JP2010044778A - Multiple auction operation method and system using network - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method and system for operating a plurality of auction sites without confusing users. <P>SOLUTION: The method for operating a plurality of auction sites connectable with user terminals through a network and providing auction services respectively, comprises permitting members of the plurality of auction sites to bid for common sale or purchase items; creating notification e-mail to users belonging to a specific auction site while making sure that it is e-mail from the auction site; specifying a partner's home site in mail when the bid is successful, to prevent confusion in subsequent transaction; and checking whether the user names are redundantly used in the plurality of auction sites at admission. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an auction using a network such as the Internet, and more particularly to a method and system for operating a plurality of auctions.

  With the rapid spread of the Internet in recent years, an online auction service has attracted attention as a service that supports transactions between online individuals, between a company and an individual, or between companies. In such an auction service, a user can access an auction site provided with the service from a user terminal such as a personal computer connected to the Internet, and easily place an item to be sold and bid for an item to be purchased. It can be carried out. Alternatively, it is possible to offer items to be purchased and bid for items to be sold or sold. At the auction site, sales offer information from users, purchase offer information and bid information are managed, information is provided to users, and successful bid processing is performed. To be notified.

  An online auction site using a network makes an offer or bids anonymously (using the name used in the auction site) without revealing each other. And after a successful bid, a deposit process and a successful bid item are shipped between an exhibitor and a successful bidder. Therefore, in order to place a bid or bid in an auction using a network, it is necessary to register as a member at the auction site. In the member registration procedure, the name, e-mail address, credit number, etc. of the user who has disturbed the transaction in the past are checked, and the identity verification procedure using the e-mail address is performed for individual users. The person will be verified by mail. Further, the member transaction history is accumulated even after joining, and the forced user is requested to have a problem. By performing such user management, it is necessary to maintain the quality and trust of the auction site on the network.

JP-A-10-320470

Kentaro Fujimoto, Passport Appears on the Internet, Universal ID Enclosure Strategy, INTERNET magazine, Japan, Impress Corporation, June 1, 2000, 65, p.290-294

  Conventional sites on the Internet include a specific site called a so-called mega site having many members. Alternatively, there are specific sites that are accessed only by members in special fields. In such a specific site, if an online auction service can be provided, it is preferable that more services can be provided to members of the site.

  However, in order to provide an auction service, it is necessary to construct a system for that purpose and to perform an operation specific to the auction service as described above. Therefore, it is not easy to provide a member with an auction service provided by a specific site that cannot afford to construct a system and has no special know-how.

  In addition, for service providers operating their own auction sites, if members of the above megasites or members of specific sites can participate in the auction, an increase in the number of items to be exhibited and the number of bids are expected to increase. It will become more active and lead to improved auction services.

  Therefore, allowing members of a specific site to participate in an existing auction is advantageous for both the existing auction site and a specific site that does not provide an auction service. However, when an existing auction site provides auction services to members of multiple specific sites, it seems that the members of a specific site appear to receive auction services from an auction site different from the site they belong to. It is unfavorable for customer management of a specific site because it will betray the sense of trust and familiarity.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a method and a system for operating a plurality of auction sites in which troubles for members of a plurality of auction sites and troubles among members are reduced as much as possible.

  It is another object of the present invention to provide a method and a system for operating a plurality of auction sites so that members of a specific auction site are made aware of the existence of other auction sites as much as possible.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of operating a plurality of auction sites that can be connected to a user terminal via a network and each provide an auction service. Allow members to bid on common sales or purchase offer items, and in the contact email to the user belonging to the first auction site, specify that the email is from the first auction site, The contact e-mail for the user belonging to the second auction site clearly indicates that the e-mail is from the second auction site.

  According to the operation method of the present invention, the auction service of a plurality of auction sites is activated by releasing a bid for an item to be offered for sale or purchase to a user who belongs to a plurality of auction sites, and a contact e-mail to the user is provided. By clearly indicating that the e-mail is from an affiliated home site, it is possible to prevent the loss of the sense of trust and familiarity with the affiliated home site owned by the user belonging to each auction site.

  In the first aspect described above, in a more preferred embodiment, it is clearly stated that each e-mail is sent from the home site to which it belongs even if the exchange of contact e-mail is required between users of different auction sites. Is done. As a result, the user can operate without noticing that the user is communicating with a user of an auction site different from the home site.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for operating a plurality of auction sites connectable to a user terminal via a network and providing auction services. Allow users to bid for common sales or purchase offer items, and if the user who belongs to an auction site where the sales or purchase offerer and the successful bidder are different at the time of the successful bid decision, specify the auction site of the other party A contact mail is transmitted to the sales or purchase offerer.

