WO2021068821A1

WO2021068821A1 - Receiving apparatus, server, content recommendation system, and content recommendation method

Info

Publication number: WO2021068821A1
Application number: PCT/CN2020/119175
Authority: WO
Inventors: 辻雅史
Original assignee: 海信视像科技股份有限公司; 东芝视频解决方案株式会社
Priority date: 2019-10-10
Filing date: 2020-09-30
Publication date: 2021-04-15
Also published as: JP7258716B2; JP2021064823A; CN112740712B; CN112740712A

Abstract

Provided is a display apparatus, wherein when recommending a program to watch to a television apparatus shared by a plurality of users, the display apparatus designs a selection method for a reference program that serves as a reference. According to the present embodiment, a receiving apparatus with a content recommendation function is provided, wherein by means of the content recommendation function, a program to watch can be set as a reference program, and a program corresponding to the reference program is recommended. A recommendation processing part of the receiving apparatus manages time information of the reference program according to a program recommendation request time, uses recommendation determination information obtained by means of determining whether to set the reference program to be a recommendation object, and recommends, according to the recommendation determination information, the program corresponding to the reference program set to be the recommendation object.

Description

Receiving device, server, content recommendation system and content recommendation method

Technical field

The embodiments of the present application relate to a receiving device, a server, a content recommendation system, and a content recommendation method.

Background technique

As a method of viewing a program (so-called content) on a display device such as a television device, there are the following methods. In the following description, program and content are synonymous.

(a) For example, an individual uses a personal computer (PC) or a tablet PC to log in to the content provider (CSP) via the network to watch the desired content;

(b) Use a TV device to select the way to watch the content through the channel;

(c) The method of using a record and playback device to play back the recorded content for viewing;

(d) Using a television device, the user selects a viewing method from a plurality of recommended contents suggested by the content recommendation system.

The content recommendation system of (d) above collects and stores viewing logs related to the content that the viewer has watched, and infers the viewing tendency (so-called preference) of the content in the television device based on the stored viewing log. The content recommendation system manages this preference as recommended content information.

Moreover, when the television device requests recommended content, the content recommendation system presents the recommended content information to the television device.

As described in (a) above, it is assumed that the above-mentioned content recommendation system is adopted in a system in which individuals log in to a content service provider (CSP) via a network to view desired content. In this case, by referring to the login data, the registered individual can be identified. Therefore, it is possible to create content recommendation data for individuals.

However, in the cases described in (b), (c), and (d), multiple members of the family share the use of a television device or a recording and playback device. Therefore, the television device or the recording playback device itself can be identified, but the individual viewer (user) who used the device cannot be identified from the viewing log.

【Prior Technical Literature】

【Patent Literature】

Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-167906

Summary of the invention

[Problems Solved by Invention]

As described above, when content recommendation data is provided to a display device such as a television device used in a household (hereinafter referred to as a television device), the content recommendation data is provided not for the individual user but for each television device. .

In this case, for example, sometimes when children are watching, content that adults tend to watch is recommended. Originally, only the recommendation data of content that matches the preferences of children is desired, but the current situation is that the recommendation data also includes recommendation data of content that is inclined to be viewed by adults.

Therefore, an object of the embodiments of the present application is to provide a display device designed to select a reference program as a reference when recommending a viewing program to a television device shared and used by a plurality of users.

[Means to solve the problem]

According to an embodiment of the present application, a receiving device with a content recommendation function is provided. The content recommendation function takes a watched program as a reference program and recommends a program corresponding to the reference program. In a receiving device, the recommendation processing unit manages the time information of the reference program based on the requested time of the program recommendation, uses recommendation judgment information obtained by judging whether the reference program is the target of recommendation, and based on the The recommendation determination information recommends a program corresponding to the reference program set as a recommendation target.

Description of the drawings

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a way of viewing using a television device.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the basic configuration of an embodiment of the present application.

FIG. 3A is an explanatory diagram for explaining an example of the recommendation determination unit 500 in FIG. 2.

FIG. 3B is a flowchart showing an operation example when processing a viewing log in the program information processor 420.

Fig. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an example of the device using the embodiment.

Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing the processing steps before a viewing log is generated and uploaded in a device (a television device or a recording and playback device) when watching a program.

Fig. 6 is a flowchart further showing an example of the operation of the device of the present embodiment, and is a flowchart illustrating operations when there is a request for a recommended program list, when there is a channel selection, etc., after the TV device is turned on.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the data management state of the recommendation determination unit when the user is used to recording the program played in the time period TB3 through the recording and playback device and viewing it in the time period TB5.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the content recommendation device when the program recording time period of the recording and playback device is different from the program playback time period.

