JP2002312690A - System, device, and program for channel type communication - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system, a device, and a program for channel type communication which make processing for communications meeting a variety of needs efficient by determining channel properties among communication devices and making communications according to the channel properties. SOLUTION: In this channel type communication system wherein the communication devices connected through a network communicate with each other a 1st communication device 1 determines channel properties at a channel request from a 2nd communication device 2 and sends information to the 2nd communication device 2 according to the channel properties determined by a channel determining means. The 2nd communication device 2 sends the channel request to the 1st communication device 1 to request the information from the 1st communication device 1 and then receives the information from the 1st communication device.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention defines a frame (channel) of information to be transmitted between communication devices connected via a network, and performs communication according to attributes such as an expiration date and a price of the channel. The present invention relates to a communication system, a communication device, and a communication program.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the spread of the Internet, various types of data can be freely exchanged, and communication between various users, such as business-to-person and person-to-person, has become possible. .

[0003] In recent years, communication via a network has not only sent information unilaterally but also one-way communication, as found in some commercial transactions and advertising services.
Communication of toone has been emphasized.

[0004]

As described above, one to one
If one's communication is promoted, information needs will be diversified, and conventional broadcast-type communication will not be able to respond.

On the other hand, an on-demand service for distributing information in response to a request from a receiver has been proposed.

However, in such a service, it becomes more difficult to manage information (content) individually as user needs are diversified.

[0007] Taking a billing method as an example, a method of billing when one content is browsed or downloaded,
There is a method of charging according to the time of viewing one content or the amount of downloaded data.

In this case, a price must be set for each piece of content, and procedures such as a price setting operation and a settlement operation become complicated. In addition, the burden on the user is large, such as requiring authentication each time.

On the other hand, there is a contract in which a contract is made on a monthly basis so that browsing and downloading can be freely performed within the contract period.

In this case, since the contents are comprehensively handled regardless of the quality of the contents, it is difficult to sufficiently satisfy the needs of the user. For example, when a certain sports video is broadcasted in real time, a user who cannot view the video at this time must pay an expensive fee, and there is a need to request a low-cost broadcast even for recording.

[0011] In view of the above circumstances, the present invention determines the channel attribute between communication devices and performs communication in accordance with the channel attribute, thereby improving the processing efficiency in performing communication according to various needs. It is an object of the present invention to provide a channel-type communication system, a communication device, and a communication program which have been developed.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A channel type communication system, a communication apparatus and a communication program according to the present invention provide an expiration date of a channel (hereinafter also referred to as a communication channel), which is a framework of information to be communicated, an abstract of transmittable information, By performing communication within this channel defined by channel attributes such as price, information price setting and billing can be performed on a channel basis.
It is possible to meet user needs while improving processing efficiency.

A channel type communication system according to the present invention is a system for performing communication between communication devices connected via a network, wherein a first communication device has a channel attribute in response to a channel request from a second communication device. And a transmitting means for transmitting information to the second communication device according to the channel attribute determined by the channel determining device, wherein the second communication device performs the first communication. The information processing apparatus includes: a channel requesting unit that transmits a channel request to the device; an information requesting unit that requests information from the first communication device; and an information receiving unit that receives information from the first communication device.

In this channel type communication system,
The first communication device includes an attribute notifying unit that notifies a channel attribute to the second communication device, and a channel request unit of the second communication device determines a condition of a preset channel attribute and the first channel attribute. When the channel attribute notified from the communication device matches, a channel request may be transmitted to the second communication device.

Further, the communication device on the transmitting side of the present invention is a device for performing communication by connecting to another communication device via a network, and identifying means for identifying a channel request from the other communication device; Channel determining means for determining a channel attribute based on the channel request; attribute storing means for storing the determined channel attribute; transmitting means for transmitting information to a communication terminal having requested the channel; Communication control means for controlling transmission by the transmission means in accordance with the channel attribute stored in the storage means.

In this communication apparatus, there is provided an attribute notifying means for notifying the other communication apparatus of a channel attribute, and when a channel request is received from the other communication apparatus in response to the notification, the channel determining means is provided. The configuration may be such that the channel attribute is determined as informed.

Further, when the channel attribute is determined, a determination notifying means for notifying the other communication device of the determination is provided, and when the channel attribute is determined, or when the channel attribute is determined, It is also possible to provide a charging unit for charging the other communication device when the information is transmitted.

