JP2011158977A - Book-on-demand management server, system, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To insert advertisements having high advertising effects into a print target electronic document. <P>SOLUTION: A reception part 101 receives information to specify an electronic book designated by a user from a user terminal 20. An acquisition part 102 acquires the electronic book specified based on the received information. A selection part 103 selects advertisements to be inserted into the electronic book from among the candidates of advertisements to be inserted into the electronic book based on the content of the acquired electronic book. An insertion part 104 inserts the selected advertisements into the acquired electronic book. A transmission part 105 transmits information showing an inquiry for the propriety of the insertion of the advertisements to a user terminal 20. A reception part 101 receives the information showing the propriety of the insertion of the advertisements from the user terminal 20. When the insertion of the advertisements is permitted, a transmission part 105 transmits the electronic book into which the advertisements have been inserted by the insertion part 104, and when the insertion of the advertisements is not permitted, transmits the acquired electronic book, to a print management server 50. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a book-on-demand management server, a book-on-demand management system, and a program for realizing these by a computer, which are suitable for inserting an advertisement with a high advertising effect into an electronic book to be printed.

  In recent years, a book-on-demand business model is known in which an electronic book whose contents are digitized is printed and bound in accordance with a book order made by a user. Such book-on-demand is effective when a book seller sells a book with a relatively small number of copies issued or a book that cannot be expected to be resold. That is, according to the book on demand, the seller does not have a stock of books, and the distribution cost can be reduced.

  On the other hand, in the book-on-demand, it is necessary to print the electronic book by a laser beam printer, and the printing cost is higher than the case where the electronic book is produced in large quantities by the offset printing method. A technique for solving such a problem is disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example. Specifically, Patent Document 1 discloses a print processing apparatus capable of reducing the amount charged to a print requester by an advertisement publication price by enabling paid advertisement placement on printed matter by on-demand printing. Has been.

  However, since the print processing apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 inserts an advertisement into an electronic book at random, a high advertising effect is not obtained. For this reason, there is a demand for a technology capable of selecting an advertisement with a high advertising effect from advertisement candidates to be inserted into an electronic book to be printed and inserting it into the electronic book to be printed.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and is a book-on-demand management server, a book-on-demand management system, and a computer suitable for inserting an advertisement with a high advertising effect into an electronic book to be printed. It aims at providing the program for realizing by this.

In order to achieve the above object, a book on demand management server according to the first aspect of the present invention provides:
Receiving means for receiving information identifying an electronic book designated by a user from a user terminal operated by the user;
Obtaining means for obtaining an electronic book specified by the received information;
Selection means for selecting an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book from candidates for an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book based on the content of the acquired electronic book;
Inserting means for inserting the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book,
Transmitting means for transmitting to the user terminal information indicating whether or not to insert the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book,
The receiving means receives information indicating whether or not the selected advertisement can be inserted into the acquired electronic book from the user terminal,
In the case where the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is allowed to be inserted, the transmitting unit transmits the electronic book in which the selected advertisement is inserted by the inserting unit to the electronic book. If the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is not allowed to be sent to a print management server that manages book printing and bookbinding, the acquired electronic book Send to the print management server,
It is characterized by that.

The receiving means further receives information indicating a degree of insertion of the advertisement when insertion of the selected advertisement is permitted in the acquired electronic book,
The insertion means may insert an advertisement to the extent indicated by the received information into the acquired electronic book.

  The transmitting means printed and bound information indicating the price when printing and binding the electronic book in which the selected advertisement is inserted by the inserting means, and the electronic book in which the selected advertisement is not inserted. Information indicating the price at the time may be further transmitted to the user terminal.

  The selection unit may select an advertisement associated with a predetermined keyword included in the acquired electronic book as an advertisement to be inserted into the acquired electronic book.

The receiving means further receives profile information of the user from the user terminal;
The selection means may select an advertisement to be inserted into the acquired electronic book based on the content of the acquired electronic book and the received profile information.

The profile information includes information specifying the user's location,
The selection means may select an advertisement for a person residing in the location of the user as an advertisement to be inserted into the acquired electronic book.

The profile information includes information specifying the age or gender of the user,
The selection unit may select an advertisement for a person of the user's age or gender as an advertisement to be inserted into the acquired electronic book.

  The inserting means inserts the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book, and further includes a barcode that can be linked to a site related to the advertisement and that can specify the content of the electronic book. It may be inserted.

  The inserting means inserts the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book, and further inserts a barcode that can be linked to a site related to the advertisement and can specify the profile information into the electronic book. May be.

