JP2011078035A - Content management device and program thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a content management device for leaving a large number of pieces of content as much as possible in a storage medium even when automatically deleting broadcast data from the storage medium. <P>SOLUTION: The content management device is equipped with: a recording means for causing the storage medium to record the plurality of pieces of content included in the received broadcast data; a quality modifying means for deteriorating the quality of the content in accordance with an elapsed time after recording; and a deleting means for deleting the content after a predetermined time elapses after the deterioration of content quality. When first content is newly stored in the storage medium, the deleting means deletes second content which is the same as the first content and remains for a predetermined time after recording. The content management device is further equipped with: a management means for managing the first content and the second content so that they are associated; and a playback control means for playing back the first content instead of the second content upon receiving an instruction of playback of the second content. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a content management device that manages content recorded on a storage medium when content included in broadcast data received by the reception device is recorded on the storage medium.

  A content recording / playback apparatus such as an HDD recorder or a PC records content such as music or video broadcast on a radio or television on a storage medium such as an HDD, and plays back the content selected from the recorded broadcast data file. be able to. However, the user does not know when the desired content will be broadcast. For example, in FM radio broadcasting, it may be known in advance that a desired song is broadcast in a program, but since CM and DJ are included in the program, when the desired song is broadcast in the program I do not know until.

  In order to solve this problem, the following Patent Application 1 proposes a content recording / playback apparatus that extracts and plays back a desired song using a cue sheet. This content recording / playback apparatus acquires a cue sheet describing a broadcast start time, a song name, and the like of a broadcasted song from a server. The content recording / playback apparatus always receives FM broadcasts and records all received broadcast data on the HDD. Then, referring to the cue sheet, a desired song is extracted from all the recorded broadcast data and reproduced.

  The content recording / playback apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 below divides all received broadcast data into broadcast data files for each predetermined time and records them in the HDD. Here, since the broadcast data is always recorded in the HDD, the broadcast data cannot be recorded in the HDD when the HDD has no free space. Therefore, the content recording / playback apparatus automatically deletes the old broadcast data file. However, if the broadcast data file is automatically deleted, the music data included in the deleted broadcast data file cannot be extracted from the broadcast data file and reproduced with reference to the cue sheet.

JP 2007-59035 A

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described conventional problems, and its purpose is to leave as much content as possible on a storage medium even when broadcast data is automatically deleted from the storage medium. It is to provide a content management device that can be used.

  According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a content management apparatus according to a recording unit for recording a plurality of contents included in broadcast data received by a receiving apparatus on a storage medium, and an elapsed time since recording on the storage medium Quality conversion means for gradually reducing the content quality of the content recorded on the storage medium, and after a predetermined time has elapsed since the quality conversion means has reduced the content quality of the content, the quality conversion means Deleting means for deleting the lowered content.

  The quality conversion means gradually decreases the content quality of the content recorded on the storage medium according to the elapsed time since recording on the storage medium, and the deletion means reduces the quality of the content by the quality conversion means. After a predetermined time has elapsed, the content whose content quality has been reduced by the quality conversion means is deleted. Accordingly, the file size is reduced as the older content is created, and eventually the file is deleted from the storage medium, so that more content can be stored in the storage medium. The older the content, the higher the possibility that the user has already watched it. Therefore, even if the file size is reduced and finally deleted, there is no problem.

  In a preferred embodiment, when the first content is newly recorded on the storage medium, the deletion unit is the same content as the first content, and a predetermined time has elapsed since the recording was performed on the storage medium. Management means for managing the first content and the second content in association with each other when the deleting means deletes the second content, and the second content instructs to play back In this case, a playback control means for playing back the first content instead of the second content based on the management content of the management means.

  Since the second content is automatically deleted when the same first content as the second content that has passed a predetermined time since recording on the storage medium is newly recorded on the storage medium, the used capacity of the storage medium And more contents can be stored in the storage medium. Further, when the reproduction of the deleted second content is instructed, it is possible to prevent the user from feeling uncomfortable due to the automatic deletion of the second content by reproducing the first content instead.

