Area-based content delivery method and system

• US 20040140353A1
• Filed: 01/13/2004
• Published: 07/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/17/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation, Oakville Trading Hong Kong Limited
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Ishizuka, Eiichi
• Granted Patent: US 7,264,157 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/383
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

A content usage right issuing terminal (2) issues a content usage right to a portable terminal (3) of a user who visits a store. In response to a request from the portable terminal (3) that has the content usage right, an in-store server (1) sends a content to the portable terminal (3) via a wireless LAN (7). Because the in-store server (1) limits the content transmission area to within a store (5), only portable terminals in the store (5) can receive the delivery of the content. When a user carrying the portable terminal (3) that has the content usage right leaves the store (5), the in-store server (1) detects the fact and invalidates the content usage right issued to the portable terminal (3).

Claims

1. An area-based content delivery method comprising the steps of:

(a) issuing, by a content usage right issuing terminal, a content usage right to a portable terminal of a user who visits a store;

(b) in response to a request from the portable terminal having the content usage right, sending a content to the requesting portable terminal by an in-store server whose content transmission area covers inside of the store; and

(c) detecting, by said in-store server, whether the portable terminal having the content usage right has left the store and, if the portable terminal has left the store, invalidating the content usage right issued to the portable terminal.

2. The area-based content delivery method as defined by claim 1 wherein, in said step (c), said in-store server regularly sends inquiry data to the portable terminal having the content usage right and detects that, if no response is returned, the portable terminal has left the store.

3. The area-based content delivery method as defined by claim 1 wherein the content usage right includes a use condition composed of at least one of a maximum use time and a maximum use count and wherein, in said step (b), said in-store server checks the use condition to determine whether to send the content.

4. The area-based content delivery method as defined by claim 1 wherein, in said step (a), said content usage right issuing terminal issues the content usage right when a content usage right issuing request is received from a cash register terminal.

5. The area-based content delivery method as defined by claim 3 wherein, in said step (a), said content usage right issuing terminal issues the content usage right when a content usage right issuing request, for which a total amount paid by a customer is specified, is received from a cash register terminal, said content usage right including the use condition determined according to the total amount.

6. The area-based content delivery method as defined by claim 1 wherein, in said step (b), said in-store server acquires the content to be sent to said portable terminal from a content server installed outside the store and sends the content to said portable terminal.

7. The area-based content delivery method as defined by claim 6 wherein the content sent by said content server to said in-store server is an advertisement-including content provided by one of a plurality of content providing servers, wherein said content server creates a content-based store-by-store access record for each content providing server and sends the created record to the content providing server, and wherein the content providing server calculates an advertisement rate to be paid to each store based on the received content-based store-by-store access record.

8. An area-based content delivery system comprising:

a content usage right issuing terminal that issues a content usage right to a portable terminal of a user who visits a store; and

an in-store server whose content transmission area covers inside of the store and which, in response to a request from the portable terminal having the content usage right, sends a content to the requesting portable terminal,

wherein said in-store server comprises;

a detecting unit for detecting whether the portable terminal having the content usage right has left the store; and

a usage right invalidating unit for invalidating the content usage right issued to the portable terminal if the portable terminal has left the store.

9. The area-based content delivery system as defined by claim 8 wherein said detecting unit regularly sends inquiry data to the portable terminal having the content usage right and detects that, if no response is returned, the portable terminal has left the store.

10. The area-based content delivery system as defined by claim 8 wherein said content usage right issuing terminal issues the content usage right including a use condition composed of at least one of a maximum use time and a maximum use count and wherein said in-store server checks the use condition included in the content usage right to determine whether to send the content.

11. The area-based content delivery system as defined by claim 8 wherein said content usage right issuing terminal issues the content usage right when a content usage right issuing request is received from a cash register terminal.

12. The area-based content delivery system as defined by claim 10 wherein said content usage right issuing terminal issues the content usage right when a content usage right issuing request, for which a total amount paid by a customer is specified, is received from a cash register terminal, said content usage right including the use condition determined according to the total amount.

