JPWO2008007677A1 - Program guide distribution device and program guide distribution method - Google Patents

Abstract

The program guide distribution device (100) acquires the distribution schedule information from the streaming servers (101), (102), (103) that distribute the content to the receiving devices (111), (112), (113). The distribution schedule information of the streaming server (101), (102), (103) acquired by the distribution unit (201) and the streaming server (101) is merged to generate program guide information representing the distribution schedule of all streaming servers A program guide information generation unit (203) that performs, a distribution unit (206) that distributes the program guide information generated by the program guide information generation unit (203) to the receiving devices (111), (112), and (113), It is characterized by providing.

Description

  The present invention relates to a program guide distribution device and a program guide distribution method for generating a program guide representing information of a program distributed from a streaming server and distributing the program guide to a receiving device.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a technique for supporting reception of content by a receiving device using a program guide that represents a distribution schedule from a streaming server has been disclosed. For example, there is a distribution system including a portal that is an institution that obtains a program guide representing a distribution schedule of content from a broadcasting station serving as a streaming server. Each receiving device registers information on contents to be received in the portal. The portal distributes the content distributed from the broadcasting station based on the program guide to the receiving device that has registered for distribution (see, for example, Patent Document 1 below).

  As another example using a program guide, a distribution system configured by a video distribution server including a video data holding unit for each channel and a user terminal is disclosed. The video distribution server serving as the streaming server always holds the latest program guide by acquiring the program data recorded in the video data holding means. The program guide data is transmitted from the video distribution server to each user terminal as a receiving device. The user terminal selects a program to be received based on the program guide and transmits it to the video distribution server. The video distribution server distributes the content from the video data holding means according to the selection content of the user terminal (see, for example, Patent Document 2 below).

  In another example, a distribution system including a client PC, a web server PC, and a content distribution server PC is disclosed. The client PC requests the web server PC to send a program list, that is, a program guide. The web server PC receives a request for sending a program guide and generates a program guide for the content distribution server PC. The generated program guide is sent to the client PC. The client PC acquires content from the content distribution server PC based on the transmitted program guide. The number of content distribution servers PC is not limited (see, for example, Patent Document 3 below).

JP 2003-250145 A JP 2003-18573 A JP 2005-184323 A

  However, in the case of the technique described in Patent Document 1, all contents distributed from the streaming server are received by each receiving device via the portal. Therefore, when the number of streaming servers increases or when the number of receiving devices that are registered for distribution in the portal increases due to a large-scale multicast, the processing load is concentrated on the portal. In such a case, there is a problem that the portal becomes a bottleneck of the system.

  In the case of the technique described in Patent Document 2, the program guide generated by the video distribution server is generated based on the program data of each channel distributed from the same video distribution server. Therefore, when distribution is performed from multiple streaming servers, such as when a new streaming server other than the video distribution server starts distribution, a program guide that covers the content distributed from all streaming servers is generated. There was a problem that I could not.

  In the case of the technique described in Patent Document 3, the content distribution server PC distributes along the program guide generated by the web server PC. Therefore, when there are a plurality of streaming servers that autonomously distribute content, there is a problem in that it is impossible to provide a program guide that supports reception of content in the client PC.

  In order to solve the above-described problems caused by the prior art, the present invention provides a program table that allows a receiving device to grasp a distribution schedule and receive arbitrary content even when content is distributed from a plurality of streaming servers. It is an object of the present invention to provide a program guide distribution device and a program guide distribution method for generating a program guide and distributing it to a receiving device.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, a program guide distribution device according to the invention of claim 1 includes an acquisition unit that acquires distribution schedule information from each streaming server that distributes content to a reception device, and the acquisition unit. The program schedule information generating means for generating the program schedule information representing the delivery schedule of each streaming server by merging the distribution schedule information of each streaming server acquired by the above, and the program schedule generated by the program schedule information generating means Distribution means for distributing information to the receiving device.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the program schedule information covering the distribution schedule information of all the streaming servers is generated by collectively acquiring the distribution schedule information of each streaming server, and distributed to each receiving device. Can do.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program guide distribution method comprising: an acquisition step of acquiring distribution schedule information from each streaming server that distributes content to a receiving device; and the distribution of each streaming server acquired by the acquisition step. A program guide generating step for generating program guide information representing the delivery schedule of all streaming servers by merging the schedule information, and a delivery step for distributing the program guide information generated by the program guide generating step to the receiving device; It is characterized by including.

