Information processing device, information processing method, and program

Abstract

This invention provides an information processing device that can link users who are not retailers or other non-retail entities with users of retail companies linked to POS information. [Solution] The information processing device 1 includes a receiving unit 11 that receives one or more first correspondence pieces of information that associate a first user identifier that identifies a user with purchase information which is information that the user receives when purchasing a product and includes product information about the product, and one or more second correspondence pieces of information that associate a second user identifier that identifies a user with the user's POS information, and an acquisition unit 13 that acquires one or more user correspondence pieces of information that associates a first user identifier with one or more second user identifiers by associating the first and second user identifiers which are associated with the purchase information and the POS information that is compatible with the purchase information, respectively, and the first correspondence pieces of information are information transmitted by the user in response to the transmission of promotional information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus that associates two user identifiers, etc.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, entities such as non-retail companies have held information about users who are their customers and may use that information for promotion (i.e., sales promotion). In addition, retail companies have also sometimes used POS (Point of Sales) information for promotion (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] There is also POS information associated with a user identifier, such as ID-POS, and by using it, it is possible to know who, when, where, what, and how much was purchased. Therefore, it is also conceivable to use ID-POS for promotion, but entities such as non-retail companies cannot associate their own users with the users of retail companies associated with POS information by ID-POS, so there is a problem that POS information cannot be effectively utilized for promotion and the like.

[0005] The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an information processing apparatus and the like that can associate a user of a non-retail entity with a user of a retail company associated with POS information.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] To achieve the above objective, an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention comprises a receiving unit that receives one or more first correspondence pieces of information that associate a first user identifier that identifies a user with purchase information which is information received by the user when purchasing a product and includes product information relating to the product, and one or more second correspondence pieces of information that associate a second user identifier that identifies a user with the user's POS information, and an acquiring unit that acquires one or more user correspondence pieces of information that associates a first user identifier with one or more second user identifiers by associating the first and second user identifiers which are associated with the purchase information and POS information which is compatible with the purchase information, respectively, wherein the first correspondence pieces of information are information transmitted by the user in response to the transmission of promotional information.

[0007] This configuration allows for the association of a first user identifier for a non-retail entity with a second user identifier for a retail company's user, which is associated with POS information. In this way, users of non-retail entities can be linked with users of retail companies linked to POS information. As a result, even non-retail entities can identify the POS information corresponding to their users and use that POS information to conduct activities such as sales promotions.

[0008] Furthermore, an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention may further include a specification unit that uses at least one second correspondence piece of information and one or more user correspondence pieces of information to specify a first user identifier of a user to whom promotional information is to be sent, and an output unit that outputs the specification result by the specification unit.

[0009] This configuration makes it possible, for example, to identify the recipient of promotional information using POS information corresponding to the first user identifier.

[0010] Furthermore, an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention may further include a receiving unit that receives predetermined conditions, which are conditions for identifying a user to whom promotional information is to be sent, and which include at least conditions relating to POS information, and the identifying unit may identify a first user identifier associated with POS information that satisfies the predetermined conditions received by the receiving unit.

[0011] This configuration makes it possible to identify users who meet predetermined conditions, including at least conditions related to POS information, as recipients of promotional information. For example, it becomes possible to identify users who have previously purchased a specific product as recipients of promotional information.

[0012] Furthermore, in an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention, the identification unit may identify the first user identifier using a learning model that uses at least one POS information, which is associated with the first user identifier by one or more user-related information, for learning.

[0013] This configuration allows for the identification of users to whom promotional information should be sent, using a pre-trained model. In this way, for example, users who are likely to benefit from promotions can be identified as recipients of promotional information.

[0014] Furthermore, an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention may further include a receiving unit that accepts conditions for identifying a user to whom promotional information is to be sent, and the identification unit may receive a first user identifier that satisfies the conditions from a learning model by providing the learning model with the conditions accepted by the receiving unit.

[0015] With this configuration, for example, it becomes possible to identify users to whom promotional information should be sent using a learning model of a generative AI.

[0016] Furthermore, an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention may further include a promotion result acquisition unit that acquires promotion results, which are the results of promotions in response to the transmission of promotion information to a user identified by a first user identifier identified by a specific unit, and the learning model may be updated using the promotion results acquired by the promotion result acquisition unit.

[0017] With this configuration, the learning model can be updated using the results of the promotional activities, resulting in a learning model that is more suitable for identifying the users to whom promotional information is sent.

[0018] Furthermore, in an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention, the sales promotion result acquisition unit may acquire a sales promotion result indicating whether or not the product promoted was purchased based on the sales promotion information transmitted to the user, using the second correspondence information and the user correspondence information.

[0019] With this configuration, it is possible to obtain sales promotion results using, for example, ID-POS data.

[0020] Furthermore, in an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention, the sales promotion result acquisition unit may receive sales promotion results.

[0021] With this configuration, the learning model can be updated by receiving promotional results transmitted from, for example, retail equipment or user terminal devices.

[0022] Furthermore, in an information processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention, the apparatus further includes a storage unit that stores one or more third correspondence pieces of information that associate a first user identifier with user information relating to the user identified by the first user identifier, and the identification unit may use the user information and the identification result of the first user identifier using a learning model to identify first user identifiers that are not associated with a second user identifier by the user correspondence piece of information.

[0023] This configuration makes it possible to identify users who are not associated with POS information as recipients of promotional information.

[0024] Also, in the information processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention, the output unit may transmit promotion information to the user identified by the first user identifier identified by the specifying unit.

[0025] With such a configuration, promotion information can be directly transmitted from the information processing apparatus to the user.

[0026] Also, in the information processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention, the output unit may output the first user identifier identified by the specifying unit.

[0027] With such a configuration, by using the output first user identifier, for example, promotion information can be transmitted from a device other than the information processing apparatus.

[0028] Also, an information processing method according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing method processed using a receiving unit and an acquisition unit, the receiving unit receiving one or more first correspondence informations associating a first user identifier for identifying a user with purchase information which is information received by the user at the time of purchasing a product and includes product information regarding the product, the receiving unit receiving one or more second correspondence informations associating a second user identifier for identifying the user with the user's POS information, and the acquisition unit obtaining one or more user correspondence informations associating the first user identifier with one or more second user identifiers by associating the first and second user identifiers respectively associated with the purchase information and the POS information conforming to the purchase information, the first correspondence information being information transmitted from the user in response to transmission of promotion information.

[0029] Furthermore, a program according to one aspect of the present invention is a program that causes a computer to perform the following steps: receive one or more first correspondence pieces of information that associate a first user identifier that identifies a user with purchase information which is information that a user receives when purchasing a product and includes product information about the product; receive one or more second correspondence pieces of information that associate a second user identifier that identifies a user with the user's POS information; and obtain one or more user correspondence pieces of information that associates a first user identifier with one or more second user identifiers by associating the first and second user identifiers that are associated with the purchase information and the POS information that is compatible with the purchase information, respectively, wherein the first correspondence pieces of information are information transmitted by the user in response to the transmission of promotional information. [Effects of the Invention]

[0030] According to one aspect of the present invention, an information processing device can link users of non-retail companies and other entities with users of retail companies linked to POS information. As a result, even non-retail companies and other entities can identify POS information corresponding to their users and use that POS information to conduct, for example, sales promotions. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0031] [Figure 1] A schematic diagram showing the configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] Block diagram showing the configuration of the information processing device according to the same embodiment. [Figure 3] Flowchart showing the operation of the information processing device according to the same embodiment. [Figure 4] This figure shows an example of the third correspondence information in the same embodiment. [Figure 5] A diagram showing an example of purchase information in the same embodiment. [Figure 6] This figure shows an example of the first correspondence information in the same embodiment. [Figure 7] This figure shows an example of the second correspondence information in the same embodiment. [Figure 8] This figure shows an example of user response information in the same embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0032] The information processing apparatus and information processing method according to the present invention will be described below using embodiments. In the following embodiments, components and steps denoted by the same reference numerals are the same or equivalent, and their repeated explanation may be omitted. The information processing apparatus according to this embodiment links users who are entities such as companies that are not retailers with users of retail companies linked to POS information.