  In a preferred embodiment, the quality conversion means lowers the content quality by extracting a part of the content and deleting the other part, and the content quality of the second content is the content The management means further determines, in the first content, a position corresponding to the second content in which the content quality is deteriorated when the content is reduced by extracting a part of the content and deleting the other part. And when the reproduction control unit is instructed to reproduce the second content, the content quality of the first content is reduced instead of the second content based on the management content of the management unit. A position corresponding to the second content is reproduced.

  Even if the automatically deleted second content is obtained by extracting a part of the content and deleting the other part to reduce the quality of the content, when the first content is reproduced instead, A portion corresponding to the deleted second content can be reproduced. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the user from feeling uncomfortable due to the automatic deletion of the second content.

  A content management apparatus according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a recording unit for recording a plurality of contents included in broadcast data received by a receiving apparatus on a storage medium, and a first content newly recorded on the storage medium. And deleting means that deletes the second content that is the same content as the first content and that has passed a predetermined time since being recorded on the storage medium, and the deleting means deletes the second content. When the second content is instructed to be played back, the management means for managing the first content and the second content in association with each other, instead of the second content based on the management content of the management means And a playback control means for playing back the first content.

  Since the second content is automatically deleted when the same first content as the second content that has passed a predetermined time since recording on the storage medium is newly recorded on the storage medium, the used capacity of the storage medium And more contents can be stored in the storage medium. Further, when the reproduction of the deleted second content is instructed, it is possible to prevent the user from feeling uncomfortable due to the automatic deletion of the second content by reproducing the first content instead.

  Even when the broadcast data is automatically deleted from the storage medium, it is possible to provide a content management apparatus capable of leaving as many contents as possible on the storage medium.

1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a content recording / playback apparatus 1 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows an example of a cue sheet. It is a figure which shows a content information database. 4 is a flowchart for explaining processing of a control unit 2. 4 is a flowchart for explaining processing of a control unit 2. 4 is a flowchart for explaining processing of a control unit 2. 4 is a flowchart for explaining processing of a control unit 2. 4 is a flowchart for explaining processing of a control unit 2.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments.
[overall structure]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a content recording / playback system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The content recording / playback system includes a content recording / playback device 1 to which the content management device of the present invention is applied, a server (queue sheet server) 100, and a server (content information server) 200. The content recording / reproducing apparatus 1 receives broadcast data such as radio and TV (hereinafter referred to as radio broadcast data), and records the broadcast data for every predetermined time on the HDD 3 as a broadcast data file. The server 100 acquires and holds cue sheets (program progress tables) for a plurality of broadcast station servers (not shown). The content recording / playback apparatus 1 acquires a cue sheet from the server 100, divides the recorded broadcast data file into music data based on the cue sheet, and records the music file on the HDD 3. The server 200 manages content information (metadata such as artist name and song name) in association with the audio data, and when receiving a part of the audio data, specifies the content information of the song.

[Configuration of Content Recording / Playback Device 1]
The content recording / playback apparatus 1 includes a control unit 2, an HDD (Hard
Disk Drive) 3, memory (ROM and / or RAM) 4, reproduction unit 5, reception unit 6, communication unit 7, operation unit 8, and display unit 9. The control unit 2 executes content management processing of the content recording / playback apparatus 1 based on a content management program stored in the memory 4, and is, for example, a microcomputer or a CPU.

  The receiving unit 6 receives broadcast data including a plurality of contents broadcast from a broadcast station (not shown). Content is a general term for data such as music (music), video, and / or still images, and in this example is music data. The broadcast is a TV broadcast or a radio broadcast, and any broadcast such as a digital broadcast, an analog broadcast, a satellite broadcast, or an Internet broadcast can be adopted. In this example, an FM broadcast including a plurality of song data will be described as an example.

  The HDD 3 records the broadcast data received by the receiving unit 6 according to an instruction from the control unit 2. Although not particularly limited, the broadcast data is divided into song files for each song based on the cue sheet and recorded in the HDD 3. Note that the data may be divided into broadcast data files every predetermined time (for example, 6 hours) and recorded in the HDD 3. In this case, when the music is reproduced, a portion corresponding to the music is extracted from the broadcast data file based on the cue sheet and reproduced.

