Information Processing Apparatus, Information Processing Method, and Program

Abstract

Provide the user with an incentive to interact with the dialogue agent. 【Solution means】The information processing apparatus 2 includes a storage unit 22 that stores, in association with each other, a user ID (identification) for identifying a user and a purchase history of products purchased by the user, a user information acquisition unit 231 that acquires the user ID from the terminal, a dialogue acquisition unit 232 that acquires the content of a dialogue between the user and a dialogue agent that dialogues about a topic based on the products included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit 231, a determination unit 234 that determines the content of a privilege based on at least one of the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent and the content of the dialogue, and a granting unit 235 that grants the user a privilege indicating the content of the privilege determined by the determination unit 234.

Description

Technical Field

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

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known a dialogue apparatus that displays an avatar as a dialogue agent on a terminal and conducts a dialogue with a user by causing the dialogue agent to make a response based on the voice uttered by the user (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] When a terminal is installed in a place where people come and go, there has been a problem that the user feels ashamed to talk to the dialogue agent and hesitates to talk to the dialogue agent.

[0005] Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of these points, and an object thereof is to provide a user with a motivation to talk to a dialogue agent.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The information processing apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a storage unit that stores, in association with each other, a user ID (identification) for identifying a user and a purchase history of the user's purchase of a product, a user information acquisition unit that acquires the user ID from a terminal, a dialogue acquisition unit that acquires a dialogue content between the user and a dialogue agent that dialogues about a topic based on the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit, a determination unit that determines a privilege content based on at least one of the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent and the dialogue content, and a granting unit that grants a privilege indicating the privilege content determined by the determination unit to the user.

[0007] The determination unit may determine the privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment as the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent is longer.

[0008] The determination unit may select a recommended product that is a product related to the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit from among a plurality of predetermined products and is a product recommended by the dialogue agent in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, and determine the privilege content in which the purchase of the selected recommended product is privileged.

[0009] When the user utters a predetermined keyword indicating that there is a possibility that the user wishes to purchase the recommended product in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, the determination unit may determine the privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment.

[0010] The dialogue acquisition unit may acquire a captured image of the user captured during the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent. Further, the information processing apparatus may further include an analysis unit that analyzes, based on the captured image, whether the user has taken a predetermined attitude indicating that the user may wish to purchase the recommended product after the dialogue agent recommends the recommended product. Further, when the user takes the predetermined attitude, the determination unit may determine the privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment.

[0011] When the user takes the predetermined attitude after the dialogue agent presents the price of the recommended product, the determination unit may determine the privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment.

[0012] When the user makes a statement about the evaluation of the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent or the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent, the determination unit may determine the privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment.

[0013] The storage unit may further store, for each predetermined product, the reason why the consumer does not purchase the predetermined product. When the user makes a statement about the reason for not purchasing the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, the determination unit may determine the privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment according to the small amount of information in which the reason for not purchasing the recommended product spoken by the user is stored in the storage unit.

[0014] The memory unit may further store, for each predetermined product, the reason why the consumer purchased the predetermined product. When the user states the reason for purchasing the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, the determination unit may determine the content of the privilege with a greater degree of preference according to the small amount of information stored in the memory unit regarding the reason for purchasing the product stated by the user.

[0015] The memory unit may further store, for each predetermined privilege content, a predetermined period and the predetermined privilege content that is permitted to be granted when the predetermined period has elapsed, where the longer the predetermined period, the greater the degree of preference. The information processing apparatus may further include an output control unit that causes the terminal to output the predetermined privilege content stored in the memory unit in association with the predetermined period each time the period of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent becomes longer than the predetermined period stored in the memory unit.

[0016] The output control unit may further cause the terminal to output the predetermined privilege content stored in the memory unit in association with an outstanding period that is a predetermined period longer than the period of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, and the difference period between the period of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent and the outstanding period.

[0017] The memory unit may further store, for each predetermined period, the predetermined period and a plurality of predetermined privilege contents that are permitted to be granted when the predetermined period has elapsed, where the degrees of preference of the plurality of predetermined privilege contents are different from each other. The information processing apparatus may further include an output control unit that causes the terminal to output at least the predetermined privilege content with the highest degree of preference among the plurality of predetermined privilege contents stored in the memory unit in association with the predetermined period that is longer than the period of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent and is the most recent predetermined period.

[0018] The information processing method according to the second aspect of the present invention is executed by a computer having a storage unit that stores in association a user ID for identifying a user and a purchase history of the user purchasing a product. The steps include: obtaining the user ID from a terminal; obtaining a conversation content between the user and a dialogue agent that dialogues about a topic based on the product included in the purchase history associated with the obtained user ID; determining privilege content based on at least one of the length of the conversation between the user and the dialogue agent and the conversation content; and granting a privilege indicating the determined privilege content to the user.

