JP2003319363A - Server apparatus for substitution service of television broadcast recording - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a server apparatus whereby a user can record an optional TV program and view a recorded program at an optional time later by the terminal without the need for provision of a TV tuner and an encoder to the terminal such as a personal computer. <P>SOLUTION: A data center 1 is provided with a tuner 11 for receiving a TV broadcast program and an encoding function 12 for encoding the TV broadcast program received by the tuner 11 according to the reservation of a video recording program from the personal computer 3 being the user terminal and records the encoded TV broadcast program to a storage device 14. When the data center 1 receives a distribution request of the video recorded program from the personal computer 3 of the user, the data center 1 reads the concerned recorded program from the storage device 14, downloads the program to the personal computer 3, the personal computer 3 decodes the downloaded TV broadcast program and displays the decoded program on a display apparatus 32. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a television broadcast recording proxy service server device for recording a television broadcast on behalf of a user and then delivering the service to the user.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art TV tuners and devices for encoding moving pictures are commercially available for recording television (TV) broadcasts on a personal computer. By purchasing these TV tuners and encoding devices and attaching them to a personal computer, and by making these devices recognized by the personal computer, or by combining them with software that provides a program recording reservation screen or a screen (viewer) for displaying recorded programs, It has become possible to record arbitrary programs on a personal level using a personal computer.

[0003]

However, in order to record a TV program on the personal computer as described above, a TV tuner or an encoding device (for example, a TV with a video capture function).
A tuner card was required, and the user needed to pay for this, or bought an external device and needed space for it. Also, it occupies the bus of the personal computer and makes it impossible to add another device. Further, when recording a TV program, a storage area such as a hard disk of a personal computer is used, so that the storage area that can be used for other purposes may be narrowed. In addition to the storage area, incorporating a TV tuner and encoding device in the personal computer reduced the available system resources of the personal computer.

By the way, conventionally, there has been a service for providing a user with a storage in a remote place as an external storage area. This service is a service that allows storage in a remote place to be used for a fee, for example, in the same manner as the storage function of a personal computer.

However, this storage service simply provides only the above-mentioned storage function, and by using this, it is possible to avoid narrowing the storage area used by the hard disk of its own personal computer, but the TV tuner and code There was no change in the need for a chemical device.

In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to record an arbitrary TV program by a user without preparing a TV tuner or an encoding device in a terminal such as a personal computer and record it at an arbitrary time later. It is an object of the present invention to provide a television broadcast recording agent service server device capable of viewing a program on a terminal.

[0007]

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention has the following structure. Claim 1
The television broadcast recording proxy service server device described in (3), a receiving means for receiving a television broadcast program, a recording reservation managing means for managing a recording reservation input from a terminal via a communication network, and the recording reservation managing means. The recording means for recording the television broadcast program received by the receiving means in the storage device on the basis of the recording reservation of the recording means, and the delivery request for the television broadcast program recorded from the terminal via the communication network, the storage means. And a distribution unit that reads out a corresponding television broadcast program from the device and distributes it to the terminal via the communication network.

With this configuration, the television broadcast recording agent service server device manages the recording reservation input from the terminal via the communication network,
The television broadcast program received based on this recording reservation is recorded in the storage device. When there is a distribution request for a television broadcast program recorded from a terminal via the communication network, the corresponding television broadcast program is read from the storage device and distributed to the terminal via the communication network. In addition, television broadcasting programs are analog / digital broadcasting, terrestrial broadcasting / satellite broadcasting (BS, C
S), broadcast programs broadcast by cable TV broadcasting and the like are included. Further, it also includes broadcast programs broadcast by Internet broadcasting, leased line broadcasting, and the like. It also includes broadcast programs broadcast by encoded broadcast waves. By the way, in the embodiments described later (the first embodiment and the like), the received broadcast program is encoded and recorded (encoding function). Further, in the embodiments described later, the tuner and the encoding function correspond to the "reception means", the user management function and the recording management function correspond to the "recording reservation management means", and the recording management function corresponds to the "recording means". The file access control function and the like correspond to “delivery means”.

