JP2002133288A - Mail distributing system which can add advertising information to mail, and mail distributing system which can provide several kinds of mail distributing services whose receiving types are mutually different - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mail distributing service which is adaptable to a plurality of kinds of instruments which use one mail account regardless of the sending and receiving property of each terminal, and also provide a mail distributing system which users can gain income for advertisement by adding advertisement to mail. SOLUTION: This is a mail distributing system which can add advertising information stored in a server to a mail, which is sent to a certain mail account through a communication line such as the Internet. The advertising information to be added to the mail is selected properly from a plurality advertising informations according to information registered for every user in advance and/or from information of providing condition of an advertiser who wants to provide the advertising information, and added.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an advertisement insertion mail system that inserts an advertisement when an Internet mail is delivered and returns a part or all of the advertisement revenue provided by an advertiser to a user of the mail system. In addition, the present invention relates to a system for appropriately changing received mail according to the specifications of a display screen of a terminal that receives the mail so that the mail can be received well.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When using an Internet mail system, a user connects to an access point prepared by a provider by means of telephone, CATV, packet communication, etc., and a mail server on the Internet and the user himself / herself. By exchanging mail data with your computer or mobile phone,
It performs processing such as sending, receiving, and forwarding mail. A user who subscribes to a provider can usually obtain one or more mail accounts for a fee or free of charge, and can use it.

[0003] A paying provider obtains from a user an amount calculated based on the time of connection to the Internet, the number of transmitted and received e-mails, the amount of transmitted and received data, and the like, or a fixed amount of money every month, every year, or a certain number of days. It is obtained from the user and is used as the operating cost of the provider.

[0004] On the other hand, a free provider displays an advertisement on a browser or on a part of a screen at the time of connection, and uses the advertisement revenue as an operating cost.

[0005] In some cases, telephone companies and CATV companies reduce the overall fee for using the Internet by calculating the sum of the communication cost to the access point and the Internet connection fee.

[0006]

As described above, in the conventional provider, there are some places where the provider's fee is made free by covering the provider's fee with advertising expenses and the like, but the connection fee to the access point is reduced. You don't actually have to pay for the entire Internet usage because you have to pay the provider.

[0007] Therefore, in the conventional system, no matter how much the connection service becomes free, the communication fee still remains, so that it is not free.

In addition, since the mail service is integrated with the service provided by the provider, it is necessary to use a mail corresponding to various devices (a personal computer, a mobile phone, a mobile, an electronic notebook, etc.) used by the user. However, you will need to sign a separate contract with a provider that provides services suited to the device.As a result, you will obtain multiple email accounts, set up forwarding between each email account, We cope so that mail is delivered to the account in one place.

[0009] However, such a system requires a contract with a plurality of providers, which not only increases the user's expenditure associated with the contract, but also does not eliminate the trouble of having to manage a plurality of addresses. Was.

A first object of the present invention is to provide a transmission / reception characteristic (for example, display) of each terminal without employing a system for distributing a plurality of mail accounts to one mail account as described above. It is an object of the present invention to provide a mail delivery method capable of providing a plurality of kinds of mail delivery services applicable to a plurality of kinds of devices using one mail account regardless of the number of possible characters or a difference in a receiving form. I do.

A second object of the present invention is to release the user as the above object from the complexity of account management, and to attach an advertisement to an e-mail so that the user can obtain the advertisement revenue. The purpose is to provide an e-mail distribution system that can add advertising information to e-mails that can be obtained, and to achieve this purpose, thereby reducing the connection fee to the access point as a result. I do.

[0012]

More specifically, the present invention provides the following system.

(1) A mail distribution system capable of adding advertisement information stored in a server to mail transmitted to a certain mail account through a communication line such as the Internet network. The advertisement information to be provided is appropriately selected and added from a plurality of pieces of advertisement information based on information registered in advance for each user and / or provision condition information of an advertiser who wants to provide the advertisement information. An email distribution system that can add advertising information.

[0014] According to the present invention, the advertisement distribution prompting the advertiser or the user's request based on the information registered by the user based on the age, sex, hobbies, etc. of the user to whom the advertiser wants to distribute the advertisement in advance. Can be done against

[0015] Even in the prior art, in a part of a free mail system (free provider), advertisement information is automatically added to mail transmitted and received to all users under uniform conditions, and an advertisement is added to the mail. Although there is a mail delivery server operated by an advertisement fee obtained by attaching the mail and the mail can be sent / received to / from the user for free, the delivery of the advertisement information is provided to a user who is worth the delivery. No consideration was given to distributing.

According to the present invention, it is possible to deliver a mail to which advertisement information is appropriately added to a user who has a value of delivery, so that the mail obtained by the advertisement information can be obtained in comparison with a conventional system for adding advertisement information to a mail. Effect can be improved.

The position on the mail where the advertisement information is added is not particularly limited, and may be inserted into one or both of the header and the footer of the mail. As described above, by embedding the advertisement information in the mail between individuals, the degree of exposure of the advertisement can be increased, and advertisement distribution with more advertisement value can be performed.

Further, in adopting the present system, the user can be authenticated. When the advertisement information is added, the authentication process is performed on condition that the authentication process corresponding to the mail account is completed. It is also possible to provide an e-mail distribution system capable of adding advertisement information to e-mails that can be distributed to a terminal of a user.

(2) A mail delivery system capable of adding the advertisement information according to the above (1), wherein the number of times the mail is delivered is recorded in a delivery record database. system.

According to the present invention, the number of times an e-mail for adding advertisement information has been received to a user who uses a certain e-mail account is recorded in the distribution record database. It is possible for the user to enjoy a predetermined profit such as cashback according to the number of times of receiving the advertisement information recorded in the database, and it is possible to improve the user's willingness to purchase.

According to the number of times the advertisement information recorded in the distribution record database is received, the payment to the user in the case of performing the cashback is performed by using an agent or directly to the user's bank account or By paying to a post office account or by paying a fee to a telephone company or CATV, etc. on behalf of the user,
Regardless of the method of connecting to the Internet, either the fixed-rate connection or the pay-per-use method, or any method of telephone, CATV, and packet communication, the charge can be discounted.

(3) A mail distribution system to which the advertisement information of (2) can be added, comprising means for calculating an advertisement fee according to the number of times of distribution for each user stored in the distribution record database. A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information.

According to the present invention, since the means for calculating the advertisement fee is provided, it is possible to return a predetermined profit such as cashback to the user by referring to the calculation result as described above. It will be easier. In addition, if the calculation result is configured to be viewable to the user, the user is stimulated by the calculation result, which motivates the user to distribute or receive more mails. The advertising effect of distributing advertisements is improved, and the number of companies and the like who want to post advertisements on this mail distribution system is increased, which leads to an increase in the advertisement fee revenue of the provider operating the mail distribution system. It becomes possible. The calculation of the advertisement fee can be set as appropriate, for example, every time the mail is delivered or every predetermined period.

Here, "according to the number of distributions for each user" means that the advertisement fee is changed in accordance with the number of mails distributed by the user. For the user who has made the distribution, an operation such as reducing the amount of money cashed back to the user can be appropriately performed.

For example, if the number of e-mails sent to the same person is 100, it is less likely that the person will see the advertisement each time. As a result, the advertisement value will decrease. Become. For this reason, the number of advertisements distributed by the user is counted as one, but an operation such as lowering the advertisement fee per count can be performed. In other words, the value of the advertisement changes depending on the number of mail distributions, and the advertisement cost fluctuates. Therefore, there is no need to pay for an advertisement that is not actually seen or is considered to be discarded.

(4) In the mail delivery system according to any one of (1) to (3), wherein the advertisement information can be added, the terminal of the user is a mobile phone, a portable computer, or a reception type of a stationary computer. A plurality of different types of terminals, the contents of the mail transmitted to the mail account are changed to a form according to the reception specification of the user terminal set in advance for each mail account, and the user terminal A mail distribution system capable of adding advertisement information characterized in that it can be distributed to a user.

