JP2008226171A - E-mail service provision system and e-mail transmission and reception method, and server device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To surely transfer the intention of a user transmitting e-mail on the basis of high entertainment and to efficiently distribute advertising information relating to text contents of the e-mail. <P>SOLUTION: In this e-mail service provision system, an administrator server stores animation moving image data configured by connecting a plurality of frames arranged time sequentially so as to represent the feelings and/or behavior of the user transmitting the e-mail and a frame showing the advertising information to be contents relating to the substantial contents of the text of the e-mail subsequently the plurality of frames, and prepares e-mail using such animation moving image data as substantial contents of text. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an e-mail service providing system that provides an e-mail service that can be transmitted / received by a mobile phone, an e-mail transmission / reception method that transmits / receives e-mail between mobile phones using the e-mail service providing system, and The present invention relates to an electronic mail service providing system and an electronic mail transmission / reception method.

  In recent years, mobile phones have been remarkably widespread. However, such widespread use is mainly due to the fact that not only a telephone call function but also functions such as connection to the Internet and transmission / reception of e-mails are installed. In addition, with the spread of such mobile phones, techniques related to advertisement distribution by mobile phones have also been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2001-175554 A

  Specifically, Patent Document 1 discloses an e-mail advertisement system that displays advertisement information mixedly in the e-mail text. In particular, this e-mail advertisement promotion system additionally registers advertisement information in advance in a relay server for e-mails sent to individuals from a plurality of terminals, and executes a transmission destination request from the transmission side. To add the advertisement information automatically selected from the advertisement information registered in advance on the server side to the predetermined page of the e-mail that is added at the same time, and the receiving side views the transmitted text At the same time, advertisement information is displayed on the page of the e-mail. As a result, in this e-mail advertising / promotion system, it is possible to provide an extremely effective advertising / promoting system for the three parties, e.g., the person who uses e-mail, the provider who mediates e-mail, and the advertisement provider.

  By the way, in the technique described in Patent Document 1 described above, the advertisement information is selected and distributed based on the attribute information of the user who owns the mobile phone and the location information of the mobile phone. In many cases, advertisement information unrelated to the contents of the information is distributed, and the receiving user has to browse the advertisement information that is unnecessary.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and can surely convey the intention of a sending user who wants to send an e-mail with high entertainment, and the contents of the e-mail text. E-mail service providing system capable of efficiently distributing advertisement information related to the e-mail, e-mail sending / receiving method for sending / receiving e-mail between mobile phones using this e-mail service providing system, and these It is an object of the present invention to provide a server device used in an electronic mail service providing system and an electronic mail transmission / reception method.

  An e-mail service providing system according to the present invention that achieves the above-described object is an e-mail service providing system that provides an e-mail service that can be transmitted and received by a mobile phone, and is a mobile phone for a sending user operated by an e-mail sending user. A telephone set, a mobile phone for a receiving user operated by a user who receives the e-mail, and an operator server managed by an operator of the e-mail service providing system. Here, the operator server displays a plurality of frames arranged in time series so as to express the emotions and / or actions of the user who wants to send an e-mail, and advertisement information following these frames. Data storage means for storing animation moving picture data constituted by connecting frames to be shown, and searching for animation moving picture data desired by the transmission user from the data storage means in response to access from the transmission user mobile phone. Searching means, and e-mail creating means for creating an e-mail with the animation moving image data searched by the searching means as the substantial content of the text. The advertisement information is characterized in that it is related to the substantial content of the text of the e-mail.

  An e-mail transmission / reception method according to the present invention that achieves the above-described object is an e-mail transmission / reception method for transmitting / receiving an e-mail between mobile phones, and is used to express the emotions and / or actions of a user who intends to transmit an e-mail Animation moving image data configured by connecting a plurality of frames arranged in time series so as to be represented and a frame indicating the advertisement information following the plurality of frames is stored in a predetermined server device. In the e-mail transmission / reception method according to the present invention, the server device stores the animation video data desired by the transmission user in response to access from the transmission user mobile phone operated by the e-mail transmission user. A search step of searching from the animation video data being created, and an email creation step of creating an email in which the server device has the substantial content of the text of the animation video data searched in the search step; The transmitting user's mobile phone transmits the e-mail created in the e-mail creating step, and the receiving user's mobile phone operated by the e-mail receiving user is transmitted in the transmitting step. Receiving the received e-mail, and the receiving user mobile phone is received in the receiving step. A reproduction step of reproducing the animation video data that is the substantial content of the body of the e-mail, wherein the advertisement information is content related to the substantial content of the body of the e-mail. .

