JP2002258874A - Method and system for trial listening to music, information treminal and music retrieval server - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a music listening method, capable of improving concern to advertisement, a system, an information terminal and a music retrieval server. SOLUTION: When a user sings a piece of music that he desires to retrieve for inputting the piece of music, a mobile telephone 1 converts the piece of music sung into voice data and transmits the voice data to the music retrieval server; the server 2 performs voice recognition processing and musical interval recognition processing of the transmitted voice data, extracts a plurality of candidate pieces of music, on the basis of the recognition results and transmits a list of the candidate pieces of music to the mobile telephone; when the user receives the notice of the selected piece of music from the mobile telephone 1, the server 2 respectively acquires listening data for listening to the piece of music, information accompanying the piece of music (title, etc.), and advertisement information from a music data providing server 3 to transmit them to the mobile telephone; and the mobile telephone 1 allows the user to listen to a portion of the piece of music on the basis of the listening data and also notifies the user of advertisement information contents.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a music listening method, system, information terminal, and music search server for searching for a music based on a search request and distributing a part of the searched music as a preview music.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, music distribution using the Internet has become widespread. For example, a user connects to a website for distributing music using various types of information terminals such as a mobile phone or a personal computer having an Internet connection function (hereinafter referred to as “music distribution site”), and inputs an artist name or a song title. By searching for a desired music piece by using such a clue and performing a predetermined procedure (for example, a procedure related to payment of a fee), the music piece can be purchased in the form of digital data.

[0003] In order to make it easier for a user to search for a desired music, there is also a music distribution site where a part of the music can be previewed free of charge for a predetermined time (for example, about 30 seconds). I do. In such a music distribution site, when the name of a song to be auditioned is designated, sample audition data corresponding to a part of the song is transmitted. Can preview a song before purchasing it to confirm its contents.

[0004]

By the way, various advertisements related to music are posted on a web page of a music distribution site, but a user using the music distribution site listens to a preview on the web page. He paid attention only to the areas he was interested in, such as corners, and did not pay much attention to advertising, so his advertising effectiveness was not high. However, users who access music distribution sites and listen to music are considered to be more interested in music than other users. If the degree can be increased, it is considered that users' motivation to purchase can be further increased and new needs can be developed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to provide a music listening method, a system, an information terminal, and a music search server capable of increasing the degree of attention to an advertisement. It is in.

[0006]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, a music preview method of the present invention searches for music based on search request information and distributes a part of the searched music as a preview music. In the music audition method, an information terminal transmits search request information input by a user to a music search server, and the music search server searches for a user based on the search request information sent from the information terminal. Performing a search for the music to be requested and transmitting the result to the music data providing server, and the music data providing server retrieving a part of the music specified by the search result sent from the music search server to the user Transmitting the preview data together with the advertisement information to the music search server, and the music search server receiving the preview data received from the music data providing server. Transmitting the data and the advertisement information to the information terminal, and the information terminal allows the user to listen to the preview music based on the preview data received from the music search server, and to display the content of the advertisement specified by the advertisement information. Notification step.

[0007] When listening to a preview song, the user pays attention to the display screen and output sound of the information terminal. Therefore, when listening to the preview song, an advertisement (for example, new music information or a recommended song) is added together. , The user's attention to the advertisement can be increased.

[0008] The information terminal described above creates search request information by digitizing the singing voice of a user,
It is desirable that the music search server searches for music based on at least one of the melody of the singing voice and the utterance content. Because you can search for songs by singing voice, even if you know the lyrics and melody of the song, but do not know exactly the information to identify the song such as the song name or artist name, it is easy to do Music can be searched.

[0009] When the music search is completed, the music search server stores the result in the music list storage means and transmits the music list to the information terminal, and the information terminal sends the contents of the music list to the user. Notify and arbitrarily select from among them, transmit this selection information to the music server, and the music search server transmits only the music specified by the selection information from the music list to the music data providing server. It is desirable to set as. By notifying a song list including a plurality of candidate songs and arbitrarily selecting the song list, the user can surely select a desired song.

[0010] It is desirable that the music search server searches the network for related information of the music specified by the search result, and transmits this related information to the information terminal together with the trial listening data and the advertisement information. Since information related to the sampled music is collected and transmitted from the network, the convenience for the user can be further improved.

