JP2002041388A - Service providing method, communication system and communication terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a service providing method that gives an additional service function with which a user can beguile boredom while downloading specific data, a communication system and a communication terminal. SOLUTION: A terminal performs 1st program data that has already been downloaded ahead of 2nd program data while downloading the 2nd program data from a server. The terminal finishes performing the 1st program data at the point of time when the downloading of the 2nd program data is completed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a service providing method, a communication system and a communication terminal for providing an additional service when downloading data related to music distribution or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the development of a large-scale communication network represented by the Internet, communication forms (applications) that enable users to obtain necessary information from remote websites via communication lines are increasing. Increasing. Users can obtain a wide variety of information through this type of application, and recently can receive music distribution. Also, with the spread of mobile wireless communication terminals such as mobile phones, using mobile phones,
A service that can receive the above-mentioned information regardless of location has also been started.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a mobile phone generally used at present. In the mobile phone shown in FIG. 1, an audio input unit 1 is a unit that converts an analog audio signal from the microphone 31 into a digital signal,
It is composed of a microphone amplifier (not shown), a filter, an A / D converter and the like. The audio output unit 2 drives the speaker 32 to convert a digital audio signal received by the terminal into an audible sound. Therefore, the audio output unit 2 includes a D / A converter, a filter, a speaker amplifier, and the like (not shown).

[0004] The digital signal processing section 3 encodes, for example, an audio signal to be transmitted into a digital audio signal or decodes a received digital audio signal.
It is composed of a dedicated circuit (not shown) for slot interleaving, differential detection, convolutional decoding, and the like. The RF input / output unit 4 includes a quadrature modulator (not shown), a gain amplifier, a power amplifier, a diversity control unit, a mixer, an IF demodulator, and the like, for performing high-frequency signal transmission and reception.

The control unit 5 is a central control unit for realizing the function as a mobile phone, and includes a CPU, an EEPROM,
It is composed of flash ROM, SRAM and the like. Display 6
Is composed of an LCD driver, an LCD display device, and the like, and the operation unit 7 is composed of, for example, a keyboard, a JOG dial, a JOY stick, and the like. In addition, external I /
The F unit 8 includes a communication interface circuit, a 16-pin connector, and the like.
In addition to generating and supplying power required for each of the above blocks, the power supply circuit includes a battery charging circuit, an overcurrent / overvoltage protection circuit, and the like.

[0006] The browsing function indicated by a dotted frame in the control unit 5 is an essential component for accessing an EMD site or the like from a portable terminal, and an i-mode (registered trademark) provided by NTT DoCoMo, Inc. ) And EZ-Web compatible models provided by the Cellular Group are already installed.

[0007]

However, in an EMD service or the like that performs music distribution using a communication line, the time required for downloading music data depends on the music, but it takes several minutes to several tens of minutes per music. Cost. This waiting time is surprisingly long, and for the user,
There is a problem that it becomes boring and frustrating during that time.

Further, when the communication speed of the communication line used by the user is low, the degree of boredom and irritation is only aggravated, and effective means for solving the problem (so-called "killing time", a specific service However, there is a problem that it does not exist at present in the field of applications using mobile phones.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and has as its object to provide an EMD service or the like with an additional service function that can distract the user from boredom while downloading music data or the like. To provide a service providing method, a communication system, and a communication terminal.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a service providing method, a communication system and a communication terminal capable of reflecting a result of a program executed by a user during downloading of predetermined data in an information distribution fee.

[0011]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a service providing method for providing a predetermined additional service via a communication network.
Downloading the first program data prior to downloading the second program data, executing the first program data while downloading the second program data, and downloading the second program data And terminating the execution of the first program data at the time of completion of the first program data. The first program data provides a service providing method of providing the additional service.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication system for transmitting and receiving data between a server and a terminal via a communication network.
Prior to the download of the first program data, the first program data is downloaded, the first program data is executed during the download of the second program data, and the download of the second program data is completed. A communication system is provided which terminates execution of the first program data at a point in time.

A third invention is a communication terminal for receiving predetermined data from a server, wherein the communication terminal receives the second data from the server.
Means for downloading first program data prior to downloading of the program data, first control means for controlling execution of the first program data during downloading of the second program data,
There is provided a communication terminal comprising: a second control unit configured to control execution of the first program data to end when download of the second program data is completed.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an entire configuration of an information distribution system (hereinafter, also appropriately referred to as a service model) according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the model shown in the figure, a content server 12 is provided on a website (EMD site) 11 of a music distribution (EMD) company, and the server 12 includes music data (contents) 13 and games and quizzes. (Data) 14 is provided.

