KR100486419B1 - A method for providing an on-line service of comparing prices therebetween and a system thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and system for providing a price comparison service for an online shopping mall product, and more particularly, information about a product registrant, a product registered by the product registrant, and a seller who wants to sell the registered product. The present invention relates to a method and system for providing a price comparison service for constructing a database including a system and performing a series of processes related to a price comparison service using the database.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of providing a price comparison service, comprising: maintaining a product database including a record of product information registered by a product registrant or a record of product information associated with the identification information, wherein the identification information may be stored in the A product registrant identifier or a product identifier for the product, wherein the product information includes price information for the product), and providing a user interface for selecting the product identifier to the seller by referring to the product database. Receiving a selection input for the product identifier from the seller, recording the seller identifier for the seller or URL information of a product sales web page registered by the seller in the product database in association with the selected product identifier, As user Receiving a search query from the user; searching for product information corresponding to the search query or URL information of a product sales web page associated with the product information by referring to the product database; and price information included in the searched product information. And sorting the searched product information or the URL information to generate a search result list, and providing the generated search result list to the user.

According to the method and system for providing a price comparison service according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a user with a systematic and comprehensive price comparison service for each product sold in one or more online shopping malls brokered according to the present invention.

Description

A METHOD FOR PROVIDING AN ON-LINE SERVICE OF COMPARING PRICES THEREBETWEEN AND A SYSTEM THEREOF}

The present invention relates to a method and system for providing a price comparison service for an online shopping mall product, and more particularly, information about a product registrant, a product registered by the product registrant, and a seller who wants to sell the registered product. The present invention relates to a method and system for providing a price comparison service for constructing a database including a system and performing a series of processes related to a price comparison service using the database.

With the widespread use of the Internet, commodity sellers have established an online virtual market called an online shopping mall, and Internet users can purchase through the virtual market without visiting a distributor who sells a specific product or goods they want to purchase. It became. With the emergence of such online shopping malls, time and money can be saved due to the form of direct purchase such as direct visits or reservation purchases of users. Due to the advantages of such an online shopping mall, many users use the online shopping mall, and various online shopping malls have appeared.

However, the selling price in these online shopping malls shows various price differences for each online shopping mall company. Accordingly, buyers have a desire to purchase a product in an online shopping mall that offers the lowest price. Accordingly, a price comparison of a price list of each online shopping mall is provided by searching the prices of one or more online shopping malls on the Internet. Services have begun to emerge.

In order to effectively provide such a price comparison service, it is essential to maintain a database that stores and manages various information about products sold in each online shopping mall using a unified directory system.

However, in the conventional system of providing a price comparison service, since the data formats for products are different in each shopping mall and there is no way to automatically unify these data formats, a unified directory system cannot be established. As a result, it was impossible to store products in each mall in a database using a single typed directory system, and it was inconvenient to manage products traded online using a single directory system. There was a ham.

Due to these shortcomings, the conventional system of providing a price comparison service was able to provide a price comparison service in the case of products (eg, home appliances, etc.), which are relatively easy to classify by product type and product model name. For products that are difficult to classify for a product (eg, clothing), price comparisons using a detailed classification (for example, whether the product is genuine or parallel imports, the period of registration of the product, size or color, etc.) Could not provide service.

In addition, even in the case of providing a price comparison service according to the prior art, 1) processing of the product information in the form of data that can be recorded in a database because a large number of product information provided from the various malls could not be unified 2) the user who wants to purchase a product due to the enormous amount of time required to process the product information and build a database. There was also a problem that the integrated price comparison service for products could not be provided in a short time.

In addition, according to the related art, the shopping mall operator entering the web site operated by the price comparison service server is charged based on a fixed cost or based on the number of products registered by the shopping mall operator. Accordingly, the shopping mall operator pays the cost regardless of whether the registered product is actually exposed to the user, the number of times the registered product is exposed, or the number of times the registered product is selected from the user (for example, the number of clicks). According to this billing method, there is an imbalance between a shopping mall operator who does not see the effect of entry even though paying the same cost and a shopping mall operator who gains a lot of entry effect, and a high billing price for the shopping mall operator who has a large entry effect even from a price comparison service operator. There was a problem that can not make a big profit.

Therefore, a regular and integrated database of products registered by a plurality of product registrants is established, and integration of products registered by a plurality of product registrants or sold by a plurality of sellers to users connected to a price comparison service server. There has been a demand for the emergence of new technologies that can easily and quickly provide cost-effective price comparison services and take reasonable charges.

The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the prior art as described above, i) a product database by performing a product registration process by providing a product interface for the product registrant to systematically input the product information for the product Or by constructing a product information database automatically, systematically and in real time, and ii) when the seller selects a product, the information related to the seller or the product can be automatically, systematically and in real time reflected in the product database or the product information database. It aims to provide a method and system for providing a systematic and detailed price comparison service for all kinds of commodities.

