ONLINE COMMODITY MANAGEMENT, A SERVER SYSTEM APPLIED IN THE ONLINE COMMODITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM, TERMINAL EQUIPMENT APPLIED IN THE ONLINE COMMODITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM, A MANAGING METHOD IN THE ONLINE COMMODITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM, AND A COMPUTER-READABLE RECORDING MEDIUM WITH A PROGRAM MAKING A COMPUTER EXECUTE THE METHOD RECORDED THEREIN

• US 6,477,507 B2
• Filed: 01/30/1998
• Issued: 11/05/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hanger Solutions, LLC (IP Investments Group LLC)
• Original Assignee: Justsystems Corporation
• Inventors: Sugimori, Shinji
• Primary Examiner(s): Stamber, Eric W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Alvarez, Raquel
• Application Number:
  US09/016,783
• Publication Number:
  US 20020046174A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,740 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/26, 705/27, 705/30, 700/237
• US Class Current: 705/26.62
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/103 Workflow collaboration or project management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/385 using an alias or single-use codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0625 Directed, with specific intent or strategy
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting

Abstract

An online commodity management system in which processing for authorization is executed, when a request for purchase is made from a client to a server system, the request is verified for authorization by a credit authorizing/settling serve, and when the request for purchase is authorized to the purchaser as a result of the authorization, the desired contents and a serial number for identifying the contents and the purchaser are distributed from the server system to the client as a purchaser. With these operations, correlation between contents and the purchaser can be unified for management on the system. Then, when a report on completion of the purchase is transmitted from the client to the server system, the server system executes the processing for accounting with the purchaser.

Claims

1. An online commodity management system comprising:

a server system connected to a network for virtually constructing an electronic market formed with a plurality of contents on said network and providing controls for selling the contents and accounting for sold contents through said electronic market; and

at least one terminal equipment connected to said network for getting access to said electronic market and providing controls for purchasing the contents;

wherein

said terminal equipment comprising;

a requesting unit for requesting desired contents to said server system in said electronic market constructed on said network;

a receiver for receiving said desired contents distributed from said server system upon the request by said requesting unit and a serial number, added to said contents and distributed, for identifying the contents and purchaser; and

a storage for storing therein the desired contents and the serial number received by said receiver; and

said server system comprising;

a serial number generator for generating said serial number correlating to said desired contents upon the request from said requesting unit;

a managing unit for managing a correlation between the serial number generated by said serial number generator and the contents; and

a distributing unit for distributing to said terminal equipment data obtained by adding the serial number generated by said serial number generator to said desired contents requested by said requesting unit.

2. An online commodity management system according to claim 1;

wherein said server system has a database for managing a correlation among contents, serial numbers and service information.

3. An online commodity management system according to claim 2;

wherein said terminal equipment transmits, when making an inquiry about said desired contents to said server system, data containing said serial number for identifying said desired contents added to the inquiry to said server system, and said server system fetches service information correlating to said transmitted serial number added to the inquiry from said database and gives a response to said terminal equipment.

4. An online commodity management system according to claim 2;

wherein said server system identifies when sending service information relating on contents to said terminal equipment, a purchaser from said contents by referring to said database and transmits data containing the service information relating to said contents added to the serial number for identifying said content to the terminal equipment as said purchaser.

5. An online commodity management system according to claim 3;

wherein said server system identifies, when sending service information relating on contents to said terminal equipment, a purchaser from said contents by referring to said database and transmits data containing the service information relating to said contents added to the serial number for identifying said content to the terminal equipment as said purchaser.

6. An online commodity management system comprising:

a server system connected to a network for virtually constructing an electronic market formed with a plurality of contents on said network and providing controls for selling the contents and accounting for sold contents based on an encoding system through said electronic market; and

at least one terminal equipment connected to said network for accessing to said electronic market and providing controls for purchasing the contents that require decoding thereof;

wherein

said terminal equipment comprising;

a requesting unit for requesting desired contents to said server system in said electronic market constructed on said network;

a reporting unit for transmitting, when having received said desired contents by means of distribution from said server system upon the request by said requesting unit, a specified report to said server system; and

a storage for storing therein, when a serial number for identifying said desired contents and purchaser distributed correlated to the contents received from said server system is received after said specified report is transmitted by said reporting unit, said received desired contents and said serial number correlated to each other; and

said server system comprising;

a contents distributing unit for distributing said desired contents requested by said requesting unit in said terminal equipment thereto;

an accounting unit for executing accounting when said specified report is transmitted by said reporting unit after said desired contents is distributed by said content distributing unit;

a serial number generator for generating said serial number correlating to said desired contents distributed by said content distributing unit after the processing for accounting is executed by said accounting unit;

a managing unit for managing a correlation between the serial number generated by said serial number generator and the contents; and

a serial number distributing unit for distributing the serial number generated by said serial number generator to said terminal equipment.

