JP7592790B2 - Prize providing device, prize selling method, and prize providing program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a prize providing device, a prize selling method , and a prize providing program.

A random prize providing device is provided that randomly selects and provides a specific prize by lottery from a variety of prizes consisting of items, content, tickets, etc. Users of such random prize providing devices can obtain lottery authority by paying some kind of compensation or by watching an advertisement, etc. By conducting a lottery based on this lottery authority, users can receive a prize specified by lottery from a large number of items, content, and tickets, thereby enjoying the anticipation of not knowing what they will win.

However, the prize that is won is often not exactly what the user wants, and if multiple drawings are held, the user may win the same prize multiple times. As a result, the user is forced to accept a prize that he or she does not want, which not only creates a wasteful commercial transaction but also creates dissatisfaction among the user, causing a decrease in the user's desire to use the device.

Therefore, Patent Document 1 (JP 2018-051267 A) proposes technology that can reduce the dissatisfaction felt by users in games that include a continuous lottery element in which a lump sum payment is made to play multiple consecutive lotteries, when the users obtain disappointing results in the continuous lottery element. That is, this document proposes a program for causing a computer system to execute a given game, the program including a continuous lottery element execution control means for executing a continuous lottery element once, which is a lottery element for selecting a game medium usable in the game as a prize, and which automatically executes multiple consecutive lotteries in one activation to award the player the prize selected in each lottery, an exchange medium granting means for determining the type and/or number of exchange media with different exchange benefits (hereinafter collectively referred to as "exchange medium grant content") depending on the result of executing one of the continuous lottery elements, and granting the exchange medium according to the exchange medium grant content to the player separately from the award of the prize by the continuous lottery element, and an exchange benefit granting means for granting the player an exchange benefit associated with the exchange medium in exchange for consuming the exchange medium based on the player's operation.

Furthermore, in Patent Document 2 (JP Patent Publication No. 2014-64886), in light of the lack of liquidity of gacha rights in current social games, a social game is proposed in which a virtual user other than the virtual user who has acquired the gacha right can exercise the gacha right on behalf of the virtual user. That is, the system includes an acquisition right granting unit that grants a gacha right to a first virtual user operated by a first real user, a proxy gacha right generating unit that generates a proxy gacha right, a proxy gacha right granting unit that grants the proxy gacha right to a second virtual user operated by a second real user, a proxy gacha right exercising unit that executes the exercise of the proxy gacha right by the second virtual user, and a card granting unit that grants a card to the first virtual user based on the gacha right exercised by the proxy gacha right. Even if it is difficult for the first real user to operate the first virtual user from his/her own terminal to exercise the gacha right, the first real user can grant the proxy gacha right to the second virtual user and have the second virtual user exercise the proxy gacha right, thereby indirectly exercising the gacha right to acquire a card.

JP 2018-051267 A JP 2014-064886 A

As mentioned above, several technologies have been proposed to resolve user dissatisfaction with random prize provision devices. However, previous random prize provision devices only provided items used in games as prizes, and were not designed to provide goods for real-world commercial transactions.

On the other hand, when prizes are items that are distributed in real-world commercial transactions, the production and distribution costs of the prizes are necessary. However, due to the structure of the random prize providing device, there are inevitably prizes that users do not want, which results in the economic inconvenience of manufacturing and providing items that users do not want.

The present invention aims to provide a prize providing device that allows users to convert the authority to obtain a prize obtained as a result of a lottery into another privilege if they do not want the prize, and a prize providing system and prize providing program that use the same.

In order to solve at least the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a prize providing device, a prize selling method , and a prize providing program.

In other words, the present invention provides a prize provision device that provides one or more prizes by lottery from among a plurality of prizes, and includes a lottery request acquisition unit that acquires a lottery request from a user terminal, a lottery unit that acquires the lottery request and randomly selects one or more prizes, an alternative prize extraction unit that extracts an alternative prize that can be selected alternatively from the prize selected by the lottery unit and includes at least one prize different from the prize selected by the lottery unit, and a lottery result output unit that outputs lottery result information to the user terminal, the alternative prize information being composed of prize information that identifies the prize selected by the lottery unit and alternative prize information that identifies the alternative prize.