[0033] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the information processing system 100 according to this embodiment, and Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the information processing device 1 according to this embodiment. The information processing system 100 according to this embodiment may include the information processing device 1, one or more user terminal devices 2, and one or more retail devices 3. The information processing device 1, the user terminal devices 2, and the retail devices 3 may be connected to each other via a wired or wireless communication line 500. The communication line 500 may be, for example, the Internet, an intranet, or a public telephone network.

[0034] The information processing device 1 may, for example, receive information from a user terminal device 2 or a retail device 3, thereby linking users who are entities other than retailers with users of retail companies linked to POS information. The detailed configuration of the information processing device 1 will be described later.

[0035] User terminal device 2 is a terminal device used by the user, and may be, for example, a smartphone, a tablet device, or a personal computer. User terminal device 2 may be, for example, portable, or it may not be portable, such as a desktop computer. In this embodiment, the case where user terminal device 2 is a smartphone will be mainly described. The user may be, for example, a customer purchasing goods at a store.

[0036] The retail device 3 may be a terminal device owned by a retail company. As will be described later, second correspondence information, such as ID-POS, may be transmitted from this retail device 3 to the information processing device 1. A retail company may, for example, have a retail device 3 for each store, or a single company may have one retail device 3. A retail company may, for example, be a retail chain.

[0037] As shown in Figure 2, the information processing device 1 comprises a receiving unit 11, a storage unit 12, an acquisition unit 13, a reception unit 14, a specification unit 15, an output unit 16, and a sales promotion result acquisition unit 17.

[0038] The receiving unit 11 receives one or more first correspondence information. The first correspondence information is information that associates a first user identifier that identifies a user with purchase information, which is information that the user receives when purchasing one or more products and includes product information about those one or more products. The receiving unit 11 may, for example, receive first correspondence information transmitted from the user terminal device 2.

[0039] The first user identifier may be a user identifier managed by an entity other than a retail company, for example. The user identifier may be, for example, the user's name, email address, or telephone number, or any other information that can identify the user. The same may apply to other identifiers.

[0040] Purchase information may, for example, be information corresponding to a single purchase of a product by a user. Purchase information may, for example, be information on a receipt received by the purchaser at the time of purchase. In this case, purchase information may be, for example, a photographed image of a paper receipt or an electronic receipt, the electronic receipt itself, or information including text information extracted from a photographed image of a paper receipt, etc., by character recognition or the like. Furthermore, purchase information may be converted as appropriate during the processing process. For example, purchase information in the form of a photographed image of a paper receipt may be received, and purchase information including text information extracted from that purchase information by character recognition may be stored.

[0041] Purchase information may include, for example, information contained in a receipt. Purchase information may include, for example, information about each purchased item such as the product name, unit price, quantity, and subtotal amount, and may also include the date and time of purchase, a store identifier that identifies the store where the purchase was made, and the total amount. The store identifier may be, for example, the store name or other information that identifies the store.

[0042] The reception of the first correspondence information may be, for example, a single reception of the pair of the first user identifier and the purchase information, or it may be a reception of the two at different times. Even in the latter case, it is preferable that the information be received in a way that makes it clear how the two are associated. For example, if the first user identifier is received when logging in, and then the purchase information corresponding to that first user identifier is received after that login, the reception of the first correspondence information that associates the first user identifier with that purchase information may be considered as having been received. The same may apply to the reception of information other than the first correspondence information.

[0043] The first correspondence information may be information sent by a user in response to the transmission of promotional information. This user may be identified by a first user identifier associated with purchase information in the first correspondence information. Promotional information may be, for example, information to promote the sale of products by providing benefits to users. The products targeted by the promotional information may be, for example, limited to specific products, or not. For example, in the former case, the promotional information may be a discount coupon for a specific product, and in the latter case, the promotional information may be a discount coupon for all products of a specific company. Users may receive promotional information, for example, through SNS (Social Networking Service), application software, email, etc. Benefits may be, for example, at least one of discounts, point accrual, or prize accrual. Promotional information may, as an example, be a coupon for accruing benefits. Transmission of promotional information may be performed, for example, by the information processing device 1, or by other devices or servers, etc. Promotional information may be transmitted, for example, to a user identified by a first user identifier. By transmitting first-hand information in response to promotional information sent by entities other than retailers, it becomes possible to collect information from a wide range of users, not limited to specific retail companies, and to perform highly accurate analysis of information that identifies user and product attributes. For example, promotional information about a particular product can be prevented from being sent to users who are not consumers of that product. Specifically, promotional information for alcoholic beverages can be prevented from being sent to underage users. As another example, promotional information can be transmitted by identifying attributes such as stores, products, product categories, user gender, age, and region. Specifically, promotional information for products targeted at single men can be sent to male users in their 20s.

[0044] The receiving unit 11 receives one or more second correspondence information. The second correspondence information is information that associates a second user identifier that identifies a user with the user's POS information. The second correspondence information may, for example, be information that associates a second user identifier with POS information for one or more products purchased by the user identified by that second user identifier. This second correspondence information may be so-called ID-POS.

[0045] The receiving unit 11 may receive, for example, second correspondence information transmitted from a retail company or another company managing ID-POS. In this embodiment, the case in which the receiving unit 11 receives second correspondence information transmitted from a retail device 3 of a retail company will be mainly described. In addition, the receiving unit 11 may receive second correspondence information acquired by, for example, two or more different retail companies.

[0046] Strictly speaking, the first correspondence information is transmitted from the user's terminal device, such as user terminal device 2, and the second correspondence information is transmitted from the server or information processing device of a retail company or other company, such as retail device 3. However, for the sake of explanation, it may be assumed that this information is transmitted from the user or retail company. The same applies to the transmission and reception of other information.

[0047] The second user identifier may be, for example, a user identifier in a retail company, and may include a retail identifier that identifies the retail company and a user identifier in that retail company. The user identifier in a retail company may be, for example, a member identifier that identifies a member who is a user in that retail company. The second user identifier may be converted as appropriate during the processing. For example, if the second user identifier included in the second correspondence information transmitted from the retail device 3 is the member identifier of the retail company, and when that second correspondence information is stored in the information processing device 1, the second user identifier may be converted to include the member identifier of the retail company and the retail identifier of that retail company. In this way, for example, both the retail device 3 and the information processing device 1 can uniquely identify a user using the second user identifier. This embodiment will mainly describe the case in which such conversion is performed.

[0048] The receiving unit 11 may, for example, receive an ID-POS that associates a second user identifier, which is a member identifier, with POS information, and a retail identifier of a certain retail company from a retail device 3 of that retail company. In this case, when the receiving unit 11 stores the second user identifier, for example, it may convert it into a second user identifier that includes the received retail identifier and the received member identifier.

[0049] POS information may include, for example, information about one or more items purchased by a user at a store. Preferably, information about one or more items purchased by a user in a single transaction is included in one POS information entry. Normally, one receipt is issued for each transaction, but for example, information about one or more items included on that receipt may also be included in one POS information entry.

[0050] For example, when a user presents their membership card at a store and purchases goods, a second correspondence information linking the user's membership identifier with POS information, which is information about the goods purchased by the user, may be stored in the store's equipment. This second correspondence information may then be transmitted, for example, from the store's retail equipment 3 to the information processing device 1. The second correspondence information may be stored for a predetermined period, and multiple stored second correspondence information may be transmitted to the information processing device 1 all at once, or each time new second correspondence information is stored, the newly stored second correspondence information may be transmitted to the information processing device 1.