According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce waste such as the necessity of installing a dedicated i-mode server, for example, so as to be suitable for each terminal receiving mail.

(5) In the mail delivery system according to the above (4), wherein the advertisement information can be added, the contents are changed to a form set in advance for each mail account. A plurality of types can be set, and the user selects an e-mail transmitted to the e-mail account on condition that the user selects one of the types set in advance for the e-mail account. A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information, wherein the content is changed to a form described above and can be delivered to the terminal of the user.

According to the present invention, according to the present invention, the user sets in advance a form suitable for the terminal receiving the mail, and sends the mail transmitted to the mail account in a form set for each mail account. Is changed to the previously set form and distributed, so that a plurality of mails such as a mail account for an i-mode portable terminal and a mail account for a stationary personal computer as in the related art are provided. Accounts can be covered by one email account. In this way, users can manage multiple email accounts,
It is possible to provide an environment that can be released from uneconomical and troublesome work such as paying a usage fee.

(6) In the mail delivery system according to the above (5), wherein the advertisement information can be added, the user selects one of the forms set in advance for each of the plurality of mail accounts. A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information, characterized in that the user is prompted to make a selection at the time of user authentication processing at the time of "".

According to the present invention, at the time of authentication, that is, at the stage of prompting the user to input a user ID, a password, and the like, and at the stage of authenticating the user, the user-initiated type of receiving form is determined. , It is not necessary for the server side to know what type of terminal the user is trying to receive, so it is easy for the user side to use multiple terminals with one mail account Becomes

For example, by inserting a combination of special characters such as # 1 and a number into the user ID, the special characters such as # 1 are separated from the user ID at the time of user authentication, and the special characters are deleted from the reception setting DB. The reception setting registered with the user ID and the number can be acquired, the mail data can be changed to the form selected by the user, and the mail can be delivered to the user device.

When the reception setting information is inserted in the user ID, the user ID and the reception setting information are identified by, for example, the number of digits at the time of user authentication, and the reception setting information (for example, the Authentication can also be performed by separating special characters such as # 1.

(7) In the mail delivery system to which the advertisement information described in (2) or (3) can be added, the advertisement fee to the user is reduced according to the number of times of delivery of the mail recorded in the delivery record database. When performing cashback, when the number of receptions within a predetermined period exceeds a predetermined number, a means for performing a truncation process of the number according to the number of receptions after the predetermined number, or ,
A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information, characterized by comprising one or both of means for stopping delivery of the mail.

According to the present invention, in the advertisement insertion mail system, the advertisement income increases as the number of received mails increases, but the advertisement is not viewed when the number of mails viewed by the user per day is large. It is possible to eliminate inefficient advertisement distribution such as increasing the probability and ghost members who have acquired the mail account (members who hardly use this mail account).

In a system such as the present invention, the advertisement income increases as the number of received mails increases, and therefore, depending on the user, reception of a mailing list or the like is performed without actually using the mail. Therefore, by pretending to be a large number of receptions, there is a possibility that the user who seeks income may appear.
Record the number of emails sent, and if the average of the number of daily or monthly transmissions falls below a certain specified value, or if the ratio of the number of transmissions to the number of receptions falls below a certain ratio, it is assumed that it is not used, Suspend refunds until they are sent,
It is possible to configure a system that restricts or cancels the use of mail.

(8) In the mail delivery system according to any one of the above (1) to (7), wherein the advertisement information can be added, the user ID and password required for the user authentication process are A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information, which is stored in a server in association with advertisement fee return information for advertising fee cashback.

According to the present invention, the user ID and the password and the advertisement fee return information are configured to be associated with each other and stored. As a result, the identity as the advertisement fee return information can be confirmed. It is possible to avoid the possibility that a false account number, a telephone number and the like are made fictitious by an unauthorized user.

Therefore, in the advertisement insertion mail system, the user needs to record his / her own account number, name, telephone number, and the like in order to have the amount refunded. Since the information is issued after a certain company confirms its identity, it is inevitable that the information registered in the advertisement insertion mail system will be accurate.

(9) In the mail distribution system capable of adding the advertisement information according to any one of (1) to (3), the mail transmitted to the mail account is in a form set in advance for each mail account. And the content is distributed to the user's terminal, and the "change the content to a preset format for each email account" is a preset "from the text (characters) of the sent email. A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information characterized by a process of deleting words or line feed codes that are unnecessary for grasping mail contents such as endings such as “mas”.

According to the present invention, as exemplified in the embodiments described later, a Web mail transmitting / receiving unit and a mailer transmitting / receiving unit are provided for each user equipment, for example, a mobile phone or a portable computer. You can set several display methods, such as deleting spaces in the body of the email, endings such as "is" and "wa", and deleting line feed codes in consideration of the screen size of the user device. hand,
In order to be able to see more information at a time, the "words that are unnecessary for grasping the contents of the mail" registered in advance are deleted. In addition, since the mail can be automatically corrected according to the specifications of the receiving terminal, the user does not need to receive a plurality of mail services for each receiving terminal.

(10) In the mail delivery system capable of adding the advertisement information according to any one of (1) to (9), the added advertisement information includes a URL or the like for viewing details of the advertisement. Link information is attached,
This link information is information for once accessing the web page corresponding to the advertisement via the server of the mail distribution system, and in the step of accessing the web page corresponding to the advertisement via the server, A mail distribution system capable of adding advertisement information, wherein the fact that the advertisement information is accessed is stored as access information.

According to the present invention, the link information is link information related to the web page in the server, and the link information is not a URL for directly accessing the web page, but the user is not required to provide the advertisement information. Clicking the link information to see the details, once connected to the server, the URL of the real WEB page prepared in advance
Is set to jump to, so that the server side can know which advertisement information has been accessed at that time, so that an advertisement request can be made to collect an advertisement fee in accordance with the information. Can be performed for the person.

As a more specific example, the inserted advertisement describes a link URL to a WEB related to the advertisement, and clicking the URL moves to the WEB page. However, the URL is not the URL of the WEB page, but the URL for executing the program on the access counter device, the number of the destination, and the number of the user who received the advertisement, are described in advance. In the access counter device,
It is also possible to acquire the destination page URL from the destination number, record who accessed it and to what extent, and then use that program to move to the relevant page.

According to the present invention, when link information such as advertisement information exists in advance for a mail to be transferred or returned, the mail can be transferred by deleting the advertisement information. It is possible to solve the problem that the previous advertisement information remains when it is repeated, making it difficult to see the mail or the like.

That is, when replying or forwarding an e-mail, it is possible to judge a special character string such as a URL included in the body and remove the advertisement before transmitting. This special character string can be registered by both the user and the server administrator.

(11) A mail transmitted to a mail account via a communication line such as the Internet network is transmitted to a terminal of a user who has performed the authentication process on condition that the authentication process corresponding to the mail account has been completed. A mail delivery system capable of providing a mail service capable of delivering the mail to the mail account, wherein the mail content changing means of the server converts the content of the mail sent to the mail account into a form preset for each mail account. A mail delivery system capable of providing a plurality of types of mail delivery services having different reception modes, which includes a control content to be changed and delivered to the user terminal.

(12) In the above mode of changing the content to a mode preset for each mail account, a plurality of modes can be set for the one mail account.
Simultaneously with or after the authentication process, transmitted to the mail account or transmitted from the mail account, provided that the user selects one of the forms set in advance for each mail account. (11) The mail delivery system according to (11), which is capable of providing a plurality of types of mail delivery services having different reception forms, wherein the contents include control contents for changing the contents of the received mail to a form selected by the user.

(13) The above-mentioned “change the contents to the form set in advance for each mail account” means that the sentence (characters) of the sent mail has a predetermined ending such as “is” or “mas”. It is possible to provide a plurality of types of mail delivery services having different reception modes as described in the above (11) or (12), which include a control content for deleting words that are unnecessary for grasping the mail content. Email delivery system.

