KR101640505B1 - Method and apparatus for providing and using Content Advisory for Internet contents - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for providing and using content viewing restriction information.
A CA information providing method by a CA information server according to the present invention includes: receiving a request for CA information about content from IPTV; Retrieving CA information about the content; And transmitting the detected CA information to the IPTV. According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of using CA information, the method comprising: transmitting a CA information request to a CA information server in IPTV playback of content having no CA information; Receiving CA information from a CA information server; Interpreting the CA information; And applying the CA information.
According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a means for protecting viewers from harmfulness of Internet contents by providing CA information to Internet contents other than contents transmitted by broadcasting stations.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for providing and using content viewing restriction information,

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention relates to viewing restriction of multimedia contents, and more particularly, to generation of viewing restriction information for content scattered on the Internet and use of the information.

In the 21st century, rapid convergence between broadband broadcasting and communication is taking place. The telecom companies are trying to penetrate the market and try to cross the border between communication and broadcasting, and broadcasters are trying to attract the IP-based broadcasting market to their own domain while guarding against this phenomenon.

Regardless of which camp is winning, one thing is clear: now it is very easy to access content on the Internet through TV in the living room. Traditionally, the TV in the center of the living room is a more conservative device than a PC. Generally, PC is used alone, but TV is a device that the whole family watches together. Therefore, contents provided by conventional TV broadcasters are produced through self-censorship, and the age rating is set according to strict standards.

However, when IP TV becomes popular, it is clear that content providers will not only be limited to broadcasting stations but will provide content (eg, UCC) that is directly produced by all users using the Internet, thereby increasing the amount of content that can be viewed through TV . However, the content on the Internet is not censored on its own, the contents are inconsistent, and there is no subject to determine the rating of content restrictions. Therefore, when IPTV becomes popular, the way to block harmful contents on the internet will become an important issue. Since most of the existing restrictions on the parental authority are based on the existing broadcasting environment, a new parental control method is needed in the IP TV era.

FIG. 1 shows a broadcasting stream transmission method according to an Advanced Television System Committee (ATSC), which is one of the standards for terrestrial digital TV broadcasting.

A head-end transmits a transport stream (TS) to a terminal, and one TS is an elementary stream (ES) Consists of. The PMT (Program Map Table) contains information that makes up each unit of service (including one or more events) in the ES. Each PMT is linked to a Content Advisory Descriptor (CA Descriptor), which provides information about the parental rating of the event (eg, parental ratings).

Since the terminal has already set restrictions on the viewing restriction, the terminal compares the viewing restriction information included in the CA descriptor of the PMT of the received TS with the preset viewing restriction information to determine whether or not to permit viewing of the content .

However, the CA information providing method according to the prior art requires a stream generator and can be applied only to a specific type of broadcast (e.g., ATSC) streaming. Therefore, it can not be applied to downloading and playing back arbitrary contents existing on the Internet (for example, IP-based streaming service).

Also, since the CA information according to the prior art is defined as an event unit, the PMT must be continuously updated in order to provide CA information of a finer unit (e.g., frame unit), which may result in overhead to the system.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and an apparatus for solving the problems of the related art and capable of viewing restriction in an efficient and reasonable way when viewing contents on the Internet.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a CA information providing method by a CA information server,

Receiving a request for CA information for content from IPTV;

Retrieving CA information about the content; And

And transmitting the detected CA information to the IPTV.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of using CA information,

In reproducing IPTV contents having no CA information,

Transmitting a CA information request to a CA information server;

Receiving CA information from a CA information server;

Interpreting the CA information; And

And applying the CA information.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a CA information server comprising:

A CA information storage unit for storing CA information;

A content ID analyzing unit for analyzing an ID of content requiring CA information; And

And a CA information search unit for searching the storage unit for obtaining CA information using the content ID in response to a request from the IPTV.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a CA information management system comprising:

Internet providing multimedia contents;

A CA information server for providing CA information on the multimedia contents; And

And an IPTV for controlling content reproduction using the CA information.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer-

Receiving a request for CA information for content from IPTV;

Retrieving CA information about the content; And

And transmitting the CA information detected by the CA information server to the IPTV.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer-

In reproducing IPTV contents having no CA information,

Transmitting a CA information request to a CA information server;

Receiving CA information from a CA information server;

Interpreting the CA information; And

And a method of using CA information including a step of applying CA information to a computer.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a means for protecting viewers from harmfulness of Internet contents by providing CA information to Internet contents other than contents transmitted by broadcasting stations.