The television broadcast recording proxy service server device according to claim 2 is the television broadcast recording proxy service server device according to claim 1, wherein the recording is performed in the storage device according to a reproduction environment of the terminal. In addition to providing the means for converting the encoding system of the television broadcast program, the delivery means is configured to deliver the corresponding television broadcast program to the terminal by downloading it to the terminal.

With such a configuration, the television broadcast recording proxy service server device delivers the corresponding television broadcast program to the terminal in a form of downloading to the terminal. At this time, the encoding system of the television broadcast program recorded in the storage device is converted and downloaded according to the reproduction environment of the terminal (device type such as personal computer, mobile phone, PDA, line speed). This means for converting the encoding system corresponds to a "media conversion function" in the embodiments described later.

Further, the television broadcast recording agent service server device according to claim 3 is the television broadcast recording agent service server device according to claim 1, wherein:
The distribution means distributes the corresponding television broadcast program to the terminal by streaming while providing means for converting the encoding system of the television broadcast program recorded in the storage device according to the reproduction environment of the terminal. It was configured to do.

With such a configuration, the television broadcast recording agent service server device delivers the corresponding television broadcast program to the terminal by streaming. At this time, the encoding system of the television broadcast program recorded in the storage device is converted according to the reproduction environment of the terminal (device type such as personal computer, mobile phone, PDA, etc., line speed) and distributed by streaming (streaming Delivery). This means for converting the encoding system corresponds to a "media conversion function" in the embodiments described later.

A television broadcast recording agent service server device according to a fourth aspect is the television broadcast recording agent service server device according to the first aspect, wherein the delivery means is a streaming delivery request from a terminal side, or According to the selection of the download distribution request, the corresponding television broadcast program is distributed to the terminal in the form of being downloaded to the terminal, or is distributed to the terminal by streaming.

With this configuration, the television broadcast recording proxy service server device according to claim 1, wherein the distribution means is streaming distribution on the terminal side, Alternatively, depending on the selection of download distribution, the corresponding television broadcast program is distributed to the terminal in the form of being downloaded to the terminal, or is distributed to the terminal by streaming.

A television broadcast recording agent service server device according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the television broadcast recording agent service server device according to the first aspect, wherein the recording means records the program recorded in a portable recording medium. The data is recorded in the storage device.

That is, a program recorded on a portable recording medium such as a recording tape and a disk other than the broadcast wave (excluding a program broadcast on the broadcast wave and a program distributed on the Internet) is recorded in a storage device. And deliver it to the terminal.

[0017]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. (First Embodiment) FIG. 1 shows a configuration example of a television broadcast recording agent service server device according to a first embodiment of the present invention and a user terminal connected to the server device via a communication network. FIG. The data center (server device) 1 is connected to a plurality of user-side personal computers 3 via the Internet 2.

The data center 1 has an antenna 10 for capturing broadcast waves, a terrestrial tuner 11a for receiving a broadcast wave of a set channel from the TV broadcast waves captured by the antenna 10, a satellite tuner 11b, ... The tuner 11n, an encoding function 12a for encoding the moving image data received by the tuner 11 (the reference numeral 11 is used as a general term for the tuner), an encoding function 12b, ..., An encoding function 12n, and which program A recording management function 13 for controlling whether to record the received TV broadcast program in the storage device 14, and a storage device 14 such as a hard disk for recording the received TV broadcast program.
And a user management function 15 that authenticates the user or manages the frequency of the user's program recording reservation and viewing.
And a file access control function 16 that processes the same protocol that the user uses when using the storage service. The data center 1, which is a server, includes a router (not shown) and sends and receives data to and from the personal computer 3 of the user. Also, the encoding function 12
n, the recording management function 13, the user management function 15, and the file access control function 16 are activated and deployed as software in a control device (not shown) including a CPU and a RAM of the data center 1 as a server.