Detailed ways

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.

Fig. 1 is an example of a way of viewing in a home using a receiver (hereinafter, a television device will be described). The television device 100 is commonly used by the family member U1, the family member U2, the family member U3, and the family member U4. The member operates the remote control device 110 to activate the television device 100 to be able to perform channel selection, program recording designation, recording program playback designation, content downloading, and the like.

The recording and playback device 113 is connected to the television device 100. The television device 100 is connected to an external server 300 via the Internet and communicates with each other.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a basic configuration of the present embodiment, which shows a content recommendation function. Symbol 410 represents a recommendation processing unit, and symbol 420 represents a program information processor. For example, the recommendation processing unit 410 is arranged inside the television device 100, and the program information processor 420 is arranged inside the server 300.

However, the configuration is not limited to this, and the functional modules in the recommendation processing unit 410 and the program information processor 420 can also be further distributed in the television device 100 and/or the server 300.

The recommendation processing unit 410 includes an output unit 412 that outputs recommended program information to the display unit, a recommended program acquisition unit 413, and a recommended program management unit 414. Here, description will be given assuming that the recommended program acquisition unit 413 further includes a controller. The controller centrally controls the various modules inside the television apparatus 100, and also controls mutual communication with external devices.

The program information processor 420 of the server 300 includes a viewing program management section 422, a recommendation determination section 500, a time period management section 501, and a time period determination section 502. In the server 300, for example, the viewing time management unit 422 includes a controller and centrally controls various functional modules in the server. As described later, the time zone management unit 501 and the time zone determination unit 502 are modules that function together with the recommendation determination unit 500 to manage program information by time zone.

The time slot management unit 501 acquires program table data and the like from the outside, and manages, for example, broadcast time slot information of each program (start, end time, etc. of the program). The time period determination unit 502 can refer to the program information and viewing time information contained in the uploaded viewing log and the playing time period information of each program managed by the time period management unit 501, and manage the time and where of the program corresponding to the viewing log. When playing and watching at what time period. In this way, it is possible to manage the time zone of the program viewed in each television device.

Here, in this embodiment, the recommendation determination unit 500 basically has a main function, and may also be referred to as a screening unit. For the case of recommending programs to users, this embodiment designs a method for selecting a reference program as a reference. This is because if the selection of the reference program is not complete, the recommended program associated with the reference program will not be accurately recommended. As a reference program, there are a plurality of programs (contents) watched by the viewer in the past, but which reference program is selected as the reference is very important.

As a result, the device of the present application can recommend programs that are effective for the user who is using the television device 100. This recommendation function is called a content recommendation function.

In addition, in FIG. 2, the recommendation determination unit 500 is arranged in the program information processor 420, but it is not limited to this position. The recommendation determination unit 500 may be provided in the program information processor 420 or specific sub-modules within these modules.

The recommendation determination unit 500 refers to the time information obtained from the viewing log of the reference program, determines at least whether the reference program is a recommendation target, and generates recommended program identification information (or recommended program sorting information) recognized based on the determination. In other words, the recommended program identification information is information for managing the time information of the reference program according to the requested time when there is a program recommendation request, and determining whether the reference program is the target of recommendation. In the reference program, other programs that are associated (or associated) based on preference information or demographic information are sometimes attached. On the contrary, there are programs that are not related to the reference program.

The above-mentioned "management" refers to judging by associating the time information contained in the viewing log of the reference program with the recommended request time. The time information contained in the viewing log includes the playing time, the time that has been watched, the time that has been recorded, the time that has been played back, etc. related to the corresponding reference program.

As described above, the recommended program identification information recognized by the recommendation determination unit 500 determining the reference program is transmitted from the server 300 (program information processor 420) to the television device 100 (recommendation processing unit 410). The timing of transmitting the recommended program identification information is, for example, the timing when the recommended program acquisition unit 413 periodically requests the viewing program management unit 422. The recommended program identification information is stored in the recommended program management unit 414 for backup under the control of the recommended program acquisition unit 413.

In this system, the user can request the television device 100 to display a list of recommended programs through the remote control device 110. In this case, the recommended program management unit 414 of the television device 100 generates a recommended program list and recommends one or more programs. The recommended program list is output to the display via the output unit 412 under the control of the recommended program acquisition unit 413.

When the recommended program management unit 414 outputs the recommended program list corresponding to the reference program, it refers to the recommended program identification information. Here, as previously explained, the recommended program identification information is time information for managing the reference program according to the requested time of the program recommendation, and determining whether to set the reference program as a recommendation target. Therefore, the recommended program management unit 414 can provide a recommended program list indicating recommended programs corresponding to the requested time, and the recommended program list is output to the display via the recommended program acquisition unit 413 and the recommended program information output unit 412.

