Background Art Recently, with the universal use of Internet, it has been brought into close relation with our lives, and many companies or individuals advertise themselves or provide information through websites.

However, in case that a user does not know the detailed URL of the webpage, he/she cannot access the corresponding webpage. This causes the user inconvenience in accessing a website that is not well known to the user and thus is not registered as a frequent-search or go- straight term.

Disclosure of the Invention Therefore, an object of the present invention is to solve the problems involved in the prior art, and to provide a method of accessing a webpage and service system therefor which enable a user to easily access a desired webpage using a related telephone number even if the user does not know the address of the webpage.

In order to accomplish the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a service system for accessing a webpage using a telephone number, which is implemented on an information provider

server that can be accessed by a plurality of user computers through a digital network, the service system comprising a database for storing telephone numbers and related webpage addresses, and an address retrieval means for receiving service request information including the telephone number from the user computer, retrieving the database in accordance with the service request information, and transmitting the related webpage address to the user computer.

Preferably, the service system further comprises a download means for transmitting the telephone number inputted from the user computer to the information provider server in response to a request from the user computer and transmitting an execution file for transferring the received webpage address corresponding to the telephone number to a web browser.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a webpage accessing method executable on a user computer connected to an information provider server through a digital network, the method comprising the steps of receiving a telephone number from a user, transmitting access service request information including the inputted telephone number to the information provider server, receiving a webpage address related to the telephone number from the information provider server, and accessing the corresponding webpage using the webpage address.

Brief Description of the Drawings The above object, other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by describing the preferred embodiment thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: FIG. 1 is a schematic view explaining the webpage accessing service using a telephone number according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating the webpage accessing method using a telephone number according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Best Mode for Carrying out the Invention Now, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view explaining the webpage accessing service using a telephone number according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the service system for accessing a webpage according to the present invention includes a user computer 10, an information provider server 70 that can be accessed by the user computer through digital networks 20 and 30, and a computer 50 that can be accessed by the user computer through a digital network and storing therein the webpage to be accessed by the user computer 10.

The user computer 10 is a typical personal computer, and is provided with a display 13, a mouse 15, and a keyboard 16, which are input/output means for supporting a graphic user environment. The user computer 10 is also provided with a communication part 14 such as a modem, LAN card, etc., for supporting communications through a digital network. Also, the user computer 10 includes an auxiliary memory 17 such as a hard disc drive for storing a webpage accessing program such as a web browser and the service program for implementing the webpage accessing method using a telephone number according to the present invention, a memory 11, and a central processing unit 12 for reading and executing the web browser and the service program stored in the auxiliary memory 17 and controlling peripheral devices.

The user computer according to the present

invention, however, is not limited to the personal computer, and may be a mobile terminal or personal portable terminal that can access the webpages.

The digital network may be one among or combination of digital communication networks such as Internet, mobile communication networks, telephone communication networks, etc.

The information provider server 70 implements the service system for accessing a webpage according to the present invention. Physically, it may have the construction of a typical server, i. e., may include a central processing unit, main memory, auxiliary memory, managing terminal, etc. The service system for accessing a webpage according to the present invention employs a program stored in the auxiliary memory, and a portion of or the whole program is loaded in the main memory to be executed.

The information provider server 70 according to the present invention comprises an address retrieval part 61 for accessing a database 60 where an address conversion table is stored, and a download part 62 for downloading a webpage access service execution program executed by the user computer 10.

Hereinafter, the process of the webpage access service according to the present invention will be explained with reference to FIG. 2 that shows a flowchart illustrating the webpage accessing method using a telephone number according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, the information provider secures subscribers through Internet or telephones, and establishes a database with a list of records including telephone numbers and the corresponding web addresses. At this time, the telephone numbers can be both of mobile phones and wired phones, and include country codes and district codes to enable

the access of the webpages of other districts or countries. Also, telephone numbers of a certain company and of the respective members of the company can be determined to coincide with the URL address of the same company. Also, if needed, the telephone numbers or webpages can be changed through the connection to the Internet or automatic response telephones. The information provider changes the corresponding record of the database table through a confirmation process. In a state that the database is established as described above, the information provider provides the service.

The subscriber first boots the user computer 10, and executes the web browser program. At this time, if the user inputs the webpage address of the information provider on an address input window, the corresponding webpage is displayed on the user computer 10 through the Internet. Then, the user is downloaded with an execution file, for example, named"phone2URL. exe", for implementing the webpage accessing method according to the present invention. In other words, the download part 62 of the information provider server 70 reads out the execution program from an execution program storage part, and downloads the program to the requested user computer. At this time, the execution file serves to transfer the URL address to the web browser, or may be connected to the web browser in the form of a plug-in.

In this state, the user inputs the telephone number that the user desires to access on an URL input window displayed on its display 13 (step S21). Then, the "phone2URL. exe." program seizes the inputted contents, and checks whether the inputted contents correspond to the telephone number. If so, it transmits the service request information including this telephone number to the information provider server 70 (step S22).

Thereafter, the address retrieval part 61

of the information provider server 70 receives the service request information, searches the database by the inputted telephone number, and extracts the webpage address related to the inputted telephone number. That is, since in the table of the database 60, the telephone numbers and the related webpages are stored in a corresponding manner, the information provider server can extracts the webpage corresponding to the inputted telephone number. Then, the information provider server 700 sends to the user computer 10 the URL that is the webpage address (step S23).

The"phone2URL. exe." execution file of the user computer 10 transmits the URL address received from the information provider server 70 to the web browser program (step S24). Thereafter, by the function of the typical web browser, the webpage having the corresponding URL is transmitted to the user computer. Specifically, an IP address is obtained from a domain name server, and the corresponding web server is accessed by the obtained IP address. Then, the corresponding webpage of the web server is transmitted to the user computer, and this webpage is displayed to the user by the web browser.

While the present invention has been illustrated and described herein with reference to the preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefor, the scope of the present invention should be defined by the appended claims described to include the various changes.

Industrial Applicability As apparent from the above description, the present invention has an advantage in that by the input of a telephone number onto the address input window of the browser by the user, the direct access of the web

site related to the inputted telephone number becomes possible. In practice, it is more useful and convenient to use the telephone number that the user has already known than to remember the URL of a new web site.