[0051] The information included in POS information is not particularly limited, but for example, POS information may include product identifiers, product names, unit prices, quantities, subtotal amounts, and categories for one or more items purchased by a user. It may also include the date and time the product was sold, a store identifier that identifies the store where the product was sold, a retail identifier that identifies the retail company to which the store belongs, and the total amount for the one or more items sold. Note that POS information may not include some of this information, or it may include other information. The product identifier is not particularly limited as long as it is information that can identify a product, but for example, it may be a JAN (Japanese Article Number) code.

[0052] Here, in correspondence information that associates two pieces of information, such as the first and second correspondence information, it is sufficient, for example, to be able to identify the other piece of information from one of the two pieces of information. Therefore, the correspondence information may be information that includes the two pieces of information as a pair, or it may be information that links the two pieces of information. In this embodiment, the former case will be mainly described.

[0053] The receiving unit 11 may store the received first correspondence information and second correspondence information in the storage unit 12 or other recording medium. In this embodiment, the case in which the received first and second correspondence information is stored in the storage unit 12 will be mainly described.

[0054] The receiving unit 11 may or may not include a wired or wireless receiving device (e.g., a modem or network card) for receiving data. Furthermore, the receiving unit 11 may be implemented by hardware or by software such as a driver for the receiving device.

[0055] The storage unit 12 may store one or more third correspondence pieces of information that associate a first user identifier with user information relating to the user identified by the first user identifier. User information may include, for example, user attribute information indicating the user's attributes, an address for sending promotional information to the user, or other information relating to the user. User attribute information may include, for example, one or more pieces of information such as the user's gender, age, age group, residential area, occupation, family structure, and annual income. Furthermore, as described above, the storage unit 12 may also store the first and second correspondence pieces of information.

[0056] The process by which information is stored in the storage unit 12 is not relevant. For example, information may be stored in the storage unit 12 via a recording medium, a communication line, an input device, etc., or information may be stored in the storage unit 12 by other components such as the receiving unit 11. The storage unit 12 is preferably implemented using a non-volatile recording medium, but it may also be implemented using a volatile recording medium. The recording medium may be, for example, a semiconductor memory or a magnetic disk.

[0057] The acquisition unit 13 acquires one or more user correspondence pieces of information that associate a first user identifier with one or more second user identifiers by associating the first and second user identifiers, which are respectively associated with the purchase information and the POS information that corresponds to the purchase information. The acquisition unit 13 may, for example, store the acquired user correspondence pieces in the storage unit 12 or other recording medium. In this embodiment, the case in which the acquired user correspondence pieces are stored in the storage unit 12 will be mainly described.

[0058] POS information that matches purchase information may be POS information that contains substantially the same information as the information contained in the purchase information. For example, if the purchase information indicates that at a certain date and time, at store X, one unit of product C1 with a unit price of A1 yen, two units of product C2 with a unit price of A2 yen, and three units of product C3 with a unit price of A3 yen were purchased, then POS information that indicates that at the same date and time, at store X, one unit of product C1 with a unit price of A1 yen, two units of product C2 with a unit price of A2 yen, and three units of product C3 with a unit price of A3 yen were sold may be POS information that matches the purchase information.

[0059] The acquisition unit 13 may, for example, use information contained in certain purchase information as a search key to search for POS information and identify a pair of POS information that matches the purchase information and the purchase information that is found to be a hit. The acquisition unit 13 may then identify a first user identifier associated with the purchase information contained in the identified pair by first correspondence information, and a second user identifier associated with the POS information contained in the identified pair by second correspondence information, and acquire user correspondence information that associates the two. If second correspondence information transmitted from two or more different retail companies is received, multiple second correspondence information entries with different second user identifiers that identify the same user may be received. In such cases, the acquisition unit 13 may, for example, acquire two or more user correspondence information entries for one first user identifier. In this case, it may be considered that, as a result, user correspondence information that associates the first user identifier with two or more second user identifiers has been acquired for that first user identifier.

[0060] The user-related information acquired by the acquisition unit 13 allows for the linking of a first user identifier used by entities such as non-retail companies with a second user identifier used by retail companies. By using this user-related information and the second user-related information, the POS information corresponding to the first user identifier can be identified. As a result, entities such as non-retail companies can conduct marketing using POS information corresponding to users. In this embodiment, an example of such marketing, specifically the transmission of promotional information, will be described below.

[0061] The reception unit 14 may, for example, accept conditions for identifying users to whom promotional information is to be sent. These conditions may be any conditions that are used to identify users to whom promotional information is to be sent. These conditions may include, for example, the product identifier, product name, or category of the product being promoted. In this case, users who are likely to purchase the product being promoted may be identified as users to whom promotional information is to be sent. These conditions may also include, for example, user attribute information such as the user's gender and age. The reception unit 14 may accept these conditions from, for example, a person in charge of promoting products at an entity such as a company that is not a retailer. The reception unit 14 may accept, for example, predetermined conditions used in searching for users to whom promotional information is to be sent (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "first conditions"), or conditions used when identifying users to whom promotional information is to be sent using a learning model (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "second conditions").

[0062] The first condition is, for example, a condition for identifying the user to whom promotional information is sent, and may be a predetermined condition that includes at least a condition relating to POS information. The condition relating to POS information may be, for example, a condition relating to the purchase of a specific product, i.e., a condition that the product identifier of a specific product is included in the POS information. The first condition may also include conditions other than POS information, such as conditions relating to user attribute information such as age and gender.

[0063] The second condition may, for example, be a condition input to the learning model. The second condition may be, for example, the same as the first condition, or it may include information about the product being promoted (e.g., product name, product identifier, or category). This embodiment will mainly describe the latter case.

[0064] The reception unit 14 may, for example, receive information input from an input device (e.g., a keyboard, mouse, touch panel, etc.), or it may receive information transmitted via a wired or wireless communication line. The reception unit 14 may or may not include devices for reception (e.g., input devices, communication devices, etc.). Furthermore, the reception unit 14 may be implemented by hardware, or by software such as a driver that drives a predetermined device.

[0065] The identification unit 15 identifies the first user identifier of the user to whom the promotional information is sent by using at least one or more second correspondence information and one or more user correspondence information. By using the second correspondence information and the user correspondence information, the POS information associated with the first user identifier can be identified. Therefore, the identification unit 15 may, for example, identify the first user identifier of the user to whom the promotional information is sent by using at least the POS information associated with the first user identifier. Note that using at least the POS information may mean, for example, using at least some of the POS information. Several methods by which the identification unit 15 identifies the first user identifier of the user to whom the promotional information is sent will be described below.

[0066] (1) Identification of the first user identifier through search The identification unit 15 may, for example, identify a first user identifier associated with POS information that satisfies predetermined conditions received by the reception unit 14, i.e., the first condition. For example, if predetermined conditions including the product identifier of a specific product are received, the identification unit 15 may search for second correspondence information using that product identifier as a search key, and identify the first user identifier associated with the second user identifier contained in the hit second correspondence information by the user correspondence information. In this way, the first user identifier of a user who has previously purchased a specific product can be identified, and promotional information can be sent to that user. If, for example, the predetermined conditions include the purchase date of a specific product or the total number of specific products purchased, the identification unit 15 may also identify users who satisfy those conditions. Furthermore, since the purpose of this search is to identify the first user identifier, the identification unit 15 may search only the POS information that is associated with the first user identifier via the user correspondence information. Furthermore, if the predetermined conditions include user attribute information such as gender and age, the identification unit 15 may, as the final identification result, identify a first user identifier that satisfies the conditions regarding the user attribute information included in the predetermined conditions, based on the user information associated with that first user identifier by the third correspondence information, from among the first user identifiers identified as described above.

