JP2002055905A - System and method for information distribution - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system and a method for information distribution which enables a person of a distribution destination to easily confirm whether or not distributed information is newly obtained from the Internet without actuating a terminal and a provider of the distributed information to manage individual information by persons of distribution destinations. SOLUTION: This system is equipped with a terminal 17 which provides a distributed information file, an FTP server 11 which stores the distributed information file sent from the terminal 17, a dial-up router 8 which is connected to the FTP server 11 and obtains the distributed information file from the FTP server 11 according to identification information including a user ID and a password for connecting to the FTP server 11, the distributed information file name, and the time when the distributed information file is obtained and also displays the contents of the distributed information file, and a personal computer 9 which sends the identification information to the dial-up router 8.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information distribution system and an information distribution method, and more particularly, to an FTP (File Transfer Protocol) in an environment where the Internet can be used.
l) The present invention relates to an information distribution system and an information distribution method suitable for a case where a dial-up router automatically acquires distribution information placed on a server.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, on the Internet, there are an information distribution service for distributing e-mails and various information provision services through a homepage. As a conventional example related to the distribution of electronic mail, for example, a technique described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-88408 has been proposed. The publication states that when an electronic mail is delivered to an electronic mail user who makes a dial-up connection from a home PC that is not always connected to the Internet, the home PC is sent from the Internet.
There is disclosed an e-mail system including a proxy server device that makes an IP connection with C and a means for automatically connecting an e-mail to a home PC.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional example, as described above, there is an electronic mail information distribution service on the Internet, but it has the following problems.

[0004] First, when an e-mail is distributed irregularly, a user of a service checks a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a personal computer) possessed by the user to check whether a new e-mail is distributed. It is necessary to start the PC and connect the line.

Second, a service provider needs to manage individual mail account information for each service user.

As described above, there are various information providing services on the Internet via a homepage, but there are the following problems.

First, when the homepage is updated irregularly, the user of the service must activate the personal computer owned by the user and connect the line in order to confirm whether the homepage has been updated. There is a need to do.

Second, the service provider needs to manage individual user ID and password information for each service user.

Third, if the homepage patrol software is used, the update of the homepage can be automatically checked from the personal computer. However, the personal computer needs to be activated before use.

An object of the present invention is to enable a recipient to easily confirm whether or not new distribution information has been acquired from the Internet without activating a terminal. It is an object of the present invention to provide an information distribution system and an information distribution method capable of managing individual information for each.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a distribution information providing apparatus for providing a distribution information file in an information distribution system for distributing information via a communication medium including the Internet, and a distribution information providing apparatus. A distribution information management device that stores the distribution information file transmitted from the storage device, and a distribution information file from the distribution information management device connected to the distribution information management device and based on identification information necessary for obtaining the distribution information file. And a distribution information acquisition device that displays the contents of the acquired distribution information file, and a distribution target device that transmits the identification information to the distribution information acquisition device.

Further, the present invention relates to a distribution information acquisition device for acquiring distribution information via a communication medium including the Internet, wherein the distribution information acquisition device is connected to a distribution information management device storing a distribution information file, and is required for acquiring the distribution information file. An acquisition unit for acquiring the distribution information file from the distribution information management device based on the unique identification information, and a display unit for displaying the content of the acquired distribution information file.

Further, the present invention relates to an information distribution method for distributing information via a communication medium including the Internet, wherein a distribution information file transmitted from a distribution information providing device is stored by a distribution information management device, and the distribution information management device stores the distribution information file. Connecting to the distribution information management device by the acquisition device, the name of the distribution information management device transmitted from the device to be distributed, the user ID and password for connecting to the distribution information management device, the name of the distribution information file to be acquired, The distribution information file is acquired from the distribution information management device based on the identification information including the time at which the distribution information file is acquired, and the content of the acquired distribution information file is displayed.