(14) The “change the contents to a form preset for each mail account” is transmitted according to the size of the mail display screen of the terminal to receive the mail to be distributed. (1) characterized in that it includes control contents of a change, such as deleting a line feed or the like of an e-mail.
A mail delivery system capable of providing a plurality of types of mail delivery services having different reception modes according to any one of (1) to (13).

(15) The above “change the content to a form preset for each mail account” means that when mail transmitted from the mail account is attached with link information such as a URL, E-mail distribution capable of providing a plurality of types of e-mail distribution services having different reception modes according to any one of the above (11) to (14), including at least a control content for deleting and transferring the link information. system.

(16) In the mail distribution system capable of adding the advertisement information described in the above items 1 to 10, access to the WEB page is automatically performed according to the request of the user, and information on the WEB page is used as advertisement information. An email delivery system that can be added.

According to the present invention, W
Since the information on the EB page is distributed as advertisement information, the advertisement value is the highest, and the use of the present system can be improved. Also, by analyzing a web page of interest to the user, it is possible to check the user's hobbies and interests and to add advertising information of interest to the user. In other words, when an ad is clicked, the user does not link directly to the advertiser's site, but goes through this system and regularly sends a web page of interest to the user by e-mail. Advertisements can be distributed based on preference information.

Further, the present invention can be used for intentionally increasing the advertisement income by the user, and the use of the present system can be promoted.

According to the mail distribution system of the present invention, the following distribution method can be provided.

(17) The advertisement information stored in the server is added to the mail transmitted to a certain mail account through a communication line such as the Internet network, and the authentication processing corresponding to the mail account is completed. A mail delivery method capable of adding advertisement information to a mail that can be delivered to a terminal of a user who has performed the authentication process, wherein the advertisement information added to the mail includes a plurality of advertisement information A mail delivery method capable of adding advertisement information, which is appropriately selected and added based on information registered in advance for each user and / or provision condition information of an advertiser who wants to provide the advertisement information.

(18) A mail delivery method capable of adding advertisement information according to the above (17), wherein the number of times the mail has been delivered is recorded in a delivery record database. Method.

(19) A mail delivery method according to the above (18), wherein the advertisement information can be added, wherein the mail delivery or the predetermined period of time is performed according to the number of deliveries for each user stored in the delivery record database. A mail distribution method capable of adding advertisement information, comprising a step of calculating an advertisement fee for each mail.

(20) In the mail delivery method according to any one of the above (17) to (19), wherein the advertisement information can be added, the terminal of the user is a reception spec of a mobile phone, a mobile computer, or a stationary computer. Different types of terminals, the contents of the mail transmitted to the mail account are appropriately changed to a form according to the reception specification of the terminal of the user set in advance for each mail account, A mail delivery method capable of adding advertisement information, characterized in that the mail delivery method is prepared to be able to be delivered to a terminal.

(21) In the mail distribution method according to the above (20), wherein the advertisement information can be added, the contents are changed to a form set in advance for each mail account. A plurality of types can be set, and the user selects an e-mail transmitted to the e-mail account on condition that the user selects one of the types set in advance for the e-mail account. A mail delivery method capable of adding advertising information, wherein the content is prepared so as to be able to be delivered to the user terminal by changing the content to the above-mentioned form.

(22) In the mail delivery method according to the above (21), wherein the advertisement information can be added, the user selects one of a plurality of forms set in advance for each of the mail accounts. The method according to claim 1, wherein the user is prompted to make a selection during the authentication process.

(23) In the mail delivery method according to the above (18) or (19), wherein the advertisement information can be added, the advertisement fee for the user is reduced according to the number of times of delivery of the mail recorded in the delivery record database. When performing cashback, if the number of receptions within a predetermined period exceeds a predetermined number, perform the head truncation processing of the number according to the number of receptions after the predetermined number, or ,
A mail delivery method capable of adding advertisement information, wherein the delivery of the mail is stopped.

(24) In the mail delivery method according to any one of (17) to (23), wherein the advertisement information can be added, the user ID and the password required for the authentication process include a cache of an advertisement fee for the user. A mail delivery method capable of adding advertisement information, characterized by being stored in a server in association with advertisement charge return information for a back-up.

(25) In the mail delivery method according to any one of (17) to (19), wherein the advertisement information can be added, the mail sent to the mail account is
The contents are changed to a form set in advance for each mail account, delivered to the terminal of the user, and the contents are changed to the form set in advance for each mail account.
Is to search and delete words or line feed codes that are unnecessary to grasp the contents of the e-mail such as the suffix such as "is" or "mas" from the sent e-mail text (characters). A mail distribution method capable of adding advertisement information, characterized by performing the following processing.

(26) In the mail delivery method according to any one of (17) to (25), wherein the advertisement information can be added, the added advertisement information includes a URL or the like for viewing details of the advertisement. Link information is attached,
This link information is information for accessing the WEB page corresponding to the advertisement once via the server, and is used for accessing the WEB page corresponding to the advertisement once via the server.
A mail delivery method to which advertisement information can be added, wherein at the stage of accessing the page B, the fact that the advertisement information has been accessed is stored as access information.

According to the mail delivery methods (17) to (26) to which the advertisement information can be added, the same effects as those of the inventions (1) to (10) corresponding to the above can be expected.

(27) A mail transmitted to a certain mail account via a communication line such as the Internet network is transmitted to a terminal of a user who has performed the authentication process on condition that the authentication process corresponding to the mail account has been completed. A mail delivery method capable of providing a mail service that can be delivered to the user, wherein the mail sent to the mail account is changed to a form set in advance for each mail account and sent to the user terminal. A mail distribution method capable of providing a plurality of types of mail distribution services having different reception forms, characterized in that the mail distribution service is provided.

According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce waste such as the necessity of installing a dedicated i-mode dedicated server so as to be suitable for each terminal receiving mail.

(28) In the mode of changing the content to a mode preset for each mail account, a plurality of modes can be set for the one mail account.
Simultaneously with or after the authentication process, transmitted to the mail account or transmitted from the mail account, provided that the user selects one of the forms set in advance for each mail account. (26) The mail distribution method capable of providing a plurality of types of mail distribution services having different reception forms according to (26), wherein the contents of the received mail are changed to a form selected by the user.

According to the present invention, a form suitable for the terminal receiving the mail is set in advance, and the form of the mail transmitted to the mail account is changed to the form set for each mail account. Since the content is changed in form and delivered, a plurality of mail accounts such as a mail account for an i-mode portable terminal and a mail account for a stationary personal computer are covered by one mail account as in the past. Will be able to do it. Thus, the user can be provided with an environment that can be released from uneconomical and troublesome tasks such as managing a plurality of mail accounts and paying usage fees.

(29) The above-mentioned “change the contents to a preset form for each mail account” means that the sentence (characters) of the sent mail has a predetermined ending such as “is” or “mas”. E-mail capable of providing a plurality of types of e-mail distribution services having different reception forms according to the above (27) or (28), wherein words that are unnecessary to grasp the contents of the e-mail are deleted. Delivery method.

According to the present invention, the e-mail text can be made compact by "deleting words that are unnecessary for grasping the e-mail contents such as the endings such as" is "and" mas "which are set in advance. Thus, for example, even if the terminal has a small display screen, the mail can be received and the user can confirm it.

(30) The “change the contents to a form preset for each mail account” means that the mail is transmitted according to the size of the mail display screen of the terminal to receive the mail to be distributed. (27) to (2), which includes a change such as deleting a line feed or the like of the e-mail.
9) A mail delivery method capable of providing a plurality of types of mail delivery services having different reception forms according to any one of 9) to 9).

According to the present invention, in addition to the effect of the above-mentioned (29), according to the size of the mail display screen of the terminal that should receive the mail, line breaks and the like of the transmitted mail are deleted. By making such a change, the layout of the mail can be changed according to the display screen of the terminal, and the mail can be edited according to the specifications of the terminal.

(31) The above “change the contents to a form preset for each mail account” means that when mail transmitted from the mail account is attached with link information such as a URL, A mail distribution method capable of providing a plurality of types of mail distribution services having different reception modes, characterized in that at least the link information is deleted and transferred.