In addition, in the embodiment of the prize provision device described above, the lottery result information output by the lottery result output unit may be formed to include exchange deadline information consisting of a deadline within which the alternative privilege can be selected. By providing the exchange deadline information, the required amount of prizes can be determined, thereby reducing the manufacturing costs and inventory of unnecessary prizes.

In addition, in the embodiment of the prize provision device described above, the lottery result information output by the lottery result output unit may further include transfer selection information that allows the user to select whether or not to transfer the prize selected by the lottery unit. This is because even if the winner of the prize does not want the prize, other users may want the prize. Such transfer selection information can also be provided for different destinations, for example, it can be targeted at users of the same prize provision device, or it can be targeted at stores on Internet auction sites or Internet shopping sites, not limited to the prize provision device, and it is also desirable to configure it so that these can be selected.

In addition, in an embodiment of the prize provision device described above, the device may further include a preference information acquisition unit that acquires preference information from the user terminal, the preference information being at least one of exchange preference information indicating a desire to exchange the prize selected by the lottery unit for an alternative benefit and transfer preference information indicating a desire to transfer the prize, and an information output unit that, upon acquisition of the preference information, executes at least one of the following processes (1) and (2).
(1) Outputting substitute benefit information to an external point conversion device.
(2) Output prize information to an external prize transfer device.

The prize providing device of the present invention can therefore be connected to other point conversion devices and/or prize transfer devices via a network, allowing users to make effective use of the prizes they have won.

In addition, it is preferable that the embodiment of the prize provision device further includes a prize quantity calculation unit that calculates the quantity of each prize selected by the lottery unit that has not been exchanged for an alternative benefit. By providing such a prize quantity calculation unit, it is possible to calculate the number of prizes to be manufactured or held in stock, thereby reducing manufacturing costs and logistics costs.

And in order to solve at least the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a prize provision system comprising a prize provision device according to the present invention, a point conversion device which grants an alternative prize based on alternative prize information output from the prize provision device, and a user terminal which outputs a lottery request to the prize provision device and acquires lottery result information, and the point conversion device acquires exchange request information from the prize provision device and the user terminal, indicating a desire to exchange the prize selected by the lottery section for an alternative prize.

With this prize provision system, the points conversion device can obtain the exchange request information from both the prize provision device and the user terminal, and can determine whether the exchange request information is genuine, thereby ensuring the security of the transaction.

In order to solve the above problem, the present invention provides a prize provision program that is executed by a computer and provides one or more prizes by lottery from among a plurality of prizes, the prize provision program comprising: a lottery request acquisition step for acquiring a lottery request from a user terminal; a lottery step for acquiring the lottery request and randomly selecting one or more prizes; an alternative benefit extraction step for extracting an alternative benefit that can be selected alternatively from the prize selected by the lottery section and includes at least any of an item, content, ticket, points, and electronic money that is different from the prize selected by the lottery section; and a lottery result output step for outputting lottery result information to the user terminal, the alternative benefit information being composed of prize information that identifies the prize selected by the lottery step and alternative benefit information that identifies the alternative benefit.

According to the prize providing device of the present invention and the prize providing system using the same, if a user does not want a prize acquired as a result of a lottery, the right to acquire the prize can be converted into another privilege.

A block diagram showing the overall configuration of a random prize providing system according to the present embodiment. A sequence diagram showing a prize or point awarding process in a random prize award device. Example of user master configuration Prize master configuration example Example of management table configuration Display screen of lottery result information on user terminal A hardware configuration diagram of an example of a random prize providing device. A processing block diagram of an example of a random prize providing device.

The random prize providing device 20 according to this embodiment will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings. In particular, this embodiment shows a random prize providing device 20 that is configured to hold a lottery in which various items can be won and to allow the won prize (item) to be exchanged for points (alternative benefits), and a specific example of a random prize providing system 60 constructed using this device.

Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a random prize providing system 60 according to this embodiment, Figure 2 is a sequence diagram showing the prize or point allocation process in the random prize providing device 20, Figure 3 is an example of the user master configuration, Figure 4 is an example of the prize master configuration, Figure 5 is an example of the management table configuration, Figure 6 is a display screen for lottery result information on a user terminal 10, Figure 7 is a hardware configuration diagram of an example of the random prize providing device 20, and Figure 8 is a processing block configuration diagram of an example of the random prize providing device 20.

