JP2005197853A - Content distribution system and content distribution method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system whereby a user can view contents with quality expected by a contents distribution enterprise by controlling reproduction processing of a computer so as to prevent the contents with degraded quality from being reproduced. <P>SOLUTION: In the contents distribution system, a contents distribution side includes: a download midway reproduction inhibition information generating section for generating information to inhibit reproduction in process of downloading contents; and a storage section for storing information to inhibit the reproduction in process of downloading contents. A contents acquisition side includes: an acquisition section for acquiring the contents and the download midway reproduction inhibition information from the contents distribution side; a download state discrimination section for discriminating the download state of the contents; and a download midway reproduction propriety discrimination section for discriminating whether or not download midway reproduction is available on the basis of the download state information and the download midway reproduction inhibit information. In the system, the reproduction in process of downloading contents can be inhibited. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention makes it possible to prohibit reproduction of content during download processing in content download processing between client servers.

  With the recent rapid broadbandization, it has become easy for clients to download large-volume stream content from a communication server to a computer for viewing. As a method for downloading the stream content from the communication server to the client computer and viewing by the user, there is a method of sequentially viewing the downloaded content in real time without waiting for the download to be completed.

  However, the amount of data received by the client that receives the packet transmitted by the server when the network congestion is high or the bottleneck phenomenon of the transmission bandwidth occurs gradually decreases. As a result, the packet transmitted by the server is received. This causes a problem that packet loss occurs.

  The conventional method and apparatus for changing the amount of data (bps) acquired per second on the basis of only packet loss has a problem that it is difficult to quickly cope with a change in the state of the network. There is a problem that it takes a relatively long time to normally transmit (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

In order to solve the above problems, Patent Document 2 can automatically grasp the state of the network and minimize packet loss even if the network congestion increases during execution. Made it possible to provide services.
US Pat. No. 5,768,527 JP 2003-188909 A

  However, in the conventional method, when the content is sequentially played back while downloading the content from the communication server on a communication path such as the Internet where the transmission bandwidth is not compensated, the playback processing amount exceeds the download processing amount and the playback is performed. There is a problem that the data at the right timing is not in the buffer of the computer, and the image and sound of the content are interrupted and presented to the user with quality not expected by the content distributor.

  The present invention solves the above-described conventional problems, and controls a computer reproduction process so that the content is not reproduced in a state in which the quality of the content is impaired, so that the user can view the content having the quality expected by the content distribution company. The purpose is to provide.

  In order to solve the above problems, a content distribution server of the present invention is a content distribution server that distributes content to a content receiving terminal, a content storage unit that stores one or more contents, and distributes content to the content receiving terminal And a means for creating information for prohibiting reproduction processing of content being distributed, and sending information for prohibiting reproduction processing of distributed content to a content receiving terminal that is distributing content Have.

  With the above configuration, the content distribution server downloads content related to information for controlling playback processing during download to the content receiving terminal, and prohibits playback processing when the content receiving terminal attempts to play back the content being downloaded To do.

  The content receiving terminal of the present invention is a content receiving terminal that acquires content from a content distribution server, and includes a communication unit that receives the distributed content, a reproducing unit that reproduces the distributed content, and a content that is being distributed. When receiving information prohibiting the reproduction process, it has a means for determining whether or not the content is in the middle of distribution, and determining whether or not the content can be reproduced during the distribution. When the determination is made, the reproducing means is configured to stop the reproduction on the way.

  With the above configuration, a content receiving terminal that has downloaded content related to information for controlling playback processing in the middle of downloading prohibits playback processing when the content is played back during content download.

  The content distribution system according to the present invention enables a content creator to create content so that the content is not reproduced while the content is being downloaded during content download, and the content quality may be impaired In addition, it is possible to provide a system that prohibits content reproduction processing and allows a user to view content of expected quality.

  In addition, the user can confirm the intention of the content creator that the content is created so that the quality of the content is not impaired.

  In addition, the content creator can create the content so that the content is not played back in a state where quality is deteriorated for a specific part of the content, and only a part of the content is being downloaded. It is possible to provide a system that prohibits computer playback processing and allows users to view content of expected quality.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
[Content delivery system overview]
First, an outline of a content distribution system according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. This embodiment will be described using a client server system via the Internet. FIG. 1 is a flow of content distribution and a hardware configuration diagram of its components. The personal computer 101 of the client is connected to the Web server 103 of the content distributor, and a content viewing request is sent to the Web server 103. When the client selects content to view, the selected content is distributed.