  The communication unit 7 connects to the server 100 via an arbitrary telecommunication line such as the Internet, and acquires a cue sheet from the server 100. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the cue sheet of the broadcasting station X. The cue sheet includes a broadcast station name, an artist name, a song name, a broadcast start time, and a broadcast end time. For example, for the broadcast station X, the song with the artist name aaa and the song name AAA is broadcast from 17:00 to 17:10 on January 1, 2009. The broadcast data recorded on the HDD 3 is divided into song files for each song based on the cue sheet of FIG.

  The HDD 3 stores a content information DB (database) shown in FIG. The content information DB stores information about music files (including automatically deleted music files) that are divided based on the cue sheet and recorded in the HDD 3. Specifically, for each song file, an artist name, a song name, a broadcast start time, a broadcast end time, a recording date and time, a link, a link start position, and a link end position are registered in association with an ID that is a serial number. The artist name, song title, broadcast start time, and broadcast end time are information acquired from the cue sheet. The recording date and time is the time when the music file is divided into music units and recorded on the HDD 3 (when the music file is not divided into music files, it may be the time when the broadcast data is recorded on the HDD 3).

  A song file recorded on the HDD 3 before a predetermined time (for example, one week) or more and the same song file (with the same artist name and song name) is newly recorded on the HDD 3 is indicated by the control unit 2 Is automatically deleted. At this time, the content information of the music file to be automatically deleted is not deleted from the content information DB. The ID of the newly recorded same music file is registered in the link of the automatically deleted music file. That is, the automatically deleted music file and the newly recorded music file are managed in association with each other. This is because when the automatically deleted song file is instructed to be played by a user operation, the same song file whose ID is registered in the link is played instead of the automatically deleted song file. The link start position is the position (relative address) where the same song file whose ID is registered in the link is played instead of the automatically deleted song file (relative address), and the link end position is This is the position (relative address) at which playback of the same music file ends (details will be described later).

  The reproduction unit 5 reads the selected music file from the music files recorded in the HDD 3 and reproduces it by the user operation. Specifically, a list of artist names and song names (content list) managed in the content information DB of FIG. 3 is displayed on the display unit 9, and a desired song file to be reproduced is selected from the content list by a user operation. Selected. The control unit 2 determines whether or not an ID is registered in the link of the content information DB for the selected music file. If the ID is not registered, the selected song file is recorded in the HDD 3, and the playback unit 5 plays back the selected song file. On the other hand, if the ID is registered, the selected music file is automatically deleted from the HDD 3, so that the reproduction unit 5 instructs the music file of the ID registered in the link (same music file) according to the instruction from the control unit 2. ) Instead. At this time, the reproducing unit 5 reproduces data from the link start position to the link end position among all data of the music file registered in the link.

  The control unit 2 gradually decreases the content quality of the music file recorded in the HDD 3 in accordance with the elapsed time since recording in the HDD 3 for all music files. Further, the control means 2 deletes the music file from the music file HDD 3 whose content quality has been lowered after a predetermined time has elapsed since the content quality of the music file has been lowered. The content quality is a value related to the file size of the music file, and includes the length (total playback time), format, and bit rate of the music file.

  For example, the control unit 2 lowers the music file that has passed one week after being recorded in the HDD 3 to the content quality of the stage 1. The content quality of stage 1 is to extract only the music body part and delete the other parts (mainly the talk part, CM, DJ, news, etc.) from the entire music file. In other words, the broadcast start time and the broadcast end time of the song are described in the cue sheet, but in reality, the broadcast end time is simply the broadcast start time of the next song, and as a result, In addition to songs, CM, DJ, news, etc. are included. Therefore, the file size can be reduced by deleting other parts and extracting only the music body part to obtain a music file. As for a method for discriminating between the song main body part and the other parts, for example, a method for determining whether the broadcast content is voice or music described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 8-22295, or a known music recognition technique such as MusicID. Can be implemented by adopting

  Subsequently, the control unit 2 further lowers the music file that has passed two weeks after being recorded in the HDD 3 from the content quality of the stage 1 to the content quality of the stage 2. The content quality of stage 2 is to further convert the music file having the content quality of stage 1 into a format and a bit rate that minimize the file size of the music file. Thereby, the file size can be further reduced. Such format and bit rate information is preset in the memory 4.