  Furthermore, a server device according to the present invention that achieves the above-described object is a server device managed by an operator who provides an e-mail service that can be transmitted and received by a mobile phone. Data storage means for storing animation video data configured by connecting a plurality of frames arranged in time series so as to express an action, and a frame indicating advertising information following the plurality of frames; In response to access from the transmitting user's mobile phone operated by the user who sent the e-mail, the searching means for searching the animation moving image data desired by the transmitting user from the data storage means, and the animation moving image searched by the searching means An e-mail creation means for creating an e-mail with the data as the substantial content of the text; For example, the advertising information, is characterized in that it is the content that is related to the substantial content of the e-mail text.

  In such an e-mail service providing system, e-mail transmission / reception method, and server device according to the present invention, a plurality of frames arranged in time series so as to express the emotion and / or action of the transmitting user, It is possible to create and send an e-mail with the actual content of animated video data composed of frames that represent advertising information that is related to the actual content of the email body. .

  In the present invention, the intention of the sending user can be reliably communicated to the receiving user with high entertainment, and advertisement information unrelated to the substantial content of the e-mail body can be distributed unnecessarily. It is possible to dispel the annoyance and discomfort of the receiving user, and it is possible to efficiently distribute advertisement information related to the substantial content of the body of the e-mail according to communication between users.

  Hereinafter, specific embodiments to which the present invention is applied will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  This embodiment is an e-mail service providing system that provides an e-mail service that can be transmitted and received by a mobile phone. In particular, as shown in FIG. 1, for example, this e-mail service providing system includes a plurality of frames arranged in time series so as to express the emotions and / or actions of a user who wants to send an e-mail. This service provides a service for creating and transmitting an e-mail having the substantial contents of animated moving image data constituted by connecting a frame indicating advertisement information following the frame. In the figure, a specific example of an e-mail transmitted when the waiting time is delayed is shown.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the electronic mail service providing system includes mobile phones 10 and 20 operated by a user, and an operator server 30 managed by an operator of the electronic mail service providing system. The figure shows a state in which two mobile phones 10 and 20 are provided. However, these are merely representatives for sending and receiving e-mails, and in the e-mail service providing system. Can be used by a plurality of mobile phones. In the following description, a mobile phone operated by a transmission user who wants to send an e-mail is referred to as a mobile phone 10, and a mobile phone operated by a receiving user who receives an e-mail is described as a mobile phone 20.

  The mobile phones 10 and 20 are configured to be able to send and receive e-mails via a predetermined packet communication network by executing a predetermined e-mail application program. Further, the mobile phones 10 and 20 access the operator server 30 via the packet communication network and the Internet network by executing a predetermined browser application program, and use it as the text of the e-mail as will be described later. Search animation video data and send / receive e-mails.

  The operator server 30 is a computer managed by the operator of the e-mail service providing system, and includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 31 that controls each part in an integrated manner and various programs as shown in FIG. A read-only ROM (Read Only Memory) 32 for storing various information, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 33 functioning as a work area, a storage unit 34 for storing various information in a readable and / or writable manner, and an external A communication unit 35 that communicates by connecting to a network, an input operation control unit 36 that performs processing and control of an input operation via a predetermined operation device (not shown) as a user interface, and a display unit 37 that displays various types of information It is comprised as provided with.

  The CPU 31 executes various programs and comprehensively controls each unit.

  The ROM 32 stores various information including various programs. Information stored in the ROM 32 is read out under the control of the CPU 31.

  The RAM 33 functions as a work area when the CPU 31 executes various programs, and temporarily stores various information and reads the stored various information under the control of the CPU 31.

