Digital contents watching method and its system

• US 20020165987A1
• Filed: 04/09/2002
• Published: 11/07/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/27/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Arisaka, Takeshi, Okayama, Nobuya, Namioka, Miyoko, Arai, Tatsuro, Koike, Hiroshi
• Application Number:
  US10/119,989
• Publication Number:
  US 20020165987A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/246
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/613 for the control of the source by the destination control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components specially adapted for selective content distribution H04N21/637
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/762 at the source reformatting of additional data in video distribution servers H04N21/2355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

The invention provides a personalized playback continuation system for digital content that allows continuation of content playback even when the user is at a different location or a different playback terminal. For each user, a server manages a personal playback action history, e.g., which content was played back up to which point. If playback is interrupted, playback continuation information for the content at that point in time is sent from the playback terminal device to the server and stored in the personal playback action history. When an interrupted content playback is resumed, the server uses the personal playback action history and the content information describing the properties of the content to generate playback start information, which is sent to the playback terminal. If the terminal type of the playback terminal does not match the content type of the digital content indicated by the content identifier, the content is converted to match the terminal type of the playback terminal, and playback continuation information associated with the converted content is generated.

Claims

1. In a digital content server, a method for delivering digital content to a terminal device, the method comprising:

receiving digital content identification information;

receiving terminal device information relating to said terminal device;

identifying specific digital content based on said digital content identification information;

obtaining digital content presentation capability information based on said terminal device information;

based on said digital content presentation capability information, determining whether said terminal device is capable of presenting said specific digital content to a user; and

if said specific digital content can be presented by said terminal device, then delivering said specific digital content to said terminal device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of delivering includes converting said specific digital content to produce converted specific digital content that is suitable for said terminal device.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein said converting includes ignoring one or more portions of said specific digital content.

4. The method of claim 1 further including receiving digital content delivery control information, and in response thereto altering delivery of said specific digital content in accordance with said digital content delivery control information.

5. A method for delivering digital content from a server system to a terminal device comprising:

receiving user identification information;

receiving digital content identification information;

receiving a terminal identification information which specifies a first terminal device;

identifying specific digital content based on said digital content information;

accessing position indication information based on said user identification information;

delivering said specific digital content to said first terminal device beginning from a starting position in said specific digital content indicated by said position indication, wherein said start position can be other than the beginning of the said specific digital content;

receiving a request to terminate delivery of said specific digital content;

if a portion of said specific digital content remains to be delivered to said first terminal device at the time of receiving said request, then modifying said position indication to indicate the beginning of said portion of said specific digital content,

whereby delivery of said portion of said specific digital content can resume at another time.

6. The method of claim 5 further including, subsequent to said receiving a request to terminate, receiving a second terminal identification information which identifies a second terminal device different from said first terminal device, delivering some or all of said portion of said specific digital content to said second terminal.

7. A method for delivering digital content comprising:

receiving a user identification, said user identifier having associated therewith position indication information;

receiving a terminal identifier;

receiving a digital content identifier;

accessing specific digital content at a first location depending on said position indication information;

determining if said specific digital content can be presented by a terminal device corresponding to said terminal identifier;

if said specific digital content can be presented by said terminal device, then delivering said specific digital content beginning from said first location;

receiving a request to terminate delivery of said specific digital content; and

in response to said request, updating said position indication information to indicate a second location in said specific digital content, said second location being the beginning of an undelivered portion of said specific digital content,

whereby said undelivered portion of said specific digital content can be delivered at a later time.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein said step of delivering includes converting said specific digital content to produce converted specific digital content that is suitable for said terminal device.

9. The method of claim 7 further including receiving digital content delivery control information, and in response thereto altering delivery of said specific digital content in accordance with said digital content delivery control information.

10. The method of claim 7 further including receiving a second terminal identifier corresponding to a second terminal device different from said terminal device and delivering at least some of said undelivered portion of said specific digital content to said second terminal device if said specific digital content can be presented by said second terminal device.

11. A digital content server comprising:

means for receiving user identification information and digital content identification information;

means for producing a position indication using said user identification information;

means for accessing specific digital content identified by said digital content identification information;

means for delivering said specific digital content to a terminal device, beginning from a location based on said position indication information;

means for receiving a request;

means for updating said position indication in response to receiving a request to terminate delivery of said specific digital content, wherein said position indication is represents the beginning of a remaining portion of said specific digital content that has not been delivered to said terminal device.

13. The device of claim 12 wherein said digital content access module includes a remote access module operable to access at least one remote data store to access digital content that is not locally stored.

14. The device of claim 12 further including a conversion module to convert said specific digital content to produce converted specific digital content that is suitable for said terminal device.

15. The device of claim 12 wherein said delivery module, in response to receiving delivery control information, is operable to alter the delivery of said specific digital content in accordance with said delivery control information.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein said delivery module is operable to deliver at least a portion of said untransmitted portion to a second terminal device different from said terminal device in response to receiving a second terminal device identification information which identifies said second terminal device.

18. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein said digital content access module includes a remote access module operable to access at least one remote data store to access digital content that is not locally stored.

19. The apparatus of claim 16 further including a conversion module to convert said specific digital content to produce converted specific digital content that is suitable for said terminal device.

20. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein said delivery module, in response to receiving delivery control information, is operable to alter the delivery of said specific digital content in accordance with said delivery control information.

12. A device for delivering digital content comprising:

a communication module to transmit and receive information;

a digital content access module to access digital content, said digital content access module operable to access specific digital content in response to receiving digital content identification information; and

a delivery module coupled to receive digital content from said digital content access module and to selectively transmit said specific digital content via said communication module,

said delivery module, in response to receiving terminal device identification information, being operable to determine whether said specific digital content can be presented by a terminal device identified by said terminal device identification information,

said delivery module, in response to determining that said terminal device can present said specific digital content, being operable to deliver said specific digital content to said terminal device.

16. A system for delivering digital content comprising:

a communication module to transmit and receive information;

a digital content access module to access digital content, said digital content access module operable to access specific digital content in response to receiving user identification information and digital content identification information; and

a delivery module coupled to receive digital content from said digital content access module and to transmit said specific digital content via said communication module,

said delivery module, in response to receiving terminal device identification information, being operable to transmit said specific digital content to a terminal device identified by said terminal device identification information, said specific digital content being transmitted starting at a first location determined by position information associated with said user identification information,

said delivery module, in response to receiving a pause request, being operable to change said position indication to indicate a second location which is the beginning of an untransmitted portion of said specific digital content,

whereby subsequent transmission of said untransmitted portion of said specific digital content can resume at said second location.