[0019] The program according to the third aspect of the present invention causes a computer having a storage unit that stores in association a user ID for identifying a user and a purchase history of the user purchasing a product to function as a user information acquisition unit that obtains the user ID from a terminal, a dialogue unit that obtains a conversation content between the user and a dialogue agent that dialogues about a topic based on the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID obtained by the user information acquisition unit, a determination unit that determines privilege content based on at least one of the length of the conversation between the user and the dialogue agent and the conversation content, and a granting unit that grants a privilege indicating the privilege content determined by the determination unit to the user.

Advantages of the Invention

[0020] According to the present invention, there is an effect that it is possible to provide the user with an incentive to dialogue with the dialogue agent.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0021]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0022] [Overview of Information Processing System S] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the overview of the information processing system S. The information processing system S is a system used to provide information processing services. The information processing service is a service used to provide information such as promoting the sale of products and marketing products to merchants (for example, merchants in the retail industry, manufacturing industry, etc.) who sell products or services (hereinafter simply referred to as "products"), or to provide benefits to consumers. The information processing system S includes an information terminal 1 and an information processing device 2.

[0023] The information terminal 1 is a computer used for an interactive agent to interact with a user. The information terminal 1 is installed, for example, in a store that sells products. The interactive agent is, for example, a large language model trained to interact about topics based on products the user has purchased in the past. Topics based on products the user has purchased in the past include, for example, evaluations (impressions) of products the user has purchased in the past, recommendations of promotional products of the same genre as the products the user has purchased in the past among a plurality of promotional products promoted by the store, etc. The user is, for example, a member of the information processing service. The information terminal 1 has a display for displaying an avatar representing the interactive agent, a touch panel for receiving input, a speaker for outputting the voice of the interactive agent, a microphone for acquiring sounds around the information terminal 1, and a camera for imaging the surroundings of the information terminal 1.

[0024] The information processing device 2 is a computer that manages information processing services, and is, for example, a server. The information processing device 2 manages, for example, the purchase history of products purchased by users. The purchase history of the user includes information about the products purchased by the user, such as the product name, the product ID for identifying the product, the amount paid for the product, the date and time of purchase of the product, and so on. Hereinafter, the processing executed by the information processing system S will be described.

[0025] First, when the user performs an operation for interacting with the dialogue agent on the information terminal 1, the information terminal 1 acquires the purchase history of the user from the information processing device 2 ((1) in FIG. 1). The information terminal 1 causes the dialogue agent to interact with the user about topics based on the products included in the purchase history of the user ((2) in FIG. 1). The information terminal 1 causes, for example, an avatar corresponding to the dialogue agent and the product that the dialogue agent is talking about to be displayed on the display, and causes the dialogue agent to interact with the user.

[0026] When the information processing device 2 acquires dialogue information indicating the content of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent ((3) in FIG. 1), it determines the privilege content based on at least either the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent or the content of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent ((4) in FIG. 1). The privilege content is, for example, the content of a coupon that can be used to purchase a predetermined product (for example, the discount rate, the amount to be deducted, etc.).

[0027] Then, the information processing device 2 grants the user a privilege indicating the determined privilege content ((5) in FIG. 1). By doing so, the information processing system S can provide the user with an incentive to interact with the dialogue agent. Hereinafter, the configuration of the information processing device 2 will be described.

[0028] [Functional Configuration of Information Processing Device 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing the functional configuration of the information processing apparatus 2. The information processing apparatus 2 includes a communication unit 21, a storage unit 22, and a control unit 23. In FIG. 2, the arrows indicate the main data flow, and there may be a data flow not shown in FIG. 2. In FIG. 2, each functional block represents a configuration in terms of function units, not hardware (device) units. Therefore, the functional blocks shown in FIG. 2 may be implemented within a single device, or may be divided and implemented in a plurality of devices. The data transfer between the functional blocks may be performed via any means such as a data bus, a network, a portable storage medium, etc.

[0029] The communication unit 21 is a communication interface for connecting to a network and has a communication controller for receiving data from an external device.

[0030] The storage unit 22 is a large-capacity storage device such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores the BIOS (Basic Input Output System) of the computer that realizes the information processing apparatus 2, a RAM (Random Access Memory) that serves as a working area of the information processing apparatus 2, an OS (Operating System), application programs, and an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or SSD (Solid State Drive) that stores various information referred to when the application programs are executed.

[0031] The storage unit 22 stores information about users and information about products. Information about users is, for example, information in which a user ID for identifying the user and the purchase history of the user are associated for each user. Information about products is, for example, information in which the name of the product, the description of the product, and the evaluation of the product by consumers are associated for each product. The evaluation of the product by consumers is, for example, the reason why the consumer purchased the product, the reason why the consumer did not purchase the product, etc. Further, the storage unit 22 stores a privilege management database for managing privilege contents.