  The present invention is particularly effective when combined with the first aspect of the present invention described above. In other words, the offer of sales or purchase items until a successful bid is decided, and the bidding is done anonymously using the user name that is the nickname in the auction site, so the home site name to which each belongs belongs is clearly indicated There is no need to do. Therefore, until then, each auction site screen and contact email will clearly indicate that it belongs to the home site to which you belong, so that you do not lose the familiarity and trust of the member's home site, Since a personal transaction starts between the two, the name of the auction site to which the other party belongs is specified in the successful bid mail from each home site so that subsequent transactions will not be confused. By doing so, it is possible to operate a plurality of auction sites while keeping the personal information as secret as possible without disclosing the name of the home site to which the user belongs until the successful bid.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of operating a plurality of auction sites that can be connected to a user terminal via a network and each provide an auction service. Allow users to belong to common sales or purchase offer items and check that the names used in the auction site given to users in the auction site admission process are not duplicated in multiple auction sites It is characterized by doing.

  At the auction site, a personal user is given a use name which is a nickname different from his real name, and an exhibitor and a bidder are specified by the use name. Therefore, by checking that there is no duplication in the use name among members of a plurality of auction sites, it becomes possible to permit the members of a plurality of auction sites to bid for common items to be offered or purchase offer items. Since there is no duplication of user names among multiple sites, if a trademark value such as creditworthiness or quality assurance function accumulated by past transactions is formed for that user name, Confusion is prevented. Therefore, in a more preferable embodiment, a similarity check is also performed at the time of checking the duplication of user use names, and a step of preventing registration of user use names that are so similar as to cause confusion is provided.

  As described above, according to the present invention, when a plurality of auction sites are operated, a user who belongs to each home site participates in a common open auction without impairing the familiarity and reliability of the home site. Can be made. In addition, it is possible to prevent confusion in transactions between users at different home sites after a successful bid.

It is a figure which shows the relationship between the some auction site in this embodiment, and its member user. It is a detailed view of an auction system in the present embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the user database in this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the hierarchical screen of an auction site. It is a figure which shows an example of a bid screen. It is a figure which shows the example of an evaluation input screen. It is a figure which shows the example of an evaluation inquiry screen. It is a flowchart figure of the admission procedure to a main auction site. It is a figure which shows the example of a membership confirmation mail screen of a main auction site. It is a figure which shows the example of an enrollment confirmation mail screen of A auction site. It is a figure which shows the example of the highest bid price update mail screen of a main auction site. It is a figure which shows the example of the highest bid price update mail screen of A auction site. It is a flowchart figure in case a question mail is communicated between users A and B of A and B auction sites. It is a figure which shows the process sequence of the question mail of FIG. It is a figure explaining successful bid mail and dealings Navi. It is a figure explaining successful bid mail and dealings Navi.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, this embodiment does not limit the technical scope of the present invention.

  In addition, in the auction, the seller offers items for example, the normal auction where the right to purchase the item is given to those who win the item at the highest price, and the item to the person who purchases the item and offers the item at the lowest price. There is a reverse auction where sales rights are granted. Although the present invention can be applied to either case, the following embodiment will be described by taking a normal auction as an example.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the relationship between a plurality of auction sites and their users in the present embodiment. In the example shown in FIG. 1, in addition to the main auction site MAS that mainly provides auction services to user members, user members of A home site and user members of B home site that provide certain services. In order to provide a similar auction service, an A auction site AAS and a B auction site BAS are provided. Accordingly, the A auction site AAS can be accessed by the user from the A home site AHS by, for example, a link provided on the A home site AHS. Similarly, the B auction site BAS can be accessed by the user from the B home site BHS, for example, by a link provided on the B home site BHS. However, as will be described later, in order to receive services such as listings and successful bids at the A auction site AAS, it is necessary to receive authentication at the A home site AHS. The same applies to the B auction site BAS.

  Each auction site provides an interface screen for providing an auction service to a site specified by a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) which is an address on the World Wide Web (WWW). The A and B home sites also have interface screens for providing respective services. These screens are usually described in HTML (Hyper Text Mark-up Language) format and can be viewed from each terminal connected to the Internet 20. Note that “linking” means that a tag in which the URL address of the A auction site or the B auction site is embedded is provided in the HTML document of each home site.

  In addition, each auction site is composed of a plurality of hierarchized pages, similar to other interface screens on the WWW, and everyone can access the main page of the auction, which is the top page. The affiliated user can receive auction services such as listing and bidding.

  Therefore, the user M of the main auction site MAS can access the main auction site MAS from his client terminal 13M via the Internet 20 and receive authentication, and then can make an exhibition and bid on the auction site. . Similarly, the users A and B who are members of the A and B home sites also access the home sites AHS and BHS from the client terminals 13A and 13B for authentication, and then authenticate the respective auction sites AAS and BAS. You can submit and bid.

