JP2003015660A - System, method, and server for music distribution, terminal machine, and card - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a music distribution system which can be structured at low cost and surely collect charges. SOLUTION: The system which downloads music from a server for music distribution to a terminal machine uses a card 20 which has an ID corresponding to the music to be downloaded. The card 20 is sold, for example, at a convenience store, the ID of music is hidden behind a hide part 22 when sold, and exposed by removing the hide part 22 after the card is sold. The ID 23 displayed on the card 20 is inputted to the terminal machine such as a portable telephone set and sent to the server, which then retrieves the music corresponding to the ID and distributes it to the terminal machine.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a music distribution system for downloading music from a server to terminals such as mobile phones.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A music distribution system has been put into practical use for downloading music such as melody for incoming calls and karaoke songs to a mobile phone using a communication network such as the Internet. In such a music distribution system, when music is downloaded, a predetermined fee is charged for each song. As the charging method, an electronic payment system using a credit card or a charging system prepared by each telecommunications carrier is generally used.

[0003]

However, in order to construct a system for billing as described above, a considerable amount of initial investment is required, and it is also necessary to take thorough measures for system security. Therefore, the system becomes large-scaled and the cost burden is remarkably increased. Further, since the fee is collected by a post-payment method such as credit payment, there is a problem that the charged amount cannot be surely collected.

In view of the above points, it is an object of the present invention to provide a music distribution system which can construct a system at low cost and can surely collect charges.

[0005]

A music distribution system according to the present invention is a system including a music distribution server and a terminal device for downloading music from this server, and an ID (identification code) corresponding to the music to be downloaded. ) Is used. This card is sold, for example, at a convenience store, and the ID is hidden by the concealing unit at the time of sale, and the ID is revealed by removing the concealing unit after purchase. Then, enter the ID displayed on the card into a terminal such as a mobile phone,
When this ID is transmitted to the music distribution server, the music distribution server searches for a song corresponding to the transmitted ID and distributes it to the terminal.

According to such a system, the function of accepting the input of the ID displayed on the card and transmitting it to the server is provided on the terminal side, and the function of collating the ID is provided on the server side. It does not require a large-scale billing system in consideration of the above, and can be realized at a low cost with a simple configuration. Moreover, since the fee for the music distributed from the server is already collected when the card is purchased, there is an advantage that the fee can be certainly collected even though the system is simple.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, an I key is created by an encryption key that is a combination of a song title and a password.
Create D. According to this, it is possible to stop fraudulent acts by anyone other than the authorized card purchaser from downloading songs for free.

Further, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the music distribution server determines whether or not the music corresponding to the ID received from the terminal is downloaded for the first time, and when it is determined that the music is downloaded for the first time, the music is downloaded. To the terminal. According to this, the download is limited to one time for one card, so after the download by the authorized purchaser of the card, those who know the ID from the card can download the song for free. You can

However, even if it is the second time or later, if the download destination is the same terminal as the last time, the same song is only redistributed to the authorized purchaser, so even if the download is allowed, it will be for the business side. There is no particular disadvantage. Therefore, in a further preferred embodiment of the present invention,
If it is determined that the song corresponding to the ID received from the terminal is not the first time downloaded, it is determined whether or not there is a download request from the same terminal as in the past, and if it is the same terminal, the song is downloaded to the terminal. Is distributed, and if it is not the same terminal, distribution of music to the terminal is prohibited.

If the terminal device downloaded for the first time cannot be specified in the case of the second and subsequent downloads, it is determined whether the elapsed time from the first download is within a predetermined range, and it is within the predetermined range. In that case, the music may be distributed to the terminal device, and if it is not within the predetermined range, distribution of the music may be prohibited. According to this, the period during which re-downloading is possible is limited, so that unlimited downloading of songs can be prevented. Alternatively, instead of limiting the period as described above, it is determined whether the number of downloads is within a predetermined range, and if it is within the predetermined range, the song is distributed to the terminal, and if not within the predetermined range, the terminal Unlimited download of songs may be prevented by prohibiting distribution of songs to.