In order to achieve the above object, a book on demand management system according to the second aspect of the present invention provides:
A book on demand management system comprising a book on demand management server,
The book on demand management server
Receiving means for receiving information identifying an electronic book designated by a user from a user terminal operated by the user;
Obtaining means for obtaining an electronic book specified by the received information;
Selection means for selecting an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book from candidates for an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book based on the content of the acquired electronic book;
Inserting means for inserting the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book,
Transmitting means for transmitting to the user terminal information indicating whether or not to insert the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book,
The receiving means receives information indicating whether or not the selected advertisement can be inserted into the acquired electronic book from the user terminal,
In the case where the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is allowed to be inserted, the transmitting unit transmits the electronic book in which the selected advertisement is inserted by the inserting unit to the electronic book. If the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is not allowed to be sent to a print management server that manages book printing and bookbinding, the acquired electronic book Send to the print management server,
It is characterized by that.

In order to achieve the above object, a program according to the third aspect of the present invention provides:
Computer
A program that functions as a book-on-demand management server,
The program runs the computer
Receiving means for receiving information identifying an electronic book designated by a user from a user terminal operated by the user;
Obtaining means for obtaining an electronic book specified by the received information;
Selection means for selecting an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book from candidates for an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book based on the content of the acquired electronic book;
Inserting means for inserting the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book,
Information indicating an inquiry as to whether or not to insert the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book, function as a transmission unit that transmits to the user terminal,
The receiving means receives information indicating whether or not the selected advertisement can be inserted into the acquired electronic book from the user terminal,
In the case where the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is allowed to be inserted, the transmitting unit transmits the electronic book in which the selected advertisement is inserted by the inserting unit to the electronic book. If the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is not allowed to be sent to a print management server that manages book printing and bookbinding, the acquired electronic book Send to the print management server,
It is characterized by that.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to insert an advertisement having a high advertising effect into an electronic book to be printed.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the book on demand management system which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the physical structure of a book on demand management server. It is a block diagram which shows the functional structure of a book on demand management server. It is a flowchart which shows the book on demand management process which the book on demand management server which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention performs. It is a figure which shows a book name input screen. It is a figure which shows advertisement information. It is a figure which shows an advertisement insertion location input screen. It is a figure which shows a mode that the advertisement is published by the book. It is a flowchart which shows the book on demand management process which the book on demand management server which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention performs. It is a figure which shows a profile input screen. It is a figure which shows advertisement information.

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

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a book on demand management system 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 1, a book-on-demand management system 100 includes a book-on-demand management server 10, a user terminal 20, an advertisement management server 30, a content server 40, and a print management server 50. A communication network 90 connected to the network.

  The book-on-demand management server 10 is a device that forms the core of the book-on-demand management system 100, and executes processing for inserting an advertisement into an electronic book. Specifically, the book on demand management server 10 receives an electronic book name, advertisement insertion location information, and the like from the user terminal 20, receives advertisement information from the advertisement management server 30, and receives an electronic book from the content server 40. It receives and transmits to the print management server 50 an electronic book in which an advertisement is inserted.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the book-on-demand management server 10 physically includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 12, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 13, a hard disk 14, and the like. , An RTC (Real Time Clock) 15, a keyboard 16, a monitor 17, and a NIC (Network Interface Card) 18. Each component included in the book on demand management server 10 is connected via a bus. The book on demand management server 10 can be configured by a personal computer, for example.

  The CPU 11 controls the overall operation of the book on demand management server 10 according to a program stored in the hard disk 14. The CPU 11 is connected to each component via a bus, and exchanges control signals and data.

  The ROM 12 stores an IPL (Initial Program Loader) that is executed immediately after the power is turned on. After the IPL is executed, the CPU 11 reads the program stored in the hard disk 14 into the RAM 13 and executes it.

  The RAM 13 temporarily stores data and programs. The RAM 13 temporarily stores a program read from the hard disk 14, data necessary for each process, and the like.

  The hard disk 14 stores a program executed by the CPU 11. Further, the hard disk 14 stores advertisement information received from the advertisement management server 30, electronic books received from the content server 40, and the like. Information stored in the hard disk 14 may be stored in the hard disk 14 in advance, or may be acquired from an external device via the communication network 90 as appropriate.

  The RTC 15 is a time measuring device including a crystal resonator and an oscillation circuit. The RTC 15 is supplied with power from the built-in battery, and continues to operate even when the book-on-demand management server 10 is powered off.

  The keyboard 16 receives various operation inputs from an administrator of the book on demand management server 10 or the like. The book on demand management server 10 may include a mouse instead of the keyboard 16 or may include a mouse in addition to the keyboard 16.

  The monitor 17 displays various screens under the control of the CPU 11. The monitor 17 includes, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube), and the like.

  The NIC 18 transmits / receives various information to / from an external device via the communication network 90 under the control of the CPU 11.