First, referring to Figure 1, the overall configuration of a random prize providing system 60 configured using a random prize providing device 20 according to this embodiment will be described. The random prize providing system 60 according to this embodiment comprises a random prize providing device 20, a user terminal (or user terminal) 10, and a point conversion device 30, and may further include an electronic commerce device (i.e., a prize transfer device) 40, another user terminal 10, and a prize manufacturer terminal 50.

The user terminal 10 can be a computer including a smartphone or tablet PC, and is configured to transmit a lottery request to win a prize to the random prize provider 20 via a network such as the Internet, obtain lottery result information on the prize won in the lottery, and transmit a transfer request (i.e., transfer request information) when transferring the prize won, or an exchange request (i.e., exchange request information) requesting that the prize won be exchanged for an alternative benefit such as points. The user terminal 10 is also configured to transmit a point request to exchange the prize won for an alternative benefit such as points to the point conversion device 30 via a network such as the Internet, and to receive point grant information associated with the point request. Information processing of the user terminal 10 can be performed via a browser provided in the user terminal 10, or can be executed by installing software on the user terminal 10 side.

The random prize providing device 20 can be configured with a computer including a smartphone or tablet PC, like the user terminal 10, but it is preferable to configure it using a computer with high information processing capabilities in terms of the amount of information to be processed. The random prize providing device 20 executes the above-mentioned processing with the user terminal 10, executes a lottery processing in response to the lottery request, and further executes a process to extract a substitute benefit that can be substituted for the prize won by the lottery. Then, in response to an exchange request from the user terminal 10, it transmits a point request to the point conversion device 30. As a result, the point conversion device 30 can receive point requests from the user terminal 10 and the random prize providing device 20, and can determine authenticity by checking the consistency between the two. This ensures the objectivity of the points that have monetary value like electronic money, and ensures the safety of commercial transactions.

Furthermore, when the random prize providing device 20 acquires exchange request information for transferring a prize to a third party from the user terminal 10, it can transmit prize sales information to another electronic commerce device 40 in order to sell the prize. Such an electronic commerce device 40 can be of any type as long as it is a device that performs commercial transactions of goods, content, tickets, etc. via a network such as the Internet, and can also be a device that executes Internet auctions. When the prize is sold by the electronic commerce device 40, the consideration can be returned to the user in cash, or can be returned to the user in the form of points (alternative benefits) via the point conversion device 30.

The random prize providing device 20 may be configured to, when it acquires transfer request information from the user terminal 10, transfer the right to acquire the prize won by the lottery to another user using the random prize providing device 20. In this case, the random prize providing device 20 can acquire request information from another user to acquire a specific prize in advance and store it. That is, a transfer request table or the like that associates user information with desired prize information can be provided in a storage device, and this can be matched upon receiving exchange request information from the user terminal 10. At this time, the matching priority can be matched in order of the highest desired transfer price or points, or matched in order of the oldest date, or randomly. When the right to acquire the prize won by the lottery is transferred to another user, the other user terminal 10 can send a point request to the point conversion device 30 to grant points to the user who transferred the right as compensation for the transfer.

In addition, if a transfer request table is provided in the storage device as described above, when a prize recorded in the transfer request table is won as a result of the lottery by the random prize providing device 20, the lottery result information can include a selection item indicating that another user wants the won prize, and further allowing the user to request the process of transferring the prize to that other user.

The point conversion device 30 is a device for managing the granting and use of points that have monetary value similar to electronic money, and can be formed using a computer. The point conversion device 30 manages the points granted in response to a request to exchange the prize won, in association with user information, and transmits historical information of the points to the user terminal 10, and preferably also to the random prize provision device 20. When the points granted to the user (or the user terminal 10) are used at another affiliated store (including real stores and virtual stores) not shown, the device receives the usage information and deducts the points granted to the user (or the user terminal 10).

As described above, the user terminal 10, the random prize providing device 20, and the point conversion device 30 work together to convert a prize that is not intended for the user into versatile points, thereby eliminating user dissatisfaction.