A typical terminal in the present invention is
It is a mobile phone. This mobile phone also includes a simplified mobile phone. However, the terminal of the present invention is not limited to a mobile phone, and various terminals such as a PC (personal computer) and a PDA (personal digital assistant) can be used.

[0012]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 shows an example of a music distribution system according to the present invention. In the figure, 1 is the Internet that constitutes the network, and 2 is the Internet 1
A music distribution server (hereinafter, simply referred to as a server) 3 connected to the server 3 is a data file held by the server 2.
4 is a PC owned by the user, 5 is an Internet provider system for connecting the PC 4 to the server 2 via the Internet 1, 6 is a mobile phone constituting the terminal of the present invention, 7 is a mobile phone 6 via the Internet 1. The communication carrier system connects the server 2 to the server 2, and the communication carrier system 8 connects the mobile phone 6 to the server 2 via the dedicated line 9. In the following description, the case where music is distributed from the server 2 to the mobile phone 6 via the Internet 1 or the dedicated line 9 will be described as an example.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the mobile phone 6. Reference numeral 11 is an input unit including various keys, 12 is a voice input unit including a microphone, and 13 is C.
A control unit composed of a PU, a display unit 14 composed of a liquid crystal display, a communication unit 15 communicating with the communication carrier systems 7 and 8 of FIG. 1, and a sound 16 composed of a speaker or the like. The output unit 17 is a storage unit including a memory such as a ROM and a RAM.

FIG. 3 shows an example of a card used when downloading music from the server 2 in the above system. Here, a card for downloading an incoming melody (so-called ringtone) to the mobile phone 6 is taken as an example. This card 20 is sold at a convenience store, a mobile phone store, etc., and the revenue is collected by the music distributor. Alternatively, the card 20 may be sold at a vending machine.

As shown in FIG. 3B, the card 20 has a music title 21, an ID 23 corresponding to the music, and a connection destination number 24 for connecting the mobile phone 6 when downloading the music.
Is displayed, but when the card 20 is sold,
As shown in (a), the ID 23 is hidden by the concealing unit 22 so that the ID 23 cannot be seen. Concealing unit 2
Reference numeral 2 is, for example, a silver-colored coating film. After the card 20 is purchased, the coating film is scraped off with a coin or the like to remove it, so that the ID 23 can be visually recognized as shown in FIG. That is, in this example, the card 20 is configured as a scratch card. It should be noted that the concealing portion 22 can be configured by an opaque seal or the like. Connection number 24
Is the address (URL) or telephone number on the Internet. Here, the number 24 is not hidden, but the ID
Like 23, it may be hidden.

The ID 23 is created by an encryption key obtained by encrypting a combination of a music title and a password according to a certain algorithm. And even if it is the same music, ID23 displayed on the card 20 is different for every card. Also, this encrypted I
The same ID as D is recorded in the data file 3 of the server 2. In this way, by combining the song name and the password for encryption, even if an ID is randomly input to the mobile phone 6 without purchasing the card 20, the ID matches the ID recorded in the data file 3. The odds of doing so are extremely small, which is effective in preventing non-authorized card purchasers from trying to download songs for free.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing a schematic procedure for downloading music in the above system. First of all, the user should enter the song title 21
The card 20 on which is displayed is purchased at a store or a vending machine (step S1). After that, the concealing portion 22 of the purchased card 20 is scraped off to obtain the ID 23 corresponding to the song title 21 (step S2). Next, the ID 23 is input to the mobile phone 6 and transmitted to the server 2 (step S
3). The server 2 searches for a song corresponding to the received ID (step S4), and if there is a corresponding song, the server 2 downloads the song to the mobile phone 6 (step S5).