In addition, the method and system for providing a price comparison service according to the present invention maintains a database for storing and managing various information on products sold in each online shopping mall using a unified directory system, thereby managing a price comparison service server. The aim is to reduce the time and economic losses involved.

In addition, the method and system for providing a price comparison service according to the present invention significantly shortens the time required to process the product information to build a database, thereby integrating all products sold by each store mall to a user who wants to purchase the product. The aim is to provide a fast price comparison service.

In addition, the method and system for providing a price comparison service according to the present invention charges the product registrant or the seller based on the number of times the registered product is exposed to the user or the number of times selected from the user. It aims to solve the imbalance and enable the price comparison service operator to make an effective profit by allowing a high billing price to the shopping mall operator with a high effect of the entry.

In order to achieve the above object and to solve the above-described problems of the prior art, the method of providing a price comparison service according to an embodiment of the present invention, product identification information associated with the product registered by the product registrant or product information associated with the identification information Maintaining a product database comprising a record for the product (the identification information includes a product registrant identifier for the product registrant or a product identifier for the product, and the product information includes price information for the product) Providing a user interface for selecting the product identifier to a seller by referring to the product database, receiving a selection input for the product identifier from the seller, a seller identifier for the seller or a product registered by the seller Remind URL information of sales web page Recording in the product database in association with a selected product identifier, receiving a search query from a user, product information corresponding to the search query by referring to the product database, or URL information of a product sales web page associated with the product information Searching for; sorting the searched product information or the URL information according to price information included in the searched product information, generating a search result list, and providing the generated search result list to the user. Characterized in that it comprises a step.

Further, according to one aspect of the present invention, receiving a selection input for a specific item included in the search result list from the user, counting the number of selection input for the specific item through a predetermined counter means (counting) And generating charging information for a product registrant who registers a product associated with the specific item or a seller who sells the product based on the counted number of times.

Further, according to another aspect of the present invention, by counting the number of times a particular item included in the search result list exposed to the user through a predetermined counter means, and based on the counted number of times There is provided a price comparison service providing method further comprising generating charging information for a product registrant who registers a product associated with a specific item or a seller who sells the product.

In addition, the price comparison service providing system according to an embodiment of the present invention, the first database means for maintaining a product database comprising a record comprising a field for a product registrant identifier, a product identifier, or a seller identifier, the product Second database means for maintaining a product information database including product information associated with an identifier or URL information of a product sales web page associated with the seller identifier (the product information includes price information for the product), the product User interface providing means for providing a seller with a user interface for selecting a product using an identifier or product information, and assigning a seller identifier for the seller to the first database means in association with a product identifier associated with the product selected by the seller record And database management means for recording the URL information of the merchandise sales web page associated with the seller identifier into the second database means, a search query input means for receiving a search query from a user, and the search query with reference to the second database means. Search means for searching product information corresponding to or URL information of a product sales web page associated with the product information, and sorting the searched product information or the URL information according to price information included in the searched product information to search Search result list generating means for generating a result list, and search result list providing means for providing the generated search result list to the user.

Hereinafter, a method and a system for providing a price comparison service according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The price comparison service providing method according to an embodiment of the present invention may be performed by a price comparison service providing system. 1 is a diagram illustrating a network connection of the price comparison service providing system. The price comparison service providing system 100 is connected to a product registrant's terminal 110, a seller's shopping mall server 120, or a user's terminal 130 through a wired or wireless communication network.

As used herein, the term 'product registrant' refers to a subject who registers a predetermined product in a price comparison service providing system and is responsible for logistics such as delivery of the product, and the term 'seller' refers to the price comparison service. A subject that selects a product registered in the providing system and sells the product through a predetermined online shopping mall. One subject may act as a product registrant or seller, and the seller may sell products secured to another route other than the price comparison service providing system.

2 is a flowchart illustrating a method of providing a price comparison service according to the present embodiment.

In step 201 a product database containing a record of the identification information or product information associated with the identification information is maintained.

The identification information is identification information of a product registered by a product registrant and includes a product registrant identifier for the product registrant or a product identifier for the product. In addition, the product database may further include a record associated with the seller identifier.

The product information is information related to the product, and includes price information on the product. The product information may include information about a category to which the product belongs, image data of the product, and the like. A more detailed description of the product information will be described later.

3 is a diagram showing an example of data recorded in the product database. 3A shows a record for identification information, FIG. 3B shows a record for product information (including price information) associated with a product identifier (or identification information), and FIG. 3C shows a seller identifier associated with a product identifier (or identification information). And a record of URL information of the merchandise sales web page. The structure of the product database (field or record structure) shown in FIG. 3 is exemplary, and it is possible to efficiently relationship with identification information, product registrant identifier, product identifier, product information, seller identifier, or URL information of a product sales web page. Of course, there can be a variety of database construction methods that can be expressed.

A step 201 of maintaining the product database will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 4.

In step 401, the price comparison service providing system records and maintains a product registration register for specifying each product in the product registration database. The product registration unit may be a conventional product registration unit electronically documented.