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the program schedule information covering the distribution schedule information of all the streaming servers is generated by collectively acquiring the distribution schedule information of each streaming server and distributed to each receiving device. Can do.

  According to the program guide distribution device and the program guide distribution method according to the present invention, even if content is distributed from each of a plurality of streaming servers, a program that allows the receiving device to recognize the distribution schedule and receive any content. There is an effect that the table can be generated and distributed to the receiving device.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a configuration of a program guide distribution system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a functional configuration of the program guide distribution apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3A is a data table (part 1) illustrating an example of the configuration of the program guide information. FIG. 3-2 is a data table (part 2) illustrating an example of the configuration of the program guide information. FIG. 4A is a data table showing an example of the configuration of CM program guide information. FIG. 4B is an explanatory diagram of the configuration of the remote activation request command. FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram showing processing of information between the program guide distribution device and the streaming server. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration contents and generation timing of the latest program guide. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the contents of the program guide distribution process.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Program schedule delivery apparatus 101,102,103 Streaming server 110 Multicast group 111,112,113 Receiver 121 Remote starting request apparatus 201 Acquisition part 202 Playlist storage part 203 Program schedule information generation part 204 Program schedule information storage part 205 Address storage Unit 206 distribution unit 207 CM information storage unit 208 providing unit 209 remote activation processing unit

  Exemplary embodiments of a program guide distribution device and a program guide distribution method according to the present invention will be explained below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(Configuration of program guide distribution system)
First, the configuration of the program guide distribution system according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a configuration of a program guide distribution system according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the program guide distribution system according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a program guide distribution device 100, streaming servers 101, 102, 103, and receiving devices 111, 112, 113. Yes.

  The program guide distribution device 100 generates program guide information representing a schedule of contents distributed from each streaming server (for example, streaming servers 101, 102, 103), and receives the generated program guide information as a reception device (for example, a reception device). 111, 112, 113). The program guide information is a data table composed of information such as the title, type, delivery date, and recommended conditions of content delivered from each of the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103.

  The program guide distribution apparatus 100 is connected to each of the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103, and can transmit / receive arbitrary information to / from each other. The connection method between the program guide distribution apparatus 100 and each of the streaming servers 101, 102, 103 is not particularly specified, and the connection line may be wired or wireless. The line speed can also be set as appropriate according to the type and capacity of information transmitted / received between devices (program guide distribution device 100 to streaming server 101 (or 102, 103)).

  Therefore, in order to generate program guide information in the program guide distribution device 100, first, distribution schedule information such as a playlist is acquired from each of the streaming servers 101, 102, 103, for example. The distribution schedule information acquired here is information that each connected streaming server (for example, streaming server 101) independently schedules distribution. Accordingly, as illustrated in FIG. 1, when connected to the three streaming servers 101, 102, 103, three types of distribution schedule information are acquired. Subsequently, by combining the acquired distribution schedule information for each of the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103, it is possible to generate program guide information that covers the distribution contents of all the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103.

  Further, the program guide information generated by the program guide distribution device 100 is distributed to the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113. The program guide distribution apparatus 100 uses a broadcast network to distribute the generated program guide information. Specifically, the broadcasting network is, for example, a terrestrial digital broadcasting network. Further, in the case of distribution using a broadcast network, distribution may be performed by a broadcast method, or distribution to the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 in a predetermined multicast group 110 as illustrated in FIG. May be. In addition, distribution equivalent to multicast may be realized by performing distribution by unicast to each of the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113 simultaneously.

  In addition to the function for distributing the program guide information as described above, the program guide distribution apparatus 100 has a function of acquiring CM information to be reproduced between contents and distributing it to the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113. It can also be provided. Here, the CM information is advertisement contents having various configurations such as an audio data file, a video data file, an HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) file, and a text file. In addition to the method of distributing the file of the advertisement content itself as described above, reference information such as a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) may be distributed. In the case of such a method, the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113 access the network based on the received reference information, and acquire CM information in various file formats.