[0067] (2) Identification of the first user identifier using a learning model The identification unit 15 may identify the first user identifier using a learning model that has been trained using at least one POS information that is associated with the first user identifier by one or more user correspondence information. This learning model may be, for example, a pre-trained model. In this case, for example, the learning model may be used to identify the first user identifier according to the second condition received by the reception unit 14. Using POS information for training may mean, for example, using at least a portion of the POS information for training. For example, product identifiers, product names, categories, etc. of products sold to the user that are included in the POS information may be used for training.

[0068] (2-1) Identification of the first user identifier by providing conditions to the learning model The identification unit 15 may, for example, receive a first user identifier that satisfies the second condition by providing the learning model with the second condition received by the reception unit 14. In this case, the learning model may be, for example, a generative AI. The generative AI may be, for example, OpenAI's ChatGPT or Google's Gemini. Alternatively, the identification unit 15 may receive a first user identifier that satisfies the second condition by providing the generative AI with a prompt that includes, for example, training data associating the first user identifier with POS information and a second condition for identifying the first user identifier. The training data may also include, for example, one or more third correspondence information. In this case, the training data may be, for example, information associating the first user identifier with POS information and user attribute information. The second condition may be, for example, a product identifier, product name, or category of a product being promoted. Furthermore, the second condition may include, for example, the number of first user identifiers to be identified, and user attribute information such as the gender, age, and residential area of ​​the identified user. The prompt given to the generating AI may include, for example, training data and instructions to propose first user identifiers of users suitable for sending promotional information for a specific product, based on that training data. The specific product may be indicated by the product identifier, product name, or category of the product included in the accepted second condition. For example, the instructions may be created by inserting the product identifier, product name, or category of the product included in the second condition into a predetermined template. The prompt given to the generating AI may also include an explanation of the structure of the training data, etc. The identification unit 15 may, for example, receive the generating AI's response information to the prompt after giving it a prompt. Then, one or more first user identifiers included in that response information may become the first user identifiers identified by the identification unit 15.

[0069] (2-2) Identification of the first user identifier using a learning model obtained from supervised learning. The identification unit 15 may, for example, input input information containing information about users to whom promotional information is sent to a learning model, receive output information output from the learning model, and identify a first user identifier of a user whose promotional effect is indicated by the promotional results shown by the output information. The user information included in one input piece of information input to the learning model may, for example, be information about a single user. Furthermore, the user information may include, for example, at least some of the POS information associated with the first user identifier of that user via user correspondence information and second correspondence information. In this case, the user information may include information about products that the user has previously purchased, as identified by the POS information. The information about products that the user has previously purchased may, for example, be information indicating whether the user purchased each product in a given product category, or information indicating the quantity of each product the user purchased. Furthermore, the information about products that the user has previously purchased may be, for example, information for the entire period indicated by the POS information, or information for the most recent predetermined period (for example, the most recent year or month). Furthermore, the quantity of each product purchased may be, for example, the quantity itself, or the quantity per unit period (for example, the quantity per week). Also, the specified product category may be, for example, the category of all products, or the category of a specific product (for example, the beverage category, or the alcoholic beverage category). Furthermore, the user information may further include user attribute information such as the user's gender and age. The input information may also include information about the product being promoted. This product information may be, for example, a product identifier that identifies the product being promoted, or the category and product name of the product being promoted. The information such as the information about the product being promoted included in the input information may be, for example, information corresponding to the second condition received by the reception unit 14.

[0070] The learning model, which is the result of supervised learning, may be, for example, the result of a neural network (NN), the result of a support vector machine (SVM) or support vector regression (SVR), or the result of any other machine learning method. The neural network may be, for example, a convolutional neural network (CNN), or any other type of neural network (e.g., a neural network composed of fully connected layers). In this embodiment, we will mainly describe the case where the learning model is a pre-trained neural network model.

[0071] For example, if a user sends first corresponding information in response to the transmission of promotional information about a certain product, the set of input and output information used for training the learning model may be a set of input information about the user and the product that sent the first corresponding information, and a promotional result indicating that the user took action in response to the promotional information. This learning may be performed, for example, by the identification unit 15, or by a system other than the identification unit 15. In the latter case, the identification unit 15 may use a learning model, which is the result of supervised learning performed by another configuration, to identify the user to whom the promotional information is sent. If such promotional information is transmitted for multiple products, that is, if a promotional campaign is conducted for multiple products, multiple sets of input and output information may be obtained for those multiple products, and these may be used for machine learning as training data for the learning model, i.e., training data.

[0072] When transmitting promotional information about a product, the identification unit 15 may input input information, including information about the product and information about a user, into a trained model and receive a promotional result, which is output information from the trained model. The promotional result may indicate, for example, whether the user will take action in response to the promotional information when the promotional information about the product is transmitted to that user. For example, if the promotional information is a discount coupon for a specific product, the promotional result may be a real number from 0 to 1, where "1" is the value when the user purchases the specific product and "0" is the value when the user does not purchase it. As another example, if the promotional information is a perk that allows participation in a specific event (for example, an event promoting a new product), the promotional result may be a real number from 0 to 1, where "1" is the value when the user participates in the specific event and "0" is the value when the user does not participate. In this case, the identification unit 15 may, for example, input information about a specific product and the user identified by the first user identifier for each first user identifier associated with POS information by user correspondence information into a learning model, and when the sales promotion result output from the learning model exceeds a predetermined threshold (for example, 0.5 or 0.8), it may repeatedly identify the user identified by that first user identifier as the recipient of the sales promotion information for that specific product, thereby identifying the user to whom the sales promotion information is sent. Alternatively, the identification unit 15 may, for example, identify a predetermined number of sales promotion results in descending order of the sales promotion result value from among the sales promotion results that exceed the predetermined threshold, and identify the first user identifier corresponding to the identified sales promotion result as the first user identifier of the user to whom the sales promotion information is sent.

[0073] While this explanation primarily focuses on cases where product-related information is included in the input data for the learning model, this is not always the case. For example, if the promotional information does not limit the products being promoted to specific items, then product-related information is not required in the input data.

[0074] The output unit 16 outputs the results of the identification by the identification unit 15. For example, the output unit 16 may send promotional information to a user identified by one or more first user identifiers identified by the identification unit 15. In this case, for example, the user information associated with the first user identifier in one or more third correspondence pieces of information stored in the storage unit 12 may include the destination address, and the output unit 16 may use the third correspondence piece to identify the address corresponding to the first user identifier identified by the identification unit 15 and send the promotional information to that identified address. As another example, the output unit 16 may output the one or more first user identifiers themselves identified by the identification unit 15. In this case, the destination device or server may send the promotional information to the user identified by the outputted one or more first user identifiers.

[0075] Here, this output may be, for example, transmitted via a communication line to a predetermined device, stored on a recording medium, or transferred to another component. The output unit 16 may or may not include an output device (e.g., a communication device). Furthermore, the output unit 16 may be implemented by hardware, or by software such as a driver that drives such devices.

[0076] The sales promotion result acquisition unit 17 acquires sales promotion results, which are the results of sales promotions in response to the transmission of sales promotion information to a user identified by a first user identifier identified by the identification unit 15. The transmission of the sales promotion information may be performed by the output unit 16 of the information processing device 1, as described above, or by a device other than the information processing device 1, such as a server.