The product registration book is used to specify the product for each product. For example, among the digital cameras manufactured by Casio, product registration sources exist for each model such as 'Exilim EX M1', 'Exilim EX M2', 'Exilim EX Z3', and 'Exilim EX Z4'.

Table 1 shows an example of the product registration book for 'Exilim EX M1'.

Exilim EX M1 manufacturer Casio The number of pixels 1.3 million pixels type General type Memory capacity 14M Storage method SD card / MMC CCD Characteristic Video, voice recording; MP3 player function; USB detailed description ...

In step 402, the price comparison service providing system provides a first user interface for selecting a product register by referring to the product register database. Before performing step 402, the price comparison service providing system may allow a person who wants to register a product to perform a product registrant registration procedure or an authentication procedure. The product registrant identifier may be assigned to the product registrant in the subscription procedure.

For example, a web page as shown in FIG. 5 may be used for the first user interface.

The price comparison service providing system provides a web page as shown in FIG. 5A to a product registrant. When the product registrant clicks on the 'product category selection' button (reference numeral 501), the price comparison service providing system presents a web page to the product registrant to select a category type as shown in FIG. 5B. Can provide. The price comparison service providing system provides a product registration unit belonging to the category or a sub-category of the category when the product registrant selects a predetermined category by a mouse click or the like, whereby the product registrant registers the product by a category search method. You can make it searchable.

In addition, the price comparison service providing system, as indicated by reference numerals 502 and 503 of FIG. 5A, may allow a product registrant to search for a product registration ledger using a product model name or a manufacturer of the product. In addition, although not shown, the price comparison service providing system may be able to search for the product registration book by keyword search method.

When a search query is input from a product registrant in the above-described search method, the price comparison service providing system searches for a product register corresponding to the search query and generates a search result list for the searched product register. The generated search result list may be provided to the product registrant as indicated by reference numeral 504. The product registrant clicks the 'view description' button (reference numeral 505) to view the product registration register (or description of the product registration ledger), and then selects the 'select' button (drawing reference numeral 506). The desired product registration book can be selected by clicking with the mouse (step 403).

On the other hand, if there is no product registration book corresponding to the search result as a result of the search, the price comparison service providing system may provide a user interface for registering the product registration book to the product registrant. At this time, in order to prevent a plurality of product registration units exist or unnecessary product registration unit for the same product, the administrator of the price comparison service providing system before registering the product registration unit input from the product registrant You can also check the registry.

In operation 403, the product registrant inputs product information about a product to be registered.

However, when the product registration book as described in Table 1 is selected, the product registrant may use the product information (eg, 'pixel number') already included in the product registration book and input only additional product information. have.

The product information includes a price of the product, a category to which the product belongs, image data of the product, whether the product is a genuine product, whether an after-sale service is available for the product, and the after-sales service is free. Whether or not paid, the size or color of the product, the supply quantity of the product, delivery information, the registration period of the product, whether to give a gift or points to the buyer who purchased the product, payment method when purchasing the product It may include information about credit card payment, installment payment, and the like. The price comparison service providing system inputs the category to which the product belongs, the image data of the product, the size or the color of the product from the product information using the information contained in the selected product registration register as it is, and inputs it from the product registrant. You may not receive it.

In step 404, the price comparison service providing system generates a product identifier using the selected product registration register and the input product information. That is, the price comparison service providing system generates a product identifier associated with the selected product registration register and the input product information.

In step 405, the price comparison service providing system generates a product registrant identifier for identifying the product registrant or identification information including the product identifier.

In step 406, the price comparison service providing system registers a record including the generated identification information and the product information in the product database. In addition, the price comparison service providing system does not duplicate the product information recorded in the product registration unit database in association with the product registration unit in the product database, the product information contained in the selected product registration unit Only the relationship with the selected product registration book may be recorded in the product database so as to be queried.

Referring to FIG. 3A, the product registrant 'wisjjang' registers three kinds of products each identified by the product identifiers 'a11112', 'a11113', and 'a11114'. The product identified by the product identifier 'a11112' (hereinafter referred to as' product 'a11112') may be a different kind of product from the product 'a11113'. For example, the product 'a11112' may be a garment, and the product 'a11113' may be a refrigerator.

In addition, the product 'a11112' and the product 'a11113' are products of the same kind, that is, products associated with the same product registration book, and only product information may be different. For example, the product 'a11112' is a digital camera 'Exilim EX M1' and the price is 460,000 won, and the product is shipped for a fee, and the product 'a11113' is a digital camera 'Exilim EX M1' free of charge but the price is 470,000 won. And it may be a commodity that provides a free gift.

On the other hand, the present embodiment includes generating a product registrant identifier or identification information including the product identifier, it is also possible to use the product registrant identifier or product identifier, respectively, without generating the identification information.

Through the above process, a product database as shown in FIG. 3A or 3B may be constructed, and a process of constructing a record for the URL information of the seller identifier and the product sale web page as shown in FIG. 3C will be described later. Let's do it.