According to the present invention, since CA information can be provided for each content frame, it is possible to further restrict the viewing of the content.

Since the present invention uses metadata in XML format, not only conventional CA information can be inserted, but additional viewing restriction information can be provided according to a user's desire, thereby enabling a user-customized viewing restriction (or Content Advisory) .

The present invention can pave the way for creating a new commercial service model that generates and provides CA information on Internet contents.

The present invention suggests the possibility of leading standardization in the field by suggesting a new method of restricting the viewing which can be applied in the future when IPTV is popularized.

1 shows a broadcasting stream transmission method according to an Advanced Television System Committee (ATSC), which is one of conventional standards related to terrestrial digital TV broadcasting.
2 shows a configuration diagram of an IPTV (1) broadcasting system according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing a specific configuration of the CA information server 3 of FIG. 2 according to the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram showing a specific configuration of the IPTV 1 of FIG. 2 according to the present invention.
5 is a flowchart illustrating specific operations of the CA information generation and provision method performed by the CA information server 3 according to the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining a method of using the CA information by the IPTV 1 according to the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a time-series representation of the CA information generation / provision and use method (FIGS. 5 and 6) performed by the IPTV 1 and the CA information server 3 in combination to facilitate understanding.
8 to 11 show various embodiments of the CA information according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Hereinafter, the information on the viewing restriction (or the content advisory information) of the content is abbreviated as "CA information ".

2 shows a configuration diagram of an IPTV (1) broadcasting system according to the present invention.

The IPTV 1 according to the present invention should be understood as a concept including a broadband TV and an IP-TV as a TV broadcasting service based on Internet Protocol.

The IPTV broadcasting system according to the present invention includes an IPTV (1), a CA information server (3), and an Internet (2).

The IPTV 1 can download and play various multimedia contents existing on the Internet 2 as well as a broadcast program multicasted by the IPTV broadcasting station.

The CA information server 3 according to the present invention has a function of generating CA information on various multimedia contents existing on the Internet 2. [ The generated CA information is transmitted to the IPTV 1 according to the request of the IPTV 1. The CA information server 3 is a device physically or logically independent of the IPTV broadcasting station or the manufacturer of the multimedia contents.

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing a specific configuration of the CA information server 3 of FIG. 2 according to the present invention.

The CA information server 3 includes a CA information generating unit 31, a rating determination unit 32, a CA information storing unit 33, a network interface 34, a CA information searching unit 35, and a content ID analyzing unit 36 ). The rating criterion 32 includes information on age restrictions of the parent and other restrictions on viewing.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram showing a specific configuration of the IPTV 1 of FIG. 2 according to the present invention.

The IPTV 1 includes a content ID generation unit 41, a network interface 42, a CA information analysis unit 43, and a CA information application unit 44.

The content ID generation unit 41 according to the present invention generates an identifier unique to each content, and can generate a hash value using the content data.

 The CA information application unit 44 has the preset viewer's aversion information. The dislike information may be a user's own setting, or the IPTV 1 may automatically monitor the user's viewing pattern.

5 is a flowchart illustrating specific operations of the CA information generation and provision method performed by the CA information server 3 according to the present invention.

First, in step 51, the CA information generating unit 31 of the CA information server 3 selects contents having no CA information among the multimedia contents existing on the Internet 2, and then generates CA information for the selected contents . At this time, the CA information generating unit 31 also refers to the rating decision criterion 32 and determines the concrete contents of the CA information to be generated with reference to the input from the user. The CA information generating unit 31 may generate a unique ID (e.g., a hash value) for identifying each content with other contents. The generated CA information and the content ID are stored in the CA information storage unit 33 (step 51).