  Here, it is assumed that the content held by the Web server 103 is created in advance by the content creation computer 102 owned by the content distributor 104, but content created elsewhere may be brought in. .

  Also, the content creation computer 102 can create or edit content so as to prohibit playback during downloading, as will be described later.

  Further, on the content acquisition side, not only the personal computer 101 but also a portable terminal, a television receiver, and the like are assumed. The network to be connected is not limited to the Internet, and may be a network capable of distributing content or a broadcast wave.

  Next, an outline of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. A communication server (content distribution side) 1500 stores information for prohibiting playback during download of content and content, and download-prohibited playback prohibition information creating means 1501 for creating information for prohibiting playback during content download. The receiver (content acquisition side) 1506 includes a storage unit 1502, an acquisition unit 1503 that acquires content and download-prohibited playback prohibition information from the communication server 1500, and a download state determination unit 1504 that determines the download state of the content. In addition, based on the download status information and the download-prohibited playback prohibition information, a download-progress playback enable / disable determining unit 1505 that determines whether playback during download is possible is provided.

  With the configuration described above, when the content receiver 1506 in the middle of downloading tries to reproduce, the content related to information for controlling the reproduction processing of the content in the middle of downloading is downloaded from the communication server 1500 to the receiver 1506 together with the content in the middle of downloading. By doing so, it is possible to prohibit the content reproduction processing by the receiver 1506.

  Hereinafter, this embodiment will be described in detail.

[Content distribution system configuration diagram]
FIG. 2 is a system functional configuration diagram on the content distribution side of FIG. 1 in the present embodiment.

  The content distribution side includes a content creation computer 208 and a Web server 207. Each of them is connected to a network in a local area, and the Web server 207 has a network I / F (interface) to the Internet.

  The content creation computer 208 includes a content creation unit 201, a download-prohibited playback prohibition information creation unit 202, a content list creation unit 203, and a communication IF unit 205.

  The content creation unit 201 creates a content file using a signal from the keyboard of the content creation computer.

  The download-prohibited playback prohibition information creation unit 202 describes information for prohibiting playback during download for the content stored in the content storage unit of the Web server by a signal from the keyboard of the content creation computer. Create a content metafile.

  The Web server 207 includes a content storage unit 204 and a communication IF unit 206.

  The content storage unit 204 includes a content file created by the content creation unit 201 of the content creation computer 208, a content metafile created by the download-prohibited playback prohibition information creation unit 202, and a content list file created by the content list creation unit 203. Are stored in the storage area (hard disk) of the Web server 207 using the file system of the Web server 207.

  The content storage unit 204 can store a content file created on a computer different from the content creation unit 201 of the content creation computer 208.

[Data structure]
The content file created by the content creation unit 201 is created in the format of TS (ISO / IEC13818-1 MPEG2-System Transport Stream) transmitted by digital broadcasting or the like. TS data includes data linked to video / audio broadcasting services and other broadcast management / attached data.

  FIG. 3 is an outline of the structure of the written TS. The TS has data hierarchized as shown in FIG. PES (Packetized Elementary Stream) for video / audio and sections for broadcast management / attached data are classified. Here, PES is a packetized stream (ES: Elementary Stream) in which video and audio are MPEG2 encoded. In addition to video and audio that require temporal synchronization, subtitles and breaking super are transmitted. . As the section, asynchronous data such as program information and multimedia data is encoded.

  The download-prohibited playback prohibition information creation unit 202 creates a content metafile. The content metafile is a file describing additional information (for example, content type and content name) for the content file of the TS created by the content creation unit 201. Information prohibiting playback during download is described in the content metafile in text format.

  FIG. 4 is a description example of a content metafile. Reproduction prohibition during download is expressed as <download play = “diabable”>. On the contrary, the download permission during download is expressed as <download play = “enable”>.

  Also, the content file can be referred to from the content metafile. If <a href=“http://(content file address)”>) is described in the content metafile, it is possible to refer to the content file from the content metafile, and the referenced content file is played back during downloading. It can be determined whether it is possible.

  The content list file is a content acquisition address list for allowing the user to select content to be distributed. FIG. 5 is an example showing the contents of a content list file written in the HTML language.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram in which the content list file of FIG. 5 is displayed on a monitor using an HTML browser.

