Information distribution printing system and distribution information provision server

Abstract

The present invention suppresses the occurrence of disadvantages due to charging an advertiser who has made a successful bid. An information distribution printing system 1 comprises a printer 200 and an advertisement provision server 100 that receives distribution information managed by an advertisement management server 500 and distributes the distribution information to the printer 200. The information distribution printing system: transmits, to the advertisement management server 500 in S5, a bid request for the distribution information; determines, in S8, specific distribution information to be a successful bid among the distribution information received from the advertisement management server 500 in response to the bid request transmitted in S5; acquires, in S20, the specific distribution information determined in S8 from the advertisement management server 500; performs, in S35, printing of a printing distribution image based on the specific distribution information; notifies, in S76, the advertisement management server 500 of a payment demand for a reward corresponding to the printing of the specific distribution information; and returns or invalidates, in S136, the reward notified in S76 when the printing in S35 is not completed according to a prescribed condition.

Description

Information Distribution Printing System and Distribution Information Providing Server 【0001】 The present invention relates to an information distribution printing system that distributes distribution information to a printing device at a distribution destination for printing, and a distribution information providing server. 【0002】 Conventionally, for example, as described in Patent Document 1, a technique is known in which bids for advertisements attached to an image of a printed matter printed by a printing device are solicited, a target advertisement is determined based on bid results from a plurality of advertisers, and a charge corresponding to the bid amount of the advertisement is executed. 【0003】 Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-140250 【0004】 In the technique disclosed in the above-cited Document 1, for example, when attempting to print an advertisement that has been successfully bid according to the bid amount, there may be cases where printing fails, or even if printing is completed, it cannot be accurately printed and the appearance finish is not sufficient. In such a case, there is a problem that charging as it is may cause disadvantage to the advertiser. 【0005】 An object of the present invention is to provide an information distribution printing system and a distribution information providing server that can suppress the occurrence of disadvantages due to charging to the advertiser who has won the bid. 【0006】 To achieve the above object, the present invention is an information distribution printing system including a printing device and a distribution information providing server that receives distribution information managed by a distribution information management server and distributes it to the printing device, the system including: a request transmission unit that transmits a bid request for the distribution information to the distribution information management server; an information determination unit that determines specific distribution information that wins the bid among the distribution information received from the distribution information management server in response to the bid request transmitted by the request transmission unit; a specific distribution information acquisition unit that acquires the specific distribution information determined by the information determination unit from the distribution information management server; a printing unit that performs printing of a distribution image for printing based on the specific distribution information; a charge notification unit that notifies the distribution information management server of a claim for a reward corresponding to the printing of the specific distribution information; and a reward return processing unit that returns or invalidates the reward notified by the charge notification unit when the printing by the printing unit does not complete in accordance with a predetermined condition. 【0007】In the information distribution and printing system of the present invention, a request transmission unit sends a bidding request to the distribution information management server, soliciting bids. In response to the bidding request, the information determination unit determines the specific distribution information to be awarded from among the distribution information received from the distribution information management server. The specific distribution information acquisition unit acquires the specific distribution information from the distribution information management server, and the printing unit prints a printable distribution image based on the acquired specific distribution information. The billing notification unit notifies the distribution information management server of the remuneration corresponding to the printing of the specific distribution information. In the present invention, if the printing by the printing unit is not completed in accordance with predetermined conditions, the remuneration refund processing unit returns or invalidates the remuneration notified by the billing notification unit. This makes it possible to eliminate the remuneration burden on the successful bidder in cases such as printing failure or, for any reason, inaccurate printing not being performed during the printing process and the printable distribution image not having a satisfactory appearance, thereby suppressing any disadvantage caused by billing. 【0008】 According to the present invention, it is possible to suppress the disadvantage incurred by the successful bidder advertiser due to charges. 