In addition, in the above-mentioned program information processor 420, the viewing log is at least a viewing log sent from the television device 100 in the past, and sometimes also includes a viewing log sent from another television device. Also, for the reference program, the program obtained from the viewing log is basically set as the reference program, but it may also be obtained from the program information of the past, future, and/or current program schedule. Therefore, the reference program is not limited to the program of one channel. In addition, the reference program is not limited to the broadcast program, and may be content such as video on demand (VOD). Furthermore, the viewing program identification information generated by the recommendation determining unit 500 includes program information of a program determined as the reference program based on the requested time of the recommended program and program information of a program corresponding to the reference program. In addition, as a program corresponding to the reference program, other programs with similar attributes to the reference program, other programs whose viewing time and/or broadcast time are close, and the like may be included.

As described above, the recommended program management unit 414 receives the above-mentioned viewing program identification information via the recommended program acquisition unit 413. Moreover, when there is a request for a recommended program, the recommended program management unit 414 selects a reference program that is the target of recommendation through the determination based on the requested time of the request, and determines one or more programs associated with the reference program as Recommended show.

That is, as an example, for the one or more programs, for example, a program watched at a time close to the broadcast time of the selected reference program is selected and output as a recommended program list. Alternatively, a program that has common attributes (genre, program producer, performer, etc.) with the reference program is selected and output as a recommended program list.

The features in the above implementation are summarized as follows:

1) When recommending a program corresponding to a viewing program (reference program), for example, as a viewing program, there is a history of program A viewed in the morning, program B viewed in the afternoon, and program C viewed late at night, when there is a request for program recommendation in the afternoon At the time, program B is set as the reference program, and at least program C is not set as the reference program (that is, program C is not displayed in the recommended program list).

For example, as a reference program, it is assumed that there are two types of viewing program E at midnight at 25 o'clock and viewing program F at 13 o'clock in the evening. Here, it is assumed that there is a request for program recommendation at 14 o'clock. In this device, in response to this request, a recommended program list based on the viewing program F (close to the requested time) is displayed on the television device (as a result, the recommended program list based on the viewing program E at midnight is not displayed).

In this way, in this embodiment, both the "request time for the recommended program" and the "time information contained in the viewing log of the watched program" are used (for comparison) to determine whether to set the reference program as the target of recommendation, and recommend The program corresponding to the reference program targeted for recommendation.

In addition, the criterion for judging the reference program as the target of recommendation may include: for example, a) selecting a program with a viewing time history close to the requested time; b) selecting in a predetermined time interval (time interval based on the requested time) Programs with a viewing time history close to the requested time; or c) Judging whether it is appropriate or not according to the pre-differentiated time period, etc.

2) When managing the reference program by time period, the program recommendation request time and the viewing time of the watched program do not need to be repeated. When the requested time is in the afternoon, the viewing program except for the night and late night time periods can also be set as the reference program .

3) The time information contained in the program information in the viewing log of the watched program is, for example, the time information associated with the watched program, such as the playing time, the viewing time of the real-time program, the recording time of the recorded program, and the viewing time of the recorded program.

4) The above-mentioned time period management unit 501, time period determination unit 502, and recommendation determination unit 500 are provided in the program information processor 420. These units are used when determining the criterion of the reference program in the following situations: in the case of determining the reference program in a predetermined time interval (time interval based on the request time), or in selecting a program close to the requested time In the case of viewing a program of the time history, or in the case of judging the appropriateness of the reference program according to the pre-divided time zone, etc.

5) The recommended program acquisition unit 413 requests the recommended program management unit 414 for the recommended program corresponding to the information of the watched program determined as the reference program by the program information processor 420.

6) The recommended program management unit 414 generates a recommended program list of programs associated with the reference program corresponding to the recommended program request time.

In addition, although omitted in the figure, a transmission/reception system with a transmission/reception protocol is included in order to appropriately execute a request for viewing program identification information and the transmission of viewing program identification information corresponding to the request.

In the above description, the criterion for judging the reference program targeted for recommendation is, for example, selecting a program with a viewing time history close to the requested time. However, the implementation of selecting a program with a viewing time history close to the requested time in a predetermined time interval (a time interval based on the requested time), or judging whether it is suitable according to a pre-divided time period, also belongs to the scope of the present application.

FIG. 3A shows a case where the time periods are classified, and the time period management unit 501 classifies each time period and manages the information that becomes the target of the recommended program for each time period. The recommendation determination unit 500 refers to the management information of the time zone management unit 501.

