KR20010000277A - Method and apparatus for electronic commerce transaction via the internet using reverse-auction - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A method and an apparatus for purchasing and selling goods by using a re-auction in an electronic commerce are provided to search easily goods through the Internet by a purchaser, to sell goods without a shop by a seller, and to easily find a new distribution network without advertizing goods by the seller by easily searching goods in demand. CONSTITUTION: A purchaser selects a purchase mode by connected to an Internet inverse-auction system through a purchaser interface (S21). The purchaser searches and selects a desired good through an electric catalog (S22). The purchaser puts the selected good in a shopping cart (S23). The purchaser starts an inverse-auction process for the good held in the shopping cart (S24). A plurality of sellers connect to the Internet inverse-auction system through seller interfaces and select a seller mode provided from the Internet inverse-auction system (S25). The seller inputs an ID and a password to log in (S26). The seller searches goods which is subject to the inverse-auction (S27). The seller participates the inverse-auction bid by proposing a selling condition (S28). When the inverse-auction is terminated (S29), a central controller informs the corresponding seller of information on the bid-accepted good (S30). When the successful bidder wants to purchase the good at the proposed price, purchase authentication is made (S31). The purchaser pays the price (S32). When the purchaser accepts the good, the money of the corresponding good is sent to the seller by the inverse-auction system, thereby terminating the procedure related to the inverse-auction.

Description

TECHNICAL AND APPARATUS FOR ELECTRONIC COMMERCE TRANSACTION VIA THE INTERNET USING REVERSE-AUCTION}

The present invention relates to a method of purchasing and selling an article using a reverse auction scheme in internet electronic commerce, and an apparatus for performing such a method. In more detail, predetermined information about products such as electronic products and automobiles is posted in advance on the Internet, and a buyer who wants to purchase a specific product connects to the Internet to search for a desired product, and purchases necessary information and purchase of a specific product. By entering the conditions and placing them on the Internet, a number of sellers can search for products that are in demand and bid on reverse auctions for those products to determine successful bidders, thereby reducing intermediate distribution margin and promoting electronic commerce. The present invention relates to a method for purchasing and selling an article using a reverse auction method in an internet electronic commerce and an apparatus for implementing the same.

Existing commerce methods include store-based commerce, which is a traditional method, and e-commerce, which uses online media such as telephone, TV, PC communication, and the Internet, based on a space where product sales and purchases occur. have.

Among them, the traditional method of visiting store-based commerce requires the seller to spend a lot of money on marketing, such as advertising and public relations, store maintenance, and product distribution through various stages. The disadvantage is that. Therefore, in the store-based commerce, the marketing and distribution costs incurred by the seller appear as high product prices, making it difficult to purchase products at reasonable prices. In addition, in the store visit-type commerce method, the buyer has to passively access information about the product that he / she wants to purchase through an advertisement or a promotion medium, and thus the commerce in that the price and display of the product are preset by the seller. Is driven by the seller.

Recently, with the development of science and technology, commerce through online media such as communication sales, computer communication, and the Internet has emerged as a new product purchase method. Examples of the space where such commerce takes place include a TV home shopping channel, a PC communication bulletin board, a commerce corner, an internet shopping mall, and the like, unlike a traditional store visit commerce, there is no physical store. This is the basic characteristic of online commerce.

The biggest advantage of this online commerce method is that the stage of merchandise distribution can be reduced, and there is no store for merchandise display and sale, which reduces the cost of maintaining a store for merchandise display and storage, and also constrains time and space for commerce. This is rare compared to commerce in physical stores.

On the other hand, the existing commerce method can be classified into a fixed price method and a variable price method such as auction or reverse auction based on a product price setting method.

Among these, the fixed price method means a method that can be traded only at the reconnaissance price set by the store and that negotiation of price is almost impossible. On the contrary, the variable price method is a price setting method in which price negotiation is possible between seller and buyer because the price of the product is not fixed, and the final price of the product is determined by various variables.

A representative example of a commerce method in the form of variable pricing is auction. Traditional auctions are run by people who bid at a particular auction site. Examples of auction items familiar to the general public include art and antiques, and those who want to purchase these items participate in bidding while raising prices. The auction at the auction site is usually conducted by hand signal. A typical auction method is to set the lowest price and then continue to raise the price by the rising price range and sell it to the remaining bidders, that is, the item is sold to the bidder who offered the highest price. English auction). In addition, the first price auction method (General Price Auction) is also commonly used to sell at the highest price to the bidder with the highest price. Meanwhile, another kind of auction method is Dutch Auction, which started in the Dutch flower market. In this method, after setting the highest price, the product is continuously lowered by the lower price range, and the product is sold to the first bidder who has made a decision.

The problem of the auction process in the physical store is that there is a possibility that the bidding price may be arbitrarily manipulated by the matchmaking of the matchmaker, and that the buyer has to rewrite the bill and various documents even after receiving the bid. Can be mentioned. In addition, the disadvantage is that the person who wants to participate in the auction place must attend physically, and the auction is limited to one item at a time.

Recently, a new auction method using a computer has been introduced. As an example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Hei 1-211171 discloses an auto auction system. The auction system uses a computer data communication network to connect the central computer to a personal computer using a terminal including a communication modem, a CRT monitor, a main board, etc. It is a way to participate.

In addition to such a car auction system, as disclosed in Korean Utility Model Publication No. 95-4783, auction price competitions are conducted electronically at a certain auction site, and the auction site manages all the matters operated at these places by computerization. And an automatic auction apparatus which handles and displays the auction situation on the display board.

Such a conventional electronic auction apparatus or system can increase the efficiency of the auction by enabling a quick auction, but there is a hassle that the bidder must attend a specific auction place.