  The control unit 2 further lowers the music file that has passed three weeks after being recorded in the HDD 3 from the content quality of the stage 2 to the content quality of the stage 3. The content quality of stage 3 is to further extract a rust portion (not particularly limited, but one portion of a plurality of rust portions) from the music file having the content quality of stage 2 and delete the other portions. The rust portion is generally defined as a portion in which the tune has changed in the entire song, or a most impressive portion (melody) in the middle of the song. Thereby, the file size can be further reduced. A well-known technique can be applied to a method for discriminating between the rust portion and the other portions. In this example, by transmitting a part of the music file data to the server 200, the chorus part (rust start position) of the official content (referred to as content recorded on the CD) corresponding to the music file is transmitted from the server 200. And rust end position). The control unit 2 identifies the chorus start position and chorus end position of the content quality song file of stage 2 based on the chorus start position and chorus end position of the official content (details will be described later).

  The control unit 2 deletes from the HDD 3 the music file that has been recorded for four weeks after being recorded in the HDD 3. Thereby, the used capacity of the HDD 3 can be further reduced.

  The operation of the present invention will be described below. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the music file deletion process by the control unit 2. The control unit 2 determines whether or not there is a music file that has passed for one week or more (but not more than two weeks) since it was recorded in the HDD 3 (S1). Specifically, it is determined whether there is a song file whose elapsed time from the recording date and time of the content information DB to the current time is one week or more and less than two weeks and whose ID is not registered in the link. Since the music file whose ID is registered in the link has already been automatically deleted, it is excluded. If it does not exist (NO in S1), the process proceeds to S3.

  If it exists (YES in S1), the control unit 2 determines a song file whose elapsed time from the recording date / time of the content information DB to the current time is one week or more and less than two weeks and whose ID is not registered in the link. By extracting only the music body part and deleting the other parts, a stage 1 content quality music file (hereinafter also referred to as a stage 1 file) is generated and recorded in the HDD 3 (S2). That is, the original music file is deleted. Therefore, the used capacity of the HDD 3 can be reduced. Thereafter, the process proceeds to S3.

  The control unit 2 determines whether or not there is a music file (stage 1 file) that has passed two weeks or more (but not more than three weeks) since it was recorded in the HDD 3 (S3). Specifically, it is determined whether there is a stage 1 file in which the elapsed time from the recording date and time of the content information DB to the current time is 2 weeks or more and less than 3 weeks and no ID is registered in the link. Since the music file whose ID is registered in the link has already been automatically deleted, it is excluded. If it does not exist (NO in S3), the process proceeds to S5.

  If present (YES in S3), the control unit 2 determines that the elapsed time from the recording date and time of the content information DB to the current time is 2 weeks or more and less than 3 weeks, and the ID is not registered in the link. , By converting the format and bit rate into a format and bit rate that minimizes the file size, a stage 2 content quality song file (hereinafter also referred to as a stage 2 file) is generated and recorded on the HDD 3 ( S4). That is, the stage 1 file is deleted. Therefore, the used capacity of the HDD 3 can be further reduced. Then, it progresses to S5.

  The control unit 2 determines whether or not there is a music file (stage 2 file) that has passed three weeks or more (but not more than four weeks) since it was recorded in the HDD 3 (S5). Specifically, it is determined whether or not there is a stage 2 file in which the elapsed time from the recording date and time of the content information DB to the current time is 3 weeks or more and less than 4 weeks and the ID is not registered in the link. Since the music file whose ID is registered in the link has already been automatically deleted, it is excluded. If it does not exist (NO in S5), the process proceeds to S7.

