JP2002297253A - Software accounting method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a software accounting method capable of charging a customer with a price corresponding to the usage of software, and to prevent the software from being unauthorizedly reused. SOLUTION: When a selling agent downloads ordered software, DLL 1-3 attached with arbitrary labels A-E are selected from the DLL 1-3 preliminarily attached with labels A-E in the software to be downloaded, and provided to a customer, and a management file in which the labels attached to the respective DLL 1-3 are recorded is prepared, and transmitted to the customer. Then, when the number of times of the use of any DLL reaches the prescribed number of times of use at the customer side, and the software should be downloaded again, this time download state is collated with the previous download state by referring to the respective management files at the customer side and the selling agent side so that whether or not the software is illegally used can be checked.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention charges a fee for use of software having at least one or more dynamic link libraries created so as to be unusable when used for a preset amount of use. A software billing method for doing so.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, enormous development costs are invested in software development. For example, with respect to game software and the like, development costs have increased with the development of hardware, and recently development costs of several billion yen have been applied.

[0003] In selling software in which a large amount of development cost is invested, the market is soundened by selling the software at an appropriate price at a store or the like, and thereby the market for the next new product is created. Investment is possible.

[0004] Considering software sales, a CD-ROM having a relatively large capacity is generally considered.
Software is mainly sold on CD-ROM because a device for reading is provided on the hardware side. Further, DVD-ROM media having a larger capacity than CD-ROMs are increasingly used for software having large capacity data such as games.

[0005]

However, CD-R and D
Since the data recorded in the VD-ROM can be easily copied, illegal copies of the software itself and piracy are spreading, and the copyright of the software is seriously threatened.

[0006] Recently, the use of a system that can directly download software from a homepage of a software company has increased due to online sales via the Internet. This is due not only to the widespread use of the Internet, but also to the establishment of a system for continuous Internet connection (a connection mode that allows unlimited use at a fixed price). It is clear that always-on connection will become common in the future, and each country has made the establishment of such a system an important issue. Also, due to global environmental issues, it is difficult to say that software sales on various media and packages are excellent. In this respect, the sales form using the Internet can provide software contents without unnecessary use of resources.

[0007] On the other hand, from the user's point of view, the user purchases what he or she wants from a huge number of softwares on the market. In the end, it's often the case that you don't use much of the software you buy, for example, when a better software is released.

[0008] An object of the present invention is to provide a billing method capable of billing a customer at a price corresponding to the amount of software used and preventing unauthorized use when reused. Is to do.