Recently, with the dissemination of computers, a new auction method using a computer data communication network has been introduced. One of the conventional auction methods using a computer communication network is an auction via e-mail. This method involves entering the auction by sending the bid amount via e-mail rather than by phone or fax. In this method, when a bidder views a catalog or the like of an auction product and sends an e-mail, the auction proceeds by inputting this information into a database. This method has the advantage that the bidder can easily enter the auction by overcoming the barrier of physical space, but it is difficult for the auctioneer to check the e-mail and to check and manage the bidding information in real time and lack the dynamics of the auction. There are disadvantages.

On the other hand, the auction method using a computer network is becoming new in addition to the e-mail method. As an example, U.S. Patent No. 5,835,896 introduces a method in which a person can automatically transmit auction information without directly conducting an auction. have. That is, the model relates to a method and apparatus for processing auction information through a computer network. When a bidder inputs bid details on his / her internet by connecting a host computer hosting the auction to a computer of participants participating in the auction. It is about how the host computer receives this information and classifies the information according to the winning bid.

U. S. Patent No. 5,890, 138 also relates to commerce by auction over the Internet in a similar manner. The invention includes the steps of a buyer connecting to the Internet to search for a specific product, entering the buyer's information including the buyer's personal information and credit card number and participating in a bid for a specific product, at the time of the auction closing. The product is sold to the buyer who has offered the highest price, and the payment is automatically made through the credit card at the moment of the successful bid and the product is delivered to the buyer.

1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a system for a conventional internet auction described above. Such a conventional system includes a central control unit 10 which stores information input from buyers and sellers and controls the overall operation of an internet auction, and a buyer interface 11, 13, and 15 which provides an internet network for goods buyers. A purchaser modem 12, 14, and 16 for communication between such purchaser interfaces 11, 13, and 15 and the central control unit 10, and a seller interface 17 for providing an internet network for a goods seller. And a merchant modem 18 for communication between such merchant interface 17 and the central control unit 10. Here, the purchaser interfaces 11, 13, and 15 and the seller interface 17 may be computers connected to a telephone network or an Internet-only network.

2 is a flowchart illustrating a method of selling and purchasing goods using a conventional internet auction. The method shown in FIG. 2 is performed by the system shown in FIG.

Referring to FIG. 2, when a seller intending to sell a product in step S1 accesses an internet auction system using the seller interface 17, the central control unit 10 displays preset goods in step S2. . Then, in step S3, the seller enters the seller information, the product information, the selling price, and the conditions, so that the central control unit 10 stores such input information in step S4. Thereafter, at step S5 a number of buyers access the internet auction system via the buyer interfaces 11, 13, and 15, and at step S6 enter purchase prices and conditions, buyer information, and the like. In step S7, the central control unit 10 compares the sales conditions and the purchase conditions input in the steps S3 and S6 to present the most appropriate purchase conditions, for example, the buyer who presents the highest price as a successful bidder. Decide When the successful bidder is determined as described above, the central control unit 10 transmits the price of the goods deposited by the buyer to the seller's account in step S8, and the seller delivers the sold goods to the buyer.

The auction using the conventional computer communication network as described above is a merchandise-centered product purchase method. That is, in the auction, a transaction is generally performed by an item seller advertising a product to be sold on a computer communication network, for example, the Internet, and in response thereto, the buyer sets a price of the desired item to determine a successful bid price. Therefore, in such an auction, the seller predominantly determines the type, state, price of the goods, and the like.

Compared to the conventional electronic commerce method, the seller-driven electronic commerce method is emerging, for example, US Patent No. 5,794,207. The method according to this patent relates to a commerce method in which a product is sold to a seller who can satisfy this condition when a buyer presents a purchase condition. Looking at the process of the method disclosed in this patent, a buyer first enters a conditional purchase offer and then enters a payment identifier via credit card transaction into a computer in connection with the conditional purchase offer. This information is passed to a number of sellers, and sellers enter the computer's approval of the purchase offer, and the product is won by a seller who can satisfy the buyer's offer. In this way, the selected seller is automatically paid for the goods through the card payment.

3 is a block diagram showing a system for a conventional shopper driven internet commerce as described above.

Referring to FIG. 3, a buyer-driven system for internet commerce stores a central controller 20 for storing information input from buyers and sellers and controls the overall operation of internet commerce and a seller interface for providing an internet network for a product seller. (21, 23, and 25) and the seller modem (22, 24, and 26) for communication with the central control unit 20, the interface 27 for goods buyers and the buyer modem connecting it with the central control unit 20 It consists of 28.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of selling and purchasing goods for the Internet commerce driven by the conventional buyer described above. The method shown in FIG. 4 is performed by the system shown in FIG.

Referring to FIG. 4, in step S11, the buyer accesses the Internet site, and in step S12, the buyer searches for goods of interest, and in step S13, the buyer enters buyer information and purchase conditions. In step S14, when the input information is stored in the central control unit 20 and the seller accesses in step S15, in step S16, in step S17, a conditional purchase proposal by the buyer can be retrieved and sold by the seller. You will select the conditional purchase offer. Thereafter, in step S18, the cost for the product is calculated and the internet commerce is terminated when the product is turned over.

The advantage of this conventional buyer-driven Internet commerce method is that the buyer can purchase the goods on the condition that the buyer wants, and the buyer's purchase proposal is delivered to a number of sellers, so that the seller can easily know the products that are in need of purchase and also sell their own. You can sell certain products on condition that you can. Moreover, this approach is advantageous in that both buyers and sellers can be satisfied. However, it is pointed out that it is difficult to finally change the intention to purchase because there is no guarantee that the purchaser purchases the product at the lowest price and the price is automatically paid through the card payment identifier previously input after the product is auctioned.

Another example of a commerce method in which the buyer's rights are respected and the buyer is able to engage in more commerce is U.S. Patent No. 6,035,288. The model disclosed in this patent relates to a computer for negotiating the purchase of goods and services, where a buyer enters consumer data related to a particular goods and services that he / she wants to purchase and a merchant corresponding to the input data is generated, and the sale of the goods or services Is matched to a specific price, as a result of the merchant response. In this method, the auction proceeds on the seller side based on the data entered by the consumer, and the auction proceeds by the cyber merchant in the virtual space.

