JP2013257730A - Transmission control device and transmission control method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem on the prior art that user convenience is not considered regarding handling, on a network, of content subjected to a copyright protection technique.SOLUTION: To solve the above problem, for example, a configuration described in the scope of claims is employed. This invention includes a plurality of means to solve the above problem, and one example is a transmission control device that includes a recording unit for recording information on content, a communication unit for acquiring information on a reception device for receiving content, and a control unit that determines whether to permit transmission of content to the reception device on the basis of information on content recorded in the recording unit, and information on the reception device acquired by the communication unit.

Description

  The technical field relates to content transmission.

  Patent Document 1 has a problem of “integrating and managing content services of network devices” (see Patent Document 1 [0006]). As a means for solving the problem, “the first of network devices capable of data communication” Receiving a usage request for content from one device, content attribute information about the content, device attribute information about the device, user attribute information about at least one user of the device, and content usage history information Collecting and managing at least one; and determining a content acquisition method based on at least one of the content attribute information, the device attribute information, the user attribute information, and the content usage history information; Among the devices of the network, the front The second includes a step of controlling so as to provide the content to the device, a "etc. (Patent Document 1 [0007] See) to use the content are described.

  Further, Patent Document 2 provides “a content service server that selects a content type suitable for the environment of the client device on the user side and transmits the content to the client device, and a content transmission method using the server”. (Refer to Patent Document 2 [0007]), and as a means for solving the problem, “in a content service server that transmits content to a client device through a network, it is provided in consideration of different environments of the client device for each content. A content database storing characteristic information of each of the first type content to N type content and the first type content to N type content, and a download request for predetermined content transmitted by the client device When the environment information of the client device is inputted and the characteristic information of the content of each type of the predetermined content is used, the content information of the plurality of types of the predetermined content matches the environment information of the client device. And a control unit that transmits the selected type of content to the client device ”(see Patent Document 2 [0009]) and the like.

JP 2011-96258 A Special table 2007-528621 gazette

  In the prior art, the convenience of the user is not taken into consideration regarding the handling of the content subjected to the copyright protection technology on the network.

In order to solve the above problems, for example, the configuration described in the claims is adopted.
The present application includes a plurality of means for solving the above-described problems. For example, a recording unit that records information about content, a communication unit that acquires information about a receiving device that receives content, and a recording unit And a control unit that determines whether or not the content can be transmitted to the receiving device based on the recorded content information and the information on the receiving device acquired by the communication unit.

  According to the above means, it is possible to improve the convenience of the user for handling on the network while protecting the copyright of the content.

It is an example of a block diagram of a content transmission system. It is an example of a block diagram of a content transmission control apparatus. It is an example of a block diagram of a content transmission apparatus. It is an example of a recording medium. It is an example of a data structure of a recording medium. It is an example of content license information. It is an example of the sequence diagram at the time of content transmission. It is an example of the user interface at the time of a content list display. It is an example of the flowchart at the time of content ownership type license information determination It is an example of user license information. It is an example of the process continuation confirmation message to a user. It is an example of a flowchart at the time of access right possession type license information determination It is an example of receiving device information. It is an example of the user interface at the time of receiving apparatus selection. It is an example of the user interface when transmission is impossible.

  Hereinafter, examples (examples) of the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. The present embodiment mainly describes the operation of a terminal that performs content transmission control, and is suitable for the implementation of content transmission control, but does not prevent application to other than content transmission control. Moreover, it is not necessary to employ all the configurations of the embodiment, and can be selected.

<Overview of Examples>
When transmitting content from one device to another, DRM (abbreviation of Digital Rights Management applied to the content. Technology for protecting copyright of digital data and controlling / restricting its use and copying. It is also essential for the copyright law to perform processing in accordance with

  On the other hand, in the current network environment, there is a large amount of content on the network, and the DRM of each content is often different, and the DRM that the user supports for these content is determined, and the DRM When executing processing, complicated judgment and processing are required.

  As for content on a network, in order to lend content managed by a content transmission device owned by an individual to another user, the content may be transmitted to a content reception device owned by another user. In this case, when the content transmission device is in a private domain, it is generally difficult for a device outside the private domain to access the device. Therefore, when transmitting the content, it is necessary for the user to operate a plurality of procedures, and it is inconvenient for the user to perform the transmission procedure corresponding to the license information.

  In the prior art, a procedure for transmitting content in which a plurality of DRMs are present is not taken into consideration, and a case where a device that receives content on a network has difficulty in accessing the content is not considered.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, when content transmission is controlled, the user determines the plurality of conditions such as the location of the content, license information including DRM, and information on the receiving device, and transmits the content. The content can be easily transmitted.

<Content transmission / reception system>
FIG. 1 is a configuration example of a content transmission / reception system according to this embodiment. Reference numeral 1 denotes a content transmission control apparatus that gives an instruction to transmit content to another device. Reference numeral 2 denotes a content reception control apparatus that performs control so that the content is received by another device or itself.

  Reference numeral 3 denotes a communication network. Here, a mobile phone radio base station, a public line network, and the Internet are collectively referred to as a communication network. Each communication network is connected via a dedicated base station and a gateway that converts various protocols (communication protocols used in mobile phones, the Internet, etc.), and also via a gateway that relays between the terminals used. Therefore, they can be connected to each other.

  Reference numeral 4 denotes an area (hereinafter referred to as “private domain”) such as a home of the user of the content transmission control apparatus 1. Reference numerals 5 and 6 denote content transmission apparatuses which are in the private domain 4 and store content in a recording medium or the like, transmit content to the outside, or receive content from the outside.

  Reference numeral 7 denotes a communication relay device that relays communication between home devices and the communication network 3 and transmits / receives content and information to / from the communication network 3. 8 is a private domain such as a home of the user of the content reception control device 2. Reference numeral 9 denotes a content receiving device in the private domain 8. Reference numeral 10 denotes a communication relay apparatus in the private domain 8.

  Reference numeral 11 denotes a public server outside the private domain 4 and having a public area accessible from the outside and capable of storing content. Reference numeral 12 denotes a content server published by a content service provider. Reference numeral 13 denotes a display device that is outside the private domain 4 and can receive and display content.

  Here, content refers to digital content including video and audio. Examples include broadcast content that records a broadcast program, service content that a service provider develops over a network, etc., and a user that is created or photographed by a user Created content, net content obtained via a network such as the Internet, and the like.

  Examples of specific devices of the content transmission control device 1 and the content reception control device 2 include a mobile phone, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, and a mobile PC.

  Examples of the devices of the content transmission devices 5 and 6 and the content reception device 9 include content on a recording medium connected internally or externally, such as a TV, an STB (Set Top Box), a recorder, a PC, a home server, or a network server. Examples include devices that can store and obtain content from a network. The content transmission device and the content reception device may not be provided with a display unit, and may be devices that output video and audio from an output terminal included in the device or output content to a network terminal.

  Examples of the communication relay device 7 include wired and wireless routers, home gateways, and other devices that output information to the outside by converting a protocol to a communication network.

  The content transmission control device, content reception control device, content transmission device, and content reception device are also called terminals.

