JP5348935B2 - Content providing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a content providing equipment.

  Today, for each viewer, a video distribution system (hereinafter referred to as a video-on-demand system) that can provide a video program desired by the viewer as desired by the viewer is built in a facility such as a hotel ( For example, see Patent Document 1).

  In practice, this video-on-demand system can periodically provide a plurality of types of content such as movies from a distribution center to a content providing apparatus installed in a hotel, for example, and store these contents in the storage means of the content providing apparatus in advance. It is made like that.

  A set-up box installed for each guest room is connected to the content providing apparatus via a network such as a LAN. The setup box receives a viewing request from a remote control when a viewer who is a guest makes a viewing request for a desired content via a remote control (hereinafter referred to as a remote control) based on display items on the monitor. To the content providing apparatus via the network.

Thus, when the content providing apparatus receives a viewing request from the setup box, the content providing apparatus reads the corresponding content from the storage means, transmits it to the setup box of the requesting guest room, and displays the video based on the content on the monitor connected to the setup box. This allows the guest to view the desired content.
JP 2007-158414 A

  By the way, in such a content providing apparatus, for example, only a predetermined number of contents contracted in advance between a hotel and a distribution center can be provided from the distribution center to the content providing apparatus. When provided to a distribution server from a distribution company or the like, the content can be updated from the distribution server to the content providing apparatus at a predetermined update time. Then, in order to present all the contents including these new works stored in the storage means to the guest, the content providing apparatus newly displays a menu screen in which the title names of the new contents are displayed in line with the update time. Created and displayed on the monitor.

  However, if, for example, the viewer stays at a hotel for two or three days when it is outside the renewal period, a menu screen in which the title names of the same content are always displayed on the monitor is displayed when trying to view the content. Will continue to be. Thus, simply displaying on the monitor a menu screen in which the same title names are always displayed in a row will cause viewers to get bored, and it is still insufficient in terms of raising the viewer's interest.

The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object thereof is to propose a content providing equipment capable of interest to viewers.

In order to solve this problem, the content providing apparatus according to claim 1 of the present invention stores content newly provided from the outside at the update time, and a predetermined number of externally provided before reaching the update time. storage means for storing content, the display pattern to display the identification information of the content in a content providing apparatus and a control means for displaying on the Viewing means, further comprising a display portion and an operation portion connected to said control means The control means is configured to display a pattern group registration screen on the display unit when a pattern group registration command is given from the operation unit, and the pattern group registration screen displays additional registration of a new group in the operation unit. The group registration field that can be enabled and the group registered in the group registration field can be displayed A loop confirmation field, a group determination field that enables display of all the identification information constituting the selected group when one of the groups in the group confirmation field is selected by the operation unit, and the group registration A content selectable column that enables display of the identification information that does not belong to any of the groups registered in the column, and the control means uses the operation unit to group the identification information in advance. The identification information selected in the content selectable column is configured to be movable to the group determination column, and the identification information displayed in the group determination column is stored in the storage unit in units of groups, Before reaching the update time, the display pattern is automatically changed according to the date and time and displayed on the display means. The identification information displayed on the stage, is characterized in that for replacement displayed in the group unit in accordance with the date and time.

In the content providing apparatus according to claim 2 of the present invention, the control unit is configured to display a content priority setting screen on the display unit when a content priority setting command is given from the operation unit. The screen includes a content priority setting field that allows the identification information constituting the selected group to be displayed in order of display priority when one of the groups is selected by the operation unit. The display unit of the identification information displayed in the content priority setting column can be changed by the operation unit, and the display priority of the identification information set in the content priority setting column is stored in the storage unit And the identification information displayed on the display means is displayed in the order of the display priority .

In the content providing apparatus according to claim 3 of the present invention, the control means is configured to display a pattern status screen on the display unit when a pattern status setting command is given from the operation unit. , Including a pattern display field that allows the predetermined group to be displayed in association with each date and time, and the control means enables the input of the predetermined group displayed in the pattern display field by the operation unit, A setting state of the predetermined group set for each date and time in the pattern display field is stored in the storage unit, and the identification information constituting the group corresponding to the current date and time is displayed on the display unit . It is characterized by this.