It is desirable that the music search server reads the user's preference information from the preference database and searches for a music piece in consideration of the preference information. By taking into account the user's preference information, for example, if the user likes a song in a particular genre, a search can be performed such that songs belonging to that genre are preferentially extracted. It is possible to provide search results with accurate contents to each of the users.

It is desirable that the music search server updates the contents of the preference database based on the music search results. Information related to the music searched by the user,
For example, by extracting the genre of the music and the characteristics of the artist (idols, male groups, etc.) and updating the contents of the taste database, the taste of each user can be obtained with high accuracy, and utilized for music search, market trend analysis, and the like. be able to.

[0013] The music search server extracts, based on the preference information read from the preference database, a music piece that matches the user's preference from the existing music pieces or recently announced music pieces. It is desirable to acquire the corresponding trial listening data or the information accompanying the extracted music from the music data providing server and distribute it to the information terminal. By extracting songs that match the user's preferences from existing songs and newly announced songs, and distributing preview data and accompanying information, stimulate users' willingness to purchase and sell songs. Can be promoted.

[0014] In the music preview system of the present invention, music search is performed by a music search server based on search request information sent from an information terminal, and music preview data of the music specified by the search result is provided. In the music audition system sent back from the server to the music search server,
Means for creating search request information and transmitting it to the music search server, and using the contents of advertisements based on the advertisement information received from the music search server while allowing the user to listen to music based on the preview data received from the music search server A means for notifying a user, a means for searching for music based on the search request information sent from the information terminal, and transmitting the result to the music data providing server; and A music search server is provided with a means for receiving preview data and advertisement information corresponding to a song as a search result when sent, and transmitting the advertisement information to an information terminal. The search result is sent from the music search server. Sample data corresponding to a part of the specified music is extracted from the music database, and the advertisement information desired to be provided to the user is Together with preview data issued and a means for transmitting the music search server to the music data providing server.

As described above, when listening to a preview song,
Since the user is paying attention to the display screen and output sound of the information terminal, advertisements that the user wishes to provide when listening to the preview music (for example, new music information or recommended music)
, The attention of the user to the advertisement can be increased.

The above information terminal further comprises means for digitizing the singing voice of the user to create search request information,
It is preferable that the music search server includes means for searching for music based on at least one of the melody and utterance content of the singing voice of the user. You can search for songs based on melody and / or vocal content of singing voices, so you know the lyrics and melody of the song, but do not know exactly the information to identify the song such as the song name or artist name Even in such a case, music search can be easily performed.

The information terminal of the present invention collects the singing voice of the user and converts it into digital data, and transmits the digital data to a music search server connected via a network. Means for instructing a search for a song based on at least one of the melody and vocal content of the singing voice, a means for displaying the search result, and selecting a music piece based on the displayed search result in accordance with the user's instruction Means and, when the advertisement information is sent from the music search server together with the preview data corresponding to a part of the selected music, the contents of the advertisement information are notified to the user, and the music is determined based on the preview data. Means for allowing the user to listen to a part of the file.

As described above, the user who listens to the preview music often pays attention to the display screen and output sound of the portable terminal, so that the advertisement information is included in the music along with the preview data corresponding to a part of the music. When sent from the search server side, the user is allowed to preview a part of the music based on the trial listening data, and the content of the advertisement information is notified to the user, thereby increasing the user's attention to the advertisement. be able to. In addition, since it is possible to instruct a search for a song based on at least one of the melody of the singing voice and the content of the utterance, the user knows the lyrics and melody of the song, but can accurately obtain information for identifying the song, such as the song title and artist name Even if the user does not know the music, the user can easily instruct the search for the music. Further, the search result of the music is displayed, and an arbitrary music can be selected based on the search result, so that the user can surely select a desired music.

Further, when digital data corresponding to the singing voice of the user is transmitted from the information terminal, the music search server of the present invention searches for a tune based on at least one of the melody of the singing voice and the utterance content. Means and transmitting the search result to the information terminal, and when the result of the music selection performed according to the search result is transmitted from the information terminal,
Means for transmitting, to the information terminal, preview data necessary for allowing the user to preview a part of the selected tunes together with predetermined advertisement information.