  If it exists (YES in S5), the control unit 2 determines that the elapsed time from the recording date and time of the content information DB to the current time is 2 weeks or more and less than 3 weeks, and the ID is not registered in the link. , By extracting the rust portion and deleting the other portions, a stage 3 content quality song file (hereinafter also referred to as a stage 3 file) is generated and recorded in the HDD 3 (S6). That is, the stage 2 file is deleted. Therefore, the used capacity of the HDD 3 can be further reduced. Then, it progresses to S7.

  In S7, the control unit 2 determines whether or not there is a music file (stage 3 file) that has passed four weeks or more after being recorded in the HDD 3 (S7). Specifically, it is determined whether there is a stage 3 file in which the elapsed time from the recording date and time of the content information DB to the current time is 4 weeks or more and the ID is not registered in the link. Since the music file whose ID is registered in the link has already been automatically deleted, it is excluded. If it does not exist (NO in S7), the process is terminated.

  If present (YES in S7), the control unit 2 deletes from the HDD 3 the stage 3 file whose elapsed time from the recording date and time of the content information DB to the current time is 4 weeks or more and whose ID is not registered in the link. (S8). Therefore, the used capacity of the HDD 3 can be further reduced. And the control part 2 deletes the information of the stage 3 file deleted from content information DB.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the chorus part specifying process applied to S6. The control unit 2 transmits a part of the data of the music file (here, the stage 2 file) to the server 200 via the Internet (S11). When the server 200 receives a part of the data, the server 200 collates a database from the waveform of the part of the data, identifies the formal content, and determines one or more rust parts (the rust start position and the rust end position of the formal content). Address) is specified and returned to the content recording / playback apparatus 1.

  The control unit 2 receives the climax start position and the climax end position of the official content, and the variable sabiOffset [N] in the memory 4 (where N is the number from the top of the climax part, N = 1, 2,... (S12). Note that the rust start position and the rust end position in the stage 2 file are both specified by the same process, but in the following, only the rust start position will be described and the description of the rust end position will be used.

  The control unit 2 transmits data of a predetermined size (several seconds) from the head of the stage 2 file to the server 200 (S13). When the server 200 receives the data, the server 200 identifies the position (relative address) in the formal content with respect to the head position of the stage 2 file, that is, identifies the position in the formal content where the stage 2 file starts, and records the content. Reply to the playback device. The control unit 2 receives the position (relative address) in the formal content regarding the head position of the stage 2 file, and stores it in playOffset in the memory 4 (S14).

  The control unit 2 initializes a variable i indicating a number from the head of the chorus start position to 1 (S15). The control unit 2 calculates the rust start position sabiradioPosition by subtracting playOffset from sabiOffset [i] (S16). Here, sabiOffset [i] is the rust start position of the i-th rust portion. The control unit 2 determines whether or not the calculated rust start position sabiradioPosition is within the stage 2 file and is an appropriate value by determining whether or not playStart <sabiradioPosition <playend ( S17). However, playStart is the start position of the stage 2 file when the start position of the formal content is 0, and playend is the end position of the stage 2 file when the start position of the formal content is 0.

  When the calculated chorus start position sabiradioPosition is within the stage 2 file (YES in S17), the control unit 2 can specify the chorus start position sabiradioPosition (S18). On the other hand, if the calculated rust start position sabiradioPosition is not within the stage 2 file (NO in S17), the control unit 2 increments the variable i (S19), and whether i is greater than N (ie, It is determined whether or not the rust start position sabiradioPosition has been calculated for all rust portions (S20). If i is N or less (NO in S20), the process returns to S16, and the rust start position sabiradioPosition is calculated for the new variable i (S16 to S17). On the other hand, if i is greater than N (YES in S20), the chorus start position sabiradioPosition cannot be specified, and the process is terminated. In this case, since the stage 3 file cannot be generated, the stage 2 file may be deleted or may be stored as it is.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the processing of the control unit 2 when recording a music file on the HDD 3. Broadcast data is received by the receiving unit 6, and the broadcast data is temporarily recorded in the HDD 3. The control unit 2 periodically accesses the server 100 (for example, every few minutes) and acquires a cue sheet from the server 100 (S31). The control unit 2 divides the broadcast data for each song based on the cue sheet, generates a song file, and re-records it in the HDD 3 (S32). Further, the control unit 2 registers each piece of information in the content information DB for the song file recorded in the HDD 3 (S32). Specifically, the artist name, song title, broadcast start time, and broadcast end time are acquired from the cue sheet, registered in the content information DB, and the date and time when the song file was recorded in the HDD 3 is recorded as the recording date and time in the content information DB. . Note that the time measured by the clock processing unit in the content recording / playback apparatus may be used.