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing the download procedure more specifically. In the figure, A indicates processing on the mobile phone 6 side, and B indicates processing on the server 2 side. Step S11 is the same as step S1 of FIG. 4, and is a step in which the user purchases the card 20. Further, step S12 also corresponds to step S2 of FIG.
This is the same step as the above, but the step is to scrape off the concealing unit 22 of the purchased card 20 to obtain the ID 23.

After the above preparations, the mobile phone 6 accesses the server 2 via the Internet 1 or the dedicated line 9 to connect the mobile phone 6 to the music distribution site of the server 2 (step S13). When the site is connected, the display unit 14 of the mobile phone 6 displays a screen as shown in FIG. 6A requesting the input of the song ID. The user is shown in FIG. 3B on the card 20.
6 is input using the keys of the operation unit 11 as shown in FIG. 6B (step S14). Then, when the input is completed, the ID 23 is transmitted to the server 2 by a predetermined key operation (step S15). At this time, the telephone number of the mobile phone 6 and the subscribe ID which is the identification number of the mobile phone 6 are automatically transmitted to the server 2 together with the ID 23.

When the server 2 receives the ID 23 sent from the mobile phone 6 (step S16), first,
The data file 3 is searched for whether there is a song corresponding to the ID (steps S17 and S18). Then, when the corresponding song is extracted (step S18; Y
ES), and then, it is determined whether or not the song is downloaded for the first time (step S19). This is to limit the download per card to only once.
As a result, when it is determined that it is the first time (step S
19; YES), the song ID 23 and the number of downloads are recorded in the history area of the data file 3 (step S21). In this case, the subscribe I of the mobile phone 6
D is also recorded together, and the music ID and the number of downloads are recorded in association with the mobile phone by this subscribe ID.

After that, the music data of the music piece stored in the data file 3 is distributed to the mobile phone 6 through the Internet 1 and the dedicated line 9 (step S2).
2). In the mobile phone 6, the music data received by the communication unit 15 is downloaded to the memory of the storage unit 17 (step S24), and the music is reproduced based on the downloaded data (step S25). The reproduced song is output from the audio output unit 16, and the downloaded song can be confirmed by listening to it.

If it is determined in step S18 that there is no corresponding song (step S18; N)
O), since the music cannot be distributed, a message to that effect is sent to the mobile phone 6. As a result, an error display is displayed on the display unit 14 of the mobile phone 6 informing that there is no corresponding song (step S23).

If it is determined in step S19 that the download is not the first time (step S1)
9; NO), there is a possibility that someone who has not purchased the card is trying to download for free by using the ID learned from another person's card, so in order to prevent such fraud, this download request Is a download request from the same mobile phone as in the past (step S20). If the request is from the same mobile phone (step S20; YES), it is determined that the download is re-downloaded by the authorized purchaser, and the process proceeds to step S21. Thereafter, the music is distributed to the mobile phone 6 by the procedure described above. To do. This allows a legitimate purchaser to download the same song without paying a fee again, even if the downloaded song is accidentally erased. If you omit step S20 and want to re-download the same song even if you are an authorized card purchaser,
The operation may require a new card purchase. In this case, re-downloading will be performed using the new ID acquired from the purchased card.

On the other hand, if the request is not from the same mobile phone (step S20; NO), it is judged as an unauthorized free download by a person other than the person who legally purchased the card, and a message prohibiting distribution is carried. Send to phone 6. As a result, an error display is displayed on the display unit 14 of the mobile phone 6 to inform that the music cannot be delivered due to the illegality (step S23).