[Processing flow on the content delivery side]
The processing at the time of execution of content file A creation in the content distribution system will be described with reference to FIG.

  <Step 701> A content creator creates content using an input device such as a keyboard of a content creation computer.

  The content creation unit 201 creates a content file A from an input signal such as a keyboard.

  <Step 702> The content storage unit 204 stores the created content file A.

  <Step 703> The download-prohibited playback prohibition information creation unit 202 creates the content metafile A described in FIG. 4 for the content file A stored in the content storage unit 204.

  <Step 704> The content storage unit 204 stores the created content metafile A.

  <Step 705> The content list creation unit 203 creates a content list file based on the content file A, the content file B, the content file C, and the content file D in the storage area of the Web server, and stores the content in the content storage unit 204. Store the file list file.

  The user accesses the Web server, downloads the content metafile using a personal computer, and browses the content file list with a browser. The personal computer downloads the content that is referenced from the content metafile, but since the description that prohibits the playback of the content in the middle of the download is made, the personal computer on the content acquisition side operates to prohibit the playback of the content file To do.

[System configuration diagram on the content acquisition side]
FIG. 8 is a system configuration diagram on the content acquisition side described in FIG. 1 in the present embodiment. The content acquisition side is constituted by a personal computer.

  The acquisition unit 801 acquires a content file, a content metafile, and a content list file from the Web server. The acquisition unit 801 has a network interface (I / F) and can communicate with an external network such as the Internet using an HTTP protocol. In addition, the acquisition unit 801 determines whether the download state determination unit 804 is in the middle of downloading. An API (Application Program) that returns content acquisition information (data size of the acquired content and content size (Content-Length)). Interface). The content storage unit 802 stores the acquired content file and content metafile in a storage area (such as a hard disk) using a file system that manages files of a personal computer. The content analysis unit 803 analyzes the stored content file and content metafile.

  When analyzing the content file, the content analysis unit 803 passes the downloaded TS format content file to the TS decoder. The TS decoder analyzes the TS packet, extracts the PES or section from the selected TS packet, and distributes it to the AV decoder and the DRAM. The AV decoder performs decompression processing on video, audio, and other data compressed by the MPEG standard encoding method, synchronizes the output of the video and audio, and converts it into an analog signal.

  When analyzing the content metafile, the content analysis unit 803 extracts attribute information in the download tag from the downloaded content metafile.

  The download state determination unit 804 returns one of two types (downloading in progress or download completion) as a return value in response to a request from the download in progress reproducibility determination unit 806. The download state determination unit 804 acquires from the API that returns the data size of the acquired content of the acquisition unit 801 and the content size at the time of acquisition completion, and downloads while the number of received bytes is less than the number of bytes described in Content-Length. A download halfway state is returned to the midway reproduction enable / disable determination unit 806.

  If the download state determination unit 804 determines that the number of bytes described in Content-Length has been acquired, the download state determination unit 804 returns a download completion state to the mid-download reproduction permission / inhibition determination unit 806.

  The reproduction instruction unit 805 instructs to reproduce the content. The reproduction instruction unit 805 has an interface for receiving a reproduction instruction signal from an input device such as a keyboard or a mouse, and temporarily stores the reproduction instruction signal in a storage area of a personal computer.

  The mid-download play permission / prohibition determination unit 806 includes the playback instruction information stored in the play instruction unit 805, the download mid-play prohibition information extracted by analyzing the content metafile by the content analysis unit, and the download state determination unit. It is determined from the three pieces of download status information whether the content can be reproduced.

  The reproduction unit 808 reproduces content such as video, audio, and character information processed by the AV decoder and TS decoder based on an instruction from the reproduction possibility determination unit during download.

  The display unit 807 has an interface for displaying on the monitor the contents of content such as video, audio, and character information processed by the AV decoder and TS decoder, and displays the contents on the monitor.

[Processing flow on the content acquisition side]
The operation of the personal computer content download playback process will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10. FIG. FIG. 9 shows the operation flow on the acquisition side, and FIG. 10 shows the operation flow of the download state determination unit.

<Step 901>
The user accesses the URL address of the content list managed by the Web server 103 using the personal computer 101 connected to the Web server 103, and refers to the content list managed by the Web server 103 shown in FIG. The desired content A is selected from the displayed content list using the input device of the personal computer 101. When the content A is selected, the content metafile A is downloaded from the Web server 103 to the personal computer.