When exchanging the prizes for points, the exchange deadline (i.e., exchange deadline information) is set, and the number of prizes required is determined when the deadline passes. Therefore, by ordering the final determined number of prizes from the prize manufacturer (prize manufacturer terminal 50), there is no need to manufacture prizes that users do not want, thereby eliminating waste of resources, manufacturing costs, and distribution costs. For this reason, it is also desirable for the random prize provision device 20 of this embodiment to be equipped with a prize quantity calculation unit that calculates the quantity of each prize selected by the lottery unit that has not been exchanged for an alternative benefit. Such a prize quantity calculation unit can perform calculations from the registration information in the management table described below.

Figure 2 is a sequence diagram showing the process flow of the user terminal 10, the random prize providing device 20, and the point conversion device 30. As shown in this figure, the process of providing the prize or granting the points is started by outputting a lottery request from the user terminal 10 to the random prize providing device 20 (S11). That is, the lottery is started by a lottery request acquisition step that acquires a lottery request from the user terminal. Such a lottery request can be made, for example, by sending a lottery execution command to the random prize providing device 20 from the browser of the user terminal 10 via the Internet. At this time, it is desirable for the random prize providing device 20 to acquire user identification information for identifying the user (or the user terminal 10) along with the lottery request in order to identify the person who will receive the prize selected by the lottery.

Such user identification information can be obtained by logging in using an ID and password, or by obtaining the device ID of the user terminal 10. Then, it is desirable for the random prize provision device 20 that has obtained the user identification information to store a user master consisting of items such as those shown in FIG. 3 in a storage device in order to authenticate the user (or the user terminal 10). Such a user master can include at least any of, for example, a user ID, nickname, name, email address, address, and telephone number, but can also include any information necessary to identify the user, without being limited to these.

Then, the random prize providing device 20, which has received the lottery request, starts the lottery process (i.e., lottery step S12) by executing a lottery program, and randomly selects one or more prizes from among the multiple prizes (including at least one of goods, content, and tickets) (S13).

In particular, in the random prize providing device 20 according to this embodiment, if the user does not want the prize won by lottery, an alternative prize ("points" in the drawing) that can be selected alternatively to the prize won by lottery is extracted (S14) so that the prize can be exchanged for an alternative prize (including at least one of an item, content, ticket, point, and electronic money different from the prize selected by the lottery section). This extraction of the alternative prize can be executed as an alternative prize extraction step that extracts an alternative prize that can be selected alternatively from the prize selected by the lottery section and includes at least one of an item, content, ticket, point, and electronic money different from the prize selected by the lottery section. When extracting such an alternative prize, for example, a prize master consisting of items such as those shown in FIG. 4 is stored in a storage device, and the alternative prize can be extracted by referring to/searching the prize master. Such prize master data may include at least one of, for example, prize ID, prize name, quantity, points (alternative benefit), and exchange deadline, but is not limited to these and may also include information necessary to identify the alternative benefit (and preferably the exchange deadline) linked to the prize. By using such prize master data, it is possible to manage the number of prizes that can be distributed, the points (alternative benefit) to be given in place of the prize, and the exchange deadline, and furthermore, this information can be extracted using the prize ID or prize name as a search key.

The prize information and substitute bonus information identified in the above manner are stored as lottery result information in a management table provided in the memory device of the random prize providing device 20 (S15), and are also output to the user terminal 10 (i.e., lottery result output step). Such a management table can be formed, for example, with the items shown in FIG. 5. That is, it can be composed of a unique lottery ID, lottery time, prize ID, and user ID that are assigned each time the random prize providing device 20 executes a lottery, and can further include a point exchange item that is turned ON when a prize exchange request, which will be described later, is obtained. However, this management table can also include other items as long as it records the contents of the executed lottery.

