JP2001222490A - Internet connection service device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an Internet connection service device enabling a user to enjoy the Internet free of charge and capable of realizing an advertisement format for positively calling the user to an advertiser's site. SOLUTION: A user management part 240 manages free connection available time expressing time allowing the connection of a user's communication terminal 10 to the Internet free of charge in each user, and when the user is connected to an advertiser's site introduced by list display or the like on a prescribed web page, fixed time is added to the free connection available time of the user. The connection time of the user's communication terminal 10 to the Internet is subtracted from the free connection available time of the user, and when the free connection available time disappears, connection to the Internet is stopped.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an Internet connection service apparatus for connecting a communication terminal of a user connected through a public line or the like to the Internet.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a user connects his or her own communication terminal such as a computer to the Internet, the user generally contracts with a pay provider and surfs the Internet through the provider through a dial-up connection using a public telephone line. .

[0003] By the way, various advertising activities such as banner advertisements and e-mail advertisements are performed on the Internet.
In particular, banner advertisements are most widely used as Internet advertisements. Banner advertising is a method of attaching an image in which a link to an advertiser's site is set to a website and clicking here to connect to the advertiser's website.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order for a user to enjoy the Internet, a connection service fee according to a fixed amount or a usage time must be paid to a provider, and a line usage fee to an access point must be paid. There was a problem that it was bulky and could not fully enjoy net surfing.

On the other hand, when advertising on the Internet,
In a banner advertisement, a brief introduction of an advertiser is usually displayed in a small horizontal rectangular image, so that only a user who is interested in the content can call the advertiser's site.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of such problems of the conventional technology, and it is possible for a user to enjoy the Internet sufficiently free of charge or at low cost, and to actively advertise the user. An object of the present invention is to provide an Internet connection service device that realizes an advertisement form that can be called to a main site.

[0007]

The gist of the present invention to achieve the above object lies in the following inventions. [1] In an Internet connection service device for connecting a user's communication terminal (10) connected through a public line or the like to the Internet (20), user registration means (2
41, 310, 320) and free time adding means (24
2), a free time subtraction means (243), and a connection management means (220).
10, 320) is for registering, for each user, a free connectable time indicating a time during which the user's communication terminal (10) can be connected to the Internet (20) for free or at a lower price than usual. Addition means (242)
Is based on the fact that the user's communication terminal (10) has connected to a pre-registered advertiser's site, and determines the user's free connection available time registered in the user registration means (241, 310, 320). The free time subtraction means (243) is provided for the user's communication terminal (10).
Is connected to the Internet (20) to reduce the free connection possible time of the user registered in the user registration means (241, 310, 320), and the connection management means (220) An Internet connection service device for connecting the user to the Internet (20) free of charge or at a lower price than usual while the connectable time remains for a predetermined time or more.

[2] In an Internet connection service device for connecting a user's communication terminal (10) connected through a public line or the like to the Internet (20), an advertiser introduction means (260) and a user registration means (241, 31)
0, 320), a free time adding means (242), a free time subtracting means (243), and a connection managing means (220), and the user registration means (241, 310, 32).
0) is for registering, for each user, a free connectable time indicating a time during which the user's communication terminal (10) can be connected to the Internet (20) for free or at a lower price than usual. (260) transmits introduction information for introducing the pre-registered advertiser's site to the user to the user's communication terminal (10) and presents the information, and the free time addition means (242) includes: Based on the connection of the user's communication terminal (10) to the advertiser's site introduced in the introduction information, the user's free connection available time registered in the user registration means (241, 310, 320) The free time subtraction means (243) is provided for the user's communication terminal (10).
Is connected to the Internet (20) to reduce the free connection possible time of the user registered in the user registration means (241, 310, 320), and the connection management means (220) An Internet connection service device for connecting the user to the Internet (20) free of charge or at a lower price than usual while the connectable time remains for a predetermined time or more.

[3] The advertiser introduction means (260)
The internet connection service device according to [2], wherein the introduction information of the advertiser who has paid the advertisement fee is presented only for a period corresponding to the paid advertisement fee.