  The user terminal 20 is a device operated by a user who purchases a book using book on demand. That is, the user terminal 20 is a device that presents a screen for accepting a book name of an electronic book to the user or presents a screen for accepting whether or not an advertisement can be inserted into the electronic book. The user terminal 20 is configured by a personal computer or the like, and can be configured similarly to the book on demand management server 10 shown in FIG. The user terminal 20 may be a mobile communication terminal such as a mobile phone.

  The advertisement management server 30 is a server installed in an advertisement agency or the like, and stores advertisement information representing the contents of advertisements inserted into electronic books. Then, the advertisement management server 30 transmits the advertisement information to the book on demand management server 10. As will be described later, the advertisement information includes information representing the contents of the advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book, information representing the keyword associated with the advertisement, information representing the advertisement fee of the advertisement, and the like. .

  The content server 40 is a server installed in a publisher or the like, and stores electronic books in a format suitable for on-demand printing. That is, the content server 40 receives the book name of the electronic book from the book on demand management server 10, and transmits the electronic book with the received book name and information indicating the price of the electronic book to the book on demand management server 10. To do. Thus, according to the present embodiment, the publisher only needs to prepare an electronic book, and does not need to have an inventory of books.

  The print management server 50 is a server installed in a print shop or the like, and is a device that manages print jobs executed in the print shop. That is, the print management server 50 is an apparatus that manages printing and bookbinding of electronic books received from the book on demand management server 10. Accordingly, the printing management server 50 is connected to a printing machine, bookbinding machine, and the like (not shown). The print management server 50 also includes a corresponding fee table such as color / monochrome, number of pages, bookbinding finishing format, and the like. Then, the print management server 50 responds to the fee inquiry from the book on demand management server 10 and transmits information representing the fee for printing and bookbinding of the electronic book to the book on demand management server 10. The electronic book printed at the print shop is an electronic book stored in the content server 40. The print shop is a copy shop called an office convenience store, or a book store or convenience store corresponding to an on-demand book that is expected to increase in the future. Then, the book created at the print shop is delivered to the user at the delivery or print shop.

  The communication network 90 is a network such as the Internet or a LAN (Local Area Network). The communication network 90 relays communication among the book-on-demand management server 10, the user terminal 20, the advertisement management server 30, the content server 40, and the print management server 50. Note that devices connected to each other via the communication network 90 perform security communication with each other using a VPN (Virtual Private Network) or SSL (Secure Sockets Layer).

  Next, basic functions of the book on demand management server 10 will be described with reference to FIG.

  As illustrated in FIG. 3, the book on demand management server 10 includes a receiving unit 101, an acquiring unit 102, a selecting unit 103, an inserting unit 104, and a transmitting unit 105.

  The receiving unit 101 receives information specifying an electronic book received from the user, typically an electronic book name, from the user terminal 20. The receiving unit 101 is configured by, for example, the NIC 18.

  The acquisition unit 102 acquires an electronic book indicated by the received information. The acquisition unit 102 is configured by the NIC 18, for example.

  Based on the content of the acquired electronic book, the selection unit 103 selects an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book from advertisement candidates to be inserted into the electronic book. The selection unit 103 is configured by, for example, the CPU 11.

  The insertion unit 104 inserts the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book. The insertion part 104 is comprised by CPU11, for example.

  The transmission unit 105 transmits information indicating an inquiry as to whether or not to insert the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book to the user terminal 20. The transmission unit 105 is configured by, for example, the NIC 18.

  Here, the receiving unit 101 receives information indicating whether or not the selected advertisement can be inserted into the acquired electronic book from the user terminal 20.

  Then, if the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is allowed to be inserted, the transmitting unit 105 displays the electronic book in which the selected advertisement is inserted by the inserting unit 104, It transmits to the print management server 50 which manages printing and bookbinding of the electronic book. On the other hand, when the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is not permitted to be inserted, the transmission unit 105 transmits the acquired electronic book to the print management server 50.

  Next, a book on demand management process executed by the book on demand management server 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. It is assumed that the advertisement information stored in the advertisement management server 30 is uploaded to the book on demand management server 10 and stored in the hard disk 14 in advance.

  First, the CPU 11 transmits information indicating a screen for accepting input of a book name (hereinafter referred to as “book name input screen”) to the user terminal 20 (step S101). Here, the book name input screen 500 will be described with reference to FIG.

  As illustrated in FIG. 5, the book name input screen 500 includes a book name input area 501, an OK button 502, a keyword input area 503, a search start button 504, and a search result display area 505.

  The book name input area 501 is an area in which a character string representing a book name that the user desires to obtain is input. Therefore, the user inputs a book name to be obtained using a keyboard or the like while the cursor is positioned on the book name input area 501.

  An OK button 502 is a button to be pressed by the user when purchasing an electronic book having a book name represented by a character string input in the book name input area 501 by book on demand.