Further, the information distribution system of the present invention is shown in FIG.
In an information distribution system for distributing information via a communication medium including the Internet, a distribution information providing device (17) for providing a distribution information file, and a transmission from the distribution information providing device Distribution information management device (11) for storing the distribution information file obtained
And connecting to the distribution information management device, acquiring the distribution information file from the distribution information management device based on the identification information necessary for acquiring the distribution information file, and displaying the content of the acquired distribution information file. And a distribution target device (9) for transmitting the identification information to the distribution information acquisition device. [Operation] According to the information distribution system of the present invention, the recipient is
It is possible to confirm that automatic information acquisition of the distribution information file has been performed without starting the device to be distributed (personal computer). In other words, the recipient can confirm whether or not new delivery information has been acquired by looking at the display of the delivery information acquisition device without having to start up the recipient device (personal computer), which takes time. . Also, since the same information is stored in the storage means of all the distribution information acquisition devices, the user ID and password for connecting to the distribution information management device stored in advance in the storage means of the distribution information acquisition device are distributed. The information provider only needs to manage one set of user ID and password regardless of the number of recipients. Therefore, the provider of the distribution information does not need to manage individual information for each recipient.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First Embodiment Next, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

(1) Description of Configuration As shown in FIG. 1, a dial-up router 8 according to a first embodiment of the present invention has a display unit 1, a display circuit 2, a storage unit 3, a computer circuit 4, a clock circuit 5, a line, And an interface unit 7 with a personal computer. As shown in FIG. 2, the Internet use environment of the first embodiment of the present invention includes a personal computer 9, a dial-up router 8, a network terminating device 14, an ISDN (Integrated S
ervicesDigital Network) line 10, network termination device 15,
It comprises a router 16, an FTP server 11, and a terminal 17.

The above configuration will be described in detail. In FIG. 1, the display unit 1 is composed of, for example, a light emitting diode or a liquid crystal display, and performs display for notifying a recipient as to whether or not distribution information has been acquired. . Display circuit 2
Receives a display instruction from the computer circuit 4 and controls the display unit 1 according to the instruction. The clock circuit 5 holds the current time values and supplies them to the computer circuit 4. The computer circuit 4 instructs transmission and reception of information related to automatic information acquisition.

The storage unit 3 stores programs and information necessary for automatic information acquisition (telephone number of connection destination, user ID of connection destination).
And a password, a name of the FTP server 11, a port number for connecting to the FTP server 11, a user ID and password for connecting to the FTP server 11, a distribution information file name to be obtained, and a time for performing automatic information acquisition). Is given to the computer circuit 4. Of these information, the name of the FTP server 11, the port number for connecting to the FTP server 11, the user ID and password for connecting to the FTP server 11, and the distribution information file name to be obtained are stored at the time of manufacture.

The line interface unit 6 transmits and receives packets to and from the dial-up line, and receives distribution information from the FTP server 11 via the ISDN line 10. The personal computer interface unit 7 gives the information transmitted from the personal computer 9 to the dial-up router 8 to the computer circuit 4, and transmits the information to the personal computer 9 according to the instruction of the computer circuit 4.

In FIG. 2, a personal computer 9 is used to set information necessary for a recipient to automatically acquire information to a dial-up router 8 and to confirm the contents of the distribution information acquired by the automatic information acquisition. The FTP server 11 is a terminal 1
7 is stored. The distribution information file includes a header and a body. The header is
It consists of the date and time of distribution, the outline of the text described later, and the like.
The body is the body of the distribution information. The FTP server 11 transmits a distribution information file when there is a transmission request from the dial-up router 8.

The network terminating device 14 converts a signal format of a packet transmitted and received between the dial-up router 8 and the ISDN line 10 into a signal format suitable for both. The network terminating device 15 converts a signal format of a packet transmitted and received between the router 16 and the ISDN line 10 into a signal format suitable for both. The ISDN line 10 serves as a path for transmitting a packet from the dial-up router 8 to the router 16 or from the router 16 to the dial-up router 8.

The router 16 is connected to the dial-up router 8 via the ISDN line 10 and the network terminators 14 and 15. The router 16 is a dial-up router 8.
, Via the network terminating device 15, and transmits the received packet to the path to the FTP server 11. Also, router 1
6 receives a packet addressed to the dial-up router 8 transmitted from the FTP server 11 and sends the packet to the dial-up router 8 via the network terminating device 15.
The received packet is transmitted to the line 10. Terminal 17
The provider of the distribution information is used to transmit the distribution information file to the FTP server 11.

