MALL SERVER WITH PRODUCTSEARCH CAPABILITY

A mall server with a product search function, in which each product category has a particular effective period during which it is presented to customers as a selectable search key. In a virtual shopping mall system, customers can conduct a search for a set of products by designating a particular product category as a search key. As part of a mall server, a category master table stores a plurality of product categories accompanied by information on their respective effective periods, and a product master table stores information on various online products along with their respective category definitions. Based on the category master table, a product search screen generation unit produces product search screen data containing a set of categories whose effective periods include the present date. Receiving the product search screen data from the mall server, the customer terminal displays a product search screen including a category selection menu to provide the customer with a list of selectable categories. The customer issues a search request after selecting one category from the list. A product searching unit searches the product master table for the products that fall under the selected category. The customer terminal displays a product list screen upon receipt of the product list screen data from the mall server.