  In the above example, an example in which wireless and wired communication is performed is described, but both wireless and wired communication may be used for each communication. For communication paths other than those described above, for example, devices may communicate directly with each other without going through a relay device.

  In addition, each of the examples of the content transmission control device, the content reception control device, the content transmission device, and the content reception device may have a plurality of functions instead of a single function. For example, a smartphone may have all the functions of a content transmission control device, a content reception control device, a content transmission device, and a content reception device. In addition, the content transmission device may have the functions of both a content transmission device and a content reception device. Further, the number of devices is not limited to the illustrated example, and there may be a plurality of devices.

<Configuration of content transmission control device>
Next, the configuration of one content transmission control apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. Reference numeral 1 denotes the entire content transmission control apparatus. Reference numeral 101 denotes a control unit (for example, CPU: Central Processing Unit) that grasps and controls the state of the entire apparatus. Reference numeral 102 denotes a general-purpose bus such as a PCI bus that connects the control unit and the entire apparatus to exchange information and data. Reference numeral 103 denotes a recording medium such as a built-in or connected HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or flash memory, a removable HDD, or a disk-type recording medium that holds content data and other management information.

  104 receives radio waves from a mobile phone or the like via the antenna 105, performs internal processing such as demodulation and decoding, and outputs received data inside the device, and modulates and encodes data inside the device. This is a wide-area wireless communication unit that performs processing necessary for radio wave transmission and the like and transmits radio waves from mobile phones and the like. 106 receives radio waves used in a wireless LAN (for example, IEEE802.11n) and other wide area networks via an antenna 107, and performs necessary processing such as demodulation and decoding internally, and outputs received data inside the apparatus. This is a narrow-area wireless communication unit that performs processing necessary for radio wave transmission such as reception and modulation and encoding on data inside the apparatus and transmits radio waves of a wireless LAN or other wide area network.

  108 receives radio waves such as near field communication (NFC), Bluetooth (registered trademark), and ZigBee (registered trademark) via the antenna 109, and performs necessary processing such as demodulation and decoding internally. This is a close proximity wireless communication unit that transmits a radio wave by performing a process necessary for radio wave transmission such as reception for outputting received data inside the apparatus and modulation and coding for data inside the apparatus.

  A broadcast receiving unit 110 performs necessary processing such as demodulation and decoding on the radio wave received from the antenna 111, receives content, and outputs information such as content to the inside of the apparatus. Reference numeral 112 denotes a display unit such as a display that performs processing and display for displaying information to the user. Reference numeral 113 denotes a video processing unit that performs processing such as decoding video included in the content. 114 processes an audio signal included in the content, an audio that the control unit 101 requests to output, converts the audio output from the speaker 115 or input from the microphone 116 into an audio signal, and transmits the audio signal to the control unit 101 or the like. This is a voice processing unit to notify.

  117 is an external input that processes a signal input from the external input / output terminal 118 and notifies the control unit 101 or the like, or outputs a signal generated inside the apparatus such as the control unit 101 from the external output terminal 118. An output processing unit. Reference numeral 119 denotes an operation input unit that interprets operation information input via, for example, a touch panel sensor included in the content transmission control device, a hardware key such as a button or a switch, and notifies the control unit 101 of the operation information. . Reference numeral 120 denotes a time management unit that manages the time in the apparatus and performs time-related processing such as time setting and alarms and counters based on the time.

  Here, 104, 106, 108, and 110 that perform demodulation and decoding such as wireless communication are described separately in this example, but may be common parts such as parts that can be processed in common. is there. Similarly, the antennas 105, 107, 109, and 111 may be common.

  Each of 104, 106, 108, and 110 communicates with a different external communication path. Here, different communication channels indicate communication channels having different frequencies, modulation schemes, encoding schemes, and other protocols.

  The control unit 101 manages a memory (not shown) in order to retain data and speed up computation. Data of a table to be described later is mainly managed by the control unit 101 and held in the memory.

  The recording medium 103 includes a removable (removable) recording medium, and only one is shown in the figure. However, a plurality of recording media may be connected. is there.

  The content and its license information are held in the recording medium 103, but the license information is managed securely. The recording medium 103 has a tamper-resistant area, and secure license information and key information may be stored in a tamper-resistant area or may have a plurality of recording media and be stored in another recording medium. By doing so, license information and key information can be managed more securely.

  The recording medium 103 may be not only a built-in format but also a removable medium. In this case, when license information or key information is held, it is determined by combining with the device ID of the terminal. By doing so, it becomes impossible to view the content by moving only the recording medium, and the content can be protected more securely.

  The configuration of the content reception control device 2 is the same as the configuration of the content transmission control device 1 described above.

<Content transmission device>
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of the content transmission device 5 in the content transmission / reception system of FIG. Here, a case of having broadcast reception and recording functions will be described as an example.

  Reference numeral 21 denotes a control unit (for example, CPU) that controls the entire apparatus. Reference numeral 22 denotes a general-purpose bus for connecting the control unit 21 and each unit in the apparatus and transmitting / receiving control instructions and data. 23 receives a broadcast signal transmitted via a broadcast transmission network such as radio (satellite, terrestrial), cable, etc., selects a specific frequency, performs demodulation, error correction processing, and the like, and performs MPEG2-Transport Stream ( Hereinafter, it is a broadcast receiving unit that outputs multiplexed packets such as TS).

  A descrambler 24 decodes the scramble applied to the received signal. A communication unit 25 transmits content and information to a network such as a LAN or the Internet, and receives content and information from the network. Reference numeral 26 denotes a recording medium such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), a flash memory, a removable HDD, a disk-type recording medium, or the like that is built in or connected to the content transmission apparatus 5.

  Reference numeral 27 denotes a recording / reproducing unit for recording a signal on the recording medium 26 and reproducing a signal from the recording medium 26, and 28 denotes content conversion (for example, transcoding, video / audio, which will be described later) for the input signal. This is a content conversion unit that performs signal selection and extraction, video correction, scene cut, clipping, and other video and audio processing, and outputs signals.

  A demultiplexing unit 29 demultiplexes a signal multiplexed in a format such as MPEG2-TS into signals such as video ES (Elementary Stream), audio ES, and program information. An ES is each of compressed and encoded image / sound data. Reference numeral 30 denotes a video decoding unit that processes and outputs video in a format suitable for the input video signal, such as decoding the video ES into a video signal.

  Reference numeral 31 denotes an audio decoding unit that processes and outputs audio in a format suitable for the input audio signal, such as decoding audio ES into an audio signal. 32 performs processing for converting the video signal decoded by the video decoding unit 30 into a predetermined format, processing for superimposing a display such as OSD (On Screen Display) created by the control unit 21 on the video signal, and the like. This is a video processing unit that outputs a subsequent video signal to the display unit 47 and / or the external input / output processing unit 46.