  The keyword input area 503 is an area in which a character string representing a keyword for searching for a book name that the user desires to obtain is input. Accordingly, the user inputs a keyword using a keyboard or the like while the cursor is on the keyword input area 503.

  The search start button 504 is a button to be pressed by the user when searching for a book name using the character string input in the keyword input area 503 as a keyword.

  The search result display area 505 is an area where a list of books searched using the character string input in the keyword input area 503 as a keyword is displayed. Therefore, the user selects a book name to be obtained from the book names displayed in the search result display area 505 and inputs the selected book name in the book name input area 501. Note that when the search result display area 505 is clicked, the book name displayed in the clicked area may be copied to the book name input area 501.

  CPU11 will receive the information showing the book name selected by the user from the user terminal 20, after complete | finishing the process of step S101 (step S102). This information is information representing the book name represented by the character string input in the book name input area 501.

  CPU11 will acquire an electronic book, after complete | finishing the process of step S102 (step S103). Specifically, the CPU 11 transmits the book name received in step S <b> 102 to the content server 40, and receives from the content server 40 information indicating the electronic book specified by the book name and the price of the electronic book.

  CPU11 will search the keyword in the electronic book acquired in step S103, after complete | finishing the process of step S103 (step S104). The keyword is included in the advertisement information stored in the hard disk 14. Here, first, advertisement information will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the advertising information includes advertising content, keywords, and advertising fees.

The advertisement content is the content of the advertisement inserted into the electronic book, and is a character string or image data.
The keyword is a keyword for specifying an electronic book into which the advertisement is to be inserted, and an electronic book in which the keyword is included in the content is specified as an electronic book into which the advertisement is to be inserted. For example, in the example illustrated in FIG. 6, if the content of the electronic book includes the character string “Miku”, the advertisement inserted into the electronic book has the content “Let's go to Aomori ...”. Decided on advertising.
The advertisement fee is an advertisement fee that the advertising agency should pay to the administrator of the book on demand management server 10 every time an advertisement is inserted into the electronic book. Note that a discount amount due to insertion of an advertisement is calculated based on the advertisement fee.

  CPU11 discriminate | determines whether the keyword was searched, after complete | finishing the process of step S104 (step S105). When the CPU 11 determines that the keyword has been searched (step S105: YES), the CPU 11 transmits information representing a screen (hereinafter referred to as “advertisement insertion portion input screen”) for inputting whether or not an advertisement can be inserted to the user terminal 20. (Step S106). Here, the advertisement insertion location input screen 700 will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the advertisement insertion location input screen 700 includes a price display area 701, an advertisement insertion location setting area 702, and an OK button 703.

  The price display area 701 is an area in which a book on demand price of an electronic book that the user desires to obtain is displayed. The book-on-demand price is displayed separately for a book price, which is the price of an electronic book, and a printing and binding price required for printing and binding the electronic book. FIG. 7 shows an example in which the book price is 500 yen and the print binding price is 900 yen. The book price is transmitted from the content server 40 to the book on demand management server 10 together with the electronic book. Further, the book binding price can be acquired from the print management server 50 when the book on demand management server 10 transmits a fee inquiry to the print management server 50 together with the specifications of the electronic book, printing, and bookbinding. .

  The advertisement insertion location setting area 702 is an area that allows the user to select a location that permits insertion of an advertisement into an electronic book. In FIG. 7, any of the four items “no advertisement insertion”, “only the end of the beginning of the book”, “end of the beginning of the book + break on the table of contents”, and “end of the book end + break on the table of contents + margin of each page” An example is shown in which one item is selected. Here, FIG. 7 shows that the discount amount is 0 yen when “no advertisement is inserted”, the discount amount is 50 yen when “only at the beginning of the beginning of the book”, and the discount amount when “at the beginning of the book plus the end of the table of contents”. Shows an example in which the discount amount is 500 yen, when 100 is 100 yen and "end of book beginning + break on table of contents + margin of each page". That is, the more the advertisement is inserted, the greater the discount amount. Therefore, even if the number of advertisements increases, if the user wants to obtain a book as cheaply as possible, he / she can select “items with many advertisement insertion points” and can be high. “Items with few advertisement insertion locations” (typically “no advertisement insertion”) are selected. Note that the user can select how much the advertisement insertion location is to be made with reference to the book-on-demand price displayed in the price display area 701. Note that the CPU 11 calculates a discount amount based on advertisement information stored in the hard disk 14 in advance.

  The OK button 703 is a button to be pressed by the user when permitting insertion of an advertisement to the extent displayed in the item selected in the advertisement insertion location setting area 702.

  CPU11 will receive the information (henceforth "advertisement insertion location information") which shows the location permitted insertion of advertisement from the user terminal 20, after complete | finishing the process of step S106 (step S107).

