WO2004015607A1

WO2004015607A1 - Financial settlement method and system, and computer-readable storage medium for program for execution of the method

Info

Publication number: WO2004015607A1
Application number: PCT/KR2003/001619
Authority: WO
Inventors: Chang-Ju Lee
Original assignee: Mcpay Corp.
Priority date: 2002-08-13
Filing date: 2003-08-12
Publication date: 2004-02-19
Also published as: AU2003252551A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a financial settlement method and system, and a computer-readable storage medium for storing a program for execution of the method. It is a wireless credit card payment method, device, and computer-readable storage medium for storing a program for execution of the method. Especially, the present invention relates to a wireless credit card payment method using a mobile wireless terminal device and a computer-readable storage medium for storing the program for execution of the method. A sales clerk who is a member uses his own mobile wireless terminal and telephone by a set ARS, and confirms the payment. By doing this, it is possible to directly and quickly connect to addresses between the above mobile wireless terminal and networks storing products/contents information. The object of the present invention is to make it possible for a customer to pay his credit card bill by using his own registered mobile wireless terminal.

Description

FINANCIAL SETTLEMENT METHOD AND SYSTEM, AND COMPUTER- READABLE STORAGE MEDIUM FOR STORING PROGRAM FOR EXECUTION OF THE METHOD

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an electronic commerce method and apparatus, and a computer-readable storage medium for storing a program for execution of the method, and more particularly to a wireless credit card settlement method and apparatus, and a computer-readable storage medium for storing a program for execution of the method. In particular, the present invention relates to a wireless credit card settlement method and apparatus using a mobile wireless terminal, and a computer-readable storage medium for storing a program for execution of the method.

Background Art

Conventional credit card settlement services using mobile phones may be roughly classified into two types.

The first service is that a customer makes a phone call to a payment gateway (referred to hereinafter as "PG") and then advances settlement according to an announcement of an automatic response system (referred to hereinafter as "ARS") of the PG.

The second service is provided by a mobile communication company and is that, if a customer gains access to a wireless portal site, such as "NATE", using his/her mobile wireless terminal and then orders a desired product therefrom to purchase it, the mobile communication company processes credit information (a card number, expiry date, etc.) recorded for settlement in place of the customer and a service provider (referred to hereinafter as "SP") . In this case, an identity authentication solution is used as a security solution.

As mentioned above, in the conventional credit card settlement services using the mobile phones, objects to be served are limited to customers .

Figs . la to lc illustrate a product purchasing process using a mobile wireless terminal .

As in screen pictures a, b, c and d, a customer has to access a wireless site by running a wireless application protocol (referred to hereinafter as "WAP" ) program in his/her mobile wireless terminal, and to search Web pages for a desired product by steps using menus provided from the site. That is, as shown in Fig. 1, the customer can view information regarding a desired specific camera to be purchased only by sequentially passing through Web pages including menus "TOTAL SHOPPING-»SMALL-SIZE HOME APPLIANCE A/V-CAMERA" . Screen pictures e, f, g, h, i and j show steps where the customer selects a specific product and then settles his/her account for a purchasing price by a credit card. If the customer selects a menu CAMERA at step f and a menu CREDIT CARD PAYMENT at step h, respectively, and then inputs his/her credit information (a card number, expiry date, resident registration number, password, etc.) at step i, the mobile wireless terminal sends the product purchase information and credit information to a computer of the wireless site "Happy2Buy" . Then, the wireless site computer transfers the information from the mobile wireless terminal to a computer of an associated PG company, which then requests a computer of an associated credit card company to approve the credit card settlement by the customer. If the credit card company computer approves the settlement, then the approved result is displayed on the screen of the customer's mobile wireless terminal (step j). Meanwhile, for protection of the customer's credit information, data is sent and received after being subjected to an encryption process. The encryption process among the customer's mobile wireless terminal, the wireless site computer and the PG company computer are well known in the art and a detailed description thereof will thus be omitted.

As aforementioned, in the conventional credit card settlement services using the mobile phones, objects to be served are limited to customers. Further, as shown in Fig. 1, the customer using the mobile wireless terminal must go through complex procedures from accessing the wireless site until searching Web pages for desired information by steps. As a result, in the view of the customer using the mobile wireless terminal, the entire product purchasing process is troublesome and requires a large amount of time .

On the other hand, salesmen, debt collectors or employees of companies adopting a deferred payment system mostly visit customers personally to conduct home-visit business. If a customer wants to settle his/her account by a credit card during the home-visit business, but there is no card settlement device, the settlement or debt collection will be deferred till a later date or the customer will have to move to a place where a card settlement device exists, resulting in considerable inconvenience of use. In this regard, there will be great convenience if a salesman or debt collector can perform the card settlement with the customer using his/her mobile communication terminal .

In this case, however, the customer may feel uneasy as to the fact that he/she settles his/her account by his/her credit card using a mobile communication terminal of another person (for example, a salesman) , and thus have a doubt and unreliability about the service, resulting in an obstacle to service activation. Disclosure of the Invention

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a wireless credit card settlement method and apparatus wherein a member seller makes a phone call to a preset ARS and confirms settlement, using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal, so that a connection can be directly and rapidly made between the mobile wireless terminal and a uniform resource locator that stores information about products/contents (registered in an Internet server for sales by the member) , and the seller can perform a settlement based on a customer' s credit card using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal. It is another object of the present invention to provide a wireless credit card settlement method and apparatus wherein an Internet server acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways and a mobile wireless terminal so that a member seller can select one previously used by him/her from among the payment gateways .

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a wireless credit card settlement method and apparatus wherein a member seller downloads a security module of a payment gateway previously used by him/her to a mobile wireless terminal to encrypt product/contents purchase information and personal credit information and perform a wireless credit card settlement process based on the encrypted information.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a wireless credit card settlement method and apparatus wherein a customer makes a phone call to a preset ARS and confirms use of a service, using his/her mobile communication terminal, so that a connection can be directly and rapidly made between the customer's mobile communication terminal and a uniform resource locator that stores information about products/contents (registered in an Internet server for sales by a member seller) , and the customer can search the product/contents information of the member seller and perform a settlement based on his/her credit card, using his/her mobile communication terminal, not the seller's mobile communication terminal.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a wireless credit card settlement method and apparatus wherein an Internet server acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways and/or value added networks and a mobile communication terminal so that a member seller can select a desired one from among the payment gateways and/or value added networks .

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a wireless credit card settlement method and apparatus wherein a security module necessary for a wireless credit card settlement process, for example, a security module of a payment gateway selected by a member seller, is downloaded to a mobile communication terminal of a customer so that product/contents purchase information and personal credit information can be conveniently encrypted to be used in the wireless credit card settlement process.

In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, if a seller registered as a member makes a phone call to a preset ARS and confirms a wireless card settlement, using his/her mobile wireless terminal, the ARS informs an Internet server, which provides a credit card settlement service according to the present invention, of a wireless telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal . The Internet server wirelessly transmits to the mobile wireless terminal a uniform resource locator where information regarding products/contents registered by the seller can be directly accessed. Therefore, a connection can be directly and rapidly made between the mobile wireless terminal and the uniform resource locator which stores the product/contents information. The Internet server receives product/contents purchase information and personal credit information based on a customer's key input from the mobile wireless terminal and sends the received information to an associated payment gateway computer. Upon receiving settlement approval information from the payment gateway computer, the Internet server transmits the received information to the mobile wireless terminal.

Therefore, the member seller can make a phone call to the preset ARS and confirm settlement, using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal, so that the connection can be directly and rapidly made between the mobile wireless terminal and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member) , and the seller can perform a settlement based on the customer's credit card using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal.

Preferably, the Internet server stores PG identification information selected by the member and sends credit card settlement request information to a PG computer corresponding to the identification information.

As a result, the Internet server acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways and the mobile wireless terminal so that the member seller can select one previously used by him/her from among the payment gateways, resulting in convenience of use .

Preferably, the Internet server wirelessly transmits a security module of the PG computer selected by the member to the mobile wireless terminal if the connection is made between the mobile wireless terminal and the uniform resource locator.