[4] In an Internet connection service device for connecting a user's communication terminal (10) connected through a public line or the like to the Internet (20), an advertiser registration means (251, 340) and an advertisement right adding means ( 25
2), advertising right subtraction means (253), advertiser introduction means (260), and user registration means (241, 310, 32)
0), free time addition means (242), free time subtraction means (243), and connection management means (220),
The user registration means (241, 310, 320) registers, for each user, a free connectable time indicating a time during which the user's communication terminal (10) can be connected to the Internet (20) for free or at a lower price than usual. Things,
The advertiser registration means (251, 340) determines, for each advertiser, the size of the advertising right required for the introduction information for introducing the advertiser's site to the user to be transmitted and presented to the user's communication terminal (10). The advertisement right adding means (252) increases the size of the advertisement right associated with the advertiser who has paid the advertisement fee in accordance with the paid advertisement fee. Yes, the advertiser introduction means (2
60) transmits and presents the introduction information of the advertiser having the advertising right to the communication terminal (10) of the user, and the free time addition means (242) introduces the introduction information in the advertiser introduction information. User's communication terminal (1
0) is connected, the free connection possible time of the user is increased, and the advertisement right subtracting means (2)
53) The user's communication terminal (10)
When the user's free connection time is increased based on the connection, the advertisement right of the advertiser is reduced, and the free time subtraction means (243) connects the user's communication terminal (10) to the Internet ( 20) reduces the free connection possible time of the user registered in the user registration means (241, 310, 320) by the amount connected to the connection management means (20). Is available for free or at a lower cost than usual for as long as
0) An Internet connection service device for connecting to (0).

[5] [1], [2], [3] or [4] characterized in that the own device confirms which user's communication terminal (10) has connected to which advertiser's site. An Internet connection service device according to item 1.

[6] A link from each advertiser's site to a predetermined free connectable time billing server is set, and the free connectable time billing server (100) is transmitted from the advertiser's site via the link. The user is allowed to input identification information and the like of the user from the communication terminal (10) of the user connected to the server.
0), which user's communication terminal (1
The Internet connection service device according to [1], [2], [3] or [4], wherein it is confirmed which advertiser's site has been connected.

[7] Each user is provided with a certain amount of free connection available time at least by the user registration means (2
41, 310, 320) at the stage of initial registration, [1], [2], [3], [4],
The Internet connection service device according to [5] or [6].

The present invention operates as follows. [1]
According to the invention described in (1), the user registration means (241, 310,
320), for each user, a free connectable time indicating a time during which the user's communication terminal (10) can be connected to the Internet (20) free or at a lower price than usual. The free time addition means (242) increases the free connectable time of the user based on the fact that the communication terminal (10) of the user has connected to the pre-registered advertiser site.

The free time subtraction means (243) reduces the user's free connection available time by the amount of connection of the user's communication terminal (10) to the Internet (20), and the connection management means (220) enables free connection. As long as the time remains for a predetermined time or more, the user connects to the Internet (20) free of charge or at a lower price than usual. For example, a connection is made free of charge as long as a little free connection time remains, and the line is cut off when the free connection time runs out.

As described above, the user can use the Internet (20) free of charge or at a lower price than usual for a predetermined time by accessing the pre-registered advertiser's site. You can fully enjoy surfing without having to do it.

[0017] In the invention described in [2], the advertiser introduction means (260) provides the user's communication terminal (10) with introduction information for introducing the user to a pre-registered advertiser site.
To send and present. The free time adding means (242) increases the free connectable time of the user based on the connection of the user's communication terminal (10) to the advertiser's site introduced in the introduction information. .

For example, by transmitting introduction information to a user's communication terminal (10), an overview of an advertisement and an image in which a link to the site is set are displayed for a plurality of advertisers in a list, and the clicked site is displayed. And so on.

As described above, the introduction information for accessing the advertiser's site is transmitted to the user's communication terminal (10) and presented, so that the user can easily connect to the advertiser's site from which free connectable time can be obtained. can do.

[0020] In the invention described in [3], the advertiser introduction means (260) presents the introduction information of the advertiser for whom the advertisement fee has been paid for a period corresponding to the paid advertisement fee. For example, by presenting introductory information for the number of days corresponding to the paid advertising fee, or by presenting the advertiser's introductory information until the user connects to the site for the number of times corresponding to the paid advertising fee. is there.

As described above, since the advertisement fee is received first and the introduction information is presented only for a period corresponding to the paid advertisement fee, the burden on the advertiser can be limited.