13. The area-based content delivery system as defined by claim 8 wherein said in-store server acquires the content to be sent to the portable terminal from a content server installed outside the store and sends the content to said portable terminal.

14. The area-based content delivery system as defined by claim 13 wherein the content sent by said content server to said in-store server is an advertisement-included content provided by one of a plurality of content providing servers, wherein said content server creates a content-based store-by-store access record for each content providing server and sends the created record to the content providing server, and wherein the content providing server calculates an advertisement rate to be paid to each store based on the received content-based store-by-store access record.

15. An in-store server comprising:

a content sending unit whose content transmission area is limited to within a store and which, in response to a request from a portable terminal having a content usage right, sends a content to the requesting portable terminal;

a detecting unit for detecting whether the portable terminal having the content usage right has left the store; and

a usage right invalidating unit for invalidating the content usage right of the portable terminal if the portable terminal has left the store.

16. The in-store server as defined by claim 15 wherein said detecting unit regularly sends inquiry data to the portable terminal having the content usage right and detects that, if no response is returned, the portable terminal has left the store.

17. A portable terminal comprising:

a storage unit for storing content usage right data issued from a content usage right issuing terminal;

a content requesting unit for requesting an in-store server, whose content transmission area is limited to within a store, to send a content, said in-store server being identified by available server information included in the content usage right data stored in said storage unit; and

a response unit for returning a response to said in-store server when inquiry data is received, said inquiry data being regularly sent by said in-store server to detect whether the portable terminal has left the store and, if the portable terminal has left the store, to invalidate the usage right of the portable terminal.

18. A content usage right issuing terminal comprising:

a communication unit for communication with a cash register terminal; and

a usage right issuing unit for issuing a content usage right, which includes a use condition composed of at least one of a maximum use time and a maximum use count, when a request to issue the content usage right to be processed by an in-store server is received from the cash register terminal, wherein, in response to a request from a portable terminal having the content usage right, said in-store server whose content transmission area is limited to within a store sends a content to the requesting terminal, detects whether the portable terminal having the content usage right has left the store, and, if the portable terminal has left the store, invalidates the content usage right.

19. The content usage right issuing terminal as defined by claim 18 wherein said usage right issuing unit issues the content usage right when a content usage right issuing request, for which a total amount paid by a customer is specified, is received from said cash register terminal, said content usage right including the use condition determined according to the total amount.

20. A content server comprising content delivery unit connected to a plurality of in-store servers via a network and delivering a content, which will be sent from any one of said in-store servers to a portable terminal, to said in-store server, wherein, in response to a request from a portable terminal having a content usage right, said in-store server whose transmission area is limited to within a store sends the content to the requesting terminal, detects whether the portable terminal having the content usage right has left the store, and, if the portable terminal has left the store, invalidates the content usage right of the portable terminal.

21. The content server as defined by claim 20, further comprising an access recording unit for monitoring the content delivery status of said content delivery unit and for generating a content-based store-by-store access record.

22. The content server as defined by claim 21, further comprising:

a content receiving unit for receiving the content, which will be delivered to said in-store server, from a content providing server; and

an access record sending unit for sending the content-based store-by-store access record of contents, which are received from said content providing server, to said content providing server.

23. A program product causing a computer, which constitutes an in-store server, comprising:

providing a content sending unit whose content transmission area is limited to within a store and which, in response to a request from a portable terminal having a content usage right, sends a content to the requesting portable terminal;

providing a detecting unit which detects whether the portable terminal having the content usage right has left the store; and

providing a usage right invalidating unit which invalidates the content usage right of the portable terminal that has left the store.

said program product further comprising the steps of;

sending a content, in response to a request from a portable terminal to the requesting portable terminal;

detecting whether said portable terminal has left the store; and

invalidating the content usage right of said portable terminal.

24. The program as defined by claim 23 wherein regularly sending inquiry data from said program product further comprising said detecting unit to the portable terminal having the content usage right and,

if no response is returned, detecting that the portable terminal has left the store.