JP2011004334A - Information processing apparatus, information processing method and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To record a history of view of programs having actual sensation that a user has viewed.SOLUTION: An information processing apparatus 100 includes a detection section 152 which detects the kind of view start operation for a content by the user; a determination section 156, which determines a view determination time period for determining whether the user views the content according to the kind of view start operation for the content; and a determination section 160 which determines whether view history information on the content is recorded in a storage medium by comparing the viewing time period for which the user views the content with the view determination time period determined by the determination section.

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program, and more particularly, to an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program for recording content viewing history information on a storage medium.

  Recently, there has been disclosed a technique for registering a viewing history of a program viewed by a user, analyzing user preferences from the viewing history, and providing recommended program information to the user. However, when a user selects a desired program while zapping a plurality of programs, program information representing all the zapped programs is registered as a viewing history. In this case, there is a problem that program information not desired by the user is registered as a viewing history, and even program information representing a program that is not interesting to the user is recommended.

  Therefore, for example, Patent Document 1 is disclosed as a method of registering only program information representing a user's desired program as a viewing history. According to Patent Document 1, when acquiring the viewing history of a program, it is determined whether to acquire the viewing history based on the ratio of the measurement time from the start of viewing and the broadcast time of the program. For example, when the broadcast time of the program is long, the measurement time from the start of viewing is set longer than a predetermined time, and when the broadcast time of the program is short, the measurement time from the start of viewing is set shorter than the predetermined time. As a result, programs that are just zapped by the user are not registered in the viewing history, and programs that are not of interest to the user are not registered as viewing history.

JP 2007-267195 A

However, in the above-mentioned patent document 1, when a program with a short broadcast time is switched and viewed with a sense of zapping, a viewing history is registered, or when a program with a long broadcast time is viewed for a short time instead of zapping. Had a problem of not being registered in the viewing history.
Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved recording history of a program that is actually viewed by the user. An information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program are provided.

  In order to solve the above problem, according to an aspect of the present invention, a detection unit that detects a type of content viewing start operation by a user operation and whether the user has viewed content according to the type of content viewing start operation. The determination unit that determines the viewing determination time for determining whether or not, the viewing time when the user viewed the content and the viewing determination time determined by the determination unit are compared, and the viewing history information of the content is recorded in the storage medium An information processing apparatus is provided that includes a determination unit that determines whether or not.

  According to this configuration, the viewing start operation type of the content by the user operation is detected, and the viewing determination time for determining whether or not the user is viewing the content is determined according to the viewing start operation type. Then, the viewing time when the user actually viewed the content is compared with the determined viewing determination time, and it is determined whether or not the content viewing history information is recorded in the storage medium. As a result, not only the user zapping but also the content that is actually viewed can be accumulated as the viewing history, and the content utilizing the viewing history can be efficiently accessed.

  In addition, when the determination unit determines that the viewing time measured by the measurement unit and the viewing time measured by the measurement unit have passed the viewing determination time, the content viewing history information is stored in the storage medium. And a recording unit for recording.

  In addition, a storage unit is provided that stores reference time information in which a content viewing start operation type and a reference time of a viewing determination time are associated, and the content viewing start operation type can be directly selected by a user operation. When the direct key is pressed, a time shorter than a predetermined time may be stored in the storage unit as a reference time for viewing determination time.

  In addition, when a numeric keypad capable of selecting content from a plurality of numeric keys is pressed by a user operation, a time longer than a predetermined time is stored in the storage unit as a reference time for viewing determination time. May be.

  In addition, when a plus / minus key that can be selected from before and after a channel for which content is selected is pressed by a user operation, a content viewing start operation type that is longer than a predetermined time is stored as a reference time for viewing determination time. It may be stored in the part.

  In addition, when the content viewing start operation type is an operation to select via the program guide information including the content, the reference for the viewing determination time when the direct key is pressed as the reference time for the viewing determination time A time that is longer than the time and shorter than the reference time of the viewing determination time when the numeric keypad is pressed may be stored in the storage unit.

  The determination unit may determine the viewing determination time according to the user's preference level corresponding to the content that the user is viewing.

  Also, the user's preference degree may be set for each content genre or each content title.

