace App".

[0159] Figures 1-8 to 1-10 show examples of screens displayed on the display units 24 of terminals 20A and 20B in this embodiment.

[0160] Figure 1-8, on the left, shows an example of the home screen of the flea market application displayed on terminal 20A, showing a list of items that have been put up for sale. This screen may appear, for example, when the icon corresponding to the flea market application is tapped to launch the flea market application.

[0161] The home screen includes a listing information display area (HR) that shows currently listed items. The HR section, which displays product information for listed items, shows product information for items such as socks, hats, dresses, and shoes, as an example.

[0162] Below that, there is a menu button display area MN for displaying the various menu buttons in the flea market application. The menu button display area MN shows, for example, a home button to transition to the home screen, a search button to transition to the search screen to search for listed products, a listing button SO to transition to the listing screen to list products, a "Like" button to transition to the favorites screen to view products that the user of this account has favorited, and a My Page button to transition to the My Page screen of this account. Currently, the home screen is displayed, so the home button is selected, while the other buttons are not selected.

[0163] When the user taps the listing button (SO), the display changes to the screen shown in the center of Figure 1-8. The screen in the center of Figure 1-8 is the listing screen, where you enter information to list a product. On this screen, various information has been entered and displayed by user AA, including "Photo of the winning ticket for the acrylic stand (Chronos)" as the uploaded photo, "○○ Acrylic Stand (Chronos)" as the product name (name of the item being sold), "Hobby" as the category, "Unused" as the condition of the product, and a detailed description of the product including messages such as "I would like to exchange Chronos for Uranus" and "The exchange will be possible in one month."

[0164] The right side of Figure 1-8 shows the next screen following the listing screen shown in the center of Figure 1-8. As shown on the right side of Figure 1-8, this screen displays information entered by user AA, such as "1-2 days from exchange" as the expected shipping date, "I would like to exchange" as the desired exchange status, "○○ Acrylic Stand (Uranus)" as the desired exchange item (item being sought), and "December 1, 2024" as the exchange availability period.

[0165] In this embodiment, the user has selected "I wish to exchange" on this screen, meaning they wish to exchange the item they are listing rather than sell it. Therefore, the selling price cannot be entered in the price field, and this is indicated by the display. On the other hand, if the user has selected "I do not wish to exchange" on this screen, it means they wish to sell the item they are listing rather than exchange it. Therefore, the selling price can be entered in the price field, and the fields for the product name and exchange availability period in the exchange section cannot be entered, and this is indicated by the display.

[0166] When the user taps the "List Execution Button SA" located at the bottom of the screen, which is used to execute the listing using the entered information, the listing is actually executed in the flea market application. Subsequently, it is assumed that the flea market application was launched on user BB's terminal 20B.

[0167] Figure 1-9, on the left, shows an example of the home screen of the flea market application displayed on terminal 20B, showing a list of items that have been put up for sale.

[0168] As shown on the left side of Figure 1-9, the listed product information display area HR displays, for example, product information related to the item listed by user AA for exchange (in this example, a winning ticket for an Acrylic Stand (Chronos)) (in this example, the product icon MC, which displays a photo of the "Winning Ticket for an Acrylic Stand (Chronos)"), as well as product information for coasters, hats, shoes, etc.

[0169] Here, among the product information displayed in the HR section of the product listing information, information for products listed using the exchange service includes information indicating that it is an exchange service product (in this example, an icon containing the words "Exchange Reservation"). On the other hand, among the product information displayed in the HR section of the product listing information, information for products listed using the sales service does not include information indicating that it is an exchange service product. As a result, users can easily recognize exchange service products from the list of listing information displayed on the home screen.

[0170] In this example, the information for each product listed on the home screen using the exchange service includes information indicating that it is an exchange service item (in this example, an icon containing the words "Exchange Reservation"). However, the example is not limited to this, and other information may be included in the information for items listed using the exchange service. For example, information about the items the seller is offering or information about the exchange availability period may be included.

[0171] When the product icon MC is tapped by the user, the display changes to the screen shown in the center of Figure 1-9. The screen in the center of Figure 1-9 is the product details confirmation screen, which allows you to check the details of the listed product.

[0172] As shown in the center of Figure 1-9, this screen displays the following: "Photo of the winning ticket for the Acrylic Stand (Chronos)" as the product photo, "○○ Acrylic Stand (Chronos)" as the product name (name of the item being offered), "○○ Acrylic Stand (Uranus)" as the item being sought for exchange, "December 1, 2024" as the exchange date, and an exchange reservation button RB for reserving this item for exchange.

[0173] Here, the exchange reservation button RB is tapped by the user, and an exchange reservation is established between user AA and user BB.

[0174] Alternatively, after the user taps the exchange reservation button RB, the system may be configured to require the user who is the exchange recipient (user BB) to upload information related to the items to be exchanged. The information related to the items to be exchanged uploaded by user BB (for example, a photo of the actual acrylic stand (Uranus), a photo of the winning ticket for the acrylic stand (Uranus), etc.) may be reviewed by user AA, who is the seller, to decide whether or not to proceed with the exchange reservation. If user AA decides that it is acceptable to proceed with the exchange reservation, the reservation may be completed.

[0175] Then, at the predetermined time, User AA will ship the listed item (the actual acrylic stand (Chronos)) to User BB, and User BB will ship the exchange item (the actual acrylic stand (Uranus)) to User AA.

[0176] Based on the fact that the item corresponding to the item listed by user AA (in this example, the actual acrylic standee (Chronos)) has arrived at user BB's location, user BB will launch the flea market application to notify the user of the item's arrival.

[0177] The screen on the right in Figure 1-9 is the product arrival notification screen displayed on terminal 20B for the flea market application, which is used to notify users that a product has arrived.