[0024] In the invention described in [4], the user registration means (241, 310, 320) registers the free connectable time for each user, and the advertiser registration means (251, 340)
Registers, for each advertiser, the size of the advertising right required for the introduction information to be transmitted and presented to the user's communication terminal (10). The advertisement right adding means (252) increases the size of the advertisement right associated with the advertiser who has paid the advertisement fee in accordance with the paid advertisement fee. Advertiser Referral Means (26
0) transmits and presents the introduction information of the advertiser having the advertising right to the user's communication terminal (10).

[0023] The free time addition means (242) increases the free connectable time of the user based on the connection of the user's communication terminal (10) to the advertiser's site introduced in the advertiser introduction information. . On the other hand, the advertisement right subtracting means (25
3) When the user's communication terminal (10) is connected to the advertiser's site and the user's free connection available time is increased, the advertiser's advertising right is reduced by a predetermined amount.

The free time subtraction means (243) is free of charge for the user registered in the user registration means (241, 310, 320) as long as the user's communication terminal (10) is connected to the Internet (20). The time is reduced, and the connection management means (220) connects the user to the Internet (20) free of charge or at a lower price than usual, while the free connectable time remains for a certain time or more.

As described above, the advertisement right of the advertiser is added in accordance with the payment of the advertisement fee, and only until the advertisement right is subtracted and consumed by the connection of the user terminal to the site of the advertiser, the advertisement right is subtracted. Since the introduction information of the advertiser is presented to the user, the burden on the advertiser can be limited.

According to the invention described in [5], the own device, that is, the Internet connection service device itself checks which user's communication terminal (10) has connected to which advertiser's site.

In the invention described in [6], a link is set from each advertiser's site to a predetermined free connectable time requesting server, and the free connectable time is charged from the advertiser's site via this link. The user's identification information (user ID and password) and the like are input from the communication terminal of the user connected to the application server. The Internet connection service device obtains this input content from the free connection time billing server to confirm which user's communication terminal (10) has connected to which advertiser's site. of course,
The Internet connection service device itself may have the function of the server for billing free connection time.

In the invention described in [7], each user is given a fixed amount of free connection available time at least at the stage when the user is initially registered in the user registration means (241, 310, 320). The user connects to the advertiser's site using the free connection time granted at the time of initial registration,
Free connection time can be increased. This allows
The user can enjoy surfing the Internet without paying any connection service fee from the beginning.

By using a toll-free number or the like, the user can use the Internet completely free of charge if the advertiser also bears the charge for using the public line.

[0030]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of an Internet connection service device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Internet connection service device 10
Reference numeral 0 denotes an apparatus for an Internet service provider to provide a service for connecting a user's communication terminal 10 (computer or other communication terminal) to the Internet 20.

The user's communication terminal 10 is dial-up connected to the Internet connection service device 100 via an analog public telephone line or an ISDN line. The Internet connection service device 100 communicates with the Internet through a dedicated line and IP (Internet Protocol).
It is connected.

Internet connection service device 100
Includes a control unit 200 and a recording unit 300. The control unit 200 includes a connection control unit 210 and a connection management unit 220
, A user authentication unit 230, a user management unit 240, an advertiser management unit 250, and an advertiser introduction unit 260.

The recording unit 300 stores the customer database 310
, Free connection time database 320, click log database 330, advertiser database 340
And an advertisement information database 350.

The connection control section 210 of the control section 200 is a section that actually performs the function of connecting the user's communication terminal 10 to the Internet 20. The connection management unit 220 is a part that performs functions such as managing connection time for each user and confirming the connection destination of each user. User authentication unit 23
0 is a part for performing user authentication based on a user ID and a password.

The user management section 240 performs a function of managing various types of user information, and rewrites or reads out the registered contents of the customer database 310 and the registered contents of the free connectable time database 320. The customer database 310 is a database for registering various information about each user in addition to the user ID and password of each user.

The free connectable time database 320 is
This is a database for registering, for each user, the available free connection time held by each user. The free connection available time indicates the length of time during which the corresponding user can connect his or her communication terminal to the Internet for free or at a lower price than usual. For example, if the free connection time is one hour, it indicates that the user can enjoy his / her surfing by connecting his / her communication terminal to the Internet for one hour free of charge or at low cost.