  An auction database 4 is provided in common so that bidding can be permitted for items that are common between different auction sites. The auction database 4 includes, for example, a database for users, listings, bids, successful bids, and emails. These databases are recorded in a common database when membership, exhibition, bidding, e-mail transmission, etc. from a certain auction site is performed. Therefore, for example, when an exhibition or a bid is made from a certain auction site, it is reflected on the auction interface screen of a different auction site. By operating in this way, it is possible to increase the number of items exhibited and the number of bids at the auction site, and activate the auction service.

  Furthermore, a successful bid module 7 is provided in common for a plurality of auction sites, and a successful bid process described later is performed according to the common database 4. The successful bid module 7 can be provided at each auction site, but in this case, it is necessary to maintain consistency with each other.

  When each auction site transmits a contact mail to each user member, the contact mail is transmitted to the mail server 16M, 16A, 16B of the user belonging to the respective auction site as a transmission source. In addition, the interface screen provided by each auction site clearly indicates that the auction is for each home site. Therefore, for each user member, it is not conscious that a plurality of auction sites are operated simultaneously via the interface screen of the auction site and the contact mail, and the auction of the home site to which each belongs. Being aware of receiving services only.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the A home site and the B home site, which are mega sites and specific sites, provide services on the Internet with their own systems. On the other hand, these sites AHS and BHS entrust the provision of auction services to the auction operator of the main auction site MAS. Accordingly, the auction sites AAS and BAS that provide the auction service to the user members of the A and B home sites are provided in the same auction system 1 as the main auction site MAS. However, the users A and B of the A and B home sites appear to receive the auction service from the respective home sites.

  FIG. 2 is a detailed diagram of the auction system in the present embodiment. In FIG. 2, the configuration of the server of the main auction site is exemplarily shown in detail. In addition to the web server 2, the main auction server MAS includes program module groups 5, 6, 8, and 9 that execute various processes of the auction service, and a mail server 3 that contacts the user for the auction service. Has been. The same configurations as these are also provided in the servers AAS and BAS of the A and B auction sites. A server 7 for a successful bid module is provided in common for the three auction sites. The successful bid module 7 determines, for example, the user who bids at the highest price among the bid prices in the normal auction as the winning bidder, or determines the winning bidder and the winning bid amount for the number of exhibitions in the so-called Dutch auction.

  For example, when a user joins an auction site, the program module group in the auction site checks for duplicate user names, performs a certain authentication process, and sends a confirmation mail for the authentication process to the user's e-mail. When there is an admission module 8 for sending to an address, an exhibition module 9 for registering information on an exhibition item in the exhibition database when there is an exhibition request from a user, and a bid request for an exhibition item In addition, a bid module 6 for registering bid information including a bid price in a bid database, a mail management module 5 for creating a contact mail addressed to the user, and the like are included. In addition, it also includes a page display module (not shown) that generates a display screen for the user reflecting the information of the database processed by the program module.

  The membership, exhibition, bidding and mail management modules perform certain processes in response to actions from users belonging to the respective sites, and perform certain processes for the respective users. Therefore, it is preferable that these program modules are provided in a server in each auction site. On the other hand, the successful bid module 7 needs to determine the winning bidder while maintaining consistency with a plurality of auction sites, and is preferably provided in common to the plurality of auction sites. For example, it may be provided in the same server as the auction database 4.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a user database in the present embodiment. FIG. 3 exemplarily shows a database of users M, A, and B belonging to three auction sites MAS, AAS, and BAS. In the database of the user M, a user serial number “user SN” commonly given to a plurality of auctions, a user ID and password in the main auction, a use name used as a nickname in the auction hall, a home site, Includes name, email address, address, phone number, and user type. There are individuals and corporations as user types, and authentication standards at the time of membership and subsequent handling differ depending on the user type. User M is a member of the main auction MAS, and his user ID and password are used for authentication when listing and bidding at the main auction. In addition to the above, the user database is also provided with a data field for an evaluation point that is a purchase point for depositing an exhibition fee and a contract fee after joining, and an evaluation history of a transaction after a successful bid.

  The databases for users A and B are the same as for user M. However, in the example shown in FIG. 3, the user A owns the user ID and password at the A home site, and the authentication procedure is performed at the A home site AHS. The user A who has already been authenticated in the A home site is not required to perform the authentication procedure again in the A auction site AAS. That is, once authentication is completed in the A home site, authentication cannot be requested again even when the A auction site AAS is accessed in the session. As a result, the user A who is a member of the A home site can appear to receive the auction service in the A home site.

  Accordingly, in the user A database, a common identification number “A000001” between the A home site AHS and the A auction site AAS is recorded as the user ID, although it is different from the user ID in the A home site. Also, no authentication procedure is required, so there is no password. In addition, it is recorded that the home site is the A home site to which the home site belongs.

  In the example shown in FIG. 3, the user B owns the user ID and password at the B home site, and if the authentication procedure is not completed when accessing the B auction site BAS, Input is required, and the B auction site BAS requests authentication from the B home site BHS. Therefore, the user ID and password in the B home site are recorded in the user B database.