(32) A mail distribution system capable of adding advertisement information stored in a server to a mail transmitted to a mail account through a communication line such as the Internet network, wherein the mail information is added to the mail. The advertisement information is a mail distribution system that can add an advertisement or WEB page related to the mail text as advertisement information by analyzing the text content of the mail text or extracting words.

According to the present invention, by analyzing the text content of the mail text or extracting words in the text of the mail text, information on a WEB page related to the text is added as advertisement information. Therefore, it is possible to insert advertising information having a higher advertising value.

[0078]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the system of the present invention.

In the figure, reference numeral 100 denotes a stationary computer owned by the user, reference numeral 200 denotes a portable computer that the user owns, and reference numeral 300 denotes a mobile phone owned by the user. Are the respective access points 400 and 5
It is configured to be connectable to an Internet communication network via 00 and 600. The Internet is connected to a server capable of executing the advertisement cost cashback method, and the user is connected to the server through the computer 100 or 200 or the mobile phone 300, and thereby the advertisement cost cashback method is concerned. The service can be provided. The server includes a mail delivery device 700 in one server.
And the advertisement distribution device 800 and the access counter device 9
00, the mail distribution device 70
0, the advertisement distribution device 800 and the access counter device 900 can be formed as a server that is separated and arranged.

When the user accesses the Internet to send and receive mail, the computer 100, the portable computer 200, or the mobile phone 300 is used to access the access point 400 or the access point 500 via a wireless or wired network. Alternatively, a mail delivery apparatus 700 as a part of the server on the Internet is accessed via an access point 600 to use a mail transmission / reception service.

Conventionally, when a user uses a computer 100 to use e-mail, the user connects to an access point 400 provided by a contracted provider when using the computer 100 via a wireless or wired network. The mail transmission / reception processing was performed using the mail delivery device prepared by the provider.

Alternatively, when the user operates the portable computer 20
In the case of using the mobile phone 300 or the mobile phone 300, a contract is made with a provider corresponding to each device (terminal), and each provider uses the access point 500 or the access point 600 prepared by the provider. The mail transmission / reception process is performed by using the prepared mail distribution device.

However, in this embodiment, the computers 100 and 200 and the mobile phone 300 access the mail distribution device 700 of the server without using the mail distribution devices of the access points 400, 500 and 600. To be able to receive email services.

Therefore, each access point 400,
Since the 500 and 600 providers do not use the mail delivery devices prepared, if the mail delivery device is charged, the usage fee can be prevented from being charged.

The problem here is that when sending and receiving e-mails, it is necessary to consider the difference in the number of characters and the receiving format from the screen size of each terminal (computer 100, 200, mobile phone 300). Because the mail delivery device of one server can be used on multiple types of terminals,
A new problem will arise. Consideration for this problem is based on FIGS. 6 to 8 and the like, and will be described in detail below.

That is, in this embodiment to which the present invention is applied, the user can use the mail distribution device 700 regardless of what device (terminal) and what provider is used. One email address is assigned to the computer 100 or the portable computer 200
And the mobile phone 300 can be used in common, and it is not necessary to manage a plurality of mail addresses.

Also, in this embodiment to which the present invention is applied, when receiving a mail, the advertisement distribution device 800 sets appropriate advertisement data in light of personal information for each user collected beforehand when obtaining a user ID. And insert the acquired advertising data at the beginning or end of the email body,
By transmitting mail data to the computer 100, the portable computer 200, and the mobile phone 300, the present mail system is operated by the advertisement revenue from the advertiser.

Also, in the advertisement sentence inserted in the above-mentioned mail body, a URL for accessing another site related to the advertisement specified by the advertiser is described. URL that jumps to the URL, in which the user ID that received the advertising data and the number associated with the URL for accessing the related website specified by the advertiser are described, When the user clicks the URL, the access counter 900 can record who (who is the user corresponding to the user ID) accessed the related website as access information.

The user ID is identification information for specifying one of a plurality of users who use the mail distribution device.

FIG. 2 is a detailed view of a portion of the Internet advertisement insertion system shown in FIG. 1 which performs mail distribution, and a portion which adds an advertisement at the time of mail distribution and deletes the advertisement at the time of forwarding or replying. The mail distribution device 700 is responsible for the mail distribution. The mail distribution device 700 includes an authentication DB 720 for authenticating the user ID and the like, and a reception setting DB 740 for storing reception settings specified for each user.
And a mail data storage unit 730 for storing transmitted and received mail data, and a control unit 710 for controlling the DBs 720, 730, and 740.

When a user wants to receive a mail using the computer 100, the portable computer 200, or the mobile phone 300, the authentication unit 711 of the control unit 710 of the mail distribution device 700 uses the ID input by the user.
By referring to the authentication database 720 based on the password and the password, it is determined whether or not the user can use the mail distribution apparatus (whether or not the user is a user with an authentic user ID). The user stores the user ID, the password, and the user's personal information in the reception setting database 740 and the authentication database 720 before using the mail distribution device.

The control unit 710 exchanges mail with the computer 100, the portable computer 200, or the mobile phone 300 by using the web mail transmitting / receiving unit 712 and the mailer transmitting / receiving unit 713.

At this time, the advertisement insertion unit 716 adds the advertisement data obtained via the advertisement distribution unit 812 of the control unit 810 of the advertisement distribution device 800 to the mail reception data for each user obtained from the mail data storage unit 730. After the insertion, the main body of the mail data into which the advertisement is inserted is passed to the transmission / reception unit 712 for web mail and the transmission / reception unit 713 for mailer. When receiving mail from another user on the Internet, the control unit 710 stores the mail data in the mail data storage unit via the mail reception unit 715.

Conversely, when a user using the mail distribution apparatus 700 transmits a mail to another user, the mail data is stored in the mail data storage unit 730 storing the mail data to be transmitted. At the time of acquisition, after the advertisement sentence included in the advertisement text is deleted by the advertisement deletion unit 717, the advertisement transmission unit 714 receives the data and transmits an e-mail to another user.

[0096] In the advertisement distribution apparatus 800, the advertisement distribution section 812 is operated by the distribution rule DB 83 in response to a request from the advertisement insertion section.
According to the distribution rule acquired from 0, an advertisement body is acquired from the advertisement DB 820 and then passed to the advertisement insertion unit 716. The advertisement sentence recorded in the advertisement DB 820 is the one recorded by the advertisement sentence definition unit 811, and the advertisement data thereof is the sentence specified by the advertiser. The person who confirms the content.

FIG. 3 is a detailed diagram of an advertisement fee calculation unit of the Internet mail advertisement insertion system shown in FIG. 1 and a part for counting the number of times of movement to an advertisement-related page.
The advertisement distribution device 800 transmits the user information to the distribution rule DB 830 by the user information definition unit 813 of the control unit 810.
Register with.

[0098] The advertisement distribution condition definition unit 814 records in the distribution rule DB 830 the user who distributes the advertisement desired by the advertiser, the date and time when the advertisement is distributed, and the like. The advertisement fee calculation unit 815 calculates the number of advertisement distributions for each advertisement and the distribution fee for each advertisement recorded in the distribution record DB 840 by the advertisement distribution unit 812 in FIG. 2, and calculates the advertisement fee charged to the advertiser. It is.

The cash-back unit 816 pays a part or all of the advertisement fee to the user through a bank account, a post office account, a telephone company, or the like by using an agency. If you click on a link to a related website in your ad text,
The access counting program of the access counting device 911 of the control unit 910 in the access counter device 900 records in the counter database 920 that the movement to the related website has been performed, and thereafter, the advertiser URL database 930 By referring to the above, it is possible to realize the movement to the actual related website.

FIG. 4 shows a flowchart of a registration operation performed by a user to use the mail account when using the Internet mail system.