  The control unit 2 refers to the content information DB for the song file newly recorded in the HDD 3 and is a song file of the same song (that is, the artist name and the song name are the same), and the recording date and time is more than a predetermined time ago In the example, it is determined whether or not a song file of one week or more ago (however, a song file whose ID is registered in the link has already been deleted and is excluded) is recorded in the HDD 3 ( S33). If there is no identical music file whose recording date is one week or more before (NO in S33), the process is terminated.

  If there is the same music file whose recording date is one week or older (YES in S33), the control unit 2 automatically deletes the same music file whose recording date is one week or older (S34). Therefore, the used capacity of the HDD 3 can be reduced. Then, the control unit 2 registers the ID of the song file newly recorded in the HDD 3 in the link of the automatically deleted song file in the content information DB, as shown in S34 and S41 in FIG. .

  As shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 2 newly records in the HDD 3 when a playback instruction for the music file is input at the link start position and link end position of the automatically deleted music file in the content information DB. The playback start position and playback end position when playing the music file instead are calculated and registered (S42 to S47). That is, according to the content quality (stage 1 file to stage 3 file) of the automatically deleted song file, the start position and end position of the portion corresponding to the automatically deleted song file in the newly recorded song file are calculated, be registered.

  First, the control unit 2 determines whether or not the automatically deleted song file is a stage 1 file (S42). The content quality of the automatically deleted music file can be determined by referring to the content information DB and the elapsed time from the recording date. Further, the content quality may be managed in the content information DB. If it is not a stage 1 file (NO in S42), the process proceeds to S44. If it is a stage 1 file (YES in S42), the start position and end position of the stage 1 file of the newly recorded song file are specified and registered in the link start position and link end position of the automatically deleted song file ( S43). That is, the start position and the end position of the song body part of the song file newly recorded in the HDD 3 are calculated and registered.

  The control unit 2 determines whether or not the automatically deleted music file is a stage 2 file (S44). If it is a stage 2 file (YES in S44), the start position and end position of the stage 1 file of the newly recorded song file are specified and registered in the link start position and link end position of the automatically deleted song file ( S45). That is, the start position and the end position of the song body part of the song file newly recorded in the HDD 3 are calculated and registered. Note that the start position and end position of the stage 1 file, not the start position and end position of the stage 2 file, are registered because the newly recorded song file is converted into a format and bit rate that minimize the file size. Because it is not. Therefore, when playing a newly recorded song file instead of the automatically deleted song file, even if the automatically deleted song file is a stage 2 file, it is played back with the newly recorded song file format and bit rate. Is done.

  If it is a stage 3 file in S44 (NO in S44), the start position and end position of the stage 3 file of the newly recorded song file (however, the file size has not been converted into the format and bit rate which are minimized) It is registered at the link start position and link end position of the music file that has been identified and automatically deleted (S46). That is, the music body part of the music file newly recorded in the HDD 3 is specified, the chorus part is further specified, and the chorus start position and chorus end position are registered in the link start position and link end position. The method for specifying the chorus start position and the chorus end position is the same as the processing in FIG.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a reproduction process when a music file is selected by a user operation and a reproduction instruction is input. The control unit 2 refers to the content information DB and determines whether or not an ID is registered in the link of the selected song file (S51). That is, it is determined whether or not the music file has been automatically deleted and the same music file needs to be reproduced instead. If the ID is not registered in the link of the selected song file (NO in S51), the selected song file is recorded in the HDD 3, so that the control unit 2 stores the selected song file in the playback unit 5. Reproduction is performed (S52).

