Information providing system, information terminal device, information server device and information providing method

• US 7,124,428 B2
• Filed: 01/18/2001
• Issued: 10/17/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Saturn Licensing LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Hirayama, Tomoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, NGOC K
• Application Number:
  US09/765,085
• Publication Number:
  US 20020083472A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,098 Days
• Field of Search: 725/22, 725/32, 725 34- 35, 725 41- 42, 725/46, 725/50, 725/55, 725/142, 725/47, 725/48, 725/49, 725/36, 725/114, 725/121, 725/131, 725/132, 725/139, 725/140, 725/151, 725/152, 316/1, 316/46, 316/95, 358/908
• US Class Current: 725/114
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/76 Wired systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/09 Arrangements for device control with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time; Arrangements for control of broadcast-related services
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/27 Arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/46 for recognising users' preferences
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2668 Creating a channel for a dedicated end-user group, e.g. insertion of targeted commercials based on end-user profiles information retrieval from the Internet by querying with filtering and personalisation G06F16/9535; arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast H04H20/10; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; adaptation of message content in packet-switching networks H04L51/063
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4147 PVR [Personal Video Recorder] H04N5/76 takes precedence ; arrangements for broadcast with accumulation-type receivers H04H20/40
• 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 21/4516 involving client characteristics, e.g. Set-Top-Box type, software version or amount of memory available
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/454 Content or additional data filtering, e.g. blocking advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only

Abstract

An information providing system allows to intentionally modify the arrangement of clips to be reproduced from that of the first transmission. The program clips and the CM clips obtained by receiving those broadcast are stored in recorded result storage section 11 and rearrangement examining section 15 carries out a processing operation of comparing the attributes of each of the clips and the applicable profile data generated by applicable profile generating section 14. Then, the sequence of reproducing the contents clips is modified on the basis of the result of the processing operation and download operating section 16 downloads the contents clips to be added on an on-demand basis. Then, the final arrangement section 17 rearranges the sequence of reproducing the contents clips including those to be added to set up the final arrangement.

Claims

1. An information providing system comprising:

a transmission server section configured to transmit a continuous stream of contents data of a group of multimedia contents including prearranged combinations of program main body data prepared with sorting information annexed thereto and groups of auxiliary materials;

terminal sections having a function of receiving the continuous stream of contents data transmitted from said transmission server section, a function of recording the program main body data and the auxiliary materials received by it, a function of recording the sorting information annexed to said program main body data and said auxiliary materials and a function of transmitting the sorting information annexed to the program main body data and the auxiliary materials selected by it along with terminal ID information; and

a processing server section configured to detect any change to be made to the auxiliary materials combined with the selected program main body data and, upon detecting such a change, issuing an instruction for the change made to be made to said auxiliary materials to the terminal sections,

wherein said terminal sections are configured to receive the instruction for the change to be made to the auxiliary materials from said processing server section and send, to the processing server section, the conditions for the instruction for the change and an acknowledgment or refusal of the change on the basis of the relationship between attributes of the program main body data and the auxiliary materials and user profile.

2. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein said terminal sections have a function of receiving the instruction for the change to be made to the auxiliary materials from said processing server section and recording the instruction for the change before starting the reproduction of said auxiliary materials.

3. The information providing system according to claim 2, wherein said terminal sections have a function of recording the instruction for the change from said processing server section and reediting the contents data according to the instruction for the change.

4. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein upon detecting the existence of revision assisting materials for the auxiliary materials combined with the program main body data selected by said terminal section according to the sorting information and the terminal ID information transmitted from said terminal section, said processing server section notifies said terminal section of the existence of revision assisting materials and, upon receiving an acknowledgment for reception, sends out the revision assisting materials and the instruction for the revision to said terminal section.

5. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein upon detecting any auxiliary materials to be added to the auxiliary materials combined with the program main body data selected by said terminal section according to the sorting information and the terminal ID information transmitted from said terminal section, said processing server section notifies said terminal section of the auxiliary materials to be added and, upon receiving an acknowledgment for reception, sends out the assisting materials to be added and the instruction for the addition to said terminal section.

6. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein upon detecting any auxiliary materials to be omitted in said terminal section according to the sorting information and the terminal ID information transmitted from said terminal section, said processing server section notifies said terminal section of the auxiliary materials to be omitted and, upon receiving an acknowledgment for reception, sends out the instruction for the omission to said terminal section.

7. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein said processing server section carries out an operation of adding up the contents reproduced at said terminal section according to the sorting information and the terminal ID information transmitted from said terminal section.

8. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein said processing server section carries out an operation of confirming the copying status of the contents reproduced at said terminal section according to the sorting information and the terminal ID information transmitted from said terminal section.

9. The information providing system according to claim 1, further comprising:

an account settlement means for adding up the instructions for changes to be made to the auxiliary materials issued from said processing server section to said terminal section and settling the account according to the result of the adding up operation.

10. An information providing method comprising:

transmitting, from a transmission server section, a continuous stream of contents data of a group of multimedia contents including prearranged combinations of program main body data prepared with sorting information annexed thereto and groups of auxiliary materials;

detecting any change to be made to the auxiliary materials combined with the selected program main body data and, upon detecting such a change, issuing an instruction for the change made to be made to said auxiliary materials to an information terminal wherein said information terminal is made to send back the conditions for the instruction for the change and an acknowledgment or refusal of the change on the basis of the relationship between attributes of the program main body data and the auxiliary materials and user profile has been inserted; and

said information terminal having a function of receiving the continuous stream of contents data transmitted from said transmission server section, recording the program main body data and the auxiliary materials received by it, recording the sorting information annexed to said program main body data and said auxiliary materials and transmitting the sorting information annexed to the selected program main body data and auxiliary materials along with terminal ID information.

11. An information providing method according to claim 10, wherein said information terminal is made to receive the instruction for the change to be made to the auxiliary materials and record the instruction for the change before starting the reproduction of said auxiliary materials.

12. The information providing method according to claim 11, wherein said information terminal is made to reedit the contents data according to the instruction for the change to be made as received from a processing server section and recorded.

13. The information providing method according to claim 10, wherein upon detecting the existence of revision assisting materials for the auxiliary materials combined with the program main body data selected by said information terminal according to the sorting information and the terminal ID information transmitted from said information terminal, said information terminal is notified of the existence of revision assisting materials and, upon receiving an acknowledgment for reception, a request is made to send out the revision assisting materials and the instruction for the revision to said information terminal.

14. The information providing method according to claim 10, wherein upon detecting any auxiliary materials to be added to the auxiliary materials combined with the program main body data selected by said information terminal according to the sorting information and the terminal ID information transmitted from said information terminal, said information terminal is notified of the auxiliary materials to be added and, upon receiving an acknowledgment for reception, the assisting auxiliary materials to be added and the instruction for the addition are sent out to said terminal section.

15. The information providing method according to claim 10, wherein upon detecting any auxiliary materials to be omitted in said information terminal according to the sorting information and the terminal ID information transmitted from said information terminal, said information terminal is notified of the auxiliary materials to be omitted and, upon receiving an acknowledgment for reception, the instruction for the omission is sent out to said terminal section.

16. The information providing method according to claim 10, wherein an operation of adding up the contents reproduced at said terminal section is carried out according to the sorting information and the terminal ID information transmitted from said information terminal.

17. The information providing method according to claim 10, wherein an operation of confirming the copying status of the contents reproduced at said information terminal is carried out according to the sorting information and the terminal ID information transmitted from said information terminal.

18. The information providing method according to claim 10, wherein the instructions for changes to be made to the auxiliary materials are added up and the account is settled according to the result of the adding up operation.