【0009】This is a block diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of an information distribution printing system according to one embodiment of the present invention. This is a sequence flow showing an example of the processing flow executed by the cooperation of an advertising server, an advertising management server, a terminal device, and a printer. This is a sequence flow showing an example of the processing flow executed by the cooperation of an advertising server, an advertising management server, a terminal device, and a printer. This is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a print confirmation screen on the display unit of a terminal device. This is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a print confirmation screen on the display unit of a terminal device in a modified example in which an unapproved operation is performed based on history information. This is a sequence flow showing an example of the processing flow executed by the cooperation of an advertising server, an advertising management server, a terminal device, and a printer in a modified example in which the printer automatically detects a print failure and performs a refund process. This is a sequence flow showing an example of the processing flow executed by the cooperation of an advertising server, an advertising management server, a terminal device, and a printer in a modified example in which the printer automatically detects a print failure and performs a refund process. This is a sequence flow showing an example of the main part of the processing flow executed by the cooperation of an advertising server, an advertising management server, a terminal device, and a printer in a modified example in which a claim is canceled instead of a refund when the claim for compensation is not yet finalized. 【0010】 Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. This embodiment is an example in which the present invention is applied to an information distribution and printing system that distributes information from a server to a printer for printing. 【0011】<Overall Configuration of Information Distribution Printing System> Figure 1 shows an example of the overall configuration of the information distribution printing system 1 according to the embodiment. As shown in Figure 1, the information distribution printing system 1 includes an advertising server (SSP: Supply Side Platform) 100, a printer 200, a terminal device 300, a user management server (DMP: Data Management Platform) 400, and an advertising management server (DSP: Demand Side Platform) 500. Servers 100, 400, 500, printer 200, and terminal device 300 are each equipped with a communication unit and can communicate with each other via the network NT. The network NT includes at least one of the following: the Internet, LAN (Local Area Network), and WAN (Wide Area Network). The communication unit may include multiple types of communication circuits for connecting to the network NT. In this case, devices connected to the network NT may communicate with multiple other devices using different communication circuits. In this embodiment, the collective term for multiple types of communication circuits is referred to as the communication unit. 【0012】 <Terminal Device> The terminal device 300 is, for example, a mobile terminal such as a smartphone owned by the user, and in this example is connected to the network NT via wireless communication. The terminal device 300 can be any suitable terminal other than the printer 200, and may be a tablet PC, notebook PC, desktop PC, etc., in addition to a smartphone. Alternatively, the terminal device 300 may be a portable terminal or a stationary terminal installed in karaoke boxes or various stores for song selection, menu selection, product browsing, etc. The terminal device 300 has a display unit 310 (see Figures 4, 5, etc. below), a control unit, an operation unit, a storage unit, and a communication unit, etc., which are not shown. Various programs are stored in the storage unit. The control unit executes the various programs stored in the storage unit. The various programs include programs that execute the processes shown in the flows in Figures 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, etc. below. The user can input various instructions to the terminal device 300 by operating the operation unit. 【0013】<User Management Server> The user management server 400 manages user information via the terminal device 300 or the advertising server 100. The user management server 400 includes a control unit (not shown), a storage unit, a communication unit, etc. 【0014】 <Advertising Server> The advertising server 100 is a server installed and managed by, for example, the manufacturer of the printer 200. The advertising server 100 receives advertising images from the advertising management server 500 at predetermined timings. The advertising server 100 distributes the acquired advertising images to the printer 200 and causes it to print. The advertising server 100 is an example of a distribution information provider server, and the advertising images are an example of distribution information. 【0015】 In detail, the advertising server 100 includes a control unit 110, a storage unit 115, a communication unit 140, etc. The control unit 110, storage unit 115, and communication unit 140, etc. are connected via a bus 105 to enable information transmission and reception. The storage unit 115 is composed of, for example, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, HDD, etc. The storage unit 115 stores various programs 120 and various data 130. The various programs 120 include an information distribution and printing program that executes the control contents of the advertising server 100 shown in the flows in Figures 2, 3, 6, 7, and 8 described later, and the various data 130 include the printer ID of the printer 200, user ID, advertising image, etc. 【0016】 The control unit 110 is a device that performs data processing, such as a processor like a CPU. The control unit 110 executes various programs stored in the storage unit 115. The control unit 110 performs various processes, including data communication with the printer 200, terminal device 300, user management server 400, and advertising management server 500, which are connected to the network NT. The communication unit 140 includes hardware such as a NIC (Network Interface Card) for connecting to Ethernet, is connected to the network NT, and communicates with the printer 200, terminal device 300, user management server 400, and advertising management server 500. 