According to the music distribution system as described above,
Since downloading is permitted on condition that the card 20 is purchased, the music distributor can collect the charge at the time of selling the card. Therefore, it is not necessary to construct a large-scale system such as an electronic payment system, and an existing system in which the mobile phone 6 and the server 2 are connected to each other via the Internet 1 or the like can be used to realize a simple configuration at low cost. be able to. Further, since the fee can be collected by selling the card before the music is delivered, the collection can be surely performed.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a download procedure according to another embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, the same steps as those in FIG. 5 are designated by the same reference numerals. In FIG. 7, when it is determined that the download is not the first time in step S19, it is determined whether the elapsed time from the first download is within a predetermined range (step S20a), and it is determined that the time is within the predetermined range. Is (step S20a; Y
ES), date, song ID, download count, etc. are recorded in the history area of the data file 3 (step S21a),
The song is distributed to the mobile phone 6 (step S22). On the other hand, if it is determined that the value is not within the predetermined range (step S
20a; NO), to prevent unlimited downloads,
A message to the effect that distribution is prohibited is sent to the mobile phone 6.
As a result, an error display is displayed on the display unit 14 of the mobile phone 6 to inform that the music cannot be distributed because the period has elapsed (step S23). If the mobile phone 6 does not have a function of automatically transmitting the identification number of the mobile phone 6 to the server 2, the server cannot specify the mobile phone downloaded for the first time, and the determination in step S20 in FIG. Since it becomes possible, the embodiment of FIG. 7 is useful as a means for limiting the download in such a case.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a download procedure according to another embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, the same steps as those in FIG. 5 are designated by the same reference numerals. In FIG. 8, when it is determined that the download is not the first time in step S19, it is determined whether or not the number of downloads is within a predetermined range (step S20b), and if it is determined that the number of downloads is within the predetermined range (step S20b). ; YES), song I
D and the number of downloads are recorded in the history area of the data file 3 (step S21), and the music is distributed to the mobile phone 6 (step S22). On the other hand, when it is determined that the content is not within the predetermined range (step S20b; NO), a message to the effect that distribution is prohibited is sent to the mobile phone 6 in order to prevent unlimited download. As a result, an error display is displayed on the display unit 14 of the mobile phone 6 to inform that the music cannot be distributed because the number of downloads is exceeded (step S23). This embodiment is also useful when the server side cannot specify the mobile phone downloaded for the first time.

In the example of FIG. 3, only one music title 21 is displayed on one card, but a plurality of music titles may be displayed on one card. For example, it is possible to collect songs by a specific artist or issue a card containing the latest hit songs. In this case, of course, the card fee depends on the number of songs. Further, when a plurality of songs are put in one card, an ID may be given to each song, or one ID common to all songs may be given. When an ID is given to each song, the user can individually select the songs he wants to download. On the other hand, a common ID
In the case of adding, all songs can be downloaded by inputting the ID once, which saves the labor of operation. Further, the individual ID and the common ID may be described together so that the user can select.

In the present invention, various embodiments other than the above can be adopted. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the example in which the incoming melody is distributed from the server 2 to the mobile phone 6 has been described, but a karaoke song or the like may be distributed. In this case, the image may be distributed together with the song.

In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the case of downloading from the server 2 to the mobile phone 6 has been described as an example.
The procedure for downloading to the PC 4 is basically the same as that described above. In addition to these, it is also possible to download to a terminal device such as a PDA (personal digital assistant) or a portable music reproducing device having a communication function.

[0031]

According to the present invention, music is distributed on the premise that a card is purchased. Therefore, it is not necessary to construct a complicated system for billing, and a simple structure can be realized at low cost. Since the charge for the music to be distributed has already been collected when the card is purchased, the charge can be reliably collected.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a music distribution system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a mobile phone.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a card.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a schematic download procedure.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a specific download procedure.

FIG. 6 is an example of an ID input screen of a mobile phone.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Internet 2 Music distribution server 3 data files 4 PC 6 mobile phones 9 leased line 20 cards 21 song title 22 Concealment section 23 ID

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Claims (13)