[0178] This screen has an area for uploading photos of the received product, and displays the uploaded photo "Acrylic Stand (Chronos) photo", information to check the condition of the received product (in this example, both the "Is it the same as promised?" and "Is it new and unused?" items are checked), information about the item that user BB gave away (exchange item), information about the item that was received from user AA (listed item), a cancel button to cancel the transaction, and a notification button TB to notify that the product has arrived without any problems.

[0179] When the notification button TB is tapped by user BB, the flea market service provider notifies user AA that the product has arrived without any problems (not shown).

[0180] Based on the fact that the item corresponding to the exchange item shipped by user BB (in this example, the actual acrylic standee (Uranus)) has arrived at user AA's location, user AA will launch the flea market application to notify the recipient of the item's arrival.

[0181] The screen on the left in Figure 1-10 is the product arrival notification screen displayed on terminal 20A for the flea market application, which is used to notify users that a product has arrived.

[0182] This screen has an area for uploading photos of the received item, and displays the uploaded photo "Acrylic Stand (Uranus) photo", information to check the condition of the received item (in this example, both the "Is it the same as promised?" and "Is it new and unused?" items are checked), information about the item that user AA gave away (exchange item), information about the item that was received from user BB (listed item), a cancel button to cancel the transaction, and a notification button TB to notify that the item arrived without any problems.

[0183] When the notification button TB is tapped by user AA, the flea market service provider notifies user AA that the product has arrived without any problems (not shown).

[0184] As shown in the center and right-hand screens of Figure 1-10, based on the fact that both user AA and user BB have tapped the notification button TB, the flea market service provider notifies both accounts that the transaction is being terminated.

[0185] The screen in the center of Figure 1-10 is the transaction completion screen displayed on terminal 20B, which notifies the user that the transaction in the flea market application has ended.

[0186] This screen displays actual photos and product names of each item exchanged by both parties, evaluation criteria for evaluating the trading partner (in this example, it consists of two selectable icons, "Good" and "Bad," with the "Good" icon selected), and an evaluation button (HB) for evaluating the trading partner and finally concluding the transaction.

[0187] When the rating button HB is tapped by user BB, the transaction ends with a "Good" rating given to the trading partner (user AA) (not shown).

[0188] The screen on the right in Figure 1-10 is the transaction completion screen displayed on terminal 20A to notify the user that the transaction in the flea market application has ended.

[0189] This screen displays actual photos and product names of each item exchanged by both parties, evaluation criteria for evaluating the trading partner (in this example, it consists of two selectable icons, "Good" and "Bad," with the "Good" icon selected), and an evaluation button (HB) for evaluating the trading partner and finally concluding the transaction.

[0190] When the rating button HB is tapped by user AA, the transaction ends with a "Good" rating given to the trading partner (user BB) (not shown).

[0191] Please note that the above display screen example is merely one example and is not limited to those shown above. For example, the "selling" and "exchanging" of items may be treated as separate functions of the application (explicitly separating selling and exchanging), and a display screen based on this may be configured. Furthermore, the display screen examples described below may be used as the basic configuration for this service (this application), while the display screen examples shown in Figures 1-8 and 1-9 may be used as alternative examples.

[0192] Figures 1-11 and 1-12 show examples of the display screen in this case. Figure 1-11, on the left, shows an example of the home screen of a flea market application displayed on the display unit 24 of terminal 20A. In this example, below the area labeled "Home," there are tab areas corresponding to multiple items, including "Goods Sales" (selling items) and "Goods Exchange" (exchanging items). These multiple items may include various other items such as "Recommended," "Follow," "Men's," "Women's," and "Cosmetics." For example, the user may slide left or right across the tab areas to select the desired item. This shows the state where merchandise sales have been selected and the "Merchandise Sales" tab is displayed in the selected configuration.

[0193] When the user selects "Merchandise Exchange," the "Merchandise Exchange" tab is displayed in the selected state, as shown on the right side of Figure 1-11, and various information mainly related to merchandise exchange is displayed below it. In this example, a "Recruit" button TRB1 for soliciting merchandise exchanges is displayed in a designated location on the screen (in this example, the lower right corner of the screen). The "Recruit" button TRB1 in this example screen display includes reversed arrows indicating merchandise exchange and the word "Recruit," and is displayed in a floating manner. When a user taps the "Recruit" button TRB1, the display unit 24 may display, for example, an listing screen as shown in the center of Figure 1-8, or a recruitment screen not shown.

[0194] Figure 1-12 shows an example of a display screen when soliciting merchandise exchanges using a different user flow than that shown in Figure 1-11. The left side of Figure 1-12 shows a screen similar to the left side of Figure 1-11. When the user taps the listing button SO, the display changes to the screen shown on the right side of Figure 1-12, for example. This screen is an item listing screen configured for selling and exchanging merchandise. The area that previously displayed "Home" now displays "List Item," and below this area, separate areas are configured for displaying information for selling merchandise and information for exchanging merchandise. In this example, the merchandise sales area displays the words "Merchandise Sales," and as "Shortcuts to List Items," the following icons are displayed side-by-side: a "Take Photo" icon for taking a photo of the item to be sold using terminal 20A, an "Album" icon for selecting a saved photo from the album, a "Code" icon for reading a code attached to the item (e.g., a one-dimensional code or a two-dimensional code) using the code reader on terminal 20, and a "Record Video" icon for recording video using terminal 20A. Below these, a "List Item" button is displayed to transition to the listing screen (sales screen) instead of using the shortcuts mentioned above.

[0195] Furthermore, below the merchandise sales area mentioned above, there is a merchandise exchange area TA for exchanging merchandise. In this example, the merchandise exchange area TA displays reversed arrows indicating that it is a merchandise exchange, text such as "Merchandise Exchange," and a "Recruit" button TRB2 for soliciting merchandise exchanges. In this example, the "Recruit" button TRB2 is displayed as ">". When a user taps the "Recruit" button TRB2, the display unit 24 may show, for example, an listing screen as shown in the center of Figure 1-8, or a recruitment screen not shown. Alternatively, the display may be based on a tap at any location within the goods exchange area TA.

