JP2002051326A - Information processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information processor, capable of constructing a bidirectional television broadcasting environment offering high convenience for viewers and program producers. SOLUTION: In an application control system 11 of a transaction center 1, when user information is transmitted from an STB 3 of a user home which received bidirectional service data (bidirectional program) by a BS(broadcasting satellite) digital broadcasting, the system 11 processes this user information, and transmits the processed results to the terminal of a broadcasting station 2 and the STB 3. Thus, a user can speedily listen to check the updated programs, without having to operate apparatus, such as telephones. Further, the broadcasting station dispenses with processing the user information and can concentrate on program production.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus capable of constructing a two-way television broadcasting environment which is highly convenient for viewers and program producers.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, viewers of television broadcasts have been using telephones, facsimile machines, or personal computers to provide information to program producers such as broadcasting stations and program production companies.
Attempts have been made to create an interactive television broadcasting environment by providing viewer information such as impressions on programs and answers to questionnaires.

[0003]

However, in the above-described conventional method for configuring a two-way television broadcasting environment, the means for transmitting viewer information is limited to telephones, facsimile machines, personal computers, and the like. Since the viewer had to use these devices after interrupting the viewing of the program, the viewer information could not be reflected in the program in real time, and the operation of multiple devices was complicated. Information is difficult to collect, and improvement of such problems has been demanded.

In response to such a demand, a viewer device having both a tuner and a modem for digital television broadcasting (SET TOP BOX (hereinafter abbreviated as STB) because it is placed on a television monitor). ), Which made it possible to collect viewer information in real time and reflect it in programs.

[0005] However, the viewer information itself has a low utility value and requires appropriate processing such as statistics. However, the program creator wants to concentrate on program production, and at present it is difficult to handle the processing. For this reason, a viewer of a program to which the viewer information is not reflected may lose motivation to provide information to the program.

In consideration of this point, it is more efficient and easier to manage information if such processing is performed by a third party such as a service provider using a viewer information processing device.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to process viewer information from a viewer of a digital television broadcast so that a viewer and a program can be processed. An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus that enables a bidirectional television broadcasting environment to be constructed with high convenience for a producer.

[0008]

In order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, an information processing apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention is provided with an information input through a broadcast wave of a television broadcast and an information input through a network. An information processing apparatus used when viewer information relating to a program is appropriately transmitted from a viewer terminal capable of displaying information on a screen together through a network, wherein the transmitted viewer information is A viewer information processing means for receiving and processing, and providing a processing result obtained by this processing to at least one of a terminal provided on a creator side of the program by the broadcast wave and the viewer terminal via a network. A processing result providing unit.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a viewer terminal displays both information input by a broadcast wave of a television broadcast and information input via a network on a screen of a television receiver or the like. It is possible to receive and process the viewer information transmitted from the viewer terminal, and to provide a processing result obtained by this processing to a terminal of a producer of a broadcast wave program. The producer can update the program using this processing result, and the updated program is sent to the viewer terminal by broadcast waves and displayed on the screen. On the other hand, if the program is provided to the viewer terminal, Since the processing result is displayed on the screen, in any case, the viewer promptly views the program updated based on the viewer information without operating devices other than the viewer terminal. That The ability. Also, the program creator does not need to process viewer information, and can concentrate on program production.

[0010] The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 of the present invention comprises:
2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the viewer information processing unit performs different processing depending on whether the providing destination of the processing result is the creator side terminal or the viewer terminal. 3. Features.

[0011] In the present invention according to claim 2, for example, the creator is provided with the result of statistical processing based on the viewer information, while the viewer is positioned as an individual in the entire viewer. Are provided so that the processing result that the providing destination really needs can be obtained.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information processing apparatus comprising:
The information processing device according to claim 1 or 2,
The viewer information processing unit includes an information processing unit capable of performing processing for each program, and performs processing for each program using the information processing unit according to program identification information added to the viewer information. It is characterized by.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, for example,
The audience information for the quiz program is the quiz answer,
On the other hand, the viewer information on the shopping program is information of a desire to purchase and the like, and therefore, it is possible to identify them and perform appropriate processing.

An information processing apparatus according to a fourth aspect of the present invention comprises:
2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said viewer information processing means performs statistical processing based on viewer information from a plurality of viewer terminals.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to eliminate the trouble of the creator himself performing statistical processing.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information processing apparatus comprising:
2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the viewer information processing means performs a process related to electronic commerce of the program introduced in the program.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the viewer does not need to start up a personal computer and use an e-commerce site on a network such as the Internet. Can be expected.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information processing apparatus comprising:
The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the television broadcast is a BS digital broadcast.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to construct a highly convenient two-way broadcast environment, especially in BS digital broadcasts where market expansion is expected in the future.

