JP2001209678A - Method and system for joint purchase by on-line - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily and surely perform joint purchase by on-line for a gift to a person or the like. SOLUTION: This method for jointly purchasing merchandise through a network is provided with a step for presenting merchandise price and period for one or plural pieces of the merchandise and inviting participation desiring persons to participate in the purchase of the merchandise, the step for receiving a participating price and the name of the participation desiring person from the participation desiring person for the merchandise and the step for deciding the purchase for the merchandise for which the total amount of the participating prices reaches the merchandise price.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method and system for online joint purchase. For example, in order to give a marriage celebration or a birth celebration, a plurality of friends may jointly purchase and send a celebration product.
It would be convenient if such a product could be purchased using a network such as the Internet.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Hitherto, a system for purchasing a gift online has been proposed.

[0003] For example, a user searches for a desired product on an online shopping site, and if there is a desired product, adds it to his / her "wish list". By publishing the "Wish List" to the public or to a specific person, friends and the like can search for it and see the contents of the list.

[0004] When a friend or the like selects a product from the products registered in the "Wish List" and performs a purchase procedure, the product is delivered to the person after the payment is settled. .

[0005]

However, when giving a gift, there is a case where a plurality of friends wish to give the gift jointly instead of giving it alone. In such a case, one representative had to go through the purchase procedure, and the other parties had to consult with their peers.

In the case of joint purchase by a plurality of persons,
It is often conceivable that the total amount of investment does not exactly match the price of the product, so how to adjust the amount in such a case is a problem.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and has as its object to provide a method and system for easily and reliably performing online joint purchase for a gift to the person. .

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for jointly purchasing a product via a network, wherein a product price and a period are provided for one or more products. Recruiting applicants to participate in the purchase of the product, receiving the participation price and the name of the applicant from the applicant for the product, and determining that the total price of the participation is the product price. Deciding to purchase the merchandise that has reached.

[0009] In the method according to the second aspect of the present invention, a gift voucher is included as a commodity to be presented, and a participation price participating in the purchase of the gold voucher can be used as a participation price for purchasing another commodity. I do.

A system according to a third aspect of the present invention is a system for jointly purchasing goods for a gift recipient via a network.
Means for presenting a product price and a period for one or more products to participate in the purchase of the product, and accepting the participation price and the name of the candidate from the candidate for the product. Means, and means for deciding to purchase a product whose total participation price has reached the product price.

[0011] In the system according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, a gift voucher is included as a product to be presented, and a participation price participating in the purchase of the gold voucher can be used as a participation price for purchasing another product. I do.

In the system according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to register a plurality of commodities as a selection group, and for the commodities registered in the selection group, the commodity having the lowest commodity price is presented. When the total participation price for the product reaches the product price, a product with a higher product price of the selected group is presented instead of the product.

[0013] In the system according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, for a product whose total participation price has not reached the product price and is within a predetermined range until the period elapses, that effect is presented. Having means.

[0014]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an online purchase system 1 according to the present invention, and FIG.
FIG. 3 shows an example of a gift registry database DB2, and FIG. 4 shows a desired product database D.
It is a figure showing the example of B3.

In FIG. 1, an online purchase system 1
Comprises a server 3 on which a virtual gift registry shop is opened, terminal devices 4, 5a, 5b, 5c,... Of a large number of users who can access the server 3 via a network.

The server 3 is installed by a company that provides a gift registry shop. Such companies may be merchants of merchandise such as department stores, supermarkets, gift shops, distributors, merchandise manufacturers, or newly established companies for gift registry shops. In the gift registry shop, in addition to products manufactured or purchased by yourself, products of other retailers or products of other online shops or malls can be handled.

The server 3 has a product database DB1,
A gift registry database DB2 and a desired product database DB3 are provided. When the user accesses the server 3 from the terminal device 4, 5a, 5b, 5c..., The gift registry registration screen HG1, the screen HG5 of the homepage of the recipient, the screen HG6 for searching the homepage of the recipient, and various message screens HG7. ,
8. A list screen HG15 for selecting a product and various other screens and services are provided from the server 3 to the user.

Further, from the server 3, screens HG12 to HG14 showing the purchase result are transmitted to the terminal devices 4, 5a, 5b, 5c... From the list screen HG15 for selecting a product, it is also possible to access other malls 7a, 7b and the like via the network NW1. The product provider operates the appropriate terminal device 8 to access the screen HG16 for registering the product, and can register the product being handled by himself in the product database DB1 of the server 3.