The time zone division is a table for setting the selection division of the reference program. The recommended program list is created by associating multiple programs without being restricted by the time period. In this case, the time period management unit 501 may further use the viewing log (including program information such as device ID, viewing date and time, and viewing time information) to associate and manage programs.

The division of the time zone in which the selection (setting) of the reference program can be restricted will be described. First, divide the table from Monday to Sunday, and then,

From Monday to Friday, set the time period of one day to:

Late night time TB1……22:00～4:00,

TB2 in the morning of the working day...... 4:00～8:00,

TB3 during day 1 on weekdays……8:00～14:00,

TB4 during daytime 2 on weekdays……14:00～17:00,

TB5 in the evening on weekdays……17:00～22:00,

The habit of watching programs on Sunday and Saturday is lower than that from Monday to Friday, so set:

Late night time TB1……22:00～4:00,

TB6 in the morning on the rest day……4:00～8:00,

Daytime period TB7 on rest days……8:00～17:00,

TB8...17:00～22:00 on the evening of the rest day.

When configured in the server 300, the above-mentioned table is prepared for each television device connected to the server 300. However, when the television device 100 itself includes the program information processor 420, the viewing log generated by the television device 100 is used.

Now, if it is assumed that the first program (reference program) and the third program (reference program) are watched between 14:00 and 17:00 from Monday to Friday, it is classified into the time slot TB4 of daytime 2 on weekdays (1st time slot) A reference program candidate for the recommended program request time. In addition, if it is assumed that the second program (reference program) and the fourth program (reference program) are watched between 22:00 and 4:00 on any day of Monday to Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, it is classified as late night The reference program candidate of the recommended program request time in the time slot TB1 (second time slot).

The allocation of the reference program with respect to the above-mentioned time period is performed, but the related processing of the program is also performed. The related processing is, for example, the following processing. Organize and arrange the program information contained in the viewing log (viewing date and time, channel, type, actors, director, producer, etc. attributes), and organize the amount of data for analysis. Among multiple programs, common or similar themes, keywords, genres, actors, directors, producers, etc. or a combination of them can be used as a common axis, and multiple programs with the same preference can be related to each other. Programs or program groups (so-called related groups) are summarized. There are various types of association methods. In this embodiment, related program groups (so-called related groups) can be divided into the following contents. Program association processing can be performed by obtaining future or current program promotion information or media sales information from the outside. This information is provided via the Internet by providers, TV stations, sales stores, etc.

In addition, the above-mentioned association processing is created as a different concept from the important program recommendation list in this embodiment. That is, in the time slot management unit 501, even if the first program (the program watched in the time slot TB4 (reference program)) and the fourth program (the program watched in the time slot TB1 (reference program)) have the same preference, it becomes Associated group, the two will not be included in the same recommendation list.

That is, in short, the time zone management unit 501 is a control unit that manages the time zones of a plurality of viewing programs (reference programs). Also, the time zone management unit 501 distinguishes and manages the time zones TB1 to TB8, for example. In addition, the program information of each standard program viewed in the divided time periods TB1 to TB8 is partitioned and managed for each time period. In addition, the above distinction can also be realized by adjusting the time period by the system administrator or user. In addition, each program information may have link information of the program information of other related programs. Therefore, when a program list unrelated to the selection of a reference program is requested, the recommendation determination unit 500 can provide a program list including related programs.

The above-mentioned recommendation determination unit 500 has the viewing program identification information that determines the divided time zone according to the request time for requesting the recommended program and is used to select the reference program in the time zone. Then, it is determined whether or not a program related to the selected reference program is set as a recommendation target. That is, the recommendation determination unit 500 also manages the program information associated with the recommended program list in the viewing program identification information. However, the construction of the recommended program list (program list based on association processing) is sometimes restricted based on attributes due to specific information (for example, demographic information). For example, sometimes due to family structure (attribute information of parents, children, attribute information of singles, etc.), the association is restricted.

As explained in FIG. 2, in response to a periodic request from a television device, the recommendation determination unit 500 transmits the above-mentioned viewing program identification information to each television device.

An example of prompting the above-mentioned recommended program list will be further described. For example, when recommending programs A2, A3, A4... (recommended program list) to people who watched program A1 (reference program), only the reference program A1 is affected by time. Any method can be used to associate the reference program with the recommended program list. In the following, a simple example is used for explanation.

(1) Assume that program B1 (played at 8 pm), program B2 (played at 9 am), and program B3 (played at 7:30 pm) are related by any method;

(2) Assuming that the user watched program B1 at 3 pm (program B1 is a video playback);

(3) Assume that the user "requests a list of recommended programs" at 3 pm the next day;

(4) Therefore, the program B1 watched at 3 pm the previous day is selected as the reference program;

(5) Furthermore, the program information of the program B2 and the program B3 related in (1) is displayed as a recommended program list.