[0077] The sales promotion result acquisition unit 17 may, as an example, acquire a sales promotion result indicating whether or not the user purchased the product promoted by the sales promotion information sent to the user, using the second correspondence information and the user correspondence information. In this case, for example, the sales promotion result acquisition unit 17 may use a pair of the product identifier, product name, or category of the product to which the sales promotion information is sent, and the first user identifier of the user to whom the sales promotion information is sent, to acquire a sales promotion result (e.g., sales promotion result = "1") indicating that the user identified by the first user identifier took action in response to the sales promotion information, i.e., purchased the product, when the POS information associated with the first user identifier by the user correspondence information and the second correspondence information indicates that the product with that product identifier has been sold, and acquire a sales promotion result (e.g., sales promotion result = "0") indicating that the user identified by the first user identifier did not take action in response to the sales promotion information. The pair of the product identifier of the product to which the promotional information is to be sent and the first user identifier of the user to whom the promotional information is to be sent may be stored in the storage unit 12 by, for example, the identification unit 15 or the output unit 16.

[0078] The promotion result acquisition unit 17 may, as an alternative, receive promotion results. If the promotion information includes a promotion information identifier that identifies the promotion information, when a user uses the promotion information, a promotion result including the user's user identifier and the promotion information identifier of the promotion information may be transmitted to the information processing device 1 from the device where it is used (e.g., a store device) or the application software used by the user when using the promotion information. The promotion result acquisition unit 17 may then receive the transmitted promotion result. In this case, for example, the received promotion result may be information indicating that the promotion information has been used. The user identifier included in the promotion result may be, for example, a second user identifier when the promotion result is transmitted from a retail device 3, etc., or a first user identifier when the promotion result is transmitted from application software such as a user terminal device 2. Even in the former case, the second user identifier can be converted to the first user identifier by using user correspondence information. In this case, for example, a combination of a promotional information identifier that identifies the promotional information and a first user identifier of the user to whom the promotional information is sent, along with the received promotional results, can be used to identify the user to whom the promotional information was sent and the user who used the promotional information. The combination of the promotional information identifier and the first user identifier may be stored in the storage unit 12 by, for example, the identification unit 15 or the output unit 16. Therefore, the promotional result acquisition unit 17 may, for example, after a predetermined period has elapsed since the promotional information was sent (for example, the period during which the coupon or other promotional information can be used), convert the promotional results for users to whom the promotional results have been received into a promotional result indicating that the user took action in accordance with the promotional information (for example, promotional result = "1"), and for users to whom the promotional results have not been received, acquire a promotional result indicating that the user did not take action in accordance with the promotional information (for example, promotional result = "0"). Thus, even when promotional results are received, only promotional results indicating that the user took action in accordance with the promotional information are received, and promotional results indicating that the user did not take action in accordance with the promotional information may be obtained separately by the promotional result acquisition unit 17.

[0079] Furthermore, if the sales promotion results acquisition unit 17 acquires sales promotion results, for example, the sales promotion results for each user to whom the sales promotion information is sent may be stored in the storage unit 12. The learning model may then be updated using the sales promotion results acquired by the sales promotion results acquisition unit 17. When the destination of the sales promotion information is identified by the method described in (2-1) above, the identification unit 15 may, for example, include a set of a first user identifier, a product identifier of the product to be promoted, and a sales promotion result (for example, "1" or "0" as described above) in the learning data included in the prompt. Also, when the destination of the sales promotion information is identified by the method described in (2-2) above, multiple sets of input information and output information, which are learning data, may be prepared according to the sales promotion results acquired by the sales promotion results acquisition unit 17, similar to the initial training of the learning model. For example, for each user identified by a first user identifier included in one or more user-related pieces of information, multiple sets of input information may be prepared, including information about products the user has previously purchased, user attribute information, and product identifiers of products targeted by promotional information, and output information which is the result of that promotional information. Updating the learning model using training data containing multiple sets of such input and output information may be performed, for example, by the specific unit 15, or by a unit other than the specific unit 15. The method of updating the learning model is not limited, but for example, the learning model may be updated by performing training again with training data obtained by merging existing training data and new training data obtained in response to the acquisition of promotional results by the promotional result acquisition unit 17, or the learning model may be updated by performing continuous training of the learning model using newly obtained training data.

[0080] Furthermore, if the learning model is not updated using the sales promotion results, the information processing device 1 does not need to include the sales promotion result acquisition unit 17. For example, if the first user identifier is identified by the identification unit 15 using the method described in (1) above, that is, if the first user identifier is identified by the identification unit 15 without using the learning model, the information processing device 1 does not need to include the sales promotion result acquisition unit 17.

[0081] Next, the operation of the information processing device 1 will be explained using the flowchart in Figure 3. (Step S101) The receiving unit 11 determines whether it has received the first corresponding information or the second corresponding information. If it has received the first corresponding information or the second corresponding information, it proceeds to step S102; otherwise, it proceeds to step S103.

[0082] (Step S102) The receiving unit 11 stores the received first corresponding information or second corresponding information in the storage unit 12. Then, the process returns to step S101.

[0083] (Step S103) The acquisition unit 13 determines whether to acquire user response information. If it decides to acquire user response information, it proceeds to step S104; otherwise, it proceeds to step S105. The acquisition unit 13 may, for example, periodically decide whether to acquire user response information, or it may decide to acquire user response information after the transmission deadline for the first response information has expired.

[0084] (Step S104) The acquisition unit 13 acquires user-relevant information using the first-relevant information and the second-relevant information. The acquired user-relevant information may be stored in the storage unit 12. Also, if user-relevant information has been acquired using a certain first-relevant information, that first-relevant information does not need to be used to acquire user-relevant information thereafter. For example, that first-relevant information may be deleted, or a note indicating that user-relevant information has already been acquired may be associated with that first-relevant information. Then, the process returns to step S101.

[0085] (Step S105) The identification unit 15 determines whether to identify the first user identifier of the user to whom the promotional information will be sent. If the first user identifier is identified, the process proceeds to step S106; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S108. For example, if the identification unit 15 is performing identification according to (1) above, it may decide to identify the first user identifier when the receiving unit 14 receives the first condition. Alternatively, if the identification unit 15 is performing identification according to (2) above, it may decide to identify the first user identifier when the receiving unit 14 receives the second condition.

[0086] (Step S106) The identification unit 15 identifies the first user identifier of the user to whom the promotional materials will be sent. This identification may be performed, for example, by the methods (1) and (2) described above, using the accepted first and second conditions.

[0087] (Step S107) The output unit 16 outputs information regarding the first user identifier identified by the identification unit 15. Then, the process returns to step S101.

[0088] (Step S108) The promotion result acquisition unit 17 determines whether to acquire the promotion result. If it decides to acquire the promotion result, it proceeds to step S109; otherwise, it returns to step S101. If the acquisition of the promotion result is the acquisition of the promotion result using the second corresponding information, the promotion result acquisition unit 17 may decide to acquire the promotion result, for example, after the expiration date of the coupon or other benefit corresponding to the transmitted promotion information has passed. If the acquisition of the promotion result is the receipt of the promotion result, the promotion result acquisition unit 17 may decide to acquire the promotion result, for example, when the promotion result has been received.

[0089] (Step S109) The promotion result acquisition unit 17 acquires the promotion results. The promotion result acquisition unit 17 may, for example, acquire the promotion results using the second correspondence information and the user correspondence information. If the acquisition of the promotion results is equivalent to the reception of the promotion results, the promotion results are acquired when the promotion results are received by the promotion result acquisition unit 17. In this case, the processes in steps S108 and S109 may be performed together. Then, the process returns to step S101.

[0090] If a learning model is not used to identify the first user identifier that identifies the user to whom the promotional information is sent in step S106, then the processes in steps S108 and S109 may be omitted.

[0091] Furthermore, although not shown in Figure 3, if the first user identifier is identified by the method described in (2) above, the learning model may be updated using the acquired promotional results. For example, if the first user identifier is identified by the method described in (2-1) above, the identification unit 15 may include training data corresponding to the acquired promotional results in the information provided to the learning model. Also, for example, if the first user identifier is identified by the method described in (2-2) above, continuous learning of the learning model may be performed using training data corresponding to the acquired promotional results. This continuous learning may be performed periodically, for example, once a month, or after the acquisition of promotional results corresponding to the transmission of multiple promotional information related to one or more campaigns has been completed.