As a result, the member seller can download a security module of a payment gateway previously used by him/her to the mobile wireless terminal to encrypt the product/contents purchase information and personal credit information and perform a wireless credit card settlement process based on the encrypted information.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a credit card settlement apparatus comprising: a database for storing respective wireless telephone numbers of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed; an automatic response system (ARS) for, if it receives an incoming call from a mobile wireless terminal, inquiring of a home location register (HLR) as to whether a wireless telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal is one of a specific one of the sellers registered as the members and, if the wireless telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal is one of the specific seller, sending card settlement request information containing it; and a controller for receiving the card settlement request information containing the wireless telephone number of the specific seller from the automatic response system, searching the database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to the wireless telephone number of the specific seller, wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to the mobile wireless terminal corresponding to the wireless telephone number of the specific seller, transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from the mobile wireless terminal wirelessly to the mobile wireless terminal if a connection is made between the mobile wireless terminal and the transmitted uniform resource locator, sending credit card settlement request information containing product/contents purchase information and credit information of a customer to an associated payment gateway (PG) computer upon receiving the credit card settlement request information from the mobile wireless terminal, and transmitting settlement approval information wirelessly to the mobile wireless terminal upon receiving the settlement approval information from the payment gateway computer.

Thus, the member seller can make a phone call to the preset ARS and confirm settlement, using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal, so that the connection can be directly and rapidly made between the mobile wireless terminal and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered by the member) , and the seller can perform a settlement based on the customer's credit card using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal .

Preferably, the database further stores identification information of a payment gateway selected by the specific seller, and the controller sends the credit card settlement request information to a computer of the payment gateway corresponding to the identification information.

As a result, the credit card settlement apparatus of the present invention acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways and the mobile wireless terminal so that the member seller can select one previously used by him/her from among the payment gateways, resulting in convenience of use.

Preferably, the controller wirelessly transmits a security module of the payment gateway computer to the mobile wireless terminal if the connection is made between the mobile wireless terminal and the transmitted uniform resource locator .

Therefore, the member seller can download a security module of a payment gateway previously used by him/her to the mobile wireless terminal to encrypt the product/contents purchase information and personal credit information and perform a wireless credit card settlement process based on the encrypted information. In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, if a seller registered as a member makes a phone call to a preset ARS and confirms a wireless card settlement, using his/her mobile wireless terminal, the ARS informs an Internet server, which provides a credit card settlement service according to the present invention, of a wireless telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal . A security/settlement program, downloaded to the mobile wireless terminal when the seller is registered as the member, is run to make a direct connection between the mobile wireless terminal and a uniform resource locator which stores information regarding products/contents registered by the seller. The Internet server receives product/contents purchase information and personal credit information based on a customer' s key input from the mobile wireless terminal and sends the received information to an associated ^• payment gateway computer. Upon receiving settlement approval information from the PG computer, the Internet server transmits the received information to the mobile wireless terminal. Therefore, the member seller can make a phone call to the preset ARS and confirm settlement, using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal, so that the connection can be directly and rapidly made between the mobile wireless terminal and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered by the member) , and the seller can perform a settlement based on the customer's credit card using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal .

In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a mobile communication terminal-based credit card settlement method executable on an Internet server that enables wireless data communication between mobile communication terminals, the method comprising the steps of : a) storing in a database respective identification information of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed; b) receiving service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of a customer and the identification information of a specific one of the members from a preset automatic response system; c) searching the database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to the identification information of the specific member; d) wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to the customer's mobile communication terminal corresponding to the customer' s wireless telephone number; e) transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from the customer's mobile communication terminal wirelessly to the customer's mobile communication terminal if a connection is made between the customer's mobile communication terminal and the transmitted uniform resource locator; f) , upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing the customer's product/contents purchase information and credit information from the customer's mobile communication terminal, sending the received credit card settlement request information to an associated card company computer; and g) , upon receiving settlement approval information from the card company computer, transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to the customer' s mobile communication terminal .

Therefore, the customer can make a phone call to the preset ARS and confirm the input of the identification information of the member seller and the use of the service, using his/her mobile communication terminal. As a result, the connection can be directly and rapidly made between the customer' s mobile communication terminal and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member seller) , and the customer can search the product/contents information of the member seller and perform a settlement based on his/her credit card, using his/her mobile communication terminal, not the seller's mobile communication terminal. Preferably, the above step a) includes the step of further storing payment gateway and/or value added network selection information in the database, and the above step f) includes the step of sending the credit card settlement request information through a payment gateway computer and/or value added network corresponding to the selection information.

Therefore, the Internet server acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways and/or value added networks and the customer's mobile communication terminal to, in cooperation with a plurality of PG company computers (and/or value added networks) , not a single PG company computer

(and/or value added network) , enable the member seller to select a desired one from among the payment gateways and/or value added networks .

Preferably, the credit card settlement method further comprises the step of wirelessly transmitting a desired security module, for example, a security module of the selected payment gateway computer, to the customer's mobile communication terminal if the connection is made between the customer's mobile communication terminal and the transmitted uniform resource locator at the step e) .

Therefore, a security module necessary for a wireless credit card settlement process is downloaded to the customer' s mobile communication terminal so that the product/contents purchase information and personal credit information can be conveniently encrypted to be used in the wireless credit card settlement process .

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a credit card settlement apparatus comprising: a database for storing respective identification information of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed; an automatic response system for, if it receives an incoming call from a customer's mobile communication terminal, inquiring of a home location register as to whether identification information received from the customer' s mobile communication terminal is one of a specific one of the sellers registered as the members and, if the identification information from the customer's mobile communication terminal is one of the specific seller, sending service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of the customer and the identification information of the specific member seller; and a controller for receiving the service use request information containing the wireless telephone number of the customer and the identification information of the specific member seller, searching the database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to the identification information of the specific member seller, wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to the customer' s mobile communication terminal corresponding to the customer's wireless telephone number, transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from the customer's mobile communication terminal wirelessly to the customer's mobile communication terminal if a connection is made between the customer' s mobile communication terminal and the transmitted uniform resource locator, sending credit card settlement request information containing the customer's product/contents purchase information and credit information to an associated credit card company computer upon receiving the credit card settlement request information from the customer's mobile communication terminal, and transmitting settlement approval information wirelessly to the customer's mobile communication terminal upon receiving the settlement approval information from the card company computer.

Therefore, the customer can make a phone call to the preset ARS and confirm the input of the member seller's identification information and the use of the service, using his/her mobile communication terminal. As a result, the connection can be directly and rapidly made between the customer' s mobile communication terminal and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member seller) , and the customer can search the product/contents information of the member seller and perform a settlement based on his/her credit card, using his/her mobile communication terminal, not the seller's mobile communication terminal .

Preferably, the database further stores payment gateway and/or value added network selection information, and the controller sends the credit card settlement request information through a payment gateway computer and/or value added network corresponding to the selection information.

Thus, the Internet server acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways and/or value added networks and the customer's mobile communication terminal to, in cooperation with a plurality of PG company computers (and/or value added networks) , not a single PG company computer

(and/or value added network) , enable the member seller to select a desired one from among the payment gateways and/or value added networks . Preferably, the controller wirelessly transmits a security module necessary for a wireless credit card settlement process, for example, a security module of the selected payment gateway computer, to the customer's mobile communication terminal if the connection is made between the customer's mobile communication terminal and the transmitted uniform resource locator.

As a result, the security module necessary for the wireless credit card settlement process, for example, the security module, of the selected payment gateway computer, is downloaded to the customer's mobile communication terminal so that the product/contents purchase information and personal credit information can be conveniently encrypted to be used in the wireless credit card settlement process .

In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a mobile communication terminal-based credit card settlement method executable on an Internet server that enables wireless data communication between mobile communication terminals, the method comprising the steps of : a) storing in a database respective identification information of sellers registered as members and information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members; b) receiving service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of a customer and the identification information of a specific one of the members from a preset automatic response system; c) wirelessly transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from the customer's mobile communication terminal corresponding to the customer's wireless telephone number to the customer's mobile communication terminal if a connection is made between the customer's mobile communication terminal and a uniform resource locator where the information about products/contents registered by the specific member can be directly accessed, according to a wireless card settlement/security program installed in the customer' s mobile communication terminal; d) , upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing the customer' s product/contents purchase information and credit information from the customer's mobile communication terminal, sending the received credit card settlement request information to an associated card company computer; and e) , upon receiving settlement approval information from the card company computer, transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to the customer's mobile communication terminal .

Hence, the customer can make a phone call to the preset ARS and confirm the input of the member seller's identification information and the use of the service, using his/her mobile communication terminal. Therefore, the connection can be directly and rapidly made between the customer's mobile communication terminal and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member seller) , and the customer can search the product/contents information of the member seller and perform a settlement based on his/her credit card, using his/her mobile communication terminal," not the seller's mobile communication terminal .