In the above description, for the programs output in the recommended program list, it is not necessary to output all related programs. For example, in the case of limiting the number of recommended programs, the associated information can be used to determine the priority of programs.

According to the above embodiment, when children are included in the family structure, it is possible not to display late-night programs or broadcast content on the television device 100 during the day.

Return to Figure 2 for description. The user requests the television device 100 to display a list of recommended programs through the remote control device 110. Then, the recommended program management unit 414 of the television device 100 generates a recommended program list and recommends one or more programs. The recommended program list is output to the display via the output unit 412 under the control of the recommended program acquisition unit 413. In order to obtain the recommended program list at this time, the reference program is restricted by the time period shown in FIG. 3A according to the requested time.

As an example, the user operates the remote control device 110, selects a predetermined button on the display screen of the television device 100, and presses the OK button, thereby executing a request for a recommended program. Or, when the user operates the remote control device and the television device 100 displays a screen, the request is made.

When there is a request for a recommended program, the recommended program acquisition unit 413 acquires the program associated with the reference program divided by each viewing time period of the time period including the time period of the recommended program request and sets it as a recommended program list . Then, the output unit 412 outputs the recommended program list acquired by the recommended program acquisition unit 413 to the display.

In addition, when the recommendation determination unit 500 is provided on the television device side, the recommended program acquisition unit 413 periodically acquires the viewing program identification information from the recommendation determination unit 500.

FIG. 3B is a flowchart showing a procedure of using a viewing log to perform processing of distinguishing programs according to their viewing time periods, and performing related processing of programs. Through this process, it is determined in which time slot the reference program is to be recommended. And, the reference program is associated with the program associated with the reference program.

Start watching a program or recording through a device (a television device or a recording and playback device), and the viewing or recording of the program lasts for more than a certain period of time, then a viewing log is created. The program information processor 420 periodically obtains the viewing log (SA1). Next, it is determined from the program information contained in the viewing log the time period during which the program was watched, and distinguished for each time period (SA2). For example, it is determined whether all viewing logs newly uploaded from a predetermined television device within a certain period of time have been processed (SA3).

Next, for each standard program, using the attribute of the program information of each standard program, a plurality of programs having a predetermined attribute in common are associated to generate an associated group (SA4). This association process can be performed at this time regardless of each time zone (SA5).

If the above-mentioned associating process is completed, the information arrangement of the pattern as shown in FIG. 3A is completed. In addition, either step SA2 (division of time zone) and step SA4 (association processing) may be performed first.

4 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of use of the television device 100 when the recommended program list information (viewing program identification information) created by the program information processor 420 and stored by the recommended program management unit 414 is used. Assume that the user U3 operates the remote control device 110 to turn on the television device 100. Then, it is assumed that the recommended program button BUT2 is selected from the button BUT1, button BUT2, button BUT3... displayed on the screen by moving the cursor. Thus, a list of programs (recommended program tile a, recommended program tile b, recommended program tile c, ...) corresponding to the current time period is displayed. The recommended program segmentation, for example, displays a thumbnail of a screen of the program and the program name. In addition, the thumbnail may not be included in the recommended program segment. The information of the recommended program segment a, the recommended program segment b, the recommended program segment c,... Is information based on the information created by the recommendation determination unit 500 described earlier.

The information of the recommended program block a, the recommended program block b, the recommended program block c, ... is sent from the server 300 (condition: when the recommended program list information is created in the server).

Recommended program block a, recommended program block b, recommended program block c, ... Depending on conditions, it may be created based on the recorded data of the recording and playback device 113 (condition: when the recorded program is played back and watched). The operation in this case will be described later.

Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation example before uploading a viewing log from a television device or a recording and playback device to a server in a television device.

If the program is started to be watched through a television device or a recording and playback device, the program information (SC1) of the program being watched (for example, program A) is acquired. This processing is executed by the controller described in FIG. 2 (SC2).

When the program (program A) has been viewed for a certain period of time or more, a viewing log (SC3) is generated. The viewing log contains information such as device ID, viewing or recording time period. If the program viewing is over, the viewing log is uploaded to the server (SC4, SC5).

FIG. 6 is a flowchart further showing an example of the operation of the device of this embodiment, and is a diagram for explaining operations when there is a request for a recommended program list or when there is a channel selection after turning on the television device.

