Broadcast program processing apparatus, computer system, broadcast program evaluation system, and computer program

• US 7,913,271 B2
• Filed: 05/10/2002
• Issued: 03/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Saturn Licensing LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Nakajima, Yasuhisa, Endo, Kohei
• Primary Examiner(s): Kelley; Christopher
• Assistant Examiner(s): Shepard; Justin E
• Application Number:
  US10/477,071
• Publication Number:
  US 20040221325A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,238 Days
• Field of Search: 725/24
• US Class Current: 725/24
• 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: H04H 60/74 using programme related information, e.g. title, composer or interpreter
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/81 characterised by the transmission system itself
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/252 Processing of multiple end-users' preferences to derive collaborative data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4112 having fewer capabilities than the client, e.g. thin client having less processing power or no tuning capabilities
• 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 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4263 involving specific tuning arrangements, e.g. two tuners
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4438 Window management, e.g. event handling following interaction with the user interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4756 for rating content, e.g. scoring a recommended movie
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/488 Data services, e.g. news ticker systems specially adapted for using meteorological information in broadcast systems H04H60/71
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6131 involving transmission via a mobile phone network wireless downlink channel access H04W74/006
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/445 for displaying additional information H04N5/50 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/781 on disks or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/9305 involving the mixing of the reproduced video signal with a non-recorded signal, e.g. a text signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

A broadcast program processing apparatus that enables a user to acquire evaluation data provided by others who have already watched a broadcast program when the user intends to play back the recorded broadcast program. A broadcast program receiving apparatus records the broadcast program. Before playing back the broadcast program, the broadcast program receiving apparatus acquires the evaluation data concerning the broadcast program provided by others using a cell phone unit. The acquired evaluation data is outputted in connection with the recorded broadcast program. The user can determine whether he or she wants to watch the broadcast program with reference to the evaluations made by others.

Claims

1. A broadcast program processing apparatus comprising:

a recording unit for recording a broadcast program;

an acquiring unit for acquiring evaluation data concerning the broadcast program via a network; and

an outputting unit for outputting the acquired evaluation data in connection with the recorded broadcast program,

wherein when the broadcast program processing apparatus transmits evaluation data concerning the broadcast program via the network to a server, an authentication procedure is conducted depending on a connection type between the broadcast program processing apparatus and the server,

wherein when the connection type indicates a connection type of a TV receiver, the authentication is not executed,

wherein when the connection type indicating a connection type of a mobile phone, the authentication procedure is executed,

wherein the acquiring unit receives an evaluation form of the recorded broadcast program via the network, a format of the evaluation form being selected from a PC form or a Cell Phone form according to a type of the broadcast program processing apparatus,

wherein the outputting unit determines whether the recorded broadcast program has been played back and outputs operation buttons with the acquired evaluation data according to a determination result,

wherein when the outputting unit determines that the recorded broadcast program has not been played back, the outputting unit outputs operation buttons relating to playback operations and when the outputting unit determines that the recorded broadcast program has been played back, the outputting unit outputs operation buttons relating to evaluation operations, and wherein a user decides whether to play back the recorded broadcast program based on the outputted evaluation data, utilizing the operation buttons.

2. The broadcast program processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the recording unit stores the broadcast program as digital data in a memory, and

wherein the acquiring unit acquires the evaluation data after transmitting identification information concerning the broadcast program stored in the memory via the network.

3. The broadcast program processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a transmitting unit for transmitting, via the network, evaluation result data concerning the broadcast program after the user watches the broadcast program.

4. A computer system comprising:

acquiring means for acquiring evaluation result data concerning a broadcast program from a plurality of viewers;

compiling means for obtaining evaluation data by compiling the evaluation result data; and

transmitting means for transmitting the evaluation data to a user terminal in response to a request from the user terminal of a user who intends to record and watch the broadcast program,

wherein when a user sends evaluation data concerning the broadcast program to the computer system by using a predetermined apparatus, an authentication procedure is conducted depending on a connection type between the predetermined apparatus and the computer system,

wherein when the connection type indicates a connection type of a TV receiver, the authentication is not executed,

wherein when the connection type indicating a connection type of a mobile phone, the authentication procedure is executed,

wherein the transmitting means transmits an evaluation form of the broadcast program to the user terminal, a format of the evaluation form being selected from a PC form or a Cell Phone form according to a type of the user terminal,

wherein when the transmitting means determines that the recorded broadcast program has not been played back, the transmitting means outputs information of operation buttons relating to playback operations and when the transmitting means determines that the recorded broadcast program has been played back, the transmitting means outputs information of operation buttons relating to evaluation operations, and

wherein the user decides whether to play back a recorded broadcast program based on the evaluation data of the recorded broadcast program, utilizing the operation buttons.