7. An online commodity management system according to claim 6;

wherein said server system has a database for managing a correlation among contents, serial numbers and service information.

8. An online commodity management system according to claim 7;

wherein said terminal equipment transmits, when making an inquiry about said desired contents to said server system, data containing said serial number for identifying said desired contents added to the inquiry to said server system, and said server system fetches service information correlating to said transmitted serial number added to the inquiry from said database and gives a response to said terminal equipment.

9. An online commodity management system according to claim 8;

wherein said server system identifies, when sending service information relating on contents to said terminal equipment, a purchaser from said contents by referring to said database and transmits data containing the service information relating to said contents added to the serial number for identifying said content to the terminal equipment as said purchaser.

10. An online commodity management system according to claim 7;

wherein said server system identifies, when sending service information relating on contents to said terminal equipment, a purchaser from said contents by referring to said database and transmits data containing the service information relating to said contents added to the serial number for identifying said content to the terminal equipment as said purchaser.

11. Terminal equipment for an online commodity management system having:

a server system connected to a network for virtually constructing an electronic market formed with a plurality of contents on said network and providing controls for selling the contents and accounting for sold contents through said as electronic market; and

at least one terminal equipment connected to said network for accessing to said electronic market and providing controls for purchasing the contents; and

said server system comprising;

a unit for generating a serial number for identifying said contents and the purchaser correlating to desired contents upon the request by said terminal equipment and adding said generated serial number to said desired contents to be distributed to said terminal;

said terminal equipment comprising;

a requesting unit for requesting desired contents to said server system in said electronic market constructed on said network;

a receiver for receiving said desired contents and a serial number added to said contents for distribution each distributed from said server system upon the request by said requesting unit; and

a storage for storing therein the desired contents and the serial number received by said receiver correlated to each other.

12. Terminal equipment for the online commodity management system according to claim 11;

wherein said online commodity management system is a system, in said server system, for sending back service information as a response corresponding to the serial number added to the inquiry transmitted from said terminal equipment thereto, and said terminal equipment transmits, when making an inquiry about said desired content to said server system, data containing said serial number for identifying said desired contents added to the inquiry to said server system.

13. Terminal equipment for an online commodity management system having:

a server system connected to a network for virtually constructing an electronic market formed with a plurality of electronically deliverable contents on said network and providing controls for selling the contents and accounting for sold contents based on an encoding system through said electronic market; and

at least one terminal equipment connected to said network for accessing to said electronic market and providing controls for purchasing the contents that require decoding thereof; and

said server system comprising;

a unit for executing the processing for accounting after the desired contents requested by said terminal equipment is distributed and distributing a serial number for identifying said contents and the purchaser correlating to said desired contents after the processing for accounting is executed;

said terminal equipment comprising;

a requesting unit for requesting desired contents to said server system in said electronic market constructed on said network;

a reporting unit for transmitting, when having received said desired contents by means of distribution from said server system upon the request by said requesting unit, a specified report to said server system; and

a storage for storing therein, when a serial number distributed correlated to said desired contents received from said server system is received after said specified report is transmitted by said reporting unit, said received desired contents and said serial number correlated thereto.

14. Terminal equipment for the online commodity management system according to claim 13;

wherein said online commodity management system is a system, in said server system, for sending back service information as a response corresponding to the serial number added to the inquiry transmitted from said terminal equipment thereto, and said terminal equipment transmits, when making an inquiry about said desired content to said server system, data containing said serial number for identifying said desired contents added to the inquiry to said server system.