[0196] Furthermore, while the example display screens in Figures 1-8 to 1-10 illustrate a configuration where user AA and user BB can upload photos of the exchanged items, this is not mandatory. Alternatively, or in addition to the above, a configuration may be applied in which, after the exchange reservation is confirmed, the exchange of the unowned item is completed (it is actually handed over to the user), and before the item to be exchanged is shipped, the user uploads photos of the exchanged item. In other words, a configuration may be applied in which, after the exchange reservation is confirmed, the user owns the item, and before it is shipped to the other party, the user uploads photos of that item.

[0197] Here, as an example, let's consider the case where user AA exchanges item X, which they do not own, with user BB, who also does not own item Y. In this case, the exchange could be carried out using, for example, the following procedure. (1) An exchange reservation (agreement for exchange) is made between user AA and user BB for item X and item Y. (2) Item X arrives at User AA's location (Item X redemption complete) / Item Y arrives at User BB's location (Item Y redemption complete) (3) User AA uploads a photo of item X / User BB uploads a photo of item Y (4) User AA checks the photos of item Y / User BB checks the photos of item X (5) Both parties confirm OK (6) Both User AA and User BB make payments (e.g., system fees and shipping costs) (7) Payment result OK (8) Send items to each other

[0198] Regarding (2) and (3) above, since there may be differences in the redemption and arrival times of items, for example, the server 10 may request the corresponding terminal 20 to upload a photo of the arrived item when the item becomes available for redemption for each user.

[0199] Furthermore, with respect to (3) above, it is not mandatory for both users to upload photos, etc. For example, if the server 10 receives information from one user's terminal 20 that photos, etc. are not required, the server 10 may notify the other user's terminal 20 that uploading photos, etc. is not required. The same procedure may be applied to uploading photos, etc., after exchanging items.

[0200] Furthermore, the payments mentioned in (6) above (for example, system fees and shipping fees) may be made using various payment methods determined by the business operator (credit cards, debit cards, electronic money, bank accounts, etc.). In this case, for example, the server 10 may perform the payment processing based on the information transmitted from the terminal 20, or a server of a payment service provider different from the server 10 may perform the payment processing. Furthermore, if, for example, step (3) above is omitted, payment (settlement processing) may be carried out, for example, at the time the exchange reservation in (1) above is established. However, it is not limited to this timing.

[0201] <Processing> Figures 1-13 and 1-14 are flowcharts illustrating an example of the processing flow performed by each device in this embodiment. In these figures, from left to right, an example of processing performed by the control unit 21 of user AA's terminal 20A is shown, an example of processing performed by the control unit 11 of server 10 is shown, and an example of processing performed by the control unit 21 of user BB's terminal 20B is shown. The processes described below are merely examples of processes for implementing the method of this disclosure, and are not limited to these. Additionally, you may add other steps to the process described below, or omit (delete) some steps from the process described below.

[0202] First, the control unit 21 of terminal 20A transmits product exchange registration information, which is information about the items to be exchanged, to the server 10 based on, for example, input to the input / output unit 23 of terminal 20A (for example, user input (operation input or sound input by the user, etc.); the same may apply hereinafter). (A110) Product exchange registration information only needs to include information about the user and information about the items being offered for exchange. This information may include the application ID, a photo of the offered item, the name of the offered item, the name of the item being offered, and the redemption period. However, this product exchange registration information does not need to include information about the item being offered (such as the name of the item being offered).

[0203] The method for entering product exchange registration information may be as follows, for example: • Text input (interactive instructions) in flea market applications • Inputting selection menus (forms) in flea market applications

[0204] When the server 10 receives product exchange registration information from terminal 20A, the control unit 11 executes the product exchange registration process (S110). In the product exchange registration process, the control unit 11 of the server 10 refers to the account registration data 153, identifies the application ID corresponding to the received product exchange registration information, and, based on the account management data corresponding to the identified application ID among the account management data stored in the account management database 155, stores the received product exchange registration information in the transaction management data of the account management data corresponding to the identified application ID among the account management data stored in the account management database 155, in accordance with the product exchange registration processing program.

[0205] Then, the control unit 11 of the server 10 transmits the flea market registered product information, including the result of the product exchange registration process, to the terminals 20 (in this example, terminals 20A and 20B) (S120). The flea market registration product information may include not only information based on product exchange registration information from terminal 20A, but also information based on product exchange registration information from other terminals 20.

[0206] When the terminal 20A receives information about a product registered on the flea market, the control unit 21 outputs the received product information (for example, by displaying it on the display unit 24) (A120). The display unit 24 of terminal 20A displays and outputs information such as a photo of the item being sold, the name of the item being sold, the name of the item being sought, and the exchange period, as flea market registration information.

[0207] Similarly, upon receiving flea market registration information, the control unit 21 of terminal 20B outputs the received flea market registration information (for example, by displaying it on the display unit 24) (B110). The display unit 24 of terminal 20B displays and outputs information such as a photo of the item being sold, the name of the item being sold, the name of the item being sought, and the exchange period, as flea market registration information.

[0208] Furthermore, in a flea market service, when a seller lists an item they do not own, the flea market service provider may obtain the date on which the item will actually be delivered to the seller from the item's supplier and display this information as part of the item's listing information on the flea market service.

[0209] Specifically, when the control unit 11 of the server 10 receives product exchange registration information from terminal 20A and executes the product exchange registration process, it may obtain information (hereinafter referred to as "expected arrival days information") from the server (not shown) of the seller of the listed item, based on the name of the listed item included in the product exchange registration information. This information may include the date the physical item arrives, the number of days it will take for the seller to ship the item to the seller (the number of days until it reaches the seller), and so on. The obtained expected arrival days information may then be stored in the transaction management data of the account management data corresponding to the specified application ID among the account management data stored in the account management database 155, in accordance with the product exchange registration processing program. Furthermore, the control unit 11 of the server 10 may include information on the expected number of days until arrival in the flea market listing information that it sends to the terminals 20 (in this example, terminals 20A and 20B). Furthermore, the control unit 21 of the terminal 20 that receives the flea market registered product information may output information about the expected number of days until the product arrives (for example, a message such as "30 days until the product arrives at the seller's location") from the received flea market registered product information (for example, by displaying it on the display unit 24).