  The storage unit 34 includes, for example, a predetermined storage device such as a hard disk or a device having a so-called RAID (Redundant Array of Independent (Inexpensive) Disks) configuration using a plurality of these hard disks, and can be browsed by the mobile phones 10 and 20. A plurality of animation moving image data including advertisement data created in a file format such as GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) or flash (FLASH: registered trademark) is stored. Various information stored in the storage unit 34 is read under the control of the CPU 31.

  The communication unit 35 is an interface for connecting to a network based on various methods, and performs communication with the outside under the control of the CPU 31.

  The input operation control unit 36 accepts an input operation via a predetermined operation device (not shown) as a user interface such as a keyboard, a mouse, a keypad, an infrared remote controller, a stick key, or a push button, for example, and indicates an operation content. A control signal is supplied to the CPU 31.

  The display unit 37 includes various displays such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), a plasma display panel (PDP), an organic electroluminescence display, or a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube). It is a device and displays various image data and other various information under the control of the CPU 31. For example, the display unit 37 displays a maintenance screen used when the operator of the electronic mail service providing system performs maintenance.

  The operator server 30 including such units displays a screen of a predetermined website in response to being accessed from the mobile phone 10 that intends to transmit an e-mail under the control of the CPU 31. Is displayed on the display. Then, the operator server 30 searches for animation moving image data and controls display on the mobile phone 10 in response to a request from the mobile phone 10 via the website.

  In such an e-mail service providing system including the mobile phones 10 and 20 and the operator server 30, a sending user who wants to send an e-mail accesses the operator server 30 via the mobile phone 10, As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of frames arranged in time series so as to express the emotion and / or behavior of the transmitting user and a frame indicating advertising information are connected to the plurality of frames. An e-mail is created with the animation animation data configured as the substantial content of the text.

  Here, the advertisement information constituting the last frame of the animation moving image data is content related to the emotion and / or action of the transmitting user expressed by the animation moving image data. In other words, the advertisement information is content related to the substantial content of the body of the e-mail. For example, if the sending user's emotion and / or behavior expressed by the animation video data is a content that asks the other person whether or not he / she is healthy, the advertisement information may be a product that makes the person healthy. The company that sells, the company that has put out the keyword of spirit in the corporate philosophy, etc. provided as an advertiser. Also, if the sending user's emotion and / or behavior expressed by the animation video data is such that it conveys the morning greetings to the other party, the advertising information is sold as a beverage suitable for the morning. It is provided by the companies that are present as advertisers. Advertisers determine the animation video data that they want to post their own advertising information, and purchase the right of posting from the operator of the e-mail service providing system, so that the advertising information becomes the last frame of the animation video data. Can be incorporated. The operator server 30 stores the animation moving image data thus created in the storage unit 34.

  In the e-mail service providing system, a sending user who wants to send e-mail searches for desired animation video data from the operator server 30 via the mobile phone 10, creates an e-mail, It transmits to the other party's mobile phone 20. The mobile phone 20 that has received the e-mail reproduces the animation moving image data when the content is displayed on the display unit. Thereby, the receiving user can surely understand the emotion and behavior of the transmitting user, that is, the intention that the transmitting user wants to convey via the e-mail. In addition, the mobile phone 20 displays a screen on the website of the advertiser providing the advertisement information in response to the advertisement information provided as the last frame of the animation video data being clicked by the receiving user. Transition. Further, when the receiving user wants to send an e-mail having substantial contents of animation video data to another user, the receiving user accesses the operator server 30 via the mobile phone 20, It is also possible to create an e-mail having substantially the desired animation video data and send it to other users.

  In general, by providing such a service, the e-mail service providing system can reliably convey the intention of the sending user who intends to send e-mail with high entertainment, Advertisement information related to the substantial content of the mail body can be distributed efficiently. In particular, in the e-mail service providing system, as shown in FIG. 4, for example, advertisement information is widely distributed in accordance with e-mail exchange between users, that is, communication between users.

  Hereinafter, various operations and various processes performed in such an electronic mail service providing system will be described.

