JP2003125098A - Content receiver - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a content receiver capable of easily receiving content for customizing a terminal, such as cellular telephones. SOLUTION: A user scrolls a list of melodies, while searching a melody which suits his/her taste. A key for 'Others' is displayed at the bottom of the list. The user clicks the key of 'Others' (step 103). In this way, a cellular telephone 10 is connected to the Internet for downloading the list of incoming call melodies (step 104). Upon downloading the list of incoming melodies, the telephone 10 displays titles of the downloaded list following to the list of the incoming call melodies (step 105). The user feels as though the list have been stored in a ROM of the cellular telephone from the beginning without special operations being conducted, and can select a melody without being subjected to stresses.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a content receiving device for receiving content for customizing a terminal such as a mobile phone.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a means for notifying an incoming call of a mobile phone, a tone ring tone has been more popular than before, but in recent years, an incoming call melody (a so-called ringtone) is preset by the user to notify the incoming call. Methods etc. are widespread.

This allows various ring tones to be set by utilizing the melody reproduction function provided in the mobile phone. However, in the selection of the ringing melody in this conventional technology, if the user selects the same ringing melody from other stored melodies, it is difficult to distinguish the ringing melody from other users when the same ringing melody is selected. In addition, since the melody is a ready-made melody, the user tends to get tired of it immediately, and there is a problem that it has a poor individuality and lacks fashion.

In addition, when the standby image for the mobile phone, the game, etc. are selected from those stored in advance in the mobile phone, the number of selectable contents is limited because they are ready-made products. Therefore, the user tends to get tired immediately. As a method of solving such a problem, there is a method of downloading a ringing melody or the like to a mobile phone through a network such as the Internet and setting it to be played when a call arrives. According to this method, it is possible to set the melody of one's liking for the incoming call, so that it is hard to get tired and the individuality can be expressed.

If the user is tired of the set melody, a new melody may be downloaded. The latest tunes of the ringtones registered on the Internet sites are constantly updated, and there is a tendency for trend-sensitive users to download them. In addition to this, a standby image for mobile phones,
By downloading games, etc. through the Internet, users will not get tired and will be able to enjoy individual expression.

[0006]

According to the method of downloading a ringing melody, for example, when a user tries to download a ringing melody, the mobile phone is first connected to the Internet, and the ringing melody providing site A is first connected.
Enter the URL to access the ringtone melody providing site A, and display a list of songs provided.

[0007] If there is a desired melody there, if there is not, there is a ringing melody providing site B U
By inputting RL, the ringtone melody providing site B is accessed to display a list of songs provided. If you find the desired melody, download it. Next, the downloaded melody is set and registered as an incoming melody of the own mobile phone.

As described above, contents such as ringtones, standby images, and games are scattered on different Internet sites operated by companies and individuals, and individual sites are successively searched until the desired melody is found. There was a problem that it had to go around, it took time and labor, and communication costs were high. In addition, since the content is managed by different sites (because it is not managed centrally), the user has to perform different operations to view or receive the content, which is a troublesome operation. there were.

Also, the procedure for displaying a list of melodies, selecting one, and downloading it is different for each Internet site. Unless you are familiar with the operation of the Internet and mobile phones, a series of settings will be made. The operation is difficult. As a result, there is a problem that it is difficult for a beginner to find a desired melody from an internet site, and it is impossible to set a favorite melody. In addition, new content (for example, new songs by popular artists) is provided from different sites, leading to waste of network resources.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to provide a content receiving apparatus which can very easily receive content for customizing a terminal such as a mobile phone.

[0011]

In order to solve the above problems, a first aspect of the present invention is a content receiving apparatus for receiving digital content in a user terminal, the list receiving for receiving a list of digital content through a network. Means (steps 104, 204), a list display means (steps 105, 205) for displaying a list of digital contents stored in the user terminal, and further displaying the list after the list, and the list. Content receiving means (steps 107 and 207) for receiving the digital content selected from the above.

The terminal that has downloaded the list of digital contents continuously displays the title of the downloaded list continuously below the list of digital contents stored in the user terminal. At this time, the connection to the network is performed in a short time, and since the communication speed of the Internet has been remarkably increased in recent years, the time until the list is displayed is extremely short. When the list is only character data, the transfer time is extremely short.

Therefore, the titles of the contents on the downloaded list are displayed smoothly and continuously in the list of digital contents recorded at the time of shipment. The user feels as if it had been stored in the user terminal from the beginning without any special operation. Therefore, there is no discomfort in the operation.