[0009]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
A customer having at least one or more dynamic link libraries created so as to be unusable when used for a predetermined usage amount, and having a price according to the predetermined usage amount. When the seller confirms the payment of the price amount, the seller selects a label arbitrarily selected from a plurality of labels for at least one or more dynamic link libraries of software purchased by the customer. And creating a customer management file including label information indicating a label assigned to the dynamic link library and usage information that can be updated according to the usage status of the at least one or more dynamic link libraries. The label selected for the dynamic link library is Transmitting the provided software and the customer management file to the customer via the Internet, and the customer is required to use the at least one dynamic link library of the software for a preset amount of use. When a new download of the software is required,
The seller checks the customer management file on the customer side with the customer management information on the seller side to confirm the presence / absence of unauthorized use. A newly arbitrarily selected label is assigned to the dynamic link library used for the set usage amount, and the label information in the customer management file is updated to label information indicating the newly assigned label. Updating the usage information of the dynamic link library used by the preset usage amount, and updating the label information and the usage information with the newly labeled dynamic link library. Transmitting the customer management file to the customer.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the software billing method according to the first aspect, the customer can receive a refund corresponding to the usage status information of the customer management file for the paid amount. There is a feature.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the software billing method according to the first aspect, a step of notifying the customer of the price and password of the software by the seller is provided.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the software billing method according to the first aspect, when it is confirmed that the software has been illegally used, the seller rejects a download request from the customer. It is characterized by.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a charge for using software having at least one or more dynamic link libraries created so as to be unusable when used for a predetermined usage amount. A software billing method for a customer, wherein when a seller receives a purchase order for software from a customer, the customer pays an amount corresponding to the preset usage amount of at least one or more dynamic link libraries of the software to the customer. And the seller confirms the payment of the amount of the software from the customer by the seller, by the seller for a plurality of dynamic link libraries of at least one or more of the software purchased by the customer. While giving a label arbitrarily selected from labels Creating a customer management file including label information indicating a label assigned to the dynamic link library and usage status information that can be updated according to the usage status of the at least one or more dynamic link libraries; By the trader,
Sending the software with the selected label to the dynamic link library and the customer management file to the customer via the Internet; and setting the at least one dynamic link library of the software to a preset use. When the customer demands that the software be newly downloaded due to the use of the quantity, the customer management file on the customer side is compared with the customer management information on the seller side to check for unauthorized use. Confirming that there is no unauthorized use of the software,
The seller assigns a newly arbitrarily selected label to the dynamic link library used for the predetermined usage amount, and assigns the label information in the customer management file to the newly assigned label. Updating the use status information of the dynamic link library used for the preset amount of use while updating the label information to be displayed, and the dynamic link library newly assigned the label by the seller. And transmitting the label information and the customer management file in which the use status information has been updated to the customer.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the software billing method according to the fifth aspect, the customer can receive a refund corresponding to the usage status information of the customer management file for the paid amount. There is a feature.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the software billing method according to the fifth aspect, the seller charges the amount of the software and sends a password to the customer.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the software billing method according to the fifth aspect, when it is confirmed that the software is illegally used, the seller rejects a download request from the customer. It is characterized by.

[0017]

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

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing an example of the configuration of software having a dynamic link library handled by a software billing method according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of software having a dynamic link library to which a label is added by a software charging method.

When a customer purchases desired software from a seller who sells software via the Internet, first, the customer's information terminal accesses a server which manages the seller's homepage via the Internet, and The customer specifies desired software in, for example, an order column on the home page of the seller, and inputs information for purchasing the software.

Here, as shown in FIG. 1, the software has a plurality of dynamic link libraries (hereinafter, referred to as DLL). Each DLL is configured to be unusable when a predetermined amount is used. In the present embodiment, the software is word processing software, and each DLL,
Usually, it is divided for each function. For example, DLL is a function related to editing, DLL is a function related to graphic drawing, and certain restrictions are set in advance according to the function.
Various restrictions can be considered, such as restrictions on the use period and each action (drawing a ruled line or executing printing). Here, the number of times of use is set as a limit, 50 times for DLL, and 3 times for DLL.
It is assumed that a limit of 0 times and a limit of 80 times are provided for DLL. It is possible to assign a label arbitrarily selected from a plurality of labels different for each DLL.
For example, a label arbitrarily selected from labels A, B, C, D, E,... Can be assigned to each of DLLs. In the present embodiment, D
For each of LL,, labels A, B,
Fifteen DLLs to which C, D, E,... Are added in advance are prepared. It is easy to write this label information inside the DLL.

When an order for software desired by the customer is received, the server notifies the information terminal of the customer of the price for the software ordered by the customer. The price for this software is a price set in accordance with the amount of DLL used in this software. For example, the number of times of use is set as the amount of use for DLLs, and the price of software is set according to the sum of the number of times of use. This usage count is
Each may be different or the same. Further, the software may be priced in accordance with, for example, the minimum number of uses, the maximum number of uses, or the average value of the number of times of use of each DLL instead of the total number of times of use of each DLL. Good.

The customer pays the notified price to the seller. For example, if the price of the software (including consumption tax) is $ 10,000, the customer deposits $ 10,000. This payment method may be, for example, credit card payment, payment using electronic money, payment from a bank, payment using a convenience store, or the like.

When the seller confirms the payment from the customer,
The distributor issues an identification password and a user point to the customer. The identification password and the user point are notified to the customer by mail, e-mail, or the like.
Further, if credit settlement is performed simultaneously with ordering software on the homepage, it is possible to notify the customer of the identification password and the user point on the spot. The user points are points corresponding to the software, and are set in advance according to the types and contents of the software. In the present embodiment, 1 is used for simplicity.
0000 points.