  The acquisition unit 801 acquires the content metafile A from the server. The content storage unit 802 stores the acquired content metafile A in the storage area (hard disk) 109.

<Step 902>
The content storage unit 802 stores the content metafile A acquired in step 901 in the storage area (hard disk) 116 of the personal computer 101.

  The stored content is passed to the content analysis unit 803.

<Step 903>
The content analysis unit 803 receives the content metafile A from the content storage unit 802 and extracts the attribute information of the download play. The attribute information of the download play is passed to the mid-download playability determination unit 806.

<Step 904>
Since the content metafile A indicates a link to the content file A, the mid-download playability determination unit 806 requests the acquisition unit 801 to start downloading the content file A. The acquisition unit 801 receives a part of the data of the content file A with a certain size and passes the received data to the content storage unit 802. The content storage unit 802 stores the part of the data of the content file A in the storage area of the client computer. To remember.

<Step 905>
The reproduction instruction unit 805 determines whether or not a reproduction instruction has been given to the content file A from an input device such as a keyboard of a personal computer via the reproduction instruction unit. If reproduction instruction information is present, the process proceeds to step 906. If there is no reproduction instruction information, the process proceeds to step 904 (the process of step 904 is continued until there is reproduction instruction information).

<Step 906>
A download playability determination unit 806 checks the attribute information of the download play extracted by the content analysis unit 803. If the attribute information of download play in the content of the content metafile A indicates “disable”, the process proceeds to step 907. If the attribute information of the download play indicates “disable”, the process proceeds to step 909.

<Step 907>
Details of the processing in step 907 will be described with reference to FIG.

<Step 907-1>
The download state determination unit 804 displays an attention sentence panel stored in the storage area on the monitor of the personal computer.

<Step 907-2>
The download state determination unit 804 inquires of the acquisition state of the content file A to the API of the acquisition unit 801.

<Step 907-3>
The acquisition unit 801 determines whether the number of bytes of the content file A that has been acquired is equal to the number of bytes described in Content-Length.

<Step 907-4>
When the number of bytes of the content file A that has been acquired by the acquisition unit 801 is smaller than the number of bytes described in Content-Length, the download state is set to the download state.

<Step 907-5>
When the number of bytes of the content acquired by the acquisition unit 801 is the same as the number of bytes described in Content-Length, the download state is completed. If the information of the download state determination unit 804 is download complete, the process proceeds to step 907-6. If the information of the download state determination unit 804 is in the middle of downloading, the process proceeds to step 907-2.

<Step 907-6>
The download state determination unit 804 deletes the caution panel from the monitor.

<Step 908>
The playback unit 808 plays back the content file A and sends the content data to the display unit 807. The display unit 807 displays the contents of the content file A on the monitor of the personal computer.

<Step 909>
Since the attribute information of the down load tag of the content metafile A indicates “enable”, it is determined by the download-in-progress playback enable / disable determination unit 806 that playback during download is possible. The download possibility judgment unit 806 reproduces the content file A and displays the contents of the content file A on the monitor of the personal computer.

<Step 910>
The playback unit 808 determines whether the content has ended. If the content has ended, the process ends. If the content has not ended, the process moves to step 904.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the content metafile A in which the content download file prohibition information is described in the content file A to be distributed is downloaded by the personal computer, so that the quality of the content can be impaired as intended by the content creator. Reproduction can be prohibited for a personal computer which has attempted to reproduce in a peculiar state.

  In addition to this embodiment, instead of adding download-prohibited playback prohibition information to the content metafile, when creating content on the distribution side, it is added to the content file (TS file) to prohibit playback during download. It is also possible. For example, it is possible to add playback prohibition information during download to the header of the TS. It is also possible to add playback prohibition information during download to the PMT of the TS.

  In this embodiment, the TS file is applied as the content file. However, the present invention can also be applied to other moving image files and music files.

  The playback means of this embodiment may be in a terminal different from the receiving terminal that received the content.

  Further, in addition to the notice in FIG. 11 as in the present embodiment, a dialog for notifying the user that playback should be performed after the download is completed, and entrusting the user to determine whether to perform playback during the download is left. Can be displayed in a pop-up.

  Moreover, you may warn using an audio | voice and sound information.