The content providing apparatus according to claim 4 of the present invention is characterized in that the control means displays the identification information in a left or upper area on the screen of the display means .

According to the content providing equipment according to claim 1 of the present invention, regardless of whether the content of the content providing device has been updated, the display pattern of the identification information for each date, automatically changed to another display pattern By doing so, it is possible to attract the viewer's interest by giving the novelty even before the update time is reached.

In addition, according to the content providing apparatus of claim 1 , the plurality of pieces of identification information can be grouped, whereby the display pattern can be collectively changed in units of groups, so that novelty can be further provided. In addition, when a pattern group registration command is given from the operation unit, the control means displays a pattern group registration screen on the display unit, sets identification information constituting each group on the pattern group registration screen, and then performs a plurality of identifications. Information can be grouped and stored in the storage means.

  According to the content providing apparatus of claim 2, when the content priority setting command is given from the operation unit, the control unit displays the content priority setting screen on the display unit, and the content priority setting screen displays the identification unit. After setting the priority, it becomes possible to register the group with the set display priority.

  According to the content providing apparatus of claim 3, when the pattern status setting command is given from the operation unit, the control unit displays the content priority setting screen on the display unit. A corresponding group is input, and the setting status of a predetermined group set for each date and time can be stored in the storage unit. Furthermore, the group corresponding to the current date and time can be recognized from the storage means, and the identification information constituting the group can be displayed on the display means.

Furthermore, according to the content providing apparatus of claim 4 , since general people tend to acquire information from the left to the right or from the top to the bottom, the identification information is arranged according to the tendency. Thus, the display pattern of the identification information can be instantaneously viewed for the viewer at first, and a feeling as if new content has been provided can be given.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a content providing system using a video on demand system. The content providing system 1 is constructed in a facility such as a hotel and is installed in a management room. 2 and a plurality of receiving devices 4a, 4b,... Connected to the content providing device 2 via a network 3 such as a LAN and installed for each guest room. Since the receiving apparatuses 4a, 4b,... All have the same configuration, for the sake of convenience of explanation, only the receiving apparatus 4a will be described below.

  Here, the content providing apparatus 2 is connected to a distribution server (not shown) via the Internet. For example, the content providing apparatus 2 downloads a predetermined number of contents contracted in advance between a hotel and a distribution center from the distribution server, thereby causing the HDD ( (Hard disk drive) 9 is stored in the memory.

  The receiving device 4 a includes a setup box (STB) 5 connected to the network 3 and a monitor 6 connected to the setup box 5, and various items displayed on the monitor 6 are viewed via the remote controller 7. Can be selected.

  When the content providing device 2 receives various processing requests from the remote controller 7 received via the setup box 5 via the network 3, the content providing device 2 performs various processing such as reading and transmission of content from the HDD 9 according to the various processing requests. While being executed, information corresponding to various processing requests is transmitted to the monitor 6 for display.

  For example, the content providing apparatus 2 reads content selection screen data from the HDD 9 in response to a content selection request input via the remote controller 7 and transmits the content selection screen data to the setup box 5 of the request source, and a content selection screen based on the content selection screen data Is displayed on the monitor 6. At this time, in the present invention, when the title name of the content displayed on the content selection screen reaches a predetermined date and time, regardless of whether or not new content is provided from the distribution server, the existing content stored in the HDD 9 is stored. It is automatically changed to the title name of other content to attract viewers' interest.

  When a predetermined title name is selected on the content selection screen displayed on the monitor 6 and a content viewing request is made, the content providing apparatus 2 sends the content corresponding to the title name to the setup box 5 of the request source. The video can be transmitted and displayed on the monitor 6 based on the content.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the content providing apparatus 2 sends a display unit 12, a RAM (Random Access) via a bus 11 to a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 10 that controls the content providing apparatus 2 in an integrated manner. Memory) 13, ROM (Read Only Memory) 14, HDD 9, network interface 15 connected to network 3, and operation unit 16 are connected. The RAM 13 temporarily stores various programs such as a display control program in addition to an OS (Operating System) program and application programs to be executed by the CPU 10. The RAM 13 stores various data necessary for processing by the CPU 10. The HDD 9 stores various programs such as an OS, application programs, and display control programs, as well as content provided to the receiving device 4a, title names of the content, and the like.