When the user terminal 10 acquires the lottery result information (S16), the user terminal 10 displays the information on the screen and outputs a request for converting the prize that the user won into points (alternative bonus) (S17). FIG. 6 shows a display screen of the lottery result information on the user terminal 10. As shown in this figure, the lottery result information can display a display field 21 for the prize won in the lottery, a display field 22 for the number of points that can be acquired when the prize is exchanged for points (alternative bonus), and a display field 23 for the exchange deadline. If the user wishes to exchange the prize, a selection button 24 for outputting an exchange request to the random prize providing device 20 can be displayed. In particular, the display screen shown in this embodiment further includes a transfer button 25 for instructing the random prize providing device 20 to perform a transfer process when the prize is transferred to another user or transferred in the electronic commerce device 40. The transfer button 25 can function as transfer selection information for selecting a transfer request for the prize selected by the lottery unit in the lottery result information. The display screen has an acquired prize section 26 that displays a list of prizes that have been acquired so far, and an owned points section 27 that displays the points currently owned. The acquired prize section 26 can be configured by displaying a list of prizes associated with the user in the management master, and the owned points can be calculated by having the random prize providing device 20 acquire and store the point status output from the point conversion device and output this to the user terminal 10.

When the "Exchange" button is selected in the lottery result information displayed on the user terminal 10, an exchange request is output to instruct the random prize providing device 20 to perform the prize exchange process (S18). When the random prize providing device 20 receives this exchange request (S19), it outputs it to the point conversion device (S20) and records and saves it in the management table of the storage device (S21). That is, a check is entered in the points column of the point exchange item in the management table.

In addition, when the "Exchange" button is selected on the user terminal 10, an exchange request is output to the random prize providing device 20 and an exchange request is also output to the point conversion device. As a result, the point conversion device acquires the exchange request output from the random prize providing device 20 (S22) and also acquires the exchange request output from the user terminal 10 (S23). By comparing and matching the two exchange request information (S24), the authenticity of the points given to the user (or the user terminal 10) can be determined, and the safety of commercial transactions can be ensured. If the two match in this exchange request matching process (S25), the specified points can be given to the user (or the user terminal 10) (S26), and the user (or the user terminal 10) can acquire them (S27). On the other hand, if the two do not match as a result of the matching of the exchange requests, error information is output to the user terminal 10 and/or the random prize providing device 20 (S28, S29).

On the other hand, if the user does not request to convert the won prize into points (alternative benefit) on the screen display of the lottery result information on the user terminal 10, i.e., if the "Exchange" button is not selected or executed, the prize is finalized when the exchange deadline passes, and the random prize provision device 20 executes the prize provision process (S30). Specifically, the number of prizes won for each specific prize is tallied, and the manufacturing or shipping process is executed based on this. As a result, the user can obtain the prize won by lottery (S31).

By carrying out the above process, users of the random prize provision device 20 can obtain the prize they have won as is if they want it, or can exchange it for versatile points (alternative rewards) if they do not want it, which can largely alleviate dissatisfaction with random prize provision. Furthermore, the provider of the prize can reduce the costs of producing and shipping the prizes in exchange for granting points (alternative rewards), and can also eliminate the waste of resources caused by the production of unnecessary prizes.

Figure 7 is a hardware configuration diagram showing an example of a random prize providing device 20. The random prize providing device 20 has an input device 11, an output device 12, a drive device 13, an auxiliary memory device 14, a main memory device 15, an arithmetic processing device 16, and an interface device 17, which are all interconnected by a bus B.

The input device 11 may be a keyboard, a mouse, etc., and is used to input various signals. The output device 12 may be a display device, etc., and is used to display various windows, data, etc. The interface device 17 may be a modem, a LAN card, etc., and is used to connect to a network.

The program that executes the processing of the random prize providing device 20 of this embodiment is at least a part of the various programs that control the random prize providing device 20. For example, the program that executes the lottery is provided, for example, by distributing a recording medium 18 or by downloading from a network. The recording medium 18 on which such a program is recorded can be of various types, including recording media that record information optically, electrically, or magnetically, such as CD-ROMs, flexible disks, and magneto-optical disks, and semiconductor memories that record information electrically, such as ROMs and flash memories.

Programs that execute various processes, such as a program that executes a lottery, are installed in the auxiliary storage device 14. The auxiliary storage device 14 stores the installed programs as well as necessary files, data, etc.

When the process of the lottery or point (alternative benefit) extraction described above starts, the main memory device 15 reads out and stores a program that defines the process from the auxiliary memory device 14. The calculation processing device 16 then realizes various processes according to the program stored in the main memory device 15.