  CPU11 will discriminate | determine whether insertion of the advertisement was permitted by the user based on advertisement insertion location information, after complete | finishing the process of step S107 (step S108). When determining that the insertion of the advertisement is permitted (step S108: YES), the CPU 11 inserts the advertisement into the electronic book (step S109). The place where the advertisement is inserted is determined based on the advertisement insertion place information. Here, with reference to FIG. 8, the advertisement inserted in an electronic book is demonstrated.

  FIG. 8 shows a state where an advertisement image 801 and a two-dimensional barcode 802 are inserted (published) in the lower area of the advertisement page 800.

  The advertisement page 800 is a page that is permitted to insert an advertisement in the electronic book. In areas other than the area below the advertisement page, the contents of the electronic book are posted.

  The advertisement image 801 is an image inserted in a lower area of the advertisement page 800, and is an image representing a character string “Let's go to the countryside!

  The two-dimensional barcode 802 is inserted into an area near the area where the advertisement image 801 of the advertisement page 800 is inserted. The two-dimensional barcode 802 is information representing a link destination to a home page on which detailed information about the advertisement represented by the advertisement image 801 is posted. The two-dimensional barcode 802 includes information related to the electronic book in which the advertisement is inserted. The information related to the electronic book includes, for example, the book name, price, and genre of the contents of the electronic book. By including these pieces of information in the two-dimensional barcode 802, when the user accesses a homepage linked to the two-dimensional barcode 802, information about the electronic book is stored in the management server (typically, the homepage). , A server managed by an advertising agency). That is, the advertising agency can know the information related to the electronic book by placing the two-dimensional barcode 802 including the information related to the electronic book on the electronic book. For this reason, the advertising agency can provide the user with a service that is expected to be suitable for the user's taste based on the information about the electronic book. Note that the CPU 11 generates an appropriate two-dimensional barcode 802 based on, for example, a keyword included in the advertisement information. For example, the CPU 11 generates a two-dimensional barcode 802 including a link destination to a home page including the keyword in the content, and information on the electronic book described above.

  When the CPU 11 determines that the insertion of the advertisement is not permitted (step S108: NO), or when the process of step S105 or step S109 is ended, the electronic book or the advertisement in which the advertisement is inserted is inserted. The electronic book that has not been sent is transmitted to the print management server 50 (step S110). On the other hand, when the print management server 50 receives the electronic book from the book-on-demand management server 10, the print management server 50 controls the apparatus that prints and binds the electronic book to print and bind the electronic book.

  CPU11 complete | finishes a book on-demand management process, after complete | finishing the process of step S110. Note that the book-on-demand management server 10 appropriately transmits order information regarding the order of the electronic book to a charging server (not shown) or the like, and causes the charging server to execute a charging process.

  According to the book on demand management system 100 according to the present embodiment, an advertisement is inserted into an electronic book in accordance with the designation of an advertisement insertion position by the user. For this reason, the user only has to pay a fee obtained by subtracting an amount equivalent to the advertisement fee from the book on demand price. In addition, since the detailed designation of the insertion position of the advertisement is allowed and the discount amount due to the insertion of the advertisement is presented to the user, the user refers to the discount amount due to the insertion of the advertisement and the appropriate insertion degree of the advertisement Can be specified. In addition, an advertisement inserted into an electronic book is inserted into an electronic book in which a keyword associated with the advertisement exists in the electronic book. For this reason, the advertisement suitable for the user, that is, the purchaser of the electronic book is inserted into the electronic book, and it is expected that the advertising effect of the advertisement is enhanced. In addition to the advertisement, a two-dimensional barcode representing a link destination to a home page on which detailed information about the advertisement is posted is inserted into the electronic book. For this reason, the user can easily acquire detailed information regarding the advertisement. Further, the two-dimensional barcode includes information related to the electronic book. For this reason, when the homepage is referred to, the advertisement source can acquire information on the electronic book purchased by the user, and it is easy to provide a service suitable for the user's preference.

(Second Embodiment)
In the first embodiment, an example is shown in which whether or not the electronic book is an electronic book into which the advertisement is to be inserted is determined based on whether or not the keyword associated with the advertisement is included in the electronic book. It was. However, according to the present invention, whether or not to insert the advertisement into the electronic book may be determined depending on whether or not the user is an advertisement target user associated with the advertisement. Hereinafter, a book on demand management system 100 according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The book-on-demand management system 100 has the same configuration as that of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1, and the book-on-demand management server 10 has the same configuration as that shown in FIGS. is there. Therefore, the operation of the book on demand management system 100 according to the second embodiment will be mainly described.

  Hereinafter, the book-on-demand management process executed by the book-on-demand management server 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. It is assumed that the advertisement information stored in the advertisement management server 30 is uploaded to the book on demand management server 10 and stored in the hard disk 14 in advance.

  First, the CPU 11 transmits information indicating a book title input screen to the user terminal 20 (step S201).

