Notification management device, notification management method, and program

Abstract

To notify a customer even in a situation that a mobile phone number of the customer is unavailable.SOLUTION: A notification management device comprises: a notification control unit which performs a first notification using any one of RCS (Rich Communication Services) or SMS (Short Message Service) on a customer terminal; and a determination unit for determining whether or not the first notification performed by the notification control unit is normally completed. In a case where it is determined by the determination unit that the first notification is not normally completed, a second notification using an email service other than carrier mail associated with a mobile phone number is performed on the customer terminal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a notification management device, a notification management method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] There are notification services that send messages from businesses to customers. In such notification services, it is desirable to provide notifications in a way that makes it easy for customers to check the messages. Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for sending information to a destination where the customer is likely to see the message immediately. Notification services may also utilize RCS (Rich Communication Services), SMS (Short Message Service), and carrier email as notification methods. RCS and SMS are message services addressed to a mobile phone number. Carrier email is an email service linked to a mobile phone number. Carrier email is provided, for example, by a mobile carrier (mobile phone operator). Examples of carrier email include MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) and i-mode email. By utilizing such notification methods associated with a mobile phone number, notification services can send messages to customers' mobile phones. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-241732 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, RCS, SMS, and carrier email are each notification methods associated with a mobile phone number. Therefore, if a customer's mobile phone number is temporarily unavailable due to, for example, cancellation of the mobile phone contract or changing of mobile carrier, notifications using any of RCS, SMS, and carrier email may not be completed successfully, and the notification may fail. It is desirable for a notification service to be able to notify customers even when their mobile phone number is unavailable.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of these circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a notification management device, a notification management method, and a program that can notify customers even when their mobile phone numbers are unavailable. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a notification management device according to the present invention includes: To mobile phone operators: A first notification is sent to the customer's device using either RCS (Rich Communication Services) or SMS (Short Message Service). request to A notification control unit; Based on information indicating whether the first notification has been completed successfully, notified by the mobile phone carrier in response to the request for the first notification, The notification control unit requested and a determination unit that determines whether the first notification has been completed normally, and when the determination unit determines that the first notification has not been completed normally, the notification control unit notifies the customer terminal of provided by the mobile phone operator Carrier email linked to your mobile phone number A domain different from the one corresponding to A second notice will be sent via email service.

[0007] In addition, in the above-mentioned notification management device, the notification control unit determines whether the customer terminal can use notifications using RCS, and if the customer terminal can use notifications using RCS, it sends a notification using RCS as the first notification, and if the customer terminal cannot use notifications using RCS, it sends the first notification using SMS as the first notification.

[0008] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a notification management method according to the present invention includes: A notification management method performed by a computer, the computer comprising: The notification control unit: To mobile phone operators: A first notification is sent to the customer's device using either RCS (Rich Communication Services) or SMS (Short Message Service). Request to , The computer is provided with The determination unit: The computer is provided with The determination unit: Based on information indicating whether the first notification has been completed successfully, notified by the mobile phone carrier in response to the request for the first notification, The notification control unit requested The notification control unit determines whether the first notification has been completed normally, and when the determination unit determines that the first notification has not been completed normally, the notification control unit transmits to the customer terminal: provided by the mobile phone operator Carrier email linked to your mobile phone number A domain different from the one corresponding to A second notice will be sent via email service.

[0009] In addition, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention is a program for operating a computer as the notification management device described above, and for causing the computer to function as each part of the notification management device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to notify a customer even when the customer's mobile phone number is unavailable. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a notification management system 1 according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a notification management device 10 according to an embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of customer information 120 according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] 1 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing performed by a notification management device 10 according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0013] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a notification management system 1 to which a notification management device 10 according to an embodiment is applied. The notification management system 1 includes, for example, the notification management device 10, a plurality of customer terminals 20 (customer terminals 20-1, 20-2, ..., 20-N, N is any natural number), a mobile carrier server 30, and a business operator server 40.

[0014] The notification management device 10, multiple customer terminals 20, mobile carrier server 30, and business operator server 40 are communicatively connected via a communication network NW. The notification management system 1 may be configured to include multiple customer terminals 20. The notification management system 1 may also be configured to include multiple mobile carrier servers 30 and multiple business operator servers 40.

[0015] The notification management device 10 is a computer, such as a server device or a PC (Personal Computer). The notification management device 10 provides a notification service. The notification service is a service that notifies a customer of a message in response to a request from a business operator.

[0016] The customer terminal 20 is a computer, such as a smartphone or a mobile phone. The customer terminal 20 is a terminal used by a customer. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the customer terminal 20 is assigned a mobile phone number. That is, the customer terminal 20 is a terminal that can at least use SMS. If the notification service is provided using an email service, the customer terminal 20 may be a terminal that can receive email. That is, the customer terminal 20 may include at least a terminal assigned a mobile phone number, and may also include a PC used by the customer. Furthermore, if an RCS application is installed on the customer terminal 20 and activation, such as agreement to the terms of use, is performed, the customer terminal 20 is a terminal that can use RCS.