Further, the communication device on the receiving side of the present invention is a device for performing communication by connecting to another communication device via a network, and a channel request means for transmitting a channel request to the other communication device. An information requesting unit for requesting information from the other communication device, and an information receiving unit for receiving information from the transmitting device.

In the receiving communication apparatus, there is provided a channel attribute receiving means for receiving a channel attribute from the another communication apparatus, and the channel request means is provided for the other channel apparatus based on the channel attribute received by the channel attribute receiving means. A configuration for transmitting a channel request to the communication device may be adopted.

[0020] In the receiving communication device, the channel request means may transmit a channel request including a channel attribute to the other communication device.

In the communication device, the channel attribute is at least one of a channel validity period, a channel generation time, a channel disappearance time, an abstract of transmittable information, a price, and sender information.

A communication program according to the present invention is a program operated by a communication device that performs communication by connecting to another communication device via a network, and includes a step of identifying a channel request from the other communication device. Determining channel attributes based on the channel request;
The step of storing the determined channel attribute, the step of transmitting information to the communication terminal that has requested the channel, and the step of controlling the transmission according to the stored channel attribute are executed.

The communication program includes a step of notifying the other communication device of a channel attribute, and a step of determining the channel attribute when the other communication device requests a channel in response to the notification. Determines the channel attribute as described above.

Further, the communication program includes a step of charging the other communication device when the channel attribute is determined or when information is transmitted according to the channel attribute.

A communication program according to the present invention is a program operated by a communication device that communicates by connecting to another communication device via a network, and transmits a channel request to the other communication device. Performing a step of requesting information from the other communication device and a step of receiving information from the transmitting device.

Further, the communication program includes a step of receiving a channel attribute from the other communication device,
In the transmitting the channel request, a channel request is transmitted according to the received channel attribute.

In the present invention, the above-mentioned components can be combined as much as possible.

[0028]

<Embodiment 1> Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of Embodiment 1 according to the present invention.

This embodiment is a channel type communication system in which a first communication device 1 and a second communication device 2 are connected via a network (a communication network such as the Internet), and a channel is defined for communication. Make up.

The first communication device 1 is a so-called personal computer, and as shown in FIG.
An arithmetic processing unit 12 composed of a PU (micro processor unit), a main memory, etc., a storage device (hard disk, RAM, etc.) 13 for storing software for arithmetic processing, and a personal input / output device as an input / output unit of data for a user 1
4. A communication control device (modem, TA, LAN card, etc.) for transmitting and receiving data to and from another communication device via a network is provided.

The personal input / output device 14 is provided with necessary peripheral devices such as a keyboard, a mouse, a display (presenting means), and a printer.

An operating system (OS) and application software (communication program) are installed in the storage device 13 of the main body 11. The configuration is not limited to this, and the storage device 13 may be configured not to store the OS or the application, but to operate by a program stored in the main memory or a control circuit of each unit.

The arithmetic processing unit 12 performs identification processing 21, attribute notification means (arbitration agent) 22, channel determination means 23, attribute storage means 24, transmission means 25,
The functions of the communication control means (channel agent) 26 and the charging means 27 are realized.

The function of the identification means 21 is to identify a channel request from another communication device (second communication device).

The function of the arbitration agent 22 is to introduce a channel to the second communication device 2 (notify the channel attribute). Also, the number of channels that can be distributed simultaneously is stored, and when the requester of the channel reaches the upper limit,
It stops giving more information and prevents information congestion.

The function of the channel determining means 23 is as follows.
The channel attribute is determined according to a channel request from the second communication device.

As a function of the attribute storage means 24, the channel attribute determined by the channel determination means 23 is stored in the storage device 13 or the main memory.

The function of the transmitting means 25 is to transmit information to the communication device which has requested the channel.

The function of the channel agent 26 is to control the information transmitted by the transmitting means 25 to other communication devices in accordance with the channel attributes determined by the channel determining means 23.

That is, channel management is performed. For example, (1) a channel is generated (communication is possible), (2) a channel is deleted (communication is disabled), (3) a profile of a participant is provided upon request, 4) responding to an inquiry about a channel; and (5) responding to an inquiry about a channel attribute.