  In addition, the storage unit stores multiplication rate information in which the user's preference level and the multiplication rate to be multiplied by the reference time of the viewing determination time are associated, and the determination unit corresponds to the content that the user is viewing. The viewing determination time may be determined by multiplying the reference rate of the viewing determination time by the multiplication rate associated with the user's preference level.

  The determination unit may determine the viewing determination time in accordance with a predetermined user operation when the user is viewing the content.

  Further, the predetermined user operation may be a program description display operation for content, a fast-forward operation or a fast-rewind operation for content.

  In addition, the storage unit stores multiplication rate information in which a predetermined user operation and a multiplication rate to be multiplied by the reference time of the viewing determination time are associated with each other, and the determination unit is configured when the user is viewing the content. Alternatively, the viewing determination time may be determined by multiplying the multiplication rate associated with the user operation performed in step 1 to the reference time of the viewing determination time.

  In order to solve the above problem, according to another aspect of the present invention, in an information processing apparatus that records content viewing history information in a storage medium, a step of detecting a content viewing start operation type by a user operation; The step of determining a viewing determination time for determining whether or not the user has viewed the content is compared with the viewing time for which the user has viewed the content and the determined viewing determination time in accordance with the content viewing start operation type And determining whether to record content viewing history information in a storage medium.

  Further, according to another aspect of the present invention to solve the above-described problem, a computer detects a content viewing start operation type by a user operation, and according to the content viewing start operation type, The content viewing history is determined by comparing the determination unit for determining the viewing determination time for determining whether or not the user has viewed the content, and the viewing time for viewing the content by the user and the viewing determination time determined by the determination unit. A program for functioning as an information processing apparatus is provided, comprising: a determination unit that determines whether to record information in a storage medium.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to record a viewing history of a program that is actually viewed by a user.

It is explanatory drawing explaining the outline | summary of the determination process of the viewing determination time in the information processing apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed an example of the hardware constitutions of the information processing apparatus concerning the embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the function structure of the information processing apparatus concerning the embodiment. It is explanatory drawing explaining the content of the reference time information concerning the embodiment. It is explanatory drawing explaining the content of the user's preference degree and multiplication rate concerning the embodiment. It is explanatory drawing explaining the content of the user operation and multiplication rate concerning the embodiment. It is explanatory drawing explaining the content of the viewing history information of the content concerning the embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the viewing history registration process in the information processing apparatus concerning the embodiment.

  Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, in this specification and drawing, about the component which has the substantially same function structure, duplication description is abbreviate | omitted by attaching | subjecting the same code | symbol.

Further, the “best mode for carrying out the invention” will be described in the following order.
[1] Purpose of this embodiment [2] Hardware configuration of information processing apparatus [3] Functional configuration of information processing apparatus [4] Details of viewing history registration processing in information processing apparatus

[1] Purpose of the present embodiment Recently, a technique for registering a viewing history of a program viewed by a user, analyzing user preferences from the viewing history, and providing recommended program information to the user has been disclosed. . However, when a user selects a desired program while zapping a plurality of programs, program information representing all the zapped programs is registered as a viewing history. In this case, there is a problem that program information not desired by the user is registered as a viewing history, and even program information representing a program that is not interesting to the user is recommended.

  Therefore, the following technique is disclosed as a method of registering only program information representing a user's desired program as a viewing history. In this technique, when the viewing history of a program is acquired, it is determined whether or not to acquire the viewing history based on the ratio between the measurement time from the start of viewing and the broadcast time of the program. For example, when the broadcast time of the program is long, the measurement time from the start of viewing is set longer than a predetermined time, and when the broadcast time of the program is short, the measurement time from the start of viewing is set shorter than the predetermined time. As a result, programs that are just zapped by the user are not registered in the viewing history, and programs that are not of interest to the user are not registered as viewing history.

  However, with the above technology, viewing history is registered if a program with a short broadcast time is switched and viewed in the sense of zapping, or viewing is performed when a program with a long broadcast time is viewed for a short time instead of zapping. There was a problem that it was not registered in the history. Accordingly, the information processing apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention has been created with the above circumstances as a focus. According to the information processing apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, it is possible to record a viewing history of a program that is actually viewed by a user.