  Moreover, display of LED etc. may be sufficient.

  Moreover, you may display the approximate time until download is completed.

(Embodiment 2)
In the present embodiment, based on the first embodiment, a function that can specify the conditions of the transmission band between the client and server is provided in the download-prohibited playback prohibition information creation unit 202 of the content creation computer on the distribution side in FIG. When this function is used, the content metafile is described as shown in FIG.

  On the content acquisition side, in addition to the components shown in FIG. 8, a transmission band state acquisition unit 1301 is provided as shown in FIG. The transmission band state acquisition unit 1301 calculates how many bits of data the client has acquired per second from the server to the client, and returns the value as an external API.

  On the acquisition side, when the content metafile described as shown in FIG. 12 is acquired, the download-in-progress playability determination unit 806 sets the transmission band between client servers to the transmission band state acquisition unit 1301 by bps (bit per second). A numerical value is acquired in units, and the width attribute of the band element described in the content metafile is compared with the extracted numerical value. As a result of the comparison, if the transmission band is smaller than the width attribute of the band element described in the content metafile, playback processing during downloading is prohibited.

  Processing on the acquisition side when the transmission band condition is specified for the content with such a configuration will be described with reference to FIG.

<Step 1401>
The user accesses the content list address of the Web server 103 and refers to the content list of FIG. The content B is selected from the content list with the keyboard. When the content B is selected, the content metafile B is downloaded to the personal computer. The acquisition unit 801 acquires the content metafile B from the server. The acquired content metafile B is transferred to the content storage unit 802.

<Step 1402>
The content storage unit 802 stores the content metafile B acquired in step 1401 in the storage area of the personal computer.

  The stored content metafile B is passed to the content analysis unit 803.

<Step 1403>
The content analysis unit 803 receives the content metafile B from the content storage unit 802 and extracts band width attribute information. The attribute information of the band width is transferred to the playback possibility determination unit 806 during downloading.

<Step 1404>
Since the content metafile B indicates a link to the content file B, the mid-download playability determination unit 806 requests the acquisition unit 801 to start downloading the content file B. The acquisition unit 801 starts acquiring the content file B. The received data is transferred to the content storage unit 802, and the content storage unit 802 stores the data of the content file B in the storage area of the client computer. Thereafter, the acquisition unit 801 continues to acquire the content file B.

<Step 1405>
The reproduction instruction unit 805 determines whether or not a reproduction instruction has been given to the content file B from an input device such as a keyboard of a personal computer via the reproduction instruction unit. If reproduction instruction information is present, the process proceeds to step 1406. If there is no reproduction instruction information, the process proceeds to step 1404 (the process of step 1404 is continued until there is reproduction instruction information).

<Step 1406>
After receiving the attribute information of the band width extracted by the content analysis unit 803, the mid-download playability determination unit 806 acquires the transmission band state from the transmission band state acquisition unit 1301.

<Step 1407>
The band width described in the content metafile is compared with the transmission bandwidth state between the client server. In the case of the present embodiment, if the transmission band is larger than 56000 bps, the process proceeds to step 1410.

  If the transmission band is smaller than or equal to 56000 bps, the process proceeds to step 1408.

<Step 1408>
See FIG. Since it is the same process as Embodiment 1, it abbreviate | omits.

<Step 1409>
The playback unit 808 plays back the content file B and sends the content data to the display unit 807. The display unit 807 displays the contents of the content file B on the monitor of the personal computer.

<Step 1410>
The download mid-playback availability determination unit 806 compares the attribute information of the download tag of the content metafile B with the transmission band, and since it is larger than 56000 bps, it is determined that playback during download is possible. The reproduction unit 808 reproduces the content file B stored in the content storage unit 802, and the display unit 807 displays the contents of the content file B on the monitor of the personal computer.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the content is transmitted in a transmission band in which the quality of the content is deteriorated when the personal computer downloads the content metafile B in which the reproduction prohibition condition for the content file B to be distributed is described. When playback is attempted, playback can be prohibited as intended by the content creator.

  In addition to this embodiment, instead of adding download-prohibited playback prohibition information to the content metafile, when creating content on the distribution side, it is added to the content file (TS file) to prohibit playback during download. It is also possible. For example, it is possible to add playback prohibition information during download to the header of the TS. It is also possible to add playback prohibition information during download to the PMT of the TS to prohibit playback during download.