Embodiments of an information processing apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, information (downstream information) to a viewer (user) is broadcasted, while information (upstream information) from the user is circulated through a communication path. A two-way platform with high interactivity is built.
The transaction center is at the center of the transaction center, and includes "consignment broadcasters (broadcasting stations)", "viewers (users)", "financial institutions, card companies, etc. (collectively referred to as financial companies)" and " Information distribution is facilitated by adopting a network configuration in which “manufacturers (manufacturers), wholesalers or retail stores (collectively, service providers)” are connected.

<First Embodiment> FIG. 1 is a network configuration diagram showing a use form of a first embodiment of an information processing apparatus according to the present invention. Transaction Center 1
Is a facility that is operated and managed by a service provider or the like, and is connected to a terminal of a broadcasting station 2 that performs BS digital broadcasting or a terminal of another broadcasting station via a network NET1. In this embodiment, the broadcast station 2 is positioned as the program creator, but when the broadcast station outsources the program production,
A terminal is also prepared on the producer side and connected to the transaction center 1.

The transaction center 1 includes a network NET 2 in an STB (Set Top Box: a tuner for BS digital broadcasting and a modem 31 are built in) 3 provided in a plurality of viewer (user) homes contracted with a service provider.
Connected via The network NET2 is
Procedures used in CATV, etc .; 28, T
It is possible to support CP / IP. The same connection mode is adopted for STBs of other user's homes.

The transaction center 1 is connected via a network NET1 to terminals of a plurality of service providers 4 that provide products for shopping programs and the like. In addition, a terminal of a financial company 5 that performs a billing request to a user, accepts a transfer from the user, receives a request for collection of a service provider 4 and transfers funds, and a financial network (CAFIS: Credit and Finan).
ce Information System, ANSWER: Automatic ans
wer Network System for Electric Request etc.) NE
It is connected via T3.

The broadcasting station 2 includes a transmission system 21 for transmitting a broadcast wave from the antenna 23 to the BS broadcasting satellite 20, and an authoring system 22 for producing and editing a program. Here, the authoring system 22 refers to a set of equipment for editing and producing a program to be displayed on a television monitor (television receiver) at the user's home.

From the broadcasting station 2, interactive images constituting interactive programs such as quizzes and shopping, in which the user can participate, as well as images and sounds of TV programs (table programs) such as movies and dramas which are not expected to participate in the user. Service data is BS
It is transmitted to the broadcast satellite 20 and received at the user's home via the satellite 20. In BS digital broadcasting,
One or both of a front program and an interactive program are broadcast. The data for the interactive service is actually BM
L: A file described in Broadcast Markup Language, which can be easily edited and updated, so that an interactive platform as in the present embodiment can be constructed. Hereinafter, the description will focus on “interactive programs” in which the user can participate.

The STB 3 installed at the user's home in FIG.
The parabolic antenna 32 connected to the STB 3 receives a digitized broadcast wave from the BS broadcast satellite 20, displays the video of the program on the television monitor MON, and outputs sound from a speaker (not shown) or the like. STB3 receives the interactive program and sends it to S
It is interpreted by the translation function built in the TB3 and displayed on the television monitor MON. In addition, network NE
The processing result input from the transaction center 1 via T2 can be displayed on the television monitor MON. Further, by operating the remote controller (remote controller) RC, for example, it is possible to switch the screen display, move the pointer on the screen, and input commands and data. When a predetermined operation is performed on the screen, the transaction center 1 is operated by the built-in modem 31.
Dial-up connection, and transmits user information in a predetermined format. This allows the user to participate in the program. Note that STB3 corresponds to a viewer terminal.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the transaction center 1.

In the transaction center 1, the counting / analysis of answers to quiz programs, the allocation of products related to shopping programs, the counting of the remaining number, and the like are defined as processes (called applications) corresponding to the programs. And an application management system 11 that performs processing for each application. Also,
A customer management system 12 for managing users, an STB gateway 13 for receiving data from the STB 3 at the user's home and transferring the data to the application management system 11,
External system gateway 1 for communicating with external systems such as broadcasting station 2, service provider 4, and financial company 5
4 are provided. At least one of the STB gateway 13 and the external system gateway 14 corresponds to a processing result providing unit.

The application management system 11 includes a plurality of processing units 11a capable of processing each program, and an application management table 11b in which identification information of each processing unit 11a is associated with an application ID for identifying an application. , The processing unit 11a corresponding to the application ID can be started. Note that ST
B gateway 13 and application management system 1
Reference numeral 1 denotes a viewer information processing unit, and the processing unit 11a corresponds to an information processing unit.