  Next, an outline of the information processing apparatus 100 will be described. The information processing apparatus 100 is an apparatus having a function of determining whether or not content viewed by a user is accumulated as a viewing history. Whether or not the viewing history is accumulated is determined based on the viewing determination time for determining whether or not the user has viewed the content. The viewing determination time is set according to what operation the user has started viewing, user preference information, user operation while viewing the program, and the like. That is, the viewing determination time is a time that serves as a reference for whether or not the content is actually viewed by the user.

  Here, with reference to FIG. 1, an outline of the viewing determination time determination process in the information processing apparatus 100 will be described. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an overview of a process for determining a viewing determination time in the information processing apparatus 100. As shown in FIG. 1, first, in STEP 0, the user performs a viewing start operation when viewing content such as a program received by a television broadcast receiver or the like.

  The viewing start operation in STEP 0 includes, for example, a remote keypad 10, a cross media bar (XMB) 11 menu, a program table 12 menu, a direct key for directly selecting a program, a press of a plus / minus key, For example, input switching operation. The information processing apparatus 100 detects the viewing start operation type by the user.

  Then, based on the viewing start operation type detected in STEP 0, a reference viewing determination time is determined (STEP 1). When the viewing time actually viewed by the user has passed the viewing determination time determined in STEP 1, viewing history information of the content viewed by the user is recorded. The viewing determination time is a time determined from the viewpoint of whether the user has selected to view content or has just passed for zapping. For example, since the possibility of zapping is high when the numeric keypad of the remote controller is operated, the viewing determination time is set longer than a predetermined time. On the other hand, when the direct key of the remote controller is operated, there is a high possibility that the user has tried to view one content, so the viewing determination time is set shorter than the predetermined time. A method for determining the viewing determination time based on the viewing start operation type will be described in detail later.

  If user preference data is stored, the viewing determination time determined in STEP 1 is changed based on the user preference data (STEP 2). The user preference data is, for example, information on what genre, what program, and what time zone the user likes. For example, when the content selected by the user is content with a high degree of user preference, the time is shorter than the viewing determination time determined in STEP 1. As a result, content with a higher degree of user preference is more likely to be recorded in the viewing history information, and content desired by the user can be recommended. A method for determining the viewing determination time based on the user preference data will be described later in detail.

  If any user operation is performed on the content while the content is being reproduced, the viewing determination time is changed based on the user operation (STEP 3). Examples of user operations include fast-forwarding and fast-returning content, and program description display browsing operation. For example, when a fast-forward operation is performed during content playback, the user is less interested in the content, and the time is longer than the determined viewing determination time. Further, when a program explanation display browsing operation is performed during the reproduction of content, it is assumed that the user is highly interested in the content, and the time is shorter than the determined viewing determination time. As a result, content with higher user interest is more easily recorded in the viewing history information, and content desired by the user can be recommended. A method for determining the viewing determination time based on the user operation will be described in detail later.

  The information processing apparatus 100 is an apparatus capable of reproducing content, and can be exemplified by a computer apparatus (notebook type or desktop type) such as a personal computer, for example. Further, although the information processing apparatus 100 and the television broadcast receiver that receives the television broadcast are separate apparatuses, the present invention is not limited to such an example, and the information processing apparatus 100 and the television broadcast receiver are an integrated apparatus. May be. Further, although the display device that displays content such as a program received by the television broadcast receiver and the information processing device 100 are separate devices, the present invention is not limited to this example, and the information processing device and the display device are integrated. The apparatus may be used.

[2] Hardware Configuration of Information Processing Device The overview of the viewing determination time determination process in the information processing device 100 has been described above. Next, the hardware configuration of the information processing apparatus 100 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the information processing apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment.

  The information processing apparatus 100 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 101, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 102, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 103, a host bus 104, a bridge 105, an external bus 106, an interface 107, and the like. , An input device 108, an output device 109, a storage device (HDD) 110, a drive 111, and a communication device 112.

  The CPU 101 functions as an arithmetic processing device and a control device, and controls the overall operation in the information processing device 100 according to various programs. Further, the CPU 101 may be a microprocessor. The ROM 102 stores programs and calculation parameters used by the CPU 101. The RAM 103 primarily stores programs used in the execution of the CPU 101, parameters that change as appropriate during the execution, and the like. These are connected to each other by a host bus 104 including a CPU bus.

