INFORMATION PROCESSOR, INFORMATION PROCESSING METHOD AND PROGRAM

• US 20120084824A1
• Filed: 09/22/2011
• Published: 04/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Saturn Licensing LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kitazato, Naohisa
• Granted Patent: US 8,875,204 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/97
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/38 Arrangements for distribution where lower stations, e.g. receivers, interact with the broadcast
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/93 which locates resources of other pieces of information, e.g. URL [Uniform Resource Locator]
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/13 Arrangements for device control affected by the broadcast information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2358 for generating different versions, e.g. for different recipient devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2665 Gathering content from different sources, e.g. Internet and satellite
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4358 for generating different versions, e.g. for different peripheral devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4725 using interactive regions of the image, e.g. hot spots details of information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/854 Content authoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02

Abstract

An information processor includes: a content acquisition section adapted to acquire linked content that includes a plurality of scenarios, each made up of content data and control information used to control the reproduction of the content data; a control information acquisition section adapted to acquire the control information; and a reproduction control section adapted to control the reproduction of the linked content by reproducing the content data according to the control information, wherein the control information acquisition section acquires, as an event adapted to allow a move from the current scenario to another scenario, the control information including an absolute time-of-day event that occurs at a specific date and time on the scenario time axis, and the reproduction control section allows a move from the current scenario to another scenario if the absolute time-of-day event occurs.

Claims

1. An information processor comprising:

a content acquisition section adapted to acquire linked content that includes a plurality of scenarios, each made up of content data and control information used to control the reproduction of the content data;

a control information acquisition section adapted to acquire the control information; and

a reproduction control section adapted to control the reproduction of the linked content by reproducing the content data according to the control information, wherein

the control information acquisition section acquires, as an event adapted to allow a move from the current scenario to another scenario, the control information including an absolute time-of-day event that occurs at a specific date and time on the scenario time axis, and

the reproduction control section allows a move from the current scenario to another scenario if the absolute time-of-day event occurs.

2. The information processor of claim 1, wherein

the control information acquisition section acquires, as the event, the control information including the absolute time-of-day event that occurs only in a time event in a predetermined time frame delimited by start and end points on the scenario time axis, and

the reproduction control section allows a move from the current scenario to another scenario if the absolute time-of-day event occurs in the predetermined time frame.

3. The information processor of claim 2 further comprising:

a reception section adapted to receive broadcast content that is broadcast via a broadcasting network; and

a display control section adapted to switch content used to display another scenario, to which a move is made from the current scenario, from the linked content to the broadcast content if the absolute time-of-day event occurs.

4. The information processor of claim 3, wherein

the control information acquisition section acquires the control information including information used to identify the broadcast content, and

the display control section displays the broadcast content received according to the control information.

5. The information processor of claim 2, wherein

the reproduction control section forcefully causes a move from the current scenario to another scenario if the absolute time-of-day event occurs.

6. The information processor of claim 2, wherein

the reproduction control section causes a move from the current scenario to another scenario if the absolute time-of-day event occurs and if so instructed by the user operation.

7. An information processing method comprising:

an information processor acquiring linked content that includes a plurality of scenarios, each made up of content data and control information used to control the reproduction of the content data;

the information processor acquiring the control information;

the information processor controlling the reproduction of the linked content by reproducing the content data according to the control information;

the information processor acquiring, as an event adapted to allow a move from the current scenario to another, the control information including an absolute time-of-day event that occurs at a specific date and time on the scenario time axis; and

the information processor allowing a move from the current scenario to another scenario if the absolute time-of-day event occurs.

8. A program for controlling an information processor, the program causing a computer of the information processor to perform:

acquiring linked content that includes a plurality of scenarios, each made up of content data and control information used to control the reproduction of the content data;

acquiring the control information;

controlling the reproduction of the linked content by reproducing the content data according to the control information;

acquiring, as an event adapted to allow a move from the current scenario to another, the control information including an absolute time-of-day event that occurs at a specific date and time on the scenario time axis; and

allowing a move from the current scenario to another scenario if the absolute time-of-day event occurs.