The function of the charging means 27 is to charge the other communication device when the channel attribute is determined or when information is transmitted according to the channel attribute.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of the second communication device 2. As shown in the figure, the second communication device 2 has substantially the same hardware configuration as the first communication device 1, and the arithmetic processing unit 12
And the like, the functions of the respective means are different.

The arithmetic processing unit 12 of the second communication device 2
By processing based on information from peripheral devices and application software, channel attribute receiving means 31, channel requesting means 32, information requesting means 33, information receiving means 34,
The function of the channel display means 35 is realized.

The function of the channel attribute receiving means 31 is to receive the channel attribute from the first communication device 1.

The function of the channel request means 32 is as follows.
Determine whether to accept the channel based on the channel attribute received by the channel attribute receiving means 31,
When accepting, a channel request is transmitted to the first communication device 1.

The function of the information requesting means 33 is to request information from the first communication device 1 when the channel is established.

The function of the information receiving means 34 is to receive information (contents) transmitted from the first communication device 1 in response to the information request.

The function of the channel agent 35 is to inquire the channel agent 26 of the first communication device about the channel attribute and to manage the information so as to request information according to the channel attribute.

In this example, general-purpose computers are used as the first communication device 1 and the second communication device 2, and each means is realized by the arithmetic processing unit 12, application software (communication program), and the like. It may be a dedicated communication device configured by an electronic circuit designed for each means.

The channel attributes include a channel validity period, a channel generation time, a channel disappearance time, an abstract of transmittable information (content title,
Genre, PR, etc.), price, and sender information. In the present embodiment, an example is shown in which the first communication device 1 and the second communication device 2 function as the communication device of the present invention by operating the communication program of the present invention on a general-purpose computer. The communication device of the present invention is not limited to this, and may be an electronic device configured using a dedicated electronic circuit for each unit.

Next, a channel type communication procedure according to the above configuration will be described. In this example, the push-type communication in which the first party transmitting the content works on the second party to establish the communication channel has been described.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of this procedure. [Stage 0]

Both the first and second parties prepare for communication, such as installing application software in their respective communication devices (step 1, hereinafter abbreviated as S1).

The first party causes the first communication device 1 to store information such as the presence and name of the second party (S2). For example, the second party registers with the first party and notifies the name, address, e-mail address, billing (information fee) payment method, and the like.

The second party determines the conditions of the channel to be accepted (communication policy: conditions from which channel, content genre, price, etc., and channel attributes) and determines the storage device 1 of the second communication device 2.
3 or the like (S3). [Stage 1]

The first communication device 1 sends a channel to the second communication device 2. That is, the channel attributes such as the channel occurrence time and disappearance time, transmittable information abstract, price, and sender information are set and transmitted by the attribute notification means 22 (S4).

The second communication device 2 receives the channel attribute from the first communication device 1 by the channel attribute receiving means 31 (S5). [Stage 2]

The second communication device 2 determines whether or not the channel requesting means 32 accepts the channel from the first party in accordance with a predetermined communication policy. (S6). By this channel request, it is notified that the user has agreed on the payment of the price and the attributes such as the term of the channel.

When the first communication device 1 identifies the channel request from the second communication device 2 (S7), the second party's consent is obtained for the channel attribute notified by the attribute notification means 22. Then, it is determined that the channel has been accepted, and the channel attribute is determined by the channel determining means 23 as described above (S8), and the channel is established. Further, the determined channel attribute is stored in the storage device 13 (S9). [Stage 3]

When the channel is established, the channel agent 26 of the first communication device 1 manages the channel according to the channel attribute, and generates a channel at the time when the channel is generated (S10).

The second communication device 2 requests required information from the first communication device 1 during a period in which the channel is alive (a period from the time when the channel is generated to the time when it is extinguished) (S1).
1).

The channel agent 26 of the first communication device 1 permits the transmission if the information is within the range defined by the channel attribute, and transmits the information by the transmission means 25 (S12).

The second party receives the transmitted information by the information receiving means 34 of the second communication device 2 (S13), and watches a movie or listens to music using a player according to the information. You can do things.

The request for this information can be made at any time within the range specified by the channel attribute (for example, the period during which the channel is alive or the genre of the content).

The channel agent 26 of the first communication device 1 causes the channel to disappear when the channel disappearance time has been reached (S14).

The accounting means 27 of the first communication device 1
Executes a charging process when the channel is exhausted or when the payment of the fee for the channel is agreed (when a channel request is made). (S15)

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the channel attributes are determined between the communication devices and the communication is performed in accordance with the channel attributes, so that the efficiency of the processing when performing communication according to various needs is improved. Can be achieved.