【0017】<Advertising Management Server> The advertising management server 500 transmits advertising images for printing by the printer 200 to the advertising provision server 100. The advertising management server 500 has a control unit (not shown), a storage unit, a communication unit, etc., and in this example, it receives bid requests from the advertising provision server 100 via the communication unit. Multiple advertiser terminal devices or servers (not shown) are connected to the network NT, and the control unit of the advertising management server 500 executes an auction corresponding to the bid request for advertising images submitted by these advertisers and acquires suitable advertising images by bidding on the auction. When a successful bid that meets the predetermined conditions of the auction is made, the control unit of the advertising management server 500 acquires the corresponding advertising image from the terminal device, etc., of the successful bidder advertiser. The acquired advertising image is transmitted from the advertising management server 500 to the advertising provision server 100 via the communication unit, and the receiving advertising provision server 100 further transmits it to the printer 200 for printing. The ad delivery server 100 may obtain the ad images from the ad management server 500, or the ad management server 500 may obtain ad images from another external server and send them to the ad delivery server 100. The ad management server 500 is an example of a distribution information management server. 【0018】 The servers 100, 400, and 500 described above may each consist of a single standalone "server," or each may be composed of multiple servers. Alternatively, at least two of the functions of these servers 100, 400, and 500 may be provided by a single standalone "server." 【0019】 <Printer> Printer 200 is assigned the aforementioned printer ID. Printer 200 includes a control unit 210, a storage unit 215, a display unit 240, an operation unit 250, a communication unit 260, a printing unit 270, etc. The control unit 210, storage unit 215, display unit 240, operation unit 250, communication unit 260, and printing unit 270 are connected via bus 205 to enable information transmission and reception. Printer 200 is an example of a printing device. 【0020】The storage unit 215 is composed of, for example, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, HDD, etc. The storage unit 215 stores various programs 220 and various data 230. The various programs 220 include, for example, a program that executes the control contents of the printer 200 according to the flow shown in Figures 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, etc., described later. The various data 230 include the aforementioned printer ID and advertising images received from the advertising server 100, which are acquired from the terminal device of the successful bidder among the advertisers and transmitted from the advertising server 100. At least a portion of the above various data may be stored in the storage unit 115 of the advertising server 100. Alternatively, at least a portion of the original data may be stored in either the storage unit 215 of the printer 200 or the storage unit 115 of the advertising server 100, and a copy of the original data may be stored in the other of the two. 【0021】 The control unit 210 is a data processing device, such as a processor like a CPU. The control unit 210 executes various programs stored in the storage unit 215. The display unit 240 is, for example, a liquid crystal display, capable of displaying various information. The operation unit 250 is, for example, a keyboard or buttons, and accepts user input. The user can input various instructions to the printer 200 by operating the operation unit 250. The communication unit 260 is connected to the network NT and can communicate with the advertising server 100, the advertising management server 500, the user management server 400, and the terminal device 300. The printing unit 270 includes a printing engine and, using a transport mechanism (not shown), removes and transports printing paper from a paper tray, while forming and printing an image on the paper using, for example, an inkjet method or a laser method. The following explanation will use the inkjet method as an example. 【0022】The cartridge holder 280 is configured to accommodate a cartridge 285. The cartridge 285 consists of multiple ink color cartridges, such as cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. The cartridge holder 280 is provided with an ink level sensor (not shown) capable of detecting the remaining amount or consumption of each of the multiple ink color cartridges by a known method. 【0023】 The printing unit 270 performs printing while consuming the ink in the cartridge 285. The reader / writer 290 is provided in the cartridge holder 280. The reader / writer 290 reads and writes cartridge information to the IC chip provided in the cartridge 285 housed in the cartridge holder 280. For example, the reader / writer 290 detects the type of cartridge 285 housed in the cartridge holder 280 by reading the cartridge information from the IC chip. The amount of ink used or remaining in the cartridge 285 may also be detected by the above reading by the reader / writer 290. 【0024】 The control unit 210 determines that an ink level error, a type of main unit error, has occurred if the remaining ink level falls below a predetermined small threshold. In addition, the printer 200 is configured to detect other examples of main unit errors, such as paper jams in the transport mechanism or the depletion of paper in the paper tray, using known methods. In these cases as well, the control unit 210 determines, based on the detection results, that a transport error or a paper out error, both types of main unit errors, has occurred. 【0025】<Features of the Embodiment> As described above, in this embodiment, an auction is held for the advertisement to solicit bids, and if there is a successful bid that meets the conditions, the winning advertisement image is distributed to the printer 200 and the advertisement is printed. At that time, there may be cases where printing fails, or even if the printer 200 completes printing, it may not be able to print accurately and the appearance may not be satisfactory. In such cases, charging as is may cause disadvantage to the advertiser. The feature of this embodiment is to suppress the disadvantage to the winning advertiser caused by charging in the above-mentioned cases. The details of this process will be explained below with reference to Figures 2 and 3. Figures 2 and 3 are sequence flows representing the control executed by the cooperation of the advertisement provision server 100, the advertisement management server 500, the printer 200, and the terminal device 300. 【0026】 In Figure 2, first, in S5, the advertising server 100 determines the minimum bid price for soliciting bids for advertising images. This minimum bid price is, for example, uniquely predetermined and stored in the storage unit 115. In S5, the minimum bid price is determined based on the contents of the storage unit 115, and a bid request including this minimum bid price is sent to the advertising management server 500. The control unit 110 of the advertising server 100 that executes S5 is an example of a request transmission unit. 