The web site 11 is connected to the Internet 15
Is connected to a mobile phone operator 16 which is a telecommunications operator, and the operator 16 has its own network, that is, a network 17 owned by the mobile phone operator. The network 17 includes a plurality of base stations 1 owned by a mobile phone operator.
8a to 18c are arranged, for example, the mobile phone 19 is configured to perform wireless communication with one of these base stations (the base station 18a in the figure).

In the system according to the present embodiment, as indicated by a dotted arrow in the figure, prior to packet transmission of music data selected by the user from music data (contents) 13, For example, game program data desired and selected by the user is transmitted from the data (program) 14 by packet transmission. These transmission packet data are transmitted to the Internet 15 and the carrier 1 described above.
6. Operator owned network 17 and base station 1
8 and is received by the mobile phone 19.

FIG. 2 shows a data structure of transmission packet data distributed from the website. As shown in the figure, first, service contents (game data) 21 such as a game are transmitted as packet data, and subsequently, music contents (music data) 22 are transmitted.
Here, the file format of service content including programs and data such as games and quizzes, for example, J
The file format of the music contents is MP3 or ATRAC3 (Adaptive T) using languages such as ava.
transform Acoustic Coding:
Uses audio compression technology developed by Sony Corporation).

In the system according to the present embodiment, as described above, the data volume is reduced by adopting a language such as Java for the game data 21 so that the data transmission is completed in a few minutes. I have. On the other hand, music data 2
2 is data having a length of several bytes. The feature is that game data is designed to have a much shorter data length (small data amount) than music data.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing, in chronological order, the flow of services (between the EMD site and the mobile phone) in the service model according to the present embodiment. In "(1) Internet connection" shown at the beginning of the figure, the mobile phone accesses (connects) to the EMD site using, for example, i-mode (registered trademark) or Easy Web (registered trademark).
And enters the content server within the site.
Then, in “(2) Selection of music”, the user selects the music to be purchased (downloaded). At the same time, in “(3) service selection”, additional services (games, quizzes, etc.) to be described later are selected. In addition, here, the selection of receiving / not receiving the service and the service selection when receiving the service are included.

In “(4) Transfer of game data”, only when the service is selected in (3) above, E
Program data of a game or the like is transferred from the MD site to the mobile phone. After completing the reception of the program data of the game or the like, the mobile phone executes the program so that the user can start the game (“(5) Execution of game program” in FIG. 3).

Following "(4) Transfer of game data", "(6) Transfer of music data" is performed from the EMD site to the portable telephone, and the music data selected in (2) is transferred. Will be transferred. At this time, since the game data has already been downloaded to the mobile phone, the user continues to receive the music data (song data) being transferred while enjoying the game using the mobile phone. .

When the reception of the music data is completed, the mobile phone terminates the game being executed (provided) ((7) game end) and erases the game program at the same time ((8) erase game program). In other words, the service model provides a game or quiz that is valid only during the time required for downloading data related to the service or the like (for the user, the waiting time).

As described above, since the game data is much smaller in data amount than the music data, the time t ₁ required for “(4) transfer of game data” shown in FIG. “(6) Music data transfer” time t ₂
When these are compared, there is a relationship of t ₁ <t ₂ .
In other words, the time required for providing the additional service (downloading of game program data and the like) provided by the service model according to the present embodiment affects the music data distribution time originally requested by the user. It is indispensable to use a data amount that is not so large.

After the game is over (or after the game program is erased), the game result may be notified. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, the result of the game performed by the user during the download of the music data (for example, the number of points obtained in the game, Degree of achievement). Upon receiving the notification, the EMD site performs a predetermined calculation to reflect the game result in the communication fee and the distribution fee ((10) Calculation of the communication fee and the distribution fee).

The communication fee and distribution fee calculated at the EMD site are sent to the mobile phone in the form of "(11) Transmission of billing information", and the user sees the display on the phone and knows the fee in real time. Can be. As described above, a system (service model) configuration in which a charge for distribution of music data imposed on a user depending on a game result may be discounted from an original amount may be adopted.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a portable telephone for executing the service model according to the present embodiment. In the mobile phone shown in FIG.
The same components (functional blocks) as those of the conventional mobile phone are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted here.

The mobile phone shown in FIG. 4 is characterized in that an EMD processing unit 40 directly connected to the control unit 5 and a recording medium 41 connected thereto are newly provided. EMD processing unit 4
Reference numeral 0 controls and manages music data and game data downloaded from the EMD site by the browsing function of the control unit 5, and executes security processing for preventing intrusion of unauthorized data and the above-described charging processing.