[0092] Note that the order of processing in the flowchart in Figure 3 is just one example, and the order of each step may be changed if similar results can be obtained. Also, in the flowchart in Figure 3, processing may be terminated by power off or processing termination interrupt.

[0093] Next, the operation of the information processing device 1 according to this embodiment will be explained using a specific example. In this example, it is assumed that a plurality of third correspondence information items, as shown in Figure 4, are stored in the storage unit 12. The third correspondence information may be information having a first user identifier and user information which is information about the user identified by the first user identifier. As shown in Figure 4, for example, information about a user identified by the first user identifier "U001" (hereinafter sometimes referred to as user U001; the same applies to targets identified by other identifiers) may be user information D001. User information may include, for example, user attribute information and the address of the user terminal device 2.

[0094] First, let's assume that Company S conducted a promotional campaign for its product "SSS Beer," offering a reward to customers who purchased three or more bottles of "SSS Beer" and submitted an image of the receipt. Then, let's assume that user U001 responded by presenting their membership card with member identifier "A001" at store P001, purchasing "SSS Beer" and other products, and receiving a receipt.

[0095] At store P001, when user U001 purchases a product, a second correspondence information is stored, which includes a second user identifier, namely member identifier "A001," and POS information related to the product "SSS Beer," etc. This second correspondence information is periodically transmitted from retail device 3 to information processing device 1.

[0096] Furthermore, after purchasing products such as "SSS Beer" at store P001, user U001 operates user terminal device 2, which is a smartphone, to take a picture of the paper receipt received, and transmits the purchase information, which is the image of the receipt, and the first corresponding information, which includes the user identifier "U001", to information processing device 1.

[0097] The first correspondence information transmitted from user terminal device 2 of user U001 is received by the receiving unit 11 of the information processing device 1 and stored in the storage unit 12 (steps S101, S102). It is assumed that the purchase information included in the first correspondence information is as shown in Figure 5. Furthermore, when the receiving unit 11 stores the first correspondence information in the storage unit 12, it performs character recognition on the purchase information, which is an image of the receipt, and stores the first correspondence information in the storage unit 12 that associates the purchase information, including text information such as date and time and product name, with the user identifier "U001". Figure 6 shows the first correspondence information stored in this manner. As shown in Figure 6, the first correspondence information may include the first user identifier and the purchase information. The purchase information may also include the date and time, the store identifier, the total amount, the product name, unit price, quantity, and subtotal amount for each product. The reception and storage of the first correspondence information by the receiving unit 11 may be repeated as appropriate.

[0098] In this specific example, although a detailed explanation will be omitted, upon receiving this first correspondence information, it can be confirmed that user U001 purchased three bottles of the product "SSS Beer," and therefore user U001 will be granted the benefits corresponding to the campaign.

[0099] Furthermore, when it is time to transmit the second correspondence information, the retail device 3 of store P001 reads out the multiple untransmitted second correspondence information and transmits it to the information processing device 1 along with the retail identifier "R001". The multiple second correspondence information and the retail identifier are received by the receiving unit 11 of the information processing device 1 and stored in the storage unit 12 (steps S101, S102). When the receiving unit 11 stores the second correspondence information, it adds the received retail identifier "R001" to the second user identifier included in the second correspondence information and stores it. In this way, even if the same member identifier is used for different users in different retail companies, the information processing device 1 can uniquely identify the user by the second user identifier. Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of multiple second correspondence information stored in the storage unit 12. As shown in Figure 7, the second correspondence information may include the second user identifier and POS information. The second user identifier may also include the retail identifier and the member identifier. Furthermore, the POS information may include the date and time, store identifier, total amount, and product identifier, product name, unit price, quantity, and subtotal amount for each product. The reception and storage of the second corresponding information by the receiving unit 11 may be repeated as appropriate.

[0100] Subsequently, once the campaign period for purchasing the product "SSS Beer" has elapsed, the acquisition unit 13 uses the first and second correspondence information received up to that point to acquire user correspondence information and store it in the storage unit 12 (steps S103, S104). For example, the acquisition unit 13 reads the date and time, store identifier, and multiple sets of product name, unit price, quantity, and subtotal from the purchase information included in the first correspondence information shown in Figure 6, and uses these as search keys to search for POS information included in multiple second correspondence information stored in the storage unit 12. In this case, the first POS information shown in Figure 7 is found to be a hit, so the acquisition unit 13 acquires user correspondence information that associates the first user identifier "U001" associated with the purchase information containing the search key information with the second user identifier, which includes the retail identifier "R001" and the member identifier "A001" associated with the POS information found in the search, and stores it in the storage unit 12. Assume that the process of acquiring and storing such user correspondence information is performed for each first correspondence information stored in the storage unit 12, so that multiple user correspondence information items shown in Figure 8 are stored in the storage unit 12. The user correspondence information shown in Figure 8 may include a first user identifier and a second user identifier. The second user identifier may also include a retail identifier and a member identifier. Furthermore, user correspondence information including one first user identifier and two or more second user identifiers may be acquired, such as the user correspondence information including the first user identifier "U002" shown in Figure 8. For example, such user correspondence information may be acquired when user U002 transmits first correspondence information including an image of a receipt from a store of retail company R001 and first correspondence information including an image of a receipt from a store of retail company R002 to the information processing device 1.

[0101] Next, we will explain a specific example of the process of identifying a first user identifier that identifies the user to whom promotional information is sent, using the method described in (1) above.

[0102] Suppose Company S decides to send promotional information about a new product, "Premium SSS Beer," related to its product "SSS Beer," to users who have previously purchased the company's product "SSS Beer." Suppose an employee of Company S uses a keyboard to input a first condition—that the product name "SSS Beer" is included in the POS information—along with the promotional information. The first condition is then received by the reception unit 14, which passes the first condition to the identification unit 15, while the promotional information is stored in the storage unit 12. Upon receiving the first condition, the identification unit 15 determines to identify a first user identifier that identifies the user to whom the promotional information will be sent. It then identifies a second correspondence information containing a second user identifier associated with the first user identifier using the user correspondence information. Finally, it searches the POS information contained in the identified second correspondence information using the product name "SSS Beer" as the search key, and identifies the first user identifier corresponding to the hit POS information (steps S105, S106). Note that the first user identifier corresponding to the POS information may be the first user identifier associated with the second user identifier associated with the POS information, as determined by the user correspondence information. The identification unit 15 passes one or more first user identifiers identified in this manner to the output unit 16.

[0103] When the output unit 16 receives one or more first user identifiers, it obtains one or more addresses associated with each of the received first user identifiers in the third correspondence information, and transmits the promotional information stored in the storage unit 12 to the obtained one or more addresses (step S107). In this way, promotional information about the new product "Premium SSS Beer" can be sent to users who have previously purchased the product "SSS Beer".

[0104] Next, we will explain a specific example of the process of identifying a first user identifier that identifies the user to whom promotional information is sent, using the method described in (2-1) above.