The terminal device 4 is, for example, a terminal device operated by the recipient himself or a person who has become a celebration secretary on behalf of the recipient. The terminal devices 5a, 5b, 5c... Are terminal devices operated by a friend or relative of the donor. As the terminal devices 4, 5a, 5b, 5c,..., Various personal computers, information terminal devices, mobile phones, or the like can be used. The terminal devices 4, 5
a, 5b, 5c... may be described as “terminal device 4” or “terminal device 5”.

As the network, the Internet, intranet, WAN, LAN, and other various networks are used. For display of various screens HG,
For example, a file described in a hypertext language such as an HTML file and other files are used.

The program for executing the method according to the present invention includes a semiconductor memory, a hard disk, and a CD-ROM.
It is stored in a recording medium such as a ROM, a floppy disk, or a magneto-optical disk. These programs are loaded on the main memory at appropriate times and executed by the CPU. At that time, a drive device such as a CD-ROM drive, a floppy disk drive, or a magneto-optical disk drive is used as necessary. When the recording medium is provided in another server connected by a communication line such as a network, the program is read or downloaded from the server through the communication line. The programs can be supplied to operate under various OSs, platforms, system environments, or network environments.

As shown in FIG. 2, a product database DB
1 is a record of a product that can be purchased by the user,
It has a product code, a product name, a price, and other items. As shown in FIG. 3, the gift registry database DB2
, The registration of one recipient as one place, the venue ID, the name and address of the recipient (donor), the start date, the end date, the holding rules such as the unit price, and the introduction for each place A page URL, a bulletin board URL, and the like are recorded.

As shown in FIG. 4, the desired product database DB3 contains a list ID, a list name, a product code, a product name, a price, a purchaser,
The purchase price and purchase information of each purchaser are recorded.

Next, the operation and operation of the online purchase system 1 will be described with reference to various screens displayed on the display surfaces HG of the terminal devices 4 and 5. 5 shows an example of a gift registry registration screen HG1, FIG. 6 shows an example of a screen HG2 for adding a product, FIG. 7 shows an example of a product guide screen HG3, and FIG. FIG. 9 is a view showing an example of a screen HG5 of the homepage of the recipient, FIG. 9 is a view showing an example of a screen HG6 for searching the homepage of the recipient, and FIG.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a screen HG7 for introducing a donor, FIG.
1 is a diagram showing an example of a chat screen HG8 between users, FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a settlement screen HG9, FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of changing products in a selected group, and FIG. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the state of the product database DB3a, FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the contents of the desired product database DB3b showing the final result of the purchased product, FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a list HG12 to HG14 of a list of purchased products, and FIG. FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing a process for determining a purchased product, and FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for designating a destination when contacting by e-mail.

First, the giver or a secretary acting on behalf of the giver operates the terminal device 4 to access the server 3 and register the gift registry. When a registration application is made to the gift registry shop, a gift registry registration screen HG1 shown in FIG.

On this screen HG1, the address of the recipient,
If you want to determine the name, the period, and the price of one participant, enter the price, desired product, etc. As a product,
Select one or more.

When a plurality of products are selected from one list ID, those products can be registered as a selected group. When registered to the selected group,
It is possible to rank a plurality of products belonging to the same selection group as a first request or a second request. Normally, items are ranked in order from the item with the lowest price. As for the commodities registered as the selection group, first, the commodities of the first request, that is, the commodities with the lowest price are posted on the screen HG5 of the homepage of the donor and presented to the user. Then, when the total price of the user's participation price (purchase amount) for the product reaches the product price, the product of the next rank, that is, the higher price in the selected group, is replaced with the product. The goods are then presented.

[0028] A "virtual gift certificate" is always included as a product. The price at which the user purchases the “virtual gift certificate”, that is, the participation price for the purchase can be used as the participation price for the purchase of another product. In this way, when the participation price for another product is insufficient, the participation price of the “virtual gift certificate” is diverted there, and adjustment is made so that the purchase of the product is more easily and reliably determined. . When a “virtual gift certificate” is purchased, the purchase price is determined at that time.

To add a product after completing the registration on the screen HG1, click (press) the add button BT1. When the add button BT1 is clicked, FIG.
Is displayed, a product is searched on this screen HG2, and the screen H of the searched product is displayed.
Look at G3, and if that's OK, add it and register.