【0027】 In response to the submitted bidding request, the ad management server 500 conducts an auction for suitable advertisements and solicits bids. At that time, the bidding request is for an advertisement image that meets predetermined conditions, including having a bid price equal to or higher than the minimum bid price. 【0028】 In S7, the advertising management server 500 transmits the bidding results from the auction conducted in response to the bidding request sent in S5. If there is a bid that meets the specified conditions requested in the bidding request, the transmitted content will include the URL of the advertisement image submitted by that bidder. If there is no bid that meets the specified conditions requested in the bidding request, that fact will be included in the transmitted content. 【0029】In S8, the ad provider server 100 determines whether there are any bids that meet the winning conditions based on the content of the bid results transmitted in S7, and bids that meet the winning conditions are determined to be the winning advertisement. Winning conditions include, for example, having the highest bid price. In addition, the conditions for winning may include meeting predetermined conditions requested in the bid request. The determined advertisement is an example of specific distribution information, and the control unit 110 of the ad provider server 100 that executes S8 is an example of an information determination unit. 【0030】 In S10, a "hold notification" is sent to the advertising management server 500 to inform advertisers who have submitted bids that meet the bidding conditions, i.e., the successful bidders, that their bids have been accepted and will be stored without being deleted. The advertising management server 500 then transmits this hold notification to the successful bidder's terminal devices, servers, etc., connected to the advertising management server 500 via the network NT. If there are multiple bids that meet the bidding conditions, multiple hold notifications may be sent. 【0031】 In S15, a "defeat notification" is sent to the advertising management server 500 to inform advertisers who have submitted bids that do not meet the bidding conditions, i.e., non-winning bidders, that their bids will not be accepted because there is another winning bidder. The advertising management server 500 then receives this defeat notification and sends it to the terminal devices and servers of the non-winning bidders connected to the advertising management server 500 via the network NT. If there are multiple bids that do not meet the bidding conditions, multiple defeat notifications may be sent. 【0032】 In S17, using the URL of the advertisement image obtained in S7, an advertisement image request is sent from the advertisement provision server 100 to the advertisement management server 500 requesting the advertisement image of the successful bidder for whom a hold notification was sent in S10. If there are multiple successful bidders, multiple advertisement images may be requested. In response to the above advertisement image request, in S20 the advertisement management server 500 sends the advertisement image from the successful bidder, which is received and acquired by the advertisement provision server 100. The acquired advertisement image is stored, for example, in the storage unit 115. The control unit 110 of the advertisement provision server 100 that executes S20 is an example of a specific distribution information acquisition unit. 【0033】In S30, a distribution image is created that contains the winning bidder's advertisement image, that is, an information containing the advertisement image received from the advertisement management server 500 in S20. Alternatively, instead of the advertisement provider server 100 creating the distribution image, the advertisement management server 500 may create the distribution image, and the advertisement provider server 100 may acquire that distribution image. Alternatively, instead of creating the distribution image in S30, print data for printing the distribution image may be created in various page description languages. Then, a print instruction containing the created distribution image is distributed to the printer 200. The control unit 110 of the advertisement provider server 100 that executes the process in S30 is an example of a print instruction unit. 【0034】 Next, in S35, printing of the distributed image included in the print instruction is started. This distributed image is an example of a printable distributed image based on specific distribution information, and the control unit 210 of the printer 200 executing S35 is an example of a printing unit. In S30, the advertising server 100 may distribute the distributed image to the printer 200 via another relay device. Alternatively, instead of distributing the distributed image to the printer 200, a page description language for printing the distributed image or a link to the distributed image may be sent to the printer 200. If a link to the distributed image is sent, the printer 200 accesses the link to obtain the distributed image and performs printing. 【0035】 After S30, in S40, the advertising server 100 starts a waiting process to await the print completion notification, which will be described later. 【0036】 Moving to Figure 3, in S65, it is determined whether the printer 200 has finished printing the distribution image, including the advertisement image, which was started in S35. If printing is not complete, the result is No. If printing is complete, the result is Yes, and in S71, a print completion notification is sent from the printer 200 and received by the advertisement provision server 100. 【0037】Upon receiving the print completion notification, the advertising server 100 sends a billing notification to the advertising management server 500 in S76. This notification requests payment for the advertising printout from the advertiser, who is the successful bidder and provided the advertising image included in the distributed image sent in S30. The billing notification is a request for the winning bid amount. This winning bid amount is an example of the first amount. The control unit 110 of the advertising server 100 that executes S76 is an example of a billing notification unit. 