Steps 52-55 relate to how the CA information server 3 provides the CA information generated / stored in step 51 to the IPTV 1.

The CA information server 3 receives the content ID and the CA information request corresponding to the content from the IPTV 1 through the network interface 34 (step 52).

The CA information server 3 recognizing that there is a CA information request first instructs the content ID analyzing unit 36 to interpret the received content ID (step 53).

The CA information search unit 35 refers to the result interpreted by the content ID analyzing unit 36 and searches the CA information storage unit 33 to obtain CA information corresponding to the ID (step 54).

The CA information server 3 transmits the CA information detected in step 54 to the IPTV 1 requesting the information (step 55).

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining a method of using the CA information by the IPTV 1 according to the present invention.

When the user selects one content through the remote controller or the like and requests the IPTV 1 to play the selected content (step 61), the IPTV 1 determines whether or not the CA information is included in the file of the content to be reproduced first (Step 62).

If CA information is included in the content file, the IPTV 1 immediately reproduces the content and interprets / applies the CA information (steps 66-67).

On the other hand, if CA information is not included in the content file to be played back, the IPTV (1) first instructs the content ID generating unit 41 to generate an ID for the content to be played back. The content ID generation unit 41 generates an ID (e.g., a hash value) unique to the content using the content data (step 63).

The IPTV 1 transmits a CA information request for the content together with the content ID generated in step 63 to the CA information server 3 through the network interface 42. [

When the CA information server 3 retrieves the requested CA information in response to the CA information request and sends it back to the IPTV 1 through the network interfaces 34 and 42 in step 65, (E.g., parsing) the received CA information (step 66).

Finally, in step 67, the CA information application unit 44 applies the viewing restriction information based on the result of the syntax analysis by the CA information analysis unit 43. [ That is, the CA information application unit 44 prohibits the reproduction of the content itself (for example, viewing restriction) or prohibits the reproduction of a part of the video / audio to be reproduced according to the content of the CA information.

FIG. 7 is a sequential representation of the CA information generation / provision and use method performed by the IPTV 1 and the CA information server 3 (FIG. 5 and FIG. 6) in order to facilitate understanding. The vertical lines on the left and right sides of FIG. 7 represent steps performed independently by the CA information server 3 or the IPTV 1, respectively, and the horizontal line represents the steps of information exchange and other interaction between the CA information server 3 and the IPTV 1 .

8 to 11 show various embodiments of the CA information according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 (a) shows a CA advisory descriptor as an embodiment of the CA information according to the present invention. The CA descriptor is based on the rating criterion for viewing restrictions defined by ATSC as metadata in XML format.

The first tag portion (1) indicates the beginning of CA information (or metadata).

The second tag portion "" (default)" (2) designates a default rating for the viewing restriction applied to the frames included in the broadcast stream, unless otherwise specified.

The third and fourth tag portions (3, 4) designate different grades from the default gradation (G) for the specific frames, the third tag starts from frame 154 to 94 consecutive frames, that is, frame 248 To "PG-13". Also, the fourth tag portion starts from frame 364 and specifies an "X" rating for 177 frame periods. 8 (b) is a diagram showing a change in the rating of a broadcast stream according to FIG. 8 (a).

FIG. 9 shows another embodiment of the CA information according to the present invention, in which class information, that is, a Parental Guide is inserted into a BCG (Broadband Content Guide) of IPTV. In more detail, the "oif: ParentalGuide" element is added to the description element to designate a rating of "PG-13" in order to specify the parental rating level of a specific segment of the broadcast program. The SegmentLocator element includes a MediaRelTimePoint and a MediaDuration of a program to which the rating (PG-13) regarding the parental control is to be applied. That is, the segment "PG-13" is applied to the segment (duration 23 minutes 17 seconds) corresponding to 20 minutes 14 seconds to 43 minutes 31 seconds in the program. The above CA information can be applied to OIF (Optical Internetworking Forum) standardization by adding to the OIF DVB-IP (Digital Video Broadcasting-Internet Protocol) BCG.

