Information processing device, information processing method, information processing system, program, and storage medium

Abstract

To make it possible to provide a mechanism that increases opportunities to provide content provided by a content providing service to users who are suitable for that audio content.SOLUTION: An information processing device according to the present disclosure includes registration means for registering audio content provided from an external server for providing content and produced by a first user, acquisition means for acquiring location information of a second communication terminal used by a second user or location information specified in the second communication terminal, and provision means for providing content information including access information to the audio content to the second communication terminal. The registration means acquires and registers the access information to the audio content and location information to be set in the audio content from a first communication terminal used by the first user, and the provision means provides the content information including the access information for the audio content to the second communication terminal based on the location information of the second communication terminal or the location information specified in the second communication terminal and the location information set in the audio content.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, an information processing system, a program, and a storage medium.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, for the purpose of use in tourist guides and the like, when the distance between the registered position of text content and the current position of the user is within a certain distance, voice content corresponding to the text content is generated and transmitted to the user's terminal. This technology is known (Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] By the way, in recent years, services that distribute voice content such as talks and programs via the Internet, such as podcasts, have been provided. Content creators of voice content upload the created content to such services and provide the voice content to users who are service users via the services.

[0005] Since a large number of voice contents are provided from various distribution services, users can enjoy a large number of voice contents, but there is a problem that it is not easy to find voice contents suitable for themselves. Also, for content creators, there is an expectation for a new mechanism to increase the opportunity to provide the content provided by the content-providing service to suitable users of the voice content.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to realize a technology capable of providing a mechanism for increasing an opportunity to provide content provided in a content-providing service to a user suitable for the audio content.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] According to the present invention, registration means for registering audio content provided from an external server for content provision and created by a first user; acquisition means for acquiring position information of the second communication terminal or position information specified in the second communication terminal from a second communication terminal used by a second user; providing means for providing content information including access information to the audio content to the second communication terminal, and the registration means acquires and registers the access information to the audio content and position information set for the audio content from a first communication terminal used by the first user, and the providing means provides content information including the access information to the audio content to the second communication terminal based on the position information of the second communication terminal or the position information specified in the second communication terminal and the position information set for the audio content. An information processing apparatus characterized by this is provided. The registration means acquires and registers the access information to the audio content and the position information set for the audio content from a first communication terminal used by the first user. The providing means provides content information including the access information to the audio content to the second communication terminal based on the position information of the second communication terminal or the position information specified in the second communication terminal and the position information set for the audio content. An information processing apparatus characterized by this is provided.

Effects of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it becomes possible to provide a mechanism for increasing an opportunity to provide content provided in a content-providing service to a user suitable for the audio content.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

Figure 1

Figure 2

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Figure 4A

Figure 4B

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Figure 6

Figure 7A

Figure 7B

Figure 7C

Figure 7D

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Figure 9

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims, and not all combinations of the features described in the embodiments are essential for the invention. Two or more of the plurality of features described in the embodiments may be arbitrarily combined. Also, the same or similar configurations are given the same reference numerals, and duplicate descriptions are omitted.

[0011] <Configuration of Information Processing System> Referring to FIG. 1, an information processing system according to this embodiment will be described. The information system 10 includes, for example, an information processing apparatus 100, a content providing apparatus 101, a communication apparatus 102, and a communication apparatus 103. The communication apparatus 102 or the communication apparatus 103 can communicate with the information processing apparatus 100 and the content providing apparatus 101 via wireless communication or the Internet.

[0012] The communication apparatus 102 is a communication terminal used by a user 104 who is a listener of voice content, and includes, for example, a smartphone, a personal computer, and a tablet terminal. The user 104 uses the communication apparatus 102 to access the content providing apparatus 101 and stream-play the voice content.

[0013] The communication apparatus 103 is a communication terminal used by a content creator 105, and includes, for example, a smartphone, a personal computer, and a tablet terminal. The content creator 105 uses the communication apparatus 103 to set, in the information processing apparatus 100, access information to his or her own voice content held by the content providing apparatus 101 and access conditions to the voice content.

[0014] The content providing apparatus 101 is a server configured, for example, on a cloud service, holds voice content created by the content creator 105, and distributes the voice content to the communication apparatus 102 of the user 104 (for example, by streaming).

[0015] The information processing device 100 is a server configured, for example, on a cloud service, and provides a service (content selection service) that selects and provides appropriate voice content to the communication device 102. Although the details of the content selection service will be described later, the information processing device 100 transmits access information of voice content to the communication device 102 that satisfies the access conditions set by the content creator 105. Thereby, the communication device 102 can access the content providing device 101 based on the access information from the information processing device 100 and play voice content suitable for the position of the communication device 102 (or the position designated by the user 104 of the communication device 102).

[0016] In the following description, as an example, a case will be described in which the user 104 carrying the communication device 102 is driving a vehicle and an application for receiving a content providing service is being executed on the communication device 102. For example, when the user 104 driving the vehicle moves, voice content corresponding to the position of the user 104 (that is, the position of the communication device 102) is provided by the content selection service. The communication device 102 may cooperate with an in-vehicle device to provide information on voice content in the vehicle or may be incorporated into the in-vehicle device.