The user sets the latest melody he / she likes as the ring tone of his / her mobile phone by the same procedure as selecting the ringing melody recorded in the ROM of the user terminal without any special operation. can do.

A second aspect of the invention further comprises an information transmitting means (step 203A) for transmitting the customized history information or the personal information indicating the history of customization of the user terminal in the past, and the list receiving means comprises the customized history information. Alternatively, the list of the digital contents reflecting the user's preference is downloaded based on the personal information.

According to the second invention, the melody which the user may like is preferentially displayed among the innumerable pieces of music, so that the user can easily find the melody he / she likes. When the user terminal is a portable device, the display is small, and therefore, at most several titles can be displayed at one time.

In order for the user not to get tired of the operation even if the scroll is continued, it is preferable that the desired melody appears within a few times of the scroll. The second invention can meet such needs, and the user can set the incoming melody with a simple operation.

The third invention is characterized in that the user terminal is a mobile phone. Since a mobile phone is a portable device that users particularly prefer to customize, incorporating the present invention into such a device further enhances the effect.

The fourth invention is characterized in that the digital content is any one of an incoming melody, a standby image, a game, an application, a help file, a mail template, user information, a moving image, music and karaoke. To do. With regard to mobile phones, there is a strong demand for customization of ringing melodies, standby images, or games, and the effect is further enhanced by targeting such contents.

A fifth aspect of the invention is characterized by comprising customization setting means for customizing the user terminal with the digital content.

[0021]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. [First Embodiment] In FIG. 1, a mobile phone 10, a content server 11, an A site 12, and a B site 13 are shown.
Are connected through the Internet 20.

Mobile phone (including content receiving device) 1
0 is owned and carried by the user. The mobile phone 10 can be customized (individualized according to a user's preference) with respect to digital contents (incoming melody, standby image, game, etc.). Although not shown, the mobile phone has a ROM in which ready-made incoming melody, standby image, game, etc. are recorded. In addition, the mobile phone is equipped with a RAM, in which contents downloaded via the Internet can be recorded.

The content server 11 has an A site 12
Also, a list of contents recorded in the B site 13, for example, a song of an incoming melody, an artist name, a recorded place, etc. is stored. A method of setting an incoming melody according to the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 2 and the screen display example of FIG.

The user selects "setting" from the menu on the display of the mobile phone and selects the item "sound" (step 101). Then, the screen shown in FIG. 3A is displayed, and "Ringtone selection" and the title of the currently set incoming melody "Toy soldiers" are displayed.

The user wants to change the incoming melody from "Toy soldiers" to another melody. Then, the user selects "select ringtone" (step 102).
Then, as shown in FIG. 3B, a list of melody titles that can be set as the incoming melody is displayed. The melodies listed here are those stored in advance in the ROM of the mobile phone from the time of shipment.

The user scrolls this list while searching for a melody that suits his or her preference on the screen of FIG. 3C. It is assumed that there is no melody that the user likes in this list. Then, as shown in FIG. 3D, the button "Other" is displayed at the end of the list. The user presses the "other" button (step 103).

As a result, the mobile phone 10 starts connecting to the Internet 20. When the connection to the Internet 20 is completed, the content server 11 is accessed to download the incoming melody list stored therein (step 104). At this time, the incoming melody itself is not downloaded. Only the list is downloaded. In this list, the melody of the latest new song, the melody that is hitting, and the like considered to be the user's favorite are constantly updated.

As shown in FIG. 3E, the mobile phone 10 having downloaded the ringing melody list continuously displays the titles of the downloaded list continuously under the list of ringing melody as described above (step 105). At this time, the connection to the Internet is made in a short time, and since the communication speed of the Internet has been remarkably increased in recent years,
The time from pressing the "Other" button until the melody list is displayed is extremely short, and the user does not feel any stress. Furthermore, when the list is only character data, the transfer time is short.

Therefore, the titles of the melodies included in the downloaded list are displayed smoothly and continuously in the list of incoming melodies recorded at the time of shipment. The user feels as if it was stored in the ROM of the mobile phone from the beginning without any special operation. Therefore, there is no discomfort in the operation.

The user selects a favorite melody in the list (step 106). On the other hand, the mobile phone 10 accesses the place where the melody is stored according to the downloaded list. For example, it is assumed that the melody is recorded on the A site 12. The mobile phone 10 accesses the A site 12 through the Internet 20 and downloads this melody data (step 107). When the download of the melody is completed, the melody is set as a sound to be played when an incoming call arrives (step 108).