  When there is an access from the mobile phone 10 to send an e-mail, the operator server 30 displays the top page of the website as shown in FIG. Display on the screen.

  The top page is provided with a link 101 to an animation list page that lists a list of animation moving image data stored in the storage unit 34 by the operator server 30. As shown in FIG. 6, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, the operator server 30 controls the CPU 31 in response to the link 101 being clicked by the transmission user operating the mobile phone 10. An animation list page displaying a list of names of animation moving image data including words and phrases representing user's emotions and actions such as “I love you”, “Dangerous!”, “Thank you” is displayed on the display unit of the mobile phone 10.

  Each of these names is a link to the corresponding animation video data, and the operator server 30 responds when one of the links is clicked by the transmission user operating the mobile phone 10. Under the control of the CPU 31, for example, as shown in FIG. 7, a preview page for previewing animation moving image data is displayed on the display unit of the mobile phone 10. The preview page includes a moving image display area 111 for displaying animated moving image data including advertisement information created in a file format such as GIF or flash, a banner display area 112 for displaying a clickable banner advertisement, and the animation. There is provided a name display area 113 for displaying the name of the moving image data, and a link 114 for starting an e-mail application program for transmitting an e-mail having the animation moving image data as a text to another user. Yes.

  When the operator server 30 displays such a preview page on the display unit of the mobile phone 10 under the control of the CPU 31, the operator server 30 reproduces the animation moving image data and displays the preview in the moving image display area 111. The sending user determines whether or not to send an e-mail with the animated video data as the substantial content by browsing the previewed content, and searches other animated video data without sending it. To do so, the display screen content of the mobile phone 10 is shifted to the animation list page shown in FIG. 6 by operating the mobile phone 10.

  On the other hand, the operator server 30 determines that the transmission user who has viewed the preview display transmits an e-mail having the animated moving image data as the substantial content of the text, and the link 114 is clicked by operating the mobile phone 10. In response, the e-mail application program installed in the mobile phone 10 is started, and for example, as shown in FIG. 8, a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) for displaying animated video data is described in the text. The displayed e-mail transmission screen is displayed on the display unit. In other words, the operator server 30 creates an e-mail with the retrieved animated video data as the substantial content of the text. Then, the mobile phone 10 transmits an e-mail when the sending user operates the mobile phone 10 to input a destination e-mail address in the destination address field of the e-mail sending screen and perform a sending operation. To do. In response to this, as shown in FIG. 9, for example, the mobile phone 20 of the receiving user who has received the e-mail displays on the display unit an e-mail screen in which the URL for displaying the animation moving image data is described. Then, the mobile phone 20 displays the video playback page configured in the same way as the preview page shown in FIG. 7 in response to the URL portion being clicked by the receiving user operating the mobile phone 20. The animation moving image data is reproduced by being displayed on the display unit of the mobile phone 20.

  As described above, in the e-mail service providing system, the transmitting user searches for desired animation moving image data from the operator server 30 via the mobile phone 10 and sends an e-mail with the animation moving image data as the substantial content of the text. It can be created and transmitted to the desired mobile phone 20.

  Note that the operator server 30 is responsive to predetermined conditions so that the animation video data is grouped for each synonym or synonym among words and phrases representing the user's emotions and / or actions, or for each season or event. It is desirable to categorize and store in the storage unit 34.

  In this case, the operator server 30 displays a predetermined search page on the display unit of the mobile phone 10 under the control of the CPU 31, for example, as shown in FIG. The corresponding animation video data is searched based on the desired keyword input to the search page by the above. For example, as shown in FIG. 11, an animation list page displaying a list of names of the corresponding animation video data is displayed as a search result. May be displayed on the display unit of the mobile phone 10.