[0017] The content selection service provided by executing a computer program in the information processing device 100 is managed, for example, by a service provider that provides the content selection service. The information processing device 100 as hardware may be managed by the service provider or may be managed by another operator operating a data center or the like. Note that the functions described later realized by the information processing device 100 may be realized in an edge node that can be arranged between the server and the communication device. That is, the edge node may also be an example of an information processing device.

[0018] In the description of this embodiment, the case of using a service that distributes audio content is taken as an example for explanation. However, this embodiment can also be applied to the case of distributing video content or document content.

[0019] <Configuration of Information Processing Apparatus> Next, with reference to FIG. 2, a functional configuration example of the information processing apparatus 100 will be described. Each of the functional blocks described with reference to the figure may be integrated or separated, and the functions to be described may be realized by other blocks. Also, what is described as hardware may be realized by software, and vice versa. Further, in this embodiment, the case where the information processing apparatus 100 is a single device is taken as an example for explanation, but the information processing apparatus 100 may be composed of a plurality of devices, or may be configured as one or more virtual machines.

[0020] The communication unit 201 includes a communication circuit or communication module capable of communicating with the communication device 102 via a network.

[0021] The control unit 202 includes a processor 210 and a memory 211. The processor 210 may be composed of one or more processors. The control unit 202 controls the operations of each part of the information processing apparatus 100 by the processor 210 executing a computer program stored in the memory 211 or the storage unit 204. Also, the functions of each part included in the control unit 202 are realized, for example, when the processor 210 executes the computer program.

[0022] The memory 211 is a volatile storage medium such as a DRAM, and temporarily stores parameters, processing results, etc. for the control unit 202 to execute a computer program. The power supply unit 203 is a power supply for providing power for each part of the information processing apparatus 100 to operate.

[0023] The storage unit 204 includes a non-volatile storage medium such as a hard disk or a semiconductor memory, and stores setting values necessary for the operation of the information processing apparatus 100, computer programs, and the like. The computer programs stored in the storage unit 204 include an operating system and various applications for realizing the various functions of the information processing apparatus 100. The storage unit 204 includes, for example, content information 220, user information 221, operation history information 222, and map information 223.

[0024] As shown in FIG. 4A, for example, the content information 220 includes access information to the audio content held in the content providing apparatus 101 and information on access conditions for accessing the audio content. The access information is information for an external apparatus to access the audio content provided by the content providing apparatus 101. The access information may include, for example, but is not limited to, the URL of the audio content. The access information may include information accessible to the external apparatus to the audio content provided by the content providing apparatus 101, and may be, for example, an RSS feed including information accessible to the audio content.

[0025] Further, the access information is based on information provided by the content providing apparatus 101 to the communication apparatus 103 (used by the content creator 105) and transmitted from the communication apparatus 103 to the information processing apparatus 100. That is, the access information is information set for the audio content in the communication apparatus 103 by the content creator 105.

[0026] The access condition information includes conditions of the communication apparatus 102 that accesses the audio content. For example, the access condition information can define the range of the position of the communication apparatus 102 that accesses the audio content. For example, the access condition information of the audio content includes position information (registered position) set for the audio content, and the audio content can be provided to the communication apparatus 102 existing within a range (accessible range) defined by a predetermined radius centered on this registered position.

[0027] The access condition information can further include the movement condition of the registration position. For example, when the movement condition of the registration position is set to "fixed", the registration position does not change. For example, if the registration position set for the voice content is (longitude A, longitude A), the registration position remains (longitude A, longitude A) even as time passes.

[0028] As another example, when the movement condition of the registration position is set to, for example, "switch and move the registration position every hour", the registration position switches every hour. For example, the registration position set for the voice content is composed of multiple registration positions such as {(latitude B, longitude B), (latitude C, longitude C),...}, and the registration position may change every hour among them. The registration positions may be changed in order or randomly.

[0029] As yet another example, when the movement condition of the registration position is set to "move according to the position of communication device X", for example, the registration position may be associated with the position of communication device 103 of content creator 105 and move according to the position of communication device 103. In such a registration position setting, by moving so that user 104 chases content creator 105 who is transmitting information, it is possible to obtain the voice content transmitted by content creator 105 while chasing it and provide an enjoyable viewing experience.

[0030] For ease of understanding the embodiments, a case where the size of the radius indicating the accessible range is the same for all contents (for example, a radius of 1 km) will be described as an example. However, the accessible range may be set separately for each audio content according to the content of the audio content, the distribution intention, the registration position, the above movement conditions, and the like. For example, the accessible range of Content A may be set to a radius of 1 km, and the accessible range of Content B may be set to a radius of 500 m. By doing so, it is possible to create a situation where the user viewing Content B approaches and chases after the moving registration position. Further, the accessible range of Content C may be set to a radius of 100 m. By doing so, it is possible to create a situation where the user viewing Content C views the audio content while approaching within the range where it is possible to see a person carrying the communication device X.