In the above-mentioned usage environment, the provider of the distribution information transmits the distribution information file from the terminal 17 to the FTP server 11.
Send to

The recipient sends the telephone number of the connection destination, the user ID and password of the connection destination, and the time at which automatic information is to be acquired from the personal computer 9 to the dial-up router 8. For example, the time at which the automatic information acquisition is performed is specified in one of the formats of 20:00 on Wednesday, 21:00 every day, and every 12 hours. The computer circuit 4 receives the time at which automatic information acquisition is performed via the interface unit 7 with the personal computer.

The storage unit 3 stores the name of the FTP server 11, the user ID and password for connecting to the FTP server 11, and the name of the distribution information file to be acquired among the information necessary for performing the automatic information acquisition. 8 Memorized at the time of manufacture. The same information is stored in the storage unit 3 of any dial-up router 8 regardless of the individual dial-up router 8. In addition, the storage unit 3
In addition to these, the connection destination telephone number transmitted from the personal computer 9, the connection destination user ID and password, and the time at which automatic information acquisition is performed are also stored.
Give to.

When the time at which the automatic information is recorded in the storage unit 3 coincides with the current time held by the clock circuit 5, the computer circuit 4 connects the telephone to the telephone via the interface unit 6 with the line. Call the number. Subsequently, the computer circuit 4 transmits the user ID and the password of the connection destination to the router 16 via the interface unit 6 with the line. The router 16 checks the received user ID and password and connects the line. The computer circuit 4 transmits a user ID and a password for connecting to the FTP server 11 to the FTP server 11 through the interface unit 6 with the line to request the connection to the FTP server 11. FTP server 11
Confirms the received user ID and password, and the dial-up router 8 and the FTP server 11 start communication.

The computer circuit 4 includes an FTP server 11
Request the transmission of the distribution information file. FTP
The server 11 transmits the requested distribution information file.
The computer circuit 4 disconnects the line via the interface 6 with the line. The computer circuit 4 changes the display on the display unit 1 via the display circuit 2.
The display on the display unit 1 is changed from the one that has not obtained the distribution information to the one that has obtained the distribution information, or is updated from the display of the distribution information obtained by the previous automatic information acquisition, so that the recipient is new. Know that the distribution information has been obtained.

When the recipient transmits a packet requesting transmission of the obtained distribution information file from the personal computer 9 to the dial-up router 8, the computer circuit 4 reads the obtained distribution information file stored in the storage unit 3. Then, the data is transmitted to the personal computer 9 through the interface unit 7 with the personal computer, so that the recipient can check the contents of the distribution information file also obtained from the personal computer.

(2) Description of Operation Next, the operation of the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
This will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described.
In the embodiment, the storage unit 3 stores the name of the FTP server 11,
The port number for connecting to the FTP server 11 and the user ID and password for connecting to the FTP server 11 are stored at the time of manufacture. The information stored at the time of manufacture is
The same information is stored in all the dial-up routers 8 irrespective of the individual dial-up routers 8.

The recipient sets the telephone number of the connection destination, the user ID and password of the connection destination, and the time at which automatic information is to be acquired in the dial-up router 8 in advance. When the information necessary for performing the automatic information acquisition from the personal computer 9 is transmitted to the dial-up router 8, the computer circuit 4
The information received via the interface unit 7 with the personal computer is stored in the storage unit 3. Computer circuit 4
Compares the stored time at which the automatic information is obtained with the current time of the clock circuit 5, and if they match, executes the automatic information acquisition.

Hereinafter, the detailed operation of the first embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

The terminal 17 starts an FTP communication procedure, and sends a packet requesting connection to the FTP server 11. Upon receiving the connection request packet, the FTP server 11 transmits a packet requesting a user ID and a password to the terminal 17. Upon receiving the above-mentioned request packet, the terminal 17 transmits a packet of the user ID and the password.

When the FTP server 11 receives the packet of the user ID and the password, the FTP server 11 collates the user ID and the password stored in the FTP server 11 to perform authentication. When the authentication is established, the FTP server 11
A packet for notifying that the authentication has been established. The terminal 17 receives the above-described notification packet via the interface unit 6 with the line. The terminal 17 transmits the packet of the distribution information file to the FTP server 11. FT
The P server 11 stores the received packet as a distribution information file (step A1).