The user's personal computer 3 is a personal computer main body 31
The personal computer 31 has a browser function 311 for accessing a server or the like on the Internet 2, a decoding function 312 for decoding encoded moving image data once stored in the storage device 33, and a storage of the data center 1. It has a remote file access function 313 for accessing the device 14, and a storage device 33 for temporarily storing encoded moving image data. The TV tuner function and the encoding function (capture function) which have been conventionally required are unnecessary. Therefore, it is possible to prevent or reduce, for example, a decrease in the system resources of the personal computer 3. Further, the expandability of the personal computer 3 can be maintained without occupying a bus or the like. Further, it is not necessary to open the lid of the personal computer 3 and to tamper with the inside. The browser function 311 and the remote file access function 313 can be considered to be integrated.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. In the data center 1 that provides a TV recording proxy service, a plurality of types of terrestrial tuners 11 that receive a plurality of types of broadcast waves such as terrestrial broadcasting, satellite broadcasting, and cable broadcasting are provided.
a, satellite wave tuner 11b, ..., Tuner 11n. It should be noted that the data center 1 can be provided with tuners up to the number capable of receiving the number of broadcast channels to be recorded. In addition, the encoding functions 12a, 12b,
..., 12n are installed in the same number as the above tuner.

The service provider operating the data center 1 requests the registration of the user in advance before the user uses the TV recording proxy service. This registration is similar to general membership registration, and the service provider can set a membership fee and charge the user for this membership registration. It is also possible to charge the user a charge according to the usage amount (recording time / number of programs). When the user uses the service, first, the user's personal computer (terminal) 3 accesses the data center 1 using the browser function 311 to log in. At this time, the user management function 15 of the data center 1 authenticates the user. Although a specific authentication method is not specified here, a general method using an ID and password, an authentication method using a network function described later, and the like are conceivable. As the terminal on the user side, the Web browser function 311 of the personal computer 3 can be used as described above, or a mobile phone or a mobile terminal with a browser function can be used.

Here, the line between the user and the service provider is not particularly defined, but wired or wireless Internet or a dedicated line or the like can be considered. Also, in the case of the Internet 2, when a line connection provider having a terminal line up to the user terminal uses the function of the network and provides the authentication function by using the terminal number of the user terminal or the line number, for example. There is. In this case, the service provider can authenticate the user by using the function of the line carrier.

The user management function 15 of the data center 1
When providing services to users using the Web etc.,
As described above, the user is authenticated, and the user's recording reservation and viewing frequency are managed. The usage frequency information can be used as data when the service provider charges the user.

When the user is authenticated by the user management function 15, the user then sends a channel to the recording management function 13 from the personal computer 3 through the user management function 15 to the channel,
Schedule the recording of a program by specifying the date, time, recording time, etc. The recording management function 13 prepares program information separately (similarly to electronic program guide [Electronic Program Guide], etc.), so that the user can select a program to be recorded on the spot from this electronic program guide. You can choose. That is, the user can make a reservation for recording a TV program in the data center 1 from the program guide.

Therefore, the recording management function 13 manages information regarding which user, what year, month, day and time the program was recorded for how long, or was recorded.
If there is no program file already recorded in the storage device 14 of the data center 1 for download, the user logs out from the data center 1 when he / she makes a recording reservation for the TV program. The service provider can charge for the reservation act of this user.

The recording management function 13 of the data center 1 is provided with a tuner 11 for the corresponding time when the date and time designated by the user arrives.
The reserved program is recorded by encoding the moving image of the designated program by using the encoding function 12 and storing it in the recording device 14. If a plurality of users request to record the same program, and if one recorded data is viewed logically from the user's side, the recording device 14, the tuner 11, and the encoding function 12 may be used. It can be shared and the data center 1 can be operated efficiently.