If it is determined that the television device (SE1) is turned on and there is a request for a recommended program list (SE2), the current time period is recognized, and the program information in the corresponding time period classified in the recommended program management unit 414 is read as the recommended program List (SE3). The read recommended program list is sent to the recommended program information output unit (SE4) via the recommended program acquisition unit 413. Then, as explained in FIG. 4, the recommended program list is displayed (SE5). The user operates the remote control device 110, moves the cursor to the desired recommended program block and presses the OK button, thereby performing channel selection based on the channel information of the recommended program, and watching the recommended program. The recommended program block a, the recommended program block b, the recommended program block c, ... of the recommended program list may also include the recognition display of the playing, the playing start time, the channel, the recording program, etc., respectively.

In step SE2, when there is a channel selection (SE10), the television device 100 receives the selected channel and starts the creation of a viewing log (SE12). When it is determined that the program has been viewed for a certain period of time or longer, the viewing log is sent, for example, to the viewing history information management section 423a of the program identification information management section 423 (SE13). Then, as explained in FIG. 5, the program association processing unit 423b of the program identification information management unit 423 executes association processing (SE14) for establishing associations with other programs in the same time zone.

In step SE10, the viewing is started based on the viewing reservation without performing channel selection (SE15). In this case, in step ES12, the creation of the viewing log is also started.

In step SE15, sometimes the viewing is not started based on the viewing reservation, but for example, the recording and playback device 113 is used to start recording or playback. The subsequent operations will be explained separately.

FIG. 7 shows an example of the data management state in the program information processor 420 when the user is used to recording the program played in the time period TB3 through the recording and playback device 113 and watching it in the time period TB5. Therefore, the management of such habitual information is also included in the management range of the recommendation determination unit 500. In other words, the habitual management information includes the viewing log that the recorded program was watched.

The recommendation determination unit 500 basically presents recommended programs (programs broadcast at the same time period as the viewing time period) based on the time period when the program is viewed, except for recorded programs. The program identification information created based on the viewing log when viewing the recorded program also includes information about whether the program corresponding to the information is viewed after recording.

Here, as shown in FIG. 7, it is assumed that the fifth program is played and recorded in the fourth time slot (time slot TB3). Also, assume that the sixth program is broadcast. Here, it is assumed that when the fifth program is set as the reference program, the sixth program enters the recommendation list.

In addition, regarding the fifth program, when it has been viewed in the third time slot (time slot TB5), a viewing log is created, and the viewing log is managed by the program information processor 420 and the recording playback device 113.

Next, assume that a screen is displayed in the third time period (time period TB5), a list of recorded programs is displayed, and the user requests a list of recommended programs. In this case, the requested time is the time slot TB5, the fifth program is selected as the reference program, and the sixth program with the fifth program as the reference program is displayed as a recommended list.

However, the sixth program may not necessarily be recorded by the recording and playback device 113 in some cases. Therefore, in this system, when a sixth program is recorded by the recording and playback device 113, it can be warned to display "playback", and when it is not recorded, it can be warned to display "unrecorded program" in the corresponding recommended program block. In addition, the sixth program may be broadcasted later than today's date, so the broadcast time may also be displayed in the recommended program segment. In this case, a viewing reservation button or a recording reservation button may be displayed.

That is, the program information transmitted by the broadcasting system also includes program information to be broadcast in the future. Therefore, in this case, it is also possible to make a recording reservation for the sixth program. In this case or when a warning about unrecorded programs is displayed, it is more convenient if the "recording reservation button" is displayed on the screen at the same time.

Also, as described above, the reference program is determined based on the request time of the recommended program, and the recommended program list is determined based on the reference program. Therefore, sometimes the requested time of the recommended program does not match the time when the above-mentioned fifth program is played back. In this case, for example, basically, a program watched at the time closest to the requested time is selected as the reference program, and a program related to the reference program is presented in the recommended program list. Therefore, sometimes a program that has been watched once in the time slot TB5 may be selected as the reference program.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the content recommendation device associated with the recording playback device 113. If the television device 100 is turned on and is in the recording mode, and a program (channel) to be recorded is selected, the recording of the program (SF1, SF2) is started. If you start recording, create recording information (equivalent to viewing log) (SF3).

The created recording information is sent to the program information processor 420 (SF4). Then, programs with similar user preferences are associated with the recorded program (SF5). In addition, the recorded program information of a plurality of related programs is managed in the program information processor 420. However, here, the identification information indicating the recorded program is added to the recorded program information (SF6). In addition, information indicating that it has not been recorded is added as identification information to the information of the related program and the unrecorded program (recommended program). In this way, the information managed by the recommendation determination unit 500 shown in FIG. 7 is generated.