[0210] Furthermore, if the above configuration is adopted, the flea market service provider may obtain the latest information (updated information) regarding the date on which the actual item will be delivered to the seller from the seller of the item, and display this information as part of the information about the item on the flea market service.

[0211] Specifically, in transactions where the control unit 11 of server 10 has previously obtained information on the expected number of days for arrival from the seller's server (not shown) of the listed item, it may periodically (for example, once a day) obtain the latest information on the expected number of days for arrival from the seller's server and store it in the transaction management data of the account management data corresponding to the specified application ID among the account management data stored in the account management database 155, in accordance with the product exchange registration processing program. Furthermore, if there is a change in the expected delivery date information, the control unit 11 of the server 10 may send information regarding the updated expected delivery date information to the terminals 20 (in this example, terminals 20A and 20B). Furthermore, the control unit 21 of the terminal 20, which has received information regarding the revised expected delivery date, may output (for example, display on the display unit 24) the information regarding the received revised expected delivery date (for example, a message such as "The delivery date to the seller has been extended from 3 days to 10 days").

[0212] Furthermore, it may be possible to require sellers to include product photos when listing items in regular listings, while making it unnecessary for sellers to include product photos when listing items in pre-listings.

[0213] Specifically, in a flowchart (for example, Figure 1-13) showing an example of the processing flow performed by each device for normal listing (when the listed item is a personal item), it may be made mandatory to include information about the product's photograph in the product exchange registration information transmitted by the control unit 21 of terminal 20A.

[0214] Furthermore, in a flowchart (for example, Figure 1-13) showing an example of the processing flow performed by each pre-listing device, (if the listed item is an item not owned) the product exchange registration information transmitted by the control unit 21 of terminal 20A does not need to include information about the product's photo.

[0215] The control unit 21 of terminal 20B transmits product exchange reservation request information, which is information requesting an exchange for the listed product, to the server 10 based on, for example, the input to the input / output unit 23 of terminal 20B (B120). Product exchange reservation request information may include information such as the exchange ID corresponding to the target listing and the application ID corresponding to user BB.

[0216] The means for inputting product exchange reservation request information may be as follows, for example: • Inputting selection menus (forms) in flea market applications

[0217] When the control unit 11 of the server 10 receives product exchange reservation request information from terminal 20B, it executes the product exchange reservation process (S130). In the product exchange reservation processing, the control unit 11 of the server 10 stores the received product exchange reservation request information in the product exchange management data corresponding to the identified exchange ID among the account management data stored in the account management database 155, according to the product exchange reservation processing program. Specifically, the exchange product management data corresponding to the identified exchange ID may store information such as trading partner information indicating that the account of the application ID (user BB) included in the product exchange reservation request information is the exchanger, and information to stop accepting new exchange reservations for the exchange ID included in the product exchange reservation request information.

[0218] Furthermore, after the product exchange reservation process is executed, the control unit 11 of the server 10 may send information to the terminal 20 notifying that the product exchange reservation has been successfully completed.

[0219] As mentioned above, before executing the product exchange reservation process, it is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the user exchanging the items uploads information related to the items to be exchanged, and the user selling the items decides whether or not to proceed with the exchange.

[0220] Specifically, the server 10 may be configured to include information related to the exchange item (for example, a photo of the actual exchange item to prove ownership of the exchange item, a photo of the winning ticket of the exchange item to prove future ownership of the exchange item, etc.) in the product exchange reservation request information from the terminal 20B, and transmit the information related to the exchange item to the terminal 20A. When the user of the terminal 20A that has received the information related to the exchange item transmits information related to confirming the information related to the exchange item and approving the establishment of the product exchange reservation to the server 10, the server 10 may execute the product exchange reservation process.

[0221] Alternatively, the server 10 that has received the product exchange reservation request information may transmit a request for transmitting information related to the exchange item to the terminal 20B. The server 10 that has received the information related to the exchange item from the terminal 20B may transmit the information related to the exchange item to the terminal 20A. When the user of the terminal 20A that has received the information related to the exchange item transmits information related to confirming the information related to the exchange item and approving the establishment of the product exchange reservation to the server 10, the server 10 may execute the product exchange reservation process.

[0222] According to such a configuration, it is possible to prevent, in advance, an improper transaction in which an exchanger who does not own (and does not plan to own) the item solicited by the seller causes the seller to ship only the listed item and the solicited item does not reach the seller.

[0223] Next, the control unit 11 of the server 10 determines whether or not the exchangeable time has arrived (S140). The control unit 11 of the server 10 may determine, for example, whether the exchangeable time (date information) of the account management data stored in the account management database 155 has reached the time information (including date information) of the clock unit 19.

[0224] If the exchangeable time has not arrived (S140: NO), the control unit 11 of the server 10 makes the determination in S140. When the replaceable period is reached (S140: YES), the control unit 11 of the server 10 transmits replacement product shipment request information for requesting the shipment of a replacement product (listed item) to the terminal 20A (S150).

[0225] The control unit 21 of the terminal 20A determines whether or not it has received the replacement product shipment request information (A130). When the replacement product shipment request information has not been received (A130: NO), the control unit 21 of the terminal 20A makes the determination of A130. When the replacement product shipment request information has been received (A130: YES), the control unit 21 of the terminal 20A outputs the received replacement product shipment request information (for example, displays and outputs it to the display unit 24) (A140). A message such as "Please ship the product to be replaced." is displayed and output to the display unit 24 of the terminal 20A as the replacement product shipment request information.

[0226] Then, the control unit 21 of the terminal 20A executes a replacement product shipment process (A150). The replacement product shipment process may include, for example, processes when a shipping procedure is performed via an application of a shipping service.