  Here, first, a method for setting a content selection screen to be displayed on the monitor 6 of each guest room by the hotel manager in the content providing apparatus 2 will be described below. FIG. 3 shows the configuration of the pattern group registration screen. When a pattern group registration command is given from the operation unit 16, the CPU 10 as a control unit reads the pattern group registration screen data from the HDD 9 and displays the pattern group registration screen 20 on the display unit 12 based on the pattern group registration screen data. .

  This pattern group registration screen 20 corresponds to a menu field 21, a group registration field 22 for creating and registering a new group, a group confirmation field 23 for confirming a currently registered group, and a group. A group determination column 24 in which the title names Ta are displayed in a list and a content selectable column 25 in which title names Tb that can be newly registered in the group are displayed in a group are configured.

  The group registration field 22 of the pattern group registration screen 20 is provided with a combo box 27 and a down arrow button 28 for determining a group code, and a text box 29 for inputting a group name of the determined code. After the codes and group names of these groups are determined, the code and the group name can be added to the group confirmation column 23 when the add button 30 is selected and determined with the cursor.

  The group confirmation field 23 is provided with a code field 31 indicating a group code, an explanation field 32 indicating a group name, and a delete button 33 corresponding to each group, and the group code registered in the group registration field 22 And the group name may be displayed. Further, in the group determination column 24, for example, when the group of the code “AD” is selected and determined by the cursor C in the group confirmation column 23, the title names Ta constituting the group of “AD” are displayed in a list box 35 in a list. Then, the administrator can confirm the title names Ta constituting the selected group. In the group determination column 24, all the title names Ta constituting the “AD” group can be displayed in the list box 35 by scrolling the vertical scroll bar 36 up and down.

  In the content selectable column 25, the title names Tb of the contents that are currently stored in the HDD 9 and have not been selected in other groups, for example, are displayed in a list box 37. The title name Tb displayed in the list box 37 of the content selectable column 25 remains selected when the cursor C is in the selected state, and when the transition button 38 is selected and determined by the cursor C, the content selectable column In addition to being deleted from 25, it can be additionally displayed in the group determination column 24. As a result, the selected title name Tb can be moved into the “AD” group. If the All button 39 is selected and decided here, all the title names Tb displayed in the content selectable column 25 can be moved to the group decision column 24.

The title name T a which is displayed in the list box 35 in the group determining section 24, remains in a state of being selected by the cursor C, the release button 40 by the cursor C is selected and determined, the title Ta selected While being deleted from the group determination column 24, it can be additionally displayed in the content selectable column 25. As a result, the title name Ta is deleted from the “AD” group and becomes data that does not belong to any group. When the all return button 41 is selected and decided, all the title names Ta currently displayed in the group decision column 24 are deleted and additionally displayed in the content selectable column 25, and the “AD” group is configured. All the title names Ta can be made into data that does not belong to any group.

  In the pattern group registration screen 20, after setting the title names Ta constituting each group, when the registration button 42 is selected and determined by the cursor C, a plurality of title names Ta can be grouped and stored in the HDD 9. Has been made.

4 in which the same reference numerals are assigned to the parts corresponding to those in FIG. 3 is a content priority setting screen for determining the display priority within the group of the title name Ta. In the content priority setting screen 45, when the title names Ta in a predetermined group are displayed on the monitor 6 in each guest room, the title name Ta to be first displayed on the monitor 6 in the group can be determined. It is made like that. Specifically, when a group priority setting command is given from the operation unit 16, the CPU 10 reads the content priority setting screen data from the HDD 9, and displays the content priority setting screen 45 on the display unit 12 based on the content priority setting screen data.

  The content priority setting screen 45 is provided with a group confirmation field 23. When the group of the code “AD” is selected and determined by the cursor C in the group confirmation field 23, for example, the group “AD” is formed. The title name Ta can be displayed in a list in the list box 47 of the content priority setting field 46. Here, the content priority setting field 46 is set so that the display priority increases as it goes upward in the list box 47 and the display priority decreases as it goes downward.