When the device is in the playback mode of a recorded program (SG2), it is judged whether there is a request for viewing program identification information (SG3). When there is no such request, only the recording list of the recorded programs is displayed on the display.

When there is a request for the viewing program identification information, the device system reads the recommended program list (SG4) created by the recommended determination unit 500 and stored in the recommended program management unit 414. In this case, a reference program is selected according to the time period, and programs with common preference attributes associated with the reference program are included in the recommended program list (SG4). According to the request, the recommended program list is read out and displayed on the display (SG5, SG6).

Furthermore, in this case, there are recorded programs and unrecorded programs in the recommended program list, so their identification information is displayed. When there is a recorded program, the user can select the desired recorded program from the recommended program list and play it back. For unrecorded programs, when there is identification information of a series of programs, the user can set the program as a recording reservation program or a viewing reservation program for the next episode.

The present application is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and various modifications can be made. Hereinafter, other embodiments will be described. In the above description, when performing program association processing, programs in the same time period are associated to generate a recommended program list. But you can also set the priority of the association. For example, it is possible to increase the associated priority of a program that is played at a time close to the program being watched. Of course, in this case, the multiple related programs are programs with predetermined attributes such as shared genre, performer, and music title. These can be done on the setting screen of the television device.

Moreover, in the setting screen, the user can arbitrarily adjust the number of time zones classified by the recommendation determination unit 500 and the time forming the time zone, or it can be customized by the user.

In addition, the recommendation determination unit 500 may use information of demographic data (population) as a condition for establishing a relationship, and information for refusing to establish a relationship. For example, the demographic information may include information on the household structure of the television device used. For example, the user of the television device is a user who lives alone, or is a male, or female, or is a family with multiple children, or is shared by an uncertain number of people, or is included in the viewing age restriction object relative to a certain program Of users, etc. In this case, when a user lives alone, a list of recommended programs can be created based on the entire viewing history. In addition, in the case of a family with multiple children, it is possible to add a restriction that the program in the middle of the night is not presented in the reference program or the recommended list during the daytime period. This judgment may also be performed by the program information processor 420 in the server.

In addition, recently, television devices are equipped with smart phone interactive functions. For example, viewing reservations and recording reservations can be made from a smartphone, and movie programs can be downloaded to the smartphone. In this case, the recommendation determination unit 500 can identify the user from the device ID of the smartphone. In this way, if the user can be identified, the reference program or the recommended program list corresponding to the preference of each user can be presented to each user. In this case, the recommendation determination unit 500 has a management table for television devices and a management table for individual users.

Moreover, recently, a camera or a human sensor can be installed in a television device. With a camera installed, individual users can be more specifically identified. In this case, the reference program or the recommended program list corresponding to the personal user's preference can be accurately presented to the individual user. In this case, the recommendation determination unit 500 has a management table for television devices and a management table for individual users.

In the above embodiment, if the main points are described, they can be organized as follows. which is:

(1) A receiving device with a content recommendation function that sets a watched program as a reference program and recommends a program corresponding to the reference program. The receiving device includes a recommendation processing unit 410 that recommends programs based on the program. Request time, manage the time information of the reference program, use the recommendation determination information obtained by determining whether the reference program is the target of recommendation, and recommend the reference program that is the target of recommendation based on the recommendation determination information Corresponding program.

(2) The receiving device with a content recommendation function according to (1), comprising: a time zone management unit 501 that distinguishes at least one of the time including the reference program, the time including the recommended program, and the requested time as a time zone Perform management; and the time period determining unit 502, according to the time information contained in the viewing log of the watched program, determines the time period to which the watched program belongs as the selected time period,

The reference programs are managed separately according to the selected time period.

(3) The receiving device with a content recommendation function according to (1) or (2), including a recommendation determination unit 500 that generates the recommendation determination information.

(4) The receiving device with a content recommendation function according to (1) or (2), including a recommended program management unit, and the recommendation determination information is input and stored in the recommended program management unit.

(5) The receiving device with a content recommendation function according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein the recommendation determination information is time information for managing the reference program according to the requested time of the program recommendation , And use the demographic information related to demographic data to determine whether the reference program is the information obtained by recommending the target,

When making a determination, according to the demographic information, the requested time for the program recommendation is excluded from the management standard, or the requested time for the program recommendation is fixed within a preset range.

(6) A server that sets a watched program as a reference program and manages information related to the recommendation of a program corresponding to the reference program, the server having: a recommendation judging unit 500, based on the requested time of the program recommendation, Manage the time information of the reference program, determine whether to set the reference program as a recommendation target, and generate recommendation determination information.