On the other hand, the customer management system 12 includes a customer management database DB1 in which the user ID, name, address, etc. of the user who has contracted with the service provider operating the transaction center 1 are stored. I do. It also authenticates the user who accessed it,
A function of notifying the result to the application management system 11 is also provided.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a structure of data transmitted from the STB to the STB gateway and a structure of data transmitted from the external system gateway to the broadcasting station.

Since the former data (user information) is given a user ID and an application ID, the application management system 11 determines the application by comparing the application ID with the contents of the application management table 11b. At the same time, the data can be delivered to the corresponding processing unit 11a, and the processing unit 11a can perform processing according to the program on the data.

On the other hand, since the latter is provided with an application ID, the broadcast station 2
, The program content can be updated according to the data content.

Next, the operation of the first embodiment will be described. Here, a case where the interactive program is a quiz program will be described.

FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing related to a quiz program broadcasted during a baseball broadcast.

In step S1, the broadcast station 2 broadcasts a quiz program consisting of 10 baseball quizzes in accordance with the schedule, for example, at the end of the last 5 times. Specifically, a file described in BML is transmitted. In step S3, the STB 3 receives the BML file, interprets the contents, displays the quiz program on the television monitor MON, and counts the number of correct answers based on the user's answer to the quiz. Here, the process of step S3 will be described in detail.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing transition of a screen displayed on the monitor MON.

A screen SC01 is a screen B for composing a quiz program.
This shows a state in which the ML file is transmitted during the baseball broadcast and a program display icon for displaying the quiz program is displayed in a corner of the screen. When the remote controller RC is operated and this icon is clicked, the baseball broadcast screen is reduced and displayed on the left side, and the first question and its answer choices are displayed on the right half of the screen as shown in screen SC02. Is done. In addition,
A supplementary explanation area A1 as shown in FIG. 5 may be provided to display supplementary explanation of the program.

When one of the options is selected and the OK button is pressed, the answer screen SC03 for the first question is displayed. Here, whether or not the first question is correct is displayed based on the correct information embedded in the BML file. When the OK button on the screen SC3 is pressed, a quiz screen for the second question is displayed. In the same manner, a total of 10 baseball quizzes are set and answered, and whether or not the answer is correct is displayed. When the cancel button on the screens SC02 and SC03 is pressed, the quiz question is canceled and the screen SC01 is stopped.
Then, the baseball broadcast is displayed on the full screen.

When the answer to the final tenth quiz is completed, the STB 3 obtains the number of correct answers of the user based on the correct answer information embedded in the BML file, and displays the number as shown on the screen SC04. By sending to the transaction center 1, the user is asked on the screen whether or not he / she wants to obtain a ranking among all the participants. Here, when the end button is pressed, the display returns to the baseball broadcast screen SC01. On the other hand, when the OK button is pressed, a dial-up connection to the transaction center 1 is started.

When the modem 31 incorporated in the STB 3 makes a dial-up connection to the STB gateway 13 set in advance as a connection destination, after the customer management system 12 performs user authentication, the STB 3 performs step S5 in FIG. ,
The number of correct answers (viewer information) formed by adding the user ID and the application ID to the number of correct answers (for example, four correct answers) is transmitted to the STB gateway 13. STB
The gateway 13 passes this to the application management system 11. Note that such data is also transmitted from the STB of another user.

In step S7, the application management system 11 checks the application ID and the application management table 11b included in the data from the user.
And the data is determined to be an answer to the quiz program on baseball described above. Step S9
When the application management system 11 activates the processing unit 11a corresponding to the quiz program, the processing unit 1
1a obtains the ranking (ranking) of the user among all the participants, and returns it to the STB3 of the user in step S11. In step S13, STB3 displays the screen SC of FIG.
As shown in 05, the BML file is interpreted and the ranking of the user is displayed. When the completion button on the screen SC05 is pressed, a screen SC01 of the baseball broadcast is displayed.

Returning to FIG. 4, when the preset answer reception time ends, in step S15, the processing unit 11a obtains the distribution of users whose correct answer rate is 0% to 100%. In the following step S17, the external system gateway 14
Receives the calculated correct answer rate distribution from the application management system 11, converts the protocol, and
Send to

In step S19, based on the application ID included in the transmitted data, the broadcasting station 2 determines that the data is a correct answer rate distribution as a processing result of the baseball quiz program, and determines the correct answer rate distribution. Update the quiz program based on it. In a succeeding step S21, the updated quiz program is transmitted to the user's STB3 via the BS broadcast satellite 20. In step S23, the STB 3 displays, as shown on the screen SC06 in FIG. 5, the fact that participation in the quiz has been closed, an updated quiz program including the number of participants in the quiz and the distribution of the correct answer rate. Then, the display of the quiz program is ended by the completion button. In addition,
It is also possible to automatically change the difficulty of the quiz according to the correct answer rate of the quiz.