  When the program guide distribution device 100 acquires the CM information, CM program guide information representing the contents of the CM information is generated and distributed to the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 together with the normal program guide information. Upon receiving the CM information and the CM program guide information, the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 receive the CM information between the contents (main content) distributed from the respective streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 based on the CM program guide information. (Advertising content) is played back. Further, the CM program guide information generated by the program guide distribution apparatus 100 may be transmitted to the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 and used when a playlist is configured.

  Furthermore, the program guide distribution apparatus 100 can also accept a remote activation request from the remote activation request apparatus 121 and automatically activate a specific application on the reception apparatuses 111, 112, and 113 remotely. The remote activation request device 121 may be a terminal connected to the program guide distribution device 1000 via a network. Moreover, the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 may be used, and the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 may be used.

  The remote activation requesting device 121 selects the type of receiving terminal (for example, the receiving device 111) that is to be activated remotely, and sends a remote activation request to the program guide distribution device 100. The type of the receiving terminal is identified by the recipient attribute information and the receiving location. Receiving the remote activation request, the program guide distribution device 100 generates a remote activation request command and distributes it to the reception devices 111, 112, and 113 together with normal program guide information and CM information. The receiving device that has received the remote activation request command automatically activates any application to be activated based on the remote activation request command information.

  The streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 autonomously distribute contents to the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113, respectively. Each streaming server 101, 102, 103 distributes content at a timing according to a preset playlist.

  In addition, the playlist can be freely configured in each streaming server 101, 102, 103 based on the content held by the own server. However, as described above, the CM program guide information is generated in the program guide distribution apparatus 100. In this case, the program guide distribution apparatus 100 may receive the CM program guide information and add the reproduction time information of the CM information to the playlist. In addition, when the data amount of content distributed from the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 differs depending on the output target (such as a mobile phone or a desktop PC), information indicating the output target is added to the playlist. Also good.

  Note that the types of content distributed by the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 and the distribution time vary. Specifically, for example, a server that is operated by the content distributor A and distributes sports-related content such as sports broadcasts and sports news, or a server that is operated by the content distributor B and distributes drama-related content There are various streaming servers.

  Further, the content distributed from one streaming server is not limited to one type. For example, a streaming server that distributes dramas includes a total of 2 channels 1 for distributing Japanese dramas and 2 for distributing overseas dramas. The configuration may be such that the content for the channel is distributed. In addition, there are various streaming servers, such as when distributing content continuously for 365 days on 365 days, when distributing content only on a specific day of the week, or when distributing content for a limited time only. .

  In FIG. 1, as an example, three streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 are arranged, but the number of arranged servers is not limited. Each streaming server 101, 102, 103 autonomously controls the operational status such as stopping or returning content distribution. Therefore, in the distribution system according to the present embodiment, the number of streaming servers that distribute content to the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113 constantly changes.

  If the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 connect to the program guide distribution device 100 when distributing content even under the distribution system as described above, the program guide distribution device 100 is connected to the connected streaming server. Distribution schedule information can be acquired from 101, 102, 103. Therefore, it is possible to generate program guide information of contents that can be received by the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113.

  The receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 receive program guide information from the program guide distribution device 100. The receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 receive any content from the contents distributed by the respective streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 according to the program guide information and perform streaming.

  Although FIG. 1 shows a total of three receiving devices 111, 112, and 113, the configuration in FIG. 1 is merely an example, and the receiving device according to the present embodiment (for example, receiving device) The devices 111, 112, 113) are arranged innumerably if they have a function capable of receiving the program guide information distributed from the program guide distribution device 100 and the contents distributed from the respective streaming servers 101, 102, 103. Can do.

(Functional configuration of program guide distribution device)
Next, a functional configuration of the program guide distribution apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a functional configuration of the program guide distribution apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the program guide distribution apparatus 100 includes an acquisition unit 201, a playlist storage unit 202, a program guide information generation unit 203, a program guide information storage unit 204, an address storage unit 205, and a distribution unit 206. A CM information storage unit 207, a providing unit 208, and a remote activation processing unit 209.