As described above, the user who listens to the preview music often pays attention to the display screen and the output sound of the portable terminal. By sending to the information terminal,
The user's attention to the advertisement notified by the information terminal based on the advertisement information can be increased. Also,
Since there is provided a means for searching for a song based on at least one of the melody and the utterance content of the singing voice, when digital data corresponding to the singing voice is transmitted from the mobile terminal and a search for a song based on the singing voice is instructed, Can also search for music desired by the user. Furthermore, since the search result of the music is transmitted to the information terminal and the result of the music selection performed according to the search result is received from the information terminal, the music desired by the user is surely grasped, and the The sample data required for the sample can be transmitted.

[0021]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A music listening system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a music audition system of the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the music preview system of the present embodiment includes a mobile phone 1, a music search server 2, a music data providing server 3, and a music-related information providing server 4. These devices are mutually connected via a predetermined network 5. In addition,
It is assumed that the network 5 in the present embodiment includes various communication networks such as a general telephone network, a mobile telephone network, and the Internet.

The mobile phone 1 uses the music listening system of the present embodiment to search for a desired piece of music and listen to a part of the music or to obtain various kinds of additional information. A mobile phone or PHS (Personal H
andyphone System). In the present embodiment, by connecting to the music search server 2 using the Internet connection function of the mobile phone 1 and humming a desired music, music search can be performed based on the singing voice. .

The music search server 2 operates a website that provides a music search service that allows a user to search for a desired song and to listen to the song for free. Specifically, when music search is requested from the mobile phone 1 and voice data corresponding to the singing voice of the user is transmitted, the music search server 2 performs a predetermined music recognition process on the voice data. The music data desired by the user is specified and sample data for previewing the music, information associated with the music (eg, artist name, music name, lyrics, etc.), and various advertisement information (new music information, new music information, etc.) , Recommended music information, etc.) from the music data providing server 3 and transmit them to the mobile phone 1.

The music search server 2 acquires various information related to music from the music-related information providing server 4,
Such information is also added to the trial listening data and transmitted. Specifically, the information related to a song includes concert information of an artist who sings (or performs) the song, a new music release schedule, information about a store that sells or rents a CD or the like containing the song, and other information about the song. There are various types of information that can be collected on the Internet about artists and artists.

The music data providing server 3 performs, based on the music identification information transmitted from the music search server 2, the trial listening data of the music desired by the user and the information accompanying the music (hereinafter referred to as “song accompanying information”). ”), And transmits the trial listening data and the music accompanying information to the music search server 2. The music data providing server 3 extracts advertisement information desired to be provided to the user, and transmits the advertisement information to the music search server 2 together with the trial listening data.

The music-related information providing server 4 manages various websites existing on the Internet, and provides various information related to music on a homepage. Here, charging in the music search system of the present embodiment will be described. First, the music search server 2
The music search service operated by, on the condition that various advertisement information is added to the preview data,
The mobile phone 1 is provided free of charge. Further, the owner of the music search server 2 performs a music search by singing voice and pays a predetermined fee from the owner of the music data providing server 3 as a mediation between the mobile phone 1 and the music data providing server 3. Collect. The music-related information server 4 is basically assumed to operate a website that provides various kinds of information free of charge.
And the music search server 2 do not charge each other.

Next, the mobile phone 1, the music search server 2,
The detailed configuration of each of the music data providing servers 3 will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the mobile phone 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the mobile phone 1 includes a control unit 1
0, an operation unit 11, a voice input unit 12, a display unit 13, a voice output unit 14, and a communication processing unit 15.

The control unit 10 implements a call function, an Internet connection function, and the like. This control unit 10
Is realized by executing a predetermined program using a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like. Operation unit 11
Is for giving an operation instruction to the control unit 10, and is provided with various operation keys. Using the operation unit 11, input of the telephone number of the other party during a call and URL (Uniform Resource Locator) at the time of Internet connection are performed.
ator), and various operation instructions such as an operation instruction at the time of music search.

The voice input unit 12 includes a microphone, an analog-to-digital converter, and the like. The voice input unit 12 collects voice uttered by a user, converts the voice into digital data (voice data), and converts the voice into voice data. Output to Display 1
3 displays various operation screens, displays a web page when connected to the Internet, and the like based on image data output from the control unit 10.