[0031] The user information 221 includes information of the user 104 who is the user of the system. The user information 221 includes a user identifier, authentication information for using the content selection service, and the like.

[0032] The operation history information 222 is information indicating the operation history of the audio content for each user 104 acquired from the communication device 102. The operation history information 222 includes, for example, as shown in FIG. 4B, the date and time 421, the content identifier 422 of the operation target, and the playback time 423. The date and time 421 indicates the date and time when the target audio content was operated. The content identifier 422 of the operation target is the identifier of the audio content operated by the user 104. The playback time 423 indicates how long the user 104 played the target audio content. For example, the playback time 423 can be calculated from the playback start time and the playback end time, or it can be determined whether playback is completed. Note that it is not limited to the length of time, and information indicating what percentage of the length of the audio content was played may be used. The operation history information 222 may include other information such as the frequency at which the user 104 stopped the playback of the audio content and information on the playback speed during playback, in addition to the information shown in FIG. 4B.

[0033] The map information 223 includes information such as roads, railway lines, facilities such as buildings and stores, addresses, latitude, longitude, and altitude. The information processing apparatus 100 may provide the map information to, for example, the communication apparatus 102 of the user 104 (or the communication apparatus 103 of the user 105) to cause the communication apparatus 102 to display a map. By providing the map information, the communication apparatus 102 can visually display the positional relationship between the position of the user 104 and the position information set in the audio content.

[0034] The content information management unit 212 manages the access information to the audio content provided by the content providing apparatus 101 in association with the information on the access conditions of the audio content. For example, the content information management unit 212 generates or updates the content information 220 by acquiring the access information and the access condition information for the audio content from the content registration unit 216 and associating the two.

[0035] The content information management unit 212 can register the audio content specified by the user 104 in the communication apparatus 102 as the favorite audio content. The content information management unit 212 may manage the favorite content registered for each user using another table that manages the favorite information for each user.

[0036] The position information acquisition unit 213 acquires the position information of the communication apparatus from the communication apparatus 102 used by the user 104. The position information of the communication apparatus 102 includes, for example, the latitude and longitude information of the communication apparatus 102 obtained by GPS in the communication apparatus 102. The position information of the communication apparatus 102 may include the information on latitude, longitude, and altitude. In another example, the position information acquisition unit 213 may further acquire from the communication apparatus 102 the specified position on the map (for example, the information on latitude and longitude) specified in the communication apparatus 102.

[0037] The content specifying unit 214 specifies voice content that provides access to the communication device 102 based on the access conditions of the voice content (in the content information 220). For example, when the position of the communication device 102 satisfies the access conditions set for the voice content, the voice content is specified as the voice content that provides access to the communication device 102.

[0038] In one example, the content specifying unit 214 determines that the position of the communication device 102 satisfies the access conditions set for the voice content when the position of the communication device 102 exists within a predetermined distance from the registered position set for the voice content.

[0039] In another example, the content specifying unit 214 determines that the position of the communication device 102 satisfies the access conditions when the designated position specified on the map of the communication device 102 exists within a predetermined distance from the registered position set for the voice content.

[0040] Furthermore, the content specifying unit 214 can consider the movement conditions of the above-mentioned registered position. For example, when the movement condition of the registered position is set to "switch and move the registered position every hour", after switching the registered position every hour, when the position of the communication device 102 exists within a predetermined distance from the registered position, it is determined that the position of the communication device 102 satisfies the access conditions set for the voice content. When the movement condition of the registered position is set to "move according to the position of communication device X", the content specifying unit 214 determines that the position of the communication device 102 satisfies the access conditions, for example, when the position of the communication device 102 exists within a predetermined distance from the position of the communication device 103.

[0041] The content information providing unit 215 provides the access information associated with the audio content specified by the content specifying unit 214 to the communication device 102. When providing the access information to the communication device 102, the content information providing unit 215 may provide the content information including the access information to the communication device 102. The content information may include, for example, at least any one of the episode name of the audio content, detailed information, thumbnail image, name of the service providing the audio content, name of the channel where the audio content is registered, name of the creator who produced the audio content, and the like.

[0042] When providing the content information, the content information providing unit 215 may provide the position information set for the audio content specified by the content specifying unit 214 to the communication device 102. At this time, the content information providing unit 215 may provide the map information including the position of the communication device 102 among the map information 223 to the communication device. In this way, the communication device 102 can display the map around the communication device 102 and superimpose and display the position information of the audio content on the map. Therefore, the user 104 can visually grasp what audio content is registered around the place where the user is located.

[0043] When the position information acquisition unit 213 acquires the specified position designated in the communication device 102, the content information providing unit 215 can provide the content information of the audio content included within a predetermined range from the specified position to the communication device 102. In this way, not only can the user 104 acquire the audio content corresponding to the actual moving position, but also the user can grasp the existence of the audio content provided around the specified position designated on the map displayed on the communication device 102 and play the audio content.