[0037] The user management unit 240
1, a free time addition unit 242, a free time subtraction unit 243, and the like. The user registration unit 241 performs processing such as registering a user who uses a service provided by the present apparatus for the first time in the customer database 310. The free time addition unit 242 increases the free connectable time possessed by the user by a fixed time based on the fact that the communication terminal 10 of the user has connected to the site of the predetermined advertiser. It fulfills the function of updating the registered contents. Free time subtraction part 2
Reference numeral 43 denotes a function of reducing the user's free connectable time by the amount of connection of the user's communication terminal 10 to the Internet 20 and updating the registered contents of the free connectable time database 320.

The advertiser database 340 is a database for storing various information on the advertiser.
The advertisement information database 350 is a database for registering, for each advertiser, the content of an image to be displayed when introducing an advertiser's site to a user.

The advertiser management unit 250 includes an advertiser registration unit 25
1, a right adding unit 252, a right subtracting unit 253, and the like. The advertiser registration unit 251 sets the size of the advertising right necessary for the introduction information for introducing the advertiser's site to the user to be transmitted to the user's communication terminal and presents it to the advertiser database 340 for each advertiser. It is to register. Here, the size of the advertising right is indicated by the number of times that a certain free connectable time can be given to the user, and this number is referred to as the right number of times.

The right adding unit 252 has a function of increasing the number of times of the right associated with the advertiser for which the advertisement fee has been paid in accordance with the paid advertisement fee. The number of rights registered for the advertiser is added and rewritten. The right subtraction unit 253 displays the user's communication terminal 10 on the site of the advertiser.
When the user's free connection time is increased due to connection, the advertiser's advertising right is reduced. In other words, it fulfills the function of reducing the number of rights of the corresponding advertiser by one. Specifically, the number of rights of the advertiser registered in the advertiser database 340 is subtracted by one and rewritten.

The advertiser introduction section 260 transmits and presents the introduction information of the advertiser having the advertising right to the communication terminal 10 of the user. That is, for advertisers whose number of rights is one or more, a Web page listing information of those advertisers (such as a simple introduction image with a link to the advertiser's site set) in a predetermined order is displayed. The function of creating and transmitting to the communication terminal 10 of the user is performed.

Therefore, an advertiser whose number of rights has become "0" is excluded from the list display of the introduction information, even if registered as an advertiser. The transmission of the introduction information is performed, for example, when the communication terminal 10 of the user makes a dial-up connection to the Internet connection service device 100 and the user authentication processing is completed.

The connection management unit 220 sequentially checks the free connection available time possessed by the user for each user connected to the Internet, and notifies the user of the remaining free connection available time. Has functions. For example, an image indicating the remaining time during which the user can connect to the Internet for free or at a low price is always inset and displayed on a part of the screen to be transmitted to the communication terminal 10 of the user. Further, the connection management unit 220 disconnects the connection with the communication terminal 10 of the user when the free connectable time becomes equal to or less than a predetermined minimum time. The minimum time may be “0”, but it is desirable to set a certain time, such as tens of minutes, as the minimum time so that the user can connect to the advertiser's site again and obtain a free connection possible time.

The click log database 330 is a database for recording, for each advertiser, the number of times that the user's communication terminal 10 has connected to the advertiser's site from the page displaying the introduction information in a list. The customer database 310, the free connection time database 320, and the click log database 330 cooperate with each other using the user ID as a key, and the advertiser database 340, the advertisement information database 350, and the click log database 330
Are linked using the sponsor ID as a key.

The Internet connection service device also has a function as a server, displays introduction information of the advertiser as described above, and also functions as a server for requesting free connection time. ing.

Next, the operation will be described. FIG. 2 shows the flow of procedures related to registration of an advertiser (sponsor) and the like. When an advertiser desires an advertisement using the Internet connection service device 100, the advertiser first connects his or her communication terminal to the Internet from another provider (step S401). Then, it connects to our site (the server function of the Internet connection service device 100) (step S402) and registers as a sponsor (step S403).

The contents of the sponsor registration include the name of the advertiser, the contents of the introductory information displayed to attract the user to the advertiser's site, and the information necessary for linking to the advertiser's site. URL or the like. These pieces of information are registered in the advertiser database 340 and the advertisement information database 350.

Thereafter, it is confirmed that the advertiser has paid the advertisement fee (sponsor fee) (step S).
404), the number of rights of the advertiser is added according to the paid advertisement fee. Thereby, the introduction information of the advertiser is displayed to the user thereafter (step S405). The advertisement fee is settled by electronic banking, normal bank transfer, or credit card.