15. A managing method for an online commodity management system, said system having:

a server system connected to a network for virtually constructing an electronic market formed with a plurality of contents on said network and providing controls for selling the contents and accounting for sold contents based on an encoding system through said electronic market; and

at least one terminal equipment connected to said network for getting access to said electronic market and providing controls for purchasing the contents that require decoding thereof;

said managing method comprising;

a first step of requesting desired contents from said terminal to said server system in said electronic market constructed on said network;

a second step of executing processing for accounting in said server system when said terminal receives said desired content from said server system upon the request in said first step;

a third step of transmitting a serial number for identifying said content correlated to said desired contents as well as the purchaser from said server system to said terminal after executing the processing for accounting in said second step; and

a fourth step of managing said desired contents and the serial number correlating to each other in each of said terminal and said server system respectively.

16. A managing method for the online commodity management system according to claim 15 further comprising:

a fifth step of transmitting data containing a serial number for identifying said contents added to the inquiry about the contents from said terminal to said server system, and

a sixth step of sending back service information as a response on said serial number transmitted in said fifth step to said terminal.

17. A managing method for the online commodity management system according to claim 16 further comprising:

a step of identifying a purchaser from the contents according to said managed serial number when service information relating to the contents is transmitted from said server system to said terminal, and transmitting data containing service information relating to said contents added to said serial number for identifying the contents to the terminal as said purchaser.

18. A managing method for the online commodity management system according to claim 15 further comprising:

a step of identifying a purchaser from the contents according to said managed serial number when service information relating to the contents is transmitted from said server system to said terminal, and transmitting data containing service information relating to said contents added to said serial number for identifying the contents to the terminal as said purchaser.

19. A computer readable recording medium with a program making a computer execute a managing method for an online commodity management system, said system having:

a server system connected to a network for virtually constructing an electronic market formed with a plurality of contents on said network and providing controls for selling the contents and accounting for sold contents based on an encoding system through said electronic market; and

at least one terminal equipment connected to said network for getting access to said electronic market and providing controls for purchasing the contents that require decoding thereof;

said managing method comprising;

a first step of requesting desired contents from said terminal to said server system in said electronic market constructed on said network;

a second step of executing processing for accounting in said server system when said terminal receives said desired content from said server system upon the request in said first step;

a third step of transmitting a serial number for identifying said content correlated to said desired contents as well as the purchaser from said server system to said terminal after executing the processing for accounting in said second step; and

a fourth step of managing said desired contents and the serial number correlating to each other in each of said terminal and said server system respectively.

20. A computer readable recording medium according to claim 19 with a program for executing a method wherein the method further comprises:

a fifth step of transmitting data containing a serial number for identifying said contents added to the inquiry about the contents from said terminal to said server system, and

a sixth step of sending back service information as a response on said serial number transmitted in said fifth step to said terminal.

21. A computer readable recording medium according to claim 19 with a program for executing a method wherein the method further comprises:

a step of identifying a purchaser from the contents according to said managed serial number when service information relating to the contents is transmitted from said server system to said terminal, and transmitting data containing service information relating to said contents added to said serial number for identifying the contents to the terminal as said purchaser.

22. A computer readable recording medium according to claim 21 with a program for executing a method wherein the method further comprises:

a step of identifying a purchaser from the contents according to said managed serial number when service information relating to the contents is transmitted from said server system to said terminal, and transmitting data containing service information relating to said contents added to said serial number for identifying the contents to the terminal as said purchaser.

23. A computer readable recording medium with a program for executing a method making a computer execute a managing method for an online commodity management system, said system having:

a server system connected to a network for virtually constructing an electronic market formed with a plurality of contents on said network and providing controls for selling the contents and accounting for sold contents through said electronic market; and

at least one terminal equipment connected to said network for accessing to said electronic market and providing controls for purchasing the contents;

said managing method comprising;

a first step of requesting desired contents from said terminal to said server system in said electronic market constructed on said network;

a second step of transmitting said desired content as well as a serial number for identifying the contents and purchaser added to said contents to be distributed from said server system to said terminal upon the request in said first step;

a third step of managing said desired contents and the serial number correlating to each other in each of said terminal and said server system respectively; and

wherein the method further comprises;

a transmitting step of transmitting data containing a serial number for identifying said contents added to the inquiry about the contents from said terminal to said server system, and

a sending back step of sending back service information as a response on said serial number transmitted in said transmitting step to said terminal.