Brief Description of the Drawings

The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figs . la to lc are views illustrating a product purchasing process using a mobile wireless terminal;

Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing a system configuration in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a wireless credit card settlement method in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a flow chart illustrating an alternative embodiment of the wireless credit card settlement method in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 5 is a block diagram showing a system configuration in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 6 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a wireless credit card settlement method in accordance with the second embodiment of the present invention; and

Fig. 7 is a flow chart illustrating an alternative embodiment of the wireless credit card settlement method in accordance with the second embodiment of the present invention.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

With reference to Fig. 2, there is shown in block form a system configuration in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention.

In Fig. 2, the reference numeral 210 denotes a wireless credit card settlement apparatus using a mobile wireless terminal according to the present invention.

The wireless credit card settlement apparatus 210 is adapted to perform wireless data communication with a mobile wireless terminal 201 via a WAP gateway 207. The wireless credit card settlement apparatus 210 comprises a database (not shown) for storing respective wireless telephone numbers of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed, an ARS 213 for, if it receives an incoming call from the mobile wireless terminal 201, inquiring of a home location register (referred to hereinafter as "HLR") 209 as to whether a wireless telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal 201 is one of a specific one of the sellers registered as the members and, if the wireless telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal 201 is one of the specific seller, sending card settlement request information containing it, and a controller (not shown) for receiving the card settlement request information containing the wireless telephone number of the specific seller from the ARS 213, searching the database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to the wireless telephone number of the specific seller and wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to the mobile wireless terminal 201 corresponding to the wireless telephone number of the specific seller via a short message service (referred to hereinafter as "SMS") server 211. The controller is also adapted to, if a connection is made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and the transmitted uniform resource locator, transmit Web page information corresponding to a request from the mobile wireless terminal 201 wirelessly to the terminal 201 and, upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing product/contents purchase information and credit information of a customer from the mobile wireless terminal 201, send the received credit card settlement request information to an associated PG computer 223. The controller is further adapted to, upon receiving settlement approval information from the PG computer 223, transmit the received settlement approval information wirelessly to the mobile wireless terminal 201.

The mobile wireless terminal 201 is a portable terminal capable of performing wireless communication with a mobile wireless network, such as a mobile phone, personal digital assistant (PDA) or Web pad. The mobile wireless terminal 201 is equipped with a WAP program so that it is connectable to an SP 215 on the Internet 217 via the WAP gateway 207. The mobile wireless terminal 201 is also equipped with a program (settlement/security) for wireless credit card settlement, which may be downloaded from the SP 215.

A base station 203 and mobile switching center 205 typically constitute the mobile wireless network along with the HLR 209 and SMS server 211. The WAP gateway 207 converts a TCP/IP standard protocol of the Internet 217 into a WAP, which is a communication protocol of the mobile wireless network, to enable data communication between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and the SP 215. A WAP server (not shown) functions to interconnect the SP 215 which provides various information and the mobile wireless terminal 201 which is capable of receiving the information provided from the SP 215, and to perform conversion between different types of data and conversion between different types of protocols . A member personal computer (PC) 219 is a typical PC connectable to the Internet 217. A seller gains access to a Web site provided from the SP 215 using the member PC 219 to perform a member registration process .

The PG#1 computer 223 through PG#n computer 225 each are a typical payment gateway computer that acts to protect credit information of a customer on electronic commerce, request a credit card settlement of a credit card company computer 221 and send the settlement result to the SP 215.

The wireless credit card settlement apparatus 210 of the present invention comprises the ARS 213 and the SP 215.

In the embodiment of Fig. 2, the ARS 213 is provided on the service manager side. The ARS 213 is a dedicated system for provision of a wireless credit card settlement service of the present invention. In this case, the transfer of data between the ARS 213 and the SP 215 is internally carried out. Alternatively, the ARS 213 may be provided on any other side than the service manager side. In this case, the transfer of data between the ARS 213 and the SP 215 is carried out via the WAP gateway 207. In any case, the present invention is characterized in that, upon receiving an incoming call from the mobile wireless terminal 201, the ARS 213 inquires of the HLR 209 as to whether a wireless telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal 201 is one of a specific one of the sellers registered as the members and, if the wireless telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal 201 is one of the specific seller, sends card settlement request information containing it to the SP 215 of the present invention.

The SP (Service Provider) 215 is typically connected to the Internet 217 and adapted to perform a Web server function of providing a Web page to a terminal (for example, the mobile wireless terminal 201 or member PC 219) connected thereto via the Internet 217, and a database server function of storing and providing member/Web page/contents/sales product information.

The present invention is also characterized in that the SP 215 includes a database (not shown) for storing respective wireless telephone numbers of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed.

The present invention is also characterized in that the SP 215 further includes a program controller (not shown) for, upon receiving wireless credit card settlement request information (containing a registered wireless telephone number of a member seller) from the ARS 213, sending to the mobile wireless terminal 201 of the member seller a uniform resource locator where the mobile wireless terminal 201 can gain direct access to information about products/contents registered for sales by the member seller.

Therefore, the member seller can make a phone call to the preset ARS 213 and confirm settlement, using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal 201, thereby enabling a connection to be directly and rapidly made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member) .

The present invention is further characterized in that, upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing product/contents purchase information and credit information of a customer from the mobile wireless terminal 201, the program controller of the SP 215 sends the received credit card settlement request information to an associated PG computer 223, and, upon receiving settlement approval information from the PG computer 223, it transmits the received settlement approval information wirelessly to the mobile wireless terminal 201.

In the above-described characteristics of the present invention, the entire operation itself corresponds to a wireless credit card settlement process typically carried out among the mobile wireless terminal 201, the SP 215 and the associated PG company computer 223. However, it will be understood that the above process is the overall gist of the invention. That is, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the main concept of the present invention is that the member seller can make a phone call to the preset ARS 213 and confirm settlement, using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal 201, so that a connection can be directly and rapidly made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member) , and the customer can rapidly and readily select a desired product and perform a settlement based on his/her credit card, using the member seller's mobile wireless terminal 201.

It will also be understood that the present invention is related to business based on a seller-oriented wireless card settlement, although it can be implemented on a computer using a traditional technique.

Of course, the customer may feel somewhat uneasy as to the fact that he/she settles his/her account by his/her credit card using the mobile wireless terminal 201 of another person. However, this problem can be overcome by providing public relations information of the ARS service to the customer and letting the customer understand that the mobile wireless terminal 201 of another person has the same concept as that of a wired card reader. Further, the settlement/security program and PG familiar with the customer (namely, currently used in the wireless credit card settlement process) are provided so that the customer can use the service of the present invention without anxiety. The manager can implement the SP 215 in an existing wireless site. Alternatively, the manager may implement and manage the SP 215 independent of the existing wireless site. In the case of implementing the SP 215 in the existing wireless site, the manager can package the programs run according to the present invention and provide the present service through several SPs.

The seller can gain access to the SP 215 of the present invention and register himself/herself as a member therein, using the member PC 219, in the same manner as a general Web site member registration process. For example, the seller accesses the SP 215, selects a member registration menu and inputs his/her wireless telephone number, name, resident registration number, etc. In the case of desiring to become a member in the name of a company, the seller inputs a corporation name, a corporation registration number, etc. The seller may enter contents about a currently available PG company and select whether to use an electronic purse program. Besides, the seller may select a^' variety of additional services. After credit card settlement, the seller may receive approved records in the form of an SMS message.

The seller registered as the member can provide various information regarding a product to be sold by him/her, for example, a name, price, product number, image and so forth, to the service manager. The manager stores in the database of the SP 215 the member information (containing the wireless telephone number of the member seller) and the information regarding products/contents to be sold by the member seller, as stated above, and a uniform resource locator where the product/contents information can be directly accessed.

Alternatively, the member seller may select an option to personally input a product name and product price for every wireless credit card settlement, not store information regarding products/contents to be sold in the SP 215.

The present invention is also characterized in that the database of the SP 215 further stores identification information of a payment gateway selected by the member seller, and the program controller of the SP 215 sends credit card settlement request information to a computer of the payment gateway corresponding to the identification information.

That is, the credit card settlement apparatus of the present invention acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways and the mobile wireless terminal to, in cooperation with a plurality of PG company computers, not a single PG company computer, enable the member seller to select one previously used by him/her from among the payment gateways . The present invention is also characterized in that the program controller of the SP 215 wirelessly transmits a security module of an associated payment gateway computer to the mobile wireless terminal 201 if a connection is made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and a uniform resource locator.