  The host bus 104 is connected via a bridge 105 to an external bus 106 such as a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect / Interface) bus. Note that the host bus 104, the bridge 105, and the external bus 106 are not necessarily configured separately, and these functions may be mounted on one bus.

  The input device 108 is, for example, an input means for a user to input information, such as a mouse, keyboard, touch panel, button, microphone, switch, and lever, and an input that generates an input signal based on the input by the user and outputs it to the CPU 101 It consists of a control circuit. A user of the information processing apparatus 100 can input various data or instruct a processing operation to the information processing apparatus 100 by operating the input device 108.

  The output device 109 includes, for example, a display device such as a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) display device, a liquid crystal display (LCD) device, an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Display) device and a lamp, and an audio output device such as a speaker and headphones. The The output device 109 outputs the reproduced content, for example. Specifically, the display device displays various information such as reproduced video data as text or images. On the other hand, the audio output device converts reproduced audio data or the like into audio and outputs it.

  The storage device 110 is a data storage device configured as an example of a storage unit of the server device 10 according to the present embodiment, and is a storage medium, a recording device that records data in the storage medium, and a read that reads data from the storage medium A deletion device for deleting data recorded on the device and the storage medium can be included. The storage device 110 is composed of, for example, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive). The storage device 110 drives a hard disk and stores programs executed by the CPU 101 and various data.

  The drive 111 is a storage medium reader / writer, and is built in or externally attached to the server device 10. The drive 111 reads information recorded on a removable storage medium 120 such as a mounted magnetic disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, or semiconductor memory, and outputs the information to the RAM 103.

  The communication device 112 is a communication interface configured with, for example, a communication device for connecting to the communication network 50. The communication device 112 may be a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) compatible communication device, a wireless USB compatible communication device, or a wire communication device that performs wired communication.

[3] Functional configuration of information processing apparatus The hardware configuration of the information processing apparatus 100 has been described above. Next, the functional configuration of the information processing apparatus 100 will be described with reference to FIG. In describing the functional configuration of the information processing apparatus 100, FIGS. 4 to 7 will be referred to as appropriate.

  As illustrated in FIG. 3, the information processing apparatus 100 includes a detection unit 152, a measurement unit 154, a determination unit 156, a storage unit 158, a determination unit 160, a recording unit 162, a storage medium 164, and the like. In FIG. 3, the storage unit 158 and the storage medium 164 are separate devices for convenience of explanation, but the storage unit 158 and the storage medium 164 may be a single storage device.

  The detection unit 152 has a function of detecting the type of content viewing start operation by a user operation. As described above, the viewing start operation type is, for example, a remote keypad, a cross media bar (XMB) menu, a program guide menu, a direct key for directly selecting a program, or a plus / minus key press. The type of operation by the user that is a viewing start trigger, such as an input switching operation. These input operations are performed by pressing a numeric keypad button, a plus / minus key button, or the like of a remote controller used when viewing content. It is also possible to select by touching a display screen on which a cross media bar or a program guide is displayed. The detection unit 152 provides the detected viewing start operation type to the determination unit 156.

  The measuring unit 154 has a function of measuring the viewing time when the user views the content. The viewing time measured by the measurement unit 154 is the time when the user actually viewed the content. The measurement unit 154 measures the time from the start of playback of one content to the stop of playback. Further, when the user is watching a program received from the television receiver, the time from when one channel is selected until the channel is switched to another channel is measured. The measurement unit 154 provides the measured viewing time to the determination unit 160.

  The determining unit 156 has a function of determining a viewing determination time for determining whether or not the user has viewed content according to the viewing start operation type detected by the detecting unit 152. Specifically, the determination unit 156 determines the reference time for the viewing determination time based on the reference time information 400 stored in the storage unit 158. Here, the reference time information 400 stored in the storage unit 158 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the contents of the reference time information 400 stored in the storage unit 158. As shown in FIG. 4, the reference time information 400 is associated with a viewing start operation type 401 and a viewing determination time 402. As described above, the viewing determination time 402 is set based on the viewing start operation type 401 from the viewpoint of whether the user tried to view the content or just passed by zapping.