  An audio processing unit 33 performs processing such as acoustic effects and superposition on the input audio signal, and outputs the processed audio signal to the speaker 48 and / or the external input / output processing unit 46. Reference numeral 34 denotes an operation input from the user operation input unit 45 (for example, a key code from a remote controller that transmits an IR (Infrared Radiation) signal, touch information (coordinates) on the touch panel), or an image sensor (camera) or a voice input device (microphone). The operation input unit receives an input signal from a sensor such as), interprets the operation input as operation information, and transmits the interpreted operation information to the control unit 21 or the like.

  Reference numeral 35 denotes a timer having an internal counter and holding the current time. 46 communicates with an external device via the external input / output terminal 41, and a video signal and an audio signal are defined between the video processing unit 32 and / or the audio processing unit 33 (for example, HDMI (registered trademark)). This is an external input / output terminal that performs necessary processing such as video / audio conversion and encryption / decryption processing.

  A display unit 47 displays the video decoded by the video decoding unit 30 and processed by the video processing unit 32. A speaker 48 outputs the sound decoded by the voice decoding unit 31 and processed by the voice processing unit 33. 49 is a serial interface that performs necessary processing such as encryption on the TS reconfigured by the demultiplexing unit 29 and outputs the TS to the outside, or decrypts the TS received from the outside and inputs it to the demultiplexing unit 29 And high-speed digital I / F such as an IP interface. The content transmission device 5 is mainly configured by these processing units.

  HDMI and High-Definition Multimedia Interface are registered trademarks of HDMI Licensing, LLC, and are one of digital interfaces for video / audio signals. The broadcast receiving unit 23 and the descrambler 24 are also collectively referred to as a receiving unit.

  Here, the transcode indicates bit rate, resolution, frame rate, video and audio coding scheme, and IP (interlace-progressive) conversion (for example, decimation or interpolation). In addition, transcoding also includes conversion processing in which encoding is performed after decoding. A processing unit that performs transcoding is also referred to as a transcoder.

  In the figure, the flow of signals connecting each block is schematically described as a single signal path, but a plurality of signals may be transmitted and received simultaneously by a plurality of signal lines, time division multiplexing, or the like. . For example, a plurality of video signals can be transmitted between the demultiplexing unit 29 and the video decoding unit 30 at the same time, and the video decoding unit decodes the plurality of video ESs, and two-screen display of video, simultaneous decoding of recording and viewing, etc. This processing is also possible.

  In addition to those described in “Signal flow” in the figure, data can be transmitted and received via the general-purpose bus 22 and the control unit 21 or a temporary storage area (memory) not shown in the figure. For example, the OSD information created by the control unit 21 is transmitted to the video processing unit 32. In addition, when the video generated by the video processing unit 32 and the audio generated by the audio processing unit 33 are transmitted to the communication unit 25 for output to the network, the video / audio data received by the communication unit 25 is transmitted. In some cases, the data is directly output to the video processing unit 32 or the audio processing unit 33.

  Although only one recording medium 26 is shown in the drawing, a plurality of types of recording media may be mounted. When there are a plurality of such recording media, the recording / reproducing unit 27 may transmit and receive signals simultaneously with the plurality of recording media. Each recording medium may be a removable recording medium.

  In addition, although each part is described as an independent configuration in the drawing, it is not necessary to be configured by separate hardware, and may be configured by the same hardware. For example, since the video decoding unit 30 and the audio decoding unit 31 are mounted on the same hardware, the timing of video and audio can be easily controlled.

  Conversely, the control unit 21 is not only implemented by a single piece of hardware such as a CPU, but an independent control unit (hereinafter referred to as a peripheral control unit) may cooperate to implement a similar function. For example, a configuration in which a recording / reproduction control unit is arranged as a peripheral control unit for controlling the recording / reproduction unit 27 and the control unit 21 and the recording / reproduction control unit cooperate to reduce the processing load on the control unit 21 is also conceivable. Even in that case, the present invention can be similarly implemented except that communication processing between the control unit 21 and the peripheral control unit is appropriately added.

  The general-purpose bus 22 is not particularly required to be a single bus, and may be configured by connecting a plurality of buses. In that case, the load on each bus is reduced, and communication of a specific bus does not affect the communication of another bus, but communication between the buses is additionally required.

  The control unit 21 manages a memory (not shown) in order to retain data and increase the calculation speed. Data of a table to be described later is mainly managed by the control unit 21 and held in the memory.

  The recording medium 26 also includes a removable (removable) recording medium. Although only one recording medium is shown in the figure, a plurality of recording media may be connected, in which case they can be accessed simultaneously in parallel. .

  The configurations of the content transmission device 6 and the content reception device 9 are the same as described above.

<License information>
Here, the license information is one of content license information set for the content, user license information set for the user, and key information necessary for decrypting the content, or a plurality of them. It is the information which combined.

  The content license information is, for example, copy restriction information of the content (copying / move / export operation availability and the number of operations, copy generation management, for example, only one generation can be copied), and other restrictions (resolution restrictions) , Restrictions on the transferable range), operations that can be performed by charging (for example, export and copying are charged), DRM (Digital Rights Management) method applied to content, and encryption method (AES: applied to content) Advanced Encryption Standard, etc., communication channel encryption method when content is output from a recording medium and its setting information (for example, DTCP: Digital Transmission Content Protection) Output in Neba), and the amount of money in the case of performing the billing information (billing, etc. URL) to be accessed in the billing procedure.

  The encryption method applied to the content and the communication channel encryption method when outputting from the recording medium are determined as DRM rules and may not be described. A description example of the content license information is shown in FIG. The content license information in FIG. 6 is described in a table format as an example, but may be described in a table format.

  User license information refers to user authentication information (for example, user ID and recognition information such as a password and biometric information) when accessing specific content or a server, and access right range (accessible content and its content) Possible operations: copy, license transfer, etc.), whether user ID can be inherited, billing information, ID of device used by user, and the like. A description example of the user license information is shown in FIG.

  For the billing information for both the content license and the user license, the service site that manages billing collectively and the target content ID used therein are described without describing the amount and procedure URL as information, and the billing information It may be in the form of inquiring every time. In that case, there are merits such that the amount of content license information can be reduced and the billing amount can be changed at any time.

  When the charging information is included in the content license information, the information can be confirmed without accessing the designated URL at the time of displaying the content every time.

  The key information is information for decrypting the content, and is mainly fixed-length bit string data. The key information and the encrypted content data are decrypted using the encryption decryption means used. By doing so, it becomes possible to acquire reproducible content data.

<Management of license information>
FIG. 4 is an example of a preferable data configuration of the removable recording medium 26 (for example, a removable hard disk) or the recording medium 103. Reference numeral 301 denotes a management area that cannot be accessed by the user. Confidentiality is maintained by storing license information including key information for encrypting and recording digital data in the data recording area 302 in the management area. A data recording area 302 allows the user to access internal data by a predetermined operation. 301 stores key data. In 302, management data for discriminating license information corresponding to each content in the data recording area is recorded together with content such as video / audio data and still image data.

  FIG. 5 shows another example of a preferable data structure of the recording medium of FIG. This recording medium is a recording medium (also called a security removable medium) that can manage license information. One recording medium has both a normal area accessible to the user and a tamper-resistant area not accessible to the user. Confidential information stored in the tamper-resistant area can be accessed when authentication is confirmed by an authentication process with a device that can handle this recording medium, so that confidential information can be managed. It has become. The management area 301 in FIG. 4 corresponds to the tamper resistant area, and the data recording area 302 corresponds to the normal area.