That is, the member seller downloads a security module of a payment gateway previously used by him/her to the registered mobile wireless terminal 201 to encrypt product/contents purchase information and personal credit information and perform the wireless credit card settlement process based on the encrypted information.

Fig. 3 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a wireless credit card settlement method in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention. The wireless credit card settlement method will hereinafter be described with reference to Fig. 3.

The wireless credit card settlement method of Fig. 3 comprises the steps of storing in the database respective wireless telephone numbers of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed; receiving card settlement request information containing the wireless telephone number of a specific one of the members from the preset ARS 213; searching the database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to the wireless telephone number of the specific member; wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to the mobile wireless terminal 201 corresponding to the wireless telephone number of the specific member via the SMS server 211; transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from the mobile wireless terminal 201 wirelessly to the terminal 201 if a connection is made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and the transmitted uniform resource locator; upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing product/contents purchase information and credit information of a customer from the mobile wireless terminal 201, sending the received credit card settlement request information to an associated PG computer 223; and upon receiving settlement approval information from the PG computer 223, transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to the mobile wireless terminal 201. These steps of the wireless credit card settlement method are performed by the program controller of the SP 215. The wireless credit card settlement method using the mobile wireless terminal according to the first embodiment of the present invention is mainly executed by the SP 215 and will hereinafter be described in detail with reference to Figs . 2 and 3.

First, a specific member seller makes a phone call to the ARS 213 by dialing a preset number (for example, 1577- 8272) using his/her (registered) mobile wireless terminal 201 (301) . Then, the ARS 213 inquires of the HLR 209 as to whether a calling telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal 201 is a wireless telephone number registered for the service of the present invention (303) . If the calling telephone number is a registered wireless telephone number, the ARS 213 sends an announcement for confirmation of a wireless credit card settlement to the member seller (305) . Upon receiving a settlement confirmation signal (for example, a "CONFIRM" button signal) from the mobile wireless terminal 201 (307) , the ARS 213 sends card settlement request information containing the wireless telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal (registered by the member seller) to the SP 215 (309) .

The SP 215 is adapted to store in the database information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed (not shown) . Upon receiving the card settlement request information from the ARS 213, the SP 215 searches the database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to the wireless telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal 201 (311) and wirelessly transmits the searched uniform resource locator to the mobile wireless terminal 201 via the SMS server 211 (313) . In the present embodiment, a WAP-push function is used to transmit the uniform resource locator. If the mobile wireless terminal 201 receives the uniform resource locator from the SP 215, then it automatically attempts a connection to the received uniform resource locator by running the WAP program therein (315) . This connection attempt is made via the WAP gateway 207. If the connection is made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and the uniform resource locator, then the SP 215 downloads a security module to the mobile wireless terminal 201 to encrypt data being sent and received in the wireless credit card settlement process (317) . This security module may be pre-downloaded when the specific seller is registered as a member (not shown) .

Under the condition that the connection is made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and the uniform resource locator, the SP 215 transmits Web page information corresponding to a request from the mobile wireless terminal 201 wirelessly to the terminal 201 (not shown) . This operation will be required when the member seller explains to a customer a product or contents to be sold using the mobile wireless terminal. Of course, the member seller may auxiliarily use a product catalogue or specifications .

If the customer selects a desired product/contents and a credit card payment menu in order and then inputs his/her credit information (a card number, expiry date, resident registration number, password, etc.), then the mobile wireless terminal 201 transmits the product/contents purchase information and credit information wirelessly to the SP 215 (319) . At this time, of course, the mobile wireless terminal 201 transmits the information after encrypting it using the downloaded security module. The SP 215 generates settlement approval request information based on the information from the mobile wireless terminal 201 and sends it to an associated PG#1 computer 223 (321) , which then sends the settlement approval request information to the credit card company computer 221 (323) . If the PG#1 computer 223 receives settlement approval information from the credit card company computer 221 (325) , then it sends the received settlement approval information to the SP 215

(327) . These steps 321, 323, 325 and 327 correspond to the wireless credit card settlement process typically carried out among the mobile wireless terminal 201, the SP 215, the PG company computer 223 and the card company computer 221.

Upon receiving the settlement approval information from the PG#1 computer 223, the SP 215 transmits it wirelessly to the mobile wireless terminal 201 (329) . As a result, the member seller determines from the settlement approval information whether to deliver the desired product/contents to the customer. Preferably, the SP 215 may transmit the settlement approval information to the mobile wireless terminal 201 in the form of an SMS message (not shown) . Therefore, according to the present invention, the member seller can make a phone call to the preset ARS and confirm settlement, using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal 201, so that a connection can be directly and rapidly made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member) , and the seller can perform a settlement based on the customer's credit card using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal 201. Further, according to the present invention, the SP 215 can further store identification information of the payment gateway selected by the member seller in the database, and send the credit card settlement request information to the computer 223 of the payment gateway corresponding to the identification information at the above step 321. In other words, the credit card settlement apparatus of the present invention acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways and the mobile wireless terminal to, in cooperation with a plurality of PG company computers, not a single PG company computer, enable the member seller to select one previously used by him/her from among the payment gateways .

Furthermore, as at the above step 317, the SP 215 can download the security module of the associated PG#1 computer 223 wirelessly to the mobile wireless terminal 201 when the connection is made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and the uniform resource locator. As a result, the member seller can download a security module of a payment gateway previously used by him/her to the registered mobile wireless terminal 201 to encrypt product/contents purchase information and personal credit information and perform the wireless credit card settlement process based on the encrypted information.

Fig. 4 is a flow chart illustrating an alternative embodiment of the wireless credit card settlement method in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention. The wireless credit card settlement method will hereinafter be described with reference to Fig. 4.

The wireless credit card settlement method of Fig. 4 comprises the steps of storing in the database respective wireless telephone numbers of sellers registered as members and information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members; receiving card settlement request information containing the wireless telephone number of a specific one of the members from the preset ARS 213; wirelessly transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from the mobile wireless terminal 201 corresponding to the wireless telephone number of the specific member to the terminal 201 if a connection is made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and a uniform resource locator which stores the information about products/contents registered by the specific member, according to a wireless card settlement/security program installed in the mobile wireless terminal 201; upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing product/contents purchase information and credit information of a customer from the mobile wireless terminal 201, sending the received credit card settlement request information to an associated PG#1 computer 223; and upon receiving settlement approval information from the PG#1 computer 223, transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to the mobile wireless terminal 201. These steps of the wireless credit card settlement method are performed by the program controller of the SP 215. The wireless credit card settlement method using the mobile wireless terminal according to the first embodiment of the present invention is mainly executed by the SP 215 and will hereinafter be described in detail with reference to Figs . 2 and 4. First, a specific member seller makes a phone call to the ARS 213 by dialing a preset number (for example, 1577- 8272) using his/her (registered) mobile wireless terminal 201 (401) . Then, the ARS 213 inquires of the HLR 209 as to whether a calling telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal 201 is a wireless telephone number registered for the service of the present invention (403) . If the calling telephone number is a registered wireless telephone number, the ARS 213 sends an announcement for confirmation of a wireless credit card settlement to the member seller (405) . Upon receiving a settlement confirmation signal (for example, a "CONFIRM" button signal) from the mobile wireless terminal 201 (407) , the ARS 213 sends card settlement request information containing the wireless telephone number of the mobile wireless terminal (registered by the member seller) to the SP 215 (409) .

The SP 215 is adapted to store in the database information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members (not shown) .

A connection is directly made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and a uniform resource locator which stores the information about products/contents registered by the member seller, according to the wireless card settlement/security program installed in the mobile wireless terminal 201 (411) . The wireless card settlement/security program is downloaded to the mobile wireless terminal 201 when the member seller subscribes to the present service. This program is a typical electronic purse program which is installed in the mobile wireless terminal to be used in the wireless credit card settlement process carried out between the SP 215 and the PG#1 computer 223.