An example of an electronic commerce in a similar manner is US Pat. No. 6,055,519. The model disclosed in this patent relates to a bargaining in a general store, i.e., a system that implements a method on which the buyer and seller negotiate a purchase on the Internet. This bargaining system allows buyers and sellers to negotiate with each other about the quantity, price, delivery date, etc. of a particular product, allowing the buyer to be more active in purchasing the product.

The advantage of this approach is that buyers and sellers can negotiate with each other so that mutual benefits can be respected. However, the disadvantage is that the time required for negotiation can be long and the process can be complicated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the electronic commerce method according to the various types of prior art exemplified above, and posts predetermined information about products such as electronic products and automobiles on the Internet in advance, and When a buyer wants to buy internet, searches for a desired product, enters necessary information and purchase conditions for a specific product, puts it on the Internet, and a number of sellers search for a product that has a demand for purchase and reverse auction the product. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a method for purchasing and selling an item using reverse auction method in internet e-commerce which can reduce intermediate distribution margin and promote e-commerce by determining successful bidder by bidding on It is done.

Another object of the present invention is also a reverse auction scheme in Internet e-commerce, which allows buyers to easily search for goods and indicate their intention to purchase, and to enable sellers to have the opportunity to sell goods on the Internet without having to operate a separate store. It is to provide a method of purchasing and selling goods and an apparatus for implementing the same.

Another object of the present invention is to facilitate the electronic commerce by providing a buyer and seller a market for selling and purchasing goods to facilitate mutual transactions.

It is yet another object of the present invention to allow multiple sellers to offer competitive prices for goods so that buyers have the opportunity to purchase goods at the lowest price.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a buyer with an opportunity to purchase a product at a price satisfactory at a desired time point by allowing the buyer to close the reverse auction during the reverse auction and to purchase the product at the minimum bid at the time of closing. .

1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a system for a conventional internet auction.

2 is a flowchart illustrating a method of selling and purchasing goods using a conventional internet auction.

3 is a block diagram illustrating a system for a conventional shopper driven internet commerce.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of selling and purchasing an article for a conventional shopper driven internet commerce.

5 is a schematic diagram of an apparatus for executing a method of selling and purchasing goods using a reverse auction method in an Internet electronic commerce according to the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a system for executing a method of selling and purchasing goods using a reverse auction method in Internet electronic commerce according to the present invention; FIG.

7 is a diagram showing the configuration of a central control unit in the system shown in FIG.

8 is a diagram showing the configuration of an application server in the central control unit shown in FIG.

9 is a diagram showing the configuration of a database server in the central control unit shown in FIG.

10 is a flowchart illustrating a method of selling and purchasing goods using reverse auctions of Internet e-commerce according to an embodiment of the present invention.

11 is a flowchart illustrating a method of selling and purchasing goods using reverse auctions of Internet e-commerce according to another embodiment of the present invention.

12 is a flowchart illustrating a process of searching for a product through a search engine in the method according to the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a process of transmitting product award information via email in the method according to the present invention; FIG.

14 is a diagram illustrating a process of transmitting product award information through a mobile phone text message in the method according to the present invention.

15 is a diagram illustrating a process of making a payment with a credit card in a method according to the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols for main parts of drawing>

10, 20, 30: central control

11, 13, 15, 27, 37: Buyer Interface

12, 14, 16, 28, 38: Buyer Modem

17, 21, 23, 25, 31, 33, 35: Seller interface

18, 22, 24, 26, 32, 34, 36: Merchant Modem

40: Internet network

45: internal network

46: manager

47: mail server

51: firewall

52: web server

53: application server

54: Commodity Search Engine

55: database server

61: merchandiser program

62. personalizer program

63: load balancing

64, 65: Application

71: buyer database

72: Reverse Auction Progress Database

73: commodity database

74: Revenue Aggregation Database

75: Merchant Database

76: reverse auction approval database

77: Zip Code Database

78 user click stream program

In order to achieve the above object of the present invention, a method of purchasing and selling goods using the reverse auction method in the Internet e-commerce according to the present invention comprises the steps of a buyer connecting to the reverse auction system through the Internet, the buyer, Selecting a product to be purchased by searching a product list provided by the reverse auction system and including information on a reverse auction start price associated with a plurality of preset products, and putting the selected product in a shopping cart by the buyer Entering a purchase condition, starting a reverse auction process for the goods in the shopping cart by the buyer, connecting the reverse auction system to the seller, and searching for a product in the reverse auction process by the seller; And the seller has passed the reverse auction process. Participating in a reverse auction bidding by entering a sale condition including a sale price for a product being used, the reverse auction system closing the reverse auction process, and the reverse auction system winning a product bid for a product for which the reverse auction process has ended. And transmitting information to the buyer, and determining, by the buyer, whether to purchase a product for which the reverse auction process is completed by referring to the product successful bid information.

According to one aspect of the invention, an internet reverse auction site acts as an intermediary between a number of sellers and buyers and provides a space for commerce activity, i.e. a market. To this end, since the internal manager for reverse internet auction has a product catalog on the Internet, the buyer can quickly and easily search for the product, and the seller has an opportunity to sell the product without having a separate store. That is, the buyer can easily express a purchase intention, and the seller can reduce a separate store maintenance cost and marketing cost for selling a product.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the market competition is promoted by a plurality of sellers participate in an infinite competitive bidding for a product that the buyer has indicated the intention to purchase, and the buyer may purchase the product from the seller who has offered the lowest price among the plurality of sellers. It will be available. In addition, since the reverse auction start price is preset for each product by an internal manager for reverse auction management, a reasonable product price can be set.

