Gift sending system, gift sending device, gift sending method, and program

Abstract

By linking with an external database, a user can create a transmission reservation without having to go to the trouble of checking the latest destination information for each recipient every time a transmission reservation is created. [Solution] Gift sending system 1 is a system for sending a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time, and includes a linking unit 131 that links with an external database, an acquisition unit 132 that acquires the set date and time from a first user and acquires destination information for a second user who is the recipient of the electronic gift from the external database, and a reservation generation unit 134 that generates a sending reservation for sending a message including an electronic gift to the recipient address included in the destination information at the set date and time based on the set date and time and the destination information.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a gift transmission system, a gift transmission device, a gift transmission method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Gift sending services are known that send electronic gifts to users' customers via email or social networking services (SNS). Users can receive electronic gifts from the gift sending service and use them in place of money to purchase products or services. For example, such electronic gifts can be used to make payments in place of money by presenting the gift screen on a smartphone at checkout, or can be used to make payments in place of credit cards by entering a digital code when paying at an online shop.

[0003] Patent document 1 describes a technology related to a digital content provision system in which pre-set conditions (target customer, type of message, content, sending date and time, etc.) are determined, and a management server automatically sends gift emails to target customers according to those conditions, and the receiving customers download the content from the management server. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-338973 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In conventional gift sending services, for example, if a user of the gift sending service wanted to send an electronic gift at a preset timing, the user had to manually input in advance the set date and time for sending the electronic gift, destination information including the recipient's address such as the recipient's email address, the type of electronic gift to be sent, etc. In particular, the recipient's address in the electronic gift destination information may change due to circumstances such as changing jobs, moving, or organizational restructuring, and it was extremely cumbersome for the user to have to check the latest destination information every time they created a sending reservation.

[0006] Therefore, the present disclosure aims to provide a gift sending system, a gift sending device, a gift sending method, and a program that can reduce the effort required by a user to set destination information when reserving the sending of an electronic gift in a gift sending system. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a gift sending system. The gift sending system is a system for sending a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time. The gift sending system includes a linking unit that links with an external database. The gift sending system includes an acquisition unit that acquires the set date and time from a first user and acquires destination information including the address of a second user who is the recipient of the electronic gift from the external database. The gift sending system includes a reservation generation unit that generates a transmission reservation for sending the message including the electronic gift to the recipient address included in the destination information at the set date and time, based on the set date and time and the destination information.

[0008] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a gift sending device. The gift sending device sends a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time. The gift sending device includes a linking unit that links with an external database. The gift sending device includes an acquisition unit that acquires the set date and time from a first user and acquires destination information including the address of a second user who is the recipient of the electronic gift from the external database. The gift sending device includes a reservation generation unit that generates a transmission reservation for sending the message including the electronic gift to the recipient address included in the destination information at the set date and time, based on the set date and time and the destination information.

[0009] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a gift sending method. The gift sending method is a method for sending a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time. The gift sending method cooperates with an external database. The gift sending method acquires a set date and time from a first user and acquires, from the external database, destination information including the address of a second user who is a recipient of the electronic gift. Based on the set date and time and the destination information, the gift sending method generates a transmission reservation for sending the message including the electronic gift to the recipient address included in the destination information at the set date and time.

[0010] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a program that causes a computer to function as the gift sending system described above. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the gift sending system, by linking with an external database, a user can create a sending reservation without having to go to the trouble of checking the latest destination information each time a sending reservation is made.

[0012] The above summary of the invention does not list all of the necessary features of the present invention, and subcombinations of these features may also constitute inventions. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1]1 illustrates an example of a gift sending system 1. [Figure 2] 1 shows an example of a functional configuration of the gift sending server 100. [Figure 3] 10 shows an example of the flow of a transmission reservation process by the gift transmission server 100. [Figure 4] 10 shows an example of the flow of a transmission process of the gift transmission server 100. [Figure 5] 9 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of a computer 900. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] The present invention will be described below through embodiments of the invention, but the following embodiments do not limit the scope of the invention as claimed. Furthermore, not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the invention.

[0015] 1 schematically illustrates an example of a gift sending system 1. The gift sending system 1 provides an electronic gift sending service to a first user (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as a gift sender), and is a system that enables the first user to send a message containing an electronic gift (hereinafter, sometimes simply referred to as an electronic gift) to a second user (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as a gift recipient). Electronic gifts include, for example, message cards with no monetary value, gifts that have monetary value and can be exchanged for goods or services, and gifts that involve the delivery of a specific product itself.

[0016] Specifically, the sending of a message containing an electronic gift in this case refers to, for example, sending a message containing an electronic gift of a type selected by the gift sender to a gift recipient selected by the gift sender at a date and time preset by the gift sender, for example, by electronic means. The following will explain the example of sending a message containing an electronic gift by electronic means.

