JP2006197001A - Terminal apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make television viewing and listening livery activities, by realizing communication among those who are watching the identical TV program. <P>SOLUTION: When a user of a telephony terminal 300a turns on a television, the controller 310 of the telephony terminal 300a transmits a user ID, a password, and the program information of television program to a matching server 200. When the matching server 200 receives these, the matching server 200 retrieves records coincident with the program information from a user setting database DB 221. "Telephone number information" stored in the retrieved records B is transmitted to the telephony terminal 300a. The telephony terminal 300a makes a voice speech connection with a telephony terminal 300b by using the received "telephone number information". <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for linking broadcasting such as television and radio and a call through a telecommunication line.

  Exchange information such as “chat” and “bulletin board” on the Internet for the purpose of communication such as information exchange between viewers of TV programs and radio programs There is a site. Communication by this information exchange site is realized by a user actively searching and accessing the Internet.

  On the other hand, the following technologies are disclosed for the purpose of communication between viewers by linking broadcasting such as television and radio with a communication network such as the Internet. When a broadcasting device that performs digital broadcasting digitally broadcasts a broadcast course, the additional information is multiplexed with the content of the broadcast course and is digitally broadcast. This additional information includes a password for accessing a site (hereinafter referred to as a community site) provided as a community place related to the contents of the broadcast course. The viewer of the broadcast course uses this password to access the community site. Thereby, communication between viewers of the same program can be realized on this community site (Patent Document 1).

JP 2004-220169 A

In order to communicate using information exchange sites such as “chat” and “bulletin board” and community sites described in Patent Document 1, it is necessary for viewers of broadcast programs to actively access sites on the Internet. is there. That is, viewers of the same program cannot automatically communicate with each other.
Also, in order for a specific person to communicate at the information exchange site at the same time, it cannot be realized unless a large number of users actively want to communicate with the person who is watching this program. It was difficult to realize only in specific programs that were collected.
In addition, the community site described in Patent Document 1 can only be realized in a specific program in which additional information is multiplexed on the broadcast content. In addition, it is necessary to incorporate a function for multiplexing additional information on the broadcasting device side.

  In view of the above-described conventional problems, the object of the present invention is to link a broadcast program such as a television or radio and a communication network without adding special information to the broadcast information for any broadcast program. An object of the present invention is to provide a terminal device that can automatically realize communication between viewers of the program.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a storage means for storing a terminal identifier for identifying the terminal apparatus, an acquisition means for acquiring a program identifier for identifying a broadcast program, the terminal identifier, and the program identifier. Transmitting means for transmitting to a server device specified in advance via a communication network, receiving means for receiving a terminal identifier of another terminal transmitted from the server device via the communication network, and There is provided a terminal device including call connection means for connecting a voice call or a videophone call to a terminal device specified by a terminal identifier.
Further, in a preferred aspect of the present invention, the transmission means transmits user information indicating predetermined information of a user of the terminal device, the terminal identifier, and the program identifier to a server device specified in advance. Send over a communication network.

The present invention also provides an acquisition means for acquiring a program identifier for identifying a broadcast program, the program identifier, a local terminal identifier for identifying the local terminal device, and another terminal for identifying another terminal device connected to a communication network. Storage means for storing an identifier; and transmission means for transmitting the program identifier and the own terminal identifier to a terminal device corresponding to the other terminal identifier stored in the storage means via a communication network; Receiving means for receiving the program identifier and the other terminal identifier transmitted from another terminal device via a communication network, and receiving the program identifier and the other terminal identifier are stored in the storage means. A determination means for determining whether or not the program identifier and the received program identifier match; and when the determination means determines that they match, Provided to other terminal apparatus specified by the received another terminal identifier, a call connection means for connecting a voice call or videophone call, a terminal device provided with a.
In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the terminal identifier is a telephone number or an IP address.