[0105] Suppose Company S decides to send promotional information about its new product, "Premium SSS Beer." Then, an employee of Company S uses a keyboard or similar device to input a second set of conditions, including the product name "Premium SSS Beer," along with the promotional information. The second set of conditions is then received by the reception unit 14, and the second set of conditions is passed to the identification unit 15, while the promotional information is stored in the storage unit 12. Upon receiving the second condition, the identification unit 15 determines to identify a first user identifier that identifies the user to whom the promotional information will be sent, identifies second correspondence information that has a second user identifier associated with the first user identifier by user correspondence information, inputs a prompt to the learning model, which is the generating AI, that includes training data including the pair of the first user identifier and the POS information included in the identified second correspondence information, and an instruction to propose a predetermined number of first user identifiers that identify users suitable to receive the promotional information, which is a discount coupon for the product name "Premium SSS Beer" included in the received second condition, and receives a predetermined number of first user identifiers, which are response information to the prompt, from the learning model (steps S105, S106). The instruction included in the prompt may be created by inserting the product name included in the second condition into a template stored in the storage unit 12. The identification unit 15 passes the predetermined number of first user identifiers received from the generating AI to the output unit 16, and stores the product name of the promotion target "Premium SSS Beer" and the identified first user identifiers in the storage unit 12. Furthermore, the output unit 16 uses the received first user identifier to transmit promotional information in the same manner as described above (step S107).

[0106] Next, we will describe a specific example of the process of identifying a first user identifier that identifies the user to whom promotional information is sent, using the method described in (2-2) above. Here, we will describe the case in which the identification unit 15 also generates a trained model of the neural network.

[0107] First, the identification unit 15 identifies the pair of the first user identifier and the POS information in the same manner as in (2-1) above, and also identifies the user information associated with the first user identifier using the third correspondence information stored in the storage unit 12, thereby identifying the pair of the first user identifier, the POS information, and the user information. Then, for each user, input information is prepared that includes a pair of information about products the user has purchased in the past, identified using the POS information, and user attribute information such as the user's gender and age obtained from the user information, as well as the product name of the promotion target, "SSS Beer," and output information that is a promotion result of "1," and this training data is used to train the learning model. Note that all users identified by the first user identifier linked to the POS information are users who sent the first correspondence information in response to the campaign for the product "SSS Beer," so here, all promotion results are set to "1," indicating that the user took action in response to the promotion information. Furthermore, if promotion information has also been sent for products other than "SSS Beer," it is preferable to perform learning according to those promotion results as well.

[0108] After generating a trained model, the identification unit 15 identifies the POS information and user information associated with each first user identifier, identifies information about products previously purchased by the user from the identified POS information, and identifies user attribute information from the identified user information. Then, for each first user identifier, it inputs input information including information about products previously purchased by the user, user attribute information, and the name of the new promotional target, "Premium SSS Beer," into the trained model, and receives the promotional results, which are the output information from the model, for all first user identifiers associated with POS information. If the received promotional results exceed the threshold "0.5", the identification unit 15 identifies the first user identifier corresponding to that promotional result, that is, the first user identifier that corresponds to the output information which is the promotional result, via the input information, as the first user identifier that identifies the user to whom the promotional information is sent (steps S105, S106). The identification unit 15 passes the first user identifier identified in this manner to the output unit 16, and stores the product name of the promotional item, "Premium SSS Beer," and the identified first user identifier in the storage unit 12. The output unit 16 then uses the received first user identifier to transmit promotional information in the same manner as described above (step S107).

[0109] If the recipient of the promotional information is identified by the method described in (2-1) or (2-2) above, the promotional result acquisition unit 17 reads the name of the product to be promoted and the first user identifier of the user to whom the promotional information is sent from the storage unit 12 after the expiration of the benefit corresponding to the promotional information. For each first user identifier read, the unit uses the POS information associated with that first user identifier via user correspondence information to determine whether the product to be promoted, "Premium SSS Beer," was purchased during the promotional campaign period for the new product "Premium SSS Beer." If it was purchased, the unit acquires a promotional result "1," and if it was not purchased, it acquires a promotional result "0," and passes the pair of the first user identifier and the promotional result to the identification unit 15 (steps S108, S109).

[0110] When the identification unit 15 receives a pair of a first user identifier and a promotional result, it may use it to update the learning model. For example, if the destination of the promotional information is identified by the method described in (2-1) above, the identification unit 15 may include a pair of the first user identifier, the product name of the product to be promoted, and the promotional result in the learning data included in the prompt when identifying the destination of the promotional information next time. As another example, if the destination of the promotional information is identified by the method described in (2-2) above, the identification unit 15 may acquire multiple pairs of input information and output information, which are learning data, according to the promotional result acquired by the promotional result acquisition unit 17, and update the learning model by performing continuous learning of the learning model using that learning data. The identification unit 15 may then use the updated learning model when identifying the destination of the promotional information next time.

[0111] As described above, the information processing device 1 according to this embodiment can obtain user correspondence information that associates the first and second user identifiers, which are associated with purchase information and POS information that corresponds to that purchase information, using the first and second correspondence information. This makes it possible to associate the first user identifier of a user of a non-retail company with the second user identifier of a retail company's user. As a result, even non-retail companies can identify the POS information corresponding to their users and use that POS information to conduct, for example, sales promotions.

[0112] Furthermore, by using this user interaction information, it becomes possible to identify the recipients of promotional information using POS information corresponding to the first user identifier. As mentioned above, this identification of recipients can be done, for example, by search or by using a learning model. When using a learning model, for example, it becomes possible to identify recipients to whom the promotional information is likely to be most effective.

[0113] Furthermore, by updating the learning model using the sales promotion results acquired by the sales promotion results acquisition unit 17, the learning model can be made more suitable for identifying users to whom sales promotion information is sent. Therefore, by identifying recipients of sales promotion information using the updated learning model, it becomes possible to identify recipients of sales promotion information that will be more effective.

[0114] Furthermore, for users who do not receive the first correspondence information, the first user identifier will not be linked to the POS information, and promotional activities using the POS information will not be possible. In this case, for example, when the identification unit 15 identifies the recipient of the promotional information by the method described in (2-1) or (2-2) above, it may use the user information and the result of identifying the first user identifier using the learning model to identify the first user identifier that has not been linked to the second user identifier by the user correspondence information. In this case, the identification unit 15 may identify the first user identifier of a user that has not been linked to the POS information, whose user attribute information is similar to that of one or more users identified as recipients of the promotional information using the learning model. Such identification may be performed, for example, using a collaborative filtering method. This is because users whose user attribute information is similar to that of users identified as recipients of the promotional information by the method described in (2-1) or (2-2) above are also considered to be highly effective for promotional activities. In this case, for example, among users not associated with POS information, users whose similarity to the user attribute information of users identified as recipients of promotional information using a learning model exceeds a threshold may be identified as recipients of promotional information.

[0115] More specifically, users may be identified as follows. First, user attribute information such as gender and age group is quantified. For example, gender may be quantified as "0" for male and "1" for female. In this way, user attribute information can be represented as a user attribute vector, each having gender and age group as elements. Then, for one or more users identified as recipients of promotional information using the learning model, one or more user attribute vectors are identified for each of them using the third correspondence information, and the average value is calculated for each element of these one or more user attribute vectors, thereby allowing the average user attribute vector for one or more users identified as recipients of promotional information using the learning model to be identified. Furthermore, user attribute vectors can also be identified for each user not linked to POS information using the third correspondence information. If the similarity between the user attribute vector of a user not linked to POS information and the average user attribute vector is greater than a threshold, that user may be identified as a recipient of promotional information. That is, the identification unit 15 may identify the first user identifier of that user as the first user identifier of the user to whom the promotional information is sent. For vector similarity, for example, cosine similarity or Pearson correlation coefficient may be used.

[0116] Furthermore, although this embodiment mainly describes the case where the information processing device 1 is equipped with a sales promotion result acquisition unit 17, this is not required. For example, if the learning model is not updated using the sales promotion results, or if the first user identifier is identified by the method described in (1) above, the information processing device 1 does not need to be equipped with a sales promotion result acquisition unit 17.

[0117] Furthermore, although this embodiment mainly describes the case where the information processing device 1 is equipped with a specific unit 15, this is not required. For example, if the recipient of the promotional information is identified by a device other than the information processing device 1, the information processing device 1 does not need to be equipped with a specific unit 15. In this case, the output unit 16 may output, for example, user-response information acquired by the acquisition unit 13.