[0017] The gift transmission system 1 includes a gift transmission server 100 (gift transmission device), a first user terminal 200, an external database server 300, and a second user terminal 400, which are connected via a network.

[0018] The gift sending server 100 works in conjunction with an external database. The external database may be, for example, the external database server 300. The external database server 300 is, for example, a database server external to the gift sending server 100. The gift sending server 100 acquires a set date and time from the gift sender. The set date and time is the date and time at which the gift sender desires the electronic gift to be sent from the gift sending server 100. Multiple set dates and times may be set for each gift recipient.

[0019] The gift sending server 100 obtains destination information for the gift recipient of the electronic gift from the external database server 300. The destination information includes information about the gift recipient required for sending the electronic gift. The destination information includes, for example, information required for sending the electronic gift itself, such as an email address, and information required for selecting a recipient based on conditions received from the gift sender. The information required for sending the electronic gift itself includes, for example, information related to the recipient, such as an email address, an account for an external communication tool, and an address. The information required for selecting a recipient includes, for example, name, unit of affiliation, rank, years of employment, gender, attributes related to commercial transactions with the gift sender, product purchase history, service usage history, etc. The unit of affiliation includes a specific company, a specific fan club, a specific school, a specific prefecture, a specific service subscription, etc.

[0020] The gift sending server 100 generates a transmission reservation for sending the electronic gift to the recipient address included in the destination information at the set date and time based on the set date and time and the destination information. The transmission reservation includes information necessary for the gift sending server 100 to send the electronic gift.

[0021] The first user terminal 200 may be any device used by the gift sender, such as a personal computer or smartphone that the gift sender uses to access the gift sending server 100 and use the gift sending service.

[0022] The first user terminal 200 is used when the gift sender accesses the gift sending server 100 to send an electronic gift to the gift recipient. The first user terminal 200 is also used when the gift sender checks the contents of a scheduled transmission, when test-sending a message corresponding to the scheduled transmission to the gift sender, when receiving a notification from the gift sending server 100 that the transmission of the electronic gift corresponding to the scheduled transmission has been completed, and when editing the message included in the electronic gift.

[0023] Any external database server that can acquire destination information may be used as external database server 300. For example, external database server 300 may be a database server operated by the human resources department or sales department of the gift sender's company, a customer company, a national or prefectural public institution, or an educational institution such as a school.

[0024] The second user terminal 400 may be any terminal used by the gift recipient, such as a personal computer or smartphone used by the gift recipient to receive and use the electronic gift.

[0025] The operation of the gift sending system 1 will be described below by taking as an example a case where the external database server 300 is a database server containing employee information operated by the human resources department of the gift sender's company, or a database server similar to a customer management system operated by the sales department of the gift sender's company. The gift sending server 100 interacts with the external database server 300 in response to operation by the gift sender. Next, the gift sending server 100 acquires from the gift sender a set date and time for sending the electronic gift and the type of electronic gift to be sent, and acquires destination information for the electronic gift from the external database server 300. Next, when the set date and time arrives, the gift sending server 100 generates a transmission reservation to send an electronic gift corresponding to the type of electronic gift to the destination corresponding to the destination information.

[0026] 2 shows an example of the functional configuration of the gift sending server 100. The gift sending server 100 includes a communication unit 110, a processing unit 130, and a storage unit 150. The communication unit 110 exchanges information with the first user terminal 200, the external database server 300, and the second user terminal 400 via the network. The processing unit 130 includes a linking unit 131, an acquiring unit 132, a reservation generating unit 134, a transmitting unit 136, a display unit 138, a test unit 140, a notification unit 142, and a fee calculating unit 144.

[0027] The linking unit 131 links with the external database server 300. The linking unit 131 links with the external database server 300 using connection information to the external database server 300 that has been registered in advance by the gift sender. The connection information includes, for example, the server address, the server port number, the name of the database to be connected to, a login ID, a login password, etc.

[0028] The linking unit 131 may link with an external communication tool to send a message including the electronic gift to the gift recipient via the external communication tool. The external communication tool may be, for example, a type of so-called social networking service (SNS) that allows users to exchange messages with designated recipients on a specific application.