In this way, by inputting on the screen HG1 and selecting a product, a homepage screen HG5 as shown in FIG. 8 is automatically generated. Screen H
By G5, a price (product price) and a period (holding period) are presented to a candidate who participates in product purchase.

The recipient may notify the user of his / her own, by e-mail, mail, word of mouth, or the like, by creating a homepage (screen HG5) for soliciting a gift, or notifying that the recipient is soliciting a gift. Inform friends, acquaintances, and relatives. At this time, it is also possible to limit the users who can access the screen HG5 by setting a password or the like.

FIG. 18 shows an example of a screen HG4 for designating a destination when contacting by e-mail. This screen HG4
In, enter the name and e-mail address of the person you want to contact. After inputting the name and address, by clicking (pressing) the send button BT18, a fixed message or a message created by the creator of the homepage is automatically sent to each address.
Here, there is provided a database for recording the input contents in association with each venue ID as a candidate for participation,
It may be used as an address for transmitting a message in another breath processing described later.

Now, a friend or the like who has been notified accesses the server 3 using the terminal device 6, and displays the screen HG5. If necessary, a search is performed using a search screen HG6 as shown in FIG. When the link below the screen HG5 is clicked, the donor's introduction screen HG7 shown in FIG.
G8 is displayed. The user refers to these screens HG and determines whether to participate in the gift registry shop.
And if you participate, determine the product and the participation price.

When the user participates, on the screen HG5, he enters the participation price for the product to be purchased, and clicks the corresponding "Noru" button BT3-5. It is also possible to participate in the purchase of a plurality of products.

When the selection of the product and the input of the participation price are completed, a settlement screen HG9 shown in FIG. 12 is displayed. On the payment screen HG9, a list of products to be purchased is displayed. In this example, the participation price is "10000 yen" for the product "A-01 watch", and the participation price is "20,000 yen" for the product "A-02 microwave oven". Therefore, the total is 30,000 yen. The participant (buyer) inputs a name, an address, a settlement method, and the like.
Further, when the participating product is canceled, it is possible to set whether to use the product for purchasing the “virtual gift certificate” or to select the product again. And
Click the purchase button BT7. As a result, the purchase of the participant is confirmed, and provisional settlement of the price is performed.

Before or after this processing,
The balance obtained by subtracting the participation price from the product price is displayed on the screen HG5.
Is displayed in the "Balance" column. As a result, the user can know the amount of money required to actually purchase the product, and can refer to the purchase of the product and determination of the participation price.

Until the holding period elapses, another breathing process is performed on a product whose total participation price has not reached the product price and whose balance is within a predetermined range. As a result of this processing, a message of "one more breath" is displayed in the product column on the screen HG5, and a message such as "purchase of the microwave oven is another breath" is displayed on the chat screen HG8 or the like. A message to that effect is sent to the user by e-mail.
The user who sees this will know that the product can be purchased in a short break, and will be motivated to participate so that the product does not become a draw. In determining whether or not the balance is within a predetermined range, for example, it is determined whether or not the balance is within a predetermined amount or a predetermined ratio with respect to the commodity price.

In the above example, the product "A-01"
Since the participation price for the "watch" was 10,000 yen,
The purchase of this became definitive. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 13, instead of the product, a product “A-01 watch” of “30000 yen”, which is a product of higher price in the same selection group, is presented to the user.

As described above, a plurality of users participate in the gift registry shop during the period, and the results are recorded in the desired commodity database DB3. FIG. 14 shows the state of the desired product database DB3a after the end of the period.

After the expiration of the period, a process for determining a purchased product is automatically performed. For each product, it is determined whether or not the total participation price has reached the product price, and if so, the purchase of the product is determined.

In FIG. 17, the total purchase price (total participation price) is calculated for one product (# 11).
The total purchase amount is an amount obtained by adding the total of the participation prices of the “virtual gift certificate” to the total of the participation prices of the purchasers who have participated in the product.

The product price and the total purchase amount are compared (#
12). If they are equal, the purchase of the product is determined, and an order is placed (# 14). If the product price is lower than the total purchase price, the remainder obtained by subtracting the product price from the total purchase price is returned to the participation price of the “virtual gift certificate” (# 13).

If the product price is higher than the total purchase price, the product rank is lowered (# 15), and if there is a product of a lower rank, the processes from step # 12 onward are performed again on the product. If there is no product of the lower rank, the purchase of the product is not made (draw), and the entire participation price for the product is transferred to the participation price of the “virtual gift certificate” (# 17).