  The display priority refers to the degree to which the title name Ta is preferentially displayed when the title names Ta in the group are displayed on the content selection screen displayed on the monitor 6 of each guest room. A title name Ta having a higher priority can be displayed first than other title names Ta.

  In the content priority setting field 46, when the upper button 48 is selected and determined by the cursor C while the title name Ta in the list box 47 is selected by the cursor C, the title name Ta selects and determines the upper button 48. Each time it is moved, it moves upward one step so that the display priority becomes higher.

  On the other hand, in the content priority setting field 46, when the lower button 49 is selected and determined by the cursor C while the title name Ta in the list box 47 is selected by the cursor C, the title name Ta is changed to the lower button. Each time 49 is selected and decided, it moves down one step and the display priority is lowered. In the content priority setting screen 46, after setting the display priority of the title name Ta in the list box 47, when the registration button 50 is selected and determined by the cursor C, the group is registered with the set display priority. Has been made to get.

  In this way, the content providing apparatus 2 classifies the title names Ta of the content stored in the HDD 9 into a predetermined number of groups, registers the title names Ta in units of groups, and displays the title names Ta within the groups. Priorities are set, and these can be stored in the HDD 9.

  In addition to this, when the pattern status setting command is given from the operation unit 16, the CPU 10 of the content providing apparatus 2 reads the pattern status screen data from the HDD 9, and based on the pattern status screen data, corresponds to FIG. A pattern status screen 55 as shown in FIG. The pattern status screen 55 is provided with a pattern display field 56 in which a predetermined group is associated with each date. The pattern display field 56 is displayed for each month, and includes a date field 57 in which the date of the month is displayed, and a code field 58 in which the code of the group associated with the date is displayed. .

  In this pattern status screen 55, for example, since the group code “AD” is input in the code field 58 corresponding to “5th”, the title name Ta on the content selection screen displayed on the monitor 6 is 5 When it reaches 12 pm on the day, the title name Ta constituting the “AD” group is replaced and displayed. That is, the pattern status screen 55 is configured so that the title name Ta displayed on the content selection screen can be collectively replaced and displayed in units of groups created in advance on the basis of 12:00 pm every day.

  In practice, on the pattern status screen 55, when a predetermined date is selected with the cursor, a code of a predetermined group can be entered in the code field 58 associated with the date, and the pattern change button 59 is displayed. The pattern status can be set by selecting and determining with the cursor. In the content providing apparatus 2, an arbitrary group is individually associated with each date, and the setting status of the group set for each month can be stored in the HDD 9.

  Next, a content selection screen for displaying the title names Ta grouped by the content providing apparatus 2 described above on the monitor 6 of each guest room will be described below. In practice, when the CPU 10 of the content providing device 2 receives a content selection request from the receiving device 4a via the network 3, for example, the CPU 10 recognizes the group corresponding to the current date and time from the data stored in the HDD 9, and corresponds to the current date and time. Determine the group.

  The CPU 10 transmits the content selection screen data including the title names Ta constituting the determined group to the receiving device 4a which is the request source via the network 3, and the content selection screen as shown in FIG. Display.

  In the content selection screen 60, a title display field 61 is provided on the left side of the monitor 6, and a menu confirmation field 62 and an operation item field 63 are provided on the right side of the monitor 6. On the content selection screen 60, the viewer selects a desired item from these items by operating the selection cursor SC on the content selection screen 60 via a direction key (not shown) of the remote controller 7. It is made to be able to do.

  Here, in the title display column 61, the title names Ta in the group corresponding to the current date and time set on the pattern status screen 55 (FIG. 5) in the content providing apparatus 2 are displayed in a list. In the title display field 61, the title names Ta constituting the group are displayed in a list according to the order of display priority within the group set on the content priority setting screen 45 (FIG. 4).

