Sony Corporation

Noriyuki Sakoh

Takeshi Iwatsu

Yasuhiro Murase

Jun Moriya

Shinsuke Yamashita

Norifumi Kikkawa

Tatsuya Igarashi

Yoichi Kobori

Masaaki Hamada

Takehiko Morita

Toshihiro Morita

Junichi Aramaki

Yoshiyuki Takaku

Yoshiki Tanaka

Yasuaki Honda

An apparatus and method that, in transmission and playback of content between a server and a client, efficiently executes playing back part of content, such as an impressive portion, is provided. By setting index information as partial data region identification information in property information corresponding to content retained by the server, when a content request from the client includes partial playback specification information, the index information is acquired from the property information corresponding to the specified content, and the content is acquired and transmitted to the client. This configuration enables the client to enjoy playback of content of only particular partial data such as an impressive portion of content received from a server or a user's favorite portion.

Information processing apparatus, information processing method, and computer program

In a content supply system, content data is supplied from a content supply apparatus to a content playback apparatus via a network. The content playback apparatus includes a request device for requesting a recovery process; an obtaining device for obtaining a start-up file; and a download device for downloading the content data. The content supply apparatus includes a customer information management device for managing customer information; a notification device for notifying the recovery information to the content playback apparatus; a start-up file generation device for generating a start-up file; a storage device for storing the start-up file; a content data supply device for allowing the content data to be downloaded; and a license data supply device for allowing the license data to be downloaded.

Content supply system, content supply apparatus and method, content playback apparatus and method, and program

The present invention allows for the acquisition of content data. The present invention temporarily stores the first and second process progress information in the storage medium, and, when the requested content data and license dataare registered in the database after being downloaded and temporarily stored in the storage medium, removes the first and second process progress information, and, if there are the first and/or second process progress information are left when the stopped content acquisition process restarts, retries to acquire data after removing the content data and license datacorresponding to the second process progress information. This prevents, when the data acquisition is retried, the same content data and license data from being stored in the storage medium again. This allows efficient use of the storage space, and therefore the content data is acquired without fail.

Content acquisition method, content acquisition device, and content acquisition program

A client terminal CT transmits an acquisition request for musical composition information. An associated information provision server KS continuously receives the acquisition request at a given time interval. The associated information provision server KS transmits timing specification information along with the musical composition information corresponding to the acquisition request to the client terminal CT. The timing specification information specifies timing for the client terminal CT to transmit the acquisition request next. The associated information provision server KS controls a polling interval for acquisition requests. In this manner, acquisition requests can be distributed to those transmitted at a given time interval and those received in accordance with the timing specification information. A simple method can be used to prevent acquisition requests from being concentrated on the associated information provision server KS.

Communication method

The present invention can remarkably improve the efficiency of the acquisition process. It is determined if requested contents data are stored in a hard disk or not and, if they are not stored yet, they are acquired from a contents providing serverand subsequently a corresponding contents attributes fileis acquired from an attributes information providing server. If the requested contents data are already stored in the hard disk, the contents data are not requested and only the corresponding contents attributes fileis acquired from the attributes information providing server. In this way, it is possible to avoid acquiring contents data in duplicate and remarkably reduce the time necessary for the acquisition process to remarkably improve the efficiency of the acquisition process.

Content acquisition method

A content acquisition method that ensures that the content acquisition device successfully receives attribute information of content data. By having an acquire/use information providing server, upon receiving a file request information sent from a client terminal send an acquire/use file, wherein the acquire/use file stores content data content identification information and attribute information in a portion where such information is not removed when passing through a proxy server which undertakes some of functions of the content receiving-side, to the client terminal via the proxy server, the present invention allows the acquire/use file to be sent via the proxy server without the attribute information contained in the file being removed, thereby allowing the client terminal to successfully receive attribute information.

According to the present invention, the step of requesting of an associated information provision server KS for associated information about contents broadcast in a broadcast program being received is provided. The step of acquiring the associated information corresponding to the request from the associated information provision server KS and storing this is provided. And the retrieval step of transmitting a part of the associated information as a retrieval key to retrieve contents to a CD seller server, and obtaining retrieval results from the CD seller serveris provided. Thereby, the associated information about the contents broadcast in the broadcast program being received is obtained. The retrieval results are obtained from a contents retrieval server by using the part of the associated information as retrieval keys. Therefore, retrieval results having variety that are not limited to results conceived by the user in a certain degree can be obtained.