Next, various aspects of the initial registration of the user will be described. FIG. 3 shows a flow when a user who has obtained information about our connection service from a television, a radio, a book, or the like performs initial registration. A user who has seen an advertisement about our connection service on a television, radio, or book (step S501) connects his communication terminal to the Internet from another provider (step S502), and connects to our site (step S503). .

Then, the dedicated dial-up connection software is downloaded from the homepage of our site or the like (step S504). After that, once the connection to the Internet is cut off, connect directly to our site using the special dial-up connection software downloaded earlier (step S
505), and perform user registration (step S506).

The contents of the user registration include a user ID,
Password. These pieces of user information are newly registered in the customer database 310. Further, the user is given a free connectable time of a predetermined time (initial time, for example, 30 minutes), and newly registers the value in the free connectable time database 320 in association with the user (step S507).

FIG. 4 shows a CD-ROM (Compact Disk Rea
d Only Memory) and DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile)
It shows the flow of connecting and user registration using a distributable recording medium such as Disk Read Only Memory. Users can use the dedicated dial-up connection software on CD-RO
M or a DVD-ROM (step S60).
1). Then, the user directly connects to our site using the dedicated dial-up connection software (step S602), performs user registration (step S603), and obtains a free connection available time for the initial time (step S604).

FIG. 5 shows the flow when initial connection is made by connecting from another provider. The user connects his or her communication terminal to the Internet from another provider (step S701) and connects to our site (step S701).
702). Then, the user is registered (step S70).
3), obtain a free connectable time for the initial time (step S704).

The contents of the user registration include a user ID,
Password. These pieces of user information are newly registered in the customer database 310. Further, the user is given a free connectable time of a predetermined time (initial time, for example, 30 minutes), and newly registers the value in the free connectable time database 320 in association with the user (step S507).

Thereafter, the connection to the Internet is cut off at one end (step S705), and various settings are changed to directly connect to our site (step S706). After that, dial-up connection to our site (step S
707), once the user ID and password have been authenticated (step S708), as long as the user has free connection time, the user can enjoy the Internet free of charge (via the Internet connection service device 100) with our company as a provider. Yes (step S709).

FIG. 6 shows a flow when a connection is made from a toll free (registered trademark). The user directly connects to our site using dedicated dial-up connection software and toll free (step S801), performs user registration (step S802), and obtains a free connectable time for the initial time (step S802). Step S803).

Next, the flow from when the user connects to the advertiser's site to obtain a new free connection available time will be described. As shown in FIG. 7, the user firstly enters our site, that is, the Internet connection service device 100.
Is dialed up (step S901). Upon receiving a connection request from the user, the Internet connection service device 100 first authenticates the user ID and password (step S902).

When the authentication of the user is completed normally, the value of the free connectable time possessed by the user is read from the free connectable time database 320, and the value is acquired (step S903). For example, the end time of the free connection is set based on this value. In addition, the time obtained by subtracting the predetermined minimum time from the free connection available time to the current time is set as the end time. The arrival of the end time is managed by the connection management unit 220, and when the current time reaches the end time, the connection with the communication terminal of the user is cut off at that time.

The user's communication terminal whose end time is set based on the free connectable time is connected to the Internet, and then the home page of our site is displayed on the user's communication terminal (step S905). From this Web page, a link is provided to a page in which the introduction information of the advertiser who has the advertising right is displayed in a list. By clicking a predetermined location, the user is moved to the page and the introduction information is displayed in a list. (Step S906). In addition, you may make it list introduction information on a part of our homepage.

When the part of the advertiser desired by the user is clicked from the list display of the introduction information, the communication terminal 10 of the user is connected to the site of the advertiser (step S907). The advertiser's page shows a switch to link to our site server. When the user clicks on the relevant location, the user is connected to a server (a server for requesting free connection time) that provides a page for making a request for obtaining the free connection time of our site. You will be prompted for a password.

When the user finishes inputting these, the Internet connection service apparatus 100 determines the free connection available time of the corresponding user based on the information on the user and the advertiser's site obtained from the free connection available time billing server. It is added for a certain time (step S910). For example, when the free connectable time is obtained, the end time is reset so that the end time is delayed by the obtained time, and the user connects to the Internet connection service apparatus 1.
When the connection with 00 is disconnected, the remaining free connectable time possessed by the user is calculated from the difference between the time and the reset end time, and this is registered and updated in the free connectable time database 320. And so on.