The computer circuit 4 includes an FTP server 11
Is called and a packet requesting connection is sent to the router 16 via the interface 6 with the line.
Send to Upon receiving the connection request packet, the router 16 transmits a packet requesting a user ID and a password to the dial-up router 8. When the computer circuit 4 receives the above-mentioned request packet through the interface unit 6 with the line, the user circuit for connecting to the router 16 through the interface unit 6 with the line.
Send a packet of D and password.

When the router 16 receives the packet of the user ID and the password, the router 16 authenticates the packet against the user ID and the password stored in the router 16. When the authentication is established, the router 16 transmits a packet for notifying the dial-up router 8 that the authentication has been established, and the dial-up router 8 and the router 16 start communication.

When the computer circuit 4 receives the above-described notification packet via the interface unit 6 with the line, the computer circuit 4 starts a communication procedure by FTP, and transmits a packet requesting connection via the interface unit 6 with the line.
Send to P server 11. The FTP port number used at this time uses the one stored in the storage unit 3 in advance. Upon receiving the connection request packet, the FTP server 11 transmits a packet requesting a user ID and a password to the dial-up router 8. When the computer circuit 4 receives the above-mentioned request packet through the interface unit 6 with the line, the computer circuit 4 transmits the packet of the user ID and the password through the interface unit 6 with the line. This user ID and password store the same information in the storage unit 3 in all dial-up routers 8 as described above.

The FTP server 11 also stores the user ID and the password stored in the storage unit 3,
Upon receiving the packet of D and the password, the packet is compared with the stored user ID and password to perform authentication. When the authentication is established, the FTP server 11 transmits a packet for notifying the dial-up router 8 that the authentication has been established. The computer circuit 4 receives the above-mentioned notification packet via the interface unit 6 with the line (step A2).

The computer circuit 4 includes an FTP server 11
A packet requesting the file list information of the FTP server 11 is transmitted through the interface unit 6 with the line. When the FTP server 11 receives the packet,
File list information packet to dial-up router 8
Send to The computer circuit 4 receives the above-mentioned file list information packet via the interface unit 6 with the line.

The date of the distribution information file stored at the time of the previous automatic information acquisition stored in the storage unit 3 is the date of the FTP.
If it is equal to the distribution information file existing in the server 11,
The computer circuit 4 determines that it is not necessary to perform automatic information acquisition. The computer circuit 4 proceeds to the execution of step A6.

If the date of the distribution information file stored in the storage unit 3 at the time of the previous automatic information acquisition is older than that of the FTP server 11, or if the distribution information file does not exist in the storage unit 3, the computer circuit 4 is
It is determined that it is necessary to obtain automatic information, and the process proceeds to Step A4 described below (Step A3).

The computer circuit 4 transmits a packet requesting transmission of the distribution information file to the FTP server 11 via the interface unit 6 with the line. Upon receiving the above-mentioned packet, the FTP server 11 transmits the packet of the distribution information file to the dial-up router 8. The computer circuit 4 receives the packet of the distribution information file via the interface unit 6 with the line and stores it in the storage unit 3 (step A4).

The computer circuit 4 changes the display on the display unit 1 via the display circuit 2 to a state in which automatic information acquisition has been newly performed. This notifies the recipient of the new automatic information acquisition. If the display unit 1 is a liquid crystal display capable of displaying text, the display unit 1 displays the header of the distribution information file. The header includes the date and time when the distribution was performed, the outline of the distributed information, and the like, and in this case, the recipient can confirm what is described in the header by looking at the display unit 1 (step A5). The computer circuit 4 transmits a packet for notifying the end of the FTP and the disconnection of the line via the interface unit 6 with the line to disconnect the line (step A6).

The case where the computer circuit 4 has not obtained the automatic information and the case where the computer circuit 4 has newly obtained the automatic information are as follows.
Change the subsequent processing. If the automatic information acquisition is not performed, there is no change in the display of the display unit 1 in step A5. Therefore, the recipient knows that the automatic information acquisition has not been performed, and the automatic information acquisition process ends. When the automatic information acquisition is performed, the process proceeds to step A8 described below (step A8).
7).