The user first registers the age, occupation, occupation, gender, address, telephone number, hobby, etc., as shown in FIG. Next, the user inputs a desired mail account, and if it is not registered yet, further inputs a password. Then, according to the screens shown in FIGS. 6, 7 and 8, the user specifies their types, such as a device used by the user, for example, a desktop computer, a portable computer, a mobile phone, and the like, and the screen size possessed by them. And specify that unnecessary characters should be deleted from the body of the mail to match those devices.
A plurality of receiving methods with such a designated function can be provided for one mail account, and these are registered in a plurality of types such as mode 1, mode 2, mode 3, and mode 4. Can be done. These modes can be recorded up to a specified number of modes.

For the unnecessary characters described above, a character string such as an ending that is registered in the server in advance by a known character search method is searched and deleted.

FIG. 5 shows information registered for each mode after the setting of the receiving system shown in FIG.

These modes can be used properly depending on a plurality of devices used by the user. When accessing from each device, by combining special characters and numbers such as # 1, # 2, # 3, and # 4 after the registered account name, the mail distribution device 700 shown in FIG. 2 is used. The authentication unit 711 performs an authentication process using a character string in which the special characters and numbers have been added to the account to which the special characters and numbers have been added, and after the authentication has been confirmed, the web mail transmission / reception unit 712 And the mailer transmission / reception unit 713 searches the reception setting database 740 from the special characters and numbers with the special characters and numbers omitted from the account, and deletes them from the reception method, screen size, and text desired by the user. After performing the processing by recognizing a character string or the like, the computer 100, the portable computer 200, or the mobile phone 3
It sends an e-mail to 00.

FIG. 9 shows a flowchart when a user receives a mail via the computer 100, the portable type, the computer 200, or the mobile phone 300 shown in FIG.

The ID password authentication is performed by the control unit 711 in FIG.
(S20). If approved, the reception mode is checked next (S21). Confirmation of the reception mode, as shown in FIG. 5, account and special characters plus numbers,
For example, the data shown in FIG. 5 is obtained from the reception setting database 740 using the account Yamada and the mode number # 1. The mail data is acquired by the reception from the mail data storage unit 730 to the advertisement insertion unit 716
Acquires the received mail data of the user (S2
2).

To change the mail data according to the receiving method, the mail data body acquired in S22 is
The mail data body is formed according to the reception mode confirmed in S21, for example, a character string such as "is" or "was" is deleted, and the user device specifications such as the screen size of the receiving user device are received. In consideration of the above, the line feed character is deleted (S23).

Then, the current date information is obtained from the mail distribution device (S24).

Then, the occupation, age, occupation, gender, address, telephone number, hobby, etc., which are the information registered when the user uses the service shown in FIG. 14, are acquired (S25).

When performing the process of searching for advertisement data in S27, the control unit 710 obtains random number data necessary for randomly selecting advertisement data (S26).

The search for the advertisement data in the distribution rule database is performed by distributing the already registered user information shown in FIG. 14, the already registered advertisement data shown in FIG. 15, and the advertisement data. A process for searching for an advertisement that matches the user information based on the user information is performed (S27).

When the advertisement data is obtained from the advertisement database and there are a plurality of advertisement data searched by the search for the advertisement data, one advertisement data is obtained from the random number table obtained by obtaining the random number data (S26). It is to be extracted (S28).

However, when it is desired to insert an advertisement in two places, a header and a footer, two data are obtained by referring to the insertion position shown in FIG. When the advertisement data is inserted into the mail data (S29), S2
The advertisement data acquired in step 8 is inserted at an appropriate position in the mail text according to the insertion position shown in FIG.

At the time when the advertisement data is inserted into the mail text, the advertisement fee is calculated (S30), and the current amount and the total number of advertisement distributions shown in FIG. 15 are counted. Keep track of your advertising costs.
Steps S31, S32, and S33 indicate that the mail body into which the advertisement is inserted is sent to the web mail transmitting / receiving unit 712 or the mailer transmitting / receiving unit 713 shown in FIG.

FIG. 10 shows a flowchart of the reception mode confirmation processing routine shown in S21 of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5, when the user receives an e-mail, the entered account also includes a mode number, so the mode number is first cut off (S40).
The information shown in FIG. 5 is acquired from the reception setting database 740 based on the mode number obtained thereby (S
41).

FIG. 11 shows an example of data recorded in the reception setting database 740. The web mail transmission / reception unit 712 and the mailer 713 perform shaping of the mail text with reference to the table shown in FIG.

FIG. 12 shows one embodiment of the advertisement fee calculation process shown in S30 in FIG.

The insertion of the inserted advertisement ID is performed by the advertisement distribution unit 7.
12 acquires the ID of the advertisement distributed according to the request of the advertisement insertion unit 716 (S60).

The received mail number count plus 1 means that when there are a plurality of mails to be received at one time, the number of received mail data acquisition in S22 and the calculation of the advertisement charge in S30 shown in FIG. 9 are repeated a plurality of times. It is counted (S61).

In the judgment part (S62) within the specified value, if the number of repetitions does not exceed a certain specified value, for example, 10, the next advertisement fee is added to the current fee (S6).
3), after counting up the total advertisement distribution count shown in FIG. 15 by one, add the amount indicated in the distribution unit price to the current amount.

On the other hand, when the value exceeds the specified value (S64),
After the advertisement rate is discounted and added to the current rate, the current advertisement transmission distribution count is counted, and then the amount obtained by subtracting the amount according to the discount rate from the distribution unit price is added to the current amount.

The advertisement insertion end determination unit (S65) determines that the mail receiving process has been completed once, and the received mail data is stored in the mail data storage unit 7.
If it still exists in S30, S22 reception demail data acquisition in FIG. 9 is performed.

FIG. 13 shows one embodiment of the advertisement fee calculation process shown in S30 of FIG.
The insertion of the inserted advertisement ID is performed by the advertisement distribution unit 812 distributing the advertisement ID at the request of the advertisement insertion unit 716 (S70).

The acquisition of the daily average number of received mails of the user (S71) is performed by acquiring the daily average number of received mails shown in FIG.
72) is performed by determining whether the daily average number of received mails acquired in S71 exceeds a prescribed value. If it is within the specified value, the advertisement fee is added to the current fee (S73).

In this case, the total number of advertisement distributions in FIG.
After counting up, the distribution unit price is added to the current amount. If the average number of emails per day exceeds the specified value, the advertisement rate is discounted and added to the current rate (S74), and the total number of times of advertisement distribution is reduced by one using the table shown in FIG. After counting up, the amount according to the discount rate is subtracted from the distribution unit price, and the amount is added to the current amount.

That is, when the user receives 100 e-mails a day, the advertisement inserted in the e-mail is rarely seen one by one, and the value of the advertisement is low. Therefore, just because there are many e-mails received by the user does not mean that a large amount of return advertising expenses will be cashed back shortly, the advertising value rate is determined according to the number of e-mails, and according to this advertising value rate Cash back advertising expenses. In this sense, the discount rate and the advertising value rate shown in FIG. 16 are in a two-sided relationship.

In the advertisement insertion end determination (S75), if there is no more mail data to be received in the mail data storage unit 730, the advertisement fee calculation ends. If there is more mail data to be received, the reception mail data shown in S22 of FIG. 9 is obtained again.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing access to a related website included in the advertisement inserted in the mail.

When the user clicks the URL included in the advertisement inserted in the mail by the advertisement site movement CGI kick, the user does not actually go to the related website, but the access counter device shown in FIG. Go to
The counting program of the access counting device 911 is kicked (S80).

The ID of the accessed user is recorded in the counter database 920 by the counting program of the access counting device 911, and the user ID included in the URL for kicking the counting program is recorded in the counter database 920 (S81).

At this time, the current date obtained by the access counter device 900 is also recorded. Then, the related site URL is acquired by acquiring the URL for moving to the related site, which is included in the URL for kicking the advertisement site moving CGI (S82).

By returning the related site URL acquired in S82 to the user, the user can move to the related site (S83).

FIG. 18 shows an embodiment of recording the accessed user ID shown in S81 in FIG.