[0227] Then, the control unit 21 of the terminal 20A transmits replacement product shipment information for notifying that the replacement product has been shipped to the server 10 based on, for example, an input to the input / output unit 23 of the terminal 20A (A160). The replacement product shipment information may include a replacement ID, information regarding delivery (expected delivery date and time), and the like.

[0228] When receiving the replacement product shipment information from the terminal 20A, the control unit 11 of the server 10 transmits replacement desired product shipment request information for requesting the shipment of a replacement desired product (replacement item) to the terminal 20B (S160).

[0229] Furthermore, when the control unit 11 of the server 10 receives information about the shipment of a replacement product from terminal 20A, it may send information to terminal 20B to notify it that the replacement product (listed item) has been shipped.

[0230] The control unit 21 of terminal 20B determines whether or not it has received information regarding a request for shipment of the replacement product (B130). If no information regarding the shipment request for the replacement item is received (B130:NO), the control unit 21 of terminal 20B performs the B130 determination. When information regarding a request for shipment of an item to be exchanged is received (B130: YES), the control unit 21 of terminal 20B outputs the received information regarding the request for shipment of an item to be exchanged (for example, by displaying it on the display unit 24) (B140). The display unit 24 of terminal 20B displays and outputs messages such as "Please ship the item to be exchanged" as information regarding the request to ship the item to be exchanged.

[0231] Then, the control unit 21 of terminal 20B executes the process of shipping the requested replacement product (B150). The process for shipping the requested replacement item may include, for example, the process of initiating shipping procedures via a shipping service application.

[0232] Then, the control unit 21 of terminal 20B transmits information to the server 10 (B160) that the requested replacement item has been shipped, based on the input to the input / output unit 23 of terminal 20B. The shipping information for the requested exchange item may include the exchange ID and delivery information (estimated delivery date and time).

[0233] Furthermore, when the control unit 11 of the server 10 receives information about the shipment of the requested replacement item from terminal 20B, it may send information to terminal 20A to notify it that the requested replacement item (exchange item) has been shipped.

[0234] Then, when the user of terminal 20B (user BB) receives the product (replacement product = listed item) sent from the user of terminal 20A (user AA) and checks the condition of the product, the control unit 21 of terminal 20B sends product confirmation information to the server 10 (B170), notifying that the product has been checked, for example, based on the input to the input / output unit 23 of terminal 20B. Product verification information may include the exchange ID and information regarding the trading partner's rating.

[0235] Similarly, when the user of terminal 20A (user AA) receives the product (item to be exchanged = exchange item) sent from the user of terminal 20B (user BB) and checks the condition of the product, the control unit 21 of terminal 20A sends product confirmation information to the server 10 (A170), notifying that the product has been checked, for example, based on the input to the input / output unit 23 of terminal 20A. Product verification information may include the exchange ID and information regarding the trading partner's rating.

[0236] Furthermore, the product confirmation information may include information that proves receipt of the product (the product to be exchanged = the item to be exchanged). Examples of information that proves receipt of the product (the product to be exchanged = the item to be exchanged) include a photograph of the received product and a photograph of the receipt issued by the delivery company when the product was received.

[0237] Upon receiving product confirmation information from terminals 20A and 20B, the control unit 11 of the server 10 executes the product transaction completion process (S170). In the product transaction processing, the control unit 11 of the server 10 stores the received product confirmation information in the exchange product management data corresponding to the identified exchange ID among the account management data stored in the account management database 155, according to the product transaction completion processing program, based on the exchange product management data corresponding to the identified exchange ID among the account management data stored in the account management database 155. Specifically, among the account management data stored in the account management database 155, information indicating that the corresponding listing has ended, information regarding the evaluation of the trading user, and the like are stored in the exchange product management data corresponding to the specified exchange ID.

[0238] Then, after the processing of step A170, the control unit 21 of the terminal 20A performs an end determination (A190). If it is determined that the processing is to be continued (A190: NO), the control unit 21 of the terminal 20A returns the processing to A110. On the other hand, if it is determined that the processing is to be ended (A190: YES), the control unit 21 of the terminal 20A ends the processing.

[0239] Then, after the processing of step S170, the control unit 11 of the server 10 performs an end determination (S190). If it is determined that the processing is to be continued (S190: NO), the control unit 11 of the server 10 returns the processing to S110. On the other hand, if it is determined that the processing is to be ended (S190: YES), the control unit 11 of the server 10 ends the processing.

[0240] Then, after the processing of step B170, the control unit 21 of the terminal 20B performs an end determination (B190). If it is determined that the processing is to be continued (B190: NO), the control unit 21 of the terminal 20B returns the processing to B110. On the other hand, if it is determined that the processing is to be ended (B190: YES), the control unit 21 of the terminal 20B ends the processing.

[0241] Note that, as described above, after executing the product exchange reservation process (S130), when the exchangeable time arrives (S140: YES), the control unit 11 of the server 10 may, for example, cause the user who is the seller (in this example, user A.A) to upload information related to the exchange product. Specifically, for example, information requesting the upload of information related to the exchange product may be transmitted to the terminal 20 of the user who is the seller (in this example, terminal 20A). You may also perform the same process for the user who is the exchanger (user BB in this example).

[0242] Furthermore, the control unit 11 of the server 10 may perform similar processing for, for example, the goods that the user who is the exchanger (user BB in this example) will own in the future (the goods to be exchanged). In this case, for example, when the redemption period corresponding to the registered item to be exchanged is reached, the control unit 11 of the server 10 may prompt the user, who is the exchanger, to upload information related to the item to be exchanged. Specifically, for example, information requesting the upload of information related to the item to be exchanged may be sent to the user's terminal 20 (terminal 20B in this example).