  That is, in this embodiment, for example, when the current date is “after 5 p.m. on the 5th”, as shown in FIG. 5, the group of the code “AD” is associated with “5th” in advance. Therefore, on the content selection screen 60, the title names Ta constituting the “AD” group are displayed in a row in the title display column 61 (FIG. 6). At this time, as shown in FIG. 4, the titles Ta constituting the “AD” group are set in the order of “Ocean × 13”, “Toxku”, “× Rhasody Madness × Song”, and so on. Therefore, in the title display column 61, the title names Ta are sequentially displayed from top to bottom in the order of “Ocean × 13”, “Toxku”, “× Rhasody Madness × Song”.

  In this embodiment, the image 64 representing the feature of the content is associated with the title name Ta of the content, and the title item 65 including the title name Ta and the image 64 is displayed in the title display column 61. Can be done. In the title item 65 as identification information, the playback time of the content and the viewing fee charged when the content is viewed are displayed at the same time.

  Incidentally, in the operation item column 63, a “previous page” button 68, a “next page” button 69, a “go to genre list” button 70, and a “return to top” button 71 are provided. In the content selection screen 60, for example, when the “previous page” button 68 is selected by the selection cursor SC, the title item 65 displayed in the title display column 61 is changed to a title item 65 having a high display priority. On the content selection screen 60, when the “next page” button 69 is selected by the selection cursor SC, the title item 65 displayed in the title display column 61 is changed to a title item 65 having a low display priority. In this way, on the content selection screen 60, the viewer can visually check all the title names Ta constituting the group as necessary.

Incidentally, when the “to genre list” button 70 is selected and determined via the selection cursor SC, since the item of the movie is currently selected, for example, the latest work, semi-latest work, old work, suspense or action It is possible to shift to a screen (not shown) that can be searched from the items of each genre so that the content can be selected for each genre of the movie. In addition, when the “return to top” button 71 is selected and determined via the selection cursor SC, various information such as “hotel service information” and “in-room facility information” facility information can be confirmed. A top page (not shown) can be transferred to.

  In addition to this configuration, on the content selection screen 60, all the grouped title items 65 displayed in the title display column 61 are changed to title items of other groups on the basis of 12:00 pm every day as described above. Has been made to get. For example, since the date and time is before 12:00 on the 5th and before 12:00 on the 6th, the group of the code “AD” is associated with “5th” on the pattern status screen 45 (FIG. 5). As shown in FIG. 6, the title names Ta constituting the “AD” group are displayed in the title display field 61 of the content selection screen 60.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, a group of code “AE” is associated with “6 days” in advance. Therefore, when the time of 12:00 on the 6th has passed, the titles constituting the group of the code “AD” displayed in the title display field 61 as shown in FIG. The item 65 is automatically replaced and displayed on each title item 75 constituting the group of the code “AE”, and the display pattern of the title display column 61 is changed.

  Thus, when the viewer displays the content selection screen 60 on the monitor 6 after 12:00 pm on the 6th, for example, “eye eagle”, “○ jar league”, “loop” constituting the group of the code “AE” Each title item 72 made up of a title name Tc such as “×-” and its image 76 can be seen.

  Thus, in the content selection screen 60, when a viewer who has viewed the content selection screen 60 the previous day changes the date and looks at the title display column 61, the display pattern of the title display column 61 is automatically set according to the date. Therefore, the title items 65 and 75 viewed by the viewer are completely different from those of the previous day.

  As a result, the content selection screen 60 provides the viewer with new content even if the content of the content providing device 2 has not been updated and new content has not been provided from the distribution server to the content providing device 2. It can give you the feeling of being done.

  In the above configuration, the content providing apparatus 2 classifies the title names of the accumulated content into a predetermined number of groups in advance, and when the viewer selects content from the content selection screen 60, the content providing device 2 performs grouping for each date. Since the title items 65 and 75 are changed and displayed on the monitor 6 in units, even if no new content is provided from the distribution server to the content providing device 2 before the update time is reached, it is completely different for each date. The title items 65 and 75 of the content can be viewed by the viewer, and the content can be selected without being bored by giving the novelty.