(7) A content recommendation program that sets a watched program as a reference program and recommends a program corresponding to the reference program. The content recommendation program executes the following processing: according to the request time of the program recommendation, manages the performance of the reference program The time information uses recommendation determination information obtained by determining whether the reference program is the target of recommendation, and based on the recommendation determination information, a program corresponding to the reference program that is the target of recommendation is recommended.

(8) A content recommendation system that sets a watched program as a reference program and recommends a program corresponding to the reference program, the content recommendation system including: a recommendation determination unit that manages the reference based on the request time of the program recommendation The time information of the program determines whether the reference program is the target of recommendation to generate recommendation determination information; and the recommendation processing unit recommends a program corresponding to the reference program that is the target of recommendation based on the recommendation determination information.

(9) A content recommendation method that sets a watched program as a reference program and recommends a program corresponding to the reference program, the content recommendation method includes: managing time information of the reference program according to the requested time of the program recommendation , A step of determining whether to set the reference program as a recommendation target to generate recommendation determination information; and, based on the recommendation determination information, a step of recommending a program corresponding to the reference program set as a recommendation target.

Several embodiments of the present application have been described, but these embodiments are only given as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the present application. These new embodiments can be implemented in various other ways, and various omissions, substitutions, and changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the present application. These embodiments or their modifications are included in the scope or spirit of the present application, and are included in the scope of the claims and their equivalents. In addition, among the constituent elements of the scheme, even if the constituent elements are expressed in a divided manner, or expressed by combining multiple constituent elements, or a combination of these expressions, it also belongs to the scope of the present application. In addition, a plurality of embodiments may be combined, and the examples constructed by the combination also belong to the scope of the present application.

In addition, the claims are also applicable when the claims are expressed as control logic, when expressed as a program containing instructions to be executed by a computer, and when expressed as a computer-readable storage medium in which the instructions are recorded. The scheme of the device of this application. In addition, there are no limitations on the names or phrases used, and even other expressions are included in this application as long as they have substantially the same content and the same purpose.

【Symbol Description】

100-TV device, 110-remote control device, 113-record playback device, 300-server, 410-recommendation processing unit, 412-output unit, 413-recommended program acquisition unit, 414-recommended program management unit, 420-program information processing器，500-recommendation judging unit, 501-time period management unit, 502-time period determination unit.

Claims

A receiving device having a content recommendation function that sets a watched program as a reference program and recommends a program corresponding to the reference program, the receiving device having:

The recommendation processing unit is used to manage the time information of the reference program according to the requested time of the program recommendation, use the recommendation judgment information obtained by judging whether the reference program is the target of recommendation, and recommend based on the recommendation judgment information A program corresponding to the reference program targeted for recommendation.
The receiving device according to claim 1, comprising:

A time period management unit for distinguishing at least one of the time including the reference program, the time including the recommended program, and the requested time, and managing it as a time period; and

The time period determining unit is configured to determine the time period to which the watched program belongs as the selected time period according to the time information contained in the viewing log of the watched program,

The reference programs are managed separately according to the selected time period.
The receiving device according to claim 1 or 2, comprising:

The recommendation determination unit is configured to generate the recommendation determination information.
The receiving device according to claim 1 or 2, comprising:

The recommended program management unit is used for inputting the recommendation determination information and storing the input recommendation determination information.
The receiving device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein:

The recommendation determination information is information obtained by managing the time information of the reference program according to the requested time of the program recommendation, and using demographic information related to demographic data to determine whether to set the reference program as a recommendation target,

When making a determination, according to the demographic information, the requested time for the program recommendation is excluded from the management standard, or the requested time for the program recommendation is fixed within a preset range.
A server that sets a watched program as a reference program and manages information related to the recommendation of a program corresponding to the reference program, the server having:

The recommendation determination unit is configured to manage the time information of the reference program according to the requested time of the program recommendation, determine whether to set the reference program as a recommendation target, and generate recommendation determination information.
A content recommendation system, which sets a watched program as a reference program and recommends a program corresponding to the reference program. The content recommendation system includes:

The recommendation determination unit is configured to manage the time information of the reference program according to the requested time of the program recommendation, determine whether to set the reference program as a recommendation target, and generate recommendation determination information; and

The recommendation processing unit is configured to recommend a program corresponding to the reference program set as a recommendation target based on the recommendation determination information.
A content recommendation method, which sets a watched program as a reference program and recommends a program corresponding to the reference program. The content recommendation method includes the following steps:

According to the requested time for program recommendation, manage the time information of the reference program, determine whether to set the reference program as the target of recommendation, and generate recommendation determination information; and

According to the recommendation determination information, a program corresponding to the reference program set as a recommendation target is recommended.