  Any user who belongs to any auction site will conduct electronic commerce where the auction site using the network cannot see each other's face, so a membership procedure is required to register their status in advance. Become. Therefore, even if a user belongs to the A and B home sites and has already been authenticated at each home site, in order to receive the auction service at the A and B auction sites, the personal information and affiliation must be obtained through the admission procedure. It is required to register home sites in the database. The membership procedure will be described later.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hierarchical screen of the auction site. FIG. 4 shows the top page 22 of the main auction site MAS. The top page 22 includes an area 24 for performing category search or keyword search for selecting an exhibition item, and membership registration form screens (for personal use and corporate use) 32 and 34 used when a user joins. It has a button 26, an exhibition button 28 linked to an exhibition registration form screen 36 used when the user makes an exhibition, and a service counter button 30 linked to various member service screens 38. When a reverse auction is included in the auction service, a purchase offer button is further displayed.

  In the example of FIG. 4, since it is a top page for members of the main auction site, “M auction” is displayed as the title of the top page. Therefore, “A auction” and “B auction” are displayed on the top page for the members of the A and B auction sites instead of “M auction”.

  When the user wishes to join the auction site, the membership registration form screens 32 and 34 are displayed, and the name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, user ID, password, etc. are filled in and returned to the auction server 1 To do. The enrollment procedure is performed by the enrollment module 8, and the specific procedure will be described later. Then, by joining, it is possible to perform subsequent listing and bidding.

  When the user performs an exhibition using the auction service, the user clicks the exhibition button 28 from the auction top page 22 to display the exhibition registration form 36 and inputs information on the exhibit (item). The inputted information is registered in the exhibition database in the auction database 4 by the exhibition module 9. Information on the registered exhibition items is appropriately searched by the page display module and displayed on the auction page as an exhibit list.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a bid screen. When the user bids, the desired exhibit list is displayed from the search screen 24 on the top page 22. Then, when a desired item is selected from the exhibit list, a bid screen 48 of FIG. 5 is displayed. The bid screen 48 includes an item information area 50 including item information, a current highest bid price, a bid closing time, etc., and a seller information area including a seller's use name, a profile that is past transaction evaluation data, and a question button for the seller. 52 and an area 54 containing the current successful bidder use name.

  Further, the bid screen 48 has a bid area 56. A user who wishes to bid enters his / her ID and password in the bidding area 56, selects normal bidding or agent bidding (a function to automatically re-bidding when out-bitting), and enters the bidding price. The button 58 is clicked to send bid information to the auction server 1. Based on the input bid information, the bidding module 8 performs an update display of the bidding status including the update of the current highest bidding price, and contacts the bidder as necessary. The bid is completed when conditions such as a bid deadline such as a preset auction method are satisfied, and the successful bidder is determined by the general bidding module 7. Then, the fact is notified to the successful bidder and the exhibitor and reflected on the display screen. In the case of a reverse auction in which the exhibitor who has presented the lowest bid price makes a successful bid, the lowest bid price is displayed on the bid screen 48.

  Also in FIG. 5, since it is a bid screen for users of the main auction site, “M auction exhibition information” is displayed as the title. If the user is an A or B auction site, the auction name of each home site is displayed. In addition, as described above, there is no display for prompting the user ID and password to be entered on the bidding screen for users of the A home site.

  Returning to FIG. 4, when the user wants to receive various services, the service counter button 30 on the top page is clicked to display the service counter screen 38, and a necessary service button is selected and clicked. Types of services include changes to registered contents and inquiries 40, status changes 42 to change from individual members to corporate members, or vice versa, purchase of advance payments such as exhibition fees, and current advance purchase points There are a point purchase / inquiry 44 for inquiring high, an evaluation input / inquiry 46 for inputting and inquiring the user's past transaction evaluation data.

  In the auction site, the exhibition fee and the contract fee when the auction is concluded can be paid in advance, and the deposit is the above-mentioned advance purchase point. In addition, since it is an auction in which a large number of unspecified individual users participate, when a transaction is established, the other party's response to the other party is evaluated and the evaluation is accumulated. Past evaluation data is displayed by clicking the profile button (see region 52 in the figure) in FIG. 5, and it is possible to determine whether or not to bid by referring to the seller's evaluation.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of an evaluation input screen. When the transaction after the successful bid is completed, the successful bidder and the seller are prompted to evaluate each other by e-mail or the like. By accessing the URL address of the e-mail, the evaluation input screen 68 of FIG. 6 is displayed. On this evaluation input screen 68, an evaluation input can be performed by clicking any one of the lot number input 70 and the evaluation input (“very good”, “good”, “problem”) of the auction that has been awarded. it can. This evaluation data is accumulated for each user.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of an evaluation inquiry screen. When the seller's profile button (area 52) is clicked on the bid screen 48 of FIG. 5, the seller's past transaction evaluation data is shown as shown in FIG. When the evaluation input / inquiry button is clicked on the service counter screen 38 of FIG. 4, the past transaction evaluation data is displayed as shown in FIG. 7 through a certain operation.