[0017] The mobile carrier server 30 is a computer, such as a server device or a PC. The mobile carrier server 30 is operated by a mobile carrier (a mobile phone operator). The mobile carrier server 30 performs notification using RCS, SMS, or carrier mail based on a request from the notification management device 10. That is, among notification services, notification using RCS, SMS, or carrier mail is performed via the mobile carrier server 30. Here, carrier mail is an email service linked to a mobile phone number. Carrier mail is provided by a mobile carrier (a mobile phone operator). For example, carrier mail includes MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service), i-mode mail, etc.

[0018] The mobile carrier server 30 may be configured with a plurality of devices. For example, the mobile carrier server 30 may be configured with a first device that sends notifications using RCS, a second device that sends notifications using SMS, a third device that sends notifications using carrier mail, and a fourth device that determines whether the customer terminal 20 can use RCS.

[0019] The business server 40 is a computer, such as a server device or a PC. The business server 40 is used by a business that uses the notification service. The business server 40 transmits information (a notification request, described later) requesting the notification management device 10 to notify a customer of a message.

[0020] 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a notification management device 10 according to an embodiment. The notification management device 10 includes, for example, a communication unit 11, a storage unit 12, and a control unit 13. The communication unit 11 communicates with a customer terminal 20, a mobile carrier server 30, and a business operator server 40.

[0021] The memory unit 12 is configured by a storage medium such as a hard disk drive (HDD), flash memory, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), random access read / write memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), or any combination of these storage media. The memory unit 12 stores programs for executing various processes of the notification management device 10 and temporary data used when performing various processes. The memory unit 12 stores customer information 120. The customer information 120 is information about customers who are to receive messages in the notification service.

[0022] 3 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of customer information 120 according to the embodiment. The customer information 120 is generated, for example, for each customer who has received a notification request from a business operator. The customer information 120 stores information corresponding to each of items such as the requester, customer ID, customer name, notification content, and multiple destinations.

[0023] The requester stores information indicating the business that requested the notification. The customer ID indicates identification information that uniquely identifies the requested notification. The customer name indicates the name of the customer to whom the notification is to be sent. The notification content indicates the content to be notified to the customer. Each destination indicates information that will be used to send the notification. The destination includes at least a mobile phone number and an email address. In the example shown in this figure, the destinations include the customer's mobile phone number, three email addresses, an address, and a landline phone number. Note that the example shown in this figure shows an example in which one common notification content is set, but this is not limiting. The notification content may be set individually depending on the notification method, such as RCS, SMS, or email.

[0024] 2, the control unit 13 is realized by causing a CPU (Central Processing Unit) provided as hardware in the notification management device 10 to execute a program. The control unit 13 comprehensively controls the notification management device 10. The control unit 13 includes, for example, a notification request acquisition unit 130, a notification control unit 131, a determination unit 132, and a device control unit 133.

[0025] The notification request acquisition unit 130 acquires the notification request transmitted by the business entity server 40 via the communication unit 11, and stores the acquired notification request in the storage unit 12 as customer information 120. The notification request acquisition unit 130 outputs the acquired notification request to the notification control unit 131.

[0026] Based on the notification request, the notification control unit 131 notifies the customer terminal 20 of a message. The notification control unit 131 performs a notification (first notification) to the customer terminal 20 using either RCS or SMS.

[0027] The notification control unit 131 determines whether to use RCS or SMS as the notification means for notifying the customer terminal 20 of a message. First, the notification control unit 131 determines whether or not it is possible to send a notification to the customer terminal 20 of the customer using RCS.

[0028] RCS has a larger limit on the number of characters that can be sent than SMS. For example, SMS can only send and receive small amounts of information, such as text with a limited number of characters, while RCS can send and receive large amounts of information, such as images. For this reason, businesses that want to notify their customers of various information prefer to use RCS.

[0029] The notification control unit 131 refers to the customer information 120 and extracts the mobile phone number that is the destination of the first notification. Then, the notification control unit 131 transmits the mobile phone number to the mobile carrier server 30 via the communication unit 11, and sends a notification inquiring whether or not RCS is installed in the customer terminal 20 corresponding to the mobile phone number.

[0030] The mobile carrier server 30 may have a database that indicates, for example, mobile phone numbers and whether or not RCS is installed in the terminals to which those mobile phone numbers are assigned, and may determine whether or not RCS is installed in the customer terminal 20 by referring to the database. Alternatively, the mobile carrier server 30 may determine whether or not RCS is installed in the customer terminal 20 based on a response from the customer terminal 20 to a control signal (a control signal related to RCS) sent to the customer terminal 20. In response to an inquiry from the notification management device 10, the mobile carrier server 30 sends information to the notification management device 10 that indicates whether RCS is installed in the customer terminal 20.