The audio output unit 14 includes a digital-analog converter, a speaker, and the like.
Based on the audio data output from 0, it outputs the voice of the other party or the test sound of the music. The communication processing unit 15
The control unit 10 controls the music search server 2 via the network 5
Communication processing necessary for transmitting and receiving data to and from the server is performed.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the music search server 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the music search server 2
It includes a server control unit 20, a music recognition processing unit 21, a music list storage unit 26, a user preference DB (database) 27, a market trend DB 28, and a communication processing unit 29.

The server control unit 20 searches the music desired by the user and opens and operates a website that provides a music search service that allows the user to listen to the music. Control behavior. The music recognition processing unit 21 performs music recognition processing for recognizing a music desired by the user based on the singing voice of the user.
It includes a voice recognition unit 22, a pitch recognition unit 23, a search DB 24, and a music search unit 25.

The voice recognition unit 22 performs a voice recognition process for specifying the content of the user's voice and converting the text into character data based on the voice data transmitted from the mobile phone 1. The pitch recognition unit 23 recognizes the melody of the singing voice of the user based on the voice data transmitted from the mobile phone 1. Specifically, the pitch recognition unit 23 specifies a melody by performing a process such as a fast Fourier transform on the voice data received from the server control unit 20 to analyze a frequency component, and converts the melody into MIDI ( Music Instrument Dig
It converts it to note data of the ital Interface) format and outputs it.

The search DB 24 stores a data table necessary for music search processing performed by the music search unit 25. More specifically, the search DB 24 associates, for a large number of songs, information unique to each song (such as a song name and an artist name) with “lyric data” indicating lyrics and “note data” indicating a melody. Contains a data table.

The music search unit 25 searches the data table stored in the search DB 24 based on the utterance content specified by the voice recognition unit 22 and the melody specified by the pitch recognition unit 23, and A song that is likely to be desired is extracted. Specifically, the music search unit 2
Reference numeral 5 denotes a lyric matching rate by comparing the character data output from the voice recognition unit 22 with the lyric data of a large number of songs stored in the search DB 24 and calculating the number of matching words. Is determined, and a predetermined number of songs having a high matching rate are extracted. The same applies to the melody, and the music search unit 25 determines the matching rate of the melody by comparing the note data output from the pitch recognition unit 23 with the note data of many songs stored in the search DB 24. Then, a plurality of songs having a high matching rate are extracted. And
The song search unit 25 determines the matching rate of each song by integrating the matching rate of the lyrics and the matching rate of the melody, and generates a song list including a plurality of candidate songs (for example, the top five songs with the matching rate). The search result is output to the server control unit 20.

The music list storage unit 26 includes a music search unit 25
Temporarily stores the music list output to the server control unit 20 from the server. The music list storage unit 26 corresponds to a music list storage unit. The user preference DB 27 stores data (user preference data) indicating the preference of each user for a plurality of users (users) who use the music search service provided by the music search server 2. As the user preference data, for example, in association with a user ID or the like for identifying each user, the user's personal information (user's age, gender, etc.) and past music search history (when and what music Information, such as whether you searched). The contents of the user preference DB 27 are updated by the server control unit 20 each time each user uses the music search service.

The market trend DB 28 stores market trend data collected by the server control unit 20 based on the use status of the music search service. As market trend data,
For example, every time the search service is used, information such as the searched music, the genre to which the music belongs, the artist, the user's gender, age, and time of use are collected. By using the market trend data accumulated in the market trend DB 28, the server control unit 20 uses the ranking of popular songs (weekly, monthly, yearly, etc.), the popularity ranking of each artist / genre, and these rankings. It is possible to analyze various market trends such as rankings that are further classified according to the age and gender of the elderly.

The communication processing unit 29 is necessary for the server control unit 20 to transmit / receive data to / from each of the mobile phone 1, the music data providing server 3, and the music related information providing server 4 via the network 5. Perform communication processing. FIG.
3 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the music data providing server 3. FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the music data providing server 3 includes a server control unit 30, a music DB 31, a music accompanying information DB 3
2. It is configured to include an advertisement information DB 33, a market trend DB 34, and a communication processing unit 35.

The server control unit 30 controls the overall operation of the music data providing server 3 in order to transmit the trial listening data of the music in response to the request sent from the music search server 2. The music DB 31 stores preview data of many songs in association with song identification information (such as song names and artist names). The sample listening data is, for example, MP3 (M
Compressed music data such as PEG1 audio layer 3) or uncompressed music data such as Wave format is prepared.