  In the example of FIG. 7, the past three months, the previous and total evaluation histories 76, and an evaluation meter 78 indicating the average of the evaluation histories are shown. Therefore, a user who is considering a successful bid can use it as a material for determining whether or not to make a successful bid by referring to the past transaction evaluation history from the exhibitor's profile. In addition, the exhibitor also makes an effort to increase the transaction evaluation point in order to raise the winning bid price and increase the winning bid rate. As a result, the reliability of the auction hall is increased and more appropriate transactions are secured. In addition, since such evaluation history is accumulated for each user use name, it is desired that the user use name does not overlap among a plurality of auction sites.

[Admission procedure]
FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a procedure for joining the main auction site. The main auction site MAS is a dedicated site that mainly provides auction services. If the user wants to participate in the auction, that is, if he / she wants to exhibit or bid, it is necessary to register as a member through an enrollment procedure. This membership process is controlled by the membership module 8.

  The joining process will be described with reference to FIG. 8. First, the user M accesses the auction site MAS using the browser of the client terminal (S10). In response to the access, the main auction site MAS transmits an HTML document for displaying the top page as shown in FIG. 4 and displays it on the client terminal of the user M (S11). When the user M clicks the membership button 26 and a membership request is transmitted (S12), the main auction site MAS transmits and displays the membership registration forms 32 and 34 shown in FIG. 4 (S13). When the user M fills in and transmits the necessary information on the membership registration form (S14), the main auction site MAS conducts a membership examination and refers to the existing user database to check whether there is no duplication of user usage names. Is checked (S15). In this user use name duplication check, it is checked whether there is no duplication across a plurality of auction sites regardless of the home sites of the users registered in the user database.

  If the admission examination is passed, an admission confirmation mail with a confirmation code is transmitted to the registered e-mail address (S16). FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of an enrollment confirmation mail screen on the main auction site. In the membership confirmation mail screen 80, it is specified in the FROM close 81 indicating the mail transmission source that the mail originates from the M auction site. The text of the mail also indicates that it is a procedure for joining the M auction (for example, area 82). A confirmation code 83 for identifying the enrollee is included. In the example of FIG. 9, the URL address 84 of the transmission form screen for transmitting the confirmation code is shown. This URL address is also indicated in the M auction site. As a result, the user is conscious of the procedure for joining the M auction site MAS.

  Returning to FIG. 8, the user M clicks on the hyperlink 84 of FIG. 9 to access the confirmation code transmission site (S17), and the M auction site transmits the transmission form screen (S18). Then, when the user M inputs and transmits the confirmation code 83 shown in the membership confirmation mail on the transmission form screen (not shown) (S19), the membership module 8 of the M auction site MAS checks the confirmation code and agrees. If so, the admission procedure is terminated (S20).

  Next, when the user A who is a member of the A home site AHS accesses the A auction site AAS and wants to receive auction services such as listing and bidding, membership to the auction site is required. The membership procedure at that time is basically the same as in the main auction site, and registration of personal information such as e-mail, address, and name in the database 4 is required. However, in the A auction site AAS, if a member has already been registered at the A home site, it is not required to register a new user ID or password. Accordingly, in the admission examination, a general examination for checking whether a credit number or the like is in the black list and a duplication check of user names are performed. When the admission examination passes, a confirmation code is transmitted to the e-mail address by an admission confirmation mail, and a reply of the confirmation code is required.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of an Auction site AAS membership confirmation mail screen. On the A-auction site admission confirmation mail screen 85, it is clearly indicated in the FROM close 86 indicating the mail transmission source that the message originates from the A-auction site, and the e-mail message indicates that the procedure is for admission to the A-auction ( For example, area 87). Then, a confirmation code 88 for identifying an enrollee is included, and a URL address 89 of a transmission form screen for transmitting the confirmation code is shown. This URL address 89 is also indicated within the A auction site, and the user is aware that it is a procedure for joining the A auction site AAS.

  When the user B who is a member of the B home site joins the B auction site BAS, the same joining process is taken. In the enrollment confirmation mail in that case, it is clearly indicated that the mail originator is the B auction and the B auction is an enrollment process, and the address of the B auction site is used as the URL address of the transmission form.

  The above membership confirmation email is used in the membership confirmation procedure for individual users. In the case of a corporate user, the membership confirmation procedure is such that the membership confirmation mail is not addressed to the corporate user's e-mail address, but to the actual address. Therefore, mail is used. As a procedure, the above e-mail address is changed to an actual address, and the e-mail is simply changed to postal mail. The mailing source and text of the membership confirmation e-mail are created from the auction site to which they belong in the same way as above. The

  In the above admission procedure, first, the user use names are examined so as not to overlap among members of a plurality of auction sites. Second, it is clearly indicated that the membership confirmation mail is sent from each auction site. Since the enrollment process is controlled by the enrollment module 8 of each auction site, each enrollment confirmation mail is generated as if sent from each auction site, and the template of each auction site is used for the reply form.