5. The computer system according to claim 4, further comprising identification information acquiring means for acquiring from the user terminal identification information concerning the broadcast program that the user intends to watch,

wherein the transmitting means transmits the evaluation data concerning the broadcast program to the user terminal based on the acquired identification information.

6. The computer system according to claim 4,

wherein the transmitting means periodically transmits the evaluation data concerning a plurality of broadcast programs to the user terminal.

7. An evaluation processing system of a broadcast program, comprising:

a terminal for audio-visually processing a recorded broadcast program; and

a server capable of transmitting to and receiving from the terminal evaluation data concerning the broadcast program,

wherein the server includes;

storing means for storing the evaluation data provided by a viewer concerning the broadcast program; and

server-side transmitting means for transmitting to the terminal the stored evaluation data in response to a request from the terminal, and

wherein the terminal includes;

acquiring means for acquiring the evaluation data from the server; and

outputting means for outputting the acquired evaluation data in connection with identification information concerning the recorded broadcast program,

wherein when the terminal transmits evaluation data concerning the broadcast program via the network to the server, an authentication procedure is conducted depending on a connection type between the terminal and the server,

wherein when the connection type indicates a connection type of a TV receiver, the authentication is not executed,

wherein when the connection type indicating a connection type of a mobile phone, the authentication procedure is executed,

wherein the server-side transmitting means transmits an evaluation form of the recorded broadcast program to the terminal via the network, a format of the evaluation form being selected from a PC form or a Cell Phone form according to a type of the terminal,

wherein when the outputting means determines that the recorded broadcast program has not been played back, the outputting means outputs operation buttons relating to playback operations and when the outputting means determines that the recorded broadcast program has been played back, the outputting means outputs operation buttons relating to evaluation operations, and

wherein a user of the terminal decides whether to play back the recorded broadcast program based on the outputted evaluation data, utilizing the operation buttons.

8. The evaluation processing system of a broadcast program according to claim 7, wherein the terminal further includes:

inputting means for inputting an evaluation result of the broadcast program after the user watches the broadcast program; and

terminal-side transmitting means for transmitting to the server data concerning the inputted evaluation result.

9. The evaluation processing system of a broadcast program according to claim 7,

wherein the server further includes authentication means for authenticating that a user is registered in the server in response to the request from the terminal, and

wherein the evaluation data concerning the broadcast program is transmitted to and received from an authenticated user.

10. The evaluation processing system of a broadcast program according to claim 9,

wherein the server includes customer management means for adding privilege points to information, which is stored in the server, concerning the user of the terminal which has transmitted evaluation result data concerning the broadcast program that has been watched.

11. An evaluation processing method comprising:

a step of acquiring, via the network, evaluation data concerning a broadcast program provided by a viewer; and

a step of outputting the evaluation data corresponding to the broadcast program, together with information identifying the broadcast program,

wherein the acquiring step receives an evaluation form of the broadcast program via the network, a format of the evaluation form being selected from a PC form or a Cell Phone form according to a type of a broadcast program processing apparatus,

wherein when the broadcast program processing apparatus transmits evaluation data concerning the broadcast program via the network to a server, an authentication procedure is conducted depending on a connection type between the broadcast program processing apparatus and the server,

wherein when the connection type indicates a connection type of a TV receiver, the authentication is not executed,

wherein when the connection type indicating a connection type of a mobile phone, the authentication procedure is executed,

wherein the outputting step determines whether the recorded broadcast program has been played back and outputs operation buttons with the acquired evaluation data according to a determination result,

wherein when the outputting step determines that the recorded broadcast program has not been played back, the outputting step outputs operation buttons relating to playback operations and when the outputting step determines that the recorded broadcast program has been played back, the outputting step outputs operation buttons relating to evaluation operations, and

wherein the viewer of the computer system decides whether to play back the recorded broadcast program based on the outputted evaluation data, utilizing the operation buttons.

12. The evaluation processing method according to claim 11,

wherein the information identifying the broadcast program includes title information of the broadcast program.