The music-related information DB 32 stores various information (for example, lyrics, lyricists, composers, release dates, etc.) associated with the music in association with the music identification information. The advertisement information DB 33 stores various types of advertisement information desired to be provided to the user (new information, new music information, recommended music information, etc.).
Is stored.

The market trend DB 34 stores market trend data collected by the server control unit 30. The market trend data is similar to the one stored in the market trend DB 28 described above. For example, every time the audition data is requested, the requested music, the genre to which the music belongs, the artist, the gender of the user Information such as age, usage time zone, etc. is collected. By using the market trend data accumulated in the market trend DB 34, the server control unit 30
Can analyze various market trends such as the ranking of popular songs (weekly, monthly, yearly, etc.), the popularity ranking of each artist / genre, and the rankings further classified by age and gender of users. it can.

The communication processing unit 35 performs communication processing necessary for the server control unit 30 to transmit and receive data to and from the music search server 2 via the network 5. The music audition system of the present embodiment has such a configuration. Next, an operation procedure for searching for a desired music piece by singing voice and obtaining trial listening data will be described.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing the operation procedure of the music listening system when a desired music piece is searched to obtain the listening data. The mobile phone 1, the music search server 2, and the music data providing server 3 respectively. Is shown. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the contents of various data transmitted and received among the mobile phone 1, the music search server 2, the music data providing server 3, and the music-related information providing server 4 in the series of procedures shown in FIG. is there.

Hereinafter, the operation procedure of the music listening system will be described with reference to FIG. 5 while appropriately referring to the data flow shown in FIG. Singing Voice Input and Transmission of Search Request Information (Step 100) When a singing voice is input by the user, the mobile phone 1 converts the singing voice into voice data, and converts the search request information including the voice data into a music search server. Send to 2. Specifically, the singing voice of the user is collected by the voice input unit 12, converted into voice data, and output to the control unit 10. The control unit 10 creates search request information including the voice data and transmits the search request information to the music search server 2 via the communication processing unit 15 (see FIG. 6A).

Searching for music and transmitting music list (step 1)
01) Upon receiving the music search request information, the music search server 2
Performs a predetermined music recognition process based on the audio data included in the search request information, extracts a plurality of music pieces likely to be desired by the user, and stores the list (music list) in the mobile phone. 1 (see FIG. 6 (2)).

More specifically, the server control unit 20 receives the music search request information via the communication processing unit 29, and outputs the audio data contained therein to the music recognition processing unit 21. The music recognition processing unit 21 that has received the audio data performs the above-described predetermined music recognition processing, searches for a plurality of music pieces that have a high matching rate with the singing voice of the user in consideration of both the lyrics and the melody, and performs a search. Is output to the server control unit 20. The server control unit 20 having received the music list transmits the music list to the mobile phone 1 via the communication processing unit 29 and stores the music list in the music list storage unit 26.

By the way, in the music search processing in step 101, the search results may be further narrowed down in consideration of information about the user known in advance. For example, when a user of "woman in teens and twenties" performs a search, old (for example, 10-
If an enka was included (released 20 years ago), it could be determined that this was probably not the song the user wanted, and that song could be removed from the search results. If it is known that the user likes the music belonging to the “rock” genre very much, the music belonging to this genre can be preferentially extracted. As described above, by narrowing down the search results in consideration of the information on the users, more accurate search results can be provided to each user.

Display of music list (step 102) The control unit 10 in the mobile phone 1 receives the music list transmitted from the music search server 2 via the communication processing unit 15, and displays this on the display unit 13. I do. Transmission of music selection result (step 103) When any one of the music is selected by the user using the operation unit 11 based on the music list displayed on the display unit 13, the control unit in the mobile phone 1 10 is a communication processing unit 1
5 and transmits the music selection result to the music search server 2 (see FIG. 6 (3)).

Transmission of music identification information and user information (step
Step 104) When the music selection result is transmitted, the server control unit 20 in the music search server 2 performs music identification information for identifying the music selected by the user and information (user information) related to the user. ) Is transmitted to the music data providing server 3 (see FIG. 6 (4)).

Update of user preference DB and market trend DB
(Step 105) The server control unit 20 in the music search server 2 updates the contents of the user preference DB 27 and the market trend DB 28 based on the result of the music search by the user.