【0038】 In S77, the advertising management server 500, which receives the transmitted invoice notification, sends the invoice notification to the successful bidder's terminal device, and the successful bidder is invoiced. 【0039】 In terminal device 300, based on predetermined conditions after the completion of printing, in S85, a print confirmation screen is displayed on the display unit 310 to allow the user to confirm whether the printing of the advertisement image was successful. This print confirmation screen is displayed, for example, based on display data from the embedded web server (EWS) of printer 200. The predetermined conditions include, for example, that a predetermined time has elapsed after the completion of printing, or that a display request has been made by the user after the completion of printing. 【0040】 Figure 4 shows an example of a print confirmation screen on the display unit 310. The example shown in Figure 4 is an example of a reprint confirmation screen when the user is asked to confirm reprinting, and the message M1 "Was the advertisement delivered on 2024 / 10 / 14 9:00 printed correctly?", a "Yes" button 311, and a "No" button 312 are displayed on the display unit 310. These "Yes" button 311 and "No" button 312 function as the aforementioned operation unit. The "Yes" button accepts an approval operation to acknowledge that printing has been completed correctly. The "No" button accepts a disapproval operation to indicate that printing has not been completed according to predetermined conditions and the user does not approve of the completion of printing. This is operated when the user of the printer 200 recognizes, for example, that the print quality is inadequate, or that the printing is inaccurate and does not have a satisfactory appearance. In other words, the predetermined conditions in this embodiment are that the user can recognize that the print quality is appropriate, or that the printing is accurate and has a satisfactory appearance. 【0041】 When the "Yes" button 311 is operated, S86 in FIG. 3 becomes a Yes determination, and at S84, a refund-not-required instruction is transmitted from the terminal device 300 and received by the printer 200. 【0042】 When the "No" button 312 is operated, S86 in FIG. 3 becomes a No determination, and at S88, a refund-required instruction is transmitted from the terminal device 300 and received by the printer 200. The "No" button 312 is an example of an operation reception unit. After the printer 200 receives the refund-required instruction at S88, the process proceeds to S90. 【0043】 At S90, a print result notification is transmitted from the printer 200 and received by the advertisement providing server 100. The print result notification includes, when a refund-not-required instruction is received at S84, a message indicating "Refund not required due to successful printing", and when a refund-required instruction is received at S88, a message indicating "Refund required due to failed printing". Then, the process of the flow in FIG. 3 in the printer 200 ends. 【0044】 In the advertisement providing server 100, the print result notification transmitted at S90 is received, and at S130, it is determined whether the content of the print result notification is "Refund not required". If the print result notification is "Refund not required", S130 becomes a Yes determination and the process proceeds to S150. At S150, the advertisement providing server 100 associates the distribution image transmitted to the printer 200 at S30 with the printer ID of the corresponding printer 200, the user ID of the corresponding user, the current time information, the success confirmation date and time, and the winning conditions when the advertisement image included in the distribution image was won, etc., and stores it as a success history in the storage unit 115, and ends the process. 【0045】If the print result notification indicates "Refund Required," S130 is determined to be No, and processing moves to S136. In S136, a refund notification is sent to the advertising management server 500 to the advertiser, the successful bidder who provided the advertising images included in the distributed images sent in S30, to return, i.e., refund the reward requested in the above-mentioned billing notification. The refund notification may specify the amount to be refunded. Alternatively, it does not have to be specified if it is an amount predetermined by contract. This amount may be the same as the reward amount already charged, or it may be a predetermined premium added to the reward amount, for example, 1.5 times, 150%, etc. This refund amount is an example of the second amount, and the control unit 110 of the advertising provision server 100 that executes S136 is an example of the reward return processing unit and an example of the refund processing unit. 【0046】 In S137, the advertising management server 500, upon receiving the transmitted refund notification, sends a refund notification to the successful bidder's terminal device, and the refund is made to the successful bidder. 【0047】 In S140, the advertising server 100 stores the distributed image sent to the printer 200 in S30 as a failure history in the storage unit 115, associating it with the printer ID of the corresponding printer 200, the user ID of the corresponding user, the current time information, the date and time of failure confirmation, and the bidding conditions when the advertising image included in the distributed image was successfully bid on, and then terminates processing. 【0048】<Effect of the Embodiment> As described above, in the information distribution printing system 1 of the present embodiment, a bid is solicited by sending a bid request to the advertisement management server 500 in S5, and among the distribution information received from the advertisement management server 500 in response to the bid request, specific distribution information that is the winning bid is determined in S8. The specific distribution information is acquired from the advertisement management server 500 in S20, and a printing distribution image based on the acquired specific distribution information is printed in S35. The reward corresponding to the printing of the specific distribution information is notified from the advertisement providing server 100 to the advertisement management server 500 in S76. In the present embodiment, when the printing in S35 is not completed in accordance with the predetermined conditions, the reward notified from S76 is returned in S136. As a result, in the case where printing fails, or for some reason accurate printing is not performed during the above printing and the printing distribution image does not have a sufficient appearance finish, etc., it becomes possible to eliminate the winning bidder's reward burden and suppress the occurrence of disadvantages due to billing. 