In step 202, the price comparison service providing system provides a second user interface for selecting a product (precise product identifier) to the seller by referring to the product database. Before performing step 202, the price comparison service providing system may allow a person who wants to select a product to perform a seller subscription procedure or an authentication procedure. The seller identifier may be given to the seller in the subscription procedure.

For example, the price comparison service providing system may enable the seller to select a product using keyword search or category search. In addition, it is also desirable to be able to search using a suitable search query for each category. For example, when the seller selects a digital camera category, the price comparison service providing system may provide the seller with a web page for inputting a search query as shown in FIG. 6.

As indicated by reference numeral 601, the price comparison service providing system allows a seller to select a 'digital camera' category in a category search method, and easily searches for a desired digital camera in the 'dica' category. The seller may also be provided with a user interface for entering a search query as indicated by reference numeral 602.

The user interface as indicated by reference numeral 602 may be determined differently for each category. For example, in the 'dress' category, the user interface may be 'one piece / two piece / three piece', 'size', or 'price'. A user interface may be set for inputting a selection of the data.

When the seller clicks on the 'type' button (reference numeral 603), the price comparison service providing system enables the user to select the type of digital camera as shown in FIG. When the seller selects 'general type' by mouse click or the like, the merchandise information list for the general type digital camera is provided to the seller among the product information recorded in the merchandise database.

The seller checks the provided product information list and selects a product identifier associated with the product information (step 203). Specifically, when the seller selects predetermined product information from the product information list, a product identifier associated with the product information may be selected.

As described with reference to FIG. 4, the price comparison service providing system implements the first user interface to 1) register a product for each product registration book, and 2) input product information formulated for each category. Each data such as product information may be systematically recorded in the product database.

Accordingly, the price comparison service providing system can easily input various search queries for each category by referring to the product database and can provide the seller with an accurate search result.

In step 204, the seller identifier for the seller or URL information of the product sales web page registered by the seller is recorded in the product database in association with the selected product identifier. Through this process, as shown in FIG. 3C, a record for the seller identifier may be generated. The price comparison service providing system may record URL information of the product sale page in association with the product identifier and the seller identifier. The URL information is URL information of a product sale page for selling a product associated with the product identifier among product sale pages provided by the shopping mall server of the seller.

Hereinafter, a process of providing a price comparison service to a user will be described with reference to the product database. The price comparison service providing system may provide a price comparison service of a so-called keyword search or category search method in which a user may input a search word or select a category to make a search request. In addition, the price comparison service providing system may provide a user interface as shown in FIG. 6 to a user to input a search query optimized for each category.

In step 205, the user enters a search query into the price comparison service providing system.

In step 206, the price comparison service providing system searches for product information corresponding to the search query or URL information of a product sales web page associated with the product information by referring to the product database.

In step 207, the price comparison service providing system sorts the searched product information or the URL information according to the price information included in the searched product information to generate a search result list. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the price comparison service providing system may sort the retrieved product information or the URL information in the ascending or descending order of the price information in step 207. In addition, the price comparison service providing system may sort the retrieved product information or the URL information in a predetermined manner designated by the user, and in this case, if the user does not set any other sorting on a default value, The retrieved product information or the URL information may be sorted in an ascending or descending order.

In step 208, the price comparison service providing system provides the generated list of search results to the user.

According to such a configuration, the user can access the price comparison service providing system and receive the overall price comparison service for the products sold in each online shopping mall.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the price comparison service providing system transmits the identification information including the selected product identifier and the product information associated with the product identifier to a shopping mall server providing the shopping mall site of the seller, and the identification The shopping mall server receiving the information and the product information may generate a product sales web page for a product associated with the product identifier using the identification information and the product information. Since the identification information and the product information are standardized, the shopping mall server may use a program that automatically generates the product sales web page using the identification information and the product information. In addition, the product information may be displayed on the product sale web page, and the shopping mall server may store the identification information in association with the product sale web page.

According to the present embodiment, the price comparison service providing system may perform the step of receiving payment information associated with payment from the shopping mall server. The payment information may include identification information associated with the merchandise sales page, a seller identifier for the seller, information on the number / purchase price of the product, information on a shipping destination to which the product is to be delivered, and the like. In this case, the price comparison service providing system may determine a product registrant who registered a product to be sold on the product sales web page by using the identification information included in the transmitted payment information. In addition, the price comparison service providing system determines how much of the product is sold using information on the number of times the payment information including the identification information of the product is transmitted and the number of purchases of the product included in the payment information. Product sales quantity information may be generated.

According to the present embodiment, the price comparison service providing system may generate product sales ranking information based on the product sales quantity information and store it in a predetermined database. The price comparison service providing system may sort the searched product information or URL information according to the product sales ranking information, generate a search result list, and provide the same to a user. In this case, the price comparison service providing system may sort the searched product information or the URL information in ascending or descending order of the product sales ranking information. According to the present embodiment, a price comparison service providing method is provided in which a user can select and purchase a product more easily by first exposing a popular product having a high sales quantity to a user.

