KR20010091229A - A method for advertising through communication network using game - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A method for putting an advertisement using a game on a communication system is provided to arouse interest of a user and improve perception of an advertisement by allowing the user to play a game related to an advertisement picture and giving incentives according to results through the game. CONSTITUTION: A matrix is generated on a display screen of a communication system. Positions of advertisement images which are to be inserted into the matrix are combined in a random manner. The advertisement images are inserted into the matrix according to the combined positions. The advertisement images inserted into the matrix are shown to a user for a predetermined period of time. The advertisement images are reversely displayed after the lapse of the predetermined period of time. The user clicks the reversely displayed advertisement images by using a mouse input device. When a pair of consecutively identical advertisement images is clicked, a game is continued. If the pair of consecutive identical advertisement images is not clicked, the game is ended after treating it as a failure. After the user completes the game, the game is continuously proceeded with by using an advertisement matrix into which other advertisement image is inserted. Once the game is ended, the user's ranking and marks are displayed according to his/her results.

Description

Advertising method using communication game {A METHOD FOR ADVERTISING THROUGH COMMUNICATION NETWORK USING GAME}

The present invention relates to an advertising method using an information and communication network, such as the Internet, and to an advertising method using a game on the communication that can increase the user's awareness of the advertisement through a game related to the advertisement.

In general, a conventional advertising method using an information communication network allocates a predetermined area in a banner or box shape to a home page of a web site opened in an information communication network such as the Internet. And display advertisements relating to specific goods or services in this area. Later, when a visitor to this homepage clicks on the above banner or box ad, it will link to display the ad content that introduces the product or service of the ad, thereby linking the visitor to the advertiser's product (including the service). The form and details can be known.

In another conventional communication advertising method, when a specific person accesses an information communication network (for example, the Internet) through a predetermined terminal, an advertising window called an Add Bar is displayed on the screen of the terminal. In addition, there is a method of increasing the advertising effect by providing a credited amount to the terminal user by accumulating a predetermined contract according to the time when the ad bar is displayed.

However, the conventional communication advertising method, such as displaying a banner advertisement on a homepage of a web site or displaying an ad bar on a user's terminal screen, is intended to advertise if the user is interested in the actual advertisement contents and does not examine it carefully. There is a problem that can not raise the awareness of the product or service, and especially unless the visitor or terminal user actively approaches the advertising content to read or listen to the advertising content, the actual advertising effect can not be expected.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the problems of the prior art as described above, by allowing the user to play a game related to the advertisement picture to be advertised, and give incentives according to the grades raised through the game, It relates to an advertising method using a communication game that can be induced to increase the awareness of the advertisement.

1 is a schematic block diagram of hardware for carrying out the present invention;

2 is a flowchart illustrating an advertisement method using a game on communication according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

3 is a flowchart for explaining a process of registering a member when the user is not a user registered as a member in the user confirmation step shown in FIG. 2;

4 and 5 are flowcharts for explaining a detailed operation process of some of the steps shown in FIG.

6 and 7 illustrate an embodiment of a menu screen according to the present invention;

8 to 13 are diagrams showing one embodiment of a game screen according to the present invention;

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

10: computer for game server 20: user terminal

30: Server computer of Point Affiliate

The advertisement method using the communication game according to the present invention for achieving the above object, a user confirmation step of confirming the identity of the user connected through the information communication network, and a plurality of advertisements through the communication screen to the user whose identity is confirmed It is characterized by consisting of a game step of showing a picture for a while and then flipping it over and matching the displayed advertisement picture with the user, and an incentive granting step of giving an incentive according to the grades acquired by the user in the game step.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a schematic block diagram of hardware for carrying out the present invention. As can be seen from the drawings, the hardware for carrying out the present invention includes a game server computer 10 for providing a game related to advertisement. It consists of a user terminal 20 which can be connected to the game server computer 10 via the information communication network N, and a server computer 30 of a point affiliate company. Here, each of the computers 10, 30 and the terminal 20 can be connected to the information communication network (N) through a variety of devices and methods currently known, such as a modem or a channel service unit (CSU), which is a technology for the governor The description of will be omitted.