[0044] When the content information providing unit 215 transmits a plurality of access information for a plurality of audio contents to the communication device 102, it provides the communication device 102 with the content information of the audio contents ranked in order of proximity from the above-mentioned designated position or the position of the communication device 102.

[0045] The content information providing unit 215 may estimate the audio content with a higher priority for the user based on the information indicating the operation history of the audio content stored in the operation history information 222. For example, the content information providing unit 215 may select an audio content with a high number of playback times (or a long total playback time) by the user or a genre of the audio content, and then estimate an audio content similar to or of the same genre as the selected content. When there is no audio content within a predetermined range from the above-mentioned designated position, the content information providing unit 215 may provide the communication device 102 with the content information of the estimated audio content. Further, when there is no audio content within a predetermined range from the above-mentioned designated position and no estimated audio content exists, the content information providing unit 215 may provide the communication device 102 with the content information of the audio content according to the ranking determined based on the operation histories of a plurality of users.

[0046] The content registration unit 216 acquires the access information and access conditions for the audio content from the communication device 103 used by the content creator 105, and provides the acquired information to the content information management unit 212. As a result, the content creator 105 can register which users (for example, users around a desired position) the audio content held in the content providing device 101 is to be provided to. For example, when the content creator creates an audio content including a talk about a building or a store at a specific location, by setting access conditions according to the position of the user 104, it becomes easier for the user 104 around the position related to the talk to access the audio content.

[0047] <Configuration of the communication device> Next, with reference to FIG. 3, a functional configuration example of the communication device 102 will be described. Each of the functional blocks described with reference to the following figures may be integrated or separated, and the functions to be described may be realized by other blocks. Also, what is described as hardware may be realized by software, and vice versa.

[0048] The communication unit 301 includes, for example, a communication circuit or the like, and connects to the Internet via mobile communication such as LTE or connects to a network via wireless LAN communication to communicate with the information processing device 100 or the content providing device 101.

[0049] The control unit 302 includes a processor 310 and a memory 311. For example, when the processor 310 executes a computer program stored in the storage unit 307, the control unit 302 controls the operations of each part within the communication device 102. The processor 310 includes one or more processors, and the memory 311 includes a volatile memory such as a DRAM.

[0050] The operation unit 303 includes buttons and a touch panel provided in the communication device 102, and accepts user operations on the buttons and various operation GUIs displayed on the display unit 306. The power supply unit 304 supplies power to each part of the communication device 102. The sensor unit 305 includes various sensors such as a GPS receiver, a gyro sensor, and an imaging element. The sensor unit 305 can acquire the position of the communication device 102 based on a GPS signal.

[0051] The display unit 306 includes a display device such as an LCD or an OLED. The display unit 306 displays a GUI based on the content information received from the information processing apparatus 100 in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 302. The control unit 302 executes an application for the content selection service and displays the content information of the audio content received from the information processing apparatus 100 on the GUI. Note that instead of using an application for the content selection service, the communication apparatus 102 may execute a web browser and display the content information of the audio content received from the information processing apparatus 100 on the GUI.

[0052] An example of the GUI displayed on the display unit 306 by the communication apparatus 102 will be described with reference to FIGS. 7A to 7D. Note that the information displayed in FIGS. 7A to 7D may be included in the content information received from the information processing apparatus 100, for example, or may be information acquired by the communication apparatus 102 from the content providing apparatus 101 based on the access information from the information processing apparatus 100.

[0053] FIG. 7A shows an example of a screen 700 that displays information on audio content being played. On the screen 700, information on the audio content set at a position around the communication apparatus 102 is displayed in a first part within the screen, and information on the audio content being played is displayed in a second part within the screen.

[0054] On this screen 700, the communication device 102 superimposes and displays, for example, on the map information 701, the current position 702 of the communication device 102, the position where the audio content is set, and a predetermined range 703 from the position of the communication device 102 on the map information. The communication device 102 can display an icon corresponding to the classification of the audio content at the position where the audio content is set. For example, the gourmet icon 704 indicates that the audio content set at that position is related to, for example, gourmet information. Also, the person icon 705 indicates that the audio content set at that position is, for example, a talk by a specific person. The gourmet icon 706 indicates that the audio content set at that position is related to gourmet information. Since the gourmet icon 706 is outside the predetermined range 703, it may be displayed in a different manner (for example, in a grayed-out state) from the gourmet icon 704 displayed within the said predetermined range 703. The user can intuitively understand that the communication device 102 provides the audio content set within the range by the predetermined range 703.

[0055] Also, the communication device 102 displays information on the content being played in the area 710. The information on the content being played includes operation buttons 711 for the audio content, a thumbnail image 712 of the audio content, a title 713 of the audio content, and a provider 714 of the audio content.