According to another feature of the present invention, the reliability of electronic commerce can be established because the Internet reverse auction system verifies the identity of the seller and the buyer as a broker. In addition, the internal manager of the reverse auction site provides information that buyers and sellers need to purchase and sell products, such as counseling about the purchase of goods, information about the demand for purchase of goods, and the starting price of reverse auctions. This can be equipped.

According to another feature of the present invention, since the personal information of the buyer and the seller is not exposed on the reverse auction site, anonymity in both commerce activities is guaranteed. Thus, unfair competition or collusion between commodity suppliers can be prevented.

According to another feature of the present invention, since the method of purchasing a product through reverse auction on the Internet is carried out in real time, the auction has the same dynamics, and the reverse auction for the product is distributed in various places because it is made out of space. Many sellers and buyers can easily trade with each other on the Internet.

According to another feature of the present invention, the purchaser can satisfy the buyer's desired point of time by approving the purchase of the product for the lowest bid price after the reverse auction is closed at the designated time or by early closing the reverse auction and approving the purchase during the reverse auction. The product will be available for purchase at a price. The buyer may access the internet reverse auction site to check the progress of the reverse auction in real time, and after the reverse auction is closed at the designated time, the closing auction and the lowest successful bid price may be confirmed through the reverse auction site or the e-mail according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a method of selling and purchasing goods using the reverse auction method in the Internet e-commerce according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an apparatus for executing a method of selling and purchasing goods using a reverse auction method in an Internet electronic commerce according to the present invention. Referring to FIG. 5, the apparatus according to the present invention may store information input from a buyer and a seller and control the overall operation of the Internet reverse auction, and a seller interface 31 providing an internet network for a plurality of sellers. , 33, and 35), merchant modems 32, 34, and 36 for communication between merchant interfaces 31, 33, and 35 and the central control unit 30, buyer interfaces providing an internet network for goods buyers And a purchaser modem 38 for communication between the purchaser interface 37 and the central control unit 30. Each buyer's and seller's interface is based on Internet access via telephone, cable or leased lines. Although the figure illustrates a modem, of course, other devices used for communication between computers can be used instead of the modem. The buyer interface 37 and the seller interface 31, 33, and 35 are connected via the Internet with the central control unit 30, which controls the overall operation of the reverse auction. The buyer may indicate purchase intention and propose a purchase condition for a specific product through the buyer interface 37, and the seller may search for a product available for sale through the seller interface 31, 33, and 35 to set a desired selling price. Can present

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a system for executing a method of selling and purchasing goods using a reverse auction method in an Internet electronic commerce according to the present invention. Users using the system according to the present invention, that is, buyers and sellers, access the web server for operating the electronic commerce according to the present invention through the Internet network 40 and appropriate software to use the reverse auction service.

Referring to FIG. 6, the reverse auction system according to the present invention includes a purchaser 41 and 42 and a seller 43 and 44, an internet network 40 for accessing the reverse auction system according to the present invention, and an internet reverse auction. The central control unit 30 for proceeding the process, and the internal network 45 for managing the reverse auction process. The internal network 45 consists of an internal manager 46 and a mail server 47 that provides an email service to notify buyers and sellers of the reverse auction process.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a central control unit in the system shown in FIG. 6. Referring to FIG. 7, the central control unit 30 may include a firewall 51 for protecting a server, a web server 52, an application server 53 for driving a program of a reverse auction system, a product search engine 54, and a reverse auction. It consists of a database server 55 in which information is input and stored.

The firewall 51 located between the reverse auction system and the general Internet users protects the database server 54. The general Internet users can use only 80 ports of the system's http protocol through software such as a web browser. Block unauthorized users from accessing the database server. The web server 52 is a server for outputting hypertext information html to users who access the reverse auction site according to the present invention through the Internet. The product search engine 54 is a device that allows users of the reverse auction site to search for a product through input of a search condition or a response to a query.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an application server in the central controller shown in FIG. 7. Referring to FIG. 8, the application server 53 drives a program of the reverse auction system, a merchandiser 61, which is a merchandise management program, a personalizer 62, which is a program for providing a customized service to a buyer, and a database. It is composed of a load balancing unit (Load Balancing: 63) that functions to prevent the overload of the server by properly distributing the connection amount to the server 55, the load balancing unit 63 is composed of two applications (64 and 65) have.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a database server in the central control unit shown in FIG. 7. The database server in the central control unit 30 includes a buyer database 71, a seller database 75, a reverse auction progress database 72, a merchandise database 73, a sales aggregate database 74, a reverse auction approval database 76, postal mail. A number database 77 and a user click stream 78 are provided.

The purchaser database 71 stores identification numbers such as a buyer's name and address, a social security number or a business registration number, and information on credit card information, purchase history, and the like for payment of purchased goods. The seller database 75 stores information such as a seller's name and address, an identification number such as a social security number or a business registration number, a product family of the product handled by the seller, and the like.

The reverse auction progress database 72 stores information related to a buyer's selection of a product and a reverse auction application, a seller's participation in a reverse auction, a reverse auction progress, a successful bidding situation, and a payment and delivery of a product. In the product database 73, information about a product input by an internal manager through the internal network 45 is input, wherein the product information includes a product name, a model name, a manufacturer, a start price of the reverse auction of the product, detailed information about the product, and a product. Images and the like.

The sales aggregate database 74 stores monthly and yearly aggregates of the total sales traded through the reverse auction system according to the present invention. The reverse auction approval database 76 stores information regarding the reverse auction approval of the buyer, the payment of goods, and the transfer of money to the seller. The postal code database 77 stores information for retrieving a postal code of an address where a buyer and a seller enter when registering as a member or when deciding a delivery address of a product. The user click stream 78 is a device for storing a user's click event in a database as a database to provide a personalized service.

10 is a flowchart illustrating a method of selling and purchasing goods using reverse auctions of Internet e-commerce according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to Figure 10, the method according to an embodiment of the present invention consists of a buyer mode (S10 to S15) and a seller mode (S20 to S25). The method according to an embodiment of the present invention is executed by the apparatus shown in FIG.