[0029] The acquisition unit 132 acquires the set date and time from the gift sender and acquires destination information for the gift recipient of the electronic gift from the external database server 300. The destination information includes the recipient's address, which is the actual destination of the electronic gift. The acquisition unit 132 may acquire all information about recipients to whom the electronic gift is to be sent from the external database server 300, which has a pre-listed list. This information may be used as the destination information. When acquiring the set date and time from the gift sender, the acquisition unit 132 may also acquire recipient conditions from the gift sender to narrow down the gift recipients. The recipient conditions may include any of the attributes of the gift recipient. For example, the recipient conditions may include name, affiliation, rank, years of employment, gender, attributes related to commercial transactions with the gift sender, product purchase history, service usage history, etc. When acquiring the destination information for the gift recipient, the acquisition unit 132 may acquire destination information extracted using the recipient conditions acquired from the gift sender for each of the multiple corresponding gift recipients. The acquiring unit 132 may further acquire, from among the extracted recipient information, the selection of the gift sender as the recipient information.

[0030] The acquiring unit 132 may acquire the type of electronic gift to be sent from the gift sender to the gift recipient. The acquiring unit 132 may acquire multiple set dates and times. The multiple set dates and times may be, for example, weekly, monthly, or yearly.

[0031] The reservation generation unit 134 generates a transmission reservation for sending a message including an electronic gift to a recipient address included in the destination information when the set date and time arrives, based on the set date and time and the destination information. The reservation generation unit 134 may generate a transmission reservation for sending a message including an electronic gift of a type corresponding to the set date and time.

[0032] The reservation generation unit 134 may include different types of electronic gifts for different gift recipients in the message containing the electronic gift based on the destination information. The different types of electronic gifts for different gift recipients may be, for example, electronic gifts selected by the gift sender for each gift recipient. The reservation generation unit 134 may generate transmission reservations for the acquired destination information for each of multiple set dates and times. The reservation generation unit 134 may determine whether transmission reservations have been generated for the destination information of all gift senders for each set date and time.

[0033] The transmission reservation may include sending an electronic gift in multiple installments to a specific gift recipient at multiple set dates and times based on the acquired destination information. Specifically, an electronic gift sent in multiple installments may be sent monthly, for example. The electronic gift may be a QR code (registered trademark) sent monthly and exchangeable in-store for seasonal fruits. The reservation generation unit 134 may accept editing of a message including an electronic gift from the gift sender. For a message including an electronic gift that has already been scheduled for transmission, the reservation generation unit 134 may accept changes to the electronic gift or message from the gift sender.

[0034] The sending unit 136 sends a message including an electronic gift based on the scheduled transmission. The sending unit 136 may determine whether a set date and time has arrived. For each set date and time included in the scheduled transmission, which has been previously set for the gift sender, the sending unit 136 sends a message including the selected electronic gift to the gift recipient included in the destination information whenever the set date and time arrives. The sending unit 136 refers to a first setting, which determines whether the electronic gift is to be sent via an external communication tool, for the message transmission process in the processing of the gift sending server 100, which will be described later. If the first setting indicates that the electronic gift is to be sent via an external communication tool, the sending unit 136 sends the electronic gift via the external communication tool. If the first setting indicates that the electronic gift is not to be sent via an external communication tool, the sending unit 136 sends the electronic gift by email. The first setting is stored in the storage unit 150 and may be determined by the system, for example, depending on the type of destination included in the destination information.

[0035] The display unit 138 may display the contents of the scheduled transmission to the gift sender. The display unit 138 may also display the contents of the scheduled transmission that the gift sender has registered in advance, in response to an operation by the gift sender.

[0036] The test unit 140 may accept an operation from the gift sender and test send a message corresponding to the scheduled sending to the gift sender. The test sending may be in a form that does not include the electronic gift.

[0037] The notification unit 142 may notify the gift sender of the completion of transmission of the message including the electronic gift corresponding to the scheduled transmission. The notification to the gift sender may be, for example, an email indicating the completion of transmission, a display on the first user terminal 200 indicating the completion of transmission, a message on an external communication tool indicating the completion of transmission, or the like.

[0038] The fee calculation unit 144 may calculate the fee for a message including an electronic gift for each gift sender. Specifically, the fee calculation unit 144 may add up the amount of the transmitted electronic gift each time the set date and time included in the transmission reservation arrives, and calculate the usage fee for each gift sender.

[0039] If a message containing an electronic gift sent by the sending unit 136 fails to arrive, the fee calculation unit 144 does not need to include the failed message containing the electronic gift in the fee calculation. Failure of a message containing an electronic gift refers to a case where the gift sending server 100 sends a message containing an electronic gift but the message does not arrive at the gift recipient. For each specific gift sender, if there are no failed electronic gifts, the fee calculation unit 144 calculates the fee for all electronic gifts. If there are failed electronic gifts, the fee calculation unit 144 calculates the fee excluding the failed electronic gifts.