Next, when the user views the program recorded in the data center 1, after performing the same authentication as at the time of recording reservation, the remote file access function 313 of the user's personal computer 3 and the data center. Using the file access control function 16 of No. 1, the recorded program data is downloaded to the user's personal computer 3. The file access control function 16 described above processes a protocol (a protocol on TCP / IP, such as NSF, SMB, or WebDAV) used when a user uses a storage service. The file access control function 16 is the same as that of a conventional storage service, and therefore its explanation is omitted. TCP / IP is Transport Communication
Protocol / Internet Protocol, NFS is Ne
Abbreviation for twork File System, SMB is Server Messag
WebDAV stands for Distributed Autho.
ring and Versioning protocol for the world wide We
Abbreviation for b. NFS, SMB, and WebDAV are protocols that realize remote access to files.

When the file of the recorded program is designated by the remote file access function 313 to the file access control function 16 of the data center 1, the file access control function 16 stores the file of the corresponding recorded program (moving image of the moving picture) from the storage device 14. The encoded data) is read and transmitted to the user's personal computer 3 via the Internet 2. The personal computer 3 downloads and stores the received recorded program file in the storage device 33. After that, the user operates the personal computer 3 to read the encoded data of the moving image downloaded to the storage device 33, decodes it by the decoding function 312, and displays it on the display 32 for viewing.

Note that the user can save the recorded program on the storage device 14 of the data center 1 of the service provider. In this case, the service provider determines the usage amount and usage period of the storage area. The user can be charged accordingly.

FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram showing the timing of data transmission / reception between the personal computer 3 which is the user's terminal and the data center 1. The user accesses the data center 1 by inputting the URL of the data center 1 to the personal computer 3 and transmitting it (S201). The data center 1 receives this and transmits the web page to the personal computer 3 (S202). As a result, a TV program recording reservation screen (Web page) such as that shown in FIG. 3A is displayed on the personal computer 3. The user wants to record on this screen
Input necessary information such as specifying V broadcast program (S2
03). After confirming the input contents, send button (send GO in the figure)
Click to send TV reservation information to the data center 1 (S204).

The data center 1 receives the transmitted TV recording reservation information (reservation reception, S205). The data center 1 records the designated TV broadcast program designated by the user's TV recording reservation (S206). It should be noted that the data center 1 may notify the e-mail address of the contact of the user that the recording is completed.

After that, the user operates the personal computer 3 to make a U
Input RL to access data center 1 (S21
1). The data center 1 creates a recorded list of the user (list for the person) and sends it to the personal computer 3 (S212). The user refers to the sent list and selects a recorded program to watch from the recorded list (S213, see FIG. 3B)). That is, the data center 1 is requested to deliver the program. The data center 1 delivers the corresponding TV recorded program to the personal computer 3 (S214).
The personal computer 3 downloads the received TV-recorded program, receives it, and then reproduces it (S215). In addition,
FIG. 3B shows an example of a TV program reproduction screen (Web page). In this screen, the program to be reproduced, such as the ID and password, the type of machine to be reproduced, etc., is specified. In this figure, the recorded list is displayed in the pull-down menu (combo box) of item 3.

The list of recorded programs may be created by the recording management function 13 or may be created by dedicated software.

According to the present embodiment, the user makes a reservation for a desired TV program from the personal computer 3 to the data center 1 at an arbitrary time and records the desired TV program in the storage device 14 of the data center 1. Then, the TV program recorded at an arbitrary time later can be downloaded to the user's personal computer 3 and displayed on the display 32 for viewing. Therefore, the user realizes the function of recording a TV program on the personal computer 3 and viewing the recorded program at an arbitrary time later on his / her personal computer 3 without preparing a TV tuner or an encoding device. be able to.