Under the condition that the connection is made between the mobile wireless terminal 201 and the uniform resource locator, the SP 215 transmits Web page information corresponding to a request from the mobile wireless terminal 201 wirelessly to the terminal 201 (not shown) . This operation will be required when the member seller explains to a customer a product or contents to be sold using the mobile wireless terminal. Of course, the member seller may auxiliarily use a product catalogue or specifications . If the customer selects a desired product/contents and a credit card payment menu in order and then inputs his/her credit information (a card number, expiry date, resident registration number, password, etc.), then the mobile wireless terminal 201 transmits the product/contents purchase information and credit information wirelessly to the SP 215 (413) . At this time, of course, the mobile wireless terminal 201 transmits the information after encrypting it using a downloaded security module.

The SP 215 generates settlement approval request information based on the information from the mobile wireless terminal 201 and sends it to an associated PG#1 computer 223 (415) , which then sends the settlement approval request information to the credit card company computer 221 (417) . If the PG#1 computer 223 receives settlement approval information from the credit card company computer 221 (419) , then it sends the received settlement approval information to the SP 215

(421) . These steps 415, 417, 419 and 421 correspond to the wireless credit card settlement process typically carried out among the mobile wireless terminal 201, the SP 215, the PG company computer 223 and the card company computer 221.

Upon receiving the settlement approval information from the PG#1 computer 223, the SP 215 transmits it wirelessly to the mobile wireless terminal 201 (423) . As a result, the member seller determines from the settlement approval information whether to deliver the desired product/contents to the customer. Preferably, the SP 215 may transmit the settlement approval information to the mobile wireless terminal 201 in the form of an SMS message (not shown) .

Therefore, according to the present invention, the member seller can make a phone call to the preset ARS and confirm settlement, using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal, so that a connection can be directly and rapidly made between the mobile wireless terminal and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member) , and the seller can perform a settlement based on the customer's credit card using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal .

With reference to Fig. 5, there is shown in block form a system configuration in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention.

In Fig. 5, the reference numeral 510 denotes a wireless credit card settlement apparatus using a mobile communication terminal according to the present invention. The wireless credit card settlement apparatus 510 is adapted to perform wireless data communication with a mobile communication terminal 501 via a protocol conversion device such as a WAP gateway 507.

The wireless credit card settlement apparatus 510 comprises a database (not shown) for storing respective identification information of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed, an automatic response system (ARS) 513 for, if it receives an incoming call from the mobile communication terminal 501 held by a customer, inquiring of a home location register (HLR) 509 as to whether identification information received from the mobile communication terminal 501 is one of a specific one of the sellers registered as the members and, if the identification information from the mobile communication terminal 501 is one of the specific seller, sending service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of the customer and the identification information of the specific member seller, and a controller (not shown) for receiving the service use request information containing the wireless telephone number of the customer and the identification information of the specific member seller, searching the database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to the identification information of the specific member seller and wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 corresponding to the customer's wireless telephone number. The controller is also adapted to, if a connection is made between the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and the transmitted uniform resource locator, transmit Web page information corresponding to a request from the mobile communication terminal 501 wirelessly to the terminal 501 and, upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing product/contents purchase information and credit information of the customer from the mobile communication terminal 501, send the received credit card settlement request information to an associated credit card company computer 521. The controller is further adapted to, upon receiving settlement approval information from the card company computer 521, transmit the received settlement approval information wirelessly to the customer' s mobile communication terminal 501. The mobile communication terminal 501 is a portable terminal capable of performing wireless communication with a mobile wireless network, such as a mobile phone, personal digital assistant (PDA) or Web pad. The mobile communication terminal 501 is equipped with a WAP program so that it is connectable to an SP 515 on the Internet 517 via the WAP gateway 507. The mobile communication terminal 501 is also equipped with a program (settlement/security) for wireless credit card settlement, which may be downloaded from the SP 515. The mobile communication terminal 501 is held by a customer and used when a member seller explains a product or contents to be sold by him/her or provides public relations information thereof. The terminal 501 is also used to perform product purchase and settlement . A base station 503, mobile switching center 505 and SMS server 511 typically constitute the mobile wireless network along with the HLR 509.

The WAP gateway 507 converts a TCP/IP standard protocol of the Internet 517 into a WAP, which is a communication protocol of the mobile wireless network, to enable data communication between the mobile communication terminal 501 and the SP 515. A WAP server (not shown) functions to interconnect the SP 515 which provides various information and the mobile communication terminal 501 which is capable of receiving the information provided from the SP

515, and to perform conversion between different types of data and conversion between different types of protocols.

A member personal computer (PC) 519 is a typical PC connectable to the Internet 517. A seller gains access to a Web site provided from the SP 515 using the member PC 519 to perform a member registration process .

A PG#1 computer 523 through PG#n computer 525 each are a typical payment gateway computer that acts to protect credit information of a customer on electronic commerce and, through a value added network (not shown) , request a credit card settlement of the credit card company computer 521 and send the settlement result to the SP 515.

The wireless credit card settlement apparatus 510 of the present invention comprises the ARS 513 and the SP 515. In the embodiment of Fig. 5, the ARS 513 is provided on the service manager side. The ARS 513 is a dedicated system for provision of a wireless credit card settlement service of the present invention. In this case, the transfer of data between the ARS 513 and the SP 515 is internally carried out. Alternatively, the ARS 513 may be provided on any other side than the service manager side. In this case, the transfer of data between the ARS 513 and the SP 515 is carried out via the WAP gateway 507. In any case, the present invention is characterized in that, upon receiving an incoming call from the mobile communication terminal 501 held by a customer, the ARS 513 inquires of the HLR 509 as to whether identification information received from the mobile communication terminal 501 is one of a specific one of the sellers registered as the members and, if the identification information from the mobile communication terminal 501 is one of the specific seller, sends service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of the customer and the identification information of the specific seller to the SP 515. The SP (Service Provider) 515 is typically connected to the Internet 517 and adapted to perform a Web server function of providing a Web page to a terminal (for example, the mobile communication terminal 501 or member PC 519) connected thereto via the Internet 517, a database server function of storing and providing member/Web page/contents/sales product information, and a settlement function.

The present invention is also characterized in that the SP 515 includes a database (not shown) for storing respective identification information of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed. The present invention is also characterized in that the SP 515 further includes a program controller (not shown) for, upon receiving service use request information

(containing registered identification information of a member seller) from the ARS 513, sending to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 a uniform resource locator where the mobile communication terminal 501 can gain direct access to information about products/contents registered for sales by the member seller.

Therefore, the customer can make a phone call to the preset ARS 513 and confirm the input of the member seller's identification information and the service use, using his/her mobile communication terminal 501, thereby enabling a connection to be directly and rapidly made between the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member) .

The present invention is further characterized in that, upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing the customer' s product/contents purchase information and credit information from the customer's mobile communication terminal 501, the program controller of the SP 515 sends the received credit card settlement request information to an associated card company computer 521, and, upon receiving settlement approval information from the card company computer 521, it transmits the received settlement approval information wirelessly to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501.

In the above-described characteristics of the present invention, the settlement operation itself corresponds to a wireless credit card settlement process typically carried out among the mobile communication terminal 501, the SP 515 and the card company computer 521. However, it will be understood that the above process is the overall gist of the invention. That is, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the main concept of the present invention is that the customer can make a phone call to the preset ARS 513 and confirm the input of the member seller' s identification information and the service use, using his/her mobile communication terminal 501, so that a connection can be directly and rapidly made between the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member) , and the customer can rapidly and readily select a desired product and perform a settlement based on his/her credit card, using his/her mobile communication terminal 501.

The customer can rely on the service in that he/she settles his/her account by his/her credit card using his/her mobile communication terminal 501. The service manager can invite sellers to gain membership by providing public relations information of the ARS service to the sellers, and provide public relations information of the present service to customers .

Further, the settlement/security program, PG and/or VAN familiar with the customer (namely, currently used in the wireless credit card settlement process) are provided so that the customer can use the service of the present invention without anxiety. The manager can implement the SP 515 in an existing wireless site. Alternatively, the manager may implement and manage the SP 515 independent of the existing wireless site. In the case of implementing the SP 515 in the existing wireless site, the manager can package the programs run according to the present invention and provide the present service through several SPs .

The seller can gain access to the SP 515 of the present invention and register himself/herself as a member therein, using the member PC 519, in the same manner as a general Web site member registration process. For example, the seller accesses the SP 515, selects a member registration menu and inputs his/her wireless telephone number, name, resident registration number, etc. In the case of desiring to become a member in the name of a company, the seller inputs a corporation name, a corporation registration number, etc. The seller may enter contents about a currently available PG company or VAN company and select whether to use an electronic purse program. Besides, the seller may select a variety of additional services. After credit card settlement, the seller may receive approved records in the form of an SMS message .