(1) First Embodiment (1-1) Configuration FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a communication system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, the Internet 100 is a network using TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) / IP (Internet Protocol) as a standard protocol. A matching server (server device) 200 and a plurality of telephone terminals (four telephone terminals 300a, 300b, 300c, and 300d in FIG. 1) are connected to the Internet 100. In FIG. 1, four telephone terminals are illustrated, but it goes without saying that the number of telephone terminals included in the communication system is not limited to four. In the following description, when it is not necessary to distinguish each of the telephone terminals 300a, 300b, 300c, and 300d, they are simply referred to as “telephone terminals 300”.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the matching server 200. In the figure, reference numeral 210 denotes a control unit including an arithmetic device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and various memories such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory). The control unit 210 controls the operation of each unit of the matching server 200 according to the control program PRG 221 stored in the storage unit 220. Each component described below operates under the control of the control unit 210.

  230 is a communication interface for communicating with the telephone terminal 300. The matching server 200 is connected to the network via the communication interface 230. Reference numeral 240 denotes a display unit such as a liquid crystal display, which displays an image based on data supplied by the control unit 210. An operation unit 250 such as a keyboard or a mouse supplies a signal corresponding to the operation content of the user to the control unit 210.

  A user setting database DB 221 is stored in the nonvolatile area of the storage unit 220. The user setting database DB 221 is an aggregate of a plurality of records each corresponding to one user setting information. This user setting information is information set by the user of the telephone terminal 300, and is data that is referred to when matching processing, which is a feature of the present embodiment, is performed. This matching process will be described in detail later. When receiving the user setting information from the telephone terminal 300 via the communication interface 230, the control unit 210 stores the received user setting information in the user setting database DB 221.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a data structure of the user setting database DB 221. As shown in the figure, one record constituting this database includes “user ID”, “password”, “phone number information”, “connection destination list”, “connection upper limit number of people”, “program information”, and “connection information”. 7 fields. The “user ID” field stores a user identifier assigned to each user in order to identify the user of the telephone terminal 300. In the “password” field, a password character string set by each user to authenticate the user is stored. In the “phone number information” field, a terminal identifier for identifying the telephone terminal 300 such as a telephone number or an IP address of the telephone terminal 300 is stored. In the following description, this terminal identifier is referred to as “telephone number information” for the sake of brevity. In the “connection destination list” field, a list of “telephone number information” of the partner terminal that the user wants to make a voice call connection is stored. If “telephone number information” is not stored in this list, it is considered that a connection is desired to an arbitrary telephone terminal 300. In the “upper limit number of connections” field, a numerical value indicating the upper limit number of users that the user desires when making a multipoint telephone call connection is stored. In the “program information” field, a program identifier for identifying a television program being viewed by the user of the telephone terminal 300 is stored. In the “connection information” field, data indicating whether or not the internet connection of the telephone terminal 300 is connectable (connectable / not connectable) is stored. If the connection is possible, information indicating the connection state (not connected / connected at one point / connected at two points, etc.) is stored. In the following description, for convenience of explanation, information other than “program information” in the user setting information is collectively referred to as “user basic information”, and information on “user ID”, “password”, and “program information” is summarized. This is referred to as “user matching information”.

  Next, the configuration of the telephone terminal 300 will be described. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the telephone terminal 300. The telephone terminal 300 is a personal computer, for example. In the figure, reference numeral 310 denotes a control unit including an arithmetic device such as a CPU and various memories such as a ROM and a RAM. The control unit 310 controls the operation of each unit of the telephone terminal 300 according to the control program PRG321 stored in the storage unit 320. Each component described below operates under the control of the control unit 310.

  Reference numeral 330 denotes a communication interface for communicating with other telephone terminals 300 and the matching server 200. The telephone terminal 300 is connected to the network via the communication interface 330. Reference numeral 390 denotes a user interface for the user to perform various operations. The user interface 390 includes a display unit 340, an operation unit 350, and a voice input / output unit 360.

  The voice input / output unit 360 includes a microphone, a speaker, a voice CODEC, and the like. The voice input / output unit 360 delivers voice data corresponding to the voice collected by the microphone to the control unit 310, while voice corresponding to the voice data delivered from the control unit 310 is received. Reproduce. Reference numeral 370 denotes a television antenna that receives a broadcast signal from a television relay station (not shown). Reference numeral 380 denotes a television tuner that selects an arbitrary broadcast station signal from broadcast signals received by the television antenna 370.

  A user ID 322 and a password 323 are stored in the nonvolatile area of the storage unit 320. The control unit 310 stores the user ID 322 and the password 323 input from the operation unit 350 by the user in the storage unit 320. These data are data transmitted to the matching server 200 for user authentication.

  FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration of processing performed by the control unit 310. When the control unit 310 executes the control program stored in the storage unit 320, each unit illustrated in FIG. 5 is logically realized.

  Reference numeral 10 denotes a television function unit that separates an audio signal from a broadcast signal selected by the television tuner 380 and outputs the separated audio signal to the audio input / output unit 360 and outputs the video signal to the display unit 340. In addition, the television function unit 10 performs control such as channel change, broadcast signal output start and output end, and the like based on a command input from the operation unit 350.

  Reference numeral 11 denotes an Internet telephone unit that performs voice calls with a plurality of other terminals via the Internet. When an instruction to connect to the Internet telephone is input from the operation unit 350, the Internet telephone unit 11 establishes an Internet telephone connection with the destination telephone terminal 300 via the communication interface 330. In addition, the Internet telephone unit 11 transmits “connection information” indicating a connection state to the matching server 200 via the communication interface 330. When the connection is established, the Internet telephone unit 11 converts the audio signal input from the audio input / output unit 360 into digital data, and transmits the converted digital data to the counterpart terminal via the communication interface 330. In addition, digital data of the counterpart terminal is received via the communication interface 330, converted into a voice signal, and output to the voice input / output unit 360. When a command for disconnecting the connection is input from the operation unit 350, the Internet telephone unit 11 disconnects the Internet telephone connection with the partner terminal via the communication interface 330.

  Reference numeral 12 denotes a matching information transmitting unit that transmits program information indicating a TV broadcast program output from the TV function unit 10 to the matching server 200. When a user inputs a command such as a television channel change, an output start or an output end using the operation unit 350, the TV function unit 10 performs control based on the input command and also receives a TV broadcast being received. The matching information transmitting unit 12 is notified of program information indicating the program. When the program information is notified, the matching information transmitting unit 12 reads the user ID 322 and the password 323 from the storage unit 320, and sends the “user matching information” (program information, the user ID 322 and the password 323) via the communication interface 330. Transmit to matching server 200.

  An automatic telephone connection unit 13 notifies the Internet telephone unit 11 of an Internet telephone connection instruction when “phone number information” of another terminal is received from the matching server 200. When the connection instruction is notified, the Internet telephone unit 11 makes an Internet telephone connection to the notified telephone terminal 300 via the communication interface 330.

(1-2) Operation Next, the operation of this communication system will be described. In this operation, the matching server 200 searches the user setting database DB 221 for a telephone terminal (telephone terminal 300b) receiving the same TV program as a certain telephone terminal (telephone terminal 300a), and the telephone terminal 300a This makes it possible to make an Internet telephone call between the searched telephone terminals 300b.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation sequence of the communication system according to the present embodiment. A series of operations of this communication system will be described with reference to this figure. This operation is roughly divided into a user basic information registration operation B100 and a matching operation B200.

  First, the user basic information registration operation B100 will be described. This operation is started when the user of the telephone terminal 300a (or telephone terminal 300b) inputs “user basic information” to the telephone terminal 300a (or telephone terminal 300b) using the operation unit 350. When “user basic information” is input by the operation unit 350 of the telephone terminal 300a, the control unit 310 of the telephone terminal 300a transmits “user basic information” to the matching server 200 via the communication interface 330 (S100). The matching server 200 registers the received “user basic information” in the user setting database DB 221 (S101).

  The control unit 310 of the telephone terminal 300b also transmits the communication “user basic information” to the matching server 200 in the same manner as the telephone terminal 300a (S110). The matching server 200 registers the received “user basic information” in the user setting database DB 221 (S111). Note that the above-described operations of the telephone terminal 300a and the telephone terminal 300b are in no particular order, and the telephone terminal 300b can perform the “user basic information” registration operation before the telephone terminal 300a.

  Next, the matching operation B200 will be described. Here, the operation when the user of the telephone terminal 300b starts watching a certain program first, and then the user of the telephone terminal 300a starts watching the same program will be described.