  Further, in the e-mail service providing system, when animation moving image data is categorized and stored in the storage unit 34, an e-mail is transmitted from the mobile phone 10 to the operator server 30 to obtain a desired You can also search for animated video data. That is, the mobile phone 10 starts an e-mail application program, and, for example, as shown in FIG. 12, an e-mail transmission in which a desired keyword to be searched for by a transmission user operating the mobile phone 10 is described in the text. Display the screen on the display. When the transmitting user operates the mobile phone 10 to input the e-mail address of the operator server 30 in the transmission destination address field of the e-mail transmission screen and perform the transmission operation, the e-mail Send. In response to this, the operator server 30 that has received the e-mail searches for the corresponding animation video data based on the keywords described in the e-mail under the control of the CPU 31. Then, under the control of the CPU 31, for example, as shown in FIG. 13, the operator server 30 sends an e-mail in which a list of names of relevant animation video data is written to the mobile phone 10 as a search result. To send.

  As described above, in the e-mail service providing system, the animation moving image data is categorized and stored in the storage unit 34, thereby eliminating the need for the transmission user to select desired data from the list of all animation moving image data. Thus, it is possible to reduce the time and effort required for searching and sending an e-mail.

  Further, in the e-mail service providing system, animation animation data is categorized and stored in the storage unit 34, thereby making it possible to easily set a special feature according to, for example, a season or an event. Specifically, the operator server 30 provides a link 102 to an animation list page for posting a list of animation video data belonging to a category such as Christmas or birthday on the top page shown in FIG. An animation in which a list of names of animation video data belonging to the selected category is displayed under the control of the CPU 31 in response to a user clicking on any of the links 102 by operating the mobile phone 10. The list page can be displayed on the display unit of the mobile phone 10.

  In the e-mail service providing system, by setting such a special feature, it is possible to provide a more entertaining service, and as the number of times the user uses increases, as a result, more advertising information is provided. It becomes possible to deliver efficiently.

  As described above, in the e-mail service providing system shown as an embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of frames arranged in time series so as to express the emotion and / or behavior of the transmitting user, Create and send an e-mail with the substantial content of the animated text data, which is formed by connecting the frames indicating the advertisement information, which is the content related to the substantial content of the text.

  Thereby, in this e-mail service providing system, the intention of the sending user can be surely communicated to the receiving user with high entertainment, and the advertisement information is irrelevant to the substantial content of the e-mail body. Can be relieved of the annoyance and discomfort of the receiving user due to unnecessary distribution, and moreover, according to the communication between users, the advertising information related to the substantial content of the body of the email can be efficiently Can be delivered.

  The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above. For example, in the above-described embodiment, it has been described that electronic mail is exchanged between the two mobile phones 10 and 20, but the present invention can simultaneously transmit a plurality of mobile phones from one mobile phone. It can be easily applied to the case of broadcasting.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, it has been described that the e-mail in which the URL for displaying the animation moving image data is described in the text is transmitted. However, in the present invention, the receiving user selects the animation moving image data selected by the transmission user. What is necessary is just to be able to browse. Therefore, in the e-mail service providing system, for example, animation video data may be downloaded from the operator server 30 to the mobile phone 10 to create and send an e-mail as an attached file. Further, in the e-mail service providing system, for example, the e-mail address of the transmission destination is input in the body of the e-mail transmission screen shown in FIG. 8, and the e-mail address of the operator server 30 is entered in the transmission destination address column. The operator server 30 that received the e-mail has entered the URL for displaying the animated video data to the e-mail address described in the e-mail text. An operation such as sending an e-mail may be performed.

  Thus, it goes without saying that the present invention can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