  For example, when the viewing operation start type 401 starts viewing content by pressing the numeric keypad on the remote controller, the viewing determination time 402 is set to 60 seconds because the possibility of zapping is high. Similarly, when viewing is started by pressing the plus / minus (+ −) key of the remote controller, since the possibility of zapping is high, the viewing determination time 402 is set to 60 seconds. On the other hand, when viewing is started by pressing the direct key of the remote controller, the viewing determination time 402 is set to 1 second shorter than that of the numeric keypad or the remote control key because there is a high possibility that the content is operated for viewing.

  Also, when viewing is started by operating the program guide, since the possibility of zapping is low, it is set to 10 seconds shorter than the numeric keypad or remote control key and longer than the direct key. Furthermore, when content viewing is started by operating a menu screen such as a cross media bar, the time is set to 30 seconds, which is shorter than the numeric keypad or remote control key and longer than when viewing is started by operating the program guide. . Thus, the viewing determination time 402 is set in advance according to the operation characteristics of the viewing operation start type 401. The viewing determination time 402 may be set by the user.

  Returning to FIG. 3, the description of the functional configuration is continued. The determining unit 156 also determines the viewing determination time in consideration of the multiplying rate information 500 according to the user's preference level or the multiplying rate information 600 according to the user operation when viewing the content in the storage unit 158. You may make it do. Specifically, the determination unit 156 further multiplies the viewing determination time determined according to the reference time information 400 by the multiplication rate by the viewing determination time according to the user's preference level or user operation, and performs appropriate viewing. Determine the judgment time.

  As the user's preference, for example, when the content is a program received by a television receiver, which broadcast station is often viewed, which genre is often viewed, and which time zone The information indicating the user's preference, such as whether to frequently watch the program, is accumulated and analyzed. Based on these preference data, a multiplication rate (rate) to the reference viewing determination time is determined. When such user preference data is not accumulated, the reference viewing determination time is not changed.

  Here, with reference to FIG. 5, a user's preference degree and multiplication rate are demonstrated. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the contents of the user's preference level and the multiplication rate. As shown in FIG. 5, a program name 501, a preference level (point) 502, and a rate (multiplication rate) 503 are associated with the multiplication rate information 500 based on the user's preference level. The preference degree 502 is set to a higher numerical value as it matches the user preference. The rate 503 is a multiplication rate determined according to the degree of preference. For example, a program with a higher user preference has a lower rate, and a program with a lower user preference has a higher rate.

  That is, a program having a higher user preference is determined as a viewing determination time that is shorter than the reference viewing determination time determined according to the viewing start operation type. In addition, a program having a lower user preference is determined as a viewing determination time that is longer than a reference viewing determination time determined according to the viewing start operation type.

  For example, when viewing is started by operating the remote control numeric keypad, first, the reference viewing determination time is determined to be 60 seconds. When the program selected by the user is the program B, the multiplication rate of 0.5 is multiplied by the reference viewing determination time of 60 seconds. Therefore, 60 × 0.5 = 30 seconds is determined as the viewing determination time for the content. On the other hand, when the program selected by the user is the program C having a low user preference, the multiplication rate 1.1 is multiplied by the reference usage determination time of 60 seconds. Therefore, 60 × 1.1 = 66 seconds is determined as the viewing time for the content. As a result, it is determined that the user has actually watched the content with a higher degree of preference of the user only by viewing the shorter time.

  Next, user operations and multiplication rates will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the contents of user operations and multiplication rates. As shown in FIG. 6, a user operation 601 and a rate (multiplication rate) 602 are associated with the multiplication rate information 600 based on the user operation. Examples of the user operation 601 include browsing of program explanation display, fast forward, and fast reverse. The rate 602 is set according to the characteristics of the user operation.

  For example, when a program explanation display is viewed while viewing a program, the user is considered interested in the program, so that the viewing determination time is set shorter than the reference viewing determination time. Set the multiplication rate. When fast-forwarding is performed, the user is considered not interested in the program, so a high multiplication rate is set so that a viewing determination time longer than the reference viewing determination time is set.