[0243] <Effects of the First Example> This embodiment shows an example of a configuration in which a control unit (e.g., control unit 11) of a server (e.g., server 10) receives first information (e.g., product exchange registration information) regarding the listing of a first item (e.g., listing item, exchange item, etc.) that a first user (e.g., seller) will own in the future, via a communication unit (e.g., communication I / F 14), and performs first processing related to the exchange of the first item (e.g., product exchange registration processing (S110), flea market registration information transmission processing (S120), product exchange reservation processing (S130), etc.) based on the first information. This makes it possible to list items you will own in the future and to exchange items you will own in the future.

[0244] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the first information includes an example configuration in which the first information includes information about the second item that the user wishes to exchange for the first item (e.g., the item to be exchanged, the product to be exchanged, etc.) (e.g., the name of the item being offered for sale, etc.). This allows sellers to inform the server of the items they wish to exchange for, enabling a more user-friendly exchange service.

[0245] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the first process includes an example configuration that includes a process for making the first item and the second item public (for example, a process for sending flea market registration information (S120)). This allows users, as sellers, to publicly list both the items they want to exchange and the items they want to receive in exchange, making it possible to provide an exchange service that better meets the user's needs.

[0246] Furthermore, this embodiment shows an example configuration in which the process of publishing the first item and the second item includes publishing the number of days until the first user comes to own the first item (for example, including information on the expected number of days until arrival in the flea market listing information). This allows you to include the specific number of days it took for the first user to acquire the item when you first publish it, so that other users can know exactly when they obtained the first item.

[0247] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the first process includes an example configuration in which a process receives a request from a second user (e.g., an exchanger) to exchange the first item for the second item based on the process to be made public (e.g., a process to receive product exchange reservation request information (after B120)). This makes it possible to recognize the existence of a second user who wishes to exchange the first item for the second item, and to actually exchange the first and second items.

[0248] Furthermore, the first process may include a process in which the communication unit transmits a photograph of the first item, which has been acquired by the first user, to the second user's second terminal. This allows the first user to confirm that they own the first item, and the second user to verify that they own the first item, enabling a secure exchange service.

[0249] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the first process includes an example configuration in which the communication unit transmits a photograph of the second item exchanged by the first user for the first item to the second user's second terminal (for example, a process of transmitting product confirmation information including information about the received product (A170)), and the communication unit transmits a photograph of the first item exchanged by the second user for the second item to the first user's first terminal (for example, a process of transmitting product confirmation information including information about the received product (B170)). This makes it possible for both parties to confirm that the item has been successfully delivered to the other party, enabling the creation of a service that provides users with a secure transaction experience.

[0250] Furthermore, this embodiment illustrates an example configuration in which the second item is an item that the second user will own in the future (for example, the exchange item may be an item not yet owned). This means that not only the first item but also the second item may be an item that the user will own in the future, increasing opportunities for item exchange and providing a more favorable service for users who wish to exchange items.

[0251] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the first process includes an example of a configuration that includes a process for receiving information that proves the second user will own the second item in the future (for example, before S130, the process is executed to receive information from terminal 20 such as a photograph of the actual exchange item to prove that the user owns the exchange item, or a photograph of the winning ticket for the exchange item to prove that the user will own the exchange item in the future). This prevents fraudulent activity such as users attempting to exchange items they do not own, thereby enabling the provision of a healthy exchange service.

[0252] Furthermore, the first process may include a process in which the communication unit transmits a photograph of the second item, which has been acquired by the second user, to the first user's first terminal. This allows the second user to confirm that they own the second item, and the first user can verify that the second item is in their possession, enabling a secure exchange service.

[0253] Furthermore, this embodiment shows an example configuration in which the server 10 is instructed by the communication unit (e.g., communication I / F 14) to receive second information (e.g., product exchange registration information during normal listing) regarding the listing of a third item (e.g., owned item) currently owned by the first user, and the second information includes a photograph of the third item (e.g., product exchange registration information during normal listing includes information about the product's photograph), while the first information does not include a photograph of the first item (e.g., product exchange registration information during pre-listing does not include information about the product's photograph). This makes it possible to adopt the appropriate listing method depending on the product being offered, thereby providing a more convenient service for users.

[0254] <First variation (1)> In the above embodiment, we showed an example where any user registered with the flea market service can use any of the services, but the example is not limited to this. For example, even users registered with a flea market service may have their access to certain services restricted if they meet certain conditions.

[0255] For example, in a flea market exchange service, if a user repeatedly engages in transactions where they list an item they do not own as an item to be offered for sale or exchanged, and after an exchange reservation is made, they fail to deliver the actual item to the other party and ultimately terminate the transaction, then this user may be restricted from using the exchange service as a Perti (permission restriction).

[0256] For example, in a flea market service, there could be a service where users rate each other at the end of a transaction (selecting either "good" or "bad"), and only users who have received 10 or more "good" ratings could be allowed to use the exchange service within the flea market service.

[0257] <First variation (2)> In the above embodiment, we have shown an example where it is possible to select the product status at the time of listing, regardless of whether you use the regular listing method or the pre-listing method, but we are not limited to such an example. For example, when listing an item as a regular item, the seller could be allowed to select the item's condition at the time of listing. However, when listing an item as a pre-listing item, the seller could be prevented from selecting the condition (for example, by fixing the condition to "unused"). This is because items listed as pre-listing items are naturally new, and fixing the condition to "unused" provides a more convenient service for the user.

[0258] <Second Example> The second embodiment relates to an embodiment of a flea market service that automatically matches users whose listed items match the items being sought when multiple users list items they do not own. The contents described in the second embodiment are equally applicable to any of the other embodiments or other modifications.

[0259] <Display screen> Figures 2-1 to 2-2 show examples of screens displayed on the display unit 24 of the terminal 20B in this embodiment.

[0260] In this example, user AA is listing an item they already own, a "winning ticket for an Acrylic Stand (Chronos)," on a flea market application, and the item being offered for sale is an "Acrylic Stand (Uranus)."