  When the admission is permitted, the users M, A, and B are permitted to exhibit and bid at the respective auction sites. For example, a notice mail for notifying auction information is transmitted from each auction site to the member. This notification email also clearly indicates that the transmission source is the user's home site, similar to the membership confirmation email. These mails are sent by the mail management module 5 of each auction site, for example.

[Highest successful bid price update mail]
11 and 12 are diagrams showing examples of the highest bid price update mail screen. In the case of a normal auction, the item purchase right is given to those who bid at the highest price. Then, before the end of the auction period, when a certain user bids once at the highest price and is outbited at a higher bid price by another user, the highest bid price update mail is transmitted to the first user. The highest bid price update mail is created by referring to a common bid database by the bid module 6 of each auction site.

  In particular, when a plurality of auction sites are operated, the bid of the user B of another auction site may be out-bited by the bid of the user A. In that case, the bidding module 6 of the A auction site AAS refers to the common bidding database in response to the bid of the user A, detects that the user A is holding the highest bid price, The user A is sent a text highest bid price update mail from the A auction site.

  11 and 12 are mail screens for the user M of the main auction site and the user A of the A auction site. In each of the screens 90 and 94, M-auction (91 in the figure) and A-auction (95 in the figure) are clearly specified in the FROM closing indicating the transmission source, and it is the highest bid price update mail in each auction. It is specified (92 and 96 in the figure), and the URL address of the bidding form when re-bidding is used as the address of each auction site (93 and 97 in the figure).

  The above-mentioned membership confirmation e-mail, notification e-mail, and maximum bid price update e-mail are one-way e-mails transmitted to user members to which the respective auction sites belong. Alternatively, it is a one-way mail transmitted to a user member belonging to another auction site. On the other hand, there is a case where mail communication is performed between user members belonging to different auction sites. For example, a case where a question about an exhibition item is performed corresponds. By clicking the question button in the area 52 on the bidding screen 48 in FIG. Even in such a case, in the auction site, it is necessary to hide the personal information such as each other's e-mail address so that the user can see the mail from the auction site to which each belongs.

[Question email]
FIG. 13 is a flowchart when a question mail is communicated between users A and B of the A and B auction sites. FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a processing procedure for the question mail. When exchanging question mails between users A and B of different auction sites A and B, the mail management module 5 of each affiliated site AAS and BAS creates a question mail and an answer mail and sets the corresponding user's mail address. Send. Accordingly, a question mail and an answer mail from the affiliation site are sent to the users A and B, respectively, and an anonymous format that does not specify the other party is obtained.

  First, when the user A clicks the question button in the area 52 of the bid screen 48 in FIG. 5, a question mail is requested (S31). As a result, the URL address in the A auction site embedded in the question button is accessed. The mail management module 5 in the A auction site accesses the shared auction database 4 and refers to the information on the item to be questioned to know that the seller is the user B of the B auction site BAS. Then, the question form 100 about the target exhibition item is transmitted from the web server 2 to the user A (S32). As shown in FIG. 14, the question form 100 includes a lot number of an exhibition item and an item display. When the user A enters a question in the blank of the question form 100 and clicks the send button, it is sent to the A auction site AAS (S33).

  The mail management module 5 of the A auction site AAS creates the question mail 102 addressed to the user B and transmits it to the user B (S34). This question mail 102 specifies that the mail transmission source is a B auction site (area 103), and specifies that it is a question about an item displayed on the B auction site. Then, the URL address of the B auction site is shown as the URL address 104 of the answer form. At this time, it is recorded that there is a question from the user A about the target exhibition item in the exhibition database of the shared auction database 4, and the text of the question mail is recorded in the mail database. The question mail 102 clearly indicates that the question is from the user A, but does not indicate the A auction site to which the user A belongs. Of course, the personal information of the user A is kept secret.

  When the user B receives the question mail 102 (S35), the user B accesses the URL address of the answer form (S36). The mail management module 5 of the B auction site BAS accesses the database 4, and the question mail is sent to the user A. Know that it is from. Then, an answer form (not shown) is transmitted to the user B (S37). The answer form is the same as the question form 100, and a field for entering an answer is shown. When the user B fills in and sends it (S38), the mail management module 5 of the B auction site BAS creates an answer mail specifying that the destination is the user A and the transmission source is the A auction site, and the user A Is transmitted via the mail server 3 (S39). This answer mail is also recorded in the shared database. Then, the user A receives an answer mail from the A auction site (S40).