  The acquisition unit 201 acquires each distribution schedule information from the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103. In the present embodiment, specifically, a playlist is acquired as the distribution schedule information. Further, the acquisition unit 201 basically acquires a playlist every predetermined time, but the acquisition timing is not limited to this.

  Other timings for acquiring the playlist in the acquisition unit 201 are not limited to, for example, every predetermined time, but the connected streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 autonomously request the program guide distribution apparatus 100 to generate a program guide. , And the program guide distribution apparatus 100 may acquire a playlist using the reception of the program guide generation request as a trigger. Alternatively, the setting may be such that the acquisition unit 201 acquires the playlist, triggered by reception of the playlist transmitted autonomously from the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 by the program guide distribution apparatus 100.

  The playlist storage unit 202 stores the playlists of the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 acquired by the acquisition unit 201. A playlist is stored for each streaming server. Therefore, when the acquisition unit 201 newly acquires a playlist of the same streaming server, a new playlist is overwritten on the playlist already stored. The playlist stored in the playlist storage unit 202 is read by the program guide information generation unit 203 when the program guide information is generated.

  The program guide information generation unit 203 reads the playlists of the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 stored in the playlist storage unit 202, and generates program guide information by merging the playlists. In addition, since the program guide information generated by the program guide information generation unit 203 is generated based on the playlist, the program guide information of a free date and time is set within the range specified in the playlist, Can be generated.

  Specifically, the setting of the program guide information is possible to set the range of information represented by the program guide information, such as “from 1 am to 12:00 pm on August 16, 2006” and “3 hours from the current time”. It is. The setting of the date / time and the period (how many hours or how many days of program guide information, etc.) of the distribution schedule information represented by the program guide information is determined in advance in the program guide distribution apparatus 100. May be. Further, as described above, when a program guide generation request is transmitted from the streaming server 101, 102, 103, information related to the setting of the date and time and interval of the program guide information is added to the program guide generation request, and the information The program guide information may be generated according to the above.

  The program guide information generation unit 203 also generates CM program guide information when the program guide distribution device 100 has a function of acquiring CM information. Specifically, the provision of CM information data stored from a CM information storage unit 207 (to be described later) is received, and CM program guide information is generated.

  The program guide information storage unit 204 stores the program guide information generated by the program guide information generation unit 203. Each time the program guide information is generated by the program guide information generation unit 203, new program guide information is stored in the program guide information storage unit 204 as the latest program guide information. Further, when new program guide information is stored, it may be compared with the contents of the previously stored program guide information. In this comparison, when the previously generated program guide information and the new program guide information are the same, the new program guide information is not stored and the previously generated program guide information is continuously distributed. . On the other hand, when the previously generated program guide information is different from the new program guide information, the new program guide information may be stored and the new program guide information may be distributed.

  In addition, the program guide information storage unit 204 has a function of acquiring current date and time information. Among the stored program guide information, the program guide information whose distribution schedule information period has already ended is automatically selected. It may have a function of discarding.

  The address storage unit 205 stores the addresses of receiving apparatuses (for example, receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113) that distribute program guide information. The address stored in the address storage unit 205 may be an address assigned to each receiving apparatus, or may be an address of a multicast group (for example, multicast group 110) used for multicast.

  As a procedure for acquiring the address to be stored in the address storage unit 205, specifically, for example, in the case of an address assigned to each receiving device, distribution of program guide information from the program guide distribution device 100 May be registered in advance in the program guide distribution apparatus 100. The address storage unit 205 stores the registered address.

  In the case of the address of the multicast group 110, the address of the multicast group (for example, the multicast group 110) distributed by the program guide distribution apparatus 100 is designated in advance and stored in the address storage unit 205. Each receiving device (for example, the receiving device 111) acquires the address of the multicast group 110 distributed by the program guide distribution device 100 in advance, and prepares for reception at the address, so that the program guide distributed at the address of the multicast group is obtained. Receive information. In this way, by using the address of the multicast group, each receiving device 111, 112, 113 can perform multicasting without registering the address directly in the program guide distribution device 100 when desiring to distribute the program guide information. By joining a group, information distributed from the program guide distribution apparatus 100 can be received.