  Further, in the content providing apparatus 2, by grouping a plurality of title items 65 and 75, the display pattern of the title display field 61 can be changed at a time in units of groups, so that the content selection screen 60 is further renewed. Can be given.

  By the way, for example, since people generally write letters from left to right when creating a sentence, they tend to catch the first information from the left side, and even on the monitor 6, the viewer moves from the left side to the right side of the screen. There is a high tendency to acquire information. Here, in the case of this embodiment, since the title display field 61 is arranged on the left side in the content selection screen 60, the viewer who first viewed the content selection screen 60 first starts with the title display field 61. Look at 61 momentarily. For this reason, by changing the title display column 61 provided on the left side of the screen for each date, when the viewer changes the date and visually observes the content selection screen 60, the title display column 61 that is instantaneously viewed first is displayed. Thus, even if the content of the content providing device 2 is not updated, it is possible to give the viewer the illusion that new content has been provided.

  Further, in this embodiment, in addition to the title names Ta and Tc, images 64 and 76 associated with the contents of the title names Ta and Tc are also displayed in the title display column 61 at the same time, so that images 64 that differ for each date are displayed. , 76 allows the viewer to select the content without getting bored.

  According to the above configuration, when the viewer views the content selection screen 60, the title item 65 in the title display column 61 is displayed for each date regardless of whether or not the content of the content providing device 2 has been updated. Since the title item 75 of another content is automatically changed according to a preset display pattern, it is possible to attract the viewer's interest.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to this embodiment, A various deformation | transformation implementation is possible within the range of the summary of this invention. For example, not only movie contents but also various contents such as television programs, music data, and sentences may be applied as contents.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the title display column 61 is arranged in the left area of the monitor 6 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the same reference numerals are used for corresponding parts in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8, the title display field 80 may be arranged in the upper area of the monitor 6, or the title display field 61 may be arranged in the center or right area of the monitor 6. .

  Here, when the title display field 80 is arranged in the upper area of the monitor 6, since a person generally tends to acquire information from the top to the bottom, the viewer can view the screen on the monitor 6. The tendency to acquire information from the upper side to the lower side becomes higher, and first, the title display column 80 provided on the upper side can be instantaneously viewed. Therefore, as in the above-described embodiment, the title display field 80 having a completely different display pattern can be easily viewed instantaneously, so that the content providing device is not updated and the viewer is not updated. It can give you a feeling as if new content has been provided.

FIG. 9 shows a content selection screen according to another embodiment. The content selection screen 90 includes a title display field 61 and a “next page” button 69. The title display field 61 includes a left vertical display field 61a, an upper horizontal display field 61b, and other regular display fields. 61c. In this case, in the content selection screen 90, only the title item 65 displayed in the left vertical display column 61a and the upper horizontal display column 61b in the title display column 61 can be changed on a group basis for each date.
In such a content selection screen 90, even if the same title item 65 is always displayed in the other stationary display field 61c, the left vertical display field 61a on the left side where a general person tends to acquire information first By changing the title item 65 in the upper horizontal display column 61b for each date, it is possible to give a novelty as described above, and to select content without getting bored. In this case, in the content selection screen 90, only the title item 65 of either the left vertical display column 61a or the upper horizontal display column 61b may be changed for each date. The same effects as those of the above-described embodiment can be obtained. In this case, although 23 title items 65 are displayed in the title display column 61 in FIG. 9, 23 or more title items 65 may be displayed in the title display column 61. In short, any number of title items 65 may be displayed in the title display column 61 in the present invention.

  Further, in this case, as another embodiment, when for example 300 contents in total are stored in the HDD 9 of the management server 2, the title items 65 of these contents are set to a predetermined number (for example, 100). 9) and grouped into three, and the display pattern in the title display column 61 is changed for each date using only the title item 65 in the same group for a certain period of time, and the content as shown in FIG. A selection screen 90 may be created.