Retrieval of Related Information (Step 106) Also, the server control unit 20 in the music search server 2 uses the keyword (eg, song name, artist name, song genre, etc.) related to the song as a search key to search for the music related information. Various information provided by the providing server 4 is searched (see FIG. 6 (5)), and related information is extracted (FIG. 6 (6)).
reference).

Extraction of preview data, music accompanying information, and advertisement information
Out (Step 107) The server control unit 30 in the music data providing server 3 that has received the music identification information and the user information extracts the trial listening data of the music identified by the music identification information from the music DB 31, and also outputs the music accompanying information and Extract advertising information.

When extracting the advertisement information, the content may be narrowed down in consideration of the user's preference and the like. Transmission of the provided data (step 108) When the trial listening data of the music, the advertisement information, and the music accompanying information (hereinafter, these data are collectively referred to as “provided data”) are extracted, the server control in the music data providing server 3 is performed. The unit 30 transmits the provided data to the music search server 2 (see FIG. 6 (7)).

Updating of the market trend DB (step 109) Also, the server control unit 30 in the music data providing server 3
Updates the contents of the market trend DB 34 based on the contents of the music for which the trial listening data is requested, information on the user, and the like.

Transmission of provided data to which related information is added
(Step 110) Upon receiving the provided data (listening data, advertisement information, music accompanying information) transmitted from the music data providing server 3, the server control unit 20 in the music search server 2 sets the related information collected in step 106 described above. Is added to the provided data and transmitted to the mobile phone 1 (see FIG. 6 (8)).

Notification of music preview and advertisement (step 1)
11) When the provided data and the related information are transmitted from the music search server 2, the control unit 10 in the mobile phone 1 reproduces the preview data, displays the music accompanying information, and displays the advertisement information based on the data. Notification of advertisements based on is performed.
For example, music accompanying information such as lyrics, advertisements such as new music information, music-related information, and the like are displayed on the display unit 13, and audio reproduced from sample data or sample data of recommended songs transmitted as advertisement information is reproduced. It is output from the audio output unit 14.

If the user wants to purchase the music data of the designated music or the music sent as the advertisement information as a result of listening to the music, the user uses the mobile phone 1 to play the music. The user connects to the data providing server 3 and purchases desired music data by performing a predetermined procedure.

As described above, in the music preview system of the present embodiment, the advertisement is notified when the preview music is previewed, so that the user's attention to the advertisement can be increased. Also, since you can search for songs by singing voice, even if you know the lyrics and melody of the song, but you do not know exactly the information to identify the song such as the song name and artist name , It is possible to easily search for music.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention. For example, in the embodiment described above,
The music search server 2 transmits various kinds of advertisement information to the preview data when the user requests the trial listening of the music, but based on the user preference data stored in the user preference DB 27. It is also possible to perform so-called push distribution, in which the preferences of each user are analyzed and advertisement information matching the preferences of each user is automatically distributed from the music search server 2 to the mobile phone 1.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure in the case where the advertisement information matching the taste of each user is pushed and distributed. It is shown. The server control unit 20 in the music search server 2 determines whether or not the distribution time of the advertisement information has arrived (Step 200). Specifically, the server control unit 20 determines a predetermined distribution time (for example,
Every Monday, etc.), and it is determined whether or not this distribution time has arrived. Unless it is time to distribute the advertisement information, the determination in step 200 is repeated.

If it is time to distribute the advertisement information, an affirmative decision is made in step 200 and the server control unit 20
Is a music data providing server 3 that transmits advertisement information.
(Step 201). When a request for transmitting advertisement information is sent from the music search server 2, the server control unit 30 in the music data providing server 3 reads the advertisement information from the advertisement information DB 33 and transmits it to the music search server 2 (step 202). . It is assumed that the advertisement information transmitted from the music data providing server 3 to the music search server 2 includes various contents.

When the advertisement information is transmitted from the music data providing server 3, the server control unit 20 in the music search server 2
Receives the advertisement information (step 20).
3) Read the user preference data from the user preference DB 27 (step 204). Next, the server control unit 20 analyzes the preference of each user based on the user preference data, and selects each user from the advertisement information (advertisement information including various contents) acquired from the music data providing server 3. The advertisement information corresponding to the user's preference is extracted, and the extracted advertisement information is transmitted to the mobile phone 1 of each user (step 2).
05). For example, when a new song belonging to the genre (rock, pop, etc.) that the user likes is released,
The preview data of the new song and the like are extracted and transmitted as advertisement information. In addition, new arrival information related to the artist preferred by the user (scheduled release of new songs, concerts, etc.)
If there is, such information is extracted and transmitted as advertisement information. Alternatively, from the existing songs, extract those belonging to the genre or artist that the user prefers,
It can also be advertising information.