  For example, it is assumed that the user performs a browsing operation for displaying the program description while viewing the program B described above. The viewing determination time taking into account the user preference level of the program B is multiplied by the rate when the user operation is a program explanation display. Therefore, 60 × 0.5 × 0.2 = 6 seconds is determined as the viewing determination time for the content. As a result, it is determined that the user has actually watched the content that the user is more interested in only by watching the short time. The change of the viewing determination time based on the user operation is performed on the remaining time of the viewing determination time at the time of the user operation. The reference time information 400 and the multiplication rate information 500 and 600 stored in the storage unit 158 have been described above.

  Returning to FIG. 3, the description of the functional configuration is continued. The determination unit 156 provides the determined viewing determination time to the determination unit 160. The determination unit 160 compares the viewing time provided by the measurement unit 154 with the viewing determination time provided by the determination unit 156 to determine whether to record the content viewing history information in the storage medium 164. It has a function.

  For example, as described above, when the viewing determination time determined by the determination unit 156 is 6 seconds and the actual viewing time exceeds 6 seconds, the viewing history information is recorded in the storage medium 164. Judge that. On the other hand, when the viewing determination time is 6 seconds and the actual viewing time does not exceed 6 seconds, it is determined that the viewing history information is not recorded in the storage medium 164. The determination unit 160 provides the determination result to the recording unit 162.

  Whether or not to record the content viewing history based on the viewing start type, not only considering whether it is zapping or watching, but also taking into account user preference and user operation Can be judged. Therefore, only the content that is actually felt when viewed by the user is left as the viewing history, and only the viewing history that meets the user's preference is likely to remain. That is, what is recorded in the storage medium 164 as viewing history information is history information having a high utility value for the user.

  When the determination unit 160 determines that the viewing time measured by the measurement unit 154 has passed the viewing determination time determined by the determination unit 156, the recording unit 162 stores the content viewing history information in the storage medium 164. Has the function of recording. Here, with reference to FIG. 7, viewing history information of content recorded in the storage medium 164 will be described. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the contents of viewing history information of content recorded in the storage medium 164.

  As shown in FIG. 7, in the viewing history information 700, viewing content 701 and a data format 702 are stored in association with each other. The viewing content 701 is information indicating the content of the content being viewed by the user. Examples of the viewing content 701 include programs received by a television receiver, external input from an external device that outputs content, still images, moving images, and music content.

  The data format 702 stores the type for each content. For example, when the viewing content 701 is a program, any network type such as analog, terrestrial, BS, CS, channel information, program information, and the like are stored. When the viewing content 701 is an external input, the external input terminal type and the like are stored. When the viewing content 701 is a still image or the like, the content type, file path, file name, and the like are stored.

  Note that the data format 702 may store only information serving as a key for identifying each content. When viewing history is displayed on the display screen with reference to viewing history information 700, detailed information on the content is displayed based on key information stored in data format 702. Specifically, when viewing history is displayed, detailed information is acquired from a database in which metadata indicating the detailed information of the content is stored based on the key information. Further, metadata may be stored in a server on the network, and detailed information may be acquired via the network. The viewing history information 700 has been described above.

[4] Details of Viewing History Registration Processing in Information Processing Device The functional configuration of the information processing device 100 has been described above. Next, details of viewing history registration processing in the information processing apparatus 100 will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing viewing history registration processing in the information processing apparatus 100.

  As shown in FIG. 8, a program received by a television receiver or the like is selected in response to a user's viewing start operation (S102). As described above, the user's viewing start operation in step S102 includes, for example, pressing a numeric keypad, direct key, plus / minus key on the remote controller, selecting operation from the cross media bar menu or program guide menu, and input switching operation. It can be illustrated. The user's viewing start operation in step S102 is detected by the detection unit 152 and provided to the determination unit 156.

  Next, the determination unit 156 sets a viewing determination time for determining whether or not the user has viewed the content according to the type of the viewing start operation detected by the detection unit 152 (S104). The type of the user's viewing start operation and the viewing determination time are stored in the storage unit 158 in association with each other. Therefore, the determination unit 156 sets the viewing determination time corresponding to the type of the viewing start operation detected by the detection unit 152.

  As described above, the viewing determination time is set based on the type of viewing start operation performed by the user from the viewpoint of whether the user has attempted to view the content or has just passed through zapping.