[Claims] 1. A music distribution system comprising a music distribution server and a terminal device for downloading songs from the server, wherein the card uses a card on which an ID corresponding to the song to be downloaded is displayed. It has a concealment unit that conceals the ID, and by removing this concealment unit, the ID becomes visible, and the terminal accepts the input of the ID displayed on the card and distributes the ID for music distribution. To the server, and the music distribution server sends the ID sent from the terminal.
A music distribution system characterized by determining whether or not there is a song corresponding to the above, and if there is a corresponding song, delivering the song to the terminal. 2. The music distribution system according to claim 1, wherein the ID is created by an encryption key that is a combination of a music title and a password and is encrypted. 3. The music distribution system according to claim 1, wherein the music distribution server judges whether or not the music corresponding to the ID received from the terminal is downloaded for the first time, and judges that it is the first time. A music distribution system characterized in that the music is distributed to terminals. 4. The music distribution system according to claim 3, wherein when the music distribution server determines that the download is not the first time, it determines whether or not there is a download request from the same terminal as in the past, and the same. A music distribution system characterized in that if the terminal is a terminal, the music is distributed to the terminal, and if it is not the same terminal, the distribution of the music to the terminal is prohibited. 5. The music distribution system according to claim 3, wherein the music distribution server judges whether the elapsed time from the first download is within a predetermined range when it is judged that the download is not the first time. A music distribution system characterized in that a music piece is distributed to a terminal device if it is within a predetermined range, and a music piece is prohibited from being distributed to the terminal device if it is not within a predetermined range. 6. The music distribution system according to claim 3, wherein when the music distribution server determines that the download is not the first time, it determines whether or not the number of downloads is within a predetermined range and within the predetermined range. If it is, the music distribution system is characterized in that the music is distributed to the terminal, and if the music is not within the predetermined range, distribution of the music to the terminal is prohibited. 7. The music distribution system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the terminal is a mobile phone. 8. A step of obtaining an ID by removing the concealment section from a card in which an ID corresponding to a song is concealed by the concealment section, and a step of connecting a terminal to a site of a music distribution server, In the terminal connected to the site, the step of inputting the ID obtained from the card, the step of transmitting the input ID to the music distribution server, and whether there is a song corresponding to the ID in the music distribution server A music distribution method comprising: a step of determining whether or not there is a corresponding music piece, and a step of distributing the music piece to a terminal when there is the corresponding music piece. 9. The music distribution server in the system according to claim 1, further comprising a data file in which the ID displayed on the card is recorded, and the data when the ID is sent from the terminal. Refer to the file to determine whether there is a corresponding song.If there is a corresponding song, determine whether the download is the first time.If it is not the first time, download from the same terminal as the past. If it is the same terminal, the song is distributed to the terminal, and the ID corresponding to the distributed song and the number of downloads are recorded in association with the terminal. If they are not the same terminal Is a music distribution server characterized by prohibiting distribution of songs to terminals. 10. The music distribution server in the system according to claim 1, further comprising a data file recording the ID displayed on the card, wherein the data is stored when the ID is sent from the terminal. Refer to the file to determine whether there is a corresponding song. If there is a corresponding song, determine whether the download is the first time. If it is not the first time, the elapsed time from the first download. Is within the predetermined range, and if it is within the predetermined range, the song is distributed to the terminal, and the ID corresponding to the distributed song and the number of downloads are recorded. A music distribution server characterized by prohibiting the distribution of the following songs. 11. The music distribution server in the system according to claim 1, comprising a data file in which the ID displayed on the card is recorded, and the data when the ID is sent from the terminal. Refer to the file to determine whether there is a corresponding song.If there is a corresponding song, determine whether the download is the first time. If it is not the first time, the number of downloads is within the specified range. If it is within the predetermined range, the song is distributed to the terminal, the ID corresponding to the distributed song and the number of downloads are recorded, and if it is not within the predetermined range, the song is distributed to the terminal. A music distribution server characterized by prohibiting. 12. The terminal in the system according to claim 1, wherein when the music distribution server is connected to the site, the input of the ID obtained from the card is accepted and the ID is sent to the music distribution server. A terminal characterized by transmitting to. 13. The card in the system according to claim 1, wherein a music title and an ID corresponding to the music title are displayed, and the ID is concealed by a concealment unit, and the concealment unit is removed. A card characterized by making the ID visible.