In particular, since the price can be determined in accordance with the content of the information, the time zone, the demand of the receiver, etc., it is possible to set various prices such that the channel through which new content flows is provided at a high price.

Further, since the number of channels supplied can be adjusted by the arbitration agent, information requests exceeding the transmission capability of the transmission side can be limited.

If a good channel is provided, the customer on the receiving side can be retained and can be used as a repeater.

The demand status of the channel can be grasped from the number of transmissions of the channel, and can be utilized for marketing and channel price determination.

An advertisement can be effectively placed on a channel having a customer having a certain preference.

If the purchase price when the sender purchases the content for transmission is determined according to the number of viewers, the number of viewers can be clarified, so that the purchase can be made at an appropriate price.

Further, since the present system has a mechanism for charging a channel to which content is provided instead of charging for each content, the efficiency of the charging process can be improved.

<Embodiment 2>

In the present embodiment, the pull-type communication in which the second party receiving the content works to establish the communication channel with the first party has been described.

The hardware configuration of the first communication device 1 and the second communication device 2 is substantially the same as that of the above-described embodiment, and the channel request and the attribute determination procedure are different. For this reason, the same elements are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

FIG. 5 shows the procedure of the pull-type communication of this embodiment. [Stage 0]

Both the first party and the second party prepare for communication such as installing application software in each communication device (S21).

The first party causes the first communication device 1 to store the existence and name of the second party (S22). For example, the second party registers with the first party and notifies the name, address, e-mail address, billing (information fee) payment method, and the like.

The first party registers a list of contents that can be provided in the arbitration agent (attribute notifying means) 22 of the first communication device 1 (S23). [Stage 1]

The second party inputs a request for channel inquiry to the second communication device 2 and
According to 5, the request is transmitted to the first communication device (S24).

At this time, some desired conditions can be included in the request. The second party can specify not only a list of channels but also a preference such as “video channel related to sports in the morning” by attributes.

The first communication device 1 that has received the request
The arbitration agent 22 selects a channel conforming to the request of the second party from the registered channels, and transmits this channel to the second communication device 2 (S25).

The channel agent 35 of the second communication device 2 presents this channel attribute to the second party. [Stage 2]

The first communication device 1 is requested by the channel request means 32 for the channel selected by the second party based on the channel profile information presented by the arbitration agent. At this time, if the channel is transmitted from the first party, it is determined to accept it as a communication policy (S26).

The first communication device 1 transmits the requested channel to the second communication device 2 (S27).

The second communication device 2 receiving the channel
Accepts the channel based on the communication policy and notifies the first communication device 1 that the user has agreed on attributes such as payment and expiration date for the channel (S28). In addition, channel establishment processing is performed.

After receiving the notification that the attribute has been agreed, the first communication device 1 performs a channel establishment process (S29). Further, the number of remaining viewers of the arbitration agent is decremented by one. [Stage 3]

When the channel is established, the channel agent 26 of the first communication device 1 manages the channel according to the channel attribute and generates the channel at the time when the channel is generated (S30).

The second communication device 2 requests necessary information from the first communication device 1 during the period in which the channel is alive (the period from the occurrence time to the disappearance time of the channel) (S3).
1).

The channel agent 26 of the first communication device 1 permits the transmission if the information is within the range defined by the channel attribute, and transmits the information by the transmission means 25 (S32).

The second party receives the transmitted information by the information receiving means 34 of the second communication device 2 (S33), and uses a player according to the information to watch a movie or listen to music. You can do things.

The request for this information can be made at any time as long as it is within the range specified by the channel attribute (the period during which the channel is alive, the genre of the content, etc.).

The channel agent 26 of the first communication device 1 causes the channel to disappear when the channel disappearance time has been reached (S34).

Further, the charging means 27 of the first communication device 1
Performs the charging process when the channel is exhausted or when the payment of the fee for the channel is agreed (when a channel request is made) (S35).

As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to increase the efficiency of processing when performing communication according to various needs and to set a price according to information. The effect is obtained.

Further, by transmitting the channel in response to the request of the receiving side, the satisfaction of the needs of the receiving side can be further increased. The channel-type communication system, the communication device, and the communication program according to the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. .