As a result, the user can save the expense for purchasing the TV tuner and the encoding device. Also, considering the case where a TV tuner card with a video capture function is purchased and set in the personal computer 3, the space around the personal computer 3 becomes smaller externally. In addition, it occupies the bus of the personal computer 3 which is limited to built-in or external. However, in the present invention, since the communication function (modem or Ethernet (R) board, browser function 311, remote file access function 313) that can be said to be currently provided in any personal computer is used, a new bus or the like is used. Never occupy. Therefore, the function expandability of the personal computer 3 can be maintained as it is. Further, the space around the personal computer 3 is not narrowed. Further, it is not necessary to connect the device to the personal computer with a USB cable or the like. In addition, since the TV program is downloaded to the storage device 33 of the personal computer 3 only when the user wants to watch the recorded TV program, the storage device 33 is normally used.
It is possible to secure a sufficient storage area in the storage device 33 and to smoothly perform personal computer work without consuming the storage area for recording TV programs. Further, although the recording reservation in the VCR has conventionally been poor in operability, it is not necessary to make the recording reservation in the VCR which does not have such good operability. On the other hand, the service provider who provides this service can collect membership fee and recording service usage fee from the user, and can earn income.

In the above embodiment, an example in which the personal computer 3 is used as a terminal has been described, but any personal computer having a communication function such as a mobile phone or a dedicated wireless terminal (PDA) and capable of displaying a moving image can be a personal computer. There is no limit.

(Second Embodiment) FIG. 4 shows a television broadcast recording agent service server device according to a second embodiment of the present invention and a user terminal connected to this server device via a communication network. It is a block diagram showing an example of composition. However, the same parts as those in the first embodiment described above are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

A data center (server device) 1 is connected to a user's terminal via a wired or wireless Internet 2, for example, a personal computer 3 at home or an STB (Set Top) at home.
Box) 41 and a TV 42 to which the STB 41 is connected, and is connected to an outdoor dedicated wireless terminal (PDA with communication function) 5 or a mobile phone 6.

The data center 1 of this example is constructed so as to receive a corresponding TV program at a designated date and time and record it in the storage device 14 in accordance with the user's TV program recording reservation.
The configuration is similar to that of the above embodiment. The only difference is that the TV recorded on the storage device 14 of the data center 1 at the user's terminal.
When viewing a program, the recorded TV program is not downloaded to the terminal but is streamed. For this reason, the data center 1 is provided with a media conversion function 17 for converting the data encoding method and the used band according to the environment of the user terminal.

That is, in order for the user to watch a TV program reserved and recorded in the storage device 14 of the data center 1 at his / her terminal, a distribution request for the recorded TV program is sent from the user's personal computer 3 or STB 41, for example. To the data center 1, the encoded data of the corresponding recorded TV program is read from the storage device 14. At this time, the read encoded data is streamed and distributed to the terminal on the user side via the wired or wireless Internet 2 after the encoding method and the used band of the encoded data are changed by the media conversion function 17. It

Here, taking a moving image as an example, a large amount of data is required to reproduce it on a large screen. Further, when the accuracy is increased by the encoding method and a beautiful image with little information loss is reproduced, the data required for the reproduction becomes large. The above-mentioned used band is the meaning of how much data is used per unit time when reproducing. When a user terminal plays back data while receiving it (streaming playback), smooth playback cannot be performed unless the used bandwidth of the moving image is smaller than the bandwidth of the transmission path. For example, PHS 6
300 kbps for broadband with 4 kbps communication
Even if the image adjusted with s is played, it cannot be seen properly. Changing the used band means adjusting the used band of the moving image to re-encode it according to the band of the line to be used.

Therefore, the media conversion function 17 changes the encoding method according to the terminal (mobile phone, PDA, personal computer, etc.) for reproduction. Generally, a mobile phone or PDA has a lower processing capacity than a personal computer, and therefore, an encoding method that does not require much processing on the terminal side is used. By the way,
An encoding method that does not require processing capacity during reproduction generally requires more bandwidth. That is, the compression efficiency becomes poor. Also, since the band used depends on the encoding method, the media conversion function 17
Coding is adjusted so that the band (speed) corresponds to the line speed.