[0261] Figure 2-1, on the left, shows an example of the home screen of the flea market application displayed on terminal 20B, showing a list of items that have been put up for sale. This screen is the same as the screen on the left side of Figure 1-9 mentioned earlier, so we will omit the explanation.

[0262] When the listing button SO is tapped by the user (User BB), the display changes to the screen shown in the center of Figure 2-1. The screen in the center of Figure 2-1 is the listing screen, where you enter information to list a product.

[0263] As shown in the center of Figure 2-1, this screen displays various information entered by user BB, including "Photo of the winning ticket for the acrylic stand (Uranus)" as the uploaded photo, "○○ Acrylic Stand (Uranus)" as the product name (name of the item being sold), "Hobby" as the category, "Unused" as the condition of the product, and messages such as "I would like to exchange Uranus for Chronos" and "The exchange will be possible in one month" as the detailed description of the product.

[0264] The right side of Figure 2-1 shows the next screen following the listing screen in the center of Figure 2-1. As shown on the right side of Figure 2-1, this screen displays information entered by user BB, such as "Within one week of exchange" as the expected shipping date, "Wish to exchange" as the desired exchange status, "○○ Acrylic Stand (Chronos)" as the desired exchange item (item being sought), and "December 1, 2024" as the exchange availability period.

[0265] When the user (User BB) taps the "List Execution Button SA" located at the bottom of the screen, which is used to execute the listing using the entered information, the listing is actually executed in the flea market application.

[0266] Subsequently, two users (User AA and User BB) whose listed items (items for exchange) and requested items (items to be exchanged) match are assumed to have been matched through the flea market application, and the flea market application is assumed to have been launched on User BB's terminal 20B.

[0267] Figure 2-2, left side, shows an example of the exchange matching screen of a flea market application displayed on terminal 20B. The screen on the left side of Figure 2-2 is a screen that suggests users (User AA) who have listed items that match the conditions of the user (User BB).

[0268] As shown on the left side of Figure 2-2, this screen displays information about the items listed by user BB, the seller (such as photos and product names related to "Acrylic Stand (Uranus) winning ticket"), information about the items to be exchanged by user AA, the exchange recipient (such as photos and product names related to "Acrylic Stand (Chronos) winning ticket"), information about the exchange availability period, and an exchange reservation button RB for reserving this item for exchange.

[0269] When the exchange reservation button RB is tapped by the user (user BB), the display changes to the screen shown in the center of Figure 2-2. This screen is also an exchange matching screen, and we will omit the explanation of the parts that are common to the screen on the left side of Figure 2-2.

[0270] As shown in the center of Figure 2-2, this screen displays information about the future schedule based on the successful exchange reservation (messages such as "Please wait until the exchange is possible" and "Exchange possible date: 2024 / 12 / 01"), as well as an OK button (OB) to indicate that the user has understood the information displayed on the screen.

[0271] Here, after the exchange reservation button RB is tapped by the seller user (user BB), the system may confirm with the exchange user (user AA) whether or not to proceed with the exchange reservation. The exchange reservation may only be completed if confirmation is received from the exchange user (user AA) that it is acceptable to proceed. Specifically, after the exchange reservation button RB is tapped by user BB on the left side of Figure 2-2, the system may not transition to the screen in the center of Figure 2-2 until confirmation is received from user AA.

[0272] Then, at the predetermined time, User BB will ship the listed item (the actual acrylic stand (Uranus)) to User AA, and User AA will ship the exchange item (the actual acrylic stand (Chronos)) to User BB.

[0273] Based on the fact that the item corresponding to the item listed by user AA (in this example, the actual acrylic standee (Chronos)) has arrived at user BB's location, user BB will launch the flea market application to notify the user of the item's arrival.

[0274] The screen on the right in Figure 2-2 is the product arrival notification screen displayed on terminal 20B for the flea market application, which is used to notify users that a product has arrived. This screen is the same as the screen on the right side of Figure 1-9 mentioned earlier, so we will omit the explanation.

[0275] <Processing> Figure 2-3 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow performed by each device in this embodiment. In this figure, from left to right, an example of processing performed by the control unit 21 of user AA's terminal 20A, an example of processing performed by the control unit 11 of server 10, and an example of processing performed by the control unit 21 of user BB's terminal 20B are shown. The processes described below are merely examples of processes for implementing the method of this disclosure, and are not limited to these. Additionally, you may add other steps to the process described below, or omit (delete) some steps from the process described below.

[0276] This flowchart is an example of a process that replaces the flowchart shown in Figure 1-13, so explanations of similar steps will be omitted. Furthermore, the subsequent flowchart is the same as the flowchart shown in Figure 1-14, so explanations will also be omitted.

[0277] The control unit 21 of terminal 20B transmits product exchange registration information, which is information about the items to be exchanged, to the server 10 based on input to the input / output unit 23 of terminal 20B (B210).

[0278] When the server 10 receives product exchange registration information from terminal 20B, the control unit 11 executes the product exchange registration process (S210).

[0279] After step S210, the control unit 11 of the server 10 performs the exchange product matching process (S220). In the exchange product matching process, the control unit 11 of the server 10 searches the account management data stored in the account management database 155 according to the exchange product matching processing program for listings where the name of the product to be exchanged in one account management data matches the name of the product to be exchanged in another account management data, and where the product to be exchanged in this one account management data matches the name of the product to be exchanged in this other account management data. The control unit 11 then stores in the exchange product management data corresponding to the matched exchange IDs that the exchange IDs have matched (for example, by setting a matching flag to indicate that a match has been made for the matched exchange IDs).

[0280] Then, if there is a matching listing, the control unit 11 of the server 10 sends product match information to the terminal 20B to notify it that a match has been made (S230). Product matching information may include information about the matched exchange IDs (exchange ID on the seller's (user BB) side and exchange ID on the exchanger's (user AA) side), as well as information about the corresponding exchange product name, desired exchange product name, and exchange availability period.