  The distribution unit 206 reads the latest program guide information from the program guide information storage unit 204 and distributes it to the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113. At the time of content distribution, the addresses of the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113 as distribution destinations are read from the address storage unit 205, and program guide information is distributed according to the read addresses. When the program guide distribution device 100 simultaneously distributes the program guide information to a large number of receiving devices as in the multicast method, the program guide information may be distributed as it is using the broadcast network without reading the address. Good.

  The CM information storage unit 207 stores CM information. CM information is content (advertising content) to be played between content (main content) distributed from the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103. Therefore, the CM information storage unit 207 is sequentially provided by a sponsor or the like and always stores the latest CM information.

  Further, the CM information stored in the CM information storage unit 207 will be described in detail. Each CM information stored in the CM information storage unit 207 has a recommended condition. Specifically, for example, various settings such as age, sex, and area ID of the receiving device can be set as the recommended condition.

  Further, the CM information may be composed of two types of CM information having the same content but different data amounts. In this way, CM information of two types of data amounts is simultaneously distributed, and the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113 are set to receive either one of the CM information according to the processing capability. Specifically, when the receiving device (for example, the receiving device 111) is a mobile phone, CM information with a small amount of data is received, and when the receiving device (for example, the receiving device 111) is a desktop PC or the like. Receives CM information with a large amount of data.

  The CM information storage unit 207 provides the CM information as described above to the distribution unit 206, and the distribution unit 206 sequentially distributes the CM information to the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 in the manner of file transfer. In addition, the CM information storage unit 207 provides information related to the stored CM information to the program guide information generation unit 203. The information related to the CM information is metadata used when generating the CM program guide information, and specifically, the file name of the CM information, the length of the CM information, and the like. As already described in the description of the program guide information generation unit 203, CM program guide information representing the contents of the CM information is generated. The generated CM program guide information is distributed to the receiving devices 111, 112, 113 by the distribution unit 206.

  Accordingly, the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113 are in a state of receiving and holding a plurality of CM information, and according to the recommended conditions of the CM program guide information received from the program guide distribution apparatus 100 from the plurality of CM information. Thus, CM information suitable for the users of the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113 is reproduced between the main contents.

  The providing unit 208 functions as a window when information is transmitted from the program guide distribution apparatus 100 to the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103. Specifically, program guide information and CM program guide information are acquired from the program guide information storage unit 204 and transmitted to the streaming servers 101, 102, 103. Transmission of the program guide information has a role of notifying the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 of the generation of the program guide information. Normally, the playlists in which CM times are written in advance are generated in the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103. However, the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 transmit the program guide information by transmitting the CM program guide information. It is also possible to generate a playlist including information on the reproduction time of CM information using the information of the CM information program guide transmitted from the apparatus 100.

  The remote activation processing unit 209 receives the remote activation request from the remote activation request device 121 and generates a remote activation request command. In addition, the generated remote activation request command is sent to the distribution unit 206 and distributed to the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113.

  As described above, the program guide distribution apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention connects to the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 that distribute to the reception apparatuses 111, 112, and 113, and acquires distribution schedule information. Thus, it is possible to generate program guide information that covers the delivery schedules of all the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103.

  Furthermore, the program guide distribution apparatus 100 can generate CM program guide information by having a function of acquiring CM information. In addition, by distributing the generated program guide information, the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113 can confirm the distribution schedule of contents that can be easily received. In addition, when receiving a remote activation request from another remote activation requesting device 121, the program guide distribution device 100 can arbitrarily activate a specific application on the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113.

(Composition of program guide information)
Next, a specific configuration of the program guide information generated by the program guide distribution device 100 will be described. First, the structure of the program guide information, that is, the program guide information of the main content will be described. FIG. 3A is a data table (part 1) illustrating an example of the configuration of the program guide information. The program table data strings 311 to 313 of the data table 310 illustrated in FIG. 3A are configured by the following items as an example.