[0056] Figure 7B shows an example of a screen that further displays a list of audio content set at positions around the communication device 102 in addition to information on the content being played. In Figure 7B, a list of audio content at a position different from the audio content being played is displayed in area 720. The audio content in the list is, for example, audio content set at a position inside a predetermined range 703. The information on the audio content in the list includes a thumbnail image 721, the provider 722 of the audio content, the title 723 of the audio content, and an operation button 724 for the audio content. By displaying such a GUI, the user can easily check what the audio content set at surrounding positions is like. Also, when the user finds audio content more interesting than the audio content being played, the user can easily start playing other audio content.

[0057] Figure 7C shows an example of a screen that displays detailed information on specific audio content. The screen shown in Figure 7C is displayed, for example, when the user presses a detailed display button (not shown) on the screen shown in Figure 7B. The communication device 102 displays detailed information 731 in area 730 in addition to the information on the audio content shown in Figure 7B. The detailed information 731 may include, for example, text information including an explanation about the audio content, an image, a link to an SNS or a web page, and the like. Instead of displaying the text information in area 730, the detailed information 731 may be read aloud. In this case, the user of the vehicle can easily grasp the content of the detailed information without reading the text related to it.

[0058] FIG. 7D shows an example of a notification displayed on the lock screen 740 of the communication device 102 before the screen 700 shown in FIG. 7A is displayed. For example, when the communication device 102 receives access information of audio content from the information processing device 100, it can display a notification 741 notifying the presence of the audio content (e.g., on the lock screen 740). The notification 741 includes a message notifying that there is audio content set around the communication device 102. When the user taps the notification 741, the communication device 102 causes the screen display to transition to, for example, the screen 700 of FIG. 7A described above.

[0059] In the description of FIGS. 7A to 7D above, the case where the current position 702 of the communication device 102 is used has been described as an example. However, instead of the current position 702, a position specified by the user in the map information (designated position) may be used instead of the current position 702. In this case, the predetermined range 703 indicates a predetermined range from the designated position, and information on audio content set at positions around the designated position is displayed in the map information, the area 710, the area 720, and the area 730.

[0060] Referring back to FIG. 3 for description. The storage unit 307 includes a non-volatile memory such as a semiconductor memory, and holds programs and setting values executed by the control unit 302. The computer programs held in the storage unit 307 include an operating system for realizing various functions of the communication device 102 and various applications including the application for the content selection service described above.

[0061] Next, a series of operations of content selection processing executed in the information processing device 100 will be described with reference to FIG. 5. This processing is realized by the processor 210 of the control unit 202 executing a computer program recorded in the storage unit 204.

[0062] In S501, the content registration unit 216 acquires access information of the audio content provided from the content providing device 101 from the communication device 103 of the content creator. The access information of the audio content is the information described with reference to FIG. 4A, and is, for example, the URL of the audio content or an RSS feed including information accessible to the audio content. In S502, information on access conditions set for the audio content is acquired from the communication device 103. The information on the access conditions is the information described with reference to FIG. 4A.

[0063] In S503, the content information management unit 212 associates the access information and the access conditions acquired in S501 and S502 and stores them in a database (content information 220 of the storage unit 204). In S504, the location information acquisition unit 213 acquires the location information of the communication device 102 used by the user 104. In S505, the content identification unit 214 identifies the audio content to be provided for access to the communication device 102 based on the location of the communication device 102 and the access conditions. The content identification unit 214 identifies the audio content by the processing example described with reference to FIG. 2. In S506, the content information providing unit 215 provides content information including the access information of the identified audio content to the communication device 102 by the processing example described with reference to FIG. 2.

[0064] Next, a series of operations of content display processing executed in the communication device 102 will be described with reference to FIG. 6. This processing is realized by the processor 310 of the control unit 302 executing a computer program recorded in the storage unit 307.

[0065] In S601, the control unit 302 transmits location information (the location of the communication device 102 or information on a specified location designated in the communication device 102) to the information processing device 100. In S602, the control unit 302 acquires content information including access information for the audio content from the information processing device 100. The content information including the access information transmitted from the information processing device 100 is the content information provided by the content information providing unit 215 described with reference to FIG. 2.

[0066] In S603, the control unit 302 accesses the audio content of the content providing device 101 using the access information for the audio content. As described above, since the access information acquired from the information processing device 100 includes, for example, a URL for accessing the content providing device 101, the control unit 302 accesses the audio content using, for example, the URL.

[0067] In S604, the control unit 302 acquires information on the audio content from the content providing device 101 and displays the information on the audio content on the display unit 306. The control unit 302 may display, for example, the notification shown in FIG. 7D. Alternatively, the control unit 302 may acquire, from the information processing device 100, map information related to the audio content, the location of the communication device 102, or information on the audio content set at a location around the specified location, and display the screen 700 shown in FIG. 7A. The control unit 302 may further start streaming of the audio content.

[0068] Next, with reference to FIG. 8, a series of operations including registration of audio content in the information processing device 100 will be described. This process is realized by the processor 210 of the control unit 202 executing a computer program recorded in the storage unit 204.

[0069] In S801, the content registration unit 216 acquires access information to the audio content created by the content creator 105 and position information set for the audio content. The access information to the audio content created by the content creator 105 is the access information to the content providing device 101 described above.