Figure 8 is an example of a processing block diagram of the random prize providing device 20. The random prize providing device 20 shown in Figure 8 is realized by executing a program for performing the above-mentioned processing in the random prize providing device 20 of Figure 1. The random prize providing device 20 of Figure 8 is composed of an information processing unit consisting of a lottery request acquisition unit, a lottery unit, an alternative prize extraction unit, a desired information acquisition unit, and a desired information acquisition unit, a user master used to refer to user information from the extraction unit (or lottery request acquisition unit), a prize master used to refer to and write prize information from the extraction unit and the alternative prize extraction unit, and a management table used to refer to and write from the lottery result output unit and the desired information output unit. Each acquisition unit and output unit can send and receive information to and from external devices connected via a network via an interface device.

The above embodiment merely shows an example of a random prize providing device 20 and a random prize providing system 60 using the same, and various modifications and advantageous configurations can be made as long as the main components of the present invention are included.

In addition, in the above embodiment, a specific example is shown based on the exchange of prizes won by lottery, but this is not necessarily limited to this, and it can be used, for example, when changing a product purchased in a commercial transaction into an alternative benefit such as a different product or points.

The prize providing device of the present invention can be used as a device for randomly awarding one or more prizes by lottery from among a number of prizes, and in particular can be used as a device for changing a prize that has been won into another special offer.

10 User terminal 11 Input device 12 Output device 13 Drive device 14 Auxiliary storage device 15 Main storage device 16 Processing device 17 Interface device 18 Recording medium 20 Random type prize providing device 24 Exchange selection button 25 Transfer button 30 Point conversion device 40 Electronic commerce device 50 Prize manufacturer terminal 60 Random type prize providing system

Claims (3)

A prize providing device that provides one or more prizes by lottery from among a plurality of prizes,
A lottery request acquisition unit that acquires a lottery request from a user terminal;
a lottery unit that receives the lottery request and randomly selects one or more prizes;
an alternative benefit extraction unit that extracts an alternative benefit including at least one of a gift that is selectable alternatively to the gift selected by the lottery unit and is different from the gift selected by the lottery unit;
A storage unit that stores a specific prize in association with a user other than the user of the user terminal;
a lottery result output unit configured to output to a user terminal lottery result information including prize information specifying the prize selected by the lottery unit and alternative reward information specifying the alternative reward;
The lottery result output unit of the prize provision device outputs the lottery result information , including information indicating that the other user desires the specific prize, to the user terminal when the prize selected in the lottery unit is the specific prize.
A prize providing method executed by a computer, which provides one or more prizes by lottery from among a plurality of prizes, comprising the steps of:
A lottery request acquisition step of acquiring a lottery request from a user terminal;
a lottery step of acquiring the lottery request and randomly selecting one or more prizes;
an alternative benefit extraction step of extracting an alternative benefit including at least one of a gift that is selectable alternatively to the gift selected in the lottery step and is different from the gift selected in the lottery step;
a holding step of holding a specific prize in association with another user different from the user of the user terminal;
a lottery result output step of outputting to a user terminal lottery result information including prize information for identifying the prize selected in the lottery step and alternative benefit information for identifying the alternative benefit;
In this prize provision method, the lottery result output step outputs, to the user terminal, lottery result information including information indicating that the other user desires the specific prize , if the prize selected in the lottery step is the specific prize.
A prize providing program executed by a computer to provide one or more prizes by lottery from among a plurality of prizes,
A lottery request acquisition step of acquiring a lottery request from a user terminal;
a lottery step of acquiring the lottery request and randomly selecting one or more prizes;
an alternative benefit extraction step of extracting an alternative benefit including at least one of a gift that is selectable alternatively to the gift selected in the lottery step and is different from the gift selected in the lottery step;
a holding step of holding a specific prize in association with another user different from the user of the user terminal;
a lottery result output step of outputting to a user terminal lottery result information including prize information for identifying the prize selected in the lottery step and alternative benefit information for identifying the alternative benefit;
The lottery result output step is a prize provision program that outputs, if the prize selected in the lottery step is the specific prize, the lottery result information including information indicating that the other user wants the specific prize to the user terminal .