  This operation is started by the user of the telephone terminal 300b using the operation unit 350 to start receiving a television broadcast or changing a channel. The TV function unit 10 of the telephone terminal 300 performs control based on a command input from the operation unit 350 and notifies the matching information transmission unit 12 of program information. When the program information is notified, the matching information transmission unit 12 reads the user ID 322 and the password 323 from the storage unit 320 and transmits “user matching information” including these to the matching server 200 via the communication interface 330. (S200). When the “user matching information” is received, the matching server 200 searches the user setting database DB 221 for a record with a matching user ID, and registers program information in the record (S201). Then, a record with matching program information is searched from the user setting database DB 221 (S202).

  Here, details of the processing (S201 and S202) of the control unit 210 of the matching server 200 in this operation will be described below. For convenience of explanation, the operations of step S201 and step S202 are collectively referred to as “matching process”. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the matching process of the matching server 200. This operation is started when the matching server 200 receives “user matching information” via the communication interface 230, as shown in FIG. Here, a user who uses the telephone terminal 300 that has transmitted “user matching information” will be described as “user A”, and a record in which user A user setting information is stored will be described as “record A”.

  First, the control unit 210 of the matching server 200 searches the user setting database DB 221 for a record A with a matching user ID, and refers to the record A to determine whether the received combination of user ID and password is correct ( S10). If it is not correct, error information is transmitted to the telephone terminal 300, and the process is terminated (S11). If it is correct, the received program information is registered in the record A (S12). Then, a record in which program information that matches the received program information is stored is searched from the user setting database DB 221 (S13). Here, it is determined whether or not there is a record that matches the program information (S14). If there is no record, the process is terminated as it is, and otherwise the process proceeds to the next process.

  In the present embodiment, considering the case where a plurality of records are searched, the priority order is determined based on the user setting information of each record, thereby determining the optimal telephone terminal 300 as the connection destination. Specifically, with respect to the user setting information of each record, a score (point) serving as a criterion for determining the priority order is calculated, and the telephone terminal 300 corresponding to the record having the highest point is optimal as the connection destination. Is determined. First, “connection information” is read from the retrieved record (hereinafter referred to as record B), and it is determined whether or not the telephone terminal 300 (hereinafter referred to as terminal B) indicated by the record B is connectable (S15). If the connection is possible, the “connection upper limit number of people” is read out from the record B, and whether or not the number of terminals currently connected to the terminal B is less than the upper limit number of people compared with the “connection information” read out earlier. Is determined (S16). If it is less than the upper limit, 1 point is added (S17). Next, the “connection destination list” of the record B is read, and it is determined whether or not the “phone number information” of the user A is included in the list (S18). If it is included, 1 point is added (S19). Thereafter, the above-described calculation process is performed for all the retrieved records, whereby each point is determined for each record. On the other hand, if “NO” is determined in steps S16 and S18, the process proceeds to the point calculation process of the next record (record of another terminal) without increasing the points.

  When the points of all the retrieved records are calculated, the records are sorted so as to be in the calculated point order (S20). Then, it is determined whether or not the points of all retrieved records are zero (S21). If it is impossible to connect or if the number of people already connected is equal to the upper limit, no points will be added. That is, when the points of all the retrieved records are zero, it means that there is no telephone terminal 300 that can be connected. In that case, the process is terminated as it is. In other cases, the “telephone number information” stored in the record having the largest point is transmitted to the terminal A (S22). The matching process is performed as described above.

  Returning to the description of FIG. In the above-described matching process (S201 and S202), the user setting database DB221 of the matching server 200 does not register user setting information that matches the program information received from the telephone terminal 300b. In step S14, it is determined that there is no record that matches the program information, and the process ends.

  Next, when the user of the telephone terminal 300a starts receiving television broadcasting using the operation unit 350 or changes the television channel, the television function unit 10 receives a program being received from the matching information transmitting unit 12. Notify information. The matching information transmitting unit 12 transmits “user matching information” including program information to the matching server 200 via the communication interface 330 (S210). The matching server 200 registers the received program information in the user setting database DB 221 (S211). Then, a record with matching program information is searched from the user setting database DB 221 (step S212). Here, since the telephone terminal 300b receives the same program as the telephone terminal 300a, the user information of the telephone terminal 300b is searched.