When the advertisement information is transmitted, the control unit 10 in the mobile phone 1 notifies the user of an advertisement by displaying an image or outputting a sound based on the advertisement information (step). 206). In this way, by analyzing the preferences of each user based on the user preference data, and by push-distributing advertisement information that matches the preferences of each user,
It is possible to provide highly useful information for each user. Therefore, the user's willingness to purchase can be further increased.

In the above-described embodiment, a plurality of music pieces are presented as a music search result, and the user is allowed to select any one of the music pieces.
One music piece having the highest matching rate with the singing voice of the user may be presented. If you can narrow down,
For example, a case may be considered in which the music having the highest matching rate is compared with the second music, and the difference between the matching rates is greater than or equal to a predetermined value (for example, 30%).

In the above-described embodiment, both the lyrics and the melody are analyzed based on the singing voice input by the user to perform the music recognition. However, only one of the melody or the lyrics is input and the music is recognized. Recognition can also be performed. In this case, (1) when only lyrics are input, music search is performed using only the result of the voice recognition process by the voice recognition unit 22 without performing the pitch recognition process by the pitch recognition unit 23, and (2) If only the melody is input, the voice recognition processing by the voice recognition unit 22 is not performed, and the music search is performed using only the result of the pitch recognition processing by the pitch recognition unit 23. Music search can be performed based on only one of them. This allows the user to enter only the lyrics when the user does not know the melody but knows the lyrics or wants to avoid the song because he is not good at singing the song. If the user knows it, he or she can input a melody only by humming or the like to search for and listen to a desired song.

Also, in the above-described embodiment, the information terminal used by the user to search for a desired music piece to listen to a part of the music piece and to obtain various kinds of additional information includes a mobile phone, a PHS, or the like. Although the mobile phone 1 has been considered, the information terminal is not limited to this, and various other modified examples can be considered. For example, a personal computer (personal computer) can be used as the information terminal. In this case, a microphone may be connected to the personal computer, and singing voice may be input to the microphone, and the personal computer and the network 5 may be connected via a general telephone line or the like. PDA (Personal Digital A)
Various electronic devices such as portable information terminals such as ssistants) and navigation devices can also be used as information terminals.
In this case, a microphone may be connected to the PDA or the navigation device, and the singing voice may be input using the microphone. The connection between the PDA or the navigation device and the network 5 may be made via a mobile phone or the like. I just need.

In the above-described embodiment, the tune to be auditioned is input by singing voice, and the tune is searched for based on the singing voice. However, when the user knows the tune name or artist name of the tune, May search for music based on such information. In this case, mobile phone 1
By inputting a song name, an artist name, and the like using the operation unit 11 of, the search request information including these is transmitted to the music search server 2.

[0068]

As described above, according to the music listening method or the music listening system of the present invention, the advertisement is notified to the user when the user listens to the sample music. Can be increased.

Further, according to the information terminal of the present invention, when the advertisement information is sent from the music search server together with the preview data corresponding to a part of the music, a part of the music is used based on the trial data. Since the user is given a preview and the content of the advertisement information is notified to the user, the user's attention to the advertisement can be increased.

According to the music search server of the present invention,
Since the predetermined advertisement information is transmitted to the information terminal together with the preview data necessary for the trial listening of the music, the user's attention to the advertisement notified by the information terminal based on the advertisement information can be increased.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an overall configuration of a music preview system according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of a mobile phone.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of a music search server.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of a music data providing server.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure of the music preview system when a desired music is searched to obtain preview data.

