Sony Corporation

Tomoshi Hirayama

Hisashi Tomita

Toru Takeda

Yuichi Machida

Yoichi Mizutani

Masato Kajimoto

Tatsuo Itabashi

Takayuki Usami

Hiroshi Yasuhara

Tsutomu Sampei

A data-providing system comprising a first data-transmitting section (control unit), a control section (control unit), and a second data-transmitting section (control unit). The first data-transmitting section transmits a continuous stream of content data that consists of multimedia content groups, each composed of program data and auxiliary data items. The control section processes data items obtained by dividing each program data, attribute data of the auxiliary data items and user profile data, thereby to automatically assemble new data. The second data-transmitting section changes the order in which to transmit the auxiliary data items inserted in a program, in accordance with the new data assembled by the control section.

Data-providing system, transmission server, data terminal, apparatus, authoring apparatus and data-providing method

An apparatus transfers the title of content to an ID-assigning unit which assigns an ID to the content and transmits the content ID to a broadcasting unit via a tagging unit. A broadcasting apparatus then broadcasts the content ID and a receiver extracts the content ID from a received signal and transfers the content ID to a verification unit which determines whether or not the content ID received from a reception functional unit matches a stored content ID. If the content ID received from the reception unit matches a stored content ID, user information of the receiver is transmitted to a privacy-guarding unit. The privacy-guarding unit searches privacy-guarding items and, in accordance with a result of the search, only necessary user information presented by the verification unit is transmitted to a provider unit.

Apparatus, system and method for secure information dissemination

An information providing system allows to intentionally modify the arrangement of clips to be reproduced from that of the first transmission. The program clips and the CM clips obtained by receiving those broadcast are stored in recorded result storage sectionand rearrangement examining sectioncarries out a processing operation of comparing the attributes of each of the clips and the applicable profile data generated by applicable profile generating section. Then, the sequence of reproducing the contents clips is modified on the basis of the result of the processing operation and download operating sectiondownloads the contents clips to be added on an on-demand basis. Then, the final arrangement sectionrearranges the sequence of reproducing the contents clips including those to be added to set up the final arrangement.

Information providing system, information terminal device, information server device and information providing method

An information processing apparatus is disclosed which comprises: a first acquiring element for acquiring the number of times information contents are downloaded over a network; a second acquiring element for acquiring the number of times the information contents are reproduced; and a computing element for computing a pricing index for the information contents based on the number of times the information contents have been downloaded as acquired by the first acquiring element and on the number of times the information contents have been reproduced as acquired by the second acquiring element.

Apparatus and method for computation of a pricing index

A member-store functional unit transfers the name of a member store and the title of a campaign to an ID-assigning functional unit which assigns IDs to the title of the campaign and the name of the member store. The ID-assigning functional unit then transmits the IDs to an encoding functional unit. A broadcasting functional unit broadcasts the IDs, encoded by the encoding functional unit, by multiplexing the IDs in an audio signal. A reception functional unit receives the IDs whereas a decoding functional unit extracts and decodes the IDs. The decoding functional unit then outputs the IDs to a customer-number-assigning functional unit with a receiver ID. The customer-number-assigning functional unit forms a judgment on validity of the member-store ID, the campaign ID and the receiver ID, and assigns a customer number to the receiver ID if the member-store ID, the campaign ID and the receiver ID are found valid. An anonymous-customer management functional unit sends the customer number to a member-store functional unit so as to make a request for a transmission of a service identified by the campaign ID to the reception functional unit by way of an anonymous-service management functional unit.

Information processing apparatus, information processing method, information processing system and recording medium

A transmission apparatus used for transmitting a question to a recipient. Generates a control signal for limiting an answer-inputting function of a reception apparatus used by the recipient; adds the control signal generated by a generation mechanism and used for limiting the answer-inputting function of the reception apparatus and an address of a recipient reception collector unit showing a collection destination of where an answer entered by said recipient in response to the question is transmitted when an amount of recipient responses stored in a storage unit exceeds a predetermined number. The apparatus then transmits the broadcast signal including the control signal and the address of a recipient reception collector unit to the recipient.

Reception apparatus, reception method and recording medium

An information processing apparatus is comprised of a data input device for inputting informations, a memory for storing the informations input by the data input device, a processor for processing the informations in a form of a plurality of pages, a displaying device for displaying the informations formed in a unit of the pages, a device for registering image data in respect of owner name input by the data input device, a device for judging whether or not a predetermined process is done at one of the pages, and a device for storing the image data at a predetermined position of the one of the pages by a judged result of the judging device, wherein when the one of the pages is displayed, the stored image data is displayed with the informations.

Information processing apparatus

A contents-delivery system has a contents-transmission device transmitting the contents, and a contents-reception device receiving the contents from the transmission device. A first communication device performs communication from the transmission device to the reception device via a high-directivity transmission carrier. A second communication device performs communication at least from the reception device to the transmission device. An optical position confirmation device permits it through optical irradiation to confirm that a position of the reception device with respect to the transmission device is within a range in which the first communication device can communicate. A position of the reception device is matched with the transmission device based on an irradiation position of visible light. It is thus possible to locate the reception device to a communication-enabled position if the reception device is directed against the transmission device.

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Tokyo, Japan

Tomoshi Hirayama