In the environment on the terminal side, (1) FOMA (registered trademark) connection at 384 kbps and reproduction on the screen of the mobile phone, (2) connection at PHS 64 kbps and reproduction on the screen of the mobile phone, (3) Connect at PHS 64 kbps and play on PDA, (4) Connect at PHS 64 kbps and play on PC, (5) ISDN 128 kb
Connected at ps and played on a PC, (6) Connected at 8 Mbps of FLET'S (registered trademark) ADSL, and played on a personal computer.

It should be noted that the encoding and the change of the used band are normally performed simultaneously by the media conversion function 17, and are performed without being divided into two procedures.

According to this embodiment, since the TV program recorded in the storage device 14 of the data center 1 is streamed to the user's terminal via the Internet 2,
The user can immediately decode the streamed encoded data and display it on the display 32 or the like for viewing without downloading the recorded TV program to his or her terminal. Therefore, the mobile phone 6 and the dedicated wireless terminal (PD
A) The recorded TV program can be viewed even by a device such as 5 which does not have a storage device having a large storage capacity. Also, unlike downloading, you can only play it after waiting for the reception of all files, so you can play it.
You can use your time effectively as a user. Especially useful for busy people. Also, it can be reproduced from a desired place (it can be seen from a desired place also in the first embodiment of downloading). Other effects are similar to those of the first embodiment.

It should be noted that the data center 1 grasps the reproduction environment at which terminal the user reproduces, what kind of speed line is used, and the encoding method according to the grasped reproduction environment. To convert. Examples of modes of grasping the reproduction environment are: a. Confirmation by notification in advance, b. Confirmation by notification at the time of distribution request (recognition by letting the user select at the time of reproduction), c. Unique check by the data center 1 There is a grasp by doing. Incidentally, FIG. 3 (b) described above.
For the example of the TV program playback screen of the above, the line at which the user plays the terminal and the speed at which the line is played according to the notification at the time of the distribution request in b. Above (selected by the user at the time of playing) It shows an example of grasping whether or not. In addition to this point, the recording is performed with the highest image quality, and the media conversion function 17 determines the performance of the terminal to be reproduced and the line speed (bandwidth) according to the user's selection at the time of reproduction (depending on the reproduction environment. ), It may be better to change the encoding method. By doing this, multiple recordings with different encoding methods depending on the terminal performance and line speed (act of recording)
Is not necessary for one TV program.
This surely facilitates the management of the data stored in the storage device 14. It is also possible to reduce the storage capacity of the storage device 14. If the highest image quality is recorded, the image data with the highest image quality and the image data with the frame dropped or the display area is small (the number of pixels is small).
Image data can be easily created.

(Third Embodiment) FIG. 5 shows a television broadcast recording agent service server device according to a third embodiment of the present invention and a user terminal connected to this server device via a communication network. It is a block diagram showing an example of composition. However, the same parts as those in the second embodiment described above are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be appropriately omitted.

The configuration of this example is almost the same as that of the second embodiment shown in FIG. 4, and the TV program recorded in the storage device 14 of the data center (server device) 1 is distributed by streaming to the user side. The difference is that the programs that can be recorded by the data center 1 are compatible with not only general TV broadcast programs but also programs from program creation companies and the like. Therefore, in addition to the configuration of the second embodiment, as shown in the figure, the Internet or the dedicated line 19 for receiving a program of a program creation company or the like.
And a program receiving function 20 for receiving a program transmitted through the Internet or the dedicated line 19, and an encoder (encoding function) 21 for inputting received data received by the program receiving function 20 to the recording management function 13. I have it. In addition, each user has a storage device 14 in the data center 1.
It has a right management function 18 for managing the usable storage capacity of the. Therefore, since the user reserves a program reserved in the storage area of the storage device 14 in his right range, the number of programs that can be recorded is limited according to the right range.