6 is a diagram showing contents of various data transmitted and received among a mobile phone, a music search server, a music data providing server, and a music-related information providing server in a series of procedures shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure in a case where advertisement information suitable for each user's preference is push-distributed.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Mobile telephone 2 Music search server 3 Music data providing server 4 Music related information providing server 5 Network 10 Control unit 11 Operation unit 12 Voice input unit 13 Display unit 14 Voice output unit 15, 29, 35 Communication processing unit 20, 30 Server Control unit 21 Music recognition processing unit 22 Voice recognition unit 23 Interval recognition unit 24 Search database (DB) 25 Music search unit 26 Music list storage unit 27 User preference DB 28, 34 Market trend DB 31 Music DB 32 Music accompanying information DB 33 Advertising information DB

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Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. A music audition method for searching for music based on search request information and distributing a part of the searched music as a preview music, wherein an information terminal transmits the search request information input by a user to music. Transmitting to a search server, the music search server searches for a music to be searched by the user based on the search request information sent from the information terminal, and the result is a music data providing server. The music data providing server, along with advertisement information, the music search server to provide the user with a preview of the music data to allow the user to listen to a part of the music specified by the search result sent from the music search server Transmitting the sample data and the advertisement information received from the music data providing server to the music search server. And transmitting the information terminal to the user. The information terminal causes the user to listen to a preview song based on the preview data received from the music search server, and notifies the user of the content of the advertisement specified by the advertisement information. Music listening method, comprising the step of: 2. The information terminal according to claim 1, wherein the information terminal creates the search request information by digitizing a singing voice of the user, and wherein the music search server includes at least one of a melody and a vocal content of the singing voice. A music listening method, wherein a music search is performed based on the music. 3. The music search server according to claim 1, wherein when the music search is completed, the music search server stores a result of the search in a music list storage unit, and transmits the music list to the information terminal. A terminal notifying the user of the content of the music list and arbitrarily selecting the content, and transmitting the selected information to the music server; and the music search server selects the selected information from the music list. Music setting method, wherein only the music identified by the above is set as a search result transmitted to the music data providing server. 4. The music search server according to claim 1, wherein the music search server searches for related information of a music piece specified by a search result via a network, and searches the related information together with the preview data and the advertisement information. Is transmitted to the information terminal. 5. The music search server according to claim 1, wherein the music search server reads the user's preference information from a preference database and searches for a music piece in consideration of the preference information. How to listen to music. 6. The music audition method according to claim 5, wherein the music search server updates contents of the preference database based on a search result of music. 7. The music search server according to claim 5, wherein the music search server matches the user's preference from existing music or recently announced music based on the preference information read from the preference database. A music listening method, wherein sampled data corresponding to the extracted music or information associated with the extracted music is obtained from the music data providing server and distributed to the information terminal. . 8. A music search server searches for music based on search request information sent from an information terminal,
In a music audition system for returning audition data of a song specified by a search result from a music data providing server to the music search server, the information terminal creates the search request information and transmits the search request information to the music search server; Means for allowing the user to preview a song based on the preview data received from the music search server and notifying the user of the content of an advertisement based on the advertisement information received from the music search server, The search server searches for music based on the search request information sent from the information terminal, and transmits the result to the music data providing server. When the preview data and the advertisement information corresponding to the music are sent, they are received and Means for transmitting to an information terminal, wherein the music data providing server extracts from the music database the sample data corresponding to a part of the song specified by the search result sent from the music search server, A music preview system, comprising: means for transmitting the advertisement information desired to be provided to a user together with the extracted trial data to the music search server. 9. The information terminal according to claim 8, further comprising: means for digitizing the singing voice of the user to create the search request information; wherein the music search server includes a melody of the singing voice of the user and A music audition system, comprising: means for searching for music based on at least one of utterance contents. 10. A means for collecting a user's singing voice and converting it to digital data, and transmitting the digital data to a music search server connected via a network, thereby providing a melody and utterance of the singing voice. Means for instructing a search for a song based on at least one of the contents, means for displaying a search result, means for selecting a song based on the displayed search result in response to a user instruction, and a selected song When the advertisement information is sent from the music search server side together with the preview data corresponding to a part of the music information, the content of the advertisement information is notified to the user, and a part of the music is based on the preview data. Means for causing the user to listen to the information. 11. When digital data corresponding to a user's singing voice is transmitted from an information terminal, means for searching for a tune based on at least one of the melody and utterance content of the singing voice, and While transmitting to the terminal, when the result of the music selection performed in accordance with the search result is sent from the information terminal, the listening data necessary for the user to listen to a part of the selected music, And a means for transmitting to the information terminal together with predetermined advertisement information.