【0049】 Also, in particular, in the present embodiment, in a state where the claim for the reward from the advertisement providing server 100 has been completed in S76, the second amount corresponding to the first amount related to the claim is refunded in S136. By offsetting at least a part of the disadvantage due to the first amount related to the claim by refunding the second amount after the completion of the claim for the reward, it is possible to suppress the disadvantage due to billing. 【0050】 Also, in particular, in the present embodiment, after the advertisement providing server 100 transmits a reward claim notice related to the first amount to the advertisement management server 500 in S76, it transmits a refund notice related to the second amount to the advertisement management server 500 in S136, thereby suppressing the disadvantage due to billing. 【0051】 Also, in particular, in the present embodiment, after the printing is completed, when the user of the printer 200 performs a non-approval operation with the "No" button 312, a refund notice is transmitted from the advertisement providing server 100 to the advertisement management server 500 in S136. Based on the fact that the completion of the printing has not been approved, a refund process can be executed. 【0052】It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible without departing from its spirit and technical idea. Such modifications will be described in order below. The same reference numerals are used for parts equivalent to those in the above embodiments, and their descriptions will be omitted or simplified as appropriate. 【0053】 (1) When performing a rejection operation based on history information, that is, in S85 above, the print history of multiple advertising images stored in the storage unit 215 of the printer 200 or the print history of multiple advertising images stored in the storage unit 115 of the advertising provision server 100 may be displayed in a list, and the user may perform a rejection operation for each history. 【0054】 Figures 5(a) and 5(b) show examples of print confirmation screens on the display unit 310 of the terminal device 300 in this modified example. That is, in S85, on the display unit 310, for example, the screen shown in Figure 5(a) is first displayed. In this example, the message M2, "Were all delivered advertisements printed correctly?", a "Yes" button 311, and a "No" button 312 are displayed on the display unit 310. Similar to the above embodiment, the "Yes" button 311 and the "No" button 312 function as the aforementioned operation units, the "Yes" button is a button that accepts the approval operation, and the "No" button is a button that accepts the rejection operation. 【0055】 If the "Yes" button 311 is pressed, as in the above embodiment, S86 in Figure 3 will be determined as "Yes", an instruction that no refund is necessary will be sent in S84, and the subsequent processing will be the same as in the above embodiment. 【0056】 When the "No" button 312 is pressed, in this modified example, the screen shown in Figure 5(b) is displayed on the display unit 310. On this screen, multiple print histories of distributed images, including advertising images, are displayed in a list. In this example, multiple print histories, including the print history executed on 2024 / 10 / 14 9:00 and the print history executed on 2024 / 10 / 13 9:00, are displayed along with corresponding thumbnails or icons. Each print history is also provided with a checkbox 313. 【0057】The user checks the checkbox 313 for the print history items they recognize as having poor print quality, inaccurate printing, or a poor overall appearance, and then operates the complete button 314. As a result, S86 in Figure 3 becomes a "No" judgment, and in S88, a refund instruction is sent from the terminal device 300 and received by the printer 200. The display content of the display unit 310 shown in Figure 5(b) is an example of the history display unit, and the checkbox 313 is an example of the operation reception unit in this modified example. In this modified example, after the printer 200 receives the refund instruction in S88, it proceeds through S90 and S130 as in the above embodiment, and in S136, a refund notification is sent from the advertising provision server 100 to the advertising management server 500. In this case, the refund amount may be only a portion of the amount corresponding to the print history items for which checkbox 313 was checked, or it may be the amount corresponding to all of the print history items listed in Figure 5(b). In this modified example, the control unit 110 of the advertising server 100 that executes S136 is an example of a reward return processing unit and is also an example of a refund processing unit. 【0058】 In this modified version, as described above, for example, multiple print histories from the past are displayed in a list, and from among these print histories, the ones that the user did not approve of being printed are selected. This allows the user to identify prints that failed or did not produce a satisfactory appearance from among the multiple prints they have made in the past and request a refund. 【0059】 (2) When the printer automatically detects a printing failure and processes a refund, in this modified example, the sequence flow representing the control performed by the cooperation of the advertising server 100, the advertising management server 500, the printer 200, and the terminal device 300 is shown in Figures 6 and 7, which correspond to Figures 2 and 3 above. 【0060】 In Figure 6, in this modified example, S36 and S37, corresponding to S76 and S77 in Figure 3, are newly added between S30 and S40, similar to those in Figure 2. That is, in the advertising server 100, after the print instruction is delivered to the printer 200 in S30, the processing moves to the newly added S36. 【0061】In S36, similar to S76 above, a billing notice is sent to the advertising management server 500 to the advertiser, who is the successful bidder and provided the advertising image included in the distributed image transmitted in S30, to request payment for the advertising printout. The billing notice clearly states the amount of the payment. Note that S36 is performed before the printer 200 executes printing in S35. This amount is an example of the first amount in this modified example, and the control unit 110 of the advertising provision server 100 that executes S36 is an example of the billing notice unit in this modified example. 