[0099]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Channel-type communication system, communication device, and communication program that determine the channel attribute between communication devices and perform communication in accordance with the channel attribute, thereby improving the processing efficiency when performing communication according to various needs. Can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a first communication device according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a second communication device according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a communication procedure according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a communication procedure according to the second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 first communication device 2 second communication device 11 main body 12 arithmetic processing unit 13 storage device 14 interpersonal input / output device 18 communication control device 21 identification means 22 attribute notification means (arbitration agent) 23 channel determination means 24 attribute storage means 25 Transmission means 26 Communication control means (channel agent) 27 Billing means 31 Channel attribute receiving means 32 Channel request means 33 Information request means 34 Information receiving means 35 Channel display means (Channel agent)

Claims (15)

[Claims] 1. A channel communication system for communicating between communication devices connected via a network, wherein a first communication device determines a channel attribute in response to a channel request from a second communication device. Determining means; and transmitting means for transmitting information to the second communication device in accordance with the channel attribute determined by the channel determining means, wherein the second communication device requests a channel request from the first communication device. A channel type communication system comprising: a channel requesting unit that transmits information; an information requesting unit that requests information from the first communication device; and an information receiving unit that receives information from the first communication device. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said first communication device includes attribute notification means for notifying a channel attribute to said second communication device, and said channel requesting means of said second communication device determines a condition of a predetermined channel attribute. The channel type communication system according to claim 1, wherein a channel request is transmitted to the second communication device when the channel attribute notified from the first communication device matches the channel request. 3. A communication device for performing communication by connecting to another communication device via a network, comprising: identification means for identifying a channel request from another communication device; and determining a channel attribute based on the channel request. Channel determining means; attribute storing means for storing the determined channel attribute; transmitting means for transmitting information to the communication terminal having requested the channel; and channel attribute stored in the attribute storing means.
A communication device comprising: a communication control unit that controls transmission by the transmission unit. 4. An attribute notifying means for notifying the other communication device of a channel attribute, and when a channel request is received from the other communication device in response to the notification, the channel determining means performs the processing according to the notification. The communication device according to claim 3, wherein a channel attribute is determined. 5. The communication device according to claim 3, further comprising: a determination notifying unit that notifies the other communication device of the determination when the channel attribute is determined. 6. When the channel attribute is determined or when information is transmitted according to the channel attribute,
6. The communication device according to claim 3, further comprising a charging unit that charges the other communication device. 7. A communication device for performing communication by connecting to another communication device via a network, wherein the channel request means transmits a channel request to the other communication device, and information is transmitted to the other communication device. A communication device comprising: an information requesting unit that requests information; and an information receiving unit that receives information from the transmitting device. 8. A channel attribute receiving unit for receiving a channel attribute from the another communication device, wherein the channel requesting unit sends a channel request to the another communication device based on the channel attribute received by the channel attribute receiving unit. The communication device according to claim 7, wherein the transmission is performed. 9. The communication device according to claim 7, wherein said channel request means transmits a channel request including a channel attribute to said another communication device. 10. The method according to claim 3, wherein the channel attribute is at least one of a valid period of the channel, a channel generation time, a channel disappearance time, an abstract of transmittable information, a price, and sender information. 10. The communication device according to any one of items 9. 11. A communication program operated by a computer that performs communication by connecting to another communication device via a network, comprising: a step of identifying a channel request from another communication device; Determining a channel attribute based on the channel attribute; storing the determined channel attribute; transmitting information to a communication terminal that has requested the channel; and controlling the transmission according to the stored channel attribute. And a communication program that performs the steps. 12. The method according to claim 12, further comprising the step of notifying the other communication device of a channel attribute, and determining the channel attribute when the other communication device requests a channel in response to the notification. The communication program according to claim 11, wherein the channel attribute is determined as follows. 13. The method according to claim 11, further comprising the step of charging the other communication device when the channel attribute is determined or when information is transmitted according to the channel attribute. Communication program described. 14. A communication program operated by a communication device that performs communication by connecting to another communication device via a network, comprising: transmitting a channel request to the other communication device; A communication program for executing a step of requesting information from a communication device and a step of receiving information from the transmission device. 15. The method according to claim 14, further comprising the step of receiving a channel attribute from the other communication device, wherein the step of transmitting the channel request transmits a channel request in accordance with the received channel attribute. Communication program described in.