The seller registered as the member can provide various information regarding a product to be sold by him/her, for example, a name, price, product number, image and so forth, to the service manager. The manager stores in the database of the SP 515 the member information (containing the identification information (for example, wireless telephone number) of the member seller) and the information regarding products/contents to be sold by the member seller, as stated above, and a uniform resource locator where the product/contents information can be directly accessed.

Alternatively, the member seller may select an option to personally input a product name and product price for every wireless credit card settlement, not store information regarding products/contents to be sold in the SP 515.

The present invention is also characterized in that the database of the SP 515 further stores payment gateway and/or value added network selection information, and the program controller of the SP 515 sends credit card settlement request information through a payment gateway computer and/or value added network corresponding to the selection information.

That is, the credit card settlement apparatus 510 of the present invention acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways 523 and 525 and/or value added networks and the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 to, in cooperation with a plurality of PG company computers (and/or value added networks) , not a single PG company computer

(and/or value added network) , enable the member seller to select one previously used by the customer, namely, one familiar therewith, from among the payment gateways (and/or value added networks) . The selection information may be designated when the member seller subscribes to the present service. Of course, the wireless credit card settlement process is performed among the mobile communication terminal 501, the SP 515, the PG company computer 523 (and/or value added network) and the card company computer 521 in a general manner. In the case of directly accessing a value added network, not via the PG company computer 523, the SP 515 may utilize a dedicated line connected between it and the value added network.

The present invention is also characterized in that the program controller of the SP 515 wirelessly transmits a security module necessary for the wireless credit card settlement process, for example, a security module of an associated payment gateway computer 523, to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 if a connection is made between the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and a uniform resource locator.

That is, a security module of a payment gateway selected by the member seller, for example, a security module of a payment gateway selected when the member seller subscribes to the present service, is downloaded to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 so that product/contents purchase information and personal credit information can be conveniently encrypted to be used in the wireless credit card settlement process. At this time, provided that a desired security module already exists in the customer's mobile communication terminal 501, the downloading process will be omitted.

Fig. 6 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a wireless credit card settlement method in accordance with the second embodiment of the present invention. The wireless credit card settlement method will hereinafter be described with reference to Fig. 6.

The wireless credit card settlement method of Fig. 6 is executable on an Internet server that enables wireless data communication between mobile communication terminals, and comprises the first step (not shown) of storing in the database respective identification information of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed; the second step (609) of receiving service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of a customer and the identification information of a specific one of the members from the preset ARS 513; the third step (not shown) of searching the database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to the identification information of the specific member; the fourth step (611 and 613) of wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 corresponding to the customer's wireless telephone number; the fifth step (not shown) of transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 wirelessly to the terminal 501 if a connection is made between the mobile communication terminal 501 and the transmitted uniform resource locator (615) ; the sixth step (621 and 623) of, upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing the customer's product/contents purchase information and credit information from the customer's mobile communication terminal 501, sending the received credit card settlement request information to an associated card company computer 521; and the seventh step (629) of, upon receiving settlement approval information from the card company computer 521 (625 and 627) , transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501.

The wireless credit card settlement method using the mobile communication terminal according to the second embodiment of the present invention is mainly executed by the SP 515 and will hereinafter be described in detail with reference to Figs . 5 and 6.

First, under the guidance of a specific member seller, a customer makes a phone call to the ARS 513 by dialing a preset number (for example, 1577-8272) using his/her mobile communication terminal 501, and then inputs member identification information informed by the member seller (601) . Then, the ARS 513 inquires of the HLR 509 as to whether the seller corresponding to the inputted member identification information is a member of the present service (603) . If the member identification information is one registered for the present service, the ARS 513 sends an announcement for confirmation of use of the present service to the customer (605) . Upon receiving a settlement confirmation signal (for example, a "CONFIRM" button signal) from the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 (607), the ARS 513 sends service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and the member identification information to the SP 515 (609) . The SP 515 is adapted to store in the database respective identification information of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed (not shown) . Upon receiving the service use request information from the ARS 513, the SP 515 searches the database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to the identification information of the member seller (611) and wirelessly transmits the searched uniform resource locator to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 via the SMS server 511 (613) . In the present embodiment, a WAP-push function is used to transmit the uniform resource locator.

If the customer' s mobile communication terminal 501 receives the uniform resource locator from the SP 515, then the customer pushes a connection confirm button to run the WAP program in the terminal 501, so as to attempt a connection to the received uniform resource locator (615) . This connection attempt is made via the WAP gateway 507. If the connection is made between the customer' s mobile communication terminal 501 and the uniform resource locator, then the SP 515 downloads a security module to the mobile communication terminal 501 to encrypt data being sent and received in the wireless credit card settlement process (617) . At this time, the SP 515 downloads a security module of a payment gateway selected by the member seller to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 (not shown). Alternatively, the SP 515 may download its own security module if it has a self-security function. The security module downloading step 617 is provided against the case where there is no security module for wireless settlement in the customer's mobile communication terminal 501. This step 617 may be carried out simultaneously with step 619 to be described later, since a security module is generally required for settlement after product selection. Next, under the condition that the connection is made between the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and the uniform resource locator, the SP 515 transmits Web page information corresponding to a request from the mobile communication terminal 501 wirelessly to the terminal 501 (not shown) . This operation will be required when the member seller explains to the customer a product or contents to be sold using the (customer's) mobile communication terminal 501. Of course, the member seller may auxiliarily use a product catalogue or specifications.

If the customer selects a desired product/contents and a credit card payment menu in order and then inputs his/her credit information (a card number, expiry date, resident registration number, password, etc.), then the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 transmits the product/contents purchase information and credit information wirelessly to the SP 515 (619) . At this time, of course, the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 transmits the information after encrypting it using the security module. The SP 515 generates settlement approval request information based on the information from the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and sends it to an associated PG#1 computer 523 (621) , which then sends the settlement approval request information to the credit card company computer 521 (623) . If the PG#1 computer 523 receives settlement approval information from the credit card company computer 521 (625) , then it sends the received settlement approval information to the SP 515 (627) . Alternatively, the wireless credit card settlement process may be performed among the mobile communication terminal 501 <-» SP 515 - PG#1 computer 523 <- value added network (not shown) - card company computer 521. As another alternative, the wireless credit card settlement process may be performed among the mobile communication terminal 501 •<-» SP 515 value added network (not shown) •<-» card company computer 521. The above steps 621, 623, 625 and 627 correspond to the wireless credit card settlement process typically carried out among the mobile communication terminal 501, the SP 515, the PG company computer 523, the value added network and the card company computer 521.

Upon receiving the settlement approval information from the card company computer 521, the SP 515 transmits it wirelessly to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501

(629) . As a result, the member seller determines from the settlement approval information whether to deliver the desired product/contents to the customer. Preferably, the SP 515 may transmit the settlement approval information to the member seller' s mobile communication terminal in the form of an SMS message (not shown) . Therefore, according to the present invention, the customer can make a phone call to the preset ARS 513 and confirm the input of the member seller' s identification information and the service use, using his/her mobile communication terminal 501, so that a connection can be directly and rapidly made between the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and the uniform resource locator that stores the information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member) , and the customer can search the product/contents information of the member seller and perform a settlement based on his/her credit card, using his/her mobile communication terminal, not the seller's mobile communication terminal .

Further, according to the present invention, the SP 515 can further store payment gateway and/or value added network selection information in the database at the first step, and send credit card settlement request information through a payment gateway computer and/or value added network corresponding to the selection information at the sixth step.

In other words, the SP 515 acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways 523 and 525 (and/or value added networks) and the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 to, in cooperation with a plurality of PG company computers (and/or value added networks) , not a single PG company computer (and/or value added network) , enable the member seller to select one previously used by the customer, namely, one familiar therewith, from among the payment gateways (and/or value added networks) .

Furthermore, as at the above step 617, the SP 515 can wirelessly download a security module necessary for the wireless credit card settlement process, for example, the security module of the PG#1 computer 523, to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 when the connection is made between the mobile communication terminal 501 and the uniform resource locator, thereby enabling product/contents purchase information and personal credit information to be conveniently encrypted to be used in the wireless credit card settlement process .

Fig. 7 is a flow chart illustrating an alternative embodiment of the wireless credit card settlement method in accordance with the second embodiment of the present invention. The wireless credit card settlement method will hereinafter be described with reference to Fig. 7.