  CPU11 will receive the information showing the book name selected by the user from the user terminal 20, after complete | finishing the process of step S201 (step S202). This information is information representing the book name represented by the character string input in the book name input area 501.

  CPU11 will acquire an electronic book, after complete | finishing the process of step S202 (step S203). Specifically, the CPU 11 transmits the book name received in step S202 to the content server 40, and receives from the content server 40 information representing the electronic book specified by the electronic book name and the price of the electronic book. .

  CPU11 will transmit the information which shows the screen (henceforth a "profile input screen") which receives the input of a user's profile to the user terminal 20, after complete | finishing the process of step S203 (step S204). Here, the advertisement information will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the profile input screen 1000 includes an age selection area 1001, a gender selection area 1002, a residence selection area 1003, and an OK button 1004.

  The age selection area 1001 is an area that allows the user to select the age of the user. In FIG. 10, a radio button is selected from five items of “0 to 19 years old”, “20 to 29 years old”, “30 to 39 years old”, “40 to 49 years old”, and “50 to 100 years old”. An example is shown in which one item is selected.

  The gender selection area 1002 is an area that allows the user to select the gender of the user. FIG. 10 shows an example in which one item is selected by radio buttons from two items “male” and “female”.

  The residence selection area 1003 is an area that allows the user to select the residence of the user. FIG. 10 shows an example in which one item is selected from a list box among 47 prefectures.

  The OK button 1004 is pressed by the user when the contents selected in the age selection area 1001, the gender selection area 1002, and the residence selection area 1003 are transmitted to the book-on-demand management server 10 as the user's profile. It should be a button.

  CPU11 will receive the information (henceforth "profile information") showing a user's profile from the user terminal 20, after complete | finishing the process of step S204 (step S205). The profile information is information that can specify the age, sex, and residence of the user.

  When the CPU 11 ends the process of step S205, the CPU 11 searches for an advertisement in which the user profile specified by the profile information received in step S205 matches the related user (step S206). The related user is included in the advertisement information stored in the hard disk 14. Here, first, advertisement information will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the advertising information includes advertising content, related users, and advertising fees.

The advertisement content is the content of the advertisement inserted into the electronic book, and is a character string or image data.
The related user is information for specifying an electronic book into which the advertisement is to be inserted, and an advertisement in which the user profile specified by the profile information matches the related user is inserted into the electronic book purchased by the user. It is decided. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 11, if the user's profile is female, 20s or older, and lives in Tokyo, the advertisement inserted into the electronic book purchased by the user is “If it is a pet ...” It is decided to the advertisement of the content.
In addition, when the user's profile specified by the profile information matches a related user associated with a plurality of advertisements, the plurality of advertisements may be inserted into an electronic book purchased by the user, An advertisement with a high degree of fitness may be inserted into the electronic book.
The advertisement fee is an advertisement fee that the advertising agency should pay to the administrator of the book on demand management server 10 every time an advertisement is inserted into the electronic book. Note that a discount amount due to insertion of an advertisement is calculated based on the advertisement fee.

  CPU11 discriminate | determines whether the advertisement whose profile matched a related user was searched, after complete | finishing the process of step S206 (step S207). If CPU11 discriminate | determines that the advertisement was searched (step S207: YES), the information showing an advertisement insertion location input screen will be transmitted to the user terminal 20 (step S208).

  CPU11 receives advertisement insertion location information from the user terminal 20, after complete | finishing the process of step S208 (step S209).

  CPU11 discriminate | determines whether insertion of the advertisement was permitted by the user based on advertisement insertion location information, after complete | finishing the process of step S209 (step S210). When determining that the insertion of the advertisement is permitted (step S210: YES), the CPU 11 inserts the advertisement into the electronic book (step S211). The place where the advertisement is inserted is determined based on the advertisement insertion place information. Further, the advertisement includes a two-dimensional barcode 802. In the present embodiment, the two-dimensional barcode 802 includes information indicating a link destination to a home page on which detailed information regarding the advertisement is posted, and a profile of a user who purchases an electronic book into which the advertisement is inserted. Information that can be specified. The information that can specify the profile is, for example, the user's gender, age, and residence. Note that the CPU 11 may generate an appropriate two-dimensional barcode 802 based on the user's profile (for example, residence along the central line, woman, and student). For example, based on the user's profile, the CPU 11 generates a two-dimensional barcode 802 including a link destination to a home page having content that is considered to match the user's preferences.

  When the CPU 11 determines that the advertisement is not searched (step S207: NO), when it is determined that the insertion of the advertisement is not permitted (step S210: NO), or when the process of step S211 is terminated, The electronic book in which the advertisement is inserted or the electronic book in which the advertisement is not inserted is transmitted to the print management server 50 (step S212). On the other hand, when the print management server 50 receives the electronic book from the book-on-demand management server 10, the print management server 50 controls the apparatus that prints and binds the electronic book to print and bind the electronic book.