  For example, when the type of viewing operation is started by pressing the numeric keypad or plus / minus key on the remote controller to start viewing content, the possibility of zapping is high. On the other hand, when viewing is started by pressing the direct key of the remote controller, there is a high possibility that the content is operated for viewing. Therefore, the viewing determination time is set longer when the numeric keypad or the plus / minus key of the remote controller is pressed than when the direct key is pressed. As a result, no viewing history remains when only zapping passes.

  When viewing is started by operating the program guide, since the possibility of zapping is low, a viewing determination time shorter than that of the numeric keypad or remote control key and longer than that of the direct key is set. In addition, when viewing content by operating a menu screen such as a cross media bar, a viewing judgment time that is shorter than the numeric keypad or remote control key and longer than when viewing is started by operating the program guide is set. To do.

  Next, the determination unit 156 determines whether there is preference data (S106). The storage unit 158 stores multiplication rate information corresponding to the user's preference level. As the user's preference, for example, when the content is a program received by a television receiver, which broadcast station is often viewed, which genre is often viewed, and which time zone The information indicating the user's preference, such as whether to frequently watch the program, is accumulated and analyzed. In step S106, it is determined whether or not such preference data is stored in the storage unit 158.

  If it is determined in step S106 that there is preference data, the viewing determination time is set reflecting the preference data (S108). As described above, the storage unit 158 stores multiplication rate information according to the user's preference level. Therefore, the reference determination time set in step S104 is multiplied by the multiplication rate information to determine the viewing determination time. Is calculated. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S106 that there is no preference data, the reference viewing determination time set in step S104 is not changed.

  Next, the determination unit 156 determines whether there is a user operation (S110). The storage unit 158 stores multiplication rate information according to user operations. Examples of user operations include browsing of program explanation display, fast forward, and fast reverse. For example, when a program explanation display is viewed while viewing a program, the user is considered interested in the program, so that the viewing determination time is set shorter than the reference viewing determination time. Set the multiplication rate. In addition, when fast-forwarding is performed, the user is not interested in the program, so a high multiplication rate is set so that a viewing determination time longer than the reference viewing determination time is set. Yes.

  If it is determined in step S110 that there is a user operation, the currently remaining viewing determination time is acquired (S112). In step S112, the time from the viewing start operation detected in step S102 to the user operation detected in step S110 is subtracted from the viewing determination time set in step S104 or step S108.

  Then, the remaining viewing judgment time calculated in step S112 is multiplied by the multiplication rate associated with the user operation to calculate and set the viewing judgment time again (S114). If it is determined in step S1120 that there is no user operation, the viewing determination time is not recalculated.

  Then, the determination unit 160 determines whether or not the viewing time measured by the measurement unit 154 has passed the viewing determination time set in step S104, step S108, or step S114 (S116). The viewing time measured by the measurement unit 154 is the time when the user actually viewed the content. The measurement unit 154 measures the time from the start of playback of one content to the stop of playback. Further, when the user is watching a program received from the television receiver, the time from when one channel is selected until the channel is switched to another channel is measured.

  If it is determined in step S116 that the viewing time has passed the viewing determination time, the viewing history information is accumulated in the viewing history (S118). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S116 that the viewing time has not passed the viewing determination time, the processing in steps S110 to S116 is repeated without accumulating the viewing history information. The details of the viewing history registration process in the information processing apparatus 100 have been described above.

  As described above, according to the information processing apparatus 100, the viewing determination time for determining whether or not the user is viewing the content according to the viewing start operation type is detected by detecting the content viewing start operation type by the user operation. decide. Then, the viewing time when the user actually viewed the content is compared with the determined viewing determination time, and it is determined whether or not the content viewing history information is recorded in the storage medium. As a result, not only the user zapping but also the content that is actually viewed can be accumulated as the viewing history, and the content utilizing the viewing history can be efficiently accessed.

  In addition, it is possible to determine whether or not to record the content viewing history in consideration of the user's preference level and user operation, and it is possible to create history information having high utility value for the user. In the future, it will be possible to easily search and use content useful for the user while the amount of content and information viewed by the user will be enormous. In addition, it is possible to recommend content with high user interest using the accumulated history information, and to efficiently access the content through the history information. Also, assuming that the contents belong to different genres or are generally irrelevant contents, the highly relevant contents are associated with each other through the history information, and the contents with high utility value are It becomes possible to search easily.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited to such examples. It is obvious that a person having ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention pertains can come up with various changes or modifications within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims. Of course, it is understood that these also belong to the technical scope of the present invention.