[0031] The notification control unit 131 acquires the response obtained from the mobile carrier server 30 via the communication unit 11. Based on the acquired response, the notification control unit 131 determines whether or not it is possible to send a notification to the customer terminal 20 using RCS.

[0032] If RCS is installed in the customer terminal 20, the notification control unit 131 determines that it is possible to send a notification using RCS to the customer terminal 20. On the other hand, if RCS is not installed in the customer terminal 20, the notification control unit 131 determines that it is not possible to send a notification using RCS to the customer terminal 20.

[0033] When it is possible to send a notification using RCS to the customer terminal 20, the notification control unit 131 sends a notification using RCS to the customer terminal 20. Specifically, the notification control unit 131 sends the mobile phone number of the customer terminal 20 and a message to the mobile carrier server 30 via the communication unit 11, and requests that a notification be sent using RCS.

[0034] The mobile carrier server 30 notifies the customer terminal 20 of a message by RCS in response to a request from the notification management device 10. In response to the notification, the mobile carrier server 30 transmits information indicating whether the notification using RCS has been completed successfully to the notification management device 10.

[0035] If the notification control unit 131 cannot notify the customer terminal 20 using RCS, it notifies the customer terminal 20 using SMS. Specifically, the notification control unit 131 transmits the mobile phone number of the customer terminal 20 and a message to the mobile carrier server 30 via the communication unit 11, and requests that the notification be made using SMS.

[0036] The mobile carrier server 30 notifies the customer terminal 20 of a message by SMS in response to a request from the notification management device 10. In response to the notification, the mobile carrier server 30 transmits information indicating whether the notification using SMS was completed successfully to the notification management device 10.

[0037] The determination unit 132 determines whether the notification (first notification) using RCS or SMS performed by the notification control unit 131 has been completed successfully. The determination unit 132 acquires the response transmitted from the mobile carrier server 30 via the communication unit 11. The response here is a response to the request made by the notification management device 10 to perform the first notification.

[0038] The determination unit 132 determines whether the first notification made by the notification control unit 131 has been completed normally, based on information included in the response indicating whether the first notification has been completed normally. When a response indicating that the first notification has been completed normally is received from the mobile carrier server 30, the determination unit 132 determines that the first notification has been completed normally. On the other hand, when a response indicating that the first notification has not been completed normally is received from the mobile carrier server 30, the determination unit 132 determines that the first notification has not been completed normally.

[0039] If the determining unit 132 determines that the first notification has not been completed normally, the notification control unit 131 sends a notification (second notification) to the customer terminal 20 using an email service other than carrier email.

[0040] RCS and SMS are notification methods associated with mobile phone numbers. Therefore, if a customer's mobile phone number is temporarily unavailable due to, for example, cancellation of the mobile phone contract or a change of mobile carrier, notification using carrier email may not be completed successfully, and the notification may fail. Therefore, when it is determined that the first notification was not completed successfully, the notification control unit 131 performs notification (second notification) using an email service other than carrier email.

[0041] The notification control unit 131 references the customer information 120 and acquires the customer's email address. The notification control unit 131 extracts addresses of email services other than carrier email from the extracted email addresses. For example, the notification control unit 131 determines whether the email address is a carrier email address based on the domain name included in the email address. A domain name is a component written after the "@ (at sign)" in an email address. For example, if the email address is "yyy@zzz.com", "zzz.com" is the domain name.

[0042] If the domain name of the email address corresponds to the domain name of the carrier email, the notification control unit 131 determines that the email address is a carrier email address. On the other hand, if the domain name of the email address does not correspond to the domain name of the carrier email, the notification control unit 131 determines that the email address is not a carrier email address.

[0043] The notification control unit 131 extracts addresses of email services other than carrier email by excluding carrier email addresses from the customer's email addresses. The notification control unit 131 performs the second notification by sending a message to the extracted addresses.

[0044] The device control unit 133 performs overall control of the notification management device 10. For example, when the communication unit 11 receives a notification request from the business entity server 40, the device control unit 133 outputs the notification request to the notification control unit 131.

[0045] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing performed by the notification management device 10 according to the embodiment.

[0046] (Step S1) The notification management device 10 executes a process of determining whether or not the RCS is installed in the customer terminal 20 (RCS usage determination). (Step S2) The notification management device 10 determines whether the customer terminal 20 can use the RCS, that is, whether the customer terminal 20 has the RCS installed. (Step S3) If the RCS is installed in the customer terminal 20, the notification management device 10 sends a notification to the customer terminal 20 using the RCS. (Step S4) If the RCS is not installed in the customer terminal 20, the notification management device 10 notifies the customer terminal 20 using SMS. (Step S5) The notification management device 10 determines whether the notification (first notification) using RCS or SMS sent to the customer terminal 20 has been completed successfully. If the first notification is determined to be successful, the notification management device 10 terminates the processing. (Step S6) If the first notification is not completed normally, the notification management device 10 extracts addresses of email services other than carrier email from among the email addresses of the customer. (Step S7) The notification management device 10 sends a message to the address extracted in step S6, thereby causing the notification management device 10 to perform a second notification.