  As described above, it is performed anonymously via an auction site to which all mails between users belong. Even when communication between users belonging to different auction sites is necessary, the transmission source and text are processed so that the email is transmitted from the auction site of the recipient user. As a result, the users A and B are not aware that the other party is a user other than their home site, and can perform mail communication without impairing the sense of familiarity and trust.

[Successful bid email]
When the bidding condition is satisfied, for example, when the bidding deadline has passed, the successful bid module 7 determines a successful bid for the user who bids at the highest bid price in the case of a normal auction. The decision of the successful bid is notified to the successful bidder and the seller by e-mail. A transaction navigation function is provided in order to smoothly perform subsequent transactions between users.

  15 and 16 are diagrams for explaining a successful bid mail and transaction navigation. Here, a case will be described as an example where an item exhibited by the user B is sold by the user A. When the successful bidder module 7 determines the winning bidder, it refers to the shared database 4 to acquire information on the winning bidder and the seller, and sends it to the user A of the winning bidder and the user B of the seller from the mail server of each site ( Alternatively, the successful bid mails 110 and 115 are transmitted (S40, S41). The successful bid module 7 processes the mail sender 111 and the text 112 for the A auction site in the successful bid mail 110 for the user A who is the successful bidder, and displays the seller name, the seller's email address, and the seller's affiliated site name. The seller information 113 having is indicated. Furthermore, the successful bidder successful bid mail 110 includes a URL address 114 of a transaction navigation function that assists in the creation of an update mail for subsequent transactions. The address of the A auction of this URL address 114 is used.

  A successful bid mail for user B who is an exhibitor is also generated by the successful bid module 7 and transmitted directly or from the mail server of the affiliated site (S41). The seller's successful bid mail 115 is also processed with the sender 116 and the text 117 for the B auction site of the home site, and the use name, the mail address, and the site name are specified as the successful bidder information 118.

  As mentioned above, the successful bid e-mail is processed like the e-mail from the home site to which each belongs, just like other e-mails, but in order to prevent confusion in subsequent transactions in advance, Is informed at this point.

  As shown in FIG. 16, when user A who is a successful bidder selects transaction navigation (114 in the mail 110) (S42), a transaction mail creation form 120 is transmitted from the web server 2 in the A auction site (S43). ). This transaction mail creation form 120 is provided with a field for entering personal information in addition to a button for selecting a desired transaction form selected in advance by the exhibitor. When the transmission button is clicked after entry, the data is transmitted to the A auction site (S44). Using the entered data, the successful bid module 7 creates a transaction mail 125 and transmits it to the user B (S45).

  In the example of FIG. 16, the transaction mail 125 includes a request for cash-on-delivery mail and personal information necessary for shipping items to the successful bidder. Then, a URL address 126 is also included so that a transaction mail can be performed using the transaction navigation function. When user B who is an exhibitor selects this, a mail is created and transmitted via the successful bid module 7 in the same manner as described above. In addition, it is possible to support the creation of e-mails in the same way when applying to reject a transaction during a transaction. Used when the other party has suspicious behavior.

  If the transaction navigation is not used after a successful bid, direct mail communication may be performed between the exhibitor and the successful bidder. At such time, if the partner's home site is different from his / her home site from the partner, not the secretariat, the partner may be distrusted and the transaction may be confused. Therefore, as described above, it is preferable to notify the partner's home site in advance in a successful bid mail from the auction site office.

  As described above, in the case where a plurality of auction sites are operated as described in the embodiment, allowing a user member of a different auction site to bid for an item exhibited from each site activates the auction. It is preferable when it becomes. However, for members of a specific home site that already exists, it is possible to process the text of the auction page, the sender and text of various contact emails so that it is an auction service for that home site. It is preferable for maintaining a sense of trust and familiarity. The same is true when an update mail is sent between users of different auction sites. However, after the successful bid is made, transactions between users become the main entities, so it is preferable to contact the other party's site from the auction office. In order to publish listings and bids among a plurality of auction sites, it is necessary to check at the time of enrollment so that user names are not duplicated between the plurality of auction sites.

  In the above embodiment examples, explanations have been given by taking a normal auction as an example, but it is also applicable to a reverse auction in which a purchase applicant offers a purchase item, a sales applicant bids for a sales price, and a successful bid is made at the lowest bid price. can do. In addition, the mail screens and the texts shown here are examples, and it goes without saying that other screens and texts may be used.

  Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to an auction, and can be applied to a case where a general electronic commerce service is provided to members of a plurality of sites.

  As described above, the protection scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but extends to the invention described in the claims and equivalents thereof.