The game server computer 10 is a workstation consisting of a main processor, memory and peripherals of relatively fast performance so that each user can enjoy a game smoothly at the same time even when a large number of users are connected through the information communication network (N). Work Station or better systems are preferred, but not required.

Herein, the game server computer 10 may include general hardware of a computer system, such as a main processor, a network adapter, a display adapter, a main memory device and an auxiliary memory device, and software such as an operating system and various application programs. It includes, and this is a description for the chief officer in the technical field of the present invention, a separate description will be omitted.

The user terminal 20 is generally a personal computer of Netizen, which surfs the Web through an information communication network N, but a personal digital assistant (PDA). The present invention can be implemented in any type of terminal as long as it can be connected to an information communication network to which a game server computer 10 and a user computer 20 can be commonly connected, such as an Internet-connected home game machine.

However, the user terminal 20 should be provided with at least one user operation means such as a keypad or a mouse input device to participate in and proceed with the game provided by the game server computer 10, Preferably, both keypad and mouse input device are provided.

The server computer 30 of the point affiliate company is preferably a relatively high performance computer system, such as the game server computer 10, but is basically connected to an information communication network N and other affiliated companies such as the game server computer 10. A system capable of transmitting and receiving data related to a computer and a point is sufficient.

In addition, the point affiliated company operating the server computer 30 is a company that has partnered with the company operating the computer for the advertisement server 10 to share a point (Point) in communication with each other, the point is the communication It corresponds to a kind of cyber money having mutually agreed values in the virtual space of the prize, and the present invention may be implemented in any form or kind.

As described above, the information communication network N is sufficient if the game server computer 10, the user terminal 20, and the server computer 30 of the point affiliate company are commonly connected and perform data communication with each other. For example, the information communication network N may be the Internet.

Hereinafter, the advertisement method of the present invention using the hardware configured as described above will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 13.

First, the user starts the advertisement method of the present invention by operating the user terminal 20 and connecting to the game server computer 10, from the game server computer 10 to the user terminal 20 to the game server computer 10. The homepage configuration files of the opened website are downloaded and the initial screen of the homepage provided by the game server computer 10 is displayed on the display screen of the user terminal 20.

For example, the homepage of the website opened by the game server computer 10 is preferably written in Hypertext Markup Language format, but may be written in any format as long as it can be read by a computer system. .

Next, the game server computer 20 confirms the identity of the connected user (S10).

For example, when the user enters his or her ID and password in the initial screen, the game server computer 10 processes the login or successful login in contrast with the registered member information or logs in. It is treated as a failure, and if it is treated as a login failure, the game cannot be joined.

On the other hand, if the user is a new member who does not register as a new member can be registered in the initial screen, an embodiment of this is as follows.

When the user registers for a new member, the game server computer 20 presents the terms of service to the user (S110), asks the user's consent (S120), and if the user does not agree, the user moves to the initial screen. If the user agrees to the Terms of Service, the user can enter the details of the user (S130).

When the user confirms the input contents (S140), the game server computer 20 inputs the personal details input by the user into a database such as an auxiliary memory device and approves the login (S150).

For example, the details of the details entered when the user registers as a new member are as follows.

"Member ID

password

Confirm Password

Hints (password issuance)

name

Resident registration number

E-Mail Address

Date of birth

wedding anniversary

Phone number (home)

Cell Phone

Address (home)

Zip code

country

job

Company / School Name

Department / Department Name

Phone number (work)

Address (work)

Zip code

hobby

Referrer ID

Recommended E-Mail

Point offer company

Your I.D at the point company

Transfer point "

Then, when the user's identity is confirmed, the game server computer 10 checks the points held by the user so far in the database stored in the auxiliary storage device (S20), and the points held by the user are sufficient to pay the game participation fee. It is determined (S30).

As a reference, you can also make sure that only regular members participate in the game at least once a day.

The points are recorded in the database by accumulating points transferred from other affiliates on the communication or incentives based on the performance of the user's recent game. The points may be transferred to another point affiliate on the communication at the user's request. have.

