Digital broadcast system and its component devices that provide services in accordance with a broadcast watched by viewers

• US 7,194,758 B1
• Filed: 04/28/2000
• Issued: 03/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Shimoji, Tatsuya, Haruna, Shusuke, Waki, Hiroyuki, Yoshida, Chikara
• Primary Examiner(s): Kelley; Chris
• Assistant Examiner(s): Raman; Usha
• Application Number:
  US09/561,207
• Time in Patent Office: 2,517 Days
• Field of Search: 725/8, 725 9- 21, 725 22- 24, 725/31, 725/133, 725/141, 725/153, 725/106, 725/121, 725/122, 725/86, 725/87, 725/104
• US Class Current: 725/141
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/33 Arrangements for monitoring the users' behaviour or opinions
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/41 for identifying broadcast space, i.e. broadcast channels, broadcast stations or broadcast areas
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4345 Extraction or processing of SI, e.g. extracting service information from an MPEG stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47211 for requesting pay-per-view content payment schemes payment architectures or payment protocols G06Q20/00, G07F
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4758 for providing answers, e.g. voting
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6181 involving transmission via a mobile phone network arrangements for providing broadcast or conference services to substation in data switching networks in combination with wireless systems H04L12/189; wireless uplink channel access H04W74/004
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

A digital broadcast system includes a receiving device, one or more communication devices, and a broadcast station device. The receiving device includes a receiver for receiving a digitally broadcast program; a presentor for presenting the program received by the receiver to a viewer; and means for sending program ID information that specifies either the presented program or a program related to the presented program. Each of the communication devices receives the sent program ID information and sends communication device ID information to the broadcast station device together with the received program ID information. The broadcast station device receives the program ID information and the device ID information, and sends viewer targeted program specific service information to each of the communication devices identified by the received device ID information.

Claims

1. A digital broadcast system, comprising:

a receiving device, one or more communication devices, and a broadcast station device, wherein

control instructing information is multiplexed with a program,

(i) the receiving device includes;

receiving means for receiving a digital broadcast of a program together with the multiplexed control instructing information;

presenting means for presenting the program received by the receiving means to a viewer; and

program ID information sending means for sending program ID (identification) information that specifies either the presented program or a program related to the presented program to each of the communication devices when having detected the control instructing information, the program ID information sending means sends the program ID information by transmitting either an IR (infrared) signal or a radio wave whose output is 1.0 mW or lower,

wherein the receiving means includes a demultiplexer for demultiplexing the multiplexed control instruction information, and sends the demultiplexed control instructing information to the program ID information sending means,

(ii) each of the communication devices receives the sent program ID information and sends device ID information that specifies the communication device to the broadcast station device together with the received program ID information,

(iii) the broadcast station device includes;

service processing means for receiving the program ID information and the device ID information from each of the communication devices, and sending service information, which is for the viewer of the presented program and is information related to the program specified by the program ID information, to each of the communication devices specified by the device ID information,

(iv) each of the communication devices further includes;

service information receiving means for receiving the service information,

(v) each of the communication devices is a portable phone and includes;

program ID information receiving means for receiving the sent program ID information;

target phone number storage means for storing a phone number of the broadcast station device;

own phone number storage means for storing a phone number of the communication device as the device ID information; and

transmission means for telephoning the phone number stored by the target phone number storage means and sending the program ID information and the phone number stored by the own phone number storage means to the broadcast station device via a telephone line,

(vi) the service information receiving means also informs the viewer about the received service information, and

(vii) the service processing means telephones the sent phone number of each of the communication devices and sends a message for informing the viewer as the service information via a telephone line.

2. The digital broadcast system of claim 1, wherein

the program ID information is additionally multiplexed with the program,

the receiving means also receives the program ID information, and

the program ID information sending means sends the program ID information that has been received by the receiving means.

3. The digital broadcast system of claim 1, wherein

each of the communication devices also sends, to the broadcast station device, playback time information showing a time at which the presenting means presented the program, and

the service information sent to the communication device is about a service based on the sent playback time information.

4. The digital broadcast system of claim 1, wherein

the program presented by the presenting means is a commercial advertising another program, and the sent program ID information is used for specifying the advertised program,

each of the communication devices sends a phone number of the communication device as the device ID information together with the received program ID information to the broadcast station device when receiving a predetermined operation from the viewer, and

the service processing means telephones the sent phone number of the communication device, and sends the service information which informs the viewer of a broadcast starting time for the program specified by the program ID information via a telephone line.

5. A digital broadcast system, comprising:

a receiving device, one or more communication devices, and a broadcast station device, including means for multiplexing control instructing information with a program,

(i) the receiving device includes;

receiving means for receiving a digital broadcast of a program together with the multiplexed control instructing information;

presenting means for presenting the program received by the receiving means to a viewer; and

program ID information sending means for sending program ID (identification) information that specifies either the presented program or a program related to the presented program to each of the communication devices when having detected the control instructing information, the program ID information sending means sends the program ID information by transmitting either an IR (infrared) signal or a radio wave whose output is 1.0 mW or lower,

wherein the receiving means includes a demultiplexer for demultiplexing the multiplexed control instruction information, and sends the demultiplexed control instructing information to the program ID information sending means,

(ii) each of the communication devices receives the sent program ID information and sends device ID information that specifies the communication device to the broadcast station device together with the received program ID information,

(iii) the broadcast station device includes;

service processing means for receiving the program ID information and the device ID information from each of the communication devices, and sending service information, which is for the viewer of the presented program and is information related to the program specified by the program ID information, to each of the communication devices specified by the device ID information,

(iv) each of the communication devices further includes service information receiving means for receiving the service information,

(v) each of the communication devices is a portable phone and includes;

program ID information receiving means for receiving and storing the sent program ID information,

target phone number storage means for storing a phone number of the broadcast station device;

a phone number storage means for storing a phone number of the communication device as the device ID information;

(vi) generating means for automatically attaching the device ID information to the program ID information as transmission data, when the viewer enters a response to the program;

(vii) transmission means for telephoning the phone number stored by the target phone number storage means and sending the transmission data including the device ID information and the program ID information to the broadcast station device via a telephone line,

(viii) the service information receiving means also informs the viewer about the received service information, and

(ix) the service processing means telephones the sent phone number of each of the communication devices and sends a message for informing the viewer as the service information via a telephone line.