Therefore, according to the first embodiment of the information processing apparatus according to the present invention, when the processing result obtained by the processing of the viewer information is provided to the terminal provided on the producer side, The updated program is indirectly sent to the viewer terminal via a broadcast wave. The processing result is sent directly to the viewer terminal via the network. In any case, the information sent to the viewer terminal is displayed on the television monitor as a program, so that the viewer can use the updated program without operating the telephone, facsimile or computer. The response from the side can be obtained quickly, and as a result, the viewer's willingness to participate in the program increases. On the other hand, the program creator can save the trouble of processing the viewer information and can concentrate on the program production.

Also, different processing is performed depending on whether the processing result is provided to the terminal of the creator or to the STB (viewer terminal). Provides the personal ranking, while providing the broadcasting station (program creator side) with the correct answer rate distribution and the processing results required by the submission destination.
Also, it is possible to provide different processing results for each viewer.

The application management system 11
However, since it has an information processing section (11a) capable of performing processing for each program and performs processing for each program in accordance with the application ID attached to the user information, it can appropriately perform processing relating to various programs.

<Second Embodiment> Next, a second embodiment of the information processing apparatus according to the present invention will be described.

FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing when the interactive program is a shopping program.

In step S31, during the course of, for example, a cooking program, which is a front program, the broadcasting station 2 transmits, for example, a shopping program (for example, a limited-edition dish of 10 dishes provided by a pottery manufacturer (service provider) as a sponsor). Broadcast). In step S33, the STB 3 performs a display of a shopping program and an input process of a desired number of purchases. Here, the process of step S33 will be described in detail.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing transition of a screen displayed on the monitor MON.

Screen SC11 shows a state in which a BML file constituting a shopping program is transmitted during the broadcasting of a cooking program, and a program display icon is displayed in one corner of the screen. When this icon is clicked, the screen of the dish is reduced and displayed on the left side, and a screen including a character input area for inputting the desired purchase number of dishes is displayed on the right half of the screen as shown in screen SC12. . Also, a button for moving to the next product purchase screen and a button for canceling shopping and returning to screen SC11 are displayed.

Here, when the desired number of purchases is input and the OK button is pressed, as shown in FIG.
The TB 3 transmits to the transaction center 1 purchase desired data constituted by adding the application ID indicating the shopping program and the user ID to the desired purchase number.
In step S37, the application management system 1
1 is the application ID included in the purchase request data
And the contents of the application management table 11b,
It is determined that the data is purchase request data transmitted during the broadcast of the shopping program.

When the application management system 11 activates the processing section 11a for the shopping program, the processing section 11a makes a provisional allocation of the desired number of purchases with the service provider (porcelain manufacturer) 2 in step S39.
That is, when the number of purchases is notified to the service provider 2, the service provider 2 notifies the result of the allocation. Here, when it is notified that the allocation has been performed, the processing shifts to a credit and main allocation process. If the notification that the allocation could not be made is received, the notification is sent to STB3.
Is forwarded to.

In step S41, the transaction center 1 requests the credit company 5 for credit of the user.
In step S43, the financial company 5 determines the credit of the user. Here, if it is determined that the credit is possible, the financial company 5 in step S45
To give a credit notice. On the other hand, the transaction center 1 determines in step S47 that the service provider 2
The process of this allocation is performed between. Thus, the service provider (the pottery maker) 2 can start producing the dishes.

When the transaction center 1 notifies the STB 3 of the result of the allocation in step S49, step S5
At 1, the STB 3 displays the result of the allocation as shown on the screen SC13 of FIG. 7 to urge the payment to the financial institution. Therefore, the user can transfer the money to the account of the service provider 2, and as shown in FIG. 1, the service provider 2 can send out goods to the user and perform sales activities thereafter.

In step S53 after the notification of the result of the allocation, the transaction center 1 determines whether or not the dishes have been sold out. While the purchase request is accepted until it is sold out, if it is determined that it is sold out, the broadcast station 2 is notified of the sold out in step S55. On the other hand, in step S57, the broadcasting station 2 updates the shopping program. In other words, the program is configured with a notification screen indicating that the product has been sold, instead of the product purchase screen. Then, in step S59, the broadcasting station 2 transmits the updated shopping program to the STB 3. S in step S61
The TB3 displays a sold-out notification screen together with a button for moving to the next product purchase screen, as shown in a screen SC14 of FIG. Therefore, the user can immediately know the end of the purchase acceptance.