FIG. 19 is a table for collecting advertising expenses from an advertiser when a user accesses a related site. Since the unit price of the advertisement for this access is higher than the advertisement inserted in the e-mail,
9, a correspondence table is separately created to charge an advertisement fee.

FIG. 20 shows an example of a URL to a related site included in an advertisement inserted in a mail. As shown therein, the URL includes Yamada as the user account and game 001 as the advertisement ID.

FIG. 21 shows an embodiment in which an advertisement is inserted into a mail. FIG. 21 shows a setting for a normal computer, in which the text is not changed. In the present embodiment, text mail is taken as an example.
The mail may be a mail to which a moving image such as TML, a still image, a sound, or the like is added.

FIG. 22 shows an embodiment in which an advertisement is inserted into a mail. The present embodiment is an example of a case where an e-mail is displayed on a small screen such as a mobile phone and a terminal with few specifications.

The advertising text is in a shortened context unlike the advertisement shown in FIG. 21. The URL uses the HTML function and displays the picture, pictogram, etc., and clicks on it to display the related web page. You can move to the site. In the present embodiment, line breaks, spaces, and character strings such as "is" and "ta" are deleted to correspond to the screen.

FIG. 23 is a schematic diagram of a system for periodically transmitting information of a website that the user wants to check periodically to the user's mail.

The user inputs a message to the procedure recording unit 1022.
I will remember the procedure to access the homepage I want to check regularly. In addition, the user sets the schedule
23, the date on which the recorded procedure is executed, the interval thereof, and the like are recorded.

The schedule monitoring unit 1024 is a unit that always refers to the schedule DB 1050 and creates a schedule table for executing a procedure according to the schedule. The procedure execution unit 1025 includes the schedule monitoring unit 102
In accordance with the schedule created by Step 4, the procedure is acquired from the procedure record database 1040, the Internet is accessed, and the homepage data is recorded in the homepage temporary recording unit 1060. The mail transmission unit 1026 periodically acquires homepage data from the homepage temporary recording unit 1060 and distributes mail to the user.

FIG. 24 shows a flowchart in the case where the procedure for accessing the website that the user wants to check periodically is recorded.

For accessing the procedure recording section, the procedure recording section is accessed when recording the procedure (S90). The user inputs the URL of the homepage that he / she wants to check periodically into the procedure recording unit (S91).

The necessary items of the homepage are input via the procedure recording unit. This is done by inputting a text box or checking a check box on the homepage, by selecting a corresponding homepage of the corresponding website connected via the procedure recording unit. Required items are input (S92).

Thus, the procedure recording unit can acquire the data before inputting the data to the home page. Then, the procedure recording unit stores the procedure record DB
Is recorded in the procedure record DB 1040, such as text input to the text box recorded in S92, key input of a tab or the like, mouse click, and the like (S93).

Then, the date when the procedure is performed is recorded in the schedule DB. The date, time, period, and the like for executing the procedure recorded in S93 are recorded in the schedule DB 10.
The data is recorded in 50 (S94).

FIG. 25 shows a flowchart for executing the procedure recorded in FIG. 24 according to a schedule.

The procedure corresponding to the procedure number is obtained from the procedure record DB. This is performed according to the schedule table created by the schedule monitoring unit 1024 when the procedure execution unit 1025 executes the procedure. The procedure to be executed is acquired from the procedure record database 1040 (S101).

Then, the user accesses the Internet according to the procedure. The user accesses the homepage indicated by the URL acquired in step S101 by inputting text in the text box indicated in the procedure, moving with the tab key, or moving to the homepage. Clicking with a mouse is performed (S102).

Then, the homepage is temporarily recorded in the DB.
In this case, the data of the home page moved in S102 is recorded in the homepage temporary recording unit 1060 (S103).

Then, the home page is attached to the mail and sent. The mail transmitting unit 1026 periodically refers to the home page temporary recording unit 1063, and stores the home page information recorded for the user in the HTML of the mail as it is. The data is sent as a file or attached to a mail and transmitted (S104).

FIG. 26 shows one of the procedure recording methods performed in FIG.

As a method of recording the procedure, the corresponding U
In some cases, this can be realized by recording a CGI for moving to the RL, but in some cases, it is not possible to cope with a website that performs user authentication using a cookie or the like based on an ID or the like.

Although it is theoretically possible to record the text input position and the button click position in XY coordinates, it is difficult to realize it. Therefore, as one method, the input position in the text box or the kick position of a button such as CGI is designated by the number of times the tab key is pressed.

[0156] Alternatively, the input can be realized by recording the input of the keyboard when inputting the text box. Also, when kicking CGI, Ent
This is possible by recording the er key and mouse clicks. In this method, the input position can be determined by the number of times of the tab key.

Further, the present invention can be applied to all devices equipped with a mailer and a device equipped with a WEB browser. For example, the present invention is applicable to a device that can access the Internet by TV, such as a WEBTV. You can also deliver mail.

In such a case, the mail body is converted into the HTML format and the characters are enlarged, so that the WEBTV
It is also possible to set to make it easier to see. In this case, a screen for setting the font size of the received mail character is prepared in the same manner as the reception screen size setting shown in FIG. 7, and the font size is added to a part of the mode setting.

FIG. 27 is a system configuration diagram of a system for checking the usage status of a user by checking the number of mail distributions.

Mail transmitting section 714 and mail receiving section 71
5 records the number of transmitted mails and the number of received mails in the transmission / reception number DB 750 via the transmission / reception number calculation device 716 when the respective transmission / reception processing is performed. Transmission / reception number DB750
Records the total number of receptions, the total number of receptions per month, the total number of receptions per day, the total number of receptions, the total number of transmissions, the total number of transmissions per month, and the number of transmissions / receptions per day. Calculate and record the total number of received monthly / the total number of transmitted monthly, or the total number of received daily / the total number of transmitted monthly.

The transmission / reception number calculation device 716 checks the number of transmission / reception mails and the calculated data, determines whether transmission, reception, or cashback can be used, and records the determination result. I do.

The mail transmitting section 714 and the mail receiving section 715
Refers to the transmission / reception number DB 750 when performing each process, and does not perform the process if those processes are not permitted. That is, the cashback unit 816 shown in FIG. 3 does not pay the user if the cashback is not permitted by referring to the transmission / reception number DB 750 when returning part or all of the advertising cost to the user. .

If the reception is not permitted, the advertisement is of course not delivered, so that the advertisement fee is not charged and the advertiser can send the advertisement to the user who does not actually see the advertisement. You don't have to pay.

As described above, these permission flags are set at any time according to the number of transmissions / receptions / the total number of transmissions, the total number of receptions / the total number of transmissions / month, or the total number of receptions / the total number of transmissions / month. However, the discount rate of the advertisement cost corresponding to these ratios is set as shown in FIG. 16, and the cashback cost is calculated.

FIG. 28 shows an example of data stored in the transmission / reception number DB 750. The mail delivery device 70 shown in FIG.
FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram when checking the usage status of a user by using 0.

On the basis of the total number of receptions and the total number of transmissions as shown in FIG. The calculation is performed by the number calculation device 716, and the advertising cost to be cashed back is changed according to the ratio. S6 in FIGS. 12 and 13
The processing of “is within the specified value?” Determined in each of Steps 2 and S72 is also based on the transmission / reception number calculated by the transmission / reception number calculation device 716.

As described above, when it is determined that cashback is permitted, the advertising cost to be cashed back is calculated based on the discount rate shown in FIG.

FIG. 29 is a flowchart showing a procedure for counting the number of transmissions and receptions, and shows a transmission / reception number recording processing routine executed in the transmission / reception number calculator 716 shown in FIG.

In the transmission / reception number calculation device 716, when transmitting, the total number of transmissions is (S101) and the number of daily transmissions is (S10).
2) The number of monthly transmissions (S103) is counted up, and the data is recorded in the transmission / reception number DB. In addition, in the transmission / reception number calculation device 716, at the time of reception, the total number of receptions is (S104), the number of daily receptions is (S105), and the number of monthly receptions is (S106).
The data is recorded in the transmission / reception number DB.