[0040] Specifically, the failure of a message containing an electronic gift may refer to, for example, an email sent by the gift sending server 100 where the email address or external communication tool account does not exist (is invalid), or where the sent electronic gift is returned due to a transmission error due to a mail server failure, a network failure, or a failure of the external communication tool. When adding up the amount of the sent electronic gift each time the set date and time included in the transmission reservation arrives, the fee calculation unit 144 may calculate the usage fee for each gift sender without adding up any messages that did not arrive. In this case, the message containing the electronic gift may be a regular email or an external communication tool.

[0041] The storage unit 150 may store information related to the processing of the gift sending server 100. The information related to the processing may include at least one of information acquired or generated in response to the processing of the gift sending server 100 and pre-registered information. The information acquired or generated in response to the processing may include at least one of the setting date and time, recipient information, the type of electronic gift selected by the gift sender, reception conditions, reservation information, access information to the external database server 300, message text, and information related to usage fees. The pre-registered information may include at least one of gift information, information related to the gift sender's login to the gift sending server 100, and message text templates. Specifically, the gift information may indicate, for example, seasonal fruits such as strawberries and cherries as the corresponding type of electronic gift if the setting date and time is spring; watermelon, melon, persimmon, chestnut, etc. if the setting date and time is summer; and strawberries and mandarin oranges, etc. if the setting date and time is winter.

[0042] Figure 3 shows an example of the flow of the transmission reservation process of the gift sending server 100. The transmission reservation process is a process that is repeated until the gift sending server 100 has completed generating transmission reservations for each acquired set date and time and corresponding destination information. In Figure 3, the gift sending server 100 will be described as starting from a state in which the linking unit 131 has completed linking with the external database server 300.

[0043] In step (sometimes abbreviated as S) 102, the acquisition unit 132 acquires the set date and time. The acquisition unit 132 acquires the set date and time from the gift sender. The acquisition unit 132 may also acquire from the gift sender the type of electronic gift to be sent, the message text, and recipient conditions, which are conditions for the gift recipient to whom the gift is to be sent.

[0044] In S104, the acquisition unit 132 acquires the destination information. The acquisition unit 132 acquires the destination information, which is information about the gift recipient, from the external database server 300. The acquisition unit 132 may acquire the destination information based on the recipient conditions.

[0045] In S106, the reservation generation unit 134 generates a transmission reservation. The reservation generation unit 134 generates a transmission reservation based on the set date and time and the destination information. The transmission reservation includes the set date and time acquired from the gift sender, the electronic gift corresponding to the type of electronic gift acquired from the gift sender, and the recipient destination information included in the destination information.

[0046] In S108, the schedule generation unit 134 determines whether a transmission schedule has been generated for the set date and time acquired in S102. Specifically, the schedule generation unit 134 determines whether a transmission schedule has been generated for all of the destination information corresponding to the set date and time acquired in S102. If the schedule generation unit 134 determines that a transmission schedule has been generated for all of the destination information corresponding to the set date and time acquired in S102, the process ends. If the schedule generation unit 134 determines that a transmission schedule has not been generated for all of the destination information corresponding to the set date and time acquired in S102, the process returns to S106.

[0047] Figure 4 shows an example of the flow of the transmission process of the gift sending server 100. The transmission process is a process from when the gift sending server 100 determines that the set date and time has arrived, to when it sends the electronic gift and notifies the gift sender that the transmission has been completed. In Figure 4, the gift sending server 100 will be described as starting a state in which the transmission reservation for the set date and time has already been completed in the transmission reservation process.

[0048] In step (sometimes abbreviated as S) 112, the transmission unit 136 determines whether the set date and time has arrived for the transmission reservations created in S106 and S108. If the transmission unit 136 determines that the set date and time has arrived, the process proceeds to S114. If the transmission unit 136 determines that the set date and time has not arrived, the process returns to S112.

[0049] In S114, the reservation generation unit 134 determines whether or not to send the scheduled electronic gift via external communication for each electronic gift. If the reservation generation unit 134 determines that the message will be sent via an external communication tool, the process proceeds to S118. If the reservation generation unit 134 determines that the message will not be sent via an external communication tool, the process proceeds to S116.

[0050] In S116, the sending unit 136 sends the electronic gift by email.

[0051] In S118, the sending unit 136 sends the electronic gift using the external communication tool.

[0052] In S120, the fee calculation unit 144 determines whether any electronic gifts have not been delivered. The fee calculation unit 144 determines whether any electronic gifts sent in S116 and / or S118 have not been delivered. If the fee calculation unit 144 determines that any electronic gifts with scheduled transmission have not been delivered, the process proceeds to S124. If the fee calculation unit 144 determines that any electronic gifts with scheduled transmission have not been delivered, the process proceeds to S122.