Therefore, according to the second embodiment of the information processing apparatus according to the present invention, processing related to electronic commerce of a program introduced is performed, so that electronic processing through a broadcast television program is performed. We can expect activation of commerce.

In the above embodiment, the usage in the environment of BS digital broadcasting has been described. However, the present invention is applicable to terrestrial digital television broadcasting, CS television broadcasting by communication satellite, and cable television broadcasting. Needless to say, this is also possible.

The expression "program" in the above-mentioned embodiment does not distinguish a main program from commercials of sponsors, and it can be said that these programs are both programs except for such a viewpoint.

[0060]

As described above, according to the information processing apparatus according to the present invention, a viewer can quickly update a program updated based on viewer information without operating devices other than the viewer terminal. Can be watched. In addition, since the program creator does not need to process the viewer information, the program creator can concentrate on the program production. Therefore, it is possible to construct a two-way television broadcasting environment that is highly convenient for the viewer and the program creator.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a network configuration diagram showing a use form of an information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a transaction center 1.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a structure of data transmitted from an STB to an STB gateway and a structure of data transmitted from an external system gateway to a broadcasting station.

FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram illustrating a flow of a process related to a quiz program.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing transition of a screen displayed on a monitor in the process of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing a second embodiment of the information processing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing transition of a screen displayed on a monitor in the processing of FIG. 6;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Transaction center 11 Application management system 11a Processing part 11b Application management table 12 Customer management system 13 STB gateway 14 External system gateway 2 Broadcasting station 20 BS broadcasting satellite 21 Broadcasting system 22 Authoring system 23 Antenna 3 STB (Set Top Box) 31 Modem 32 Parabolic antenna 4 service provider DB1 customer management database DB1 MON monitor RC remote controller NET1, NET2, NET3 network

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yuka Sendo 3-19-2 Nishishinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo East Japan Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (72) Inventor Satoshi Yamane 3-19 Nishishinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo No. 2 Tohoku Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Masaki Taniguchi 3-19-2 Nishi Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo Intra-Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Katsuyuki Kawashima Nishi Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo Shinjuku 3-chome 19-2 Tohoku Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (72) Inventor Keisuke Takeda 3-19-2 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo Tonichi Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (72) Inventor Masashi Sakurada Tokyo 3-19-2 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo Tohoku Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (72) Inventor Shigeo Ueda 3-19-2 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo Tohoku Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (72) Invention Person Tatsuo Matsuoka Inside Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation 3-1-2, Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo (72) Inventor Shigeo Yokouchi 3-15 Babacho, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Nishi-Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation ( 72) Inventor Taku Okamoto 3-15 Babacho, Chuo-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture Inside Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (72) Koji Nagata 3-3-1 Toyosu, Koto-ku, Tokyo NTT Corporation・ T Data (72) Inventor Masahiko Murasha 3-3-3 Toyosu, Koto-ku, Tokyo NTT Data Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Watari Kamiya 3-Chome, Toyosu, Koto-ku, Tokyo No. 3 in NTT Data Corporation (72) Inventor Masayuki Takashima 3-3-3 Toyosu, Koto-ku, Tokyo Inside NTT Data Corporation (72) Inventor Otani 3-3-3 Toyosu, Koto-ku, Tokyo F-term in NTT Data Corporation (reference) 5C025 BA25 CA09 CB1 0 DA01 DA04 DA05 DA10 5C064 BA07 BB05 BC16 BC20 BD02 BD07 BD13

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A viewer terminal capable of displaying both information input by a broadcast wave of a television broadcast and information input via a network on a screen from a viewer terminal via a network as needed. An information processing apparatus used when being transmitted, comprising: a viewer information processing unit that receives and processes the transmitted viewer information; and a processing result obtained by performing the processing. An information processing apparatus comprising: a processing result providing unit that provides, via a network, at least one of a terminal provided on a producer side and the viewer terminal. 2. The viewer information processing unit performs different processing depending on whether the provision destination of the processing result is the terminal on the creator side or the viewer terminal. Information processing device. 3. The viewer information processing means includes an information processing unit capable of performing processing for each program, and each program using the information processing unit according to program identification information attached to the viewer information. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing is performed. 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said viewer information processing means performs statistical processing based on viewer information from a plurality of viewer terminals. 5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the viewer information processing means performs processing related to electronic commerce of the program introduced in the program. 6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the television broadcast is a BS digital broadcast.