[0070] In S802, the content registration unit 216 associates the access information to the audio content with the position information and registers it as content information 220 described with reference to, for example, FIG. 4A. The content creator 105 can set access conditions such as the movement conditions of the registration position described above. Also, the content registration unit 216 can update the position information set for the audio content based on new position information from the communication device 103 of the content creator 105. That is, the content creator 105 can change the position information set for the audio content. For example, when gourmet information of a store is set at the position of the store in the map information, the registration position of the audio content can be changed when the store moves. Or, the content creator 105 can also change the registration position to a position where the contact with the user increases more than the once-set position.

[0071] Note that, as described above with reference to FIG. 4A, the content registration unit 216 can register the position of the communication device 103 of the content creator 105 in association with the position information set in the audio content. By doing so, since the position where the audio content can be viewed changes according to the movement of the content creator 105, it is possible to create the presence of audio content that other users do not know when they will encounter, and the audio content can be diversified. Further, as described above with reference to FIG. 4A, the content registration unit 216 can register a plurality of pieces of position information as the position information set in the audio content. By enabling a plurality of pieces of position information to be set in the audio content, the content creator 105 can obtain an opportunity for other users to view the audio content at a plurality of positions. Further, the content registration unit 216 can register the position information set in the audio content so that it sequentially switches among the plurality of pieces of position information. For example, the content creator 105 can register position information such that it moves around a certain route in a certain time in the audio content. The information processing apparatus 100 can provide a new viewing experience in which a user who views the audio content listens to the audio content while moving along the route. The content registration unit 216 can further register a plurality of pieces of audio content created by the content creator 105 in association with each other. Thereby, for example, it is possible to provide a viewing experience such as a tour in which a plurality of consecutive audio contents are strung together and the series of audio contents are sequentially viewed while moving. For example, if audio content is set for each station on a predetermined route, the user 104 can sequentially view the audio content corresponding to the movement while moving through the stations on the route.

[0072] Note that before registering the audio content, the information processing apparatus 100 may obtain the position information set for the audio content by the content information providing unit 215 and provide the content information of the audio content of other users set at positions within a predetermined distance from the position information to the communication apparatus 103. For example, when the position information set for the audio content is obtained from the communication apparatus 103, the content information providing unit 215 may provide the content information of the audio content shown in FIG. 9 to the communication apparatus 103. FIG. 9 shows an example in which an example of the content information is displayed on the map information 901 on the screen 900 of the communication apparatus 103. For example, when receiving the position information, the content information providing unit 215 provides the communication apparatus 103 with information (such as 904, 905, 906, etc.) indicating the positions of the audio content of other users set at positions within a predetermined distance from the position 902 indicated by the position information. At this time, the information 903 serving as a measure of the distance may be added. By referring to such a screen 900, the content creator 105 can consider at what position the audio content should be set.

[0073] In S803, the information processing apparatus 100 obtains the position information of the communication apparatus 102 of the user 104 different from the content creator 105 or the position information designated by the communication apparatus 102 from the communication apparatus 102. In S804, the information processing apparatus 100 provides the communication apparatus 102 with the access information of the audio content based on the position information from the communication apparatus 102 and the position information set for the audio content. Note that the processes of S803 and S804 may be the same as those of S504 to S506 in the series of operations shown in FIG. 5.

[0074] As described above, the information processing apparatus 100 holds access information to the audio content provided by the content providing apparatus 101 in association with information on the access conditions of the audio content, and acquires the position information of the communication apparatus 102 used by the user. Then, the information processing apparatus 100 specifies the audio content to be provided to the communication apparatus 102 based on the access conditions of the audio content, and provides the communication apparatus 102 with content information including the access information associated with the specified audio content. By doing so, it becomes possible to provide the user with appropriate content among the content provided by the content providing service.

[0075] Also, the information processing apparatus 100 registers the audio content provided by the content providing apparatus 101 and created by the content creator 105, acquires the position information from the communication apparatus 102 used by the user 104, and provides the communication apparatus 102 with content information including access information to the audio content. At this time, the information processing apparatus 100 acquires and registers the access information to the audio content and the position information set for the audio content from the communication apparatus 103, and provides the communication apparatus 102 with content information including the access information of the audio content based on the position information from the communication apparatus 102 and the position information set for the audio content. By doing so, the content creator can increase the opportunity to provide the content provided by the content providing service to the appropriate user of the audio content.

[0076] Also, by providing the appropriate audio content to the user 104 according to the above-described embodiment, the user 104 can suppress the number of times of executing content search for searching for the desired content. That is, it also leads to reducing the processing load on the server for searching for content.

[0077] <Summary of the Embodiment> In the above-described embodiments, the following information processing apparatus, information processing method, information processing system, program, and storage medium are provided.

[0078] (Item 1-1) Holding means for holding access information to audio content provided from an external server for content provision in association with information on access conditions of the audio content; Obtaining means for obtaining position information of a communication terminal used by a user; Specifying means for specifying audio content to be provided to the communication terminal based on access conditions of the audio content; Providing means for providing content information including the access information associated with the specified audio content to the communication terminal. An information processing apparatus comprising the above.