According to this method, the user can carry the latest melody he / she likes with his / her own mobile phone by the same procedure as selecting the ringing melody recorded in the ROM of the mobile phone without any special operation. It can be set as a phone ringtone. Compared to the conventional method of manually accessing the internet site and manually downloading the melody as in the past, it is dramatically easier to operate, and even beginners can easily find their favorite melody,
Can be set.

According to the present invention, although the memory of the mobile phone is limited, the memory can be artificially expanded by downloading the melody list available through the Internet, and the user can be aware of the memory limit. In addition, the user's stress is significantly reduced.

The downloaded melody list is stored in the RAM of the mobile phone 10 as it is. Therefore, when the user wants to try another melody immediately after setting the ringing melody, the melody list is not downloaded but only the melody data is downloaded and set as the ring tone.

Therefore, since the melody list is not downloaded in the second and subsequent ring tone selection operations, the operation becomes light. If a long time (for example, one day or more) has passed since the melody list was downloaded, the latest melody may be added to the melody list and updated as a whole. In this case, the melody list is downloaded from the content server 11. to download. As a result, the user can always select his or her favorite melody from the latest melody list.

[Second Embodiment] Next, the second embodiment of the present invention will be described.
Will be described. The second embodiment is also shown in FIG.
It is used in an environment in which the mobile phone 10, the content server 11, the A site 12, and the B site 13 shown in FIG. These configurations are similar to those of the first embodiment.

A method of setting an incoming melody according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 4 and the screen display example of FIG. Steps 201 to 203 are the same as steps 101 to 103 of the first embodiment. That is, as shown in FIG. 3A, the user selects "setting" from the menu of the display of the mobile phone and selects the item "sound" (step 201). Next, as shown in FIG. 3B, the user selects “select ringtone”, and as shown in FIG. 3C, displays a list of melodies stored in advance in the ROM of the mobile phone at the time of shipment ( Step 202). The user scrolls through this list, and if there is no melody that the user likes, as shown in FIG. 3D, the user presses "other" at the end of the list (step 2).
03).

Step 203A is different from the first embodiment. This allows the mobile phone 10 to access the Internet 20.
To connect to. When the connection to the Internet 20 is completed, the mobile phone 10 sends the customization history information to the content server 11.

The customization history information includes the title of the incoming melody, the name of the creator, the genre, the set period, etc. of the incoming melody that the user has set in the mobile phone in the past. The content server 11, which has received the customization history information, transmits to the mobile phone 10 a melody list that the user seems to like based on this information. In addition to the customization history information or in place of the customization information, personal information is also transmitted. The personal information includes the user's name, address, nationality, age, occupation, sex and the like.

For example, according to the customization history information,
When it is determined that the user has set a specific music field, for example, only classical music as a ringing melody, the songs in the same field are listed in a higher priority. Also, when the user sets only the melody of a certain artist as the incoming melody, the latest song or hit song of the artist is prioritized and listed. When the user sets only the latest song as the incoming melody, the latest song is prioritized and listed up.

On the other hand, when the user has set a melody as an incoming melody but has changed it to another melody in a short period of time, this melody is ranked lower in the list. Ringtones that have changed in a very short time are removed from the list. This melody list may be generated each time the content server 11 receives the customization history information. However, a melody list dedicated to the individual user is generated in advance, and the melody list is added to the melody list each time the customization history information is transmitted. The corresponding change is made and the data is transmitted to the mobile phone 10.

Alternatively, if some typical melody lists are created and a melody list suitable for the user is transmitted based on the customization history information transmitted from the mobile phone 10, the melody list can be transmitted to the user to some extent. It is possible to deal with the taste and reduce the processing load on the content server 11 side.

Thus, the ringtone melody list based on the personalized history information of the individual is downloaded (step 204). As shown in FIG. 3E, the mobile phone 10 that has downloaded the ringing melody list continuously displays the titles of the downloaded list continuously below the list of ringing melody as described above (step 205). Further, based on the personal information, for example, if the user is young, the melody preferred by the young is preferentially placed at the top of the list.

As a result, the melody which the user may like is preferentially displayed from among the innumerable pieces of music, so that the user can easily find the melody he / she likes. Since the display of the mobile phone 10 is small, the melody list that can be displayed at one time is several songs at most. In order for the user not to get tired of the operation even if the scrolling is continued, it is preferable that the desired melody comes out within a few times of scrolling. The second embodiment can meet such needs, and the user can set an incoming melody with a simple operation.