In the related art, even when a price comparison service for a product sold in an online shopping mall associated with a price comparison service providing system is provided to a user, the price comparison service is provided only for products of some items.

In order to provide a price comparison service in the same form, a manager of a price comparison service providing system according to the related art receives predetermined product information data including information on products sold by the shopping mall server from a database of each shopping mall server. . However, since the structure of the database provided by each shopping mall server is different for each online shopping mall, the manager constructs a product database required for providing a price comparison service in the price comparison service providing system by referring to the database manually. I had to go through the process.

However, as described above, according to the present invention, in the process of registering a product by the product registrant inputs the product information including the price information about the product, the seller in the process of selecting the registered product the product database is the price It can be built automatically in the comparison service providing system.

That is, since the product registrant registers the product using the user interface provided by the price comparison service providing system, the data associated with each product registrant is recorded in the product database in the same or almost similar structure, thus the product database is According to the present invention, the price comparison service providing method according to the present invention can systematically manage the relationship between a product registrant, product information including price information of a product registered by the product registrant, and a seller who selects the product. The comparison service can be easily provided.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the shopping mall server generates the product sales page using the identification information or the product information recorded in the product database as it is. Since data is recorded in the same or similar structure as that in the structure, the price comparison service providing method according to the present embodiment can easily provide a price comparison service for each shopping mall.

Hereinafter, in providing a price comparison service for a product to a user according to the present invention, a product registrant or the product registered with the product based on the number of times the product search results are exposed to the user or the number of times the product search results are selected by the user. Embodiments of charging a seller to sell will be described.

The method of providing a price comparison service according to an embodiment of the present invention further includes steps 209 to 211.

In step 209, the price comparison service providing system receives a selection input for a specific item included in a search result list from a user, and in step 210, the price comparison service providing system receives the specific item through a predetermined counter means. Counting the number of selection inputs to.

In step 211, the price comparison service providing system generates billing information for a product registrant who registers a product associated with the specific item or a seller who sells the product, based on the counted number of times.

The method of providing a price comparison service according to the related art charges a store shopping mall operator based on a fixed cost or a number of product registrations. However, in the method of providing a price comparison service according to the present embodiment, the product search result is a user as described above. By selecting a billing method based on the number of times selected from the system, the imbalance between the shopping mall operator who does not see the entry effect even though the same cost is paid and the shopping mall operator who gains the entry effect greatly is eliminated, and the price comparison service operator causes the entry effect. It is possible to obtain a high profit from the price comparison service operator by enabling a high charge to a large shopping mall operator.

7 is a flowchart illustrating a process of generating charging information according to the number of exposures according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 7, the method for providing a price comparison service according to the present embodiment may further include steps 701 and 702.

In step 701, the price comparison service providing system counts the number of times a specific item included in the search result list is exposed to the user through a predetermined counter means, and in step 702, the price comparison service is provided. The system generates charging information for a product registrant who has registered a product associated with the particular item or a seller who sells the product based on the counted number of times.

The conventional method of providing a price comparison service charges a store shopping mall operator based on a fixed cost or a number of product registrations. However, the method of providing a price comparison service according to the embodiments of the present invention has a product search result as described above. Selects a method of charging based on the number of times a user selects a product or a product search result is exposed to the user, thereby providing an imbalance between a shopping mall operator who does not see the effect of entry even though the user pays the same cost and a shopping mall operator who gains a lot of entry effect. In order to solve the problem, the price comparison service operator can make a high charge to the shopping mall operator having a large effect, and the price comparison service operator can obtain an effect of making a high profit.

Hereinafter, embodiments of providing a premium service to a product registrant or a seller in providing a price comparison service for a product to a user according to the present invention will be described.

According to a method for providing a price comparison service according to an embodiment of the present invention, step 206 may include second product information associated with a product sold by a second product registrant or a second seller, or a product associated with the second product information. Retrieving second URL information of the sales web page.

Step 207 includes sorting the searched second product information or second URL information to generate a second search result list, and step 208 provides the generated second search result list to the user. Controlling exposure to a predetermined location on the web page. In addition, step 208 may further include displaying predetermined display information on the generated second search result list.

In the present embodiment, the second product registrant and the second seller mean a person determined by a criterion determined by an operator providing a price comparison service. For example, the second product registrant and the second seller may be a product registrant and seller who paid a predetermined cost, such as an advertising cost. In addition, the cost may be determined through bidding.

According to the method for providing a price comparison service according to the present embodiment, the price information and URL information associated with a product registrant or seller who basically provides a price comparison service for a product, but has paid a certain cost such as an advertisement cost to a service operator It may be provided to the user in the form of a list separated from the search result list. For example, a special space may be created on a web page provided to a user's terminal in a manner of “recommended product space” or “sponsored link”, and the second search result list may be exposed in the special space. In addition, while exposing the second search result list in the special space and displaying advertisements such as "AD" as the display information on items included in the second search result list, or "recommended shopping mall" It is also possible to make a recommendation.