  Specifically, for the first week, the display pattern of the title display field 61 is changed for each date using only 100 title items 65 of the first group, and for the next week, the first group is The display pattern of the title display column 61 is changed for each date using only 100 title items 65 of a different second group, and for the next week, a third group of 100 different from the first and second groups is used. Only the title item 65 may be used to change the display pattern of the title display column 61 for each date.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where the title names Ta and Tc are grouped and the display pattern is changed in units of the group according to the date and time has been described. Either one title item is changed without conversion, or the display pattern is changed by simply moving the position of the title name Ta or Tc currently displayed according to the date and time. In short, if the display patterns of the title names Ta and Tc are changed according to the date and time, other display patterns may be changed.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the list display of the title names Ta and Tc is changed in units of groups on the basis of 12:00 pm is described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the date is The enumeration display of the title names Ta and Tc may be changed in groups on the basis of various other times such as 12:00 am and various other times such as Mondays.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the configuration in which the content providing device 2 and the plurality of receiving devices 4a, 4b,... Are connected via the network 3 is described as the content providing system 1 has been described. The present invention is not limited to this, and various other configurations such as a configuration in which the content providing device 2 is integrated with each of the plurality of receiving devices 4a, 4b,.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the title items 65 and 75 are applied as the identification information has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and only the title name and the image or icon representing the feature of the content are included. Various other identification information may be applied.

It is the schematic which shows the whole structure of the content provision system by this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the circuit structure of a content provision apparatus. It is the schematic which shows the structure of a pattern group registration screen. It is the schematic which shows the structure of a content priority setting screen. It is the schematic which shows the structure of a pattern condition screen. It is the schematic which shows the structure of a content selection screen. It is the schematic which shows the mode of the content selection screen when a title display column changes. It is the schematic which shows the structure (1) of the content selection screen by other embodiment. It is the schematic which shows the structure (2) of the content selection screen by other embodiment.

2 Content providing device 6 Monitor (display means)
9 HDD (storage means)
10 CPU (control means)
12 Display
16 Operation unit
20 Pattern group registration screen
22 Group registration field
23 Group confirmation column
24 Group decision column
25 Content selectable fields
45 Content priority setting screen
46 Content priority setting field
55 Pattern status screen
56 Pattern display field

Claims (4)

Storage means for storing content newly provided from outside at the update time, and storing a certain number of content provided from outside before reaching the update time;
In the content providing apparatus and a control he means for displaying the display pattern displaying the identification information of the content in Viewing means,
An operation unit connected to the control means, and a display unit;
The control means is configured to display a pattern group registration screen on the display unit when a pattern group registration command is given from the operation unit.
The pattern group registration screen includes a group registration field that enables additional registration of a new group by the operation unit, a group confirmation field that allows the group registered in the group registration field to be displayed, and the group confirmation field. When one of the groups is selected by the operation unit, both the group determination column that enables display of all the identification information constituting the selected group and the group registered in the group registration column A content selectable field that enables display of the identification information that does not belong, and
The control means groups the identification information in advance so that the identification information selected in the content selectable column by the operation unit can be moved to the group determination column and The identification information to be displayed is configured to be stored in the storage unit in units of groups, and before the update time is reached, the display pattern is automatically changed according to the date and time and displayed on the display unit, The content providing apparatus, wherein the identification information displayed on the display means is displayed by being switched in units of groups according to a date and time. The control means is configured to display a content priority setting screen on the display unit when a content priority setting command is given from the operation unit.
The content priority setting screen includes a content priority setting field that enables display of the identification information constituting the selected group in the order of display priority when one of the groups is selected by the operation unit.
The control means can change the display priority of the identification information displayed in the content priority setting field by the operation unit, and the display priority of the identification information set in the content priority setting field is stored in the storage means. The content providing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the identification information displayed on the display unit is displayed in order of the display priority. The control means is configured to display a pattern status screen on the display unit when a pattern status setting command is given from the operation unit,
The pattern status screen includes a pattern display field that allows a predetermined group to be displayed in association with each date and time,
The control means allows the predetermined group displayed in the pattern display field to be input by the operation unit, and the setting status of the predetermined group set for each date and time in the pattern display field is stored in the storage means. The content providing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the content providing apparatus is configured to store the identification information constituting the group corresponding to a current date and time on the display unit. The content providing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the control unit displays the identification information in a left or upper region on a screen of the display unit.

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