[0032] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a privilege management database. In the example shown in FIG. 3, the privilege management database stores by associating a permission period, a product genre, target products, a product grade, and privilege details. The permission period is the temporal condition under which the granting of a privilege is permitted. The product genre indicates the genre of the product that is the target of the privilege. The target products are the products that are the target of the privilege. The product grade indicates, for example, the height of the value of the target product (e.g., the height of the price of the target product). The product grade is expressed, for example, numerically, and the higher the numerical value, the higher the grade.

[0033] In the example shown in FIG. 3, it can be confirmed that the privilege management database stores privilege details that are permitted to be granted when the permission period has elapsed and the degree of preferential treatment is greater the longer the permission period. Also, it can be confirmed that the privilege management database stores a plurality of privilege details that are permitted to be granted when the permission period has elapsed and the degrees of preferential treatment are different from each other (a plurality of privilege details with different product grades).

[0034] Returning to FIG. 2, the control unit 23 is a processor such as the CPU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or NPU (Neural network Processing Unit) of the information processing apparatus 2, and functions as a user information acquisition unit 231, an interaction acquisition unit 232, an analysis unit 233, a determination unit 234, a granting unit 235, and an output control unit 236 by executing the program stored in the storage unit 22.

[0035] The user information acquisition unit 231 acquires a user ID from the information terminal 1. For example, a dedicated application program (hereinafter referred to as the "dedicated app") for providing an information processing service is installed in a user terminal (not shown) held by the user, and a user ID is set in the dedicated app.

[0036] In this case, first, the information terminal 1 acquires the user ID. For example, the information terminal 1 acquires the user ID by reading a code image (e.g., a QR code (registered trademark), etc.) displayed on the user terminal. The information terminal 1 may acquire the user ID from the user terminal via short-range wireless communication, or may acquire the user ID by the user inputting the user ID on the touch panel of the information terminal 1. Then, the user information acquisition unit 231 acquires the user ID by transmitting the user ID acquired by the information terminal 1 to the information processing apparatus 2.

[0037] The dialogue acquisition unit 232 acquires dialogue information indicating the content of the dialogue between the user and a dialogue agent that dialogues about a topic based on the products included in the purchase history of the user associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit 231. For example, the dialogue agent is provided in the information terminal 1.

[0038] In this case, first, the dialogue acquisition unit 232 transmits the purchase history of the user associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit 231 to the information terminal 1, causing the dialogue agent to refer to the purchase history of the user and have a dialogue with the user. Then, the dialogue acquisition unit 232 acquires, from the information terminal 1, dialogue information including the user's utterance content and the output content of the dialogue agent.

[0039] The dialogue agent may be provided in the information processing apparatus 2. In this case, the dialogue acquisition unit 232 causes the dialogue agent to refer to the purchase history of the user associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit 231 via the information terminal 1 and have a dialogue with the user. When the user's purchase history is stored in the user terminal, the dialogue acquisition unit 232 may cause the dialogue agent to refer to the purchase history of the user acquired from the user terminal via the information terminal 1 and have a dialogue with the user.

[0040] The determination unit 234 determines the details of the privilege to be granted to the user according to the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent. Specifically, the determination unit 234 determines the details of the privilege based on the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent.

[0041] For example, in the information processing apparatus 2, details of a privilege that can be granted on the condition that a predetermined period has elapsed in the dialogue period are defined. In this case, first, when the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent starts, the analysis unit 233 measures the dialogue period between the user and the dialogue agent. Then, the determination unit 234 compares the dialogue period from the start time of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent to the current time with the predetermined period, and when the dialogue period is equal to or longer than the predetermined period, determines the details of the privilege defined for the predetermined period as the details of the privilege to be granted to the user.

[0042] The determination unit 234 may determine details of a privilege with a greater degree of preferential treatment as the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent becomes longer. For example, the determination unit 234 compares the dialogue period from the start time of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent to the current time with the allowable period stored in the privilege management database at a predetermined interval (for example, every second, every minute, etc.), and when the dialogue period is equal to or longer than the allowable period, determines the details of the privilege associated with the allowable period in the privilege management database as the details of the privilege to be granted to the user.

[0043] For example, when there are a plurality of allowable periods that are less than or equal to the dialogue period in the privilege management database, the determination unit 234 determines the details of the privilege (for example, details of a privilege with the greatest degree of preferential treatment) associated with the longest allowable period among the plurality of allowable periods as the details of the privilege to be granted to the user. Note that when there are a plurality of allowable periods that are less than or equal to the dialogue period in the privilege management database, the determination unit 234 may determine the plurality of details of the privileges associated with each of the plurality of allowable periods as the details of the privileges to be granted to the user. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can provide an incentive for the user to continue the dialogue with the dialogue agent.