  CPU11 complete | finishes a book on demand management process, after complete | finishing the process of step S212. Note that the book-on-demand management server 10 appropriately transmits order information regarding the order of the electronic book to a charging server (not shown) or the like, and causes the charging server to execute a charging process.

  According to the book on demand management system 100 according to the present embodiment, an advertisement is inserted into an electronic book in accordance with the designation of an advertisement insertion position by the user. For this reason, the user only has to bear a fee obtained by subtracting an amount equivalent to the advertisement fee from the book on demand fee. In addition, since the detailed designation of the insertion position of the advertisement is allowed and the discount amount due to the insertion of the advertisement is presented to the user, the user refers to the discount amount due to the insertion of the advertisement and the appropriate insertion degree of the advertisement Can be specified. The advertisement inserted into the electronic book is an advertisement that matches the user's profile. For this reason, the advertisement suitable for the user, that is, the purchaser of the electronic book is inserted into the electronic book, and it is expected that the advertising effect of the advertisement is enhanced. In addition to the advertisement, a two-dimensional barcode representing a link destination to a home page on which detailed information about the advertisement is posted is inserted into the electronic book. For this reason, the user can easily acquire detailed information regarding the advertisement. Further, the two-dimensional barcode includes information related to the user's profile. For this reason, the advertisement source can acquire the profile of the user when the home page is referred to, and it is easy to provide a service suitable for the user's preference.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, in implementing this invention, the deformation | transformation and application by a various form are possible, and it is not restricted to the said embodiment.

  In the first embodiment, an example in which the book on demand management server has a search function for searching for a book that the user desires to obtain is shown. However, the book on demand management server does not necessarily have a search function.

  In the first embodiment, an example is shown in which an advertisement is selected based on a keyword included in the contents of the electronic book. In the second embodiment, an advertisement is selected based on the profile of a user who purchases the electronic book. An example is shown. However, the advertisement may be selected based on both the keyword included in the content of the electronic book and the profile of the user who purchases the electronic book.

  The first embodiment has been described on the assumption that only one keyword related to one advertisement is included in the contents of one electronic book. On the other hand, when a keyword related to multiple advertisements is included in one electronic book, multiple advertisements may be inserted into the electronic book, or an advertisement with the largest number of included keywords is inserted into the electronic book. May be.

  In 2nd Embodiment, the profile information which shows a user's age, sex, and a residence was shown using the user terminal by the said user. However, the profile information may be automatically read from a user terminal or other server device in which the user's profile information is stored in advance.

  In the first and second embodiments, the example in which the advertisement information is stored in the book on demand management server in advance is shown. However, the advertisement information stored in the advertisement management server may be appropriately referred to by the book on demand management server.

  In the first and second embodiments, an example has been described in which the book on demand management server generates a two-dimensional barcode based on a keyword and a user profile. However, a two-dimensional barcode may be included in the advertisement information transmitted by the advertisement management server. In this case, the book-on-demand management server selects and edits the two-dimensional barcode to be inserted into the book as appropriate based on the keyword and the user profile. Note that the candidate for the two-dimensional barcode to be inserted into the book may be included in the advertisement information transmitted from the advertisement management server, or stored in a storage unit (for example, a hard disk) of the book on demand management server. May be.

  Further, the book on demand management server 10 constituting the book on demand management system 100 according to the above embodiment is not limited to dedicated hardware, and can be realized by a normal computer system.

  For example, in the above embodiment, the operation program is stored in the memory or the like in the book on demand management server 10. However, a computer readable recording such as a flexible disk, CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read-Only Memory), DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), MO (Magneto-Optical Disk), etc. An apparatus that performs the above-described processing operation may be configured by storing and distributing the program in a medium and installing the program in a computer.

Further, the program may be stored in a disk device or the like included in a predetermined server device on a communication network such as the Internet, and may be downloaded onto a computer by being superimposed on a carrier wave, for example. Furthermore, the above-described processing can also be achieved by starting and executing a program while transferring it via a communication network.
Further, when the above functions are realized by sharing an OS (Operating System) or when the functions are realized by cooperation between the OS and an application, only the part other than the OS may be stored in a medium and distributed. Alternatively, it may be downloaded to a computer.

