Data-providing system, transmission server, data terminal, apparatus, authoring apparatus and data-providing method

• US 7,913,276 B2
• Filed: 04/08/2005
• Issued: 03/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/1999
• Status: Expired

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Hirayama, Tomoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Koenig; Andrew Y
• Assistant Examiner(s): TESFAYE, AKLIL M
• Application Number:
  US11/101,583
• Publication Number:
  US 20050182845A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,174 Days
• Field of Search: 725/46, 725/1, 725/5, 725/8, 725/9, 725/22, 725 32- 36, 705/14, 705/54
• US Class Current: 725/36
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 26/124 Details of the optical system between the light source and the polygonal mirror G02B26/123, G02B26/127 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/10 Arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or the distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/04 Studio equipment; Interconnection of studios
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2543 Billing , e.g. for subscription services payment schemes, architectures or protocols G06Q20/00; e-commerce G06Q30/00; arrangements for billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/21
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25883 being end-user demographical data, e.g. age, family status or address arrangements for identifying locations of users in broadcast systems H04H60/52
• 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 21/44016 involving splicing one content stream with another content stream, e.g. for substituting a video clip
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/442 Monitoring of processes or resources, e.g. detecting the failure of a recording device, monitoring the downstream bandwidth, the number of times a movie has been viewed, the storage space available from the internal hard disk arrangements for monitoring broadcast services or broadcast-related services H04H60/29; arrangements for identifying or recognising characteristics with a direct linkage to broadcast information H04H60/35; monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; monitoring in wireless networks H04W24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/458 Scheduling content for creating a personalised stream, e.g. by combining a locally stored advertisement with an incoming stream; Updating operations, e.g. for OS modules ; time-related management operations arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or during the distribution H04H20/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8456 by decomposing the content in the time domain, e.g. in time segments
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/165 Centralised control of user terminal subsequent to an upstream request signal H04N7/17345; Registering at central by two-way working H04N7/17309

Abstract

A data-providing system comprising a first data-transmitting section (control unit 1), a control section (control unit 3), and a second data-transmitting section (control unit 3). The first data-transmitting section transmits a continuous stream of content data that consists of multimedia content groups, each composed of program data and auxiliary data items. The control section processes data items obtained by dividing each program data, attribute data of the auxiliary data items and user profile data, thereby to automatically assemble new data. The second data-transmitting section changes the order in which to transmit the auxiliary data items inserted in a program, in accordance with the new data assembled by the control section.

Claims

1. A data-providing system comprising:

a first data-transmitting unit configured to transmit a continuous stream of content data that includes multimedia content groups having program data and auxiliary data items including pricing, equivalent conditions and available cue positions in a time-code of the program data;

a control unit configured to assemble new data in accordance with the pricing, equivalent conditions, available cue positions, user profile data, and data items obtained by dividing the program data;

a second data-transmitting unit configured to select the auxiliary data items to be inserted into the program data in accordance with the new data, and configured to transmit another continuous stream of content data that includes multimedia content groups having the program data and the selected auxiliary data items; and

a charge-settling unit configured to tabulate and transmit charge-settlement data, and configured to tabulate and transmit a plurality of payment shares to be paid to content suppliers, the charge-settlement data and payment shares being based on the program data transmitted and the auxiliary data selected.

2. The data-providing system according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary data includes at least one of advertisement data, answers to questions presented in the program data, special offers and a questionnaire.

3. The data-providing system according to claim 1, wherein multimedia content groups included in the other continuous stream of content data are assembled by interleaving the program data and the selected auxiliary data items according to a transmission list associating each of the auxiliary data items to one of the available cue positions.

4. The data-providing system according to claim 3, wherein the second data-transmitting unit transmits program data during an available cue position not associated to any of the auxiliary data items in the transmission list.

5. A data-providing system comprising:

a first data-transmitting unit configured to transmit a continuous stream of content data that includes multimedia content groups having pre-assembled program data and auxiliary data items including pricing, equivalent condition and available cue positions in a time-code of the program data;

a control unit configured to assemble new data in accordance with the pricing, equivalent conditions, available cue positions, and data items obtained by dividing the program data;

a second data-transmitting unit configured to select the auxiliary data items to be inserted into the program data in accordance with the new data, and configured to transmit another continuous stream of data; and

a charge-settling unit configured to tabulate and transmit charge-settlement data, and configured to tabulate and transmit a plurality of payment shares to be paid to content suppliers, the charge-settlement data and payment shares being based on the program data transmitted and the auxiliary data selected.