MAS, AAS, BAS Auction site
AHS, BHS Home site 1 Auction system 4 Shared auction database 6 Bid module 7 Successful module 8 Membership module 9 Exhibition module 13 User terminal

Claims (12)

In a method of operating a plurality of auction sites that can be connected to a user terminal via a network and each provide an auction service,
In response to a sale or purchase offer for a predetermined item from a user terminal belonging to the plurality of auction sites, the offer is registered in a common auction database in an auction server and the item is displayed on the user terminal Making it possible, and
Reflecting the bid in the auction database in response to a bid for the registered offer item from a user terminal belonging to the plurality of auction sites;
Creating a contact e-mail for the user belonging to the first auction site so as to be clearly indicated as an e-mail from the first auction site, and sending the e-mail to the user belonging to the first auction site;
Creating a contact e-mail to the user belonging to the second auction site so as to be clearly indicated as an e-mail from the second auction site, and transmitting the e-mail to the user belonging to the second auction site. How to operate multiple auction sites. In claim 1,
Requesting registration of personal information necessary for membership including at least the user's email address in response to a membership offer from the user terminal in the plurality of auction sites;
After receiving the personal information data from the user terminal, sending a registration confirmation email containing a confirmation code to the user's email address as the contact email and requesting a reply of the confirmation code;
A method for operating a plurality of auction sites, comprising: in response to transmission of the confirmation code from the user terminal, checking with a confirmation code included in the membership confirmation mail. In claim 1,
A method for operating a plurality of auction sites, comprising: a step of transmitting a successful bid price update mail including information on a successful bid price updated to the previous winning bidder in response to the bid as the contact mail. . In claim 1,
Determining a successful bidder when a predetermined successful bid condition is satisfied, and sending a successful bid mail including the successful bid information and the name of the other party's auction site to the user who made the offer and the successful bid as the contact mail. How to operate multiple auction sites. In claim 1,
In response to an e-mail transmission request from the user terminal belonging to the first auction site to the user belonging to the second auction site, the first auction is sent to the user belonging to the second auction site. A method for operating a plurality of auction sites, comprising a step of transmitting the contact mail without indicating a site. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 5,
A method for operating a plurality of auction sites, characterized in that the sender display of the contact mail is an auction site to which a user who receives the contact mail belongs. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 5,
The common auction database includes a user database having at least a user's email address, a home site to which the user belongs, and personal information including a name and an address,
A method for operating a plurality of auction sites, wherein the user database is referred to when creating the contact mail. In a method of operating a plurality of auction sites that can be connected to a user terminal via a network and each provide an auction service,
In response to a sale or purchase offer for a predetermined item from a user terminal belonging to the plurality of auction sites, the offer is registered in a common auction database in an auction server and the item is displayed on the user terminal Making it possible, and
Reflecting the bid in the auction database in response to a bid for the registered offer item from a user terminal belonging to the plurality of auction sites;
In response to the membership request to the respective auction sites from the user terminals belonging to the plurality of auction sites, the user usage names in the auction site given to the users after joining are users belonging to the plurality of auction sites. The process of checking that it is not duplicated with the user name of
A method of operating a multi-auction site, comprising: a step of transmitting an admission mail to a user who has made the admission request when there is no duplication. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 5,
The common auction database includes a user database having at least an e-mail address of the user, a home site to which the user belongs, and personal information including the user use name, name, and address,
A method for operating a plurality of auction sites, characterized in that when checking for duplication of user use names at the time of enrollment request, home site information to which an existing user database belongs is ignored. In the operation system of a plurality of auction sites that can be connected to user terminals via a network and each provide an auction service,
In response to a sale or purchase offer for a predetermined item from a user terminal belonging to the plurality of auction sites, the offer is registered in a common auction database in an auction server, and the item is displayed on the user terminal Means for enabling,
Means for reflecting the bid in the auction database in response to a bid for the registered offer item from a user terminal belonging to the plurality of auction sites;
Creating a contact e-mail for the user belonging to the first auction site so as to be clearly indicated as an e-mail from the first auction site, and transmitting the e-mail to the user belonging to the first auction site;
A communication e-mail for the user belonging to the second auction site is created so as to be clearly indicated as an e-mail from the second auction site, and is transmitted to the user A management system for multiple auction sites. In claim 10,
A means for determining a successful bidder when a predetermined successful bid condition is satisfied, and sending a successful bid mail including the successful bid information and the name of the other party's auction site to the user who made the offer and the successful bid as the contact mail. A management system for multiple auction sites. In the operation system of a plurality of auction sites that can be connected to user terminals via a network and each provide an auction service,
In response to a sale or purchase offer for a predetermined item from a user terminal belonging to the plurality of auction sites, the offer is registered in a common auction database in an auction server and the item is displayed on the user terminal Means for enabling,
Means for reflecting the bid in the auction database in response to a bid for the registered offer item from a user terminal belonging to the plurality of auction sites;
In response to membership request to the respective auction sites from the user terminals belonging to the plurality of auction sites, the user use names in the auction site given to the users after joining are users belonging to the plurality of auction sites. A means to check that it is not duplicated with the user name of
A system for operating a plurality of auction sites, comprising: means for transmitting an admission mail to a user who has made the admission request when there is no duplication.

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