Such a process is performed for all presented products. Thus, the desired product database D
B3a is corrected and finally enters the state of the desired product database DB3b shown in FIG. Based on the desired product database DB3b, final final settlement is performed for all participants.

In this example, a clock of "10000 yen"
"50,000 yen" microwave oven and "5000 yen"
"Virtual gift certificate" is determined as a gift. Each of the eye recording surfaces HG with the purchaser's name as the giver
12 to 14 are created, transmitted by e-mail to the donors and participants, and transmitted to the distribution center 6. The delivery center 6 delivers the goods to the recipient according to the eye recording surfaces HG12 to HG14.

The handling of the "virtual gift certificate" can be arbitrarily determined by the gift giver or the gift registry shop. For example, the amount of the “virtual gift certificate” may be a gift certificate, a cash voucher, cash, or the like, or may be donated to an appropriate organization.

The online purchase system 1 of the above embodiment
According to this, online joint purchase can be easily and reliably performed for a gift to the person. Moreover, the co-buyer does not have to make any adjustments between them, so that it is not troublesome.

In particular, a “virtual gift certificate” is provided as a product, and the participating price participating in the product can be used to adjust the purchase price of another product. Adjustment in the case of failure to do so is easily performed, and the purchase item is determined quickly. This adjustment function is useful because it is conceivable that the user sets the participation price to a fractional amount for reasons such as playing luck or arranging the words.

By setting a plurality of products as a selection group, desired ranks can be assigned to products of the same type. Thereby, it is possible to respond to the wishes of the recipient in a detailed manner.

In the above embodiment, when the price of one participant is decided, the participant decides the number of goods and participates. In the above example, at the end of the holding period, it was decided whether or not to purchase all products.However, before the closing of the holding period, purchase decisions were made for products whose total purchase amount reached the product price. Alternatively, the merchandise may be shipped. In addition, the configuration, processing contents, processing order, screen display contents, display items, and the like of the entire server 3, the terminal devices 4 and 5, and the online purchase system 1, may be appropriately changed according to the spirit of the present invention. Can be.

The present invention can be used for the joint purchase of various commodities in addition to gifts to the person.

[0052]

According to the present invention, online joint purchase can be easily and reliably performed for a gift or the like to the person.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an online purchase system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a product database.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a gift registry database.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a desired product database.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a gift registry registration screen.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for adding a product.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a product guidance screen.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a screen of a home page of a donor.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for searching for a homepage of a giver.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for introducing a gift recipient.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a chat screen between users.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a payment screen.

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a change of a product in a selected group.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a state of a desired product database after a period ends.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing contents of a desired product database indicating a final result of a purchased product.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of a list screen of a purchased product.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing a process for determining a purchased product.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for designating a destination when contacting by e-mail.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Online purchase system 3 Server 4,5 Terminal device HG5 Homepage screen for recruiting gifts (means for presenting the product price and period, means for receiving the participation price and the name of the applicant)

Claims (6)

[Claims] Claims: 1. A method for joint purchase of a product via a network, wherein one or more products are presented with a product price and a period, so as to recruit applicants to participate in the purchase of the product. Receiving the participation price and the participation candidate name from the applicant for the product, and deciding to purchase the product whose total participation price has reached the product price. A method for online joint purchase characterized by having. 2. The online product according to claim 1, wherein the presented product includes a voucher, and the participation price participating in the purchase of the voucher can be used as a participation price for purchasing another product. Method for joint purchase by. 3. A system for jointly purchasing goods for a gift recipient via a network, wherein the participation of one or more of the gifts in the purchase of the commodity is requested based on the wishes of the gift recipient. Means for presenting the product price and period to recruit applicants; means for accepting the participation price and the name of the candidate for participation for the product; and the total amount of the participation prices has reached the product price Means for deciding to purchase a product; and a system for online joint purchasing comprising: 4. The online product according to claim 3, wherein the presented product includes a voucher, and the participation price participating in the purchase of the voucher can be used as a participation price for purchasing another product. System for joint purchase by. 5. It is possible to register a plurality of commodities as a selection group, and for the commodities registered in the selection group, present a commodity having the lowest commodity price among the commodities registered and select a sum of participation prices of the commodities. The system for online joint purchase according to claim 3 or 4, wherein when the amount reaches the commodity price, a commodity having a higher commodity price of the selected group is presented instead of the commodity. 6. A means for presenting a product for which the total participation price has not reached the product price and is within a predetermined range until the expiration of the time period. A system for online joint purchase according to claim 5.