6. The data-providing system according to claim 5, wherein the auxiliary data includes at least one of advertisement data, answers to questions presented in the program data, special offers and a questionnaire.

7. A transmission server, comprising:

a processing unit configured to assemble new data by processing attribute data of the auxiliary data items received with program data, user profile data, and data items obtained by dividing the program data, the attribute data including pricing, equivalent conditions and available cue positions in a time-code of the program data;

a selection unit configured to select a group of auxiliary data items to be inserted into the program data, in accordance with the new data;

a transmitter configured to transmit a stream of the group of auxiliary data items; and

a charge-calculating unit configured to calculate a plurality of payment shares to be transferred among a plurality of content providers, the payment shares being based on the auxiliary data items selected and the program data transmitted.

8. The transmission server according to claim 7, wherein in response to a request made by a terminal unit, advantages and disadvantages are determined from a user price of a program and the advantages and disadvantages of the auxiliary data items inserted in the program, and the advantages and disadvantages are transmitted to the terminal unit, said advantages and disadvantages corresponding to a service charge billed when the program is transmitted together with the auxiliary data items selected.

9. The data-providing system according to claim 7, wherein the auxiliary data includes at least one of advertisement data, answers to questions presented in the program data, special offers and a questionnaire.

10. A data terminal apparatus, comprising:

a receiving unit configured to receive a stream of on-demand programs transmitted from a transmission server;

a selection unit configured to select a set of auxiliary data items to be inserted into a program, the auxiliary data items being selected based on attributes of the auxiliary data items, user profile data, and data items obtained by dividing received program data, the attributes including pricing, equivalent conditions and available cue positions in a time-code of the program, the attributes being received with the program data;

a transmitting unit configured to transmit a signal representing the selected set of auxiliary data items and a terminal code of the terminal section; and

a charge-settling unit configured to display a received charge-settlement statement, and configured to perform charge-settling in accordance with the received charge-settlement statement, the charge-settlement statement corresponding to program data transmitted and auxiliary data items selected.

11. The data terminal apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising:

a requesting unit configured to request, from the transmission server, the advantages and disadvantages of a set of auxiliary data items that are selectable upon a selection of a program, and configured to display the advantages and disadvantages transmitted from the transmission server.

12. The data-providing system according to claim 10, wherein the auxiliary data includes at least one of advertisement data, answers to questions presented in the program data, special offers and a questionnaire.

13. An authoring apparatus, comprising:

a first registration unit configured to register, store and transmit program prices for viewing programs on a terminal apparatus, the program prices being viewable on a display connected to the terminal apparatus;

a second registration unit configured to register, store and transmit supplier-side equivalent conditions;

a position designating unit configured to designate time-code positions at which to insert auxiliary data items into a program;

a data designating unit configured to designate auxiliary data items to be inserted into a program in accordance with the supplier-side equivalent conditions, the auxiliary data being from auxiliary data libraries;

a transmission list generating unit configured to generate a transmission list including an order in which to transmit the auxiliary data items prepared for a program.

14. The authoring apparatus according to claim 13, wherein groups of auxiliary data items to be inserted into a program are designated from the plurality of auxiliary data libraries.

15. The authoring apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising:

a third registering unit configured to register, store and transmit advantages and disadvantages to transmitting a series of auxiliary data items designated in at least one auxiliary data transmission list.

16. The authoring apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising:

a third registering unit configured to register, store and transmit payment shares to be paid among suppliers when the auxiliary data items in the auxiliary data transmission list are transmitted and the supplier-side equivalent conditions are met.

17. The data-providing system according to claim 13, wherein the auxiliary data includes at least one of advertisement data, answers to questions presented in the program data, special offers and a questionnaire.

18. A data-providing method comprising the steps of:

transmitting a continuous stream of content data that includes multimedia content groups having program data and auxiliary data items including pricing, equivalent condition and available cue positions in a time-code of the program data;

assembling new data by processing the pricing, equivalent conditions, available cue positions, user profile data, and data items obtained by dividing each program data

selecting a group of auxiliary data items to be inserted into the program data in accordance with the new data;

transmitting another continuous stream of content data that include multimedia content groups having program data and the selected auxiliary data items;

tabulating and transmitting charge-settlement data in accordance with the program data transmitted and the selected auxiliary data; and

tabulating and transmitting a plurality of payment shares to be paid to content suppliers in accordance with the program data transmitted and the selected auxiliary data.

19. The data-providing system according to claim 18, wherein the auxiliary data includes at least one of advertisement data, answers to questions presented in the program data, special offers and a questionnaire.