[0044] The determination unit 234 may determine the privilege content based on the dialogue content between the user and the dialogue agent. Specifically, first, the analysis unit 233 analyzes the dialogue content between the user and the dialogue agent indicated by the dialogue information acquired by the dialogue acquisition unit 232. The analysis unit 233 analyzes the dialogue content between the user and the dialogue agent using, for example, known natural language processing. The analysis unit 233 may analyze the dialogue content between the user and the dialogue agent using the dialogue agent. Then, the determination unit 234 determines the privilege content based on the dialogue content analyzed by the analysis unit 233.

[0045] For example, when the determination unit 234 detects a predetermined keyword in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, it determines the privilege content. The predetermined keyword is a keyword indicating that the user may wish to purchase the recommended product, and is, for example, a positive keyword such as "It's nice" or "I want it". The recommended product is, for example, a promotional product of the same genre as the product that the user has purchased in the past among the plurality of promotional products that the store promotes, and is a promotional product recommended by the dialogue agent.

[0046] For example, in the information processing apparatus 2, privilege content that is permitted to be granted on the condition that a predetermined keyword has been spoken is defined. In this case, the determination unit 234 determines the privilege content defined for the utterance of the predetermined keyword as the privilege content to be granted to the user. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can increase the probability that the user will purchase the recommended product.

[0047] The determination unit 234 may determine the privilege content when the user makes a statement about the evaluation of a predetermined product. The predetermined product is, for example, a product included in the user's purchase history. Specifically, the determination unit 234 determines the privilege content when the user makes a statement about the evaluation of a product included in the user's purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit 231 in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent.

[0048] For example, the information processing apparatus 2 is defined with privilege content that is permitted to be granted on the condition that an evaluation of a predetermined product has been spoken. In this case, when the content spoken by the user is a sentence after the dialogue agent has asked for the user's impression of the product included in the user's purchase history, the determination unit 234 determines, as the privilege content to be granted to the user, the privilege content defined for the spoken evaluation of the product included in the user's purchase history.

[0049] On the other hand, when the content spoken by the user is not a sentence (for example, when it is an interjection, exclamation, or particle such as "yes", "no", "so it seems", etc.) after the dialogue agent has asked for the user's impression of the product included in the user's purchase history, the determination unit 234 does not determine the privilege content. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can give preferential treatment to users who have provided information useful as information used for product marketing.

[0050] When the user speaks the reason for purchasing the product included in the user's purchase history as an evaluation of the product included in the user's purchase history, the determination unit 234 may determine the privilege content according to the rarity of the reason. For example, the information processing apparatus 2 is defined with privilege content that is permitted to be granted on the condition that the reason for purchasing a predetermined product has been spoken.

[0051] In this case, when the user speaks the reason for purchasing the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit 231 in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, the determination unit 234 determines the privilege content according to the smallness of the amount of information in which the reason for purchasing the product spoken by the user is stored in the product-related information in the storage unit 22. The determination unit 234 determines the privilege content according to the smallness of the amount of information in which the reason for purchasing the product spoken by the user is stored in the product-related information in the storage unit 22, for example, by executing the following three steps.

[0052] As a first step, for each reason for purchasing the target product included in the information about the product stored in the storage unit 22, the determination unit 234 calculates the similarity between the stored vector data obtained by converting the reason into a vector and the speech vector data obtained by converting the reason for purchasing the product spoken by the user into a vector. The determination unit 234 calculates the similarity between the two vector data using a known method such as cosine similarity, for example.

[0053] As a second step, the determination unit 234 identifies the stored vector data whose similarity to the speech vector data is within a predetermined similarity threshold. The predetermined similarity threshold is a value determined to judge whether two vector data are similar.

[0054] As a third step, when the number of reasons for purchasing the product corresponding to the identified stored vector data, which is the number of information included in the information about the product in the storage unit 22, is equal to or less than the first quantity threshold, the determination unit 234 determines, as the privilege content to be given to the user, the privilege content defined for the speech of the reason for purchasing the product included in the purchase history of the user. The first quantity threshold is a value determined to judge whether the rarity degree of the reason for purchasing the product spoken by the user is high.

[0055] On the other hand, when the number of reasons for purchasing the product corresponding to the identified stored vector data, which is the number of information included in the information about the product in the storage unit 22, is not less than the first quantity threshold, the determination unit 234 does not determine the privilege content to be given to the user. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can give preferential treatment to the user who has provided information useful as information used for product marketing.

[0056] The predetermined product may be a recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent. In this case, the determination unit 234 may determine the content of the privilege according to the rarity degree of the reason when the user states the reason for not purchasing the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent, as an evaluation of the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent. For example, in the information processing apparatus 2, the content of the privilege that is permitted to be granted on the condition that the reason for not purchasing the predetermined product is stated is defined.