[0053] In S122, the fee calculation unit 144 calculates the fee based on all the electronic gifts that have been scheduled for transmission.

[0054] In S124, the fee calculation unit 144 calculates the fee excluding the undelivered portion. The fee calculation unit 144 calculates the fee excluding the undelivered portion of the electronic gifts scheduled for transmission.

[0055] In S126, the notification unit 142 notifies the gift sender of the completion of transmission. The notification unit 142 notifies the gift sender of information about the electronic gift that has already been sent, including the completion of transmission of the electronic gift based on the transmission reservation and whether or not the electronic gift has failed to arrive. The notification may be sent by email, a display on the first user terminal 200, an external communication tool, or the like.

[0056] As described above, in the gift sending system 1, the gift sending server 100 cooperates with the external database server 300 to acquire a set date and time from the gift sender, acquire destination information for the gift recipient of the electronic gift from the external database server 300, and, based on the set date and time and the destination information, generate a transmission reservation for sending a message including the electronic gift to the recipient address included in the destination information at the set date and time. Furthermore, the gift sending server 100 transmits the message including the electronic gift corresponding to the set date and time based on the transmission reservation.

[0057] According to the above-mentioned gift sending system 1, the gift sending server 100 works in conjunction with the external database server 300, allowing the gift sender to create a sending reservation and send a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time without having to go to the trouble of checking the latest destination information each time a sending reservation is made.

[0058] (Other embodiments) The gift transmission system 1 may include a storage unit 150 that stores in advance gift information, which is the type of electronic gift corresponding to a set date and time, and the reservation generation unit 134 may generate a transmission reservation for transmitting the type of electronic gift corresponding to the set date and time. For example, if the set date and time is before or after a date and time corresponding to a seasonal event, the reservation generation unit 134 may generate a transmission reservation for selecting and transmitting the type of electronic gift corresponding to the seasonal event.

[0059] Specifically, for example, if the acquisition unit 132 acquires a set date and time around December 24th, which is Christmas, the reservation generation unit 134 may automatically select a Christmas-related electronic gift as the type of electronic gift to be sent and generate a sending reservation.

[0060] Furthermore, for example, the set date and time may not be an absolute date and time, but may be acquired by the acquisition unit 132 under conditions that determine different dates and times depending on the gift recipient. The set date and time may be information such as "employee's service years: 5 years," "employee's service years: 10 years," or "employee's service years: 20 years."

[0061] The gift information stores the type of electronic gift corresponding to the set date and time. For example, the gift information may include information such as "5 years of employee service" as the set date and time and "meal voucher" as the electronic gift corresponding to the set date and time, "10 years of employee service" as the set date and time and "domestic travel gift certificate" as the electronic gift corresponding to the set date and time, or "20 years of employee service" as the set date and time and "overseas travel gift certificate" as the electronic gift corresponding to the set date and time.

[0062] In the gift sending server 100, the linking unit 131 links with the external database server 300, and the acquiring unit 132 acquires a set date and time from the gift sender and acquires destination information for the gift recipient of the electronic gift from the external database server 300. Based on the set date and time and the destination information, the reservation generating unit 134 generates a transmission reservation for sending a message including an electronic gift to the recipient address included in the destination information on the set date and time. The type of electronic gift at this time may be automatically determined based on the set date and time.

[0063] In this way, the gift sending system 1 as described above can, for example, eliminate the need for the gift sender to select the type of electronic gift to send for each electronic gift to be sent.

[0064] <Basic computer configuration> 6 is a block diagram showing the basic hardware configuration of a computer 900 that functions as the gift transmission system 1, the gift transmission server 100, the first user terminal 200, the external database server 300, and the second user terminal 400. The computer 900 has a control unit 901, a memory unit 902, a communication unit 903, an input unit 904, and an output unit 905. The control unit 901, the memory unit 902, the communication unit 903, the input unit 904, and the output unit 905 are electrically connected to one another via a communication bus 910.

[0065] The control unit 901 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit, also called a processor), and is a device that controls each unit of the computer 900 and also reads and executes various programs stored in the storage unit 902 .

[0066] The storage unit 902 includes a main storage device such as a DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) and an auxiliary storage device such as a hard disk, and is a device for storing various programs for executing the operating system and various applications of the computer 900, as well as data used by these programs. The processes shown in the various flowcharts above are realized by the control units 901 of each computer constituting the gift sending system 1, the gift sending server 100, the first user terminal 200, the external database server 300, and the second user terminal 400 executing programs stored in their respective storage units 902.

[0067] The communication unit 903 is a device for communicating with external devices, and transmits and receives data according to instructions from the control unit 901. Each of the computers constituting the gift sending system 1, the gift sending server 100, the first user terminal 200, the external database server 300, and the second user terminal 400 uses this communication unit 903 to communicate with other devices, including the network NW shown in FIG.

