Information processor, information processing method and program

• US 8,875,204 B2
• Filed: 09/22/2011
• Issued: 10/28/2014
• 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
• Primary Examiner(s): Harold, Jefferey
• Assistant Examiner(s): SANDERS, JUSTIN B
• Application Number:
  US13/239,871
• Publication Number:
  US 20120084824A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,132 Days
• Field of Search: 725/97
• 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 of the plurality of scenarios being 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 associated with one of the plurality of scenarios, the control information identifying another one of the plurality of scenarios to which the one of the plurality of scenarios is linked; and

a reproduction control section adapted to control the reproduction of the linked content by reproducing the content data associated with the one of the plurality of scenarios according to the control information associated with the one of the plurality of scenarios, wherein

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

the reproduction control section allows a move from the one of the plurality of scenarios to the other one of the plurality of scenarios when the absolute time-of-day event occurs.

2. The information processor of claim 1, wherein the circuitry is configured to

acquire, as the event, the control information including a predetermined time frame of the absolute-time-of-day event delimited by start and end points on the scenario time axis, and

allow the move from the one of the plurality of scenarios to the other one of the plurality of scenarios when the absolute time-of-day event occurs in the predetermined time frame.

3. The information processor of claim 2, wherein the circuitry is further configured to

receive television broadcast content that is broadcast via a broadcasting network;

and

switch content used to display the other of the plurality of scenarios, to which the move is made from the one of the plurality of scenarios, from the linked content to the television broadcast content when the absolute time-of-day event occurs.

4. The information processor of claim 3, wherein the circuitry is configured to

acquire the control information, associated with the television broadcast content, including information used to identify the television broadcast content, and

display the television broadcast content received according to the control information associated with the television broadcast content.

5. The information processor of claim 2, wherein the circuitry is configured to forcefully cause the move from the one of the plurality of scenarios to the other one of the plurality of scenarios when the absolute time-of-day event occurs.

6. The information processor of claim 2, wherein the circuitry is configured to cause the move from the one of the plurality of scenarios to the other one of the plurality of scenarios when the absolute time-of-day event occurs and when so instructed by a user operation.

7. A method of an information processor for reproducing linked content, the method comprising:

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

acquiring the control information associated with one of the plurality of scenarios, the control information identifying another one of the plurality of scenarios to which the one of the plurality of scenarios is linked;

controlling, by the information processor, the reproduction of the linked content by reproducing the content data associated with the one of the plurality of scenarios according to the control information associated with the one of the plurality of scenarios;

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

allowing, by the information processor, a move from the one of the plurality of scenarios to the other one of the plurality of scenarios when the absolute time-of-day event occurs.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program for controlling an information processor, the program causing a computer of the information processor to perform the method according to claim 7.

9. An information processor comprising:

circuitry configured to

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

acquire the control information associated with one of the plurality of scenarios, the control information identifying another one of the plurality of scenarios to which the one of the plurality of scenarios is linked,

control the reproduction of the linked content by reproducing the content data associated with the one of the plurality of scenarios according to the control information associated with the one of the plurality of scenarios,

acquire, as an event adapted to allow a move from the one of the plurality of scenarios to the other one of the plurality of scenarios, the control information including an absolute time-of-day event that occurs at a specific date and time on a scenario time axis, and

allow a move from the one of the plurality of scenarios to the other one of the plurality of scenarios when the absolute time-of-day event occurs.

10. The information processor of claim 9, wherein the circuitry is configured to

determine a current time-of-day when the content data associated with the one of the plurality of scenarios is being reproduced according to the control information, and

allow the move from the one of the plurality of scenarios to the other one of the plurality of scenarios when the absolute time-of-day event occurs based on the determined current time-of-day.

11. The information processor of claim 9, wherein the control information including the absolute time-of-day event includes start and end times of the absolute time-of-day event.

12. The information processor of claim 9, wherein the control information associated with the one of the plurality of scenarios includes, and defines, the absolute time-of-day event.