If it is determined in step S30 that the points possessed by the current user are insufficient to pay the game participation fee, the game server computer 10 proposes a method for obtaining the points by the user, which may be various embodiments. However, it is preferable that the point is transferred from a point affiliate company on the communication, an embodiment thereof is shown in FIG.

As an embodiment of the method for transferring points from the point affiliate company on the communication, the game server computer 10 presents an affiliate company to transfer the points on the user's display screen as shown in FIG. 6 (S210). Wait for the user's selection (S220), and when the user selects an affiliate company, the data for applying for point transfer is transferred to the server computer 30 of the selected affiliate company (S230), and the point transfer is performed from the server computer 30 for the affiliate company. Check whether the data to authenticate is received (S240), and when the point transfer is completed, the process proceeds to the next step.

Here, only a certain amount of points may be transferred at a time, or the user may select the amount of points to be transferred, which can be easily selected and implemented by the implementer of the present invention as needed.

Of course, if the point transfer is rejected from the partner or the amount of points requested to the partner does not remain, the user can select another point partner, and if the point transfer is unsuccessful, the user can pay the participation fee. You will not be able to join the game until you have earned it.

If it is checked that the user has enough points to pay the entry fee, the game server computer 10 pays the entry fee by subtracting the points held by the user from the database stored in the auxiliary storage device by the amount corresponding to the entry fee (S40). 7, presenting the difficulty of the game on the user's display screen (S50), wait for the user's selection (S60), if the user selects the difficulty of the game, according to the difficulty selected by the user Proceed to play the game by generating (S70).

Since the present invention is an advertising method using a game, the game progressed by the present invention relates to an advertisement, and in the present invention, a plurality of advertisement pictures are briefly shown and inverted according to the difficulty selected by the user as an embodiment thereof. A method of raising scores by matching pairs is presented, and an embodiment thereof will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 8 to 13.

The game server computer 10 generates a matrix corresponding to the number of columns according to the difficulty level selected by the user through the steps S50 and S60 (S310), and is stored in advance in the auxiliary memory device. Randomly arranging the arrangement position of the advertisement picture (S320), and inserts the advertisement picture in the matrix according to the combined arrangement position (S330), then displays the generated game screen on the user's display screen, One embodiment of the generated game screen is shown in FIG. 8.

Here, several pairs (Couple) of the advertising picture is used, each pair is preferably the exact same picture with each other, but the game may use a slightly different picture depending on the needs of the game, but in principle each pair is the same The content of the advertisement should not be shown to impair the association.

The number of columns of the matrix varies depending on the difficulty, and the number of advertisement pictures displayed on one game screen depends on the difficulty level selected by the user. For example, 4 pairs of advertisement pictures are used in the matrix of "3 * 3", 8 pairs of advertisement pictures are used in the matrix of "4 * 4", and 12 pairs of advertisement pictures are used in the matrix of "5 * 5". Is used.

Next, the game server computer 10 proceeds the game according to the game screen generated as described above (S340).

The game screen shown in FIG. 8 is an initial screen before starting the game, and shows the matrix M in which the advertisement picture P is inserted for a while for a predetermined time (for example, about 5 seconds). In step S, when the game is started after the predetermined time is exceeded, a screen in which all the advertisement pictures P of the matrix M are flipped is displayed as shown in FIG. 9.

At this time, the user clicks the inverted advertisement picture P of the matrix M by using a key or mouse input of the keypad not shown in the user terminal 20. As shown in FIG. If the picture is continuously clicked, the game continues. However, as shown in FIG. 11, if the picture is continuously clicked, the game ends.

In addition, the game may be terminated if a time limit is completed for completing one step to enhance the interest of the game and the step is not completed to exceed the time limit as shown in FIG. 12.

In this case, it is preferable to display the remaining time on one side of the game screen so that the user can easily check the remaining time limit. For example, as shown in FIGS. 8 to 13, the time indicating the remaining time on one side of the game screen is shown. It is possible to display a gauge (Time Gauge) g.

In addition, when the time limit is short, a warning sound may be generated or the color of the time gauge g may be changed to an intense color that is easily visible, thereby alerting the user that the time limit is imminent.