[0057] In this case, when the user states the reason for not purchasing the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent, the determination unit 234 determines the content of the privilege according to the small amount of information in which the reason for not purchasing the product stated by the user is stored in the information about the product in the storage unit 22. The determination unit 234 executes, for example, the same process as the process of determining the content of the privilege according to the small amount of information in which the reason for purchasing the product stated by the user is stored, to determine the content of the privilege according to the small amount of information in which the reason for not purchasing the product stated by the user is stored.

[0058] Note that, as an evaluation of the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent, when the user states the reason for purchasing the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent, the determination unit 234 may determine the content of the privilege according to the rarity degree of the reason. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can give preferential treatment to the user who provides useful information as the information used for the marketing of the product.

[0059] The determination unit 234 may determine the content of the privilege based on the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent and the content of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent. Specifically, when the determination unit 234 determines the content of the privilege based on the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, when a predetermined statement is made in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, the determination unit 234 determines the content of the privilege with a greater degree of preferential treatment. The predetermined statement is, for example, a predetermined keyword, the reason for purchasing the product included in the purchase history of the user, the reason for not purchasing the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent, the reason for purchasing the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent, and the like.

[0060] For example, when the user makes a predetermined utterance in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, the determination unit 234 determines, as the privilege content to be granted to the user, the privilege content with a high product grade among the plurality of privilege contents associated with the allowable period that is equal to or less than the dialogue period in the privilege management database. When the user does not make a predetermined utterance in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, the determination unit 234 determines, as the privilege content of the privilege to be granted to the user, the privilege content with a low product grade among the plurality of privilege contents associated with the allowable period that is equal to or less than the dialogue period in the privilege management database.

[0061] By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can give preferential treatment to users who have provided information useful as information used for marketing of products. Note that when the user does not make a predetermined utterance in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, the determination unit 234 may determine, as the privilege content of the privilege to be granted to the user, the privilege content with a high product grade among the plurality of privilege contents associated with the allowable period that is equal to or less than the dialogue period in the privilege management database.

[0062] The determination unit 234 may determine the privilege content based on the state of the user when interacting with the dialogue agent. Specifically, the information processing apparatus 2 determines the privilege content based on the state of the user when interacting with the dialogue agent by executing the following three steps.

[0063] As a first step, the dialogue acquisition unit 232 acquires a captured image of the user captured during the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent. Specifically, the dialogue acquisition unit 232 acquires, from the information terminal 1, the captured image captured by the camera of the information terminal 1 while the user and the dialogue agent are in dialogue.

[0064] As a second step, the analysis unit 233 analyzes, based on the captured image, whether the user has taken a predetermined attitude after the dialogue agent has recommended a product. The predetermined attitude is an attitude indicating that the user may wish to purchase the recommended product. For example, an attitude of being troubled, an attitude of being pleased, an attitude of smiling, an attitude of reacting strongly, an attitude of consulting with people around, an attitude of continuously looking at the display on which the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent is displayed for a predetermined period, and the like. The analysis unit 233 can analyze whether the user has taken a predetermined attitude, for example, by using a known subject recognition technique.

[0065] As a third step, when the user has taken a predetermined attitude, the determination unit 234 determines the content of the privilege. For example, in the information processing apparatus 2, the content of the privilege that is permitted to be granted on the condition that a predetermined attitude has been taken is defined. In this case, when the user has taken a predetermined attitude, the determination unit 234 determines the content of the privilege defined for the predetermined attitude as the content of the privilege to be granted to the user. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can increase the probability that the user will purchase the recommended product.

[0066] The determination unit 234 may determine the content of the privilege based on the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent and the predetermined attitude taken by the user. Specifically, when the determination unit 234 determines the content of the privilege based on the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, when the user has taken a predetermined attitude, the determination unit 234 determines the content of the privilege with a greater degree of preferential treatment.

[0067] For example, when the user has taken a predetermined attitude, the determination unit 234 determines, as the content of the privilege to be granted to the user, the content of the privilege with a high product grade among a plurality of content of privileges associated with a permitted period that is equal to or less than the dialogue period in the privilege management database. When the user has not taken a predetermined attitude, the determination unit 234 determines, as the content of the privilege to be granted to the user, the content of the privilege with a low product grade among a plurality of content of privileges associated with a permitted period that is equal to or less than the dialogue period in the privilege management database.

[0068] By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can increase the probability that the user purchases the recommended product. Note that when the user does not take a predetermined attitude, the determination unit 234 may determine, as the content of the privilege to be given to the user, the content of the privilege with a high product grade among the plurality of privilege contents associated with the allowable period that is equal to or less than the dialogue period in the privilege management database.