The recording medium 41 is composed of, for example, a nonvolatile memory for storing downloaded music data, game data, and the like. Note that this recording medium 4
1 is composed of a nonvolatile memory and an interface circuit thereof. The form thereof is a built-in type in a mobile phone main body, or a stick / plug that can be inserted into and removed from the telephone.
Although a card type is conceivable, the form is not specified here.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing operations and processing procedures on the user side (mobile phone) in the service model according to the present embodiment. Step S1 in FIG.
Then, the user operates the numeric keypad or the like of the operation unit 7 of the mobile phone to connect to the EMD site on the Internet. In the following step S2, when a music piece desired to be downloaded is selected, an inquiry as to whether or not to receive the additional service is sent from the EMD site (step S3).

If the user does not receive the supplementary service,
Immediately, a reception process of music data (song data) of the music selected in step S2 is started (step S21). In step S22, it is determined whether or not all the music data has been downloaded. When the reception of the music data is completed (YES in step S22), the processing shifts to processing such as line disconnection.

However, if the user desires to receive the additional service, in step S4, the type of the additional service (for example, selection of a game or a quiz or the type thereof) is selected. Since the server in the site has a plurality of games (for example, car racing and Go) and quizzes, if a game is selected here, EM
From the D site, the corresponding game program is downloaded. Then, the mobile phone executes a receiving process of the game program (step S5).

When the reception processing of the game program is completed, the mobile phone continues to receive music data of the selected music (step S6). Then, in a step S7, it is determined whether or not download of all the music data is completed. The user enjoys the game based on the previously downloaded game program while downloading the music data.

When the reception of the music data is completed, in a succeeding step S8, the game is terminated. The game ending process here is a method of forcibly terminating the game, for example, simultaneously with the completion of downloading the music data or notifying the user of the end of the game a few seconds before.

Further, from the viewpoint that the additional service according to the present embodiment is intended to be provided temporarily during the waiting time during the download of music data, for example, the game is forcibly terminated. At the same time, a method of deleting the game program stored in the storage medium 21 may be adopted.

After the game is over, the mobile phone proceeds to step S
At 9, the game result such as the number of points obtained in the game is notified to the EMD site. The EMD site calculates the communication fee and distribution fee based on the notification, and the mobile phone
In step S10, the calculated communication fee and the like are received as billing information (see (9) Notification of result, (10) calculation of communication fee and distribution fee, and (11) transmission of billing information in FIG. 3).

When the above-described download and charging information reception processing are completed, the portable telephone performs an Internet connection termination processing (line disconnection processing) in step S11. As a result of performing these processes, the user downloads in step S6 in step S12,
The music data stored in the recording medium 41 of the mobile phone is
It can be reproduced via the audio output unit 2 and the like.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, prior to downloading music data (song data) from an EMD site using a portable telephone, game data and the like are downloaded as an additional service function, and music data is downloaded. By configuring so that the game can be executed based on the game data during the data download, the user does not get lost and can `` kill time '' even during the download waiting time for music data with a large data volume It is possible to eliminate boring and frustration of the user.

Also, unlike the case of executing an existing game, etc., the user is challenged with an unknown game by allowing the user to select a game, a quiz, a kind of the game, a quiz, and the like having the character of an additional service function. You can have a feeling of expectation and achievement, and it will be the optimal service function to distract boredom.

Further, by reflecting the game result in the distribution fee, etc., it is possible to provide gambling, and it is possible to expect an increase in access to the website for this purpose, and to increase the communication fee revenue to the telecommunications carrier. There is also an effect that it can contribute to the increase.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but can be variously modified without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, the EMD processing unit 40 and the recording medium 41 in FIG. 4 are expressed as individual functional blocks in order to conceptually express the mobile phone used in the system according to the present embodiment. The present invention is not limited to this, and the control unit 5 and the digital signal processing unit 3 may be dispersed or aggregated to realize the EMD processing and the like.

If the user likes the game, a configuration may be adopted in which the user can purchase games and quizzes provided by the service model. Furthermore, depending on the degree of achievement of games and quizzes provided by the service model,
Instead of discounting the distribution fee as described above, a privilege such as making the downloaded song (content) fee free or providing another song free of charge may be added. Then, a challenge fee may be charged for the service with the privilege.