Broadcaster name: Streaming server name (may be a streaming server identification number)
・ Main title: Content title (may include content genre information)
-Main file name: File name when reading content-Output target: Either a receiving device capable of processing large amounts of data or a receiving device not suitable for processing large amounts of data-MC (multicast) address and port number of main portion : Address information used when distributing by multicast (in the data table 310, an example of performing multicast using IPv6)
・ Recommended conditions: Conditions of the receiving device that recommends receiving this content (arbitrary items such as area ID, gender, and age can be set)
-Start date, start time, end time: Distribution date and time of this content

  FIG. 3B is a data table (part 2) illustrating an example of the content program table configuration. When the program guide distribution apparatus 100 distributes CM information, the following items of the data table 320 are added to the items of the data table 310 as shown in FIG. May be. The program guide data sequences 321 to 323 shown in FIG. 3B show an example in which new items are added as they are to the items of the program guide data sequences 311 to 313 shown in FIG. 3A.

-Number of CMs: Number of CM information to be played between main contents-CM time start time: Time for starting playback of CM information (for the number of CMs)
-CM time end time: Time when CM information playback ends (for the number of times of CM)

  The program guide distribution apparatus 100 distributes the program guide information having the configuration described above. Receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 each receive program guide information, and generate a program guide for display using information of each item constituting the program guide information. For example, the program table for display may have a standard format such as a program column such as a newspaper so that the user can change the detailed configuration.

(Composition of CM program guide information)
Next, a specific configuration of CM program guide information generated by the program guide distribution apparatus 100 will be described. FIG. 4A is a data table showing an example of the configuration of CM program guide information. Specifically, the CM program guide information data table 410 includes the following items.

Broadcast station name: Streaming server name (may be a streaming server identification number, etc.) CM title: Specific title (may include CM sponsor name)
-CM content length, CM file name: Information for reading CM information-Output target: Either a receiving device capable of processing a large amount of data or a receiving device not suitable for processing a large amount of data-Recommended condition: This CM information Of receiving device that recommends playback (can be set arbitrarily other than area ID, gender, age, etc.)

  The program guide distribution apparatus 100 distributes CM program guide information having the configuration described above. The receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 each receive CM program guide information, and can reproduce the most effective CM information from the distributed CM information according to the user's attribute information and the current position. it can.

(Remote start request command configuration)
Next, a specific configuration of the remote activation request command generated by the remote activation processing unit 209 of the program guide distribution apparatus 100 will be described. FIG. 4B is an explanatory diagram of the configuration of the remote activation request command. The explanatory diagram 420 shows the configuration of the remote activation request command 421. The remote activation request command 421 includes a parameter ID 422, a parameter length 423, and a parameter value 424. Each configuration stores information indicating the following contents.

Parameter ID 422: Indicates the meaning of the parameter value in the command.
Parameter length 423: Indicates the length of the parameter value.
Parameter value 424: Indicates the contents of the parameter (designating the terminal ID, gender, age, reception location, etc., the application type to be activated, etc.)

  Also, as shown in the configuration example 425 in the explanatory diagram 420, the content of the parameter stored in the parameter value 424 is set according to the value of the parameter ID 422.

  The program guide distribution apparatus 100 distributes the remote activation request command having the configuration described above by the distribution unit 206. Receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 each receive a remote activation request command, and automatically activate a specific application in accordance with user attribute information and the current position.

(Contents of transmission / reception processing between the program distribution device and the streaming server)
Next, transmission / reception processing between the program guide distribution apparatus 100 and each of the streaming servers 101, 102, 103 will be described. FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram showing information transmission / reception processing between the program guide distribution apparatus and the streaming server.

  As shown in FIG. 5, information 501 such as a program guide generation request and a playlist is transmitted from the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 to the program guide distribution apparatus 100. Of the transmitted information 501, a playlist is stored in the playlist storage unit 202.