  For example, each step in the processing of the information processing apparatus 100 of the present specification does not necessarily have to be processed in time series in the order described as a flowchart. That is, each step in the processing of the information processing apparatus 100 may include processing executed in parallel or individually (for example, parallel processing or processing by an object).

  Further, it is possible to create a computer program for causing hardware such as a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM built in the information processing apparatus 100 to exhibit functions equivalent to those of each configuration of the information processing apparatus 100 described above. A storage medium storing the computer program is also provided.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Information processing apparatus 152 Detection part 154 Measurement part 156 Determination part 158 Storage part 160 Determination part 162 Recording part 164 Storage medium

Claims (14)

A detection unit for detecting a type of content viewing start operation by a user operation;
A determination unit that determines a viewing determination time for determining whether or not the user has viewed the content according to the content viewing start operation type;
A determination unit that determines whether or not to record the viewing history information of the content in a storage medium by comparing the viewing time when the user viewed the content and the viewing determination time determined by the determination unit;
An information processing apparatus comprising: A measuring unit for measuring a viewing time when the user views the content;
A recording unit that records the viewing history information of the content in a storage medium when the determination unit determines that the viewing time measured by the measurement unit has passed the viewing determination time. The information processing apparatus described in 1. A storage unit that stores reference time information in which the content viewing start operation type and the reference time of the viewing determination time are associated;
The storage unit stores a time shorter than a predetermined time as a reference time for the viewing determination time when the content viewing start operation type is a direct key capable of directly selecting content by the user operation. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.   When the content viewing start operation type is a numeric keypad capable of selecting content from a plurality of numeric keys by the user operation, a time longer than a predetermined time is stored in the storage unit as a reference time for the viewing determination time. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3.   The content viewing start operation type is a time longer than a predetermined time as a reference time for the viewing determination time when a plus / minus key that can be selected before and after a channel in which content is selected is pressed by the user operation. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, stored in the storage unit.   When the content viewing start operation type is an operation of selecting via the program guide information including the content, the viewing determination when the direct key is pressed as a reference time for the viewing determination time The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a time longer than a reference time of the time and shorter than a reference time of the viewing determination time when the numeric keypad is pressed is stored in the storage unit.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines the viewing determination time according to a user's preference level corresponding to the content that the user is viewing.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the user preference level is set for each genre of the content or for each title of the content. The storage unit stores multiplication rate information in which the preference degree of the user is associated with a multiplication rate by which the reference time of the viewing determination time is multiplied,
The determination unit according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the determination unit determines the viewing determination time by multiplying a reference time of the viewing determination time by a multiplication rate associated with a user's preference level corresponding to the content being viewed by the user. The information processing apparatus according to any one of the above.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines the viewing determination time according to a predetermined user operation when a user is viewing content.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the predetermined user operation is a program description display operation of the content, a fast-forward operation or a fast-rewind operation of the content. The storage unit stores multiplication rate information in which the predetermined user operation is associated with a multiplication rate to be multiplied by a reference time of the viewing determination time,
The determination unit determines the viewing determination time by multiplying a reference time of the viewing determination time by a multiplication rate associated with a user operation performed when the user is viewing the content. The information processing apparatus according to any one of the above. In an information processing apparatus for recording content viewing history information in a storage medium,
Detecting a content viewing start operation type by a user operation;
Determining a viewing determination time for determining whether or not the user has viewed the content according to the content viewing start operation type;
Comparing the viewing time when the user viewed the content and the determined viewing determination time to determine whether or not to record the viewing history information of the content in a storage medium;
Including an information processing method. Computer
A detection unit for detecting a type of content viewing start operation by a user operation;
A determination unit that determines a viewing determination time for determining whether or not the user has viewed the content according to the content viewing start operation type;
A determination unit that determines whether or not to record the viewing history information of the content in a storage medium by comparing the viewing time when the user viewed the content and the viewing determination time determined by the determination unit;
A program for functioning as an information processing apparatus.

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