Looking at each procedure of the method according to an embodiment of the present invention, the buyer first accesses the internet reverse auction system via the buyer interface 37 to select a buyer mode provided to the internet reverse auction system. Accordingly, in step S10, the central control unit 30 recognizes that the purchaser is connected.

Subsequently, the central control unit 30 transmits the data about the product to the connected buyer in step S11. Here, the data about the goods may be set in advance, and the data about the goods output from the central control unit 30 is transmitted to the buyer's computer through the corresponding buyer modem 38 and the buyer interface 37. At this time, the purchaser selects a product type to be purchased, for example, an electronic product, a car, a real estate and a service, from among the product types displayed on his computer monitor.

Next, the purchaser enters a purchase condition of a desired item in step S12, where the purchase condition of the item may include information such as a price, a form, a purchase date, and the like of the item. These purchase conditions are transferred to the central control unit 30 and temporarily stored.

When the input of the purchase conditions for the purchased goods is completed, the purchaser's information is input to the corresponding central control unit 30 in step S13. Here, the buyer's information may include a buyer's name and address, an identification number such as a social security number or a business registration number, and a bank account number or credit card number for payment of the purchased goods.

Subsequently, in step S14, the central control unit 30 checks whether the inputted buyer information is appropriate, and at this point, the buyer may determine whether the buyer has deposited the account operated by the reverse auction system or whether the credit card is available. have. In this step (S14), if it is determined that the information of the buyer is inappropriate, the central control unit 30 may request the buyer to re-enter the information or display an error.

If it is determined in step S14 that the information of the buyer is appropriate, in step S15 the central control unit 30 temporarily stores data temporarily stored in steps S12 and S13, for example, a memory provided therein, for example, a database. Complete the buyer mode by saving on the back. As such, when the buyer mode is completed, the seller mode is performed.

In the seller mode, a plurality of sellers access the internet reverse auction system through the seller interfaces 31, 33, and 35 to select a seller mode provided in the internet reverse auction system. Accordingly, in step S20, the central control unit 30 recognizes that the seller is connected. As a result of the determination in step S21, if it is determined that there is no connection of the seller, step S20 is continued to wait for the connection of the seller.

Next, in step S21, the central control unit 30 allows the seller to select the purchase information and the conditions input in the steps S11 and S12.

In step S21, a plurality of sellers search for the displayed purchase information and conditions to present a sale condition such as a price in step 22.

Accordingly, in step S23, the central controller 30 compares the conditions and the prices presented by the sellers and selects the most appropriate seller. For example, the central control unit 30 may select a seller who presents the lowest price among commodity prices input by the sellers.

When a suitable seller is determined among the plurality of sellers as described above, the central control unit 30 informs the corresponding buyer of detailed information about the seller decision fact, the seller, the price and conditions presented by the seller, and the goods sold at step S24. In this case, the buyer can express his intention to cancel the purchase if he does not want to accept the terms of sale proposed by the seller.

If the purchaser indicates the intention to cancel the purchase, the central control unit 30 displays such information to the seller and returns to the above-described step S22. On the other hand, if the buyer does not indicate the intention to cancel the purchase, the seller is determined as the final winner.

When the successful bidder is determined in the step S24, the central control unit 30 causes the purchaser's price of the goods deposited in the account operated by the reverse auction site to be remitted to the successful bidder, that is, the seller's account, and the seller receives the successful bidder. The sale will be delivered to the address. Here, the goods may be delivered first and then remitted to the seller's account.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a method of selling and purchasing goods using reverse auctions of Internet e-commerce according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 11, a method according to another embodiment of the present invention includes a purchaser mode including steps S21, S22, S23, S24, S29, S31, S32, and S33 and S25, S26, S27, S28, and S32. It is made in a seller mode that includes. The method according to another embodiment of the present invention is also executed by the apparatus shown in FIG.

Referring to FIG. 11, first, the buyer selects the buyer mode by accessing the internet reverse auction system through the buyer interface 37 in step S21. According to an embodiment, it is also possible for the purchaser to enter a member ID and password to log in during the connection process of step S21. In this case, if the buyer is not a member, the personal identification information may be entered and then the membership registration process may be performed (not shown for the membership registration process). The personal information input by the buyer may include a buyer's name and address and an identification number such as a social security number or a business registration number. The personal information entered by the buyer is stored in the buyer database 71 of the reverse auction system.

When the buyer connects to the reverse auction service in step S21, the central control unit 30 transmits data about the product to the connected buyer, for example, in the form of a product list or an electronic catalog. Here, the data about the product is stored in advance in the Internet reverse auction system, in particular the product database 73, and the data about the product output from the central control unit 30 is reverse auction through the corresponding buyer modem 38 and the buyer interface 37 It is sent to the computer of the buyer who connected to the system. Such an electronic catalog may include a product name or a model name, a manufacturer, a photographic image of a product, and information about a reverse auction start price of the product.

Subsequently, in step S22, the buyer searches and selects a product to be purchased through the electronic catalog. That is, the purchaser may select a product to be purchased, for example, a specific electronic product, a car, a real estate service, etc. from among the products displayed in the electronic catalog displayed on the computer monitor. When the purchaser selects a product via the electronic catalog, the central control unit 30 may deliver additional detailed data about the selected product to the buyer.

According to an embodiment, instead of the data about the goods being delivered to the buyer in the form of an electronic catalog, it is also possible for the buyer to select a product to purchase by using a search engine.

12 is a flowchart illustrating a process of searching for a product through a search engine in the method according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 12, when a buyer accesses an internet reverse auction site and selects a product search through a search engine in step S41, a search condition, for example, a 29-inch TV of a xx home appliance, etc. is displayed in step S42. After inputting, the search condition input in this way is transferred to the product database 73 of the central control unit 30, and in step S44, the search result matching the search condition is extracted. Will output the product information according to the search results on the buyer's screen. The purchaser may perform an additional search for the previously searched result in step S46 or check a search result that matches the search condition so far, for example, a list of products satisfying the search condition.