The processing after step 206 is similar to that of the first embodiment. That is, the user selects a favorite melody in the list (step 206).
The mobile phone 10 accesses the site and downloads the data of this melody (step 207). And
The melody is set as a sound to be played when a call arrives (step 208).

According to the second embodiment, since the melody list that suits the user's preference is displayed, the melody that the user may prefer from among a myriad of songs is preferentially displayed. You can easily find the melody you like. In addition, the procedure is exactly the same as selecting the ringing melody recorded in the ROM of the mobile phone,
The effect that the latest melody that one likes can be set as the ring tone of his mobile phone is the same as that of the first embodiment.

Further, by downloading a melody list available through the Internet, the memory is artificially expanded, the user is not conscious of the limit of the memory, and the stress of the user is significantly reduced. It is similar to the first embodiment.

Further, as in the first embodiment, the downloaded melody list is stored in the R of the mobile phone 10 as it is.
It is stored in AM. Therefore, when the user wants to try another melody immediately after setting the ringing melody, the melody list is not downloaded but only the melody data is downloaded and set as the ring tone.

Therefore, in the second and subsequent selection operations of the ring tone, the melody list is not downloaded, so the operation becomes light. If a long time (one day or more) has passed since the melody list was downloaded, the latest melody may be added to the melody list and updated as a whole. In this case, the melody list is downloaded from the content server 11. . As a result, the user can always select his or her favorite melody from the latest melody list.

[Third Embodiment] Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described.
Will be described. The third embodiment is also shown in FIG.
It is used in an environment in which the mobile phone 10, the content server 11, the A site 12, and the B site 13 shown in FIG. These configurations are similar to those of the first embodiment. However, the mobile phone 10 has a UIM card (user i
dentity module card) has a slot to store. This UIM card is inserted into a mobile phone and used to identify the user. In addition to telephone subscriber information, private information such as a telephone directory and personal identification information for credit settlement are encrypted and registered. Furthermore, this U
In the IM card, preference information such as a history when the mobile phone is customized is registered. If this UIM card is inserted into another mobile phone, the phone subscriber can be authenticated and can be used immediately as his / her own phone. The mobile phone 10 and the content server 11 can be connected to the Internet, but Bluetooth (Blue-t
It is also possible to connect by ooth).

A method of setting an incoming melody according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 5 and the screen display example of FIG. First, the content server 11 is wirelessly connected via Bluetooth (step 301).
A). Steps 301 to 303 are the same as steps 101 to 103 of the first embodiment. That is, as shown in FIG. 3A, the user selects "setting" from the menu of the display of the mobile phone and selects the item "sound" (step 301). Next, as shown in FIG. 3B, the user selects “select ringtone”, and as shown in FIG. 3C, displays a list of melodies stored in advance in the ROM of the mobile phone at the time of shipment ( Step 3
02). The user scrolls through this list, and if there is no melody that the user likes, as shown in FIG. 3D,
Press "Other" at the end of the list (step 30
3).

Step 303A is different from that of the first embodiment. As a result, the mobile phone 10 displays the model information and the personal preference information registered in the UIM card in the content server 11
Call.

The model information includes the model name of the mobile phone currently used by the user. In addition, the personal preference information includes the title of the incoming melody that the user has set in the mobile phone in the past, the creator's name, the genre, the set period, and the like. Based on this information, the content server 11 that has received the model information and personal preference information transmits to the mobile phone 10 a melody list that is suitable for the model and that the user seems to like.

For example, only the melody in a format suitable for reproduction is listed according to the voice reproduction function of the model. Further, according to the personal preference information, as in the second embodiment, a specific music field, a specific artist, or the latest song is prioritized and listed up. In addition, the content server 11 to which the mobile phone 10 is wirelessly connected
List the unique melodies of. For example, while the user is in the amusement park, the mobile phone 10 connects to the content server 11 of the park and lists the melody of the character music symbolizing the park in the upper rank. Similar to the second embodiment, this melody list may be generated each time, or the most suitable typical melody list prepared in advance may be transmitted.

Thus, the incoming melody list is downloaded (step 304). As shown in FIG. 3E, the mobile phone 10 which has downloaded the ringtone melody list,
The titles of the downloaded list are continuously displayed below the list of ringtones (step 3).
05).

As a result, the melody that the user may like is preferentially displayed from among the innumerable pieces of music, so that the user can easily find the melody that he likes. Further, since only the melody in the format suitable for reproduction is displayed, it is possible to avoid the problem that reproduction is impossible due to the mismatch of the model and the format. Also,
Even when the UIM card is replaced with another mobile phone, the same personal preference information is transmitted, so that the previous customized state can be easily reproduced even if the model is changed.
Also, when the user is in the amusement park,
Since the melody of the character music is preferentially listed, the mobile phone 10 can be customized to suit the mood.