[0281] Upon receiving product match information, the control unit 21 of terminal 20B outputs the received product match information (for example, by displaying it on the display unit 24) (B220). The display unit 24 of terminal 20B displays and outputs product matching information, including information about the listed item (photo and name), information about the item being sought (exchange item) (photo and name), and information about the exchange availability period (for example, messages such as "Please wait until the exchange availability period" or "Exchange availability period: 2024 / 12 / 01"). The subsequent processing is the same as in Figure 1-13, so the explanation will be omitted.

[0282] Furthermore, the control unit 11 of the server 10 may, after receiving product exchange registration information from terminal 20A, execute the product exchange registration process (S110) and then send the flea market registered product information as shown in Figure 1-13 to terminal 20. Similarly, the control unit 11 of the server 10 may, after receiving product exchange registration information from terminal 20B, execute the product exchange registration process (S210) and then send the flea market registered product information, as shown in Figure 1-13, to terminal 20.

[0283] Furthermore, before executing the product exchange reservation process, a configuration may be adopted in which the user who has been matched for the exchange decides whether or not to proceed with the exchange reservation. Specifically, when server 10 receives product exchange reservation request information from terminal 20B, it may send information related to a question about whether or not to accept the exchange reservation to terminal 20A. If the user of terminal 20A receives this information, confirms the information, and sends information to server 10 indicating that they accept the acceptance of the exchange reservation, then the product exchange reservation process may be executed.

[0284] With this configuration, it is possible to prevent situations in an automatically matching flea market service where one user unilaterally completes an exchange reservation, thereby enabling a flea market service that ensures fair transactions.

[0285] <Effects of the second example> According to this embodiment, the first processing performed by the server 10 includes an example configuration that searches for a second user who wishes to exchange the first item for the second item (for example, an exchange item matching process (S220)). This allows the server to search for users who wish to exchange items, enabling it to provide a more convenient exchange service to users.

[0286] <Other> In the above embodiments, at least some of the processing that the server 10 is supposed to perform may be performed by the terminal 20. Conversely, in the above embodiments, at least some of the processing that the terminal 20 is supposed to perform may be performed by the server 10.

[0287] Furthermore, the operator of server 10 may also be an image generation service provider that partners with messaging service providers. In this case, the processing described in the above embodiment may be implemented by a single server, or the processing described in the above embodiment may be implemented by a server system consisting of multiple servers, with each server handling a portion of the processing.

[0288] For example, a system consisting of one or more servers may be defined as a server system, and the server of the present invention may be considered a server system. Furthermore, for example, the server system may consist of an information processing device, an image generation device, and a language generation device.

[0289] Furthermore, in the above embodiments, the server for distributing various applications (the server from which terminal 20 downloads applications) may be configured as a different server from the server that provides the corresponding services (applications). In other words, the server for distributing applications and the server that performs the application management processing described in the above embodiments may be configured as physically separate servers, or they may be configured as a single server.

[0290] Furthermore, the term "application" may include not only programs for various applications, but also programs that provide the functionality of other services as a function of the underlying application (for example, a program that provides the functionality of an advertising delivery service as a function of a messaging application, or vice versa), and programs for updating the underlying application. It may also include data used by application programs (which may include data for application updates, etc.).

[0291] Furthermore, while the above embodiments describe, for example, a method of realizing the present invention using a client-server system, the invention is not limited to this. As mentioned above, it may also be realized by a distributed system or other system in which the functions of a server or server system are provided to the terminal 20. For example, the processing described in the flowchart described in the above embodiments as being performed by a server or server system may be performed by the terminal.

[0292] Furthermore, as mentioned above, the contents described in each of the above embodiments, each of the modifications, other embodiments, and so on can be combined and applied accordingly. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0293] 1. Communication System 10 servers 20 devices 30 Networks

Claims

1. A program to be executed on a server, The communication unit of the server receives first information regarding a listing for exchange of a first item that the first user will own in the future, Based on the first information, the control unit of the server performs a first process relating to the exchange of the first item, A program to cause the aforementioned server to execute.

2. The program according to claim 1, The first information includes information about a second item that the person wishes to exchange for the first item, program.

3. The program according to claim 2, The first process includes a process for making the first item and the second item public, program.

4. The program according to claim 3, In the aforementioned disclosure process, the number of days until the first user comes to own the first item is disclosed. program.

5. The program according to claim 3, The first process includes a process that accepts a request from a second user to exchange the first item for the second item, based on the process that is made public. program.

6. The program according to claim 2, The first process includes a process of searching for a second user who wishes to exchange the first item for the second item. program.

7. A program according to claim 5 or claim 6, The first process is, The process of transmitting a photograph of the second item, which the first user has exchanged for the first item, to the second user's second terminal via the communication unit, The process includes transmitting a photograph of the first item exchanged by the second user for the second item to the first user's first terminal via the communication unit, including, program.

8. A program according to claim 5 or claim 6, The first process includes the process of transmitting a photograph of the first item, which has been acquired by the first user, to the second user's second terminal via the communication unit. program.

9. A program according to claim 5 or claim 6, The second item is an item that the second user will own in the future. program.

10. The program according to claim 9, The first process includes a process of receiving information that proves the second user will own the second item in the future. program.

11. The program according to claim 9, The first process includes the process of transmitting a photograph of the second item, which has been acquired by the second user, to the first user's first terminal via the communication unit. program.

12. The program according to claim 1, The server is instructed to receive, via the communication unit, second information regarding the listing of the third item currently owned by the first user. The second piece of information includes a photograph of the third item. The first information does not include a photograph of the first item. program.

13. A server information processing method, The communication unit of the server receives first information regarding a listing for exchange of a first item that the first user will own in the future, Based on the first information, the control unit of the server performs a first process relating to the exchange of the first item, Information processing methods including

14. It is a server, A communications unit that receives first information regarding the listing of a first item for exchange, which the first user will own in the future, A control unit that performs a first process relating to the exchange of the first item based on the first information, A server equipped with the following features.

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