When only transmission is performed, S101 to S1
03, and if only reception is performed, S104-
The process of S106 will be performed.

The portion where the total number of received data and the total number of transmitted data are recorded is automatically cleared every day, and the total number of received data and the total number of transmitted data are recorded. The part is automatically cleared every month.

FIG. 30 shows the total number of receptions {the total number of transmissions, the total number of monthly receptions} based on the data counted up in FIG.
This is a flow in which the total number of monthly transmissions, the total number of daily receptions / the total number of daily transmissions are calculated, and the respective ratios are calculated and recorded. These are performed daily, monthly, or as needed. .

FIG. 28 shows an example of data stored in the transmission / reception number DB 750, and FIG. 27 is based on the information recorded by the flowcharts shown in FIGS.
The transmission / reception number calculation device 716 shown in (1) judges transmission permission, reception permission, and cashback permission, and records them.

FIGS. 31 to 33 show steps S27 in FIG.
It is a flowchart which shows the subroutine of the advertisement data search process performed in. FIG. 34 shows a process of actually inserting an advertisement into a mail.

FIG. 31 shows a subroutine for retrieving advertisement data based on the frequency of words in a mail body.

First, a word is extracted from the data of one mail body (S27-1). For example, from the mail body in FIG. 34, “memory”, “gift certificate”, “soft”,
Words such as “Machida”,..., “Digital camera” are extracted.

Next, based on the frequency of occurrence of the extracted words,
The category is determined (S27-2). In determining the category, an analysis table as shown in FIG. 35 is stored as data, and the category is determined using this.

Here, it is analyzed which category the word extracted from the mail text corresponds to. Thus,
For example, when the frequency of the word belonging to the category “computer” is high, the advertisement in the category “computer” is searched (S27-3).

[0179] The advertisement that has been searched and hit as described above is obtained in step S28 in Fig. 9, and the advertisement data is obtained, and the advertisement data is inserted into the mail data.

In the advertisement insertion example A in FIG. 34, an advertisement is inserted at random. According to the contents of the mail, the user is not interested in the computer, but is interested in the loan.
This is an example in which a financial advertisement is inserted. In this case, the interest of the user in the advertisement is low. On the other hand, FIG.
The advertisement insertion example B is an example in which an advertisement is inserted by analyzing the contents of the mail body, and is an example in which a computer-related advertisement called a provider is inserted, and has an advertisement content that attracts the user's interest.

That is, by analyzing the text of the mail body and determining and inserting the advertisement which is most relevant to the contents of the mail body and the user is most interested in, the value of the advertisement is reduced. Go up.

As described above, it is possible to cause a user to hit an advertisement of interest without introducing a system for performing semantic analysis of the contents of the mail body. However, in order to further increase the hit rate, the meaning can be increased. An analysis system can be introduced.

FIG. 32 shows a subroutine for retrieving advertisement data by semantically analyzing the mail text.

First, a sentence is cut out one sentence at a time from one mail data (S27-4).

Next, a semantic analysis is performed for each sentence (S27-
5) Set an advertisement category (S27-6, S27)
-8). For example, from the sentence "What to do with software" in the mail body shown in FIG. 34, the categories "computer" and "general" are set from the word "soft", and "the memory is going to be purchased with a gift certificate." . ", The categories" computer "and" hard "are set from the word" memory ".

[0186] After being categorized in this way, points for each advertisement category are totaled (S27-9).
For example, as shown in FIG. 35, the category of “computer” and “hard” is 1 point, and the category of “computer”
One point is set from the category of “general”.

Next, the advertisement in the category having the largest point is searched (S27-10). If categories with the same points are available, an advertisement is randomly determined from those categories.

In this way, the advertisement of the category related to the main body of the mail can be distributed by pointing the hit rate of the keyword to the point without grasping the context in detail.

FIG. 33 is a flowchart showing a case in which the advertisement data search process shown in FIG. 32 is performed a plurality of times, and a plurality of advertisements are inserted into mail and distributed. As described above, even when a plurality of pieces of advertisement data are inserted, an advertisement that is of interest to the user is searched. When a plurality of advertisements are inserted, the content of the advertisement can be changed over time. In the advertisement insertion example B in FIG. 34, a case where the inserted advertisement changes over time is shown. I have.

FIG. 33 is a flowchart for analyzing the meaning of the mail body, determining an advertisement to be inserted based on the analysis result, and inserting the advertisement, which will be described in detail below.

First, the sentences are individually analyzed one by one (S27-11, S27-12). For example, "1-
The memory is a gift certificate and I will buy it. ”,“ What to do with 2-software. ”,“ 3- Machida ..... has started. ”,“ 4-Till then ... it depends. ”,“ 5-
By the way ..... , "6-printer ...", and separates sentences, and then performs semantic analysis.

Here, it is preferable to analyze the sentence by dividing it into sentences, rather than analyzing the entire sentence.
The reason is that if multiple unrelated things are written in the middle of the email, then the advertisement corresponding to the multiple things may be inserted and the value of the advertisement may be reduced. It is.

When semantic analysis is performed in this manner, 1-6
Can be divided into advertisement categories (see Fig. 3).
5). Of course, since semantic analysis is being performed, this category also includes emotional categories, such as wanting to buy or sell, instead of being short-circuited into categories such as computers and home appliances.

That is, when the categories are totaled, for example, “1-want to buy a memory”, “2-get lost”, “3-Machida place”, “4- provider Tokyo telephone”, “5- display possess” , "6-Peripheral device I do not want to buy".

Based on the results of the analysis,
Score points every 1-6. At this time, since the meaning is analyzed, a weight such as a degree of willingness to buy is weighted. For example, if the point of 4 is high, FIG.
An advertisement for a provider such as is inserted.

When the present invention is used in a WEB where mail transmission / reception data exists in a server on the WEB and the mail is distributed one by one via the server, the same mail is referred to a plurality of times (viewing). If so, the inserted advertisement can be changed from time to time.

Further, even when the mail is referred to (browsed) at a time, the contents of the advertisement can be changed over time.

[0198]

According to the present invention described above, the advertisement cost is determined by the number of mail distributions, so that the advertiser can pay an appropriate advertisement cost. , You can get the appropriate advertising revenue.

Further, since the most appropriate advertisement information can be selected from a plurality of pieces of advertisement information based on user information such as the user's preference and attached to an e-mail and distributed, it is also possible for the user. Advertisers can also be provided with good advertising information.

Further, since the receiving mode can be set appropriately according to the specifications of a plurality of terminals, it is not necessary for the user to own a plurality of mail accounts for each type of terminal, This makes it possible to make corrections such as shortening the mail text.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an Internet mail advertisement insertion system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a detailed diagram of a part for delivering a mail of the Internet mail advertisement insertion system shown in FIG. 1, and a part for adding an advertisement at the time of mail delivery and deleting the advertisement at the time of forwarding or replying.

FIG. 3 is a detailed view of an advertisement income calculation part and a count part of the number of times of movement to an advertisement-related page in the Internet mail advertisement insertion system shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for setting a user account and receiving settings when using the Internet mail shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an example of a list of reception settings shown to the user after registration of the user in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is an example of a screen when a user sets reception in FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is an example of a screen when performing reception setting of a user in FIG. 4;

FIG. 8 is an example of a screen when performing reception setting of a user in FIG. 4;

9 is a flowchart for inserting an advertisement in the Internet mail advertisement insertion system shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 10 is a detailed flowchart of a reception mode check in FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 shows an example in which a reception mode is set in FIG. 5 and stored in a DB.

FIG. 12 is one of flowcharts when calculating an advertisement fee when an advertisement is inserted in FIG.

FIG. 13 is one of flowcharts when calculating an advertisement fee when an advertisement is inserted in FIG.

FIG. 14 is an example of registered user information in FIG.

