Content providing/obtaining system

• US 9,495,678 B2
• Filed: 11/17/2008
• Issued: 11/15/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Fukushima, Osamu, Fujii, Hajime, Ozaki, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Hewitt, II, Calvin L
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sherr, Christina
• Application Number:
  US12/272,709
• Publication Number:
  US 20090083081A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,920 Days
• Field of Search: 705 50- 59
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0253 During e-commerce, i.e. online transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0281 Customer communication at a business location, e.g. providing product or service information, consulting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0645 Rental transactions; Leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting

Abstract

A content providing apparatus previously receives customer identification information and content identification information as customer reservation information via a terminal device, and sends customer desired content data corresponding to the content identification information to a content obtaining apparatus, to provide a customer with the customer desired content data via the content obtaining apparatus more easily, thus making it possible to significantly improve the usability of a content obtaining/providing system. In addition, a content providing server sends three-dimensional images to a portable dedicated terminal in response to a preview request sent from the portable dedicated terminal, and then sends commercial data corresponding to a preview request sent according to the display state of the three-dimensional images to reproduce it, to make the customer view and preview the content to allow the customer to accurately judge whether the content meets his/her taste, thus making it possible to select content data lightheartedly.

Claims

1. A content obtaining apparatus for obtaining content data provided by a content providing apparatus and reserved by a customer for purchase or rental, the content obtaining apparatus comprising:

image requesting means configured to generate an image request and to send the image request to the content providing apparatus;

response image receiving means configured to receive a plurality of response images created in accordance with the image request;

image display means configured to display the plurality of response images to the customer;

customer response image selection means configured to receive from the customer a selection of one or more images of the plurality of response images;

preview request means configured to send to the content providing apparatus a preview request corresponding to the one or more images of the plurality of response images selected by the customer;

preview data receiving means configured to receive from the content providing apparatus preview data corresponding to the preview request;

preview display means configured to display to the customer the preview data;

customer preview data selection means configured to receive from the customer a preview data selection in accordance with a selection made by the customer of the preview data indicating customer desired content data to be reserved for the customer;

data reservation means configured to send to the content providing apparatus customer request data corresponding to the preview data selection;

interface means configured to access said content providing apparatus only, and further configured to receive from said content providing apparatus the customer desired content data;

content data recording means for recording said customer desired content data on a storage medium; and

reproducing/outputting means for reproducing and outputting said customer desired content data from said storage medium.

2. The content obtaining apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said storage means is built in the content obtaining apparatus.

3. The content obtaining apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said content obtaining apparatus is a portable device.

4. The content obtaining apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said interface means is further configured to receive, along with said customer desired content data, rental period information indicating a rental period of said customer desired content data, and wherein said reproducing/outputting means is configured to prevent reproducing said customer desired content data when said rental period expires.

5. A content obtaining method for obtaining content data provided by a content providing apparatus and reserved by a customer for purchase or rental, the content obtaining method comprising:

generating an image request;

send the image request to the content providing apparatus;

receiving a plurality of response images created in accordance with the image request;

displaying the plurality of response images to the customer;

receiving from the customer a selection of one or more images of the plurality of response images;

sending to the content providing apparatus a preview request corresponding to the one or more images of the plurality of response images selected by the customer;

receiving from content providing apparatus preview data corresponding to the preview request;

displaying to the customer the preview data;

receiving from the customer a preview data selection in accordance with a selection made by the customer of the preview data indicating customer desired content data to be reserved for the customer;

sending to the content providing apparatus customer request data corresponding to the preview data selection;

receiving from said content providing apparatus, via interface means configured to access said content providing apparatus only, the customer desired content data;

recording said customer desired content data on a storage medium; and

reproducing and outputting said customer desired content data via a reproducing/outputting means.

6. The content obtaining method according to claim 5, wherein said interface means and said storage medium are built in a content obtaining apparatus.

7. The content obtaining method according to claim 6, wherein said content obtaining apparatus is a portable device.

8. The content obtaining method according to claim 5 further comprising:

receiving, along with said customer desired content data, rental period information indicating a rental period of said customer desired content data; and

preventing reproduction of said customer desired content data when said rental period expires.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium encoded with instructions, that when executed by a content obtaining apparatus, cause the content obtaining apparatus to execute the following steps:

generating an image request;

sending the image request to the content providing apparatus;

receiving a plurality of response images created in accordance with the image request;

displaying the plurality of response images to the customer;

receiving from a customer a selection of one or more images of the plurality of response images;

sending to the content providing apparatus a preview request corresponding to the one or more images of the plurality of response images selected by the customer;

receiving from the content providing apparatus preview data corresponding to the preview request;

displaying to the customer the preview data;

receiving from the customer a preview data selection in accordance with a selection made by the customer of the preview data indicating customer desired content data to be reserved for the customer;

sending to the content providing apparatus customer request data corresponding to the preview data selection;

receiving from the content providing apparatus, via interface means configured to access said content providing apparatus only, the customer desired content data;

recording said customer desired content data on a storage medium; and

reproducing and outputting said customer desired content data.

10. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 9, wherein said interface means and said storage medium are built in a content obtaining apparatus.

11. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 10, wherein said content obtaining apparatus is a portable device.

12. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 9, wherein the content obtaining program further comprises:

receiving, along with said customer desired content data, rental period information indicating a rental period of said customer desired content data; and

preventing reproduction of said customer desired content data when said rental period expires.