  On the other hand, the program guide information 502 generated using the playlist is transmitted from the program guide distribution device 100 to the streaming servers 101, 102, 103. Specifically, the generated program guide information is transmitted in the manner of file transfer. Further, when the CM program guide information is generated by the program guide distribution device 100, the CM program guide information is also transmitted to the streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 in the same manner as the program guide information. Each streaming server 101, 102, 103 receives the information transmitted from the program guide distribution apparatus 100, and includes and stores each storage unit such as a main program guide or a CM information program guide for each type of information. Is done.

(Composition of the latest program guide information)
Next, a specific example of program guide information generated by the program guide distribution device 100 will be described. Here, a case will be described in which the latest program guide information representing the information of the content distributed within a predetermined time from the current time among the content distributed from the respective streaming servers 101, 102, 103 is generated.

  In order to generate the latest program guide information, the program guide information related to the content distributed within the specified latest time is extracted from the program guide information stored in the program guide information storage unit 204. Specifically, for example, program guide information of content distributed within the time from the current time to the program guide delivery interval × 2 is extracted. Also, instead of the processing as described above, information on the content to be distributed within the latest specified time is extracted from the playlist of each streaming server 101, 102, 103 stored in the playlist storage unit 202. , You may merge. In the following description, the case of using the process of extracting the latest program guide information from the generated program guide information will be described.

  By generating the latest program guide information as described above, it is possible to minimize the load on the broadcasting network due to the distribution of the program guide information. In addition, since a program table with relatively short intervals is generated and distributed most recently, the latest program table information reflecting the changed contents can be distributed even if there is a change in the content distributed immediately before distribution. .

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration contents and generation timing of the latest program guide. In the latest program guide generation table 600 shown in FIG. 6, the delivery interval is set to 1 minute. In addition, a version number is assigned to the generated latest program guide information. For example, after the version number 1-1 is assigned, if the latest program table newly generated differs from the latest program table information generated last time, the updated version number 1-2 is updated. Is granted. By assigning the version number as described above, the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113 receive only when the latest program guide information having a version number different from the version number of the latest program guide information that has already been received is distributed. You may set as follows.

(Contents of the program guide distribution process)
Next, the contents of the program guide distribution process performed by the program guide distribution apparatus 100 will be described. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the contents of the program guide distribution process. Here, as an example, the contents of processing when a latest program guide is generated and distributed every predetermined time will be described. In the flowchart of FIG. 7, it is first determined whether or not a distribution timeout has been notified (step S701). Here, the process waits until a distribution timeout is notified (step S701: No loop), and when notified (step S701: Yes), the program guide information is read (step S702).

  The distribution timeout control in step S701 is performed by the program guide information generation unit 203. Specifically, when the distribution timing is set in the program guide information generation unit 203 and the distribution of the program guide information is completed, the set distribution interval is counted down. In other words, the distribution timeout corresponds to a determination as to whether or not the countdown has ended.

  Next, program guide information distributed within a predetermined time is extracted from the program guide information read out in step S702 (step S703). Using the extracted program guide information, the latest program guide information is generated in a distribution format (step S704).

  Subsequently, the latest program guide information generated last time is read out and compared with the latest program guide information generated in step S704 (step S705), and it is determined whether or not there is a difference in the compared latest program guide information (step S706). .

  If it is determined in step S706 that there is a difference between the two most recent program guide information compared (step S706: Yes), the version number (see FIG. 6) of the latest program guide information is updated (step S707). Further, the generated latest program guide information is stored with the updated version number (step S708).

  Next, the stored latest program guide information is distributed to the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 (step S709). If it is determined in step S706 that there is no difference between the two latest program guide information compared (step S706: No), the latest program guide information generated in step S704 is the same as the latest program guide information created last time. The version information is distributed as it is (step S709).

  Finally, it is determined whether or not to end the distribution process (step S710). If the distribution process is to be terminated (step S710: Yes), the series of processes is terminated as it is. On the other hand, if the distribution process is to be continued (step S710: No), the next distribution timer is set (step S711), the process proceeds to step S701, and the process waits until the distribution timeout is notified again. It becomes.

  If there is no change in the setting in step S711, the setting as it is may be used. By continuously performing the processing as described above, the program guide distribution device 100 can generate periodic latest program guide information and distribute it to the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113.