The processes after step 306 are the same as those in the first embodiment. That is, the user selects a favorite melody in the list (step 306).
The mobile phone 10 accesses the site and downloads the data of this melody (step 307). And
The melody is automatically set as a sound to be played when an incoming call arrives (step 308).

According to the second embodiment, since the melody list that suits the user's preference is displayed, the melody that the user may prefer is displayed preferentially among the innumerable pieces of music. You can easily find the melody you like. In addition, the procedure is exactly the same as selecting the ringing melody recorded in the ROM of the mobile phone,
The effect that the latest melody that one likes can be set as the ring tone of his mobile phone is the same as that of the first embodiment.

Further, by downloading the melody list available through the Internet, the memory is expanded in a pseudo manner, the user does not have to be aware of the limit of the memory, and the stress of the user is remarkably reduced. It is similar to the first embodiment.

Further, as in the first embodiment, the downloaded melody list is used as it is in the R of the mobile phone 10.
It is stored in AM. Therefore, when the user wants to try another melody immediately after setting the ringing melody, the melody list is not downloaded but only the melody data is downloaded and set as the ring tone.

Therefore, since the melody list is not downloaded in the second and subsequent ring tone selection operations, the operation becomes light. If a long time (one day or more) has passed since the melody list was downloaded, the latest melody may be added to the melody list and updated as a whole. In this case, the melody list is downloaded from the content server 11. . As a result, the user can always select his or her favorite melody from the latest melody list.

In the first to third embodiments, the case of setting a ringing melody has been described as an example, but the contents to be downloaded are standby images, games, applications,
It includes a help file, a mail template (frame template, character template, attached music template, attached image template), user information (email address, etc.), moving image content, music content, and karaoke content.

In the first to third embodiments, the case of using a mobile phone has been described as an example, but other terminals, for example, a personal computer, a music or moving image reproducing apparatus having a network function (radio cassette player, video player). ), PD
A, including network terminals installed at retail stores, home appliances connected to the network, car navigation systems, etc. Further, in the first to third embodiments, the list and the content are downloaded, but the method of simply receiving the list can be applied.

[0063]

According to the present invention, the user does not perform any special operation and selects and sets the latest content he / she likes, in exactly the same procedure as selecting the content recorded in the user terminal. can do. As before,
Compared with the conventional method of manually accessing the Internet site and downloading contents manually, it is dramatically easier to operate, and even beginners can easily find and set their favorite melody. .

According to the present invention, although the memory of the mobile phone is limited, the memory can be artificially expanded by downloading the melody list available through the Internet, and the user can be aware of the memory limit. In addition, the user's stress is significantly reduced.

Further, if the list based on the customized history information is downloaded, the list that suits the user's preference is displayed, so that the content which the user may like is preferentially displayed among the innumerable contents. As a result, the user can easily find the favorite content.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system using a content receiving device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an operation of the content receiving device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a screen display by the content receiving device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation of the content receiving device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation of the content receiving device according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 mobile phones 11 Content server 12 A site 13 B site 20 Internet

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) G06F 17/60 506 G06F 17/60 506 H04M 1/00 H04M 1/00 B 1/725 1/725 (72 ) Inventor Takashi Iwamatsu 223, Higashitakagi, Takagase-cho, Saga-shi, Saga 1 F-term inside Hashiguchi Electric Co., Ltd. (reference) 5B075 ND16 PQ46 5K027 AA11 FF03 FF22 FF25 5K101 KK02 KK18 LL12 NN07 NN12 NN21

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A content receiving device for receiving digital content in a user terminal, wherein list receiving means for receiving a list of digital content through a network, and a list of digital content stored in the user terminal are displayed. A content receiving device further comprising list display means for displaying the list after the list and content receiving means for receiving the digital content selected from the list. 2. The apparatus further comprises: information transmission means for transmitting customization history information or personal information indicating a history of customization of the user terminal in the past, wherein the list reception means is based on the personal information or customization history information. The content receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the content receiving apparatus receives the list of the digital contents reflecting the taste. 3. The content receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the user terminal is a mobile phone. 4. The digital content is any one of an incoming melody, a standby image, a game, an application, a help file, a mail template, user information, a moving image, music, and karaoke. The described content receiving device. 5. The content receiving apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising customization setting means for customizing the user terminal with the digital content.