【0062】 In S37, similar to S77 above, the advertising management server 500, which received the billing notice sent in S36, sends the billing notice to the successful bidder's terminal device, and the successful bidder is billed. 【0063】 In the advertising server 100, after S36, S40 is executed as in the above embodiment, and the process moves to Figure 7. In Figure 7, S64, S66, and S67 are newly provided in place of S65, which precedes S71 in Figure 3. Also, S76, S77, S85, S86, S84, and S88 in Figure 3 are omitted. 【0064】 In printer 200, after printing of the distribution image including the advertisement image begins in S35 in Figure 6, processing moves to the newly added S60. In S60, a print failure detection process is performed to detect if the distribution image has failed to print. Specifically, in this example, the system detects whether the aforementioned main unit errors, namely ink level errors, transport errors, and paper out errors, have occurred as events that could cause a print failure. The control unit 210 of printer 200 that executes S60 is an example of a failure detection unit. 【0065】In S64, the detection process in S60 determines whether or not the above-mentioned main unit error occurred. If no main unit error occurred, S64 is determined to be No, and in S66, it is recognized as a successful print. Then, in S71, as described above, a print completion notification is sent from the printer 200 and received by the advertising server 100. After that, the printer 200 proceeds to S90, as in Figure 3. In other words, the predetermined condition in this modified example is that the printer 200 determined in S64 that no main unit error occurred. If a main unit error occurred, S64 is determined to be Yes, and after it is recognized as a print failure in S67, the process proceeds to S90, as in Figure 3. 【0066】 In S90, as described above, a print result notification is sent from the printer 200 and received by the advertising server 100. In this case, the print result notification will include the message "No refund required due to successful printing" if the printing was recognized as successful in S66, and the message "Refund required due to printing failure" if the printing was recognized as a failure in S67. 【0067】 The processing from S130 onward after S90 is the same as in Figure 3, and therefore the explanation is omitted. In this modified example as well, the amount of the refund notification in S136 is an example of the second amount, and the control unit 110 of the advertising server 100 that executes S136 is an example of the reward return processing unit and is also an example of the refund processing unit. 【0068】 As explained above, in this modified example, after the advertising server 100 obtains specific distribution information in S20, and before the printer 200 executes printing in S35, a request for payment is notified to the advertising management server 500 in S36. After the advertising server 100 notifies the request for payment in S36, the printer 200 detects a printing failure in S60, and in response to the printing failure detected in S60, the advertising server 100 sends a refund notification to the advertising management server 500 in S136. In this modified example, since an error or other issue causing a printing failure is automatically detected within the printer 200, the refund process can be performed without any operation by the user of the printer 200. 【0069】 (3) When a claim is canceled instead of a refund when the claim for compensation has not yet been finalized In this modified example, the essential part of the sequence flow representing the control performed by the cooperation of the advertising server 100, the advertising management server 500, the printer 200, and the terminal device 300 is shown in Figure 8, which corresponds to Figure 3 above. 【0070】 In this modified example, the processes shown in Figure 2 are performed before the processes shown in Figure 8, similar to those in the above embodiment. In Figure 8, before the process S77 in Figure 3 is performed, the same processes as in Figure 3, S85, S86, S84, S88, S90, and S130, are performed. In S130, if the print result notification sent in S90, similar to that in Figure 3, is "Refund required," S130 is judged as No, and the process moves to the newly established S136' instead of S136. In S136', a cancellation notice is sent to the advertising management server 500 to invalidate the reward requested by the billing notice sent in S76, specifically to cancel the billing, for the advertiser who is the successful bidder and provided the advertising image included in the distributed image sent in S30. The control unit 110 of the advertising provision server 100 that executes S136' is an example of a reward refund processing unit and is also an example of a cancellation processing unit. 【0071】 In the advertising server 100, after S136', processing moves to S140, similar to Figure 3. As described above, the distributed image sent to the printer 200 in S30 is linked to the printer ID, user ID, current time information, failure confirmation date and time, and successful bid conditions, etc., and stored in the storage unit 115 as a failure history, and processing ends. Processing other than that described above is the same as in the above embodiment and will not be explained. 【0072】 As explained above, in this modified example, if a printing failure is confirmed before the processing of the payment request notification sent in S76 is completed, the payment request is canceled in S136'. By canceling the request before the payment request is completed, the disadvantage caused by the charge can be mitigated. 【0073】In the above, the method of the embodiment described above using Figures 2 and 3 was used to cancel the payment request if the payment request from the advertising management server 500 to the successful bidder in S77 had not been completed, but the method is not limited to this. That is, in the method of the modified example (1) described above using Figures 6 and 7, the payment request request may also be canceled if the payment request from the advertising management server 500 to the successful bidder in S37 had not been completed. 【0074】 (4) In the above, the advertising server 100 has been described as a single device, but multiple devices may work together to perform the function of the advertising server 100. 