Meanwhile, according to the method of providing a price comparison service according to another embodiment of the present invention, step 206 may include second product information or second product information associated with a product registered by a second product registrant or sold by a second seller. Retrieving second URL information of an associated merchandise sales web page, wherein step 208 displays the predetermined display information on a specific item included in the generated search result list and displays the predetermined display information. Providing the user with a list of search results. Here, the specific item means an item associated with the searched second product information or second URL information.

In the present embodiment, the second product registrant and the second seller mean a person determined by a criterion determined by an operator providing a price comparison service. For example, the second product registrant and the second seller may be a product registrant and seller who paid a predetermined cost, such as an advertising cost. In addition, the cost may be determined through bidding.

According to the method of providing a price comparison service according to the present embodiment, basically, a price comparison service for a product is provided, and product information and URL information associated with a product registrant or seller who pays a predetermined cost such as an advertisement cost to a service operator is searched. It may be provided to the user by adding predetermined display information in the result list. For example, an advertisement display such as "AD" may be displayed as the display information in the search result list or a recommendation display such as "recommended shopping mall".

8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a web page provided with a price comparison service according to the above embodiments which may additionally provide a predetermined premium service to a product registrant or seller. As illustrated in FIG. 8, a separate list may be generated for products provided by a shopping mall associated with a product registrant or a seller who has paid a predetermined cost and exposed at the top of a web page where a price comparison result is provided. It is also possible to expose the display differently from other lists by adding the display information with an indication such as "AD". In addition, it is possible to make the display form different by displaying "recommended shopping mall" or the like in the general search result list.

The web page shown in FIG. 8 is exemplary, and a method of efficiently displaying product information associated with a product registrant or seller who paid a predetermined cost may be variously selected.

In addition, embodiments of the present invention include computer-readable media containing program instructions for performing various computer-implemented operations. The program recorded on the computer readable medium may include program instructions, data files, data structures, etc. alone or in combination. The media may be those specially designed and constructed for the purposes of the present invention, or they may be of the kind well-known and available to those having skill in the computer software arts.

Hereinafter, a price comparison service providing system according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described. 9 is a block diagram showing a price comparison service providing system according to the present embodiment.

The price comparison service providing system 900 includes a first database means 901, a second database means 902, a user interface means 903, a database management means 904, a search query input means 905, a search means ( 906, search result list generating means 907, and search result list providing means 908.

The first database means 901 maintains a product database comprising a record comprising fields for a product registrant identifier, a product identifier, or a seller identifier.

The second database means 902 maintains a product information database comprising product information associated with the product identifier or URL information of a product sales web page associated with the seller identifier. Here, the product information includes price information about the product.

The product registrant identifier is used to identify a product registrant who registers a product by inputting product information into the product information database, and the product identifier is used to identify a product associated with the product information input by the product registrant, The seller identifier is used to identify a seller who sells the selected product by using the product information registered in the product information database.

The seller can search the product information recorded in the product information database using the user interface provided by the user interface providing means 903. The user interface providing means 903 may provide a user interface for the seller to search for the product information, and the price comparison service providing system 900 further includes a search engine (not shown). As described in the above embodiments, the price comparison service providing system 900 may provide a search service of various search methods such as a keyword search method and a category search method, and the price comparison service providing system 900 may include a search engine ( Not shown).

The seller selects a predetermined product sold under a predetermined condition by referring to the product information inquired using the user interface.

The database management means 904 records in the first database means 901 a seller identifier for the seller in association with a product identifier associated with the product selected by the seller, and the URL of the product sales web page associated with the seller identifier. Information is recorded in the second database means 902.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the price comparison service providing system 900 may transmit the selected product information, a product identifier associated with the product information, a product registrant identifier to a shopping mall server (not shown) of the seller, The shopping mall server may generate a product sales page for selling a product associated with the product information by using the product information. In this case, the product identifier or the product registrant identifier is stored in the shopping mall server in association with the product sale page.

The search query input unit 905 receives a search query from the user through the terminal 930 of the user.

The searching means 906 searches for the product information corresponding to the search query or the URL information of the product selling web page associated with the product information by referring to the second database means 902.

The search result list generating means 907 sorts the searched product information or the URL information according to the price information included in the searched product information to generate a search result list, and the search result list providing means 908 The generated search result list is provided to the user through the user's terminal 930.

The price comparison service providing system according to another embodiment of the present invention further includes a counter means 909 and billing information generating means 910.

According to the present embodiment, the counter means 909 counts the number of times a specific item included in the search result list is exposed to the user through the user's terminal 930, and the charging information generating means 910 Generates billing information for a product registrant who registered a product associated with the particular item or a seller who sells the product based on the counted number of times.

The price comparison service providing system 920 according to another embodiment of the present invention further includes a counter means 909, charging information generating means 910, and a search result selection receiving means 911.

According to the present embodiment, the search result selection receiving means 911 receives a selection input for a specific item included in the search result list from the user through the user's terminal 930, and the counter means 909 Counting the number of selection inputs for a specific item, and the charging information generating means 910 charges for the product registrant who registered the product associated with the specific item or the seller who sells the product based on the counted number of times. Generate information.