Although not shown in the flowchart, when the user's free connection possible time is added, the number of rights of the advertiser who caused the addition is subtracted by "1". Then, when the number of rights held by the advertiser becomes “0”, thereafter, the introduction information of the advertiser is excluded from the list display and is not presented to the user.

Also, the number of times the user clicked on any advertiser in the list display of the introduction information and was connected is
It is recorded in the click log database 330 for each advertiser. As shown in FIG. 8, the advertiser connects to our site (steps S1001 and S1002), inputs a sponsor ID and a password, and when the authentication is normally completed (step S1003), the advertiser accesses the site of the advertiser. It is possible to see the number of times link information (introduction information) is clicked (steps S1004, S1)
005).

In the above-described embodiment, a request for obtaining a free connectable time is accepted by clicking a link switch to our server provided on the Web page of the advertiser's site. The Internet connection service device 100 recognizes at that time which advertiser's site the user has connected to from the page displayed in the list, and based on this, gives the user a certain free connection available time. Good.

Further, although the list of the introduction information to the advertiser's site is displayed, the display form of the introduction information is not limited to this. In addition, the number of rights set according to the paid advertising fee is set, and the referral information is displayed until the number is reduced to "0". However, the number of times the user has connected to each advertiser's site is counted. Then, an advertisement fee according to the number of times of connection may be charged after the fact.

Furthermore, although the advertisement fee paid by the advertiser is associated with the added amount of the number of times of the right, the period during which the introduction information is displayed in a list may be associated with the advertisement fee. The charge may be made according to the number of times a contract has been made on the advertiser's site. Also,
Each time a user connects to the advertiser's site, a certain free connection time is granted, but the length of the free connection time granted is determined by taking into account factors such as how long the user stayed on the site. May be changed.
In response, the size of the advertiser's advertising rights,
Instead of using the number of times as a reference, the free connectable time granted to the user may be managed in units.

The advertiser may be responsible for only the connection service fee to the provider. For example, the cost required for accepting the connection from the user by free dial and connecting to the Internet including the line usage fee is also included. May be borne by the advertiser. Note that the advertiser may bear only a part of the connection service fee for the provider and the use fee of the public line, and the connection fee may be set lower than usual.

In addition, in the embodiment, the initial time is given at the time of user registration. Initially, however, a connection is made from another provider to the page of our site, and the free connection time is acquired there. In this case, the initial time does not always have to be given.

Further, in the embodiment, the remaining time of the free connection available time possessed by the user is always set and displayed on a part of the screen displayed on the communication terminal of the user. A warning may be issued only when the remaining time decreases below a certain level. In the case of always displaying the remaining time, the remaining time itself may be displayed by a number or a picture may be displayed by a remaining amount meter or the like.

Further, in the embodiment, when the free connection available time runs out, the line of the user is cut off. However, for example, only the time of using the Internet without the free connection available time is reduced. A fee may be charged to the user.

The function as a server for requesting free connection time or a server of our site may be provided in the Internet connection service device 100 itself, or may be divided into another device.

[0072]

According to the Internet connection service apparatus 100 of the present invention, the user can connect to the Internet for free or at a lower price than usual, so that the user can sufficiently surf the Internet without worrying about charges. You can enjoy.

In addition, since the advertiser can actively call the user to the advertiser's site as compared with the conventional banner advertisement, the number of connection times increases, and the advertisement can be efficiently performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an Internet connection service device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a flow when registering an advertiser in the Internet connection service device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a flow of registering a user from various media in the Internet connection service device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a flow when registering a user from a CD-ROM or the like in the Internet connection service device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a flow of registering a user from another provider in the Internet connection service device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a flow of registering a user using a free dial in the Internet connection service device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a flow when a user acquires a free connection available time in the Internet connection service device according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a flow when an advertiser checks the number of clicks on his or her site in the Internet connection service device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... User communication terminal 20 ... Internet 100 ... Internet connection service device 200 ... Control part 210 ... Connection control part 220 ... Connection management part 230 ... User authentication part 240 ... User management part 241 ... User registration part 242 ... Free time addition part 243 free time subtraction section 250 advertiser management section 251 advertiser registration section 252 right addition section 253 right right subtraction section 260 advertiser introduction section 300 recording section 310 customer database 320 free connection available time database 330 ... Click log database 340 ... Advertiser database 350 ... Advertisement information database