  If an ID is registered in the link of the selected song file (YES in S51), the selected song file is not recorded in the HDD 3, and it is necessary to reproduce the song file with the registered ID instead. Therefore, the control unit 2 causes the reproduction unit 5 to prepare for reproduction of the music file whose ID is registered in the link (S53). And the control part 2 makes the reproduction | regeneration part 5 start reproduction | regeneration of the music file of the said ID from the position (relative address) registered into the link start position (S54). The control unit 2 determines whether or not the reproduction has been completed up to the link end position (S55). When the reproduction to the link end position is completed (YES in S55), the control unit 2 causes the reproduction unit 5 to terminate the reproduction.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to reduce the storage capacity of the HDD 3 by gradually reducing the content quality and reducing the file size in accordance with the elapsed time from the recording date and time to the HDD 3. It is possible to select a music file to be played from a large number of music files. Further, when a song file is newly recorded in the HDD 3, the same song file that has passed a predetermined time from the recording date and time is automatically deleted, but when an automatically deleted song file is instructed to play, Since the music file newly recorded in the HDD 3 is reproduced instead, it is possible to prevent the user from being aware that the music file has been deleted. Also, according to the content quality of the automatically deleted song file, a portion of the newly recorded song file corresponding to the automatically deleted song file is extracted and played back. It is possible to prevent awareness of being deleted.

  As mentioned above, although preferable embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to these embodiment. A method of dividing a music file from broadcast data is not limited to a cue sheet, and content information multiplexed and transmitted in FM character multiplex broadcasting may be used. The content management apparatus may be applied to a controller that controls the server and the client when the content received by the receiving unit is recorded in the HDD of the server and the client reproduces the content recorded in the HDD of the server. . The program may be provided in the form of a computer program for operating the content management apparatus or a recording medium recording the computer program.

  The present invention can be suitably employed in content playback devices such as HDD recorders and PCs.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Content recording / reproducing apparatus 2 Control part 3 HDD
4 Memory 5 Playback Unit 6 Reception Unit 7 Communication Unit 8 Operation Unit 9 Display Unit

Claims (5)

Recording means for recording a plurality of contents included in broadcast data received by the receiving device on a storage medium;
Quality conversion means for gradually reducing the content quality of the content recorded on the storage medium according to the elapsed time since recording on the storage medium;
A content management apparatus comprising: deletion means for deleting content whose content quality has been reduced by the quality conversion means after a lapse of a predetermined time since the quality conversion means has lowered the content quality of the content. When the first content is newly recorded on the storage medium, the deletion means deletes the second content that is the same content as the first content and that has passed a predetermined time since being recorded on the storage medium. Delete,
Management means for managing the first content and the second content in association with each other when the deleting means deletes the second content;
2. The content according to claim 1, further comprising: a reproduction control unit configured to reproduce the first content instead of the second content based on the management content of the management unit when the second content is instructed to be reproduced. Management device. The quality conversion means reduces the content quality by extracting a part of the content and deleting the other part;
When the content quality of the second content is reduced by extracting a part of the content and deleting the other part, the management means reduces the content quality in the first content. Further managing a position corresponding to the second content being,
When the reproduction control unit is instructed to reproduce the second content, the second content in which the content quality of the first content is lowered instead of the second content based on the management content of the management unit The content management apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a position corresponding to is reproduced. Recording means for recording a plurality of contents included in broadcast data received by the receiving device on a storage medium;
Deleting means for deleting, when new first content is recorded on the storage medium, the second content that is the same content as the first content and for which a predetermined time has elapsed since being recorded on the storage medium; ,
Management means for managing the first content and the second content in association with each other when the deleting means deletes the second content;
A content management apparatus comprising: a playback control unit that plays back the first content instead of the second content based on the management content of the management unit when the playback of the second content is instructed.   A content management program for causing a computer to execute each means of the content management apparatus according to claim 1.

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