FIG. 15 is an example of a rule for an advertisement to be inserted in FIG. 9;

FIG. 16 is an example of a discount rate calculated in FIGS. 12 and 13;

FIG. 17 is a flowchart of moving to a related site included in the advertisement inserted in FIG. 9;

FIG. 18 is an example of information recorded when the URL is clicked in FIG.

FIG. 19 is an example of information recorded when the URL is clicked in FIG.

FIG. 20 shows a U included in the advertisement inserted in FIG.
It is an example of RL.

FIG. 21 is an example of a mail delivered in FIG. 9;

FIG. 22 is an example of a mail delivered in FIG. 9;

FIG. 23 is a schematic configuration diagram of a system for realizing claim 9;

FIG. 24 is a flowchart for recording a procedure in FIG.

FIG. 25 is a flowchart for executing the procedure in FIG. 23;

FIG. 26 is an example of an actual method of recording and executing a procedure in FIG.

FIG. 27 is a configuration diagram of a system that checks the usage status of a user by checking the number of mails sent.

FIG. 28 is an example of data stored in a transmission / reception number DB 750.

FIG. 29 is a flowchart showing a procedure for counting the number of transmissions and receptions.

30 is a flowchart showing a procedure for calculating a transmission / reception ratio based on the data counted up in FIG. 29.

FIG. 31 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of an advertisement data search process executed in step S27 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 32 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of an advertisement data search process executed in step S27 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 33 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of advertisement data search processing executed in step S27 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 34 shows a step of actually inserting an advertisement into a mail.

FIG. 35 shows a step of actually inserting an advertisement into a mail.

[Explanation of symbols]

 100 Computer (user) 110, 210, 310 Web browser unit 120, 220, 320 Mail transmitting / receiving unit 130, 230, 330 Control unit 200 Portable computer (user) 300 Mobile phone (user) 400, 500, 600 Access point 410, 510, 610 control unit 700 mail distribution device 710 control unit 711 authentication unit 712 Web mail transmission / reception unit 713 mailer transmission / reception unit 714 mail transmission unit 715 mail reception unit 716 advertisement insertion unit 717 advertisement deletion unit 720 authentication DB 730 mail data storage unit 740 Reception setting DB 750 Transmission / reception number DB 800 Advertisement distribution device 810 Control unit 811 Advertisement text definition unit 812 Advertisement distribution unit 813 User information definition unit 814 Advertisement distribution condition definition unit 815 Advertisement charge calculation unit 81 Cashback portion 820 ad DB 830 distribution rule DB 840 delivery record DB 900 the access counter device 910 controller 911 accesses the count unit 920 counter DB 930 advertiser URLDB

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) H04L 12/58 100 H04L 12/58 100F

Claims (17)

[Claims] 1. A mail distribution system capable of adding advertisement information stored in a server to a mail transmitted to a mail account via a communication line such as the Internet network, wherein the advertisement added to the mail is provided. An advertisement characterized in that information is appropriately selected and added from a plurality of pieces of advertisement information based on information registered in advance for each user and / or provision condition information of an advertiser who wants to provide the advertisement information. An email delivery system that can add information. 2. The mail delivery system according to claim 1, wherein the number of times the mail has been delivered is recorded in a delivery record database. 3. A mail delivery system according to claim 2, wherein said mail delivery system further comprises means for calculating an advertisement fee according to the number of times of delivery for each user stored in said delivery record database. A mail distribution system that can add advertising information characterized by the following. 4. The mail delivery system according to claim 1, wherein the terminal of the user has a reception specification of a mobile phone, a mobile computer, or a stationary computer. In a plurality of different types of terminals, the mail sent to the mail account is changed to a form corresponding to the reception specification of the user terminal set in advance for each mail account, and the mail is sent to the user terminal. A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information characterized in that it can be delivered to a user. 5. The mail distribution system according to claim 4, wherein the contents are changed to a form set in advance for each mail account.
A plurality of forms can be set for the one mail account, and transmitted to the mail account on condition that the user selects one of the forms set in advance for each mail account. A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information, wherein the content of the received mail is changed to a form selected by the user and can be delivered to a terminal of the user. 6. The mail delivery system according to claim 5, wherein the user selects one of the forms set in advance for each of the plurality of mail accounts. A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information, wherein the user is prompted to make a selection at the time of user authentication processing. 7. The mail delivery system according to claim 2, wherein the advertisement fee is cashed back to the user in accordance with the number of times of delivery of the email recorded in the delivery record database. In this case, if the number of receptions within a predetermined period exceeds a predetermined number, a means for performing a truncation process of the number according to the number of receptions after the predetermined number, or A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information, characterized by comprising one or both of means for stopping delivery. 8. The mail delivery system according to claim 1, wherein a user ID and a password required for a user authentication process include a cache of an advertisement fee for said user. A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information, characterized in that it is stored in a server in association with advertisement fee return information for back-up. 9. The mail distribution system according to claim 1, wherein the mail sent to the mail account is set in advance for each mail account. And the contents are distributed to the user's terminal, and the "change the contents to the form set in advance for each mail account" is "set in advance from the text (characters) of the sent mail. A mail delivery system capable of adding advertisement information characterized by a process of deleting words or line feed codes that are unnecessary for grasping mail contents such as endings such as “mas”. 10. The mail delivery system according to claim 1, wherein the added advertisement information includes a URL or the like for viewing details of the advertisement. Link information is attached, and the link information is information for temporarily accessing a WEB page corresponding to the advertisement via the server of the mail distribution system, and corresponds to the advertisement via the server. A mail delivery system to which advertisement information can be added, wherein at the stage of accessing a web page, the fact that there is access to the advertisement information is stored as access information. 11. A mail transmitted to a mail account via a communication line such as the Internet network is transmitted to a terminal of a user who has performed the authentication process on condition that the authentication process corresponding to the mail account has been completed. A mail distribution system capable of providing a mail service that can be distributed by the server, wherein the mail content changing means of the server changes the content of the mail sent to the mail account to a form preset for each mail account. A mail distribution system capable of providing a plurality of types of mail distribution services having different reception modes, the contents including control contents distributed to the user terminal. 12. The method of changing the contents to a form preset for each mail account, wherein a plurality of forms can be set for the one mail account, and the mail account is previously set at the same time as or after the authentication processing. On the condition that the user has selected one of the forms set for each of the plurality of types, the content transmitted to the mail account or the mail transmitted from the mail account is selected in the form selected by the user. 12. The mail delivery system according to claim 11, wherein the mail delivery system can provide a plurality of types of mail delivery services having different reception modes. 13. The "change the content to a preset form for each mail account" means that the sentence (characters) of the sent mail is a mail such as a suffix such as "da" or "masu". 13. A mail capable of providing a plurality of types of mail delivery services having different receiving modes according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the mail includes control contents for deleting words that are unnecessary for grasping the contents. Delivery system. 14. “The content is changed to a form preset for each mail account” means that the content is transmitted according to the size of a mail display screen of the terminal to receive the mail to be distributed. 12. The method according to claim 11, further comprising a control content of a change such as deleting a line feed of the mail.
A mail distribution system capable of providing a plurality of types of mail distribution services having different reception modes according to any one of claims 3 to 7. 15. The “change content to a form preset for each mail account” means that at least when link information such as a URL is attached to a mail transmitted from the mail account, 15. A mail distribution system capable of providing a plurality of types of mail distribution services having different reception modes according to any one of claims 11 to 14, further comprising control contents for deleting and transferring the link information. . 16. A mail delivery system according to claim 1, wherein the advertisement information can be added. The web page is automatically accessed according to a user's request, and information on the web page is used as advertisement information. An email delivery system that can be added. 17. A mail sent to a mail account via a communication line such as the Internet network is
A mail distribution system capable of adding advertisement information stored in a server, wherein the advertisement information added to the mail is obtained by analyzing the text content of the mail body or extracting words, thereby relating the mail body. A mail delivery system that can add a certain advertisement or WEB page as advertisement information.