[0047] As described above, the notification management device 10 of the embodiment includes a notification control unit 131 and a determination unit 132. The notification control unit 131 sends a first notification to the customer terminal 20 using either RCS or SMS. The determination unit 132 determines whether the first notification sent by the notification control unit 131 has been completed successfully. If the determination unit 132 determines that the first notification has not been completed successfully, the notification control unit 131 sends a second notification to the customer terminal 20 using an email service other than carrier email.

[0048] As a result, in the notification management device 10 of the embodiment, if a notification using RCS or SMS is not completed successfully, a notification can be sent using an email service other than carrier email. In other words, if an RCS or SMS notification associated with a mobile phone number is not completed successfully, a notification can be sent using an email service that is not associated with the mobile phone number. Therefore, a notification can be sent to a customer even if the customer's mobile phone number is unavailable, for example, because the mobile phone contract has been canceled or the mobile carrier has been changed.

[0049] Furthermore, in the notification management device 10 of the embodiment, the notification control unit 131 determines whether or not the customer terminal 20 can use notifications using RCS. If the customer terminal 20 can use notifications using RCS, the notification control unit 131 issues a notification using RCS as the first notification. If the customer terminal 20 cannot use notifications using RCS, the notification control unit 131 issues the first notification using SMS as the first notification. As a result, the notification management device 10 of the embodiment can issue a first notification depending on whether or not RCS is installed in the customer terminal 20.

[0050] The notification management device 10 in the above-described embodiment may be implemented in whole or in part by a computer. In this case, a program for implementing this function may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program may be loaded and executed by a computer system. Note that the term "computer system" as used herein includes hardware such as an operating system and peripheral devices. Furthermore, "computer-readable recording medium" refers to portable media such as floppy disks, optical magnetic disks, ROMs, and CD-ROMs, as well as storage devices such as hard disks built into computer systems. Furthermore, "computer-readable recording medium" may also include devices that dynamically store programs for a short period of time, such as communication lines used when transmitting programs over a network such as the Internet or a telephone line, or devices that store programs for a fixed period of time, such as volatile memory within a computer system that serves as a server or client. The program may also be designed to implement some of the aforementioned functions, or may be capable of implementing the aforementioned functions in combination with a program already stored in the computer system, or may be implemented using a programmable logic device such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array).

[0051] Although an embodiment of the present invention has been described above in detail with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and includes designs within the scope of the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0052] 1...Notification management system, 10...Notification management device, 12...Storage unit, 120...Customer information, 13...Control unit, 130...Notification request acquisition unit, 131...Notification control unit, 132...Determination unit, 20...Customer terminal, 30...Mobile carrier server, 40...Business operator server

Claims

1. A notification control unit that requests a mobile phone carrier to send a first notification to a customer terminal using either RCS (Rich Communication Services) or SMS (Short Message Service); a determination unit that determines whether the first notification requested by the notification control unit has been completed normally, based on information indicating whether the first notification has been completed normally, the information being notified by the mobile phone carrier in response to a request for the first notification; When the determination unit determines that the first notification has not been completed successfully, the notification control unit sends a second notification to the customer terminal using an email service in which a domain different from the domain corresponding to the carrier email linked to the mobile phone number provided by the mobile phone carrier is set. Notification management device.

2. the notification control unit determines whether or not the customer terminal can use notification using RCS, and if the customer terminal can use notification using RCS, performs notification using RCS as the first notification, and if the customer terminal cannot use notification using RCS, performs the first notification using SMS as the first notification. The notification management device of claim 1 .

3. A notification management method performed by a computer, comprising: a notification control unit provided in the computer requests the mobile phone carrier to send a first notification to the customer terminal using either RCS (Rich Communication Services) or SMS (Short Message Service); a determination unit included in the computer determines whether the first notification requested by the notification control unit has been completed normally, based on information indicating whether the first notification has been completed normally, the information being notified by the mobile phone carrier in response to the request for the first notification; When the determination unit determines that the first notification has not been completed successfully, the notification control unit sends a second notification to the customer terminal using an email service in which a domain different from the domain corresponding to the carrier email linked to the mobile phone number provided by the mobile phone carrier is set. How to manage notifications.

4. 3. A program for causing a computer to operate as the notification management device according to claim 1, wherein the program causes the computer to function as each of the components of the notification management device.

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