  In this embodiment, the transmission speed between client and server is given as a condition for prohibiting playback during downloading. In addition to this, playback during downloading is prohibited by setting a condition for the processing speed of the client terminal. Is also possible. For example, when the terminal receives a content metafile in which the CPU clock number of the terminal is described, the CPU detects the number of CPU clocks detected by the basic input output system (BIOS) that controls the peripheral devices of the terminal and compares them. When the number of CPU clocks described in the file is not reached, reproduction during downloading can be prohibited.

  In addition to this, it is also possible to change the reproduction prohibition condition in the middle of downloading in accordance with the bit rate value at the time of content reproduction processing set before content reproduction. For example, if the bit rate at the time of content playback processing is set to X in advance, the download-prohibited playback prohibition information creation unit of the content creation computer sets a constant multiple of x in the width element of the band element of the content metafile, When communication is performed below that value, playback during downloading can be prohibited.

  In addition, as a condition for prohibiting playback during downloading, it is possible to prohibit playback during downloading for a specific part of the content. For example, when a terminal receives a content metafile in which a specific data_event_id is described in a TS file, when the content is played back and a data event of the data_event_id is started, an attention sentence is displayed on the monitor, and the data_event_id is updated. It is also possible to prohibit playback during downloading until the data until acquisition is completed.

  The content distribution system according to the present invention is useful for a content distribution system or the like that has a function of prohibiting playback during downloading of content and has no compensation for the band. The present invention can also be applied to digital satellite broadcasting, terrestrial digital broadcasting, and the like.

Schematic diagram of a content distribution system in Embodiment 1 of the present invention System configuration diagram on the content distribution side of the content distribution system in Embodiment 1 of the present invention FIG. 3 is an image diagram in which TS is described in a content file created on the content distribution side of the content distribution system in Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The figure which shows the content of the content metafile which the computer for content creation of the content delivery system in Embodiment 1 of this invention produced. The figure which shows the content of the content list file which the computer for content creation of the content delivery system in Embodiment 1 of this invention produced. The figure which shows the content of the content list file which the computer for content creation of the content delivery system in Embodiment 1 of this invention produced. The figure which shows the flow of a process at the content delivery side of the content delivery system in Embodiment 1 of this invention. System configuration diagram on the content acquisition side of the content distribution system in Embodiment 1 of the present invention The figure which shows the flow of a process by the side of content acquisition of the content delivery system in Embodiment 1 of this invention. The figure which shows the flow of a process in the download state determination part in the flow of the process by the side of content acquisition of the content delivery system in Embodiment 1 of this invention. The figure which shows the panel displayed on the monitor of a user's personal computer in the content delivery system in Embodiment 1 of this invention, when it is going to reproduce | regenerate the content prohibition of reproduction in the middle of downloading. The figure which shows the content of the content metafile which described the conditions of the transmission band for prohibiting the reproduction in the middle of a download of the content delivery system in Embodiment 2 of this invention Configuration diagram of content acquisition side of content distribution system in Embodiment 2 of the present invention The figure which shows the flow of a process by the side of content acquisition of the content delivery system in Embodiment 2 of this invention. The figure explaining the outline of embodiment of this invention

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 Personal computer 102 Content creation computer 103 Web server 104 Content distribution provider 105 Internet network 106 Content distribution side configuration 107 Content acquisition side configuration 108 Web server network IF
109 Web Server Storage Area 110 Content Creation Computer Network IF
111 Storage Area of Content Creation Computer 112 Input Device (Keyboard) of Content Creation Computer
113 Personal computer network IF
114 TS Decoder 115 AV Decoder 116 Personal Computer Storage Area 117 Display Device such as Monitor 201 Content Creation Unit 202 Downloading Inhibition Information Creation Unit 203 Content List Creation Unit 204 Content Storage Unit 205 Computer Communication IF Unit for Content Creation (Software Module) )
206 Computer communication IF section (software module) of Web server
301 Content file (TS)
302 Content metafile (text format)
303 Content list file (text format)
801 Acquisition unit 802 Content storage unit 803 Content analysis unit 804 Download state determination unit 805 Playback instructing unit 806 Download progress determination unit 807 Display unit 808 Playback unit 1301 Transmission band state acquisition unit

Claims (33)