When the automatic information acquisition is newly performed, the recipient knows that the automatic information acquisition has been performed by changing the display of the display unit 1 in step A5. When the display unit 1 is a liquid crystal display capable of displaying text, the header of the distribution information file is displayed, so that the recipient can know the outline of the acquired distribution information file. The recipient starts the personal computer 9 and transmits a packet requesting transmission of the distribution information file newly acquired from the WWW browser to the dial-up router 8 (step A8).

The computer circuit 4 receives the above-mentioned request packet via the interface unit 7 with the personal computer. The computer circuit 4 transmits the distribution information file stored in the storage unit 3 to the personal computer 9 via the personal computer interface unit 7 (step A9).
The computer circuit 4 is connected to the display unit 1 via the display circuit 2.
Is changed to a display indicating that automatic information acquisition has not been performed (step A10), and the automatic information acquisition process ends.

The recipient uses an application such as a WWW browser of the personal computer 9 to check the contents of the distribution information file received by the personal computer 9 in step A8.

As described above, the dial-up router with the automatic information acquisition function and the F
According to the information distribution method using the TP, the dial-up router 8 can automatically acquire the distribution information placed on the FTP server 11 in an environment where the Internet can be used. That is, the dial-up router 8 automatically connects to the FTP server 11 and the provider of the distribution information
The distribution information file placed on the server 11 is obtained. The recipient can determine whether a new distribution information file has been obtained by the automatic information acquisition by the dial-up router 8 in FIG.
Can be confirmed on the display unit 1. The recipient can check the contents of the distribution information file on the display of the personal computer 9 in FIG.

[Second Embodiment] Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

(1) Description of Configuration As shown in FIG. 4, a dial-up router 8 according to a second embodiment of the present invention includes a display unit 1, a display circuit 2, a storage unit 3, a computer circuit 4, and a line interface unit. 6, an interface unit 7 with a personal computer, and a switch 13. As shown in FIG. 5, the Internet use environment of the second embodiment of the present invention includes a personal computer 9, a dial-up router 8, a network terminal 14, an analog line 12, a network terminal 15, a router 16, an FTP server 11, Terminal 1
7.

In the second embodiment, the dial-up router 8 is provided with a switch 13 instead of the clock circuit 5 of FIG. 1 shown in the first embodiment. The configuration other than the switch 13 in the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, and the description is omitted. In the first embodiment, the computer circuit 4 compares the stored time at which the automatic information is obtained with the current time of the clock circuit 5 and executes the automatic information acquisition if they match. In the embodiment, automatic information acquisition is performed when the recipient presses the switch. Thus, the recipient can use the automatic information acquisition with a simple operation when he wants to check new distribution information regardless of the set time.

(2) Description of Operation Next, the operation of the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
This will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

First, a second example will be described with reference to FIG.

In the second embodiment, the dial-up router 8 is connected to the FTP server 11 by using an analog line 12 instead of the ISDN line 10 of FIG. 2 of the first embodiment. The analog line 12 serves as a path for transmitting a packet from the dial-up router 8 to the router 16 or from the router 16 to the dial-up router 8.

Next, a third example will be described with reference to FIG.

In the second embodiment, the recipient of the service does not specify the time at which the automatic information acquisition is performed. The automatic information acquisition is performed when the line is connected by some other communication. In FIG. 3 of the first embodiment, the line is disconnected in step A5, but in the second embodiment, the line is not disconnected (step B6). Processing other than Step B6 is
This is the same as the first embodiment, and the description is omitted.

In FIG. 3 of the first embodiment, the recipient needs to pay the line connection fee by acquiring the automatic information. However, in the second embodiment, there is no charge for the line connection due to the automatic information acquisition.

As described above, according to the second embodiment of the present invention, similarly to the first embodiment, whether or not the recipient has newly obtained distribution information from the Internet without activating the personal computer Can be easily confirmed, and the provider of the distribution information can manage individual information for each recipient.

[0059]

According to the present invention as described above, the following effects can be obtained.

The first effect is that the recipient can confirm that the distribution information file has been automatically acquired without activating the recipient device (personal computer). In other words, the recipient can confirm whether or not new delivery information has been acquired by looking at the display of the delivery information acquisition device without having to start up the recipient device (personal computer), which takes time. .