FIG. 10 shows another embodiment of the CA information according to the present invention, in which a CA descriptor for blocking reproduction of a part of the content, which the viewer hates, is shown.

If there are frames in which 'snake' appears, include the fact in tag <phobia> part (1). Also, if there is a scene where "George W. Bush" appears in the content, include the fact in the second tag <phobia> part (2).

If the 'snake' or 'George bush' is previously set as the viewer dislike information in the CA information application unit 44 of the IPTV, the CA information application unit 44 stores the CA descriptor (FIG. 10) And restricts the viewing by interrupting the reproduction of the frames of the corresponding content.

11 (a) shows an example of blocking playback of a part of one frame (or screen) as another embodiment of the CA information according to the present invention.

In the embodiment of Figs. 8-10, reproduction of all of the frames is prohibited for some frames, whereas in the embodiment of Fig. 11, reproduction of only a part of the frames (or screens) is prohibited. ("Blocked" in FIG. 11 (b)) by specifying the coordinates, height and width (x, y, width, height) of the blocking area in the tag "<location>". In the above example, the blocking area has the shape of a rectangle, but in other embodiments it can have any shape. If the blocking area is a circle, you can specify <circle X = "385", y = "210", radius = "50"> in the descriptor.

The CA information management method according to the present invention can be implemented as a computer readable code on a computer readable recording medium. A computer-readable recording medium includes all kinds of recording apparatuses in which data that can be read by a computer system is stored. Examples of the computer-readable recording medium include ROM, RAM, CD-ROM, magnetic tape, hard disk, floppy disk, flash memory, optical data storage, And the like. The computer readable recording medium may also be distributed over a networked computer system and stored and executed as computer readable code in a distributed manner.

The present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Therefore, the disclosed embodiments should be considered in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense. The scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all differences within the scope of equivalents thereof should be construed as being included in the present invention.

Claims (21)