Continued on the front page F-term (reference) 5B089 GA21 HA01 HA03 HA10 JA20 JB00 KB12 KB13 KC58 5K025 AA08 BB10 CC09 GG10 5K030 HC01 HD03 KA04 LD18 5K101 KK02 MM07 NN21 NN48 9A001

Claims (7)

[Claims] An Internet connection service apparatus for connecting a user's communication terminal connected via a public line or the like to the Internet, comprising: a user registration means, a free time addition means, a free time subtraction means, and a connection management means. The user registration means is for registering, for each user, a free connectable time indicating a time during which the user's communication terminal can be connected to the Internet for free or at a lower price than usual, and the free time addition means is provided for each user. Is based on the fact that the communication terminal has connected to a pre-registered advertiser's site, and increases the user's free connectable time registered in the user registration means. Free connection of the user registered in the user registration means as much as the communication terminal connected to the Internet The connection management means connects the user to the Internet for free or at a lower price than usual while the free connection available time remains for a predetermined time or more. Internet connection service device. 2. An Internet connection service apparatus for connecting a user's communication terminal connected through a public line or the like to the Internet, comprising: an advertiser introduction means, a user registration means, a free time addition means, a free time subtraction means, A connection management unit, wherein the user registration unit registers, for each user, a free connectable time indicating a time during which the user's communication terminal can connect to the Internet for free or at a lower price than usual, and the advertisement The main introduction means is for transmitting and presenting introductory information for introducing a pre-registered advertiser's site to the user to the user's communication terminal, and wherein the free time adding means introduces in the introductory information. Based on the fact that the user's communication terminal has connected to the site of the advertiser, The free time subtracting means decreases the free connectable time of the user registered in the user registration means by an amount corresponding to the connection of the user's communication terminal to the Internet. The Internet connection service device, wherein the connection management means connects the user to the Internet free of charge or at a lower price than usual while the free connectable time remains for a predetermined time or more. 3. The advertiser introduction unit according to claim 2, wherein the advertiser introduction means presents the introduction information of the advertiser for whom the advertisement fee has been paid for a period corresponding to the paid advertisement fee. Internet connection service device. 4. An Internet connection service device for connecting a user's communication terminal connected through a public line or the like to the Internet, comprising: an advertiser registration unit, an advertisement right addition unit, an advertisement right subtraction unit, and an advertiser introduction unit. A user registration unit, a free time addition unit, a free time subtraction unit, and a connection management unit, wherein the user registration unit sets a time at which a user's communication terminal can be connected to the Internet for free or at a lower price than usual. The advertiser registration unit registers the advertiser's site to the user by introducing the advertiser's site to the user's communication terminal. The size of the right is registered for each advertiser, and the advertisement right adding unit is configured to register the advertisement right associated with the advertiser who has paid the advertisement fee. The size of is increased according to the paid advertising fee, the advertiser introduction means is to transmit and present the introduction information of the advertiser having the advertising right to the user's communication terminal, The free time adding means increases the free connectable time of the user based on the connection of the user's communication terminal to the advertiser's site introduced in the advertiser introduction information, The subtraction means, when increasing the user's free connectable time based on the connection of the user's communication terminal to the advertiser's site, reduces the advertising right of the advertiser, the free time subtraction means, The connection management means reduces the user's free connection available time registered in the user registration means by an amount corresponding to the connection of the user's communication terminal to the Internet. Possible while time is still more than a predetermined time, Internet connection service apparatus, characterized in that to connect the user to the Internet in small amount than free or in normal. 5. The Internet connection service device according to claim 1, wherein the own device checks which user's communication terminal has connected to which advertiser's site. 6. A user who sets a link from each advertiser's site to a predetermined free connectable time billing server and connects to the free connectable time billing server from the advertiser's site via the link. By inputting the user's identification information and the like from the communication terminal of the user and obtaining the input content from the free connection time billing server, it is possible to confirm which communication terminal of the user has connected to which advertiser's site. The Internet connection service device according to claim 1, 2, 3, or 4, wherein: 7. A fixed amount of free connection available time for each user,
3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the user is given at least when the user is initially registered in the user registration unit.
7. The Internet connection service device according to 3, 4, 5, or 6.