  The user license information is mainly stored in the content server 12 or the like, and only the access management module of the server accesses the user license information, and the user authentication, the access control to the content, the access right change, the charging information Process, etc.

<Content ownership type>
One form of content ownership is a content ownership type, in which content is held in the device or in a recording medium connected to the device. The location of the device itself is not particularly limited, and the recording device owned by the user in the private domain (recorder, TV, home server, etc., the content transmitting device and content receiving device), and the user does not own it freely. Includes cloud servers that can place content.

  Another form is an access right possession type, in which the content is not held in an area where the user can freely place the content, but held in a server provided by a service provider when playing the content, or in the middle Acquire data from the cache server via the network.

  The content location in the content ownership form refers to which recording medium the content is physically stored in, to which device the recording medium is connected and managed, or which address on the network address, URI ( (Uniform Resource Indicator).

  For example, the location of content recorded in the home recorder refers to the URI or IP address of the home recorder or home recorder or content. When content is stored on the recording medium of the network server, it refers to the URI or IP address of the network server, or a cache server or proxy server that returns a response on behalf of a request for acquisition of the content.

<Restricted access to content>
Access restriction is an example of a content protection implementation method based on license information. In the case of a content-owned type, the access restriction is performed by the control unit that manages the recording medium in which the content subject to access restriction is stored, or by dedicated software included in the recording medium. In the case of the right-owned type, the software of the server where the content is stored is executed.

  The content-owned access restriction will be described. When access restriction is performed, the content license information is held for each content, and a specific access restriction is described therein. Copying represents a copy of content. For example, when content A of recording medium A is copied to recording medium B, content A exists in both recording medium A and recording medium B. For example, in the case of the above example, management is performed such that the total number of copyable contents of the recording medium A and the recording medium B is always a constant number.

  “Move” refers to control in which content does not remain on the original recording medium when the content is transferred from a certain recording medium to a certain recording medium. For example, after moving the content A existing in the recording medium A to the recording medium B, the content A exists only in the recording medium B, and the content A is deleted from the recording medium A. Also called movement. Export refers to converting the DRM scheme currently applied to content to another access restriction scheme.

  The access restriction state does not always match whether or not the content is encrypted. For example, there is a copy-free (EPN: Encryption Plus Non Assertion) method.

  When access restriction is performed with the access right possession type, when the user operates the playback device and accesses the content stored in the server, the content playback authentication process (the user license authentication process) is performed. Only when the authentication is correctly performed, the server permits the access to the content by the playback device, and the playback device can acquire the content.

  Another method of access restriction by the access right ownership type is that the content is encrypted and sent to the playback device by the server and held on the playback device side, or separately acquired using key information, Decrypt the content encryption. The copy with access right ownership type means that a copy of the content stored in the server is created in another location.

  The addition of the access right to the accessible content means that, for example, the user A adds the access right of the content A and gives it to the user B. In that case, both the user A and the user B can access the content A. For example, when the user A lends the access right of the content B to the user B, the user A cannot access the content B and the user B can access the content B.

  In both the content-owning type and the access-ownership-type methods, authentication is not particularly performed when access restriction is not performed. In that case, it is treated as being copyable.

  Some of these access restrictions can be operated by performing procedures such as paying additional charges for some contents. For example, the export can be performed by paying an additional fee.

<Content transmission processing in content transmission apparatus>
The processing contents of the content transmission device 5 at the time of content transmission will be described below. First, the content transmission device 5 creates a content list recorded on the recording medium 26. Specifically, the control unit 21 sequentially acquires information on the content recorded on the recording medium 26 or the like from the recording / playback unit 27, and creates a list of information about the content (hereinafter referred to as a content list) from the information on each content. Then, a URI is assigned to each content. Thereafter, when the content list request is received from the communication unit 25 via the network, the control unit 21 returns the content list created by the above method.

  Thereafter, when the content transmission device 5 receives a content transmission request with a URI designation from the content transmission control device 1, the content reception device 9, or the like, the communication unit 25 that has received the request performs a content transmission process indicated by the URI. The control unit 21 is requested. Upon receiving the request, the control unit 21 instructs the recording / reproducing unit 27 to read the content from the recording medium 26 and output it to the content conversion unit 28. Receiving the instruction, the recording / reproducing unit 27 reads the content of the URI from the recording medium 26, performs necessary processing such as decryption, and outputs the content to the content conversion unit 28.

  The content conversion unit 28 that has received the content performs content conversion processing necessary for transmission, such as transcoding, and then outputs the content to the communication unit 25. The communication unit 25 to which the content is input performs processing necessary for outputting the content to the network (for example, communication path encryption), and then the content transmission control device or the content reception device receives the content. The content is output as a response to the transmission request. In this way, transmission processing is performed.

  The reason for content conversion at the time of transmission is that there are advantages such as lowering the bit rate of the content to be transmitted, thereby reducing the load on the communication path and reducing the processing load on the receiving terminal. is there. Also, by converting on the transmitting side according to the screen size of the receiving terminal (number of vertical and horizontal pixels, etc.), the corresponding bit rate, and encoding method, the receiving terminal converts the screen size with a high load. It is also possible to perform optimal video display without any problem.

  Here, an example in which the content list is created from the content recorded on the recording medium 26 has been described. However, contents other than the content included in the recording medium 26 can be described in the content list. For example, content that can be received by the content transmission device 5 via the network (hereinafter referred to as external content) is also described in the content list, and when the external content transmission request is received, the content transmission device 5 receives the content via the network. It is also possible to acquire and transmit external content. Alternatively, the broadcast content received from the broadcast receiving unit 23 or the communication unit 25 can be transmitted.

  In the decryption of encryption in the recording / reproducing unit 27, a license may be required depending on the content. As for a license acquisition method, reproduction or transmission processing is performed after acquiring the license information recorded in the tamper-resistant area of the recording medium 26 or acquiring it from the network when necessary.

  When transmitting content, if the device requesting the content is outside the private domain, access from the outside of the domain to the inside is blocked (for example, because it is a private address, network access to the internal device is not possible, request communication is a relay device 7), the content processing request may not be notified.

<Example when copying content transfer procedure>
The content transfer procedure will be described with reference to FIG. In this example, a procedure is shown in which the content transmission control device 1 and the content reception control device 2 communicate directly, and the content transmission device 5 transmits content to the content reception device 9. Here, a sequence in the case where the target content can be copied as a result of the license information determination is shown. Other examples will be described later.

  Before starting the content transmission / reception control, the content transmission control device acquires content information (details will be described later) from the content transmission device in advance. There may be a plurality of content devices that acquire content information. For content information to be acquired, the content transmission control device 1 can control content transmission, that is, the content transmission control device 1 user has content ownership or access ownership and the content transmission control device 1 can control transmission. It is desirable to acquire all the information (S701).