The wireless credit card settlement method of Fig. 7 is executable on an Internet server that enables wireless data communication between mobile communication terminals, and comprises the first step (not shown) of storing in the database respective identification information of sellers registered as members and information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members; the second step (709) of receiving service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of a customer and the identification information of a specific one of the members from the preset ARS 513; the third step (not shown) of wirelessly transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 corresponding to the customer's wireless telephone number to the terminal 501 if a connection is made between the mobile communication terminal 501 and a uniform resource locator where the information about products/contents registered by the specific member can be directly accessed, according to a wireless card settlement/security program installed in the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 (711); the fourth step (715) of, upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing the customer's product/contents purchase information and credit information from the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 (713), sending the received credit card settlement request information to an associated card company computer 521; and the fifth step (723) of, upon receiving settlement approval information from the card company computer 521 (721) , transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to the customer's mobile communication terminal 501. The wireless credit card settlement method using the mobile communication terminal according to the second embodiment of the present invention is mainly executed by the SP 515 and will hereinafter be described in detail with reference to Figs . 5 and 7. First, under the guidance of a specific member seller, a customer makes a phone call to the ARS 513 by dialing a preset number (for example, 1577-8272) using his/her mobile communication terminal 501, and then inputs member identification information informed by the member seller (701) . Then, the ARS 513 inquires of the HLR 509 as to whether the seller corresponding to the inputted member identification information is a member of the present service (703) . If the member identification information is one registered for the present service, the ARS 513 sends an announcement for confirmation of use of the present service to the customer (705) . Upon receiving a settlement confirmation signal (for example, a "CONFIRM" button signal) from the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 (707), the ARS 513 sends service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and the member identification information to the SP 515 (709) .

The SP 515 is adapted to store in the database respective identification information of sellers registered as members and information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members (not shown) .

A connection is directly made between the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and a uniform resource locator which stores the information about products/contents registered by the member seller, according to the wireless card settlement/security program installed in the mobile communication terminal 501 (711) . The wireless card settlement/security program is the very one that the customer has previously downloaded and used in his/her mobile communication terminal 501. This program is a typical electronic purse program which is installed in the mobile communication terminal to be used in the wireless credit card settlement process carried out between the SP 515 and the PG#1 computer 523. As an alternative, the customer may make a wireless connection by inputting a uniform resource locator informed by the member seller.

If the connection is made between the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and the uniform resource locator, the SP 515 transmits Web page information corresponding to a request from the mobile communication terminal 501 wirelessly to the terminal 501 (not shown) . This operation will be required when the member seller explains to the customer a product or contents to be sold using the (customer's) mobile communication terminal 501. Of course, the member seller may auxiliarily use a product catalogue or specifications .

If the customer selects a desired product/contents and a credit card payment menu in order and then inputs his/her credit information (a card number, expiry date, resident registration number, password, etc.), then the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 transmits the product/contents purchase information and credit information wirelessly to the SP 515 (713) . At this time, of course, the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 transmits the information after encrypting it using a security module installed therein.

The SP 515 generates settlement approval request information based on the information from the customer's mobile communication terminal 501 and sends it to an associated PG#1 computer 523 (715) , which then sends the settlement approval request information to the credit card company computer 521 (717) . If the PG#1 computer 523 receives settlement approval information from the credit card company computer 521 (719) , then it sends the received settlement approval information to the SP 515 (721) . Alternatively, the wireless credit card settlement process may be performed among the mobile communication terminal 501 <-> SP 515 <- PG#1 computer 523 <- value added network (not shown) <H> card company computer 521. As another alternative, the wireless credit card settlement process may be performed among the mobile communication terminal 501 <-» SP 515 <-> value added network (not shown) <-» card company computer 521. The above steps 715, 717, 719 and 721 correspond to the wireless credit card settlement process typically carried out among the mobile communication terminal 501, the SP 515, the PG company computer 523 , the value added network and the card company computer 521.

(723) . As a result, the member seller determines from the settlement approval information whether to deliver the desired product/contents to the customer. Preferably, the SP 515 may transmit the settlement approval information to the member seller' s mobile communication terminal in the form of an SMS message (not shown) .

Industrial Applicability

As apparent from the above description, the present invention provides a wireless credit card settlement method and apparatus wherein a member seller makes a phone call to a preset ARS and confirms settlement, using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal, so that a connection can be directly and rapidly made between the mobile wireless terminal and a uniform resource locator that stores information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member) , and the seller can perform a settlement based on a customer's credit card using his/her registered mobile wireless terminal .

Further, an Internet server acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways and a mobile wireless terminal so that a member seller can select one previously used by him/her from among the payment gateways, resulting in convenience of use.

Further, a member seller downloads a security module of a payment gateway previously used by him/her to a mobile wireless terminal to encrypt product/contents purchase information and personal credit information and perform a wireless credit card settlement process based on the encrypted information.

Further, a settlement/security program and PG familiar with a customer (namely, currently used in a wireless credit card settlement process) are provided so that the customer can use the present service without anxiety.

Further, a customer makes a phone call to a preset ARS and confirms the input of identification information of a member seller and use of a service, using his/her mobile communication terminal. Therefore, a connection can be directly and rapidly made between the customer's mobile communication terminal and a uniform resource locator that stores information about products/contents (registered for sales by the member seller) , and the customer can search the product/contents information of the member seller and perform a settlement based on his/her credit card, using his/her mobile communication terminal, not the seller's mobile communication terminal .

Further, an Internet server acts as a hub between a plurality of payment gateways and/or value added networks and a customer's mobile communication terminal to, in cooperation with a plurality of PG company computers (and/or value added networks) , not a single PG company computer

(and/or value added network) , enable a member seller to select a desired one from among the payment gateways and/or value added networks .

Further, a security module necessary for a wireless credit card settlement process is downloaded to a mobile communication terminal of a customer so that product/contents purchase information and personal credit information can be conveniently encrypted to be used in the wireless credit card settlement process .

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims .

Claims

Claims :

1. A mobile wireless terminal-based credit card settlement method executable on an Internet server that enables wireless data communication between mobile communication terminals via a wireless application protocol gateway, said method comprising the steps of : a) storing in a database respective wireless telephone numbers of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed; b) receiving card settlement request information containing the wireless telephone number of a specific one of said members from a preset automatic response system; c) searching said database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to said wireless telephone number of said specific member; d) wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to a mobile wireless terminal corresponding to said wireless telephone number of said specific member; e) transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from said mobile wireless terminal wirelessly to said mobile wireless terminal if a connection is made between said mobile wireless terminal and the .transmitted uniform resource locator; f) , upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing product/contents purchase information and credit information of a customer from said mobile wireless terminal, sending the received credit card settlement request information to an associated payment gateway computer; and g) , upon receiving settlement approval information from said payment gateway computer, transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to said mobile wireless terminal .

2. The mobile wireless terminal-based credit card settlement method as set forth in claim 1, wherein: said step a) includes the step of further storing identification information of a payment gateway selected by said specific member in said database; and said step f) includes the step of sending said credit card settlement request information to a computer of said payment gateway corresponding to said identification information.

3. The mobile wireless terminal-based credit card settlement method as set forth in claim 1 or 2, further comprising the step of: h) wirelessly transmitting a security module of said payment gateway computer to said mobile wireless terminal if the connection is made between said mobile wireless terminal and said transmitted uniform resource locator at said step e) .

4. A computer-readable storage medium for storing a program for executing the steps of: a) storing in a database respective wireless telephone numbers of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed; b) receiving card settlement request information containing the wireless telephone number of a specific one of said members from a preset automatic response system; c) searching said database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to said wireless telephone number of said specific member; d) wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to a mobile wireless terminal corresponding to said wireless telephone number of said specific member; e) transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from said mobile wireless terminal wirelessly to said mobile wireless terminal if a connection is made between said mobile wireless terminal and the transmitted uniform resource locator; f) , upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing product/contents purchase information and credit information of a customer from said mobile wireless terminal, sending the received credit card settlement request information to an associated payment gateway computer; and g) , upon receiving settlement approval information from said payment gateway computer, transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to said mobile wireless terminal.

5. The computer-readable storage medium as set forth in claim 4, wherein: said step a) includes the step of further storing identification information of a payment gateway selected by said specific member in said database; and said step f) includes the step of sending said credit card settlement request information to a computer of said payment gateway corresponding to said identification information.