Alternatively, when the user clears the game or quiz provided by the present service model, the game or quiz may be provided to the user free of charge. This permits the mobile phone to store the target game or quiz program as a data file, and means that the user can arbitrarily execute (play) the program thereafter.

Needless to say, the present invention is applied to the above-mentioned game or quiz purchasing method, service with privilege,
A business model that combines free provision of a game or quiz to a user or the like may be used.

[0044]

As described above, according to the present invention,
By executing the first program data during the download of the second program data, and ending the execution of the first program data when the download of the second program data is completed, the second data having a large data amount can be obtained. Even during the waiting time for downloading the program data, the user is not left behind and the boredom and irritation can be eliminated.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the first program data is erased when the download of the second program data is completed, so that the first program data is valid only within the time required for downloading the data related to the additional service. Program data can be provided.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the execution result of the first program data related to the additional service is transmitted to the site, and is reflected in, for example, the distribution fee of the second program data, so that the access to the web site can be performed. The increase has the effect of contributing to an increase in communication fee revenue to telecommunications carriers.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of an information distribution system (service model) according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a data configuration of transmission packet data to be distributed.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a flow of a service in a service model according to the embodiment in chronological order.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a mobile phone used for executing a service model according to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation and a processing procedure on the mobile phone side in the service model according to the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a generally used mobile phone.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Audio input part, 2 ... Audio output part, 3 ... Digital signal processing part, 5 ... Control part, 6 ... Display part, 7 ... Operation part, 8 ... External I / F part, 11 ... EMD site, 12 ... Content -Server, 13: Music data (content), 14: Data (program), 15: Internet, 16: Telecommunications carrier (mobile phone carrier), 17: Network,
18a-18c: base station, 19: mobile phone, 31: microphone, 32: speaker, 33: antenna, 40: EMD
Processing unit, 41: recording medium

Claims (24)

[Claims] 1. A service providing method for providing a predetermined additional service via a communication network, comprising: downloading first program data prior to downloading of second program data; Executing the first program data during the download of the first program data; and ending the execution of the first program data when the download of the second program data is completed. A service providing method provided by the first program data. 2. The service providing method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of erasing the first program data when the download of the second program data is completed. 3. The service providing method according to claim 2, wherein the second program data is music data. 4. The service providing method according to claim 2, wherein said second program data is image data. 5. The service providing method according to claim 2, wherein the first program data is data of a game program. 6. The game program has a plurality of types,
6. The service providing method according to claim 5, wherein the user can select an arbitrary program from the plurality of programs. 7. The service providing method according to claim 1, wherein a data amount of the first program data is smaller than a data amount of the second program data. 8. The service according to claim 1, further comprising a step of reflecting an execution result of the first program data on a distribution fee of the second program data. Delivery method. 9. A communication system for transmitting and receiving data between a server and a terminal via a communication network, wherein the terminal downloads the first program data before downloading the second program data from the server. And executing the first program data during the download of the second program data, and ending the execution of the first program data when the download of the second program data is completed. Communication system. 10. The communication system according to claim 9, wherein the terminal erases the first program data when the download of the second program data is completed. 11. The communication system according to claim 10, wherein said second program data is music data. 12. The communication system according to claim 10, wherein said second program data is image data. 13. The game program according to claim 10, wherein the first program data is data of a game program.
A communication system as described. 14. The communication system according to claim 13, wherein there are a plurality of types of said game programs, and a user of said terminal can select an arbitrary program from said plurality of programs. 15. The communication system according to claim 9, wherein a data amount of said first program data is smaller than a data amount of said second program data. 16. The communication system according to claim 9, wherein an execution result of said first program data is reflected in a distribution fee of said second program data. 17. A communication terminal for receiving predetermined data from a server, wherein: means for downloading the first program data from the server prior to downloading the second program data; and downloading the second program data from the server. First control means for controlling the execution of the first program data during execution of the first program data, and second control for controlling the execution of the first program data to end when the download of the second program data is completed. And a control unit. 18. The communication terminal according to claim 17, further comprising means for erasing said first program data when download of said second program data is completed. 19. The communication terminal according to claim 18, wherein said second program data is music data. 20. The communication terminal according to claim 18, wherein said second program data is image data. 21. The game program according to claim 18, wherein the first program data is data of a game program.
Communication terminal as described. 22. The communication terminal according to claim 21, further comprising means for selecting an arbitrary program from a plurality of types of said game programs. 23. The communication terminal according to claim 17, wherein a data amount of the first program data is smaller than a data amount of the second program data. 24. The communication terminal according to claim 17, further comprising means for transmitting an execution result of said first program data to said server.