Receiving a request for CA information about the content from the content reproduction apparatus;
Detecting CA information about the content among CA information about at least one content stored in advance using the identification information of the content; And
And transmitting the detected CA information to the content reproduction apparatus,
Wherein the CA information about the content includes at least one of a first tag indicating information about an object set for restricting reproduction in the content reproducing apparatus, a second tag indicating a portion of the content in which the object is contained, And a third tag for specifying the coordinates of the area to be displayed,
The content reproduction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, in the content reproduction apparatus, an area of the content in which the object is displayed based on the first tag, the second tag and the third tag is determined, And the CA information is determined based on a viewing pattern of at least one content of the user in the content reproducing apparatus. The CA information providing method according to claim 1, wherein the CA information server generates and stores CA information for contents that do not have CA information in advance. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the request for CA information comprises:
And the CA information server receives the ID of the content together with the request of the CA information for the content from the content reproduction apparatus. 4. The method of claim 3, wherein detecting the CA information comprises:
And detecting CA information of the content corresponding to the ID using the ID of the content. delete 2. The method according to claim 1,
A method of providing CA information by a CA information server capable of limiting viewing on a frame-by-frame basis. Transmitting a CA information request for content to a CA information server;
Receiving CA information about the content from the CA information server;
Information about an object set to be restricted in reproduction from a first tag, a second tag and a third tag included in CA information about the content, information about a part of the content in which the object is included, Detecting coordinates of an area to be displayed in a portion of the area; And
And restricting reproduction of the area in which the object is displayed in the content when the content is reproduced,
Wherein the CA information is determined based on a viewing pattern of at least one content of the user in the content reproducing apparatus. 8. The method as claimed in claim 7,
Further comprising the step of determining whether content to be reproduced by the content reproduction apparatus includes CA information. 9. The method as claimed in claim 8,
And generating a content ID if the content reproduction apparatus does not include the CA information in the content to be reproduced. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein transmitting the CA information request comprises:
And transmits the content ID together. 8. The method as claimed in claim 7,
A method of using CA information by a content reproduction apparatus capable of limiting viewing on a frame-by-frame basis. 8. The method as claimed in claim 7,
A method of using CA information by a content reproduction apparatus for a viewer age restriction. 8. The method as claimed in claim 7,
And preventing playback of the aversion image of the viewer. delete A CA information storage unit for storing CA information about at least one content;
A content ID analyzing unit for analyzing the identification information of the content upon receipt of a request for content identification information and CA information about the content from the content reproduction apparatus; And
And a CA information search unit for searching the storage unit for obtaining CA information about the content from the CA information about the at least one content using the identification information of the content,
Wherein the CA information on the content includes at least one of a first tag indicating information about an object set for restricting reproduction in the content reproduction apparatus, a second tag indicating a portion of the content included in the object, And a third tag for specifying coordinates of an area displayed in a portion of the content,
The content reproduction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, in the content reproduction apparatus, an area of the content in which the object is displayed based on the first tag, the second tag and the third tag is determined, And the CA information is determined based on a viewing pattern of at least one content of the user in the content reproducing apparatus. 16. The CA information server according to claim 15,
A CA information server that further includes rating criteria for parental control. 16. The CA information server according to claim 15,
And a CA information generating unit for generating the CA information for the content having no CA information. Internet providing content;
A CA information server for providing CA information on the content; And
And a content reproduction apparatus for controlling reproduction of the content using the CA information,
Wherein the CA information on the content includes at least one of a first tag indicating information about an object set for restricting reproduction in the content reproduction apparatus, a second tag indicating a portion of the content included in the object, And a third tag for specifying coordinates of an area displayed in a portion of the content,
In the content reproduction apparatus, as the area of the content indicated by the object is determined based on the first tag, the second tag, and the third tag, reproduction of the content indicated by the object in the content reproduction apparatus is restricted And,
Wherein the CA information is determined based on a viewing pattern of at least one content of the user in the content reproducing apparatus. 19. The content playback apparatus according to claim 18,
A content ID generation unit for generating identification information for identifying the content;
Information on an object set to be restricted in reproduction by the content reproduction apparatus from the first tag, the second tag and the third tag included in the CA information, information on a part of the content including the object, A CA information analyzing unit for detecting coordinates of an area displayed by the object in a portion of the content; And
And a CA information application unit for restricting reproduction of an area in which the object is displayed in the content,
Wherein the content reproduction apparatus acquires CA information from the CA information server using the identification information of the content. Receiving a request for CA information about the content from the content reproduction apparatus;
Detecting CA information about the content among CA information about at least one content stored in advance using the identification information of the content; And
And transmitting the detected CA information to the content reproduction apparatus,
Wherein the CA information on the content includes at least one of a first tag indicating information about an object set for restricting reproduction in the content reproduction apparatus, a second tag indicating a portion of the content included in the object, And a third tag for specifying coordinates of an area displayed in a portion of the content,
The content reproduction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, in the content reproduction apparatus, an area of the content in which the object is displayed based on the first tag, the second tag and the third tag is determined, And the CA information is determined on the basis of a viewing pattern of at least one content of the user in the content reproducing apparatus, wherein the CA information providing method comprises: . &Lt; / RTI &gt; Transmitting a CA information request for content to a CA information server;
Receiving CA information about the content from the CA information server;
Information about an object set to be restricted in reproduction from a first tag, a second tag and a third tag included in CA information about the content, information about a part of the content in which the object is included, Detecting coordinates of an area to be displayed in a portion of the area; And
And restricting reproduction of the area in which the object is displayed in the content when the content is reproduced,
Wherein the CA information is determined based on a viewing pattern of at least one content of a user in the content reproducing apparatus, the CA information being readable by a computer recording a program for causing a computer to execute a method of using CA information by a content reproducing apparatus Recording medium.

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