The price comparison service providing system according to another embodiment of the present invention further includes a second user interface providing means (not shown) and a second database managing means (not shown).

The product registrant who wants to register his product in the price comparison service providing system according to the present embodiment inputs a product registrant identifier and product information using a user interface provided by the second user interface providing means. In this case, the product registrant may input the product information in association with a predetermined product registration unit among the product registration unit provided by the price comparison service providing system. The product registration unit is used to specify each product, and when the product is registered using the product registration unit, information about the product may be systematically managed.

The second database management means generates a product identifier using the entered product information, generates a record including the generated product identifier and fields for the entered product registrant identifier, and generates a record in the first database means 901. Record, and record the inputted product information in the second database means 902 in association with the product identifier.

By using such a configuration, the product registrant can register a product in the price comparison service providing system according to the present embodiment.

10 is an internal block diagram of a general purpose computer device that may be employed to perform the method of providing a price comparison service according to the present invention.

The computer device 1000 includes one or more processors 1010 connected to a main memory device including a random access memory (RAM) 1020 and a read only memory (ROM) 1030. The processor 1010 is also called a central processing unit (CPU). As is well known in the art, the ROM 1030 serves to transfer data and instructions to the CPU unidirectionally, and the RAM 1020 typically transmits data and instructions bidirectionally. Used to. RAM 1020 and ROM 1030 may include any suitable form of computer readable media. Mass storage 1040 is bi-directionally coupled to processor 1010 to provide additional data storage capability, and may be any of the computer readable recording media described above. The mass storage device 1040 is used to store programs, data, and the like, and is a secondary memory device such as a hard disk which is generally slower than the main memory device. Certain mass storage devices such as CD ROM 1060 may be used. The processor 1010 may include one or more input / output interfaces, such as a video monitor, trackball, mouse, keyboard, microphone, touchscreen display, card reader, magnetic or paper tape reader, voice or handwriting reader, joystick, or other known computer input / output device. 1050 is connected. Finally, the processor 1010 may be connected to a wired or wireless communication network through the network interface 1070. Through this network connection, the procedure of the method described above can be performed. The apparatus and tools described above are well known to those skilled in the computer hardware and software arts.

The hardware device described above may be configured to operate as one or more software modules to perform the operations of the present invention.

As described above, the present invention has been described by way of limited embodiments and drawings, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains various modifications and variations from such descriptions. This is possible.

Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be limited to the described embodiments, but should be defined not only by the claims below, but also by the equivalents of the claims.

According to the method and system for providing a price comparison service according to the present invention, a product database or a product information database is automatically generated by providing a product registrant with a user interface for systematically inputting product information about a product to perform a product registration process. It is possible to provide a systematic and detailed price comparison service for all kinds of products by constructing in a systematic and real time, and allowing information related to the product to be automatically, systematically and in real time reflected in the product database or the product information database. The effect can be obtained.

In addition, according to the method and system for providing a price comparison service according to the present invention, the price comparison service server is managed by maintaining a database for storing and managing various information on products sold in each online shopping mall by using a unified directory system. This can reduce the time and economic loss of doing so.

In addition, according to the method and system for providing a price comparison service according to the present invention, by dramatically reducing the time required to process the product information to build a database, to each user who wants to purchase a product to all the products sold by the mall It is possible to obtain an integrated price comparison service for a short time.

In addition, according to the method and system for providing a price comparison service according to the present invention, by charging the product registrant or seller on the basis of the number of times the registered product is exposed to the user or the number of times selected from the user, compared to the presence effect between the shopping mall operators The disproportionation of the billing is eliminated, and the price comparison service operator can obtain an effective profit by enabling a high billing to a shopping mall operator having a large entry effect.

1 is a diagram illustrating a network connection of a price comparison service providing system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a flowchart illustrating a method of providing a price comparison service according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a diagram showing an example of data recorded in a product database according to one embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a process of maintaining a product database according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a user interface according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for one example of a user interface provided to enable a seller to input a search query for searching for a product according to one embodiment of the present invention.

7 is a flowchart illustrating a process of generating charging information according to the number of exposures according to an embodiment of the present invention.

8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a web page provided with a price comparison service according to one embodiment of the present invention.

9 is a block diagram showing a price comparison service providing system according to another embodiment of the present invention.

10 is an internal block diagram of a general purpose computer device that may be employed to perform the method of providing a price comparison service according to the present invention.