According to an embodiment, the search condition input step in step S42 may be performed stepwise through a predetermined query. For example, the central control unit 30 sequentially presents a series of query terms, for example, a query type such as a product type, a manufacturer, a product type, a product characteristic, and the like, to a buyer. It is also possible to select a product that satisfies a desired condition by the buyer sequentially selecting a desired value from among the plurality of selection values provided by (30). As such, when a buyer inputs a selection value for a series of queries, the buyer is provided with a list of products or a list of products satisfying a condition corresponding to the selection value.

11, if the buyer searches for and selects a product he wants to buy in step S22, the buyer then puts the product selected in step S23 into the shopping cart. According to an exemplary embodiment, the purchaser information may be transmitted to the central controller 30 through the purchaser's login process in step S23, without performing the member login step in step S21. At this time, the login process of the buyer is performed by inputting the ID and password given to the buyer, and the buyer information transmitted to the central control unit 30 is the identification number such as the buyer's name and address and social security number or business registration number. It may include. Of course, if the buyer is not a member, it may be a member registration process. In operation S23, the buyer may input a purchase condition of the product, in which case the purchase condition may include a quantity of the product, a destination of the product, a payment method of the product, and the like. These purchase conditions are transmitted to the central control unit 30 and temporarily stored. At this time, the buyer can enter the deadline of the reverse auction in the purchase condition input phase of the product. The deadline for reverse auction may be arbitrarily designated by the purchaser, the buyer may select one of the selected deadlines presented by the central control unit 30, and if the purchaser has no choice, the central control unit 30 automatically sets the deadline. May be In addition, according to an embodiment, a configuration in which the reverse auction is automatically closed when a predetermined period of time, for example, one day has elapsed from the reverse auction application date, may be selected without designating a deadline of the user.

If the buyer information is input in step S23, the central control unit 30 may check whether the inputted buyer information is appropriate. If the information of the buyer is determined to be inappropriate at this time, the central control unit 30 may re-enter the information. You can ask the buyer for input or display an error.

If it is determined that the buyer information input in the step S23 is appropriate, the central control unit 30 stores the temporarily stored data in the step A22 and step S23 in the reverse auction progress database 72 provided therein.

After executing step S23 through this process, the buyer starts the reverse auction process for the goods in the shopping cart in step S24. The central control unit 30 stores information in the reverse auction progress database 72 indicating that the reverse auction process for the product selected by the buyer has started.

As such, when the reverse auction process is started in step S24, the buyer mode is completed, and then the seller mode is performed.

A plurality of sellers connect to the internet reverse auction system through the seller interfaces 31, 33, and 35 in step S25 to select a seller mode provided by the internet reverse auction system.

Next, in step S26, the seller inputs the ID and password given to the seller through the membership registration process to execute the login procedure, and thus the seller information is transmitted to the central controller 30. In this case, the seller information may include a seller's name, address, social security number or business registration number. If the connected seller is not a member, the user may be required to enter the membership process by inputting predetermined information. In this case, the input information may include information about a product category sold by the seller in addition to the personal information of the seller. The information input by the seller is stored in the seller database 75 in the central control unit 30.

After the log-in process in step S26, the central control unit 30 provides the seller with information on the product in progress in the reverse auction process, and the seller searches for the product in the reverse auction process in step S27. According to an embodiment, information about a product in which the reverse auction process is in progress may be provided to the seller for each category, and among the products in which the reverse auction process is in progress, only information about a product corresponding to the product category information sold by the seller may be provided. It may be provided to the seller.

After the seller performs a search for the product in the reverse auction process in step S27 as described above, the seller participates in the reverse auction bidding by presenting a sale condition such as a price for the product to be sold in step S28. . In this case, according to an embodiment, the seller may allow the seller to participate in the reverse auction bidding only at a price lower than the price listed for the specific product. In addition, the selling condition to be presented by the seller may include other conditions besides the price, for example, a condition regarding delivery. In this way, the seller's sales conditions are stored in the reverse auction progress database 72.

According to an embodiment, in steps S27 and S28, the central control unit 30 may select and display only the selling price of the seller who presented the lowest price at all times during the reverse auction. In addition, a seller who accesses the reverse auction site can see only the terms of sale proposed by another seller, and can configure the system without knowing who is the seller who presented such terms of sale. If such a configuration is adopted, it is possible to obtain an effect of preventing collusion between sellers through anonymity of the seller.

The reverse auction process in the method according to the invention is finished in two ways: First, during the reverse auction process, the buyer accesses the buyer screen to view the progress of the product he applied for the reverse auction process. have. In this case, the successful bidder may be determined as the seller who offered the lowest price at the time of early auction closing. If according to the embodiment, the terms of sale of the various sellers are provided to the buyer, the reverse auction process may be terminated early by selecting the seller who has presented the desired terms of sale as a successful bidder. Another way to close the reverse auction process is to determine the successful bidder as the seller who gave the lowest price when the preset reverse auction deadline was reached.

When the reverse auction process is closed at step S29, the central control unit 30 at step S30 provides the buyer screen with the buyer screen information, that is, the seller decision fact, the sale condition such as the price suggested by the seller, and the like. You will be notified by e-mail or text message. Meanwhile, the product successful bid information may be transmitted to the seller determined as the successful bidder through a seller screen, an e-mail, a mobile phone text message, or the like.

13 is a diagram illustrating a process of transmitting product successful bid information through an e-mail in the method according to the present invention. When the reverse auction process is closed in step S51 and a successful bidder is determined in step S52, in the central control unit 30, the purchaser requests a reverse auction in response to the reverse auction case in step S53. , Collecting information such as a successful bid price of a product and an e-mail address of a buyer, and transmitting a successful bid related message through an e-mail in step S54.