[0069] After the dialogue agent presents the price of the recommended product, when the user takes a predetermined attitude, the determination unit 234 may determine the content of the privilege with a greater degree of preferential treatment. In this case, before the dialogue agent presents the price of the recommended product, when the user takes a predetermined attitude, the determination unit 234 does not determine the content of the privilege with a greater degree of preferential treatment, and after the dialogue agent presents the price of the recommended product, when the user takes a predetermined attitude, the determination unit 234 determines the content of the privilege with a greater degree of preferential treatment. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can increase the probability that the user purchases the recommended product.

[0070] The determination unit 234 may determine the content of the privilege based on the dialogue period between the user and the dialogue agent, the dialogue content between the user and the dialogue agent, and the attitude of the user. Specifically, the determination unit 234 determines the content of the privilege based on the index values obtained by converting the dialogue period between the user and the dialogue agent, the dialogue content between the user and the dialogue agent, and the attitude of the user into numerical values.

[0071] For example, in the information processing apparatus 2, a numerical value per unit period (e.g., 1 second, 30 seconds, 1 minute, etc.) of the dialogue period is defined. Also, in the information processing apparatus 2, a numerical value added when a predetermined statement is made and a numerical value added when a predetermined attitude is taken are defined. Further, in the privilege management database, a numerical value that permits the granting of the privilege for each privilege content is stored.

[0072] In this case, first, the determination unit 234 calculates an index value by integrating numerical values according to the elapsed period, the presence or absence of a predetermined utterance by the user, and the presence or absence of the user's attitude during the period from the start to the end of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent. Then, the determination unit 234 determines, as the privilege content to be given to the user, the privilege content associated with the numerical value that is equal to or less than the calculated index value and is closest to the index value in the privilege management database.

[0073] The determination unit 234 may determine the privilege content of a specific product based on the dialogue content between the user and the dialogue agent. For example, the determination unit 234 determines the privilege content of a specific product based on the dialogue content between the user and the dialogue agent by performing the following two steps.

[0074] As the first step, the determination unit 234 selects a specific product from among a plurality of promotional products based on the dialogue content between the user and the dialogue agent. Specifically, the determination unit 234 selects, from among the plurality of promotional products, a product related to the product included in the purchase history of the user associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit 231 and that is a recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent. Products related to the products included in the user's purchase history are, for example, promotional products of the same genre as the products included in the user's purchase history, or the same promotional products as the products included in the user's purchase history.

[0075] For example, after the dialogue agent recommends a recommended product, if the user utters a predetermined keyword (for example, a positive keyword for the recommended product) with respect to the recommended product, the determination unit 234 selects the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent immediately before the user utters the predetermined keyword as the specific product.

[0076] As the second step, the determination unit 234 determines the privilege content for which the purchase of the selected recommended product is preferentially treated. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can increase the probability that the user purchases the recommended product.

[0077] The awarding unit 235 awards the user a privilege indicating the privilege content determined by the determination unit 234. For example, the awarding unit 235 awards the user the privilege by transmitting privilege information indicating the privilege content to the user terminal.

[0078] The awarding unit 235 may output the privilege information to the information terminal 1. For example, the information terminal 1 displays a code image (such as a QR code (registered trademark), etc.) for awarding the user a privilege on the display, and the user reads the code image using the user terminal to award the user the privilege. The information terminal 1 may print the privilege.

[0079] During the conversation between the user and the dialogue agent, the information processing apparatus 2 may present the privilege content that the user can obtain. Specifically, each time the conversation period between the user and the dialogue agent becomes longer than the permitted period stored in the privilege management database, the output control unit 236 causes the information terminal 1 to output the privilege content stored in the privilege management database in association with the permitted period.

[0080] For example, first, when the conversation period between the user and the dialogue agent has elapsed the permitted period stored in the privilege management database, the output control unit 236 transmits privilege information indicating the privilege content stored in the privilege management database in association with the permitted period to the information terminal 1. Then, the information terminal 1 displays the privilege content indicated by the privilege information acquired from the information processing apparatus 2 on the display. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can make the user recognize what privileges can be obtained.

[0081] The output control unit 236 may present information about benefits that the user cannot yet obtain. Specifically, the output control unit 236 causes the information terminal 1 to output, as information about benefits that the user cannot yet obtain, the benefit details stored in the benefit management database in association with the remaining period, and the period that is the difference between the interaction period between the user and the dialogue agent and the remaining period. The remaining period is a permissible period that is longer than the interaction period between the user and the dialogue agent.

[0082] FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing a display screen D displayed on the display of the information terminal 1. In the example shown in FIG. 4, information is displayed in three regions R on the display screen D. Region R1 is a region where an avatar corresponding to the dialogue agent is displayed. Region R2 is a region where information about a recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent (for example, an image of the recommended product, a description of the recommended product, etc.) is displayed. Region R3 is a region where the details of the benefits corresponding to the recommended product are displayed.