  After acquiring the content information, the content to be controlled for transmission is selected. As an example, after presenting a content list to the user, the user selects content. An example of the screen at that time is shown in FIG. Here, an example is shown in which the control unit 101 processes the content information acquired by the content transmission control device 1 and displays it on the display unit 112. Details of the user interface will be described later.

  The content to be transmitted selected by the user is hereinafter referred to as content to be transmitted. After the content to be transmitted is selected (S702), the content transmission control device 1 requests the content reception control device 2 to acquire receiving device information (S703). The information requested here is the DRM or file format that the content receiving device 9 supports.

  At this time, the content reception control device 2 determines a terminal that receives the content, and returns the reception device information to the content transmission control device 1 (S704). Specifically, the content reception device managed by the reception control device 2 here, a list of reception devices including information on the corresponding DRM and file format of each device, the content DRM and the file format, the content reception control device 2 is displayed on the display unit of the content reception control device 2, and the user of the content reception control device 2 selects the reception device.

  FIG. 14 shows an example of a user interface when a receiving device is selected. In this way, it is possible to facilitate transmission of the transmission target content to a content receiving apparatus that supports the DRM or file format of the content.

  As another method, a fixedly registered content receiving apparatus (for example, a home server at home) may be used. In that case, the selection process of the content receiving apparatus becomes unnecessary. Here, description will be made assuming that the content receiving device 9 is fixedly registered as the content receiving device.

  Here, the device information of the content reception device 9 is acquired in advance by the content reception control device 2 before the acquisition request for the reception device information, or the content reception device after the acquisition request for the reception device information (S703). Inquire 9. An example of information of the receiving device information is shown in FIG. Here, an example is described in which the receiving device information includes the ID of the receiving device, the device name that can be easily recognized by the user, the corresponding DRM, the corresponding file format, the optimum bit rate of the receiving device, and the screen resolution.

  The receiving device information acquisition may be performed before the content selection S702. In that case, only the contents of the DRM and the file format corresponding to the selected content receiving apparatus can be displayed in the content list, and the user can easily select the contents of the DRM and the file format corresponding to the content receiving apparatus. .

  After obtaining the receiving device information, the license information of the content to be transmitted is determined (S705). A specific procedure for determining license information will be described later. Here, an example will be described in which a copyable content is selected and a copy operation is selected as a result of the license information determination.

  Next, the content transmission control apparatus 1 notifies the content reception control apparatus 2 of access information (content access information) about the transmission target content (S706). The content access information is, for example, an access destination of the content. For example, the IP address of the server holding the content (in this example, the content transmission device 5), or the LAN (Local Area) to which the server belongs. The IP address of a gateway (or router or the like) having an Internet global address of Network, a port number, a URI, and authentication information (user ID, password, etc.) for those access destinations.

The content reception control device 2 notifies the content reception device 9 of the content access information, and instructs to test access to the target content (S707). The content receiving device 9 that has received the access information attempts to access the content based on the received content access information (S708).
If access to the content is successful as a result of the access (for example, if the content file acquisition request is OK, or access to the content is denied due to access rights restrictions, but only the content access right If there is a downloadable state, for example, a response such as “no access right” defined in the protocol is returned (S709), the processing is performed as “response OK” (conditional branch “response OK1”) ).

  Thereafter, the content reception device 9 returns an OK response to the content reception control device 2 (S710), and the content reception control device 2 that has received the response also returns an OK response to the content transmission control device 1 (S711). The content transmission control apparatus 1 that has received the OK response transmits an access key to the content reception control apparatus 2 (S712). Here, the access key represents information for making the content to be transmitted available, such as a user license that makes the content available, key information that can decrypt the content, or both. .

  The content reception control device 2 that has received the access key transmits the access key to the content reception device 9 (S713). The content receiving device 9 that has received the access key starts to access the content using a user license based on the access key, or stores key information in association with the content, or starts decryption. The process is performed.

  In this way, the content and the transmission procedure are selected according to the condition of the license information of the content, the access key is transmitted after confirming that the content receiving device 9 can access the content, and the content receiving device 9 accesses the content. Make it possible.

  As in the above example, the content receiving device 9 confirms that the content can be accessed and then transfers the access key, thereby reducing the number of licenses due to generation of unnecessary access keys (for example, copying and exporting). Etc.) and unnecessary billing (when copying or exporting is charged) can be prevented.

Next, an example in which the response is NG as a result of the access test (conditional branch “response NG1” in the figure) will be described. When the access response is NG (for example, there is no response such as a packet being discarded in the middle of the route, or there is an access NG response from a router or server in the middle of the network route) (S714), the content receiving device 9 returns an NG response to the content reception control device 2 (S715), and the content reception control device 2 returns an NG response to the content transmission control device 1 (S716).
The content transmission control device 1 that has received the NG response prepares to publish content to the public area (public area setting) (S717). The public area is, for example, an area that can be accessed by other users in a server that has an IPV4 global address and is easily accessible (for example, a server or cloud server located in a public segment at home) This is an accessible area provided by the file sharing service.

  As preparation for publishing the content, first, processing such as using a public area already owned by the user or the content transmission control apparatus 1 or acquiring a new public area from any server is performed. Thereafter, the content is copied to the public area. If the number of copies that can be copied is unlimited, copying may be performed unconditionally. However, the number of copies that can be copied is limited, or the content receiving apparatus 9 is not compatible with the current DRM or file format, and export is necessary. In such a case, a determination is made as to whether or not an access test is possible without copying the corresponding content. Alternatively, copy-free content is copied as a dummy and the URI is retained.

After the setting of the public area is completed, the content transmission control apparatus 1 requests the content reception apparatus 9 through the content reception control apparatus 2 to confirm access to the public area (S718) (S719). The content receiving device 9 that has received the request performs an access test on the public area in the same manner as in S708 (S720).
When the access is OK (conditional branch of “response OK2”), the content reception device 9 returns an OK response to the content reception control device 2 (S721) and receives the response as in the case of S710 and S711. The content reception control device 2 returns an OK response to the content transmission control device 1 (S722).

  After receiving the response, the content transmission control device 1 instructs the content transmission device 5 to transmit the content to the public area as necessary (S723), and also accesses the content reception control device 2 with an access key. Is transmitted (S724). The content reception control device 2 that has received the access key transmits the access key to the content reception device 9 (S725). Thereafter, the content receiving device 9 downloads the content from the public area and stores it in a recording medium or the like that the content receiving device 9 has.

  In this way, the content transmission control device 1 sets the public area when the content reception device 9 cannot access the content to be transmitted, places the content there, and the content reception device 9 Make it accessible.

  Further, by confirming that the content receiving device 9 has been able to access the transmission target content, and transmitting the content to the public area, if the content receiving device 9 cannot access the public area, the content is wasted. This eliminates the need for subtracting the number of copies of the content and unnecessary access key transmission processing.

  If the result of the access test (S720) is NG (conditional branch of “response NG2”), the content transmission control device 1 copies the transmission target content to the content transmission device 5 as necessary. Next, a request is made to the content transmitting apparatus 5 (S726), and the previous transmission target content is acquired (S727).