It is a figure explaining the specific example of the email transmitted / received in the email service provision system shown as embodiment of this invention. It is a figure explaining the structure of the electronic mail service provision system shown as embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram explaining the structure of the operator server in the electronic mail service provision system shown as embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating notionally a mode that advertisement information is delivered in the electronic mail service provision system shown as embodiment of this invention. In the electronic mail service providing system shown as an embodiment of the present invention, it is a diagram illustrating a specific example of a top page of a website displayed on a display unit of a transmitting user's mobile phone. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of an animation list page of a website displayed on a display unit of a transmission user's mobile phone in the e-mail service providing system shown as an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of a preview page of a website displayed on a display unit of a transmitting user's mobile phone in the electronic mail service providing system shown as an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of an e-mail transmission screen displayed on a display unit of a transmission user's mobile phone in the e-mail service providing system shown as an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of an e-mail screen displayed on a display unit of a receiving user's mobile phone in the e-mail service providing system shown as an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure explaining the specific example of the search page of the website displayed on the display part of a transmission user's mobile telephone in the electronic mail service provision system shown as embodiment of this invention. In the electronic mail service providing system shown as an embodiment of the present invention, it is a diagram illustrating a specific example of an animation list page of a website displayed as a search result on a display unit of a transmitting user's mobile phone. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a specific example of an e-mail transmission screen displayed on a display unit of a transmitting user's mobile phone in the e-mail service providing system shown as an embodiment of the present invention, and a desired keyword to be searched is a text It is a figure explaining the specific example of the e-mail transmission screen described in. In the e-mail service providing system shown as an embodiment of the present invention, it is a diagram for explaining a specific example of an e-mail screen displayed on the display unit of the transmitting user's mobile phone, and the name of the animation video data as a search result It is a figure explaining the specific example of the electronic mail screen which described the list in the text.

Explanation of symbols

10, 20 Mobile phone 30 Operator server 31 CPU
32 ROM
33 RAM
34 storage unit 35 communication unit 36 input operation control unit 37 display unit 101, 102, 114 link 111 moving image display region 112 banner display region 113 name display region

Claims (5)

An e-mail service providing system that provides an e-mail service that can be transmitted and received by a mobile phone,
A mobile phone for the sending user operated by the sending user of the e-mail;
A mobile phone for the receiving user operated by the receiving user of the e-mail;
An operator server managed by the operator of the email service providing system,
The above operator server
It is composed of a plurality of frames arranged in chronological order to express the emotions and / or actions of the user who wants to send an e-mail, and a frame showing advertisement information following these frames. Data storage means for storing animation video data;
Search means for searching for animation moving image data desired by the transmission user from the data storage means in response to access from the transmission user mobile phone;
E-mail creation means for creating an e-mail with the animated video data searched by the search means as the substantial content of the text,
The e-mail service providing system, wherein the advertisement information is content related to a substantial content of a body of the e-mail. The e-mail service providing system according to claim 1, wherein the advertisement information is content related to the emotion and / or behavior of the transmitting user expressed by the animation video data. The e-mail service providing system according to claim 1, wherein the data storage means stores the animation moving image data in a category by classifying the animation moving image data according to a predetermined condition. An e-mail transmission / reception method for transmitting / receiving e-mail between mobile phones,
It is composed of a plurality of frames arranged in chronological order to express the emotions and / or actions of the user who wants to send an e-mail, and a frame showing advertisement information following these frames. Animated video data is stored in a predetermined server device,
The email sending and receiving method is
A search step in which the server device searches the stored animation video data for the animation video data desired by the transmission user in response to an access from the transmission user's mobile phone operated by the email transmission user. When,
An e-mail creating step in which the server device creates an e-mail with the animated video data searched in the search step as a substantial content of the body;
A transmitting step in which the mobile phone for the transmitting user transmits the email created in the email creating step;
A receiving step in which the mobile phone for the receiving user operated by the receiving user of the e-mail receives the e-mail transmitted in the transmitting step;
The receiving user's mobile phone comprises a reproduction step of reproducing the animation moving image data that is the substantial content of the body of the e-mail received in the reception step;
The e-mail transmission / reception method, wherein the advertisement information is content related to a substantial content of a body of the e-mail. A server device managed by an operator who provides an e-mail service that can be transmitted and received by a mobile phone,
It is composed of a plurality of frames arranged in chronological order to express the emotions and / or actions of the user who wants to send an e-mail, and a frame showing advertisement information following these frames. Data storage means for storing animation video data;
A search unit that searches the data storage unit for animation video data desired by the transmission user in response to an access from a mobile phone for a transmission user operated by a transmission user of the e-mail;
E-mail creating means for creating an e-mail with the substantial content of the text of the animation video data searched by the search means,
The server device, wherein the advertisement information is content related to the substantial content of the text of the e-mail.