10 Book-on-demand management server 11 CPU
12 ROM
13 RAM
14 Hard disk 15 RTC
16 Keyboard 17 Monitor 18 NIC
20 User terminal 30 Advertisement management server 40 Content server 50 Print management server 90 Communication network 100 Book-on-demand management system 101 Reception unit 102 Acquisition unit 103 Selection unit 104 Insertion unit 105 Transmission unit 500 Book title input screen 501 Book title input area 502 OK Button 503 Keyword input area 504 Search start button 505 Search result display area 700 Advertisement insertion location input screen 701 Price display area 702 Advertisement insertion location setting area 703 OK button 800 Advertisement page 801 Advertisement image 802 Two-dimensional barcode 1000 Profile entry screen 1001 Age Selection area 1002 Gender selection area 1003 Residence selection area 1004 OK button

Japanese Patent No. 3833046

Claims (11)

Receiving means for receiving information identifying an electronic book designated by a user from a user terminal operated by the user;
Obtaining means for obtaining an electronic book specified by the received information;
Selection means for selecting an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book from candidates for an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book based on the content of the acquired electronic book;
Inserting means for inserting the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book,
Transmitting means for transmitting to the user terminal information indicating whether or not to insert the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book,
The receiving means receives information indicating whether or not the selected advertisement can be inserted into the acquired electronic book from the user terminal,
In the case where the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is allowed to be inserted, the transmitting unit transmits the electronic book in which the selected advertisement is inserted by the inserting unit to the electronic book. If the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is not allowed to be sent to a print management server that manages book printing and bookbinding, the acquired electronic book Send to the print management server,
A book-on-demand management server. The book-on-demand management server according to claim 1,
The receiving means further receives information indicating a degree of insertion of the advertisement when insertion of the selected advertisement is permitted in the acquired electronic book,
The inserting means inserts an advertisement of a degree indicated by the received information into the acquired electronic book;
A book-on-demand management server. The book-on-demand management server according to claim 1,
The transmitting means printed and bound information indicating the price when printing and binding the electronic book in which the selected advertisement is inserted by the inserting means, and the electronic book in which the selected advertisement is not inserted. Information indicating the price at the time, and further transmitting to the user terminal,
A book-on-demand management server. The book-on-demand management server according to claim 1,
The selection means selects an advertisement associated with a predetermined keyword included in the acquired electronic book as an advertisement to be inserted into the acquired electronic book.
A book-on-demand management server. The book-on-demand management server according to claim 1,
The receiving means further receives profile information of the user from the user terminal;
The selection means selects an advertisement to be inserted into the acquired electronic book based on the content of the acquired electronic book and the received profile information.
A book-on-demand management server. The book on demand management server according to claim 5,
The profile information includes information specifying the user's location,
The selection means selects an advertisement for a person residing in the user's location as an advertisement to be inserted into the acquired electronic book.
A book-on-demand management server. The book on demand management server according to claim 5,
The profile information includes information specifying the age or gender of the user,
The selection means selects an advertisement for a person of the user's age or gender as an advertisement to be inserted into the acquired electronic book,
A book-on-demand management server. The book-on-demand management server according to claim 1,
The inserting means inserts the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book, and further includes a barcode that can be linked to a site related to the advertisement and that can specify the content of the electronic book. insert,
A book-on-demand management server. The book on demand management server according to claim 5,
The insertion means inserts the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book, and further inserts a barcode that can be linked to a site related to the advertisement and can specify the profile information into the electronic book. ,
A book-on-demand management server. A book on demand management system comprising a book on demand management server,
The book on demand management server
Receiving means for receiving information identifying an electronic book designated by a user from a user terminal operated by the user;
Obtaining means for obtaining an electronic book specified by the received information;
Selection means for selecting an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book from candidates for an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book based on the content of the acquired electronic book;
Inserting means for inserting the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book,
Transmitting means for transmitting to the user terminal information indicating whether or not to insert the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book,
The receiving means receives information indicating whether or not the selected advertisement can be inserted into the acquired electronic book from the user terminal,
In the case where the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is allowed to be inserted, the transmitting unit transmits the electronic book in which the selected advertisement is inserted by the inserting unit to the electronic book. If the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is not allowed to be sent to a print management server that manages book printing and bookbinding, the acquired electronic book Send to the print management server,
A book-on-demand management system. Computer
A program that functions as a book-on-demand management server,
The program runs the computer
Receiving means for receiving information identifying an electronic book designated by a user from a user terminal operated by the user;
Obtaining means for obtaining an electronic book specified by the received information;
Selection means for selecting an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book from candidates for an advertisement to be inserted into the electronic book based on the content of the acquired electronic book;
Inserting means for inserting the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book,
Information indicating an inquiry as to whether or not to insert the selected advertisement into the acquired electronic book, function as a transmission unit that transmits to the user terminal,
The receiving means receives information indicating whether or not the selected advertisement can be inserted into the acquired electronic book from the user terminal,
In the case where the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is allowed to be inserted, the transmitting unit transmits the electronic book in which the selected advertisement is inserted by the inserting unit to the electronic book. If the received information indicates that the selected advertisement is not allowed to be sent to a print management server that manages book printing and bookbinding, the acquired electronic book Send to the print management server,
A program characterized by that.

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