  Thereafter, the content transmission control device 1 transmits the content and the access key of the content to the content reception control device 2 via the authenticated communication path (S728). The content reception control device 2 that has received the content and the access key transmits the content and the access key to the content reception device 9 (S729).

  Regarding the execution of S729, there is a high possibility that the content receiving device 9 cannot currently access the network. In this case, after confirming that the content receiving device 9 can access the network, S729 is executed. Executed. Until then, the content reception control device 2 temporarily holds the content.

  In this way, when no server can be accessed, the content and the access key are transmitted through the communication path that has already communicated.

  When content is transmitted according to the above procedure, after confirming the license information of the content, by searching for the optimal communication path while determining the usable communication path using the license information, It is possible to transmit content through an optimal communication path without consuming license rights unnecessarily.

  As the communication path used for the authentication, it is desirable to use proximity communication using the proximity communication unit 108 and the antenna 109 included in the content transmission control device 1 and the content reception control device 2. As a result, only authentication for a terminal within a limited range is possible, and unlimited content copying can be prevented. It is also possible to exchange information regardless of the state of the communication path between the terminal and the base station.

  In this example, the access key is transmitted via the content transmission control device 1 and the content transmission control device 2. However, the access key (key information) is directly transmitted from the content transmission device 5 to the content reception device 9. May be sent. In that case, the processing becomes simpler and the time required for transmission can be reduced. However, content can be transferred more safely by making the content transmission path and the access key transmission path separate.

  When copying content (or moving or exporting, which will be described later), the receiving device will be optimized in accordance with the optimum bit rate and resolution described in the receiving device information and the bit rate and resolution of the content to be transmitted. It is also possible to transcode content. By doing so, it is possible to view at the optimal bit rate and resolution on the receiving device side.

  As another purpose of transcoding, if the access communication speed is low as a result of the access test, the fact that it is included in the OK response information is notified and the transcoding is performed at a bit rate lower than the optimum bit rate. By performing the code, the content transmission can be completed early even when the access speed is low.

  In particular, when transmitting content in proximity communication such as S728, it is possible to reduce the time for performing proximity communication in a short time by lowering the bit rate for transcoding.

  As an example of uploading content in S717, a public area held by the content receiving device 9 or the content reception control device 2 or a recording medium held by the content receiving device 9 is used. In this case, the content transmission device 5 directly uploads to each area, so that the content reception device 9 does not need to download the content, and the access test S720 is not necessary. For this purpose, it is necessary to add the URI of the public area or the recording medium to the NG responses of S715 and S716, or to add the URI to the receiving device information transmitted in S704.

  In the example of this sequence, the content transmission control apparatus 1 sets the public area after the response of S714 in “access response NG1”. However, the content in the direct proximity communication is not set without setting the public area. The transfer process (S726 to S729) may be executed. In that case, it is not necessary to secure and set a public area.

<Examples other than copying of content transfer procedure>
Next, a processing sequence when a selection operation other than copying is selected as a result of the license information determination will be described. The sequence when export is selected is the same as the sequence in FIG. 7 except that the content is not copied but is exported. Specifically, in step S709, the content receiving apparatus 9 instructs the content receiving apparatus 9 to access again the content that is transferred while being exported or exported. In S723, when uploading content, the content is exported and then uploaded. Similarly, when transmitting content in S727, the content is exported and then transmitted.

  The sequence when the move is selected is the same as in the case of copying, but when transmitting the content, a procedure for deleting the content and access key of the transmission source not specified in the sequence is performed.

  In the sequence when the URI notification is selected, the content is DRM-free or copy-free, so access key notification is not required. If the OK response is received in S709, the content receiving device 9 can access the subsequent content by managing the target URI as the notified URI as the content license information and the access right possession type. become. If an OK response is returned in S721, the content cannot be directly referenced, so the content is copied as usual and registered in the content list of the content receiving device 9 as the content-owning type.

  In the sequence when the access right addition is selected, it is impossible to copy the content. Therefore, when an NG response is returned in S714, the subsequent processing is not performed and the content receiving device 9 is notified to the user. Notifies that the content is not accessible.

  The access right lending sequence is the same sequence as the access right addition type. However, a procedure for deleting the access key from the transmission source device after transmitting the access key is required.

  As described above, even when the result of the license information determination is other than copying, the optimum process is performed according to the license information.

<License information determination>
A specific example of determination of license information will be described. As shown in the sequence diagram of FIG. 7, after the content to be transmitted is selected and the corresponding DRM of the content receiving device 9 is acquired, the license information is determined (S705 in FIG. 7). As a method for determining the license information, it is first determined whether the content is a content possession type or an access right possession type, and the subsequent processing is divided.

  First, an example of content ownership type will be described. FIG. 9 is a processing flow executed by the control unit 101 of the content transmission control apparatus 1 and is executed after the content information type is determined in the license information determination.

  First, when the content to be transmitted is DRM free (content not managed by DRM, also referred to as copyright free) (yes in S901), copy processing is selected (S902).

  If the content to be transmitted is not DRM free (No in S901), the type of the DRM of the content is confirmed, and it is confirmed whether the content receiving device 9 acquired in the authentication process matches the DRM that is supported (S903). ).

  If the DRM of the content to be transmitted does not match the DRM supported by the content receiving device 9 (No in S904), it is determined whether the content to be transmitted is compatible with export (S905).

  If the content to be transmitted does not support export (no in S905), the content receiving device 9 cannot decode the content, so that it cannot be transmitted, and the processing is stopped (S906).

If the transmission target content is compatible with export (yes in S905), the selection processing is set as export (S907), and the next determination processing is performed. Next, the content reception device 9 supports DRM of the transmission target content. If YES in step S904, it is determined whether the content to be transmitted can be copied. When copying is possible (yes in S908), the selection process is set as a copy (S909), and the next determination process is performed. If copying is not possible (No in S908), it is determined whether the move is possible. If it is possible to move (Yes in S910), the selection process is moved (S911), and the next determination is performed. If the move is not possible (No in S910), the content cannot be transmitted because of the license, so that it cannot be transmitted, and the process is stopped (S906).

  Next, after copy, move, or export is selected as the selection process, if the number of times that the selection process can be performed for the user is finite or charged (yes in S912), whether to execute the process A confirmation of whether or not is made to the user (S913).

  A screen example in this case is shown in FIG. 1100 is an entire screen output from the display unit 112 of the content transmission control apparatus 1, 1101 is a message display, and in this example, export is selected for the content to be transmitted, the remaining number of exports is 0, and charging is required Is shown. Here, an example is shown in which the content name to be transmitted, the remaining number of selection operations, and the charge amount are displayed in the message. Reference numeral 1102 denotes an object for confirming the user's response. For example, when “OK” in the figure is pressed by a touch panel operation, the control unit 101 via the operation input unit 119 consumes the number of executions of the selection process. You are notified that you have agreed to the billing.

  As a result of the confirmation, if the user agrees with the consumption of the number of executions of the selection process and the charge (yes in S913), the process of executing the selected transfer method is performed (S914). If the user does not agree (No in S913), the user is notified that transmission is not possible (S906), and the process ends.