A content distribution server for distributing content to a content receiving terminal,
Content storage means for storing one or more contents;
Communication means for delivering content to the content receiving terminal;
A means for creating information that prohibits playback processing of content being distributed;
Have
A content distribution server that sends information prohibiting reproduction processing of distributed content to a content receiving terminal that is distributing the content. A content receiving terminal that acquires content from a content distribution server,
A communication means for receiving the distributed content;
Playback means for playing the distributed content;
When receiving information prohibiting the reproduction processing of the content in the middle of distribution, it has a means for determining whether or not the content is in the middle of distribution, and determining whether or not the content can be reproduced in the middle of distribution;
A content receiving terminal characterized in that, when it is determined that halfway playback is not possible, the playback unit stops the halfway playback. A content distribution system comprising the content distribution server according to claim 1 and the content receiving terminal according to claim 2. A content distribution server for distributing content to a content receiving terminal,
Content storage means for storing content;
Communication means for delivering content to the content receiving terminal;
A means for creating information that prohibits playback processing of content being distributed;
Have
A content distribution server, wherein information describing a condition for prohibiting a reproduction process of a distributed content is sent to the content receiving terminal that is distributing the content. 5. The content according to claim 4, wherein the condition for prohibiting the content reproduction processing is a transmission speed of content transmitted from the content distribution server to the content receiving terminal and / or a capability of the content receiving terminal. Distribution server. 5. The content distribution server according to claim 4, wherein a condition for prohibiting the content reproduction processing is changed according to a bit rate value at the time of content reproduction processing determined before content reproduction. 5. The content distribution server according to claim 4, wherein the condition for prohibiting the reproduction of the content is proportional to a bit rate value at the time of the content reproduction process determined before the content reproduction. A content receiving terminal that acquires content from a content distribution server,
A communication means for receiving the distributed content;
Playback means for playing the distributed content;
Means for obtaining transmission band information of a transmission path through which content is distributed;
When receiving the condition information for prohibiting the reproduction processing of the content in the middle of transmission that is transmitted by the content distribution server, the middle of the content based on the condition information, the transmission band information, and the state of whether the content is in the middle of the distribution It has a means for determining whether or not reproduction is possible during distribution for determining whether or not reproduction is possible,
A content receiving terminal characterized in that, when it is determined that halfway playback is not possible, the playback unit stops the halfway playback. A content distribution system comprising the content distribution server according to any one of claims 4 to 7 and the content receiving terminal according to claim 8. The content distribution server according to claim 1, wherein the information prohibiting the reproduction process of the distributed content is information prohibiting the reproduction process for a specific part of the content being distributed. A content receiving terminal that acquires content from a content distribution server,
A communication means for receiving the distributed content;
Playback means for playing the distributed content;
Means for obtaining transmission band information of a transmission path through which content is distributed;
When receiving the condition information prohibiting the reproduction process of a part of the content in the middle of transmission transmitted by the content distribution server, the condition information, the transmission band information, and the state whether the content is in the middle of the distribution Having a distribution mid-stream playback permission determining means for determining whether or not part of the content can be played back halfway;
A content receiving terminal characterized in that, when it is determined that reproduction during distribution is not possible, reproduction means stops reproduction during distribution. A content distribution system comprising the content distribution server according to claim 10 and the content receiving terminal according to claim 11. 12. The content receiving terminal according to claim 2, wherein when reproducing during distribution is prohibited, means for displaying that reproduction during downloading is prohibited. A content receiving terminal. The content distribution server according to any one of claim 1, claim 4, claim 5, claim 6, claim 7, or claim 10, wherein notification is given that reproduction during distribution is prohibited. A content distribution server having means for creating content to be performed. A content distribution method for distributing content to a content receiving terminal,
Storing one or more contents;
Delivering content to the device,
Creating information that prohibits playback of content that is being distributed;
Have
A content distribution method comprising sending information prohibiting reproduction processing of distributed content to a content receiving terminal during distribution. A content receiving method for acquiring content from a content distribution server,
Receiving the distributed content;
A process of playing the distributed content;
Determining whether or not the content is in the middle of distribution when receiving information prohibiting the reproduction processing of the content in the middle of distribution, and determining whether or not the content can be reproduced in mid-distribution;
A content receiving method, characterized in that, when it is determined that halfway reproduction is not possible, the reproduction means stops the halfway reproduction. A method of distributing content to a content receiving terminal,