14 is a diagram illustrating a process of transmitting product award information through a mobile phone text message in the method according to the present invention. When the reverse auction process is closed in step S61 and a successful bidder is determined in step S62, the central control unit 30 receives the successful bidder request for the reverse auction in relation to the reverse auction case in step S63. , Collecting information such as a successful bidder of a product, a mobile phone number of a buyer, etc. and requesting a transmission of a successful bid related message to a text transmission company in step S64, and in step S65, a message related to the successful bid information is sent from a text transmission specialized company. Send it to the buyer's mobile phone.

11, if the buyer receives the product bidding information, the buyer approves the purchase in step S31 if the buyer wants to purchase the product at the price of the product presented by the seller whose bid is determined, and if the buyer does not want to purchase the purchase You can indicate your intention to cancel. If a plurality of sales conditions are transmitted to the buyer according to the embodiment, the seller corresponding to the desired sales conditions may be selected as a successful bidder and approved for purchase.

When the purchaser indicates the intention to cancel the purchase in step S31, the central controller 30 may terminate the reverse auction process and provide the seller with information related thereto. On the other hand, when the buyer indicates the purchase approval in step S31, the seller is determined to be the final successful bidder, and then the process proceeds to the payment step of step S32.

In step S32, the buyer pays the price of the goods through cash or credit card, and when the product is deposited into the account of the reverse auction system or the credit card is processed normally, the buyer notifies the seller of the completion of the payment. Have the product delivered to the shipping address entered by the buyer.

15 is a diagram illustrating a process of making a payment with a credit card in the method according to the present invention. When the buyer applies for credit card payment, the credit card payment request message is output to the buyer screen in step S71, and information related to the credit card, that is, a credit card number, social security number or password, etc. in step S72. Enter the information of the and the credit card payment agency to perform the card payment according to the information entered in step (S73), and if there is no error in entering the credit card-related information in step (S74), the authorization number is given in step (S75) And in step S76, the approval information including the approval number is stored in the reverse auction approval database 76 of the reverse auction system.

Returning to FIG. 11 again, if payment and product delivery are performed in step S32, in step S33, when the buyer receives the product and confirms that there is no abnormality in the product, the reverse auction system returns the corresponding product. All proceeds relating to the reverse auction shall be terminated by sending the funds to Seller.

Although the configuration of the present invention has been described above with reference to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. . Accordingly, the scope of the present invention encompasses all embodiments included in the scope of the technical spirit of the invention described herein, and is determined by the appended claims.

According to the present invention, a buyer can easily search for a product through the Internet, and sellers who want to sell a specific product have an opportunity to sell the product without having a separate store, and also easily search for a product in demand. Sellers do not have to advertise products they are willing to sell, making it easier to develop new distribution networks. As such, sellers and buyers can easily trade on a specific product on the Internet, which can reduce product distribution margins, resulting in unnecessary spending on both sides.

In addition, according to the present invention, since a plurality of sellers anonymously auction the reverse auction for a particular product and the identity of the sellers is not exposed, collusion of sellers is prevented and infinite competition among a plurality of sellers can be induced. In other words, the present invention provides a mechanism by which both buyers and sellers can generate profits because sellers offer their own competitive prices and buyers can purchase goods from sellers with the lowest prices. It can reduce the intermediate distribution margin of commodity trading and promote the activation of e-commerce.

In addition, according to the present invention, the reliability of electronic commerce can be established because the Internet reverse auction system verifies the identity of the seller and the buyer as a broker. Furthermore, the internal manager of a reverse auction site provides information that buyers and sellers need to purchase and sell products, such as consulting about product purchases, demand for purchases of goods, and starting prices for reverse auctions. Professionalism can be provided.

Furthermore, according to the present invention, since the method of purchasing a product through reverse auction proceeds in real time, the auction has the same dynamics, and since the reverse auction for the product is performed beyond the space, a plurality of sellers and buyers are distributed in various places. Makes it easy to trade with each other on the Internet.

In addition, according to the present invention, the buyer may approve the purchase of the product at the lowest bid price after the reverse auction is closed, or the reverse auction may be prematurely closed and the purchase approval is performed during the reverse auction to purchase the product at a price satisfactory to the buyer. It becomes possible.

Claims (30)