[0068] The input unit 904 is a device that receives input from outside and supplies it to the control unit 901, and is configured to include, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, and a camera. The output unit 905 is a device that outputs the processing results of the control unit 901 to the outside, and is configured to include, for example, a display and a speaker.

[0069] <Program> Here, a program for realizing each functional unit of the gift transmission system 1 according to this embodiment will be described.

[0070] The gift transmission system 1 is implemented in a computer 900. The operation of each component of the gift transmission system 1 is stored in the form of a program in the auxiliary storage device of the storage unit 902. The control unit 901 reads the program from the auxiliary storage device of the storage unit 902, loads it into the main storage device of the storage unit 902, and executes the above-mentioned processing in accordance with the program. The control unit 901 also allocates a memory area corresponding to the above-mentioned memory unit 150 in the main storage device of the storage unit 902 in accordance with the program.

[0071] Specifically, the program is a program to be executed by a computer having a processor and a memory unit in computer 900, and is a method for sending a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time, the program executing the following processes: a process of linking with an external database; a process of obtaining the set date and time from a first user; a process of obtaining destination information for a second user who is the recipient of the electronic gift from the external database; and a process of generating a sending reservation for sending a message including an electronic gift to a recipient address included in the destination information at the set date and time based on the set date and time and the destination information.

[0072] The above operational flows are not limited to being performed independently, but can be performed by combining two or more operational flows. For example, some steps of one operational flow may be added to another operational flow, or some steps of one operational flow may be replaced with some steps of another operational flow. In each flow, it is not necessary to perform all steps, and only some steps may be performed. Furthermore, the order of steps in each flow may be changed as appropriate.

[0073] A program may be provided that causes a computer to execute each process according to the above-described embodiments. The program may be recorded on a computer-readable medium. The computer-readable medium can be used to install the program on a computer. Here, the computer-readable medium on which the program is recorded may be a non-transitory storage medium. The non-transitory storage medium is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, a storage medium such as a CD-ROM or a DVD-ROM. Furthermore, circuits that execute each process performed by the device according to the above-described embodiments may be integrated, and at least a part of the device may be configured as a semiconductor integrated circuit (chipset, SoC).

[0074] The functions performed by the apparatus according to the above embodiments may be implemented in circuitry or processing circuitry, including general-purpose processors, special-purpose processors, integrated circuits, ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), a CPU (Central Processing Unit), conventional circuits, and / or combinations thereof, programmed to perform the described functions. A processor includes transistors and other circuits and is considered to be circuitry or processing circuitry. A processor may also be a programmed processor that executes a program stored in a memory. In this disclosure, a circuit, unit, or means is hardware that is programmed to perform or executes the described functions. The hardware may be any hardware disclosed herein or any hardware known to be programmed to perform or execute the described functions. When the hardware is a processor, which is considered to be a type of circuitry, the circuit, means, or unit is a combination of hardware and software used to configure the hardware and / or processor.

[0075] As used in this disclosure, the terms "based on" and "depending on / in response to" do not mean "based only on" or "depending only on," unless expressly stated otherwise. The term "based on" means both "based only on" and "based at least in part on." Similarly, the term "depending on" means both "depending only on" and "depending at least in part on." The terms "include," "comprise," and variations thereof do not mean including only the listed items, but may mean including only the listed items or may include additional items in addition to the listed items. Additionally, the term "or," as used in this disclosure, is not intended to mean an exclusive or. Furthermore, any reference to elements using designations such as "first," "second," etc., as used in this disclosure does not generally limit the quantity or order of those elements. These designations may be used herein as a convenient method of distinguishing between two or more elements. Thus, a reference to a first and a second element does not imply that only two elements may be employed therein or that the first element must precede the second element in some way. In this disclosure, where articles are added by translation, such as a, an, and the in English, these articles shall include the plural unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0076] The above describes the embodiments in detail with reference to the drawings, but the specific configuration is not limited to the above, and various design changes can be made within the scope that does not deviate from the gist.

[0077] (Appendix 1) A system for sending a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time, A linking unit that links with external databases; an acquisition unit that acquires the set date and time from the first user and acquires destination information including the address of the second user who is the recipient of the electronic gift from the external database; a reservation generating unit that generates a transmission reservation for transmitting a message including the electronic gift to the destination included in the destination information at the set date and time based on the set date and time and the destination information; A gift sending system comprising:

[0078] By linking with an external database, a user can create a transmission reservation without having to take the time to check the latest destination information each time a transmission reservation is made.