A method of displaying a page title on a terminal apparatus, and associated terminal apparatus and page data transmission apparatus are provided. The method includes transmitting a request signal to request external page data relating to an external page, and receiving external page data corresponding to the request signal. The external page data includes first title information, second title information, and address information that each relate to the external page. The first title information, second title information, and address information of the external page data are stored in a storage section of the terminal apparatus. The first title information includes a plurality of characters that are not limited in number, and the second title information includes a plurality of characters that are limited in number. The stored second title information is displayed on a display section of the terminal apparatus.

Page title display method

Even in the case where a first request signal for requesting the source of the top page and a second request signal for requesting the source of A Corporation CD sales page were transmitted from a client terminal, if the source of an information page has been stored in a portal server, the above source of the information page is transmitted from the portal serverto the client terminalbefore the source of the top page or the source of the A Corporation CD sales page is transmitted from the portal serveror the contents sales server

Page data reception method, page data providing method, device thereof, and program

A user authentication processing is performed and an authentication session ID is returned to a terminal(A). An authentication serverissues and stores an authentication ticket (A). The authentication ticket and authentication session are returned to the terminal(A). A usertransmits a request of service provision and the authentication ticket to a service provider's server, and the service provider's servertransmits the authentication ticket to the authentication server(A). The authentication serverperforms an authentication processing of the authentication ticket (A), and the authentication result is notified (A). In the case of the authentication approval, a service session ID is issued together with the notification of authorization (A). When receiving the notification of the authentication approval, the terminalperforms an establishment processing of the session using the received service session ID, and stores the service session ID (A).

Authentication method, authentication system, and authentication server

An apparatus and a method are provided, which enable to perform an improved management processing based on an identifier information of a content on a server. The content providing server sets content-associated unique identifier information as property information that is a component of content-associated metadata, maintains the unique identifier information as content-associated metadata without changing the unique identifier information even if the logical/physical position of a content stored in the storage unit is changed, and maintains a setting value of unique identifier information, which is set associated with a received content, as metadata associated with the received content without changing the setting value of the unique identifier information. By this configuration, even if a content is moved between servers, a client can acquire the content based on the unique identifier.

Information processing device, content management method, content information management method, and computer program

If the storage medium runs out of space when storing clip-target information as clip data, data having higher deletion-target priority than others is deleted from among a plurality of stored data to have empty spaces on the storage medium, and then the new clip-target information is stored. The deletion-target priority is determined based on attribution of a plurality of stored data. In this manner, new clip-target information is stored without user's operation, after automatically deleting data having higher deletion-target priority than others (the deletion-target priority is determined based on attribution of clip data). Therefore it is avoided that important clip data is automatically deleted without a user being notified.

Data recording control apparatus

A method includes receiving, from a broadcast receiver, identification information for identifying a currently received broadcast station. The method also includes receiving, from an external server, state information which indicates a state of a service for providing information concerning the currently received broadcast station corresponding to the identification information. In addition, the method includes providing information, from a server, depending on whether a URL is included in the state information. The method further includes transmitting, to the broadcast receiver, the state information and an address corresponding to the service, after receiving the identification information from the broadcast receiver and the state information from the external server.

System and associated method of service provision based upon broadcast state information

The present invention is to provides a content data supply system, a content data supply apparatus and method, a content data reproduction apparatus and method, and a program. The content supply system supplies content data from a content data supply apparatus to a content reproduction apparatus via a network. The content reproduction apparatus includes notification means, content list acquisition means, activation file acquisition means, content data acquisition means, and license data acquisition means. The content data supply apparatus includes customer information management means, content list generation means, activation file generation means, storage means, content data supply means, and license data supply means.

Content data supply system, content data supply apparatus and method, content data reproduction apparatus and method, and program

An apparatus and a method capable of efficiently and accurately constructing an access control configuration having high security are realized. Only the MAC address of a controller (client)authorized by a user is authenticated and registered in a MAC address table of a device, and the deviceperforms MAC address filtering for permitting access by the controller(client) which is authenticated and registered in the MAC address table. Furthermore, by making a registration completion notification and by performing version adjustment, a reliable access control configuration is constructed. The device authentication apparatusavoids access from an unauthorized party which is not authenticated and registered, and makes the presence of a server not known to the controller which attempts to illegally perform device authentication. Therefore, access control with high security is realized.

Growing community of inventors

Kanagawa, Japan

Noriyuki Sakoh