Since the programs of the program creators and the like as described above are physically carried by being recorded on the Internet or the dedicated line 19 or a recording tape, a disk or the like, instead of the tuner, a mechanism for receiving the programs to be distributed and recording are provided. A device for reproducing a tape or a disc is required, which is the program receiving function 20. These programs are provided to the user by a program guide created in the data center 1 as a lineup different from the data recorded by TV, and the user reserves the recording of these programs as in the previous embodiment. , Can be viewed on your own terminal. Of course, when the user views these programs, the viewing fee can be charged to the user. Incidentally, the recording tape, the disk, and the like correspond to the "formable recording medium" in the claims.

According to the present embodiment, not only general TV broadcasting but also programs of program creation companies and the like can be recorded according to the recording reservation of the user, and then streamed to the user. it can. Other effects are similar to those of the second embodiment.

(Fourth Embodiment) FIG. 6 shows the configuration of a television broadcast recording agent service server device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention and a user terminal connected to this server device via a communication network. It is the block diagram which showed the example. However, the same parts as those in the third embodiment described above are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

The data center (server device) 1 of this example is
Depending on whether the user has the recorded TV program or other program streamed to the personal computer 3 or downloaded to the storage device 33 of the personal computer 3, the recorded TV program or the other program is selected in accordance with this selection. The point that the program can be distributed to the personal computer 3 is shown in FIG.
This is different from the third embodiment shown in FIG. In addition, when downloading to the storage device 33 of the personal computer 3, the downloaded program information is provided to a third party so that the copyright holder is not disadvantaged. A function 314 is provided.
The terminal of the user is not limited to the personal computer, but may be a mobile phone, a dedicated wireless terminal, or the like.

The right management function 314 records by combining general content protection technology such as encryption of program data using unique information of the terminal or unique information of the user, or technology of limiting the number of copying. The system is configured so that the broadcast program data cannot be used illegally.

Here, the unique information of the terminal means the solid-state ID built into the mobile phone or the I of the CPU of the personal computer 3 or the like.
D etc. Such a unique ID is acquired by communication with the personal computer 3, and the data center 1 encrypts the content (recorded program) using the ID and downloads it (or streams it) to the personal computer 3.
On the other hand, the personal computer 3 decrypts the data (or streaming distributed data) downloaded to the storage device 33 by using the unique ID, decrypts it with the decryption function 312, and reproduces it on the display 32 (the personal computer 3 reproduces the data. Equipped with a viewer to decrypt while decrypting). Therefore,
When the data downloaded to the storage device 33 is copied to another terminal (personal computer or the like), it cannot be correctly decoded and reproduced because the above-mentioned unique information is different.

Further, when the data downloaded by the right management function 314 is copied, if the copy number on the header is updated and the upper limit of the copy number is limited, it is possible to prevent further copying.

According to the present embodiment, the data center 1 sends the program recorded in the storage device 14 to the personal computer 3 in a streaming form or in a downloadable form according to the user's choice. The usability on the side can be improved. Moreover, by providing the personal computer 3 with the right management function 314, it is possible to secure the security so that the downloaded data is not used by a third party.

In the above-described first to fourth embodiments, the terminal on the user side does not need to prepare a TV tuner or an encoding device, but the decoding function 312 or the remote file access function 313, or the right Software (viewer or the like) that configures the management function 314 or the like is required. These software are CD-R when the user joins this service.
Obtain it by distributing it via OM or by downloading it via the Internet 2 (installed on the PC 3 etc. and always holding it). Also, a method is possible in which the software is downloaded and acquired from the data center 1 or the like via the Internet 2 each time the user accesses the data center 1.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be carried out in various other modes in specific configurations, functions, actions, and effects without departing from the scope of the invention. it can. For example, in each of the embodiments described above, the server device is an ASP (Application Serv
Ice Provider) was installed in a data center that operates on a large scale.
It goes without saying that a server device may be installed in a condominium, a dormitory or the like, and the owner or manager of the condominium may provide the residents with the above-mentioned recording service. Although the present invention is understood as a server device of the data center 1, it may be understood as a program that causes the server device to function.