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

900: Price Comparison Service Provision System

901 first database means 902 second database means

903: user interface means 904: database management means

905: search query input means 906: search means

907: means for generating a search result list 908: means for providing a search result list

Claims (16)

In the method of providing a price comparison service for the online shopping mall products, Maintaining a product registration database to record a product registration unit for specifying a product for each product; Providing a product registrant with a user interface for selecting the product registration ledger recorded in the product registration ledger database; Receiving a selection or product information of a product registration unit from the product registrant and generating a product identifier using the selected product registration unit and the input product information; Generating identification information including the product registrant identifier or the product identifier for the product registrant; Recording and maintaining a record including the identification information or the entered product information in a product database, wherein the product information includes price information about the product; Providing a user interface for selecting the product identifier to a seller by referring to the product database; Receiving a selection input for the product identifier from the seller; Recording a seller identifier for the seller or URL information of a product sale web page registered by the seller in the product database in association with the selected product identifier; Receiving a search query from a user; Retrieving product information corresponding to the search query or URL information of a product sales web page associated with the product information by referring to the product database; Generating a search result list by sorting the searched product information or the URL information according to the price information included in the searched product information; And Providing the generated list of search results to the user Price comparison service providing method comprising a. The method of claim 1, Receiving a selection input for a specific item included in the search result list from the user; Counting the number of selection inputs for the particular item via a predetermined counter means; And Generating billing information for a product registrant who registers a product associated with the specific item or a seller who sells the product based on the counted number of times; Price comparison service providing method comprising a further. The method of claim 1, Counting the number of times a specific item included in the search result list has been exposed to the user through a predetermined counter means; And Generating billing information for a product registrant who registers a product associated with the specific item or a seller who sells the product based on the counted number of times; Price comparison service providing method comprising a further. The method of claim 1, The step of sorting the searched product information or the URL information according to the price information included in the searched product information to generate a search result list is the searched product information or the URL information in ascending or descending order of the price information Price comparison service providing method characterized in that the sorting. The method of claim 1, The step of searching for the product information corresponding to the search query or the URL information of the product sales web page associated with the product information by referring to the product database, Retrieving, by the second product registrant, second product information associated with the product sold by the registered or second seller or second URL information of the product sale web page associated with the second product information; The step of sorting the searched product information or the URL information according to the price information included in the searched product information to generate a search result list, Generating a second search result list by sorting the searched second product information or second URL information, The step of providing the generated list of search results to the user, And exposing the generated second search result list to a predetermined position on a web page provided to the user. The method of claim 5, The step of providing the generated list of search results to the user, And displaying predetermined display information on the generated second search result list. The method of claim 1, The step of searching for the product information corresponding to the search query or the URL information of the product sales web page associated with the product information by referring to the product database, Retrieving, by the second product registrant, second product information associated with the product sold by the registered or second seller or second URL information of the product sale web page associated with the second product information; The step of providing the generated list of search results to the user, Displaying predetermined display information on a specific item included in the generated search result list, wherein the specific item is associated with the searched second product information or second URL information; And Providing the user with a list of search results on which the predetermined display information is displayed; Price comparison service providing method comprising a. The method according to claim 5 or 7, And the second product registrant and the second seller are product registrants and sellers who have paid a predetermined fee. The method of claim 8, The cost is the price comparison service providing method characterized in that determined through the bid information input from the at least one seller. delete The method of claim 1, The product information includes a category to which the product belongs, image data of the product, whether the product is a genuine product, whether an after-sale service for the product, the size or color of the product, the quantity sold of the product And at least one of information about a delivery method of the goods, and information about a registration period of the goods. A computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program for executing the method of any one of claims 1 to 7. In the system for providing a price comparison service for online shopping mall products, First database means for maintaining a product database comprising a record comprising a field for a product registrant identifier, a product identifier, or a merchant identifier; Second database means for maintaining a product information database comprising product information associated with the product identifier or URL information of a product sales web page associated with the merchant identifier, the product information including price information for the product; User interface providing means for providing a user interface for selecting a product to a seller using the product identifier or product information; Record a seller identifier for the seller in the first database means in association with a product identifier associated with the product selected by the seller, and record URL information of a product sales web page associated with the seller identifier in the second database means. Database management means; Second user interface providing means for receiving a product registrant identifier and product information from a product registrant; A product identifier is generated using the input product information, a record including a field for the generated product identifier and the input product registrant identifier is generated and recorded in the first database means, and the input product information Second database management means for recording in the second database means in association with the product identifier; Search query input means for receiving a search query from a user; Search means for searching product information corresponding to the search query or URL information of a product sales web page associated with the product information with reference to the second database means; Search result list generating means for sorting the searched product information or the URL information according to price information included in the searched product information to generate a search result list; And Search result list providing means for providing the generated search result list to the user Price comparison service providing system comprising a. The method of claim 13, Search result selection receiving means for receiving a selection input for a specific item included in the search result list from the user; Counter means for counting the number of selection inputs for the particular item; And Billing information generation means for generating billing information for a product registrant who has registered a product associated with the particular item or a seller selling the product based on the counted number of times; Price comparison service providing system, characterized in that it further comprises. The method of claim 13, Counter means for counting the number of times a specific item included in the search result list has been exposed to the user; And Billing information generation means for generating billing information for a product registrant who has registered a product associated with the particular item or a seller selling the product based on the counted number of times; Price comparison service providing system, characterized in that it further comprises. delete