[0079] (Appendix 2) The gift sending system described in Appendix 1 further comprises a sending unit that sends a message including the electronic gift based on the sending reservation.

[0080] By linking with an external database server 300, a user can create a sending reservation and send a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time without having to go to the trouble of checking the latest destination information each time a sending reservation is made.

[0081] (Appendix 3) a storage unit for pre-storing gift information, which is the type of the electronic gift corresponding to the set date and time; The reservation generation unit generates the transmission reservation for transmitting a message including the electronic gift of the type corresponding to the set date and time. 1. A gift sending system as set forth in Appendix 1 or Appendix 2.

[0082] This eliminates the need for the first user to take the trouble of selecting the type of electronic gift to be sent for each electronic gift to be sent.

[0083] (Appendix 4) A gift sending system described in any one of Appendix 1 to Appendix 3, wherein the reservation generation unit includes a different type of electronic gift for each second user in the message containing the electronic gift based on the destination information.

[0084] Since different types of electronic gifts corresponding to the destination information can be selected for each second user, electronic gifts that better suit the tastes of the second users can be sent.

[0085] (Appendix 5) A gift sending system as described in any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 4, further comprising a display unit that displays the contents of the sending reservation to the first user.

[0086] The first user can reconfirm the contents of the transmission reservation that has already been set, even after the setting, and can therefore reconfirm whether or not there are any mistakes in the transmission reservation.

[0087] (Appendix 6) A gift sending system described in any one of Appendix 1 to Appendix 5, further comprising a test unit that accepts operation by the first user and test sends a message corresponding to the sending reservation to the first user.

[0088] The first user can perform a transmission test before sending the electronic gift, and if there is a problem in the transmission test, the problem can be corrected.

[0089] (Appendix 7) A gift sending system described in any one of Appendix 1 to Appendix 6, wherein the sending unit further includes a notification unit that notifies the first user of the completion of sending of a message including the electronic gift corresponding to the sending reservation.

[0090] The first user can receive a notification that the message including the electronic gift has been sent, which eliminates the need to check each time that the message has been sent.

[0091] (Appendix 8) the acquisition unit acquires a plurality of the set dates and times; The schedule generating unit generates the transmission schedule for each of the plurality of set dates and times for the acquired destination information. A gift sending system as described in any one of appendices 1 to 7.

[0092] A first user can collectively create transmission reservations for a plurality of electronic gifts for a specific second user, so when a first user wants to send a plurality of electronic gifts to a specific second user, the first user can avoid the trouble of recreating transmission reservations each time a gift is sent.

[0093] (Appendix 9) a fee calculation unit that calculates a fee for the message including the electronic gift for each of the first users; When a message including the electronic gift sent by the sending unit is not delivered, the fee calculation unit does not include the message including the undelivered electronic gift in the calculation of the fee. A gift sending system as described in any one of appendices 1 to 8.

[0094] When calculating the fee for the electronic gift, the effort of reflecting the fee for the undelivered electronic gift again can be eliminated.

[0095] (Appendix 10) A gift sending system described in any one of Appendix 1 to Appendix 9, wherein the linking unit links with an external communication tool to send a message including the electronic gift to the second user via the external communication tool.

[0096] An electronic gift can be sent even to a second user who has not disclosed his / her email address.

[0097] (Appendix 11) A gift sending system described in any one of Appendixes 1 to 10, wherein the reservation generation unit accepts editing of a message including the electronic gift from the first user.

[0098] The first user can edit the message even after reserving the transmission of the message including the electronic gift, and can correct any mistakes in the message before it is sent.

[0099] (Appendix 12) A system for sending a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time, A linking unit that links with external databases; an acquisition unit that acquires the set date and time from the first user and acquires destination information including the address of the second user who is the recipient of the electronic gift from the external database; a reservation generating unit that generates a transmission reservation for transmitting a message including the electronic gift to a recipient address included in the destination information at the set date and time based on the set date and time and the destination information; A gift sending device comprising:

[0100] (Appendix 13) A method for sending a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time, comprising: a linking step for linking with an external database; an acquisition step of acquiring the set date and time from the first user and acquiring destination information including the address of the second user who is the recipient of the electronic gift from the external database; a reservation generation step of generating a transmission reservation for transmitting a message including the electronic gift to a recipient address included in the destination information at the set date and time based on the set date and time and the destination information; Have a gift sending method.