[0059]

As described above, the television broadcast recording proxy service server device according to the present invention has the following excellent effects.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the user can record an arbitrary TV program and prepare the program recorded at an arbitrary time later, such as a personal computer, without preparing a TV tuner or an encoding device. Can be viewed at.

According to the second aspect of the invention, the terminal side once downloads the TV program recorded in the data center to the storage device of the terminal and then reproduces the program as many times as desired at any time and displays it on the display for viewing. can do.

According to the third aspect of the invention, the terminal side can reproduce the TV program recorded at the data center while receiving it and display it on the display for viewing.

According to the invention described in claim 4, the user can receive the TV program recorded in the data center by downloading or streaming, whichever is convenient.

According to the invention described in claim 5, the user can record various video programs in addition to general TV programs in the data center, and thereafter can be delivered to the terminal for viewing.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a television broadcast recording proxy service server device according to a first embodiment of the present invention and a user terminal connected to the server device via a communication network.

FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram showing a data transmission / reception timing between the personal computer shown in FIG. 1 and a data center.

3 is a screen displayed on the display shown in FIG. 1, (a) TV program recording reservation screen example, (b) TV
It is an example of a program reproduction screen.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a television broadcast recording proxy service server device according to a second embodiment of the present invention and a user terminal connected to the server device via a communication network.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a television broadcast recording proxy service server device according to a third embodiment of the present invention and a user terminal connected to the server device via a communication network.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a television broadcast recording proxy service server device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention and a user terminal connected to this server device via a communication network.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Data center, 2 ... Internet, 3 ... PC 4, TV set, 5 ... Dedicated wireless terminal, 6 ... Mobile phone,
Reference numeral 10 ... Antennas 11a, 11b, ..., 11n ... Tuners 12a-12n ... Encoding function 13 ... Recording management function, 14, 33 ... Storage device 15 ... User management function, 16 ... File access control function 17 ... Media conversion function, 18, 314 ... Rights management function 20 ... Program receiving function, 21 ... Encoder 31 ... Personal computer main body, 32 ... Display, 41 ... ST
B, 42 ... Television 311 ... Browser function, 312 ... Decryption function, 313 ... Remote file access function

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Yusuke Agawa             2-3-1, Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo             Inside Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (72) Inventor Yasuhiro Iida             2-3-1, Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo             Inside Telegraph and Telephone Corporation F-term (reference) 5C052 CC11 DD04 DD10                 5C053 FA30 GA11 GB21 KA30 LA11                       LA14                 5C064 BA01 BC18 BC23 BC25 BD03                       BD08

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A receiving means for receiving a television broadcast program, a recording reservation managing means for managing a recording reservation inputted from a terminal via a communication network, and the receiving based on the recording reservation of the recording reservation managing means. Recording means for recording the television broadcast program received by the means in a storage device; and, when there is a distribution request for the television broadcast program recorded from the terminal via the communication network, the corresponding television broadcast program is stored in the storage device. A distribution means for reading and distributing to the terminal via the communication network, and a television broadcast recording agent service server device. 2. The apparatus further comprises means for converting an encoding system of a television broadcast program recorded in the storage device according to a reproduction environment of the terminal, and the distribution means for transmitting the corresponding television broadcast program. The television broadcast recording agent service server device according to claim 1, wherein the television broadcast recording agent service is distributed to the terminal in a form of being downloaded to the terminal. 3. A means for converting an encoding system of a television broadcast program recorded in the storage device according to a reproduction environment of the terminal, and the distributing means streams the corresponding television broadcast program. The television broadcast recording agent service server device according to claim 1, wherein the television broadcast recording agent service server device delivers the television broadcast recording service to the terminal. 4. The distribution means distributes the corresponding television broadcast program to the terminal in a form of downloading to the terminal in accordance with selection of a streaming distribution request or a download distribution request from the terminal side. The television broadcast recording agent service server device according to claim 1, wherein the service is delivered to the terminal by streaming. 5. The television broadcast recording agent service server device according to claim 1, wherein the recording means has a configuration for recording a program recorded in a portable recording medium in the storage device.