  Here, as shown in step S22 of FIG. 7, the control unit 210 of the matching server 200 transmits the “telephone number information” of the telephone terminal 300b to the telephone terminal 300a (S213).

  The automatic telephone connection unit 13 of the telephone terminal 300a notifies the Internet telephone unit 11 together with the Internet telephone connection instruction and the received “phone number information”. The internet telephone section 11 performs internet telephone connection processing for the telephone terminal 300b using the notified "phone number information" (S214). Then, the telephone terminal 300b also performs a connection process (S215), whereby the telephone terminal 300a and the telephone terminal 300b are automatically connected for a call.

  Through the above processing, the user of the telephone terminal 300a and the user of the telephone terminal 300b who are watching the same program can automatically make a voice call without performing any special operation on the telephone terminal 300. In addition, since the present invention can be implemented for any TV program, communication by voice call is realized not by a limited number of viewers watching a specific program but by an unspecified number of viewers. be able to. That is, even if the user does not actively want to talk to the person who is watching this program, the user can communicate with a large number of people by voice calls only by using the telephone terminal 300. This makes it possible to virtually create a situation where people gather on TV programs, for example, so that people gather in interesting places in the city, and can make TV viewing lively.

  In addition, the user simply installs predetermined software (a computer program for realizing the functions of the matching information transmission unit 12 and the automatic telephone connection unit 13) on a terminal such as a personal computer that has been used in the past. A voice call can be automatically made without any modification. It is not necessary to add special additional information to broadcast information for a broadcast apparatus that broadcasts television.

In FIG. 7, the value of the points to be added need not be limited to a single point, and the value of the points to be added may be changed for each condition. For example, if one point is added in step S17 of FIG. 7 and two points are added in step S19, the telephone terminal 300 to be connected can be determined with emphasis on the determination content of step S18. In this way, by appropriately setting the manner of giving points, it is possible to arbitrarily set what conditions are prioritized.
In the above embodiment, only the operation of the two terminals of the telephone terminal 300a and the telephone terminal 300b has been described. Of course, three or more telephone terminals can be used, and in that case, The same operation as described above is performed.

  6, the “telephone number information” of the telephone terminal 300b is transmitted to the telephone terminal 300a. However, the transmission destination of the “telephone number information” is not limited to this. For example, The “telephone number information” of the telephone terminal 300a may be transmitted to the telephone terminal 300b. Also in this case, when the telephone terminal 300b makes a voice call connection to the telephone terminal 300a, the telephone terminal 300a and the telephone terminal 300b can be automatically connected by voice call.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the desired connection partner is specified by setting “phone number information” in the “connection destination list” of the user setting information, but the method of specifying the connection partner is not limited to this, For example, a list of user IDs may be used. The user setting information may be provided with a “profile” field such as the user's age, sex, region, and the like, and a desired connection partner may be specified by specifying the type of the profile. In addition, a group name of users belonging to a predetermined community may be provided in advance, and the group name may be designated.

  It is also possible to provide a field indicating user information regarding the TV program to be viewed in the user setting information. For example, in the case of a soccer program, information such as whether to support “home” or “away” can be set, and the matching server 200 calculates the points of the retrieved records (step in FIG. 7). From S15 to S19), points may be calculated with reference to this information.

  By allowing the user to set the type and profile of the connection partner, the matching server 200 can search for a more appropriate connection partner and realize more comfortable communication.

  In this embodiment, the “user basic information” is transmitted to the matching server 200 using the telephone terminal 300a and the telephone terminal 300b. However, any means can be used as long as the “user basic information” can be transmitted to the matching server 200. It is also possible to register from another personal computer or a mobile phone terminal.

Also, the Internet telephone connection form used in the above embodiment may be a P2P (Peer to Peer) system, or may be via a dedicated server. The call connection format between the telephone terminals 300 may be any type. For example, an IP telephone using a unique IP communication network in a communication carrier as a midway network, or a public switched telephone network (PSTN: Public Switched Telephone Networks) may also be used.
In addition, a mobile phone may be used as the telephone terminal 300 to make a call connection using a mobile telephone network.