As shown in FIG. 13, if the game is completed within the time limit, it indicates that the game is successful, and then proceeds to the next step, and continues the game using the matrix in which another advertisement picture is inserted. In later stages, the time limit may be shorter than in previous stages to increase the interest of the game.

Here, the higher the level, the higher the possibility of dropping out of the user. The lower the frequency, the higher the frequency of the advertisement picture being exposed to the user. Therefore, in the advertising company that uses the game server computer 10 to serve the advertisement, the lower level is used. It may be a method of marketing to set the advertising cost of the advertisement picture higher than the advertisement picture used in the higher stage.

Whether or not the game is terminated (S80), when the user continuously clicks another pair of pictures in the middle of the game or when the game is forcibly terminated due to exceeding the time limit, and the user stops or cancels the game by operating the keypad or mouse input during the game. There may be times when you choose to cancel the game.

When the game is terminated as described above, the game server computer 10 calculates the user's ranking and score according to the game grade, such as the difficulty of the game and the stage of the game completed by the user, and inputs the calculated result into a database stored in the auxiliary memory unit. (S90), incentives are given to the user according to the calculated rank and score (S95).

The incentive may be cash or a predetermined product.

Next, the game server computer 10 asks the user whether or not to re-challenge (S100). When the user selects the re-challenge, the game server computer 10 returns to the step (S20) of checking the points held by the user, and starts the game again, while the user re-challenges. If not selected, the game ends.

On the other hand, in the embodiment of the present invention, the advertising picture used in the game has been described with only the case of a rectangular shape as an example, the present invention is not limited to this, it can represent an advertising image, such as circle, rhombus, triangle, hexagon, etc. As long as it is a form, you may use it.

In addition, the advertisement picture used in the game may be able to use a moving picture using not only a still picture but also an animation GIF graphic file format.

On the other hand, in the embodiment of the present invention has been described using only the case where the user is to apply for the point transfer at the time when the user participates in the game, it may be to apply in advance before participating in the game.

As described above, the present invention provides a game that matches a picture of an advertisement to a user connected by using an information communication network, and gives an incentive according to the results of the user's performance while playing the game. There is an effect that can increase awareness.

In particular, since the game provided by the present invention is a method in which the user sees the advertisement picture for a while and then gropes the memory to match the picture, the advertisement content is strongly imprinted on the user to maximize the advertisement effect.

Claims (8)

A user confirmation step of confirming the identity of the user connected through the information communication network; A game step of showing a plurality of advertisement pictures for a while to a user whose identity has been identified through a communication screen, and then displaying them upside down and allowing the user to match the displayed advertisement pictures with each other; And an incentive granting step of granting an incentive according to the score obtained by the user in the game step. The method of claim 1, wherein the user pays the participation fee using points commonly used for communication in order to participate in the game. The communication game of claim 2, wherein when the user's points accumulated in the database of the company serving the game are less than the amount to pay the game participation fee, the points can be transferred from the communication partner company. Advertising method used. The method of claim 1, wherein the game step, Generating a matrix on the communication display screen; Randomly combining the arrangement positions of the advertisement pictures to be inserted into the matrix; Inserting advertisement pictures into a matrix according to the combined position; Showing the advertisement pictures inserted in the matrix for a predetermined time to the user, If the predetermined time is exceeded, the step of displaying all the advertising pictures upside down, Causing the user to click on the displayed advertisement picture by using a mouse input device, etc., If the same pair of advertisement pictures are continuously clicked, the game continues continuously, but if the same pair of advertisement pictures are not continuously clicked, the process is treated as a failure and the game ends. After the user completes the game, proceed to the next step and continue the game using the ad matrix embedded with another advertisement picture, Advertising method using a game on the communication, characterized in that consisting of a step of displaying the ranking and the score according to the user's performance when the game is finished. 5. A method according to claim 4, wherein the user can select a difficulty level during the game, and the number of columns of the matrix is determined according to the difficulty level selected by the user. 6. The communication method according to claim 4 or 5, further comprising a step of terminating the game if the game of the present stage is not completed until the time limit is exceeded due to a time limit for completing the game of each stage. Advertising method using the game on top. 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the time is displayed on the game screen so that the user knows the time limit. 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the higher the step, the shorter the time limit.