In the method of purchasing and selling goods by using the reverse auction method in the Internet e-commerce, The buyer accessing the reverse auction system through the Internet, Selecting, by the buyer, a product that is provided by the reverse auction system and searches for a product list including information on a reverse auction start price associated with a plurality of preset products, and selects a product to be purchased; The buyer putting the selected product in a shopping cart and inputting a purchase condition; Starting, by the buyer, a reverse auction process for goods in the shopping cart; A seller accessing the reverse auction system; The seller searching for the product in the reverse auction process; The seller participating in a reverse auction bidding by entering a sale condition including a sale price for a product in which the reverse auction process is in progress; The reverse auction system terminating the reverse auction process; Transmitting, by the reverse auction system, the product auction information on the product of which the reverse auction process is completed, to the buyer; Determining, by the buyer, whether to purchase a product for which the reverse auction process is completed by referring to the product successful bid information; How to include. The method of claim 1, Entering buyer information prior to the buyer starting the reverse auction process; Entering seller information before the seller participates in the reverse auction bidding. How to include more. The method of claim 2, wherein the inputting of the buyer information is performed by inputting the purchaser registration ID and password of the buyer, and the inputting of the seller information is performed by inputting the membership registration ID and password of the seller. How to lose. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the closing of the reverse auction process is performed when a preset reverse auction deadline is reached or at the request of the buyer regardless of the set reverse auction deadline. How to lose. The method of claim 4, wherein the product award information includes information regarding a minimum selling price at the end of the reverse auction process. The information of claim 4, wherein the information on the lowest selling price among other sellers' selling conditions for the goods is provided to the seller by the seller in the step of searching for the goods in the reverse auction process. And in the step in which the seller participates in the reverse auction bidding, the seller inputs a sale condition including a sale price lower than the lowest selling price among the selling conditions of the other seller. 7. The method of claim 6, wherein information regarding the identification of another seller that has entered the product in the step of retrieving the product during the reverse auction process is not provided to the seller by the reverse auction system. 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the purchase conditions entered by the buyer include one or more of a quantity, a shipping destination, and a payment means of the product to be purchased. The method of claim 4, wherein the product award information is transmitted to the buyer through at least one of a screen of the buyer's internet access device, an email, and a text message of a mobile phone. In the method of purchasing and selling goods by using the reverse auction method in the Internet e-commerce, The buyer accessing the reverse auction system through the Internet, Selecting, by the buyer, a product to be purchased through a product search engine provided by the reverse auction system; The buyer putting the selected product in a shopping cart and inputting a purchase condition; Starting, by the buyer, a reverse auction process for goods in the shopping cart; A seller accessing the reverse auction system; The seller searching for the product in the reverse auction process; The seller participating in a reverse auction bidding by entering a sale condition including a sale price for a product in which the reverse auction process is in progress; The reverse auction system terminating the reverse auction process; Transmitting, by the reverse auction system, the product auction information on the product of which the reverse auction process is completed, to the buyer; Determining, by the buyer, whether to purchase a product for which the reverse auction process is completed by referring to the product successful bid information; How to include. The method of claim 10, Entering buyer information prior to the buyer starting the reverse auction process; Entering seller information before the seller participates in the reverse auction bidding. How to include more. The method of claim 11, wherein the inputting of the buyer information is performed by inputting the purchaser's membership ID and password, and the inputting of the seller information is performed by inputting the seller's membership ID and password. How to lose. The method of claim 10, wherein the closing of the reverse auction process is performed when a preset reverse auction deadline is reached or at the request of the buyer regardless of the set reverse auction deadline. How to lose. The method of claim 13, wherein the selecting of the product to be purchased through the product search engine provided by the reverse auction system comprises: inputting a search condition by the buyer, and the reverse auction system according to the input search condition. Providing corresponding product information to the buyer. 15. The method of claim 13, wherein selecting a product to be purchased through a product search engine provided by the reverse auction system includes: presenting a series of query words to the buyer by the reverse auction system, wherein the buyer queries the query word. And selecting a desired value from among a plurality of selection values provided by the reverse auction system, and providing, by the reverse auction system, product information corresponding to the selected selection value to the buyer. 16. The method of claim 14 or 15, wherein the product award information includes information regarding a minimum selling price at the end of the reverse auction process. 16. The method of claim 14 or 15, wherein the information on the lowest selling price among the other seller's selling conditions for the product in the step in which the seller searches for the product in the reverse auction process is performed by the reverse auction system. Provided to a seller, wherein the seller participates in the reverse auction bidding by entering a sale condition including a sale price lower than a minimum selling price among the selling conditions of the other seller. 16. The method of claim 14 or 15, wherein the information regarding the identification of the other sellers who entered the product in the step of retrieving the goods in the reverse auction process is not provided to the seller by the reverse auction system. How not. The method according to claim 14 or 15, wherein the purchase condition entered by the buyer comprises one or more of a quantity, a delivery address, and a payment means of the product to be purchased. The method of claim 14 or 15, wherein the product successful bid information is transmitted to the buyer through at least one of a screen of the buyer's Internet access device, an e-mail, and a text message of a mobile phone. In the device for selling and purchasing goods by using the reverse auction method in the Internet e-commerce, A web server to provide buyers and sellers with information about the goods and the progress of the reverse auction process, An application server for driving a program to advance the reverse auction process, and Database server for storing the information on the product and the information on the reverse auction progression Central control unit, including; Internal network for inputting information about the product and managing the reverse auction process Device comprising a. 22. The apparatus of claim 21, further comprising a product search engine for searching for a product through input of a search condition of the seller or a response to a series of query words. 23. The system of claim 21 or 22, wherein the application server drives a program of a reverse auction system and drives a program for managing a product, a personalizer for providing a customized service to the buyer, and a connection amount to the database server. Apparatus comprising a load balancer for distributing the server to prevent overload of the server. 23. The method of claim 21 or 22, wherein the database server is a buyer database for storing buyer information including identification information of the buyer, a seller database for storing seller information including identification information of the seller, the reverse auction application of the buyer A reverse auction progress database for storing information on reverse auction progression, including information about a reverse auction participation of a seller, and a reverse auction bidding, and a product database for storing identification information of a product and information about a start price of the reverse auction of the product; Containing device. 25. The method of claim 24, wherein when the purchaser requests reverse auction by inputting a purchase condition with respect to the selected product by referring to the information provided by the product database, the information about the selected product and the purchase condition is stored in the reverse auction progress database. Device. The information about the reverse auction bidding method according to claim 25, wherein when the seller bids the reverse auction by inputting a sales condition with respect to the product undergoing the reverse auction with reference to the information regarding the reverse auction progress provided by the reverse auction progress database, Devices that are stored in the reverse auction progress database. 27. The method of claim 26, wherein the central control unit reverse auctions to the buyer when the reverse auction deadline set in advance by the buyer is reached or when the reverse auction proceeding is closed at the request of the buyer regardless of the set reverse auction deadline. Device for providing successful bid information. 28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the reverse auction successful bid information includes a lowest selling price input by a seller when the reverse auction proceedings are closed and information on the seller who presented the lowest selling price. 27. The method of claim 26, wherein when the seller searches for the product in reverse auction, the central control unit provides the seller with information about the lowest selling price among other sellers' selling conditions for the product, wherein the seller provides the information. And enter a sale condition that includes a sale price lower than the lowest sale price of another seller to participate in the reverse auction bidding. 27. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the central control unit does not provide the seller with information regarding the identification of another seller who has entered the product when the seller searches for the product in reverse auction.