Storing content,
Delivering content to a content receiving terminal;
Creating information that prohibits playback of content that is being distributed;
Have
A content distribution method, comprising: sending information describing a condition for prohibiting reproduction processing of distributed content to a terminal during content distribution. 16. The content distribution method according to claim 15, wherein the information prohibiting the reproduction process of the distributed content is information prohibiting the reproduction process for a specific part of the content being distributed. A content receiving method for receiving content from a content distribution server,
Receiving the distributed content;
A process of playing the distributed content;
Obtaining information on the transmission band of the transmission path through which the content is distributed;
If condition information prohibiting playback processing is received in a part of the content being delivered, a part of the content is based on the condition information, transmission band information, and whether the content is in the middle of delivery. A mid-distribution reproducibility determination step for determining whether replay is possible
A content receiving method, wherein if it is determined that reproduction during distribution is not possible, reproduction during distribution is stopped in a reproduction step. A program for distributing content to a content receiving terminal, storing one or more content;
Distributing content to a content receiving terminal;
Creating information that prohibits playback processing of content being delivered;
Have
What is claimed is: 1. A content distribution program that sends information prohibiting reproduction processing of distributed content to a terminal that is distributing content. A program for receiving content from a content distribution server,
Receiving the distributed content;
Playing the distributed content,
Determining whether or not the content is in the middle of distribution when receiving information prohibiting the reproduction processing of the content in the middle of distribution, and determining whether or not the content can be reproduced during the distribution;
A content receiving program that, when it is determined that halfway reproduction is not possible, causes the reproduction step to stop halfway reproduction. A program for distributing content to a content receiving terminal,
Storing content,
Distributing content to a content receiving terminal;
Creating information that prohibits playback processing of content being delivered;
Have
A content distribution program for sending information describing a condition for prohibiting reproduction processing of distributed content to a content receiving terminal during content distribution. A program for receiving content from a content distribution server,
Receiving the distributed content;
Playing the distributed content,
Obtaining transmission band information of a transmission path through which content is distributed;
Distribution that determines whether or not the content can be reproduced in the middle based on the condition information, transmission band information, and whether or not the content is in the middle of distribution when the condition information prohibiting the reproduction processing of the content in the middle of distribution is received Having a step for determining whether or not playback is possible,
A content receiving program that, when it is determined that halfway reproduction is not possible, causes the reproduction step to stop halfway reproduction. 23. The content distribution program according to claim 22, wherein the information prohibiting the reproduction process of the distributed content is information prohibiting the reproduction process for a specific part of the content being distributed. A program for acquiring content from a content distribution server,
Receiving the distributed content;
Playing the distributed content,
Obtaining transmission band information of a transmission path through which content is distributed;
When condition information prohibiting playback processing is received in a part of the content being distributed by the content distribution server, based on the condition information, information on the transmission band, and whether the content is in the middle of distribution And determining whether or not part of the content can be played back during delivery,
A content receiving program, wherein if it is determined that reproduction during distribution is not possible, reproduction during distribution is stopped at a step of reproducing. The content distribution server according to any one of claim 1, claim 4, claim 5, claim 6, claim 7, or claim 10, wherein the transport stream is distributed and the transport stream being reproduced is reproduced. A content distribution server having means for adding information for prohibiting processing to a header of a TransportStream. 18. The content distribution method according to claim 15 or 17, further comprising a step of adding information for prohibiting the reproduction process of the TransPortStream being distributed to the header of the TransportStream. 25. The content distribution program according to any one of claims 20, 22, or 24, wherein the content distribution program includes a step of adding information for prohibiting the reproduction process of the TransPortStream being distributed to the header of the TransportStream. program. The content distribution server according to any one of claim 1, claim 4, claim 5, claim 6, claim 7, or claim 10, wherein the transport stream is distributed and the transport stream being reproduced is reproduced. A content distribution server having means for adding information prohibiting processing to a PMT of a TransportStream. 18. The content distribution method according to claim 15 or 17, further comprising a step of adding information for prohibiting the reproduction process of the TransPortStream being distributed to the PMT of the TransportStream. 25. The content distribution program according to claim 20, further comprising a step of adding information for prohibiting the reproduction process of the TransPortStream being distributed to the PMT of the TransportStream. . A recording medium storing the content distribution program according to any one of claims 20, 22, 24, 28, or 31. A recording medium in which the content receiving program according to any one of claims 21, 23, and 25 is described.

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