Receiver for digital broadcast programs in accordance with receiver profile, and billing method therefor

• US 20040062395A1
• Filed: 09/15/2003
• Published: 04/01/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/18/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Yamada, Isamu, Shiotsu, Shinichi, Kondou, Youichi
• Application Number:
  US10/661,529
• Publication Number:
  US 20040062395A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 380/210
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25435 involving characteristics of content or additional data, e.g. video resolution or the amount of advertising
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4143 embedded in a Personal Computer [PC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4181 for conditional access
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42684 Client identification by a unique number or address, e.g. serial number, MAC address, socket ID network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming H04L61/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44204 Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; protecting generic digital content where the protection is independent of the precise nature of the content G06F21/10; arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services in broadcast systems H04H60/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44222 Analytics of user selections, e.g. selection of programs or purchase activity monitoring of user selections in data processing systems G06F11/34; arrangements for monitoring the user's behaviour or opinions in broadcast systems H04H60/33
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4623 Processing of entitlement messages, e.g. ECM [Entitlement Control Message] or EMM [Entitlement Management Message] arrangements for conditional access to broadcast information or to broadcast-related services H04H60/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4627 Rights management associated to the content security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6582 Data stored in the client, e.g. viewing habits, hardware capabilities, credit card number arrangements where receivers interact with the broadcast H04H20/38

Abstract

A receiver includes decoder means for decoding an audio and/or video data stream of a received digital broadcast program; and processor means for storing an identification code of the received digital broadcast program and a profile representative of quality of the decoded audio and/or video data stream.

Claims

1. A receiver comprising:

decoder means for decoding an audio and/or video data stream of a received digital broadcast program; and

processor means for storing an identification code of said received digital broadcast program and a profile representative of quality of said decoded audio and/or video data stream.

2. The receiver according to claim 1, further comprising means for transmitting, to another apparatus, both of said identification code of said received digital broadcast program and said profile which are stored in said processor means.

3. The receiver according to claim 1, further comprising

demodulator means for demodulating a digital signal of said received digital broadcast program;

and

descrambler means for descrambling said demodulated digital signal to produce said audio and/or video data stream.

4. The receiver according to claim 1, wherein said profile includes description of a resolution or frame rate of a reproduced picture.

5. The receiver according to claim 1, wherein said profile includes description of stereo, monaural, or 5.1 channel of a reproduced sound.

12. The receiver according to claim 1, wherein said processor means is provided in a smart card disposed within said receiver.

6. A receiver comprising:

processor means for storing a predetermined profile representative of quality of an audio and/or video data stream;

descrambler means for descrambling a digital signal of a received digital broadcast program to produce an audio and/or video data stream; and

decoder means for decoding said produced audio and/or video data stream in accordance with said predetermined profile;

said processor means further storing an identification code of said received digital broadcast program.

7. The receiver according to claim 6, further comprising means for transmitting, to another apparatus, both of said identification code of said received digital broadcast program and said profile which are stored in said processing means.

8. The receiver according to claim 6, wherein, when said produced audio and/or video data stream is decoded, said processor means stores other profile data representative of actual quality of said decoded audio and/or video data stream.

9. A receiver comprising:

processor means for storing a predetermined profile representative of quality of an audio and/or video data stream;

descrambler means for descrambling a digital signal of a received digital broadcast program to produce an audio and/or video data stream; and

decoder means for decoding said produced audio and/or video data stream in accordance with an actually available profile, when it cannot be decoded in accordance with said predetermined profile;

said processor means storing an identification code of said received digital broadcast program and another profile representative of actual quality of an audio and/or video signal decoded by said decoder means.

10. The receiver according to claim 9, further comprising means for transmitting, to another apparatus, both of said identification code of said received digital broadcast program and said profile which are stored in said processor means.

11. The receiver according to claim 9, wherein, when said decoder means decodes said produced audio and/or video data stream in accordance with said predetermined profile, said processor means allows said descrambler means to perform the descrambling.

13. An apparatus comprising billing means, said billing means receiving both of an identification code of a digital broadcast program reproduced on a receiver and a profile representative of quality of a reproduced audio and/or video signal of said reproduced digital broadcast program, said billing means calculating a metric of use of said reproduced digital broadcast program in accordance with said profile.

14. A program for a receiver stored on a storage medium, said program being operable to execute the steps of:

causing an audio and/or video data stream of a received digital broadcast program to be decoded; and

storing an identification code of said received digital broadcast program and a profile representative of quality of said decoded audio and/or video data stream.

15. A program for a receiver stored on a storage medium, said program being operable to execute the steps of:

causing a digital signal of a received digital broadcast program to be descrambled to produce an audio and/or video data stream;

causing said produced audio and/or video data stream to be decoded in accordance with a predetermined profile representative of quality of an audio and/or video data stream; and

storing an identification code of said digital broadcast program, and a predetermined profile representative of quality of said produced audio and/or video data stream.

16. The program according to claim 15, being operable to further execute the step of causing both of said stored identification code of said received digital broadcast program and said profile to be transmitted to another apparatus.

17. The program according to claim 15, being operable to further execute the step of storing other profile data representative of actual quality of said decoded audio and/or video data stream, when said produced audio and/or video data stream is decoded.

18. A program for a receiver stored on a storage medium, said program being operable to execute the steps of:

causing a digital signal of a received digital broadcast program to be descrambled to produce an audio and/or video data stream;

causing said produced audio and/or video data stream to be decoded in accordance with an actually available profile, when it cannot be decoded in accordance with a predetermined profile representative of quality of an audio and/or video data stream; and

storing an identification code of said digital broadcast program, and another profile representative of actual quality of said decoded audio and/or video signal.

19. The program according to claim 18, being operable to further execute the step of transmitting, to another apparatus, both of said stored identification code of said received digital broadcast program and said profile.

20. A program for a receiver stored on a storage medium, said program being operable to execute the steps of:

causing a digital signal of a received digital broadcast program to be descrambled to produce an audio and/or video data stream; and

causing said produced audio and/or video data stream to be decoded in accordance with a predetermined profile representative of quality of an audio and/or video data stream.

21. A program for a receiver stored on a storage medium, said program being operable to execute the steps of:

receiving both of an identification code of a digital broadcast program reproduced on a receiver and a profile representative of quality of a reproduced audio and/or video signal of said reproduced digital broadcast program; and

calculating a metric of use of said reproduced digital broadcast program in accordance with said profile.

22. In an information processing apparatus, a method for calculating charges for reproduced digital broadcast programs, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving both of an identification code of a digital broadcast program reproduced on a receiver and a profile representative of quality of a reproduced audio and/or video signal of said reproduced digital broadcast program; and

calculating a metric of use of said reproduced digital broadcast program in accordance with said profile.