6. The computer-readable storage medium as set forth in claim 4 or 5, wherein said program is adapted to further execute the step of: h) wirelessly transmitting a security module of said payment gateway computer to said mobile wireless terminal if the connection is made between said mobile wireless terminal and said transmitted uniform resource locator at said step e) .

7. A mobile wireless terminal-based credit card settlement method executable on an Internet server that enables wireless data communication between mobile communication terminals via a wireless application protocol gateway, said method comprising the steps of : a) storing in a database respective wireless telephone numbers of sellers registered as members and information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members; b) receiving card settlement request information containing the wireless telephone number of a specific one of said members from a preset automatic response system; c) wirelessly transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from a mobile wireless terminal corresponding to said wireless telephone number of said specific member to the mobile wireless terminal if a connection is made between said mobile wireless terminal and a uniform resource locator which stores said information about products/contents registered by said specific member, according to a wireless card settlement/security program installed in said mobile wireless terminal; d) , upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing product/contents purchase information and credit information of a customer from said mobile wireless terminal, sending the received credit card settlement request information to an associated payment gateway computer; and e) , upon receiving settlement approval information from said payment gateway computer, transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to said mobile wireless terminal .

8. A mobile wireless terminal-based wireless credit card settlement apparatus that enables wireless data communication between mobile communication terminals via a wireless application protocol gateway, said apparatus comprising: a database for storing respective wireless telephone numbers of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed; an automatic response system for, if it receives an incoming call from a mobile wireless terminal, inquiring of a home location register as to whether a wireless telephone number of said mobile wireless terminal is one of a specific one of said sellers registered as the members and, if said wireless telephone number of said mobile wireless terminal is one of the specific seller, sending card settlement request information containing it; and a controller for receiving said card settlement request information containing said wireless telephone number of said specific seller from said automatic response system, searching said database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to said wireless telephone number of said specific seller, wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to said mobile wireless terminal corresponding to said wireless telephone number of said specific seller, transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from said mobile wireless terminal wirelessly to said mobile wireless terminal if a connection is made between said mobile wireless terminal and the transmitted uniform resource locator, sending credit card settlement request information containing product/contents purchase information and credit information of a customer to an associated payment gateway computer upon receiving the credit card settlement request information from said mobile wireless terminal, and transmitting settlement approval information wirelessly to said mobile wireless terminal upon receiving the settlement approval information from said payment gateway computer.

9. The mobile wireless terminal-based wireless credit card settlement apparatus as set forth in claim 8, wherein: said database is adapted to further store identification information of a payment gateway selected by said specific seller; and said controller is adapted to send said credit card settlement request information to a computer of said payment gateway corresponding to said identification information.

10. The mobile wireless terminal-based wireless credit card settlement apparatus as set forth in claim 8 or 9, wherein said controller is adapted to wirelessly transmit a security module of said payment gateway computer to said mobile wireless terminal if the connection is made between said mobile wireless terminal and said transmitted uniform resource locator.

11. A mobile communication terminal-based credit card settlement method executable on an Internet server that enables wireless data communication between mobile communication terminals, said method comprising the steps Of : a) storing in a database respective identification information of sellers registered as members, information j about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed; b) receiving service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of a customer and the identification information of a specific one of said members from a preset automatic response system; c) searching said database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to said identification information of said specific member; d) wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to said customer' s mobile communication terminal corresponding to said customer's wireless telephone number; e) transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from said customer's mobile communication terminal wirelessly to said customer's mobile communication terminal if a connection is made between said customer's mobile communication terminal and the transmitted uniform resource locator; f) , upon 'receiving credit card settlement request information containing said customer's product/contents purchase information and credit information from said customer's mobile communication terminal, sending settlement approval request information to an associated card company computer; and g) , upon receiving settlement approval information from said card company computer, transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to said customer's mobile communication terminal.

12. The mobile communication terminal-based credit card settlement method as set forth in claim 11, wherein: said step a) includes the step of further storing payment gateway and/or value added network selection information in said database; and said step f) includes the step of sending said credit card settlement request information through a payment gateway computer and/or value added network corresponding to said selection information.

13. The mobile communication terminal-based credit card settlement method as set forth in claim 11 or 12, further comprising the step of: h) wirelessly transmitting a security module necessary for a wireless credit card settlement process to said customer's mobile communication terminal if the connection is made between said customer's mobile communication terminal and said transmitted uniform resource locator at said step e) .

14. A computer-readable storage medium for storing a program for executing the steps of: a) storing in a database respective identification information of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed; b) receiving service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of a customer and the identification information of a specific one of said members from a preset automatic response system; c) searching said database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to said identification information of said specific member; d) wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to said customer's mobile communication terminal corresponding to said customer' s wireless telephone number; e) transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from said customer' s mobile communication terminal wirelessly to said customer's mobile communication terminal if a connection is made between said customer's mobile communication terminal and the transmitted uniform resource locator; f) , upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing said customer' s product/contents purchase information and credit information from said customer's mobile communication terminal, sending settlement approval request information to an associated card company computer; and g) , upon receiving settlement approval information from said card company computer, transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to said customer's mobile communication terminal.

15. The computer-readable storage medium as set forth in claim 14, wherein: said step a) includes the step of further storing payment gateway and/or value added network selection information in said database; and said step f) includes the step of sending said credit card settlement request information through a payment gateway computer and/or value added network corresponding to said selection information.

16. The computer-readable storage medium as set forth in claim 14 or 15, wherein said program is adapted to further execute the step of : h) wirelessly transmitting a security module necessary for a wireless credit card settlement process to said customer' s mobile communication terminal if the connection is made between said customer's mobile communication terminal and said transmitted uniform resource locator at said step e) .

17. A mobile communication terminal-based credit card settlement method executable on an Internet server that enables wireless data communication between mobile communication terminals, said method comprising the steps of: a) storing in a database respective identification information of sellers registered as members and information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members; b) receiving service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of a customer and the identification information of a specific one of said members from a preset automatic response system; c) wirelessly transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from said customer's mobile communication terminal corresponding to said customer's wireless telephone number to said customer's mobile communication terminal if a connection is made between said customer's mobile communication terminal and a uniform resource locator where said information about products/contents registered by said specific member can be directly accessed, according to a wireless card settlement/security program installed in said customer's mobile communication terminal; d) , upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing said customer's product/contents purchase information and credit information from said customer's mobile communication terminal, sending settlement approval request information to an associated card company computer; and e) , upon receiving settlement approval information from said card company computer, transmitting the received settlement approval information wirelessly to said customer's mobile communication terminal.

18. A mobile communication terminal-based wireless credit card settlement apparatus that enables wireless data communication between mobile communication terminals, said apparatus comprising: a database for storing respective identification information of sellers registered as members, information about products/contents registered respectively for sales by the members, and uniform resource locators where the product/contents information can be directly accessed; an automatic response system for, if it receives an incoming call from a customer's mobile communication terminal, inquiring of a home location register as to whether identification information received from said customer's mobile communication terminal is one of a specific one of said sellers registered as the members and, if said identification information from said customer's mobile communication terminal is one of said specific seller, sending service use request information containing a wireless telephone number of said customer and said identification information of said specific member seller; and a controller for receiving said service use request information containing said wireless telephone number of said customer and said identification information of said specific member seller, searching said database for a uniform resource locator corresponding to said identification information of said specific member seller, wirelessly transmitting the searched uniform resource locator to said customer' s mobile communication terminal corresponding to said customer's wireless telephone number, transmitting Web page information corresponding to a request from said customer's mobile communication terminal wirelessly to said customer's mobile communication terminal if a connection is made between said customer's mobile communication terminal and the transmitted uniform resource locator, sending settlement approval request information to an associated credit card company computer upon receiving credit card settlement request information containing said customer's product/contents purchase information and credit information from said customer's mobile communication terminal, and transmitting settlement approval information wirelessly to said customer's mobile communication terminal upon receiving the settlement approval information from said card company computer.

19. The mobile communication terminal-based wireless credit card settlement apparatus as set forth in claim 18, wherein: said database is adapted to further store payment gateway and/or value added network selection information; and said controller is adapted to send said credit card settlement request information through a payment gateway computer and/or value added network corresponding to said selection information.

20. The mobile communication terminal-based wireless credit card settlement apparatus as set forth in claim 18 or 19, wherein said controller is adapted to wirelessly transmit a security module necessary for a wireless credit card settlement process to said customer's mobile communication terminal if the connection is made between said customer' s mobile communication terminal and said transmitted uniform resource locator.