[0083] In the example shown in FIG. 4, it is shown that the interaction period in region R3 is between 5 minutes and 10 minutes, and it can be confirmed that a 5% off coupon can be obtained after 5 minutes have elapsed, and a coupon of 10% off or more cannot yet be obtained. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can cause the user to recognize what benefits can be obtained by continuing to interact with the dialogue agent.

[0084] The output control unit 236 may present information about the benefit with the highest level of preference among a plurality of benefits that the user cannot yet obtain. Specifically, the output control unit 236 causes the information terminal 1 to output, among the details of a plurality of benefits stored in the benefit management database in association with a permissible period that is longer than the interaction period between the user and the dialogue agent and is the most recent permissible period (the permissible period closest to the interaction period), at least the details of the benefit with the highest level of preference.

[0085] In this case, the output control unit 236 may cause the information terminal 1 to output conditions (for example, reasons for not purchasing recommended products, etc.) for the user to obtain the privilege with the highest degree of preference. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can easily obtain useful information from the user as information used for product marketing.

[0086] [Processing of Information Processing Apparatus 2] Subsequently, the flow of processing executed by the information processing system S will be described. FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing executed by the information processing system S. In the example shown in FIG. 5, the flow of processing in the case where an interactive agent is provided in the information terminal 1 will be described. This processing starts when the user information acquisition unit 231 acquires a user ID from the information terminal 1 (S1).

[0087] The dialogue acquisition unit 232 transmits the purchase history of the user associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit 231 to the information terminal 1 (S2). The information terminal 1 causes the interactive agent to refer to the purchase history of the user acquired from the information processing apparatus 2 and causes the interactive agent to interact with the user (S3).

[0088] The dialogue acquisition unit 232 acquires dialogue information indicating the content of the dialogue between the user and the interactive agent that dialogues about topics based on the products included in the purchase history of the user (S4). The determination unit 234 determines the privilege content based on at least either the length of the dialogue between the user and the interactive agent or the content of the dialogue between the user and the interactive agent (S5).

[0089] The granting unit 235 transmits the privilege content determined by the determination unit 234 to the information terminal 1 (S6). Then, the information terminal 1 outputs a privilege indicating the privilege content acquired from the information processing apparatus 2 (S7).

[0090] [Effects in the Present Embodiment] As described above, the information processing apparatus 2 determines the privilege content based on at least either the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent that dialogues about topics based on the products included in the purchase history of the user or the dialogue content between the user and the dialogue agent, and gives the user a privilege indicating the determined privilege content. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can provide the user with a motivation to dialogue with the dialogue agent.

[0091] Note that according to the present invention, it becomes possible to contribute to Goal 9, "Build the infrastructure for industry and technological innovation," of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) led by the United Nations.

[0092] As described above, the present invention has been described using the embodiments. However, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the gist. For example, all or part of the device can be configured by functionally or physically dispersing and integrating it in arbitrary units. Also, new embodiments resulting from any combination of a plurality of embodiments are included in the embodiments of the present invention. The effects of the new embodiments resulting from the combination have the effects of the original embodiments combined.

Explanation of Signs

[0093] 1 Information terminal 2 Information processing apparatus 21 Communication unit 22 Storage unit 23 Control unit 231 User information acquisition unit 232 Dialogue acquisition unit 233 Analysis unit 234 Determination unit 235 Granting unit 236 Output control unit S Information processing system

Claims

1. A storage unit that stores, in association with each other, a user ID (identification) for identifying a user and a purchase history of the user's purchase of a product; A user information acquisition unit that acquires the user ID from a terminal; A dialogue acquisition unit that acquires dialogue content between the user and a dialogue agent that dialogues about a topic based on the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit; A determination unit that determines special privilege content based on the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent; An awarding unit that awards a special privilege indicating the special privilege content determined by the determination unit to the user; An information processing apparatus having the above.

2. The determination unit determines the special privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment as the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent is longer. The information processing apparatus according to Claim 1.

3. A user ID for identifying a user, and a storage unit that stores, in association with each other, a purchase history of the user's purchase of a product; A user information acquisition unit that acquires the user ID from a terminal; A dialogue acquisition unit that acquires dialogue content between the user and a dialogue agent that dialogues about a topic based on the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit; A determination unit that selects a recommended product that is a product related to the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit from among a plurality of predetermined products and is a product recommended by the dialogue agent in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, and determines special privilege content in which the purchase of the selected recommended product is given preferential treatment; An awarding unit that awards a special privilege indicating the special privilege content determined by the determination unit to the user; An information processing apparatus having the above.