The second effect is that the user ID and password for connecting to the distribution information management device stored in advance in the storage device of the distribution information acquisition device have the same information in the storage device of all the distribution information acquisition devices. Since it is stored, the provider of the distribution information only needs to manage one set of the user ID and the password regardless of the number of the recipients. Therefore, the provider of the distribution information does not need to manage individual information for each recipient.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a dial-up router according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of an Internet use environment according to the first embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a dial-up router according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of an Internet use environment according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Display part 3 Storage part 4 Computer circuit 5 Clock circuit 8 Dial-up router 9 Personal computer 10 ISDN line 11 FTP server 12 Analog line 13 Switch 17 Terminal

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. An information distribution system for distributing information via a communication medium including the Internet, comprising: a distribution information providing apparatus for providing a distribution information file; and the distribution information file transmitted from the distribution information providing apparatus. And a distribution information management device that stores the distribution information file, and connects to the distribution information management device, and acquires the distribution information file from the distribution information management device based on the identification information necessary for obtaining the distribution information file. An information distribution system, comprising: a distribution information acquisition device that displays the contents of a distribution information file; and a distributed device that transmits the identification information to the distribution information acquisition device. 2. The distribution information file includes a date and time when distribution is performed and a distribution information body. The identification information includes a name of the distribution information management device, a user ID for connecting to the distribution information management device. The information distribution system according to claim 1, further comprising a password, a distribution information file name to be acquired, and a time at which the distribution information file is acquired. 3. A plurality of the distribution information acquisition devices are provided, and each of the plurality of distribution information acquisition devices has a name of the distribution information management device, a user ID for connecting to the distribution information management device, and 3. The information distribution system according to claim 1, further comprising a storage unit that stores a password in advance. 4. The distribution information management device, comprising: a user ID and a password transmitted from the distribution information acquisition device;
The distribution information management device checks the user ID and the password stored in advance in the distribution information management device, and when the collation results match and a request for obtaining the distribution information file is issued from the distribution information acquisition device, the distribution information file is 4. The information is transmitted to a distribution information acquisition device.
An information distribution system according to any one of the above. 5. The distribution information acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the distribution information acquisition device executes acquisition of the distribution information file when a time at which the distribution information file stored in advance matches a current time. 5. The information distribution system according to any one of claims 1 to 4. 6. The distribution information acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the distribution information acquisition device executes the acquisition of the distribution information file when an instruction to acquire the distribution information file is externally input. Information distribution system described. 7. A distribution information acquisition device for acquiring distribution information via a communication medium including the Internet, wherein the distribution information acquisition device is connected to a distribution information management device storing a distribution information file, and identification information necessary for acquiring the distribution information file is provided. A distribution information acquisition apparatus, comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires the distribution information file from the distribution information management device based on the acquired information, and a display unit that displays the content of the acquired distribution information file. 8. The distribution information file includes a date and time of distribution and a distribution information body, and the identification information includes a name of the distribution information management device, a user ID for connecting to the distribution information management device. 8. The distribution information acquisition apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising a password, a distribution information file name to be acquired, and a time at which the distribution information file is acquired. 9. The distribution according to claim 7, further comprising a storage unit in which a name of the distribution information management device, a user ID for connecting to the distribution information management device, and a password are stored in advance. Information acquisition device. 10. The distribution information file acquisition unit according to claim 7, wherein the acquisition unit executes acquisition of the distribution information file when a time at which the distribution information file stored in advance matches a current time. 2. The distribution information acquisition device according to claim 1. 11. The distribution information acquisition apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the acquisition unit executes the acquisition of the distribution information file when an instruction to acquire the distribution information file is externally input. apparatus. 12. An information distribution method for distributing information via a communication medium including the Internet, wherein a distribution information file transmitted from a distribution information providing device is stored by a distribution information management device, and the distribution information acquisition device stores the distribution information file. A name of the distribution information management device connected to the distribution information management device and transmitted from the distribution target device, a user ID and a password for connecting to the distribution information management device, a distribution information file name to be obtained, and the distribution information file An information distribution method comprising: acquiring the distribution information file from the distribution information management device based on identification information including a time at which the distribution information file is acquired, and displaying the content of the acquired distribution information file.