The customer who has received the identification word accesses the home page of the dealer and inputs a request for downloading the ordered software using the identification password on the home page. When the identification password is authenticated, the download of the ordered software is started. Here, for example, 1
If 00 points have been set, the user points after the download are deducted from 10,000 to 100 points to become 9,900. If the user does not charge for downloading the software, the point for downloading may be set to zero.

Here, as described above, in the software to be downloaded, 15 DLLs with labels A, B, C, D, and E are prepared for each DLL. I have. In the example shown in FIG. 1, labels A, B,
A DLL having an arbitrary label is selected from C, D, and E. As a result, as shown in FIG. 2, for example, a DLL with a label B, a DLL with a label D, and a DLL with
In the state where each of the labels A is selected,
Provided to customers. At the same time, a management file that records each DLL, and the label attached thereto is created and transmitted to the customer. This management file is also held by the seller.

The customer who downloads the software actually activates the software at the information terminal and executes a predetermined process. In this software, each time a function is used, the number of times the function is used is incremented, and the information is written to the management file each time. The number of times of use may be recorded in another file that can be managed by software, instead of the management file. Then, when any of the DLLs reaches the limit, that is, when the number of times of use of any of the DLLs reaches a preset number of times of use, the software issues a warning to the customer and requests download.

In order to download the software in response to the request, the information terminal of the customer accesses a server for managing the homepage of the seller via the Internet and transmits the management file of the customer. The server on the merchant side refers to the management file on the customer side and the management file on the merchant side, compares it with the state of the previous download, and checks whether there is any fraud. If there is any fraud, the communication with the customer is cut off.

On the other hand, if it is confirmed that there is no fraud, the use state is further examined, the use point corresponding to this use state is calculated and subtracted from the user point, and the DLL whose use is newly restricted is added. Provide management files.
For example, considering simply the condition of the number of times = points,
If the customer has used the DLL 30 times, the DLL 30 times (the limit has been reached), and the DLL 10 times, the user point is subtracted by 70, which is the total number of times each DLL is used. This is equivalent to being charged according to the number of times of use. Further, when the user point reaches 0, it means that the software has been used accordingly, which is the same as purchasing the software in advance.

Further, if the use of the above-mentioned software is stopped halfway due to the sale of high-performance software that is more convenient to use and the replacement of this software, it is possible to apply for a refund. That is, when the use of this software is stopped while the user points remain, it is possible to receive a refund according to the remaining points by applying for a refund.

This suggests that the above-mentioned software has a short usable period and does not provide a sufficient benefit, and the software development side is required to provide a software which is easy to use and has higher perfection. It encourages you to provide.

Also, by collating with the identification password of each user using the above management file, if the same identification password is downloaded from a plurality of locations, inconsistency arises. Use can be reliably prevented. As a result, a healthy market is formed, and customers can always receive high-quality software at an appropriate price.

In order to reduce the labor of the customer, it is possible to construct a system for automatically performing a series of download operations.

[0033]

As described above, according to the present invention,
A customer price for software that has at least one or more dynamic link libraries created to be unusable when used for a predetermined amount of usage, and that has a price according to the predetermined amount of usage When the sales company confirms the payment of the amount, the seller gives a label arbitrarily selected from a plurality of labels to at least one or more dynamic link libraries of the software purchased by the customer. In addition, a customer management file including label information indicating a label assigned to the dynamic link library and use state information that can be updated according to the use state of at least one or more dynamic link libraries is created, and the dynamic link library is created. Software and software with the selected label Sending the customer management file to the customer via the Internet, and downloading the software from the customer as the at least one dynamic link library of the software is used for a preset amount. Is requested, the seller checks the customer management file on the customer side against the customer management information on the seller side to check for unauthorized use, and when it is confirmed that there is no unauthorized use of the software, A new arbitrarily selected label is assigned to the dynamic link library used for the preset usage amount, and the label information in the customer management file is updated to the label information indicating the newly assigned label, Use of a dynamic link library used for a preset amount Updating the status information, and transmitting to the customer a dynamic link library to which the label has been newly added and a customer management file in which the label information and the usage status information have been updated. In addition to being able to charge the customer at a price according to, the unauthorized use at the time of reuse can be prevented. As a result, a sales market can be formed with fair and sound software.