4. When the user utters a predetermined keyword indicating that there is a possibility that the user wishes to purchase the recommended product in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, the determination unit determines the special privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment. The information processing apparatus according to Claim 3.

5. The dialogue acquisition unit acquires a captured image of the user captured during the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent. The information processing apparatus further includes an analysis unit that analyzes, based on the captured image, whether or not the user has taken a predetermined attitude indicating that there is a possibility that the user wishes to purchase the recommended product after the dialogue agent recommends the recommended product. When the user takes the predetermined attitude, the determination unit determines the privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3.

6. When the user takes the predetermined attitude after the dialogue agent presents the price of the recommended product, the determination unit determines the privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5.

7. When the user makes a statement regarding the evaluation of the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent or the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent, the determination unit determines the privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

8. The storage unit further stores, for each predetermined product, the reason why the consumer does not purchase the predetermined product. When the user makes a statement regarding the reason for not purchasing the recommended product recommended by the dialogue agent in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, the determination unit determines the privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment according to the small amount of information in which the reason for not purchasing the recommended product spoken by the user is stored in the storage unit. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

9. The storage unit further stores, for each predetermined product, the reason why the consumer purchases the predetermined product. When the user makes a statement regarding the reason for purchasing the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, the determination unit determines the privilege content with a greater degree of preferential treatment according to the small amount of information in which the reason for purchasing the product spoken by the user is stored in the storage unit. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

10. The memory unit further stores, for each predetermined privilege content, a predetermined period and the predetermined privilege content that is permitted to be granted when the predetermined period has elapsed, and the longer the predetermined period, the greater the degree of preference for the predetermined privilege content. The information processing apparatus further includes an output control unit that causes the terminal to output the predetermined privilege content stored in the memory unit in association with the predetermined period each time the period of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent becomes longer than the predetermined period stored in the memory unit. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

11. The output control unit further causes the terminal to output the predetermined privilege content stored in the memory unit in association with an unfulfilled period that is the predetermined period longer than the period of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, and a period that is the difference between the period of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent and the unfulfilled period. The information processing apparatus according to claim 10.

12. The memory unit further stores, for each predetermined period, the predetermined period and a plurality of predetermined privilege contents that are permitted to be granted when the predetermined period has elapsed, and the degrees of preference for the plurality of predetermined privilege contents are different from each other. The information processing apparatus further includes an output control unit that causes the terminal to output at least the predetermined privilege content with the highest degree of preference among the plurality of predetermined privilege contents stored in the memory unit in association with the predetermined period that is longer than the period of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent and is the most recent predetermined period. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

13. An information processing method executed by a computer having a memory unit that stores a user ID for identifying a user in association with a purchase history of products purchased by the user. A step of obtaining the user ID from a terminal. A step of obtaining the content of a dialogue between the user and a dialogue agent that dialogues about a topic based on the product included in the purchase history associated with the obtained user ID. A step of determining privilege content based on the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent. A step of granting a privilege indicating the determined privilege content to the user. And having.

14. A computer having a storage unit that stores in association a user ID for identifying a user and a purchase history of the user's purchase of goods. A user information acquisition unit that acquires the user ID from a terminal. A dialogue unit that acquires dialogue content between the user and a dialogue agent that dialogues about a topic based on the goods included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit. A determination unit that determines special offer content based on the length of the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, and An awarding unit that awards a special offer indicating the special offer content determined by the determination unit to the user. A program for causing the above to function.

15. Executed by a computer having a storage unit that stores in association a user ID for identifying a user and a purchase history of the user's purchase of goods. A step of acquiring the user ID from a terminal. A step of acquiring dialogue content between the user and a dialogue agent that dialogues about a topic based on the goods included in the purchase history associated with the acquired user ID. A step of selecting a recommended product that is a product related to the product included in the purchase history associated with the acquired user ID from among a plurality of predetermined products and is a product recommended by the dialogue agent in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent. A step of determining special offer content for which the purchase of the selected recommended product is preferentially treated. A step of awarding a special offer indicating the determined special offer content to the user. An information processing method having the above.

16. A computer having a storage unit that stores in association a user ID for identifying a user and a purchase history of the user's purchase of goods. A user information acquisition unit that acquires the user ID from a terminal. A dialogue unit that acquires dialogue content between the user and a dialogue agent that dialogues about a topic based on the goods included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit. A determination unit that selects a recommended product that is a product related to the product included in the purchase history associated with the user ID acquired by the user information acquisition unit from among a plurality of predetermined products and is a product recommended by the dialogue agent in the dialogue between the user and the dialogue agent, and determines special offer content for which the purchase of the selected recommended product is preferentially treated, and An awarding unit that awards the user with a privilege indicating the privilege content determined by the determination unit, A program for functioning as such.

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