  When the number of times that the selection process can be performed is not limited and is not charged (no in S912), a process for executing the selected transfer method is performed (S914). In this way, the license information is determined.

  An example of the case where the content type is the access right possession type is shown in FIG. The difference from FIG. 7 is that the determination contents of the license information and the processing after the determination are replaced with contents related to the access right. The contents of the replaced process will be described.

  As a result of the determination in S901, if the content to be transmitted is DRM-free, yes in S901, copy the selection operation, or notify the content URI. The content URI notification means that the content receiving device 9 receives only the content URI without copying the content so that the content is acquired from the URI every time the content is reproduced in the future.

  Also in the content list of the content receiving apparatus 9, the ownership of the content is registered as an access right owned type and DRM free. In this way, it is possible to reduce the load for copying content.

  As another change, after it is determined in S908 that the content to be transmitted cannot be copied, it is determined in S1202 whether the access right of the content to be transmitted can be added. If the access right can be added (yes in S1202), the selection operation is “add access right” and the next determination is made (S1203). If the access right cannot be added (No in S1202), the access right lending is determined next. When the access right can be lent (Yes in S1204), the selection operation is “access right lent” and the following determination is performed. If the access right is not lent (No in S1204), the content cannot be transmitted, and the process is terminated as transmission impossible (S906). In this way, the license information is also determined when the content type is the access right possession type.

  In this way, the process to be executed is determined based on the content license information and the DRM of the content transmitting device. The confirmation of the execution of the process for the user (S912) may be determined by determining a process to be executed in advance (for example, since no paid process is performed, S913 is always no). In that case, the processing becomes simpler and the processing is completed at high speed. In addition, by setting that it is not possible to always transmit paid or limited content, it is possible to prevent erroneous transmission of charged or limited content.

  Here, the processing to be selected (copy, move, export, etc.) is automatically determined, but the selection processing desired by the user when selecting content may be designated in advance. (For example, select and execute export). As the method, a selection operation such as “copy”, “move”, “export” or the like is described in the selection of the operation menu 1520 and the user selects it. In this case, in the license information determination, it is only necessary to determine from the license information whether the selected operation is possible, and the processing in the content transmission control apparatus is simplified. Although it does not support DRM for content, processing such as exporting and transferring to a different apparatus later, copying is possible, but moving is possible for each copyable number, etc. is possible.

  In the determination in S907, if there are a plurality of matching DRMs in which the transmission target content can be exported and the corresponding DRMs of the content receiving device that receives the content, the DRM selection may be presented to the user. good. By doing so, the user can select a DRM that is more suitable for use.

  Further, the content reception control apparatus 2 may determine whether or not to perform charging in FIG. As the procedure, when the charge determination of S913 becomes necessary in the license information determination S705, the content transmission control device 1 requests the content reception control device 2 to display the above FIG. Upon receipt of the request, the content reception control device 2 displays 1100 in FIG. 11 on the display unit 112, causes the user of the content reception control device 2 to confirm whether or not there is a charge, and when the user performs an “OK” operation. Then, the content reception control device 2 is charged and the access key is acquired from the content server. An OK response to the accounting is returned to the content transmission control apparatus 1, and the subsequent processing is performed with the determination in S913 as the user determination OK. In this case, access key transfer processing is not necessary. In this way, it is possible to move the content after charging the user who receives the content.

  Even if the user selects OK as a result of the determination of whether or not charging is performed, the user is not charged until an operation that actually requires charging is performed. For example, in the sequence of FIG. 7, charging is not performed until the content is actually moved, such as S709, S723, and S727, and charging is not performed while the response of the content receiving device 9 is NG. By doing so, it is possible to prevent unnecessary billing and content operations involving billing.

<User interface>
FIG. 8 shows an example of a user interface when a content list is displayed to the user and the user performs an operation related to the content. Reference numeral 800 denotes an example of a screen output from the display unit 112 included in the content transmission control device 1 or the content reception control device 2.

  A content information list 1501 is displayed on the screen. As content, a title 1502, a DRM type 1503, a content ownership form 1504, a content location 1505, and whether or not copying is possible for each content. Information 1506, information 1507 on whether move is possible, information 1508 on whether export is possible, information 1509 on whether access right can be added, information 1510 on whether access right can be rented, content released Whether or not to perform 1511 is displayed.

  Here, the symbol “◯” described in the columns 1506 to 1510 can be operated, the number of times can be displayed, “△” can be charged, “×” cannot be used, “−” It is not necessary or indicates non-correspondence. “No need for −” indicates that there is no need to perform a move to delete the original content, for example, if there is no restriction on copying. The non-correspondence means that, for example, the access right can be added only to the access right possession type content. These displays are merely examples, and instead of the mark, a character string or the like may be used to indicate “copying is allowed”, “exporting is not allowed”, or the like. Or it may be displayed zero times.

  Reference numeral 1520 denotes an operation menu related to the content. The operation menu is displayed when any content is selected through a user operation input unit such as the touch panel, or is always displayed. Here, when “Send” is selected after any content is selected on the user interface, the sequence shown in FIG. 7 is executed with the content as the content to be transmitted. If “play” is selected here, the content is played back on the device displaying the user list.

  In this display example, the public flag for each content can be changed by an operation such as touching the “public” column for each content on the touch panel, for example. The disclosure flag indicates whether or not each content is disclosed to other users. The symbol “◯” described in the column 1511 can be disclosed, and “×” cannot be disclosed due to user selection or the like. , “-” Indicates that the content cannot be disclosed as a result of determination from the license information of the content.

  For the user interface during the transmission operation, the information may be received and output by the content reception control device 2. In that case, information on whether or not to publish the content of the screen of FIG. 8 is not displayed, and only “Send” is displayed in the content operation menu. As for the content to be displayed, only information in which the content is set to “public” in the content transmission control device 1 is transmitted from the content transmission control device 1 to the content reception control device 2 or all information is transmitted. Then, the content reception control device 2 may be controlled to display only information in which the content is set to “public”.

  By displaying the content list on the content reception control device 2 in this way, the user of the content reception control device 2 can easily select the content while confirming a plurality of information. Also, by setting a content disclosure flag, it is possible to conceal information on content that the content transmission control apparatus 1 does not want to show to the other party.

  The content displayed in the content list is not limited to the above, and content information stored with the content or separately acquired from the outside such as a network (title, ID, folder location, author, URI, size, time, bit rate for each content) , Resolution, color bit, expiration date, recording quality, artist, actor, genre, date / time information, CH information, etc.), select necessary information and display it on the same screen, or after selecting content indicate.

  In particular, by displaying the file size of the content, it is possible to obtain an effect that the transfer time of the file can be easily estimated.

  Also, by displaying and selecting the content bit rate and resolution, it becomes easier to select content suitable for the receiving apparatus. Also, when selecting a receiving device, it is possible to select an optimal receiving device as a transmission destination by selecting the content with reference to the bit rate and resolution.