  Further, when the telephone terminals 300 make an Internet telephone connection, a telephone call connection may be made via a proxy server so that the “phone number information” can be connected without publishing. Specifically, a field of “telephone number disclosure setting” is provided in the user setting database DB 221 and information (public / non-public) indicating whether or not the user discloses his / her “telephone number information” to the connection destination is stored. Keep it. When the matching server 200 receiving the matching information from the telephone terminal 300a performs matching processing and searches for the telephone terminal 300b receiving the same program, the “telephone number disclosure setting” is set from the record of the telephone terminal 300b. refer. When a value indicating “public” is set in this field, the same processing as in the first embodiment is performed. When a value indicating “private” is set, matching server 200 transmits “telephone number information” of telephone terminal 300a and telephone terminal 300b to the proxy server.

  By connecting through the proxy server, the user of the telephone terminal 300 does not set “phone number information” to be connected to the “connection destination list”, for example, and any telephone terminal registered in the matching server 200 Even when a voice call connection is made to 300, communication by voice call can be realized without disclosing its own “phone number information”.

(2) Second Embodiment Subsequently, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.
This embodiment is different from the first embodiment described above in that the matching server 200 is not used and that the matching process performed by the matching server 200 is performed on the telephone terminal 300 side. Accordingly, the storage contents of data stored in the storage unit 320 and the processing operation of the control unit 310 are different, but the components and approximate processing of the telephone terminal 300 are the same as those in the first embodiment. Therefore, the following description will be made mainly on the differences from the first embodiment described above, and the same components and processes as those in the first embodiment will be given the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted as appropriate. .

  FIG. 8 shows an overall configuration diagram of a communication system according to the present embodiment. This communication system is different from that shown in FIG. 1 in that the matching server 200 is not connected to the Internet 100, and other configurations are the same as those in FIG.

  FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the telephone terminal 300. The telephone terminal 300 is different from that shown in FIG. 4 in that a telephone directory database DB321, program information 324, and telephone number information 325 are stored in a nonvolatile area of the storage unit 320, and a user ID 322 and a password 323 are stored. It is a point which is not memorize | stored, and a structure other than that is the same as that of FIG.

  The phone book database DB 321 is an aggregate of a plurality of “phone number information”. The telephone directory database DB 321 stores a terminal identifier for identifying the telephone terminal 300 such as a telephone number or an IP address. The telephone number information 325 stores a terminal identifier indicating the own terminal device.

  FIG. 10 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration of processing performed by the control unit 310 of the telephone terminal 300. In the figure, the TV function unit 10 and the Internet telephone unit 11 are the same as those shown in FIG. The automatic telephone connection unit 13 is different from that shown in FIG. 5 in that “phone number information” of the connection destination is received not from the communication interface 330 but from the matching unit 14 described later.

  11 and 12 are flowcharts showing the processing performed by the matching unit 14. The processing of the matching unit 14 will be described with reference to these drawings. In the processing shown in FIG. 11, the user of the telephone terminal 300 uses the operation unit 350 to start watching TV broadcast or changes the channel, so that the TV function unit 10 notifies the matching unit 14 of program information. Be started by. When the program information is notified from the television function unit 10, the matching unit 14 stores the received program information in the storage unit 320 (S30). Then, with reference to the telephone directory database DB321, the program information and its own "phone number information" are transmitted to the registered telephone terminal 300 via the communication interface 330 (S31). Then, it is monitored whether or not the channel has been changed (S32). If the channel has been changed, the processing from step S30 to step S32 is performed again.

  Next, the process of FIG. 12 will be described. When the matching unit 14 of the telephone terminal 300 receives the program information and the “telephone number information” (S40), it reads the program information from its own storage unit 320 and determines whether the program information matches (S41). . If the program information matches, the received “telephone number information” is notified to the automatic telephone connection unit 13, and the automatic telephone connection unit 13 notifies the Internet telephone unit 11 of an Internet telephone connection instruction. The internet telephone section 11 performs internet telephone connection processing using the notified “phone number information” (S42). As a result, the terminals that are viewing the same program are automatically connected by telephone.