[0118] Furthermore, although this embodiment mainly describes the case where the third correspondence information is stored in the memory unit 12, this is not required. If the third correspondence information is not used by the identification unit 15 or the like, the third correspondence information does not need to be stored in the memory unit 12.

[0119] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, each process or function may be implemented by centralized processing by a single device or a single system, or by distributed processing by multiple devices or multiple systems.

[0120] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the exchange of information between each component may, for example, be performed by outputting information from one component and receiving information from the other component if the two components performing the information exchange are physically different, or by moving from the processing phase corresponding to one component to the processing phase corresponding to the other component if the two components performing the information exchange are physically the same.

[0121] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, information related to the processing performed by each component, such as information received, acquired, selected, generated, transmitted, or received by each component, as well as information such as thresholds, formulas, and addresses used by each component in processing, may be temporarily or for a long period of time stored in a recording medium (not shown), even if not explicitly stated in the above description. The storage of information in the recording medium (not shown) may be performed by each component or a storage unit (not shown). The reading of information from the recording medium (not shown) may be performed by each component or a reading unit (not shown).

[0122] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, if the information used in each component, such as thresholds, addresses, and various setting values ​​used by each component in processing, can be changed by the user, then even if not explicitly stated in the above description, the user may be allowed to change such information as appropriate, or not. If the user can change such information, the change may be implemented, for example, by a receiving unit (not shown) that receives change instructions from the user and a changing unit (not shown) that changes the information in response to those change instructions. The receiving unit (not shown) may receive change instructions from an input device, receive information transmitted via a communication line, or receive information read from a predetermined recording medium.

[0123] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, if two or more components included in the information processing device 1 have a communication device, an input device, etc., the two or more components may have a single physical device, or they may have separate devices.

[0124] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, each component may be configured with dedicated hardware, or, for components that can be implemented by software, they may be implemented by executing a program. For example, each component can be implemented by a program execution unit such as a CPU reading and executing a software program recorded on a recording medium such as a hard disk or semiconductor memory. During execution, the program execution unit may execute the program while accessing the storage unit or recording medium. The software that implements the information processing device 1 in the above embodiment may be, for example, the one described above.

[0125] Furthermore, in the above program, steps such as receiving information, acquiring information, and outputting information do not include processes that can only be performed by hardware, such as processes performed by communication devices in the step of receiving information.

[0126] Furthermore, this program may be executed by being downloaded from a server or the like, or by being read from a predetermined recording medium (for example, an optical disc such as a CD-ROM, a magnetic disc, or a semiconductor memory). This program may also be used as a program constituting a program product.

[0127] Furthermore, the computer running this program may be a single computer or multiple computers. That is, it may perform centralized processing or distributed processing.

[0128] Furthermore, the embodiments described above are illustrative examples for specifically carrying out the present invention and do not limit the technical scope of the present invention. The technical scope of the present invention is indicated by the claims rather than by the description of the embodiments, and modifications within the literal scope and equivalent meaning of the claims are intended. [Explanation of symbols]

[0129] 1. Information Processing Device 11 Receiving unit 12 Storage section 13 Acquisition Department 14 Reception Department 15 Specific section 16 Output section 17 Sales Promotion Results Acquisition Department

Claims

1. A receiving unit that receives one or more first correspondence information that associates a first user identifier that identifies a user with purchase information that the user receives when purchasing a product and which includes product information about the product, and one or more second correspondence information that associates a second user identifier that identifies a user with the user's POS information, The system includes an acquisition unit that identifies pairs of purchase information and POS information corresponding to said purchase information, and acquires one or more user correspondence pieces that associate a first user identifier with one or more second user identifiers by associating first and second user identifiers that are associated with the purchase information and POS information included in the identified pair, respectively. The aforementioned first correspondence information is information transmitted by the user in response to the transmission of promotional information, and is an information processing device.

2. A specification unit that uses at least one or more second correspondence pieces of information and one or more user correspondence pieces of information to identify a first user identifier of a user to whom promotional information is sent, The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: an output unit that outputs a result of the specification by the specification unit.

3. The system further includes a reception unit that accepts predetermined conditions, which are conditions for identifying users to whom promotional information is sent, and which include at least conditions related to POS information. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the identifying unit identifies a first user identifier associated with POS information that satisfies predetermined conditions and has been received by the receiving unit.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the identifying unit identifies the first user identifier using a learning model that uses at least one POS piece of information associated with the first user identifier by the one or more user correspondence pieces of information.

5. It also includes a reception section that accepts conditions for identifying users to whom promotional information is sent, The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the identifying unit receives a first user identifier that satisfies the conditions from the learning model by providing the learning model with the conditions received by the receiving unit.

6. The system further includes a promotion result acquisition unit that acquires promotion results, which are the results of promotions in response to the transmission of promotion information to a user identified by a first user identifier identified by the aforementioned identification unit, The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the learning model is updated using the sales promotion results obtained by the sales promotion result acquisition unit.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the sales promotion result acquisition unit acquires a sales promotion result indicating whether or not the product promoted was purchased based on the sales promotion information transmitted to the user, using the second correspondence information and the user correspondence information.

8. The aforementioned sales promotion result acquisition unit is an information processing device according to claim 6, which receives sales promotion results.

9. The system further includes a storage unit that stores one or more third correspondence pieces of information that associate a first user identifier with user information relating to the user identified by the first user identifier, The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the identification unit uses the user information and the result of identifying the first user identifier using the learning model to identify the first user identifier that is not associated with the second user identifier by the user correspondence information.

10. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 9, wherein the output unit transmits promotional information to a user identified by a first user identifier identified by the identification unit.

11. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 9, wherein the output unit outputs a first user identifier identified by the identification unit.

12. An information processing method that uses a receiving unit and an acquisition unit, The receiving unit receives one or more first correspondence pieces of information that associate a first user identifier that identifies a user with purchase information which is information that the user receives when purchasing a product and which includes product information about the product, The receiving unit receives one or more second correspondence pieces of information that associate a second user identifier for identifying a user with the user's POS information. The acquisition unit includes the step of identifying a pair of purchase information and POS information that corresponds to said purchase information, and associating the first and second user identifiers that are respectively associated with the purchase information and POS information included in the identified pair, thereby acquiring one or more user correspondence pieces that associate a first user identifier with one or more second user identifiers. The first correspondence information is information sent by the user in response to the transmission of promotional information, and this is an information processing method.

13. The above information processing method is further processed using a specific unit and an output unit, The identifying unit identifies the first user identifier of the user to whom the promotional information is sent, using a learning model that has used at least one POS piece of information associated with the first user identifier by the one or more user correspondence pieces of information. The information processing method according to claim 12, further comprising the step of the output unit outputting the result of the identification step in the step of identifying the first user identifier.

14. On the computer, The steps include receiving one or more first correspondence pieces of information that associate a first user identifier that identifies a user with purchase information that the user receives when purchasing a product and which includes product information about the product, The steps include receiving one or more second correspondence pieces of information that associate a second user identifier that identifies a user with the user's POS information, The system performs the steps of: identifying pairs of purchase information and POS information that correspond to said purchase information; and obtaining one or more user correspondence information by associating a first user identifier with one or more second user identifiers by associating the first user identifier with one or more second user identifiers with the first and second user identifiers that are associated with the purchase information and POS information included in the identified pairs. The aforementioned first correspondence information is a program, which is information sent by the user in response to the transmission of promotional information.

15. To the aforementioned computer, A step of identifying the first user identifier of a user to whom promotional information is sent, using a learning model that has been trained using at least one POS information associated with the first user identifier by the one or more user correspondence information mentioned above, The program according to claim 14, further comprising the step of outputting the result of the identification step in the step of identifying the first user identifier.

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