  As described above, according to the program guide distribution apparatus 100, even if content is distributed from each of the plurality of streaming servers 101, 102, 103, a playlist is acquired from each of the streaming servers 101, 102, 103, By merging, it is possible to generate program guide information that allows the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113 to grasp the distribution schedule and receive any content, and distribute it to the receiving apparatuses 111, 112, and 113.

  Further, if the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 receive the program guide distributed from the program guide distributing device 100, the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 do not need processing for acquiring the respective program guide information from the individual streaming servers 101, 102, and 103. . Therefore, distribution schedule information of all receivable contents can be acquired only by receiving the program guide information from the program guide distribution device 100. Unlike the case where the receiving devices 111, 112, and 113 connect to the respective streaming servers 101, 102, and 103 to acquire the respective playlists, there is no omission in acquiring the playlists, so that any content can be easily received. be able to.

  Also, each streaming server (for example, streaming servers 101, 102, 103) is connected to the program table distribution device 100 to distribute distribution program table information to each reception device (for example, reception devices 111, 112, 113). Can do. Therefore, it is not necessary for each streaming server to individually distribute distribution schedule information to each receiving device. Therefore, it is possible to minimize the communication resources used when distributing the program guide information.

  In addition, by using the program guide distribution apparatus 100, distribution schedule information can be distributed to each receiving apparatus at once. Therefore, as compared with the case where each streaming server individually distributes the distribution schedule information, the number of receiving apparatuses that acquire the distribution schedule information of each streaming server from the program guide information increases. That is, when all receiving devices under the distribution system in the present embodiment are targeted for reception, the number of receiving devices that have acquired distribution schedule information increases. Along with this, the number of receiving devices that can receive the content of each streaming server also increases, resulting in an improvement in the reception rate.

  The program guide distribution method described in this embodiment can be realized by executing a program prepared in advance on a computer such as a personal computer or a workstation. This program is recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a hard disk, a flexible disk, a CD-ROM, an MO, and a DVD, and is executed by being read from the recording medium by the computer. The program may be a transmission medium that can be distributed via a network such as the Internet.

  As described above, the program guide distribution apparatus and the program guide distribution method according to the present invention are useful for broadcast networks capable of multicast distribution, and are particularly suitable for digital terrestrial broadcast networks.

Claims (7)

Acquisition means for acquiring distribution schedule information from each streaming server that distributes content to the receiving device;
Program guide information generating means for merging the distribution schedule information of each streaming server acquired by the acquisition means and generating program guide information representing the distribution schedule of all streaming servers;
Distribution means for distributing the program guide information generated by the program guide information generation means to the receiving device;
A program guide distribution device comprising: An address storage means for storing address information of the receiving device;
2. The program guide distribution apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the distribution unit distributes the program guide information according to address information stored in the address storage unit. The acquisition means acquires distribution schedule information from each streaming server every predetermined time,
2. The program guide distribution device according to claim 1, wherein the program guide information generation means generates program guide information using the distribution schedule information when the acquisition means acquires new distribution schedule information. The acquisition unit includes a reception unit that receives a signal requesting creation of a program guide from the streaming server,
2. The program guide distribution apparatus according to claim 1, wherein distribution schedule information is acquired from each of the streaming servers when the signal is received by the reception unit. CM information storage means for storing CM information to be distributed to the receiving device,
The program guide information generating means generates CM program guide information representing the contents of the CM information based on the CM information stored in the CM information storage means,
2. The distribution unit according to claim 1, wherein the distribution unit distributes the CM information stored in the CM information storage unit and the CM program guide information generated by the program guide information generation unit to the receiving device. The program guide distribution device described.   6. The program guide distribution device according to claim 1, wherein the distribution unit multicasts the program guide information generated by the program guide information generation unit to the receiving device. An acquisition step of acquiring distribution schedule information from each streaming server that distributes content to the receiving device;
A program guide generating step for generating program guide information representing the delivery schedules of all streaming servers by merging the delivery schedule information of the respective streaming servers acquired by the acquiring step;
A distribution step of distributing the program guide information generated by the program guide generation step to the receiving device;
A program guide distribution method comprising:

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