Next, an operation example between the four telephone terminals 300, that is, the telephone terminals 300a, 300b, 300c, and 300d will be described as an example of the call connection of the present embodiment. Here, “telephone number information” of the telephone terminal 300b is stored in the telephone directory database DB321 of the telephone terminal 300a, and “telephone number information” of the telephone terminal 300a is stored in the telephone directory database DB321 of the telephone terminals 300c and 300d. The case will be described.
In FIG. 13, first, it is assumed that the user of the telephone terminal 300a starts watching a television broadcast using the operation unit 350 or changes the channel. The matching unit 14 of the telephone terminal 300a transmits the program information and its own “telephone number information” to the telephone terminal 300b (S50). When the user of the telephone terminal 300b is viewing the same program as the telephone terminal 300a, the telephone terminal 300b performs Internet telephone connection processing on the telephone terminal 300a (S51). As a result, the telephone terminal 300a and the telephone terminal 300b are automatically connected by telephone.
Next, it is assumed that the user of the telephone terminal 300c starts to watch the same program as the telephone terminals 300a and 300b. The matching unit 14 of the telephone terminal 300c transmits the program information and its own “phone number information” to the telephone terminal 300a (S52). When the telephone terminal 300a receives this, the telephone terminal 300c performs telephone connection processing (S53), thereby establishing a multipoint call connection between the telephone terminals 300a, 300b and 300c. Next, when the user of the telephone terminal 300d starts to watch the same program as the telephone terminal 300a, the telephone terminal 300a performs telephone connection processing on the telephone terminal 300d in the same manner as described above (S54). , S55), a multipoint call connection is established between the telephone terminals 300a, 300b, 300c, and 300d.

  As shown in the operation example of the telephone terminal 300a described above, the telephone terminal 300 transmits program information and “telephone number information”, and the other party's telephone terminal 300 makes a call connection, Program information may be received from the telephone terminal 300 and the telephone terminal 300 may perform call connection processing. In any case, if the telephone terminal 300 has both the function on the transmission side (function to perform the process shown in FIG. 11) and the function on the reception side (function to perform the process shown in FIG. 12). Can be connected to each other and can be connected to each other between a large number of unspecified telephone terminals.

  In the case of this embodiment, the matching server 200 is not necessary, and communication is automatically performed only by installing predetermined software (a computer program for realizing the functions of the matching unit 14 and the automatic telephone connection unit 13) in each telephone terminal 300. Can be realized.

<Modification>
As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to embodiment mentioned above, It can implement with another various form. An example is shown below.
(Modification 1)
In the first and second embodiments described above, the telephone terminal 300 having a TV function and an Internet telephone function is used. However, the TV receiver and the telephone terminal may be separate. FIG. 14 is an overall configuration diagram of a communication system according to a modification of the present embodiment. Note that this configuration is different from the above-described embodiment in that the television receiver and the telephone terminal are separated. Accordingly, the same reference numerals are used for the same components and processes as those in the above-described embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted.

  In FIG. 14, reference numeral 300b denotes a user environment in which a television receiver 301b and a telephone terminal 302b are separated. The television receiver 301b includes a television antenna and a television tuner, receives a television broadcast, and outputs it to a display unit (not shown). Further, the television receiver 301b outputs a signal indicating the program information being received using radio waves (Bluetooth, etc.). The telephone terminal 302b receives a signal output from the television receiver 301b, and performs matching information transmission processing or matching processing using the reception of this signal as a trigger.

  Thereby, even in the case of the telephone terminal 300 such as a personal computer not provided with the TV antenna 370, the TV tuner 380, etc., the voice call connection can be automatically performed.

(Modification 2)
In the above modification, the user may input program information using the operation unit 350 of the telephone terminal 300. Thus, even when the television receiver 301 that does not have the function of outputting program information is used, the user can watch the same program without adding functions or remodeling to the conventional television receiver 301. A voice call connection can be automatically established with the user.

(Modification 3)
In addition, the television receiver, the communication terminal, and the telephone terminal may be separate. In FIG. 14, reference numeral 300c denotes a user environment in which a television receiver 301c, a telephone terminal 302c, and a communication terminal 303c such as a personal computer are separated. A telephone line network 500 such as a public switched telephone network (PSTN) is connected to the Internet 100 via a predetermined gateway 600. Thus, the user can realize communication by voice call with other users without adding functions or modifying the existing television receiver 301c, telephone terminal 302c, or the like.