Since the customer can receive a refund corresponding to the usage information of the customer management file for the paid amount, high-performance software that is more convenient to use is sold and replaced with this software. For example, when the use of the purchased software is stopped halfway, a part of the expenses required for purchasing the software can be collected without wasting.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a configuration example of software having a dynamic link library handled by a software charging method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of software having a dynamic link library to which a label is added by a software billing method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DLL Dynamic Link Library

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A system according to claim 1, further comprising at least one or more dynamic link libraries created so as to be unusable when used for a predetermined amount of use, and a price corresponding to said predetermined amount of use. When the sales company confirms the payment of the price amount by the customer for the software of the above, the seller selects any of a plurality of labels for at least one or more dynamic link libraries of the software purchased by the customer. And a label including label information indicating the label assigned to the dynamic link library and usage status information that can be updated in accordance with the usage status of the at least one or more dynamic link libraries. Create a management file and select the dynamic link library Transmitting the labeled software and the customer management file to the customer via the Internet, wherein the at least one dynamic link library of the software is used for the preset usage amount. When the customer requests a new download of the software, the seller checks the customer management file on the customer side with the customer management information on the seller side to determine whether there is any unauthorized use. Confirmation, when it is confirmed that there is no unauthorized use of the software, a newly arbitrarily selected label is added to the dynamic link library used for the preset amount of use, and the customer management file Update the label information to label information indicating the newly assigned label. Update the usage information of the dynamic link library used for the predetermined usage amount, and update the dynamic label library newly labeled with the label information and the usage information. Transmitting the updated customer management file to the customer. 2. The software billing method according to claim 1, wherein the customer can receive a refund corresponding to the usage status information of the customer management file for the paid amount. 3. The software billing method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of notifying the customer of the price and password of the software by the seller. 4. The software billing method according to claim 1, wherein the seller rejects a download request from the customer when it is confirmed that the software is illegally used. 5. A software billing method for billing for use of software having at least one or more dynamic link libraries created so as to be unusable when used for a predetermined usage amount. Wherein when a seller receives a purchase order for software from a customer, charging the customer with an amount according to the preset usage amount of at least one or more dynamic link libraries of the software; When the merchant confirms the payment of the amount for the software from the customer, the merchant can optionally select from among a plurality of labels for at least one or more dynamic link libraries of the software purchased by the customer. Give the selected label and the dynamic resource Creating a customer management file including label information indicating a label assigned to the client library and usage status information that can be updated in accordance with the usage status of the at least one or more dynamic link libraries; and Transmitting the software with the selected label to the dynamic link library and the customer management file to the customer via the Internet, wherein the at least one dynamic link library of the software is preset When the customer requests that the software be newly downloaded due to the usage of the used amount, the customer management file on the customer side is checked against the customer management information on the seller side to check for unauthorized use. Performing the steps When it is confirmed that there is no unauthorized use, the seller assigns a newly arbitrarily selected label to the dynamic link library used for the preset amount of use, and stores the label in the customer management file. Updating the label information to the label information indicating the newly added label, and updating the usage status information of the dynamic link library used for the preset usage amount, and by the seller, Transmitting to the customer the dynamic link library to which the label has been newly added and the customer management file in which the label information and the use status information have been updated. 6. The software billing method according to claim 5, wherein the customer can receive a refund corresponding to the usage status information of the customer management file for the paid amount. 7. The software billing method according to claim 5, wherein the seller sends a password to the customer together with the billing of the amount of the software. 8. The software billing method according to claim 5, wherein the seller rejects a download request from the customer when it is confirmed that the software is illegally used.