  An example of the message displayed in S906 is shown in FIG. 1500 is an example of a screen output from the display unit 112 of the content transmission control device 1 or the content reception control device 2. In this example, the content information (content name), license information (content ownership form, copy / move / export each possible / impossible), the result of the access test from the content receiving device 9 to the content, the reason why lending is not possible is 1501. It is described in.

  Here, since the content receiving device 9 does not support DRM of the content to be transmitted and the content to be transmitted cannot be exported, a message is displayed indicating that lending is not possible. As another example of the message, the corresponding DRM matches between the content and the content receiving device 9, but if neither copying nor moving is possible, a message display indicating that the access test to the content has failed and copying is not possible ,and so on. In this way, it becomes possible for the user to know information such as that the lending process could not be connected due to the content license information, the receiving device information of the content receiving device 9, and the result of the access test of the content receiving device 9.

  Here, the case where the content reception control device 2 and the content reception device 9 are different devices has been described as an example. However, for example, the content reception control device 2 and the content reception device 9 may be a single device having the functions of both the content reception control device and the content reception device. May be. For example, the display device 13 shown in FIG. 1 is an example. In that case, in the sequence diagram of FIG. 7, there is no change except that the communication between the content reception control device 2 and the content reception device 9 is a process inside the device, and the same can be implemented.

  Similarly, the case where the content transmission control device 1 and the content transmission device 5 are separate devices has been described as an example. However, for example, the content transmission control device 1 and the content transmission device 5 may be a single device having the functions of both the content transmission control device and the content transmission device. There may be. In that case, there is no change in the sequence diagram of FIG. 7 except that the communication between the content transmission control apparatus 1 and the content transmission apparatus 5 is a process inside the apparatus, and the same can be implemented.

  For the names of all the message examples, numbers and symbols such as IDs may be displayed, but by using the names registered in the respective devices, the information becomes easy for the user to understand. It is preferable to perform processing for converting those IDs into character strings in an external terminal.

  Similarly, all table examples are described in characters so that they can be easily understood. However, in an actual example, the data format is easy to manage such as numerical values or character strings. In addition, although the table is described as the data format, it can be described in a format such as XML to reduce the data amount.

  According to the embodiment described above, when the user lends the content, the content license information, the content location, the content ownership form, and the information on the content receiving device are automatically recognized without the user being conscious. Content can be transmitted by a transmission method and a transmission path that meet the respective conditions.

  In particular, when a content receiving device that receives content performs an access test on the content and makes a determination including the result of the execution and the license information of the content, the content receiving device cannot access the content. Then, the content is transmitted to the public area as an alternative, and the content receiving apparatus can receive the content.

  When the content receiving device that receives the content cannot access the public area, the content receiving device can receive the content by using another communication path.

  Further, after the result of the access test is determined, a finite or paid operation is performed on the content to be transmitted, so that the content receiving device becomes finite or charged for the content to be transmitted when the content receiving apparatus cannot access the content. It becomes possible to suppress unnecessary execution of operations.

  In addition, before transmitting the content, the content transmission control device acquires and determines the receiving device information and the content information of the content, thereby transmitting the content with the DRM, file format, bit rate, and resolution corresponding to the receiving device information. It becomes possible.

  In addition, by using the user interface of the display example, a content list corresponding to the reception device information of the content reception device is displayed, and the user can easily select content that matches the content reception device. On the other hand, by displaying a list of receiving devices, it is easy to select a content transmission destination according to the content.

  Further, by using another display example of the user interface, it becomes possible to perform billing associated with content transmission, and confirmation regarding paying or limited operations.

  Further, by displaying the above-described user interface on the content reception control device 2, it becomes easy for the user of the content reception control device 2 to select content, and a charging operation can be performed in the content reception control device 2. At this time, by setting a content disclosure flag, the content transmission control device 1 can conceal information on the content that the other party does not want to show to the other party.

  Further, by using another display example of the user interface, it becomes possible to know detailed information when the license information is not determined or the content cannot be accessed as a result of the access test.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Content transmission control apparatus 2 Content reception control apparatus 3 Communication network 4 Private domain 5 Content transmission apparatus 6 Content transmission apparatus 7 Communication relay apparatus 8 Private domain 9 Content reception apparatus 10 Communication relay apparatus 11 Public server 12 Content server 13 Display apparatus 21 Control Unit 22 general-purpose bus 23 broadcast receiving unit 24 descrambler 25 communication unit 26 recording medium 27 recording / reproducing unit 28 content converting unit 29 demultiplexing unit 30 video decoding unit 31 audio decoding unit 32 video processing unit 33 audio processing unit 34 operation input unit 35 Timer 41 External input / output terminal 42 Network terminal 45 User operation input 46 External input / output processing section 47 Display section 48 Speaker 49 High-speed digital I / F
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 Control part 102 General purpose bus 103 Recording medium 104 Wide area radio | wireless communication part 105 Antenna 106 Narrow area radio | wireless communication part 107 Antenna 108 Proximity communication part 109 Antenna 110 Broadcast receiving part 111 Antenna 112 Display part 113 Video | video process part 114 Audio | voice process part 115 Speaker 116 Microphone 117 External input / output processing unit 118 External input / output terminal 119 Operation input unit 120 Time management unit

Claims (12)

A recording unit for recording information about the content;
A communication unit that acquires information about a receiving device that receives content;
A control unit that determines whether or not content can be transmitted to the receiving device based on information on the content recorded in the recording unit and information on the receiving device acquired by the communication unit;
A transmission control apparatus comprising: The transmission control apparatus according to claim 1,
The communication unit receives access information related to whether or not the content can be accessed by the receiving device;
The transmission control device, wherein the control unit determines a transmission method of content to the reception device based on the access information received by the communication unit. The transmission control device according to claim 2,
The control unit transmits information for making the content available to the receiving device when the access information received by the communication unit indicates that access is possible. Control device. The transmission control device according to claim 2,
The transmission control device, wherein the control unit sets an area for publishing the content when the access information received by the communication unit indicates that access is not possible. The transmission control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The information related to the content includes information related to a copyright protection technology applied to the content. The transmission control device according to claim 5,
The information related to the content includes information related to whether or not the content can be copied. A transmission control method for controlling transmission of content from a transmission device that transmits content to a reception device that receives the transmitted content,
Obtaining information about the content;
Obtaining information about the receiving device;
And a step of determining whether or not the content can be transmitted to the receiving device based on the acquired information on the content and the acquired information on the receiving device. The transmission control method according to claim 7, comprising:
Receiving access information related to whether or not the receiving device can access the content;
And determining a transmission method of content to the receiving device based on the received access information. The transmission control method according to claim 8, comprising:
A transmission control method comprising a step of transmitting information for making the content usable to the receiving device when the received access information indicates that access is possible. The transmission control method according to claim 8, comprising:
A transmission control method comprising a step of setting an area for publishing the content when the received access information indicates that access is not possible. It is the transmission control method in any one of Claims 7-10, Comprising:
The transmission control method characterized in that the information related to the content includes information related to a copyright protection technology applied to the content. The transmission control method according to claim 11, comprising:
The transmission control method characterized in that the information related to the content includes information related to whether or not the content can be copied.

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