[0079] (Item 1-2) The information on access conditions of the audio content includes position information set for the audio content, The providing means provides the communication terminal with the position information set for the specified audio content. The information processing apparatus according to Item 1-1, characterized by the above.

[0080] (Item 1-3) The providing means provides the communication terminal with the content information of the audio content whose access conditions are satisfied by the position of the communication terminal. The information processing apparatus according to Item 1-2, characterized by the above.

[0081] (Item 1-4) The obtaining means further obtains a specified position designated in the communication terminal from the communication terminal, The providing means provides the communication terminal with the content information of the audio content included within a predetermined range from the specified position. The information processing apparatus according to Item 1-2, characterized by the above.

[0082] (Item 1-5) The providing means provides the communication terminal with the content information of the voice content prioritized in order of proximity from the designated position or the position of the communication terminal. The information processing apparatus according to items 1-4, characterized in that.

[0083] (Items 1-6) The information processing apparatus according to items 1-4, further comprising estimating means for estimating, based on information indicating an operation history on voice content in the communication terminal, obtained from the communication terminal, voice content with a higher priority for the user.

[0084] (Items 1-7) The providing means provides the communication terminal with the content information of the voice content estimated by the estimating means when there is no voice content included within the predetermined range from the designated position. The information processing apparatus according to items 1-6, characterized in that.

[0085] (Items 1-8) When there is no voice content included within the predetermined range from the designated position and there is no voice content estimated by the estimating means, the providing means provides the communication terminal with the content information of the voice content according to a ranking determined based on the operation histories of a plurality of users. The information processing apparatus according to items 1-7, characterized in that.

[0086] (Items 1-9) An information processing method executed in an information processing apparatus having holding means for holding access information to voice content provided from an external server for content provision in association with information on access conditions of the voice content, comprising: An obtaining step of obtaining position information of a communication terminal used by a user; A specifying step of specifying voice content to provide access to the communication terminal based on access conditions of the voice content; A providing step of providing the communication terminal with content information including the access information associated with the specified voice content. An information processing method characterized by including.

[0087] (Item 1-10) An information processing system including an information processing device and a communication terminal used by a user, wherein the information processing device has a holding means for holding access information to audio content provided from an external server for content provision in association with information on access conditions of the audio content, an acquisition means for acquiring position information of the communication terminal, a specifying means for specifying audio content to be provided to the communication terminal based on access conditions of the audio content, and a providing means for providing the communication terminal with content information including the access information associated with the specified audio content, wherein the communication terminal has a transmitting means for transmitting the position information of the communication terminal to the information processing device, displays the content information of the audio content provided from the information processing device on a display means and starts reproduction of the audio content of the external server, characterized in that it is an information processing system.

[0088] (Item 1-11) A program for causing a computer to function as each means of the information processing device according to any one of Items 1-1 to 1-8.

[0089] (Item 1-12) A storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to function as each means of the information processing device according to any one of Items 1-1 to 1-8.

[0090] (Item 2-1) Registration means for registering audio content produced by a first user and provided from an external server for content provision, acquisition means for acquiring position information of a second communication terminal used by a second user or position information specified in the second communication terminal providing means for providing content information including access information to the voice content to the second communication terminal; The registering means acquires and registers the access information to the voice content and position information set for the voice content from a first communication terminal used by the first user. The providing means is an information processing apparatus that provides content information including the access information of the voice content to the second communication terminal based on the position information of the second communication terminal or position information specified in the second communication terminal and the position information set for the voice content.

[0091] (Item 2-2) The information processing apparatus according to Item 2-1, wherein the registering means updates the position information set for the voice content based on new position information from the first communication terminal.

[0092] (Item 2-3) Before registering the voice content, the providing means further acquires position information set for the voice content and provides the content information of voice content of other users set at positions within a predetermined distance from the position information to the first communication terminal. The information processing apparatus according to Item 2-1, characterized in that.

[0093] (Item 2-4) The information processing apparatus according to Item 2-1, wherein the registering means registers the position of the first communication terminal in association with the position information set for the voice content.

[0094] (Item 2-5) The information processing apparatus according to Item 2-1, wherein the registering means registers a plurality of pieces of position information as the position information set for the voice content.

[0095] (Item 2-6) The registration means registers the position information set for the voice content so as to be sequentially switched among a plurality of pieces of position information. The information processing apparatus according to item 2-1, characterized in that.

[0096] (Item 2-7) The registration means registers a plurality of pieces of voice content produced by the first user in an associated manner. The information processing apparatus according to item 2-1, characterized in that.

[0097] (Item 2-8) An information processing method executed in an information processing apparatus, A registration step of registering voice content provided from an external server for content provision and produced by the first user, An acquisition step of acquiring the position information of a second communication terminal used by a second user or the position information specified in the second communication terminal, A provision step of providing content information including access information to the voice content to the second communication terminal, comprising: In the registration step, the access information to the voice content and the position information set for the voice content are acquired and registered from a first communication terminal used by the first user, In the provision step, content information including the access information of the voice content is provided to the second communication terminal based on the position information of the second communication terminal or the position information specified in the second communication terminal and the position information set for the voice content. Information processing method.