【0075】 Furthermore, the sequence flows shown in Figures 2, 3, 6, 7, and 8 do not limit the present invention to the procedures shown in the above flows, and additional or deleted procedures or changes in order are permitted without departing from the spirit and technical idea of ​​the invention. 【0076】 In addition to what has already been described above, the methods described in the above embodiments and their respective modifications may be used in appropriate combinations. 【0077】 Furthermore, although not to be exemplified individually, the present invention may be implemented with various modifications without departing from its spirit. 【0078】 1. Information Distribution and Printing System 100. Advertisement Provision Server (Example of an information distribution provision server) 110. Control Unit 200. Printer (Example of a printing device) 210. Control Unit 312. "No" Button (Example of an operation reception unit) 313. Checkbox (Example of an operation reception unit) 500. Advertisement Management Server (Example of an information distribution management server)

Claims

1. An information distribution printing system comprising a printing device and a distribution information provision server that receives distribution information managed by a distribution information management server and distributes it to the printing device, the system comprising: a request transmission unit that sends a request for bidding on distribution information to the distribution information management server; an information determination unit that determines a specific distribution information to be awarded among the distribution information received from the distribution information management server in response to the request for bidding on distribution information transmitted by the request transmission unit; a specific distribution information acquisition unit that acquires the specific distribution information determined by the information determination unit from the distribution information management server; a printing unit that prints a distribution image for printing based on the specific distribution information; a request notification unit that notifies the distribution information management server of a request for remuneration corresponding to the printing of the specific distribution information; and a remuneration refund processing unit that returns or invalidates the remuneration notified by the request notification unit if the printing by the printing unit is not completed in accordance with predetermined conditions.

2. The information distribution and printing system according to claim 1, wherein the remuneration refund processing unit includes a refund processing unit that refunds a second amount corresponding to a first amount related to a claim when the claim for the remuneration has been completed by the claim notification unit.

3. The information distribution printing system according to claim 2, wherein the information distribution server includes the refund processing unit, and the refund processing unit is configured to send a refund notification representing the second amount to the information distribution management server.

4. An information distribution printing system according to claim 3, further comprising: an operation reception unit that accepts an operation not to approve the completion of printing of the printable distribution image after the completion of printing by the printing unit; the billing notification unit sends a notification to the distribution information management server requesting the payment after the completion of printing by the printing unit; and the refund processing unit sends a refund notification to the distribution information management server in response to the operation reception unit receiving the non-approval operation.

5. The information distribution printing system according to claim 4, further comprising a history display unit that displays the completion history of printing by the printing unit, wherein the operation reception unit is configured to receive the disapproved operation based on the display of the history display unit.

6. The information distribution printing system according to claim 3, further comprising a failure detection unit for detecting printing failures by the printing unit, wherein the billing notification unit notifies the distribution information management server of a claim for the remuneration after the specific distribution information acquisition unit has acquired the specific distribution information and before the printing unit performs the printing, the failure detection unit detects the printing failure after the billing notification unit has notified the claim for the remuneration, and the refund processing unit sends the refund notification to the distribution information management server in response to the printing failure detected by the failure detection unit.

7. The information distribution and printing system according to claim 1, wherein the remuneration refund processing unit includes a cancellation processing unit that cancels the remuneration claim when the notification of the remuneration claim by the claim notification unit has not been completed.

8. A distribution information providing server capable of communicating with a printing device and a distribution information management server, comprising: a request transmission unit that transmits a request for bidding on distribution information to the distribution information management server; an information determination unit that determines a specific distribution information to be awarded among the distribution information received from the distribution information management server in response to the request for bidding transmitted by the request transmission unit; a specific distribution information acquisition unit that acquires the specific distribution information determined by the information determination unit from the distribution information management server; a print instruction unit that causes the printing device to print a distribution image for printing based on the specific distribution information; a request notification unit that notifies the distribution information management server of a request for remuneration corresponding to the printing of the specific distribution information; and a remuneration return processing unit that returns or invalidates the remuneration notified by the request notification unit if the printing by the printing device is not completed in accordance with predetermined conditions.

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