[0101] (Appendix 14) A program for causing a computer to function as the system described in Appendix 1. [Explanation of symbols]

[0102] 1: Gift sending system 100: Gift sending server 110: Communications Department 130: Processing section 131: Collaboration Department 132: Acquisition Department 134: Reservation generation unit 136: Transmission unit 138: Display section 140: Testing section 142:Notification Department 144: Fee calculation section 150: Storage section 200: First user terminal 300: External database server 400: Second user terminal 900: Computer 901: Control unit 902: Storage section 903: Communications Department 904: Input section 905: Output section 910: Communication bus NW: Network

Claims

1. A system for sending a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time, a linking unit that links with an external database using a linking means including an API (Application Programming Interface) or SQL (Structured Query Language); an acquisition unit that acquires the set date and time from a first user who is the gift sender of the electronic gift, and acquires, using the linking means, destination information including the address of a second user who is the recipient of the electronic gift from the external database that manages employee information or customer information of the first user, or the external database operated by at least one of a company, public institution, educational institution, and private organization that is a customer of the first user; a reservation generating unit that generates a transmission reservation for transmitting a message including the electronic gift to the destination included in the destination information at the set date and time based on the set date and time and the destination information; Equipped with A gift sending system in which, when acquiring the set date and time from the first user, the acquisition unit also acquires from the first user recipient conditions for narrowing down the second users, and when acquiring the destination information of the second users, acquires the destination information extracted using the recipient conditions acquired from the first user for each of the corresponding multiple second users.

2. The gift sending system according to claim 1 , further comprising a sending unit that sends a message including the electronic gift based on the scheduled sending.

3. a storage unit for pre-storing gift information, which is the type of the electronic gift corresponding to the set date and time; The reservation generation unit generates the transmission reservation for transmitting a message including the electronic gift of the type corresponding to the set date and time. The gift sending system of claim 2 .

4. The gift sending system according to claim 2 , wherein the reservation generation unit includes a different type of electronic gift for each second user in the message containing the electronic gift based on the destination information.

5. The gift sending system according to claim 1 , further comprising a display unit that displays the contents of the sending reservation to the first user.

6. The gift sending system according to claim 1 , further comprising a test unit that accepts an operation by the first user and test sends a message corresponding to the sending reservation to the first user.

7. The gift sending system according to claim 2 , wherein the sending unit further comprises a notification unit that notifies the first user of the completion of sending of the message including the electronic gift corresponding to the sending reservation.

8. the acquisition unit acquires a plurality of the set dates and times; The schedule generating unit generates the transmission schedule for each of the plurality of set dates and times for the acquired destination information. The gift sending system of claim 1 .

9. a fee calculation unit that calculates a fee for the message including the electronic gift for each of the first users; When a message including the electronic gift sent by the sending unit is not delivered, the fee calculation unit does not include the message including the undelivered electronic gift in the calculation of the fee. The gift sending system of claim 2 .

10. The gift sending system according to claim 1 , wherein the linking unit links with an external communication tool and sends a message including the electronic gift to the second user via the external communication tool.

11. The gift sending system according to claim 1 , wherein the reservation generation unit accepts an edit of a message including the electronic gift from the first user.

12. A gift sending device that sends a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time, a linking unit that links with an external database using a linking means including an API (Application Programming Interface) or SQL (Structured Query Language); an acquisition unit that acquires the set date and time from a first user who is the gift sender of the electronic gift, and acquires destination information including the address of a second user who is the recipient of the electronic gift from the external database that manages employee information or customer information of the first user, or the external database operated by at least one of a company, public institution, educational institution, and private organization that is a customer of the first user; a reservation generating unit that generates a transmission reservation for transmitting a message including the electronic gift to a recipient address included in the destination information at the set date and time based on the set date and time and the destination information; Equipped with When acquiring the set date and time from the first user, the acquisition unit also acquires from the first user recipient conditions for narrowing down the second users, and when acquiring the destination information of the second users, acquires the destination information extracted using the recipient conditions acquired from the first user for each of the corresponding multiple second users.

13. A method for sending a message including an electronic gift at a set date and time by a computer, comprising: a linking step of linking with an external database using a linking means including an API (Application Programming Interface) or SQL (Structured Query Language); an acquisition step of acquiring the set date and time from a first user who is the gift sender of the electronic gift, and acquiring, using the linking means, destination information including the address of a second user who is the recipient of the electronic gift from the external database that manages employee information or customer information of the first user, or the external database operated by at least one of a company, public institution, educational institution, and private organization that is a customer of the first user; a reservation generation step of generating a transmission reservation for transmitting a message including the electronic gift to a recipient address included in the destination information at the set date and time based on the set date and time and the destination information; and The acquisition step is a gift sending method in which, when acquiring the set date and time from the first user, recipient conditions for narrowing down the second users are also acquired from the first user, and when acquiring the destination information of the second users, the destination information extracted using the recipient conditions acquired from the first user is acquired for each of the corresponding multiple second users.

14. A program for causing a computer to function as the gift sending system of claim 1.

Images