[0098] (Item 2-9) An information processing system including an information processing apparatus and a first communication terminal used by a first user, The information processing apparatus is Registration means for registering voice content provided from an external server for content provision and produced by the first user, Acquisition means for acquiring the position information of a second communication terminal used by a second user or the position information specified in the second communication terminal, Providing means for providing content information including access information to the voice content to the second communication terminal, The registering means acquires and registers the access information to the voice content and the position information set for the voice content from the first communication terminal used by the first user, The providing means provides content information including the access information of the voice content to the second communication terminal based on the position information of the second communication terminal or the position information designated in the second communication terminal and the position information set for the voice content, The first communication terminal, Access information acquisition means for acquiring the access information to the voice content from an external server for content provision, Transmitting means for transmitting the access information to the voice content and the position information set for the voice content to the information processing apparatus, characterized in that the information processing system comprises:

[0099] (Item 2-10) A program for causing a computer to function as each means of the information processing apparatus according to any one of Items 2-1 to 2-7.

[0100] (Item 2-11) A storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to function as each means of the information processing apparatus according to any one of Items 2-1 to 2-7.

[0101] The invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the gist of the invention.

Explanation of Signs

[0102] 100... Information processing apparatus, 101... Apparatus for content provision, 102... Communication apparatus, 103... Communication apparatus, 212... Content information management section, 213... Position information acquisition section, 214... Content identification section, 215... Content information provision section, 216... Content registration section

Claims

1. Registration means for registering audio content provided from an external server for content provision and created by a first user; Acquisition means for acquiring position information of a second communication terminal used by a second user or position information designated in the second communication terminal; Provision means for providing content information including access information to the audio content to the second communication terminal, the registration means acquiring and registering the access information to the audio content and position information set for the audio content from a first communication terminal used by the first user, and the provision means providing content information including the access information of the audio content to the second communication terminal based on the position information of the second communication terminal or the position information designated in the second communication terminal and the position information set for the audio content. An information processing apparatus characterized by this. The registration means acquires and registers the access information to the audio content and the position information set for the audio content from a first communication terminal used by the first user. The provision means provides content information including the access information of the audio content to the second communication terminal based on the position information of the second communication terminal or the position information designated in the second communication terminal and the position information set for the audio content. An information processing apparatus characterized by this.

2. The registration means updates the position information set for the audio content based on new position information from the first communication terminal. The information processing apparatus according to Claim 1, characterized by this.

3. Before registering the audio content, the provision means further acquires the position information set for the audio content and provides the content information of the audio content of other users set at positions within a predetermined distance from the position information to the first communication terminal. The information processing apparatus according to Claim 1, characterized by this.

4. The registration means registers the position of the first communication terminal in association with the position information set for the audio content. The information processing apparatus according to Claim 1, characterized by this.

5. The registration means registers a plurality of pieces of position information as the position information set for the audio content. The information processing apparatus according to Claim 1, characterized by this.

6. The registration means registers the position information set for the audio content so as to sequentially switch among a plurality of pieces of position information. The information processing apparatus according to Claim 1, characterized by this.

7. The registration means registers a plurality of pieces of audio content created by the first user in association with each other. The information processing apparatus according to Claim 1, characterized by this.

8. An information processing method executed in an information processing apparatus, A registration step of registering voice content provided by an external server for content provision and created by a first user; An acquisition step of acquiring position information of a second communication terminal used by a second user or position information designated in the second communication terminal; A provision step of providing content information including access information to the voice content to the second communication terminal, the information processing method comprising: In the registration step, the access information to the voice content and the position information set for the voice content are acquired and registered from a first communication terminal used by the first user; In the provision step, based on the position information of the second communication terminal or the position information designated in the second communication terminal and the position information set for the voice content, content information including the access information to the voice content is provided to the second communication terminal.

9. An information processing system including an information processing device and a first communication terminal used by a first user, wherein the information processing device comprises a registration means for registering voice content provided by an external server for content provision and created by the first user; an acquisition means for acquiring position information of a second communication terminal used by a second user or position information designated in the second communication terminal; a provision means for providing content information including access information to the voice content to the second communication terminal, wherein the registration means acquires and registers the access information to the voice content and the position information set for the voice content from the first communication terminal used by the first user; the provision means provides content information including the access information to the voice content to the second communication terminal based on the position information of the second communication terminal or the position information designated in the second communication terminal and the position information set for the voice content; the first communication terminal comprises an access information acquisition means for acquiring the access information to the voice content from the external server for content provision; a transmission means for transmitting the access information to the voice content and the position information set for the voice content to the information processing device, an information processing system characterized by this.

10. A program for causing a computer to function as each means of the information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7. **Claim 11** A storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to function as each means of the information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

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