(Modification 4)
In the first embodiment, the volume of a voice call may be changed using user setting information. For example, for a soccer watching program, additional information “home” or “away” is registered in the matching server 200 or the telephone terminal 300. When a voice call connection is made between a plurality of users who are watching the soccer watching program, the volume of the user who has registered information that matches the additional information registered by the user is increased, Reduce user volume. Thereby, the user can enjoy a television program as if watching a game with a user who supports the same team.
In addition, when a television broadcast is digitally broadcast, it may be captured by a plurality of cameras so that the call volume changes in synchronization with the movement of the screen. For example, for a soccer watching program, additional information “home” or “away” is registered in the matching server 200 or the telephone terminal 300. The broadcasting device shoots a game with two cameras that shoot from the “home” side and the “away” side, selects a camera according to the game situation, and digitally broadcasts the video of the selected camera. When a voice call connection is established between a plurality of users who are watching the soccer watching program, the telephone terminal 300 acquires information on the camera (which camera image is being broadcast), for example, “Home When the video of the “side” camera is broadcast, the volume of the user who has selected “Home” as the additional information is increased, and the volume of the other users is decreased. Thereby, the user can watch a television broadcast while obtaining a sense of reality as if watching a game on a stadium.
(Modification 5)
Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the telephone call between telephone terminals 300 was made into the voice call, the telephone call form is not limited to this, A video telephone call may be sufficient. Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the television broadcast and the internet were linked, it is also possible to use a radio broadcast etc. besides a television broadcast. In the above embodiment, when the telephone terminal 300 receives the “phone number information” from the matching server 200, the connection is automatically made. However, the connection confirmation screen is displayed on the display unit 340 of the telephone terminal 300, and the connection is made. The user may be able to select whether or not to do so.
Note that a matching operation is performed by using, as a trigger, a user to input a command for changing a TV channel using the operation unit 350 by using a mobile phone having a TV remote control function for the telephone terminal 302b shown in FIG. May be.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of a communication system according to a first embodiment. It is a hardware block diagram of a matching server. It is a data structure figure of a user setting database. It is a hardware block diagram of a telephone terminal. It is a block diagram which shows the function structure of a telephone terminal. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement sequence of a communication system. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of a matching server. It is a whole communication system lineblock diagram concerning a 2nd embodiment. It is a hardware block diagram of a telephone terminal. It is a block diagram which shows the function structure of a telephone terminal. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of a telephone terminal. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of a telephone terminal. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement of the whole communication system. It is a whole block diagram of the communication system which concerns on a modification.

Explanation of symbols

200 ... matching server (server device), 300 ... telephone terminal (terminal device), 210 ... control unit, 310 ... control unit, 220, 320 ... storage unit, 230, 330 ... communication interface, 240, 340 ... display unit, 250 , 350 ... operation unit.

Claims (4)

Storage means for storing a terminal identifier for identifying the terminal apparatus;
Obtaining means for obtaining a program identifier for identifying a broadcast program;
Transmitting means for transmitting the terminal identifier and the program identifier to a server device specified in advance via a communication network;
Receiving means for receiving a terminal identifier of another terminal transmitted from the server device via a communication network;
A call connection means for connecting a voice call or a videophone call to the terminal device specified by the received terminal identifier;
A terminal device comprising:   The transmission means transmits user information indicating predetermined information of a user of the terminal device, the terminal identifier, and the program identifier to a server device specified in advance via a communication network. The terminal device described. Obtaining means for obtaining a program identifier for identifying a broadcast program;
Storage means for storing the program identifier, a self-terminal identifier for identifying the self-terminal device, and another terminal identifier for identifying another terminal device connected to a communication network;
Transmitting means for transmitting the program identifier and the own terminal identifier to a terminal device corresponding to the other terminal identifier stored in the storage means via a communication network;
Receiving means for receiving the program identifier and the other terminal identifier transmitted from another terminal device via a communication network;
Determining means for determining whether the program identifier stored in the storage means matches the received program identifier when receiving the program identifier and the other terminal identifier;
If it is determined by the determination means that the calls match, the call connection means for connecting a voice call or a videophone call to the other terminal device specified by the other terminal identifier received by the receiving means;
A terminal device comprising:   The terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the terminal identifier is a telephone number or an IP address.

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