Receiving device and receiving processing method

Abstract

When using the broadcast-communication collaboration system, users should be made aware of whether the currently displayed video is based on communication content. [Solution] When video based on communication content is displayed on the display unit 170, the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 sends display information to the presentation processing unit 193 indicating that the communication video is being displayed. The presentation processing unit 193 then generates communication information video data CDT indicating that video based on communication content is being displayed and sends it to the display unit 170. On the other hand, when video based on communication content is not being displayed, the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 sends display information to the presentation processing unit 193 indicating that the communication video is not being displayed. The presentation processing unit 193 then generates communication information video data CDT indicating that video based on communication content is not being displayed and sends it to the display unit 170.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a receiving device, a receiving processing method, a receiving processing program, and a recording medium on which the receiving processing program is recorded.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, the popularity of receiving devices that receive broadcast content (digital broadcasts) including data broadcasts broadcast from a broadcasting station and display video based on the data broadcast simultaneously with the program video has been increasing. In recent years, the practical application of a broadcast communication cooperation system that combines broadcasting and communication has been started. This broadcast communication cooperation system is a service in which a receiving device receives communication content distributed from a service provider via a telecommunications line such as the Internet in addition to broadcast content broadcast from a broadcasting station, and cooperatively plays back the broadcast content and the communication content. The content of such communication content includes information related to a broadcast program and information unrelated to the broadcast program such as weather information and stock information.

[0003] With the practical application of the broadcast communication cooperation system, a technique has been proposed for displaying video based on data broadcasts and video based on communication content simultaneously with the program video in digital broadcasts (see Patent Document 1: hereinafter referred to as "conventional example"). In the technique of this conventional example, when displaying video based on communication content simultaneously with the program video, if an emergency or important information such as an emergency warning signal or an emergency earthquake bulletin is received by the broadcast content, the display of the video based on the communication content is forcibly stopped, and the video of the emergency or important information included in the broadcast content is displayed.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

[0005] Incidentally, in broadcast-communication collaborative systems, for a user to intentionally display video based on communication content, they may first perform an operation such as pressing the "d" button on a remote control device (hereinafter also referred to as a "remote input device") to display video based on data broadcasting, and then select a menu from the menu included in that video to transition to video based on communication content. As a result, users may not be able to determine whether the video currently displayed is based on communication content or data broadcasting.

[0006] In recent years, communication devices such as smartphones and tablet terminals have become widespread, and the environment for mobile communication has been developed. With the development of this communication environment, when using broadcast-communication collaboration systems, a configuration has been adopted in which the communication terminal wirelessly communicates with the mobile communication network to obtain communication content from the service provider's content server and transmits the obtained communication content information to the receiving device. However, in mobile communication, in order to ensure that many users can communicate in a good environment, communication carriers may impose usage restrictions (bandwidth restrictions) if the amount of communication data exceeds certain conditions. The occurrence of such usage restrictions is undesirable because it makes it impossible to comfortably use the broadcast-communication collaboration system. Therefore, from the perspective of preventing users from using mobile communication restrictions, it is important to recognize whether the currently displayed video is based on communication content or on data broadcasting.

[0007] However, the conventional technologies described above do not take measures to allow users to recognize the content source of the video displayed simultaneously with the program video in the broadcast-communication collaborative system. Therefore, when a communication terminal uses communication content acquired via a mobile communication network in conventional technologies, users may suddenly find themselves subject to restrictions on the use of mobile communications.

[0008] Therefore, when using a broadcast-communication collaborative system, there is a need for technology that can improve user convenience by allowing users to recognize whether the currently displayed video is based on communication content. Meeting this need is one of the problems that this invention aims to solve. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The invention described in claim 1 is a receiving device comprising: a broadcast receiving processing unit that receives digital broadcasts including data broadcasts and program broadcasts and generates a video signal based on the digital broadcasts; a communication content acquisition unit that acquires communication content information from a communication terminal that acquires communication content information using a communication network; a command acquisition unit that acquires a first command from an operation unit operated by a user to display a video based on the data broadcasts on a display unit, and a second command to display a video based on the communication content information on the display unit; a display control unit that, based on the first and second commands acquired by the command acquisition unit, displays at least one of the video based on the data broadcasts and the video based on the communication content information on the display unit simultaneously with a video displayed based on the video signal of the program broadcasts; and a presentation unit that, when the display control unit is displaying a video based on the communication content information on the display unit, presents to the user that a video based on the communication content information is being displayed on the display unit.

[0010] The invention described in claim 6 is a receiving processing method used in a receiving device comprising: a broadcast receiving processing unit that receives digital broadcasts including data broadcasts and program broadcasts and generates a video signal based on the digital broadcasts; and a communication content acquisition unit that acquires communication content information from a communication terminal that acquires communication content information using a communication network; the receiving processing method comprising: a command acquisition step of acquiring a first command from an operation unit operated by a user to display a video based on the data broadcasts on a display unit, and a second command to display a video based on the communication content information on the display unit; a display control step of displaying at least one of the video based on the data broadcasts and the video based on the communication content information on the display unit simultaneously with a video displayed based on a video signal of a program broadcast on the display unit, based on the first and second commands acquired in the command acquisition step; and a presentation step of informing the user that the video based on the communication content information is being displayed on the display unit if the video based on the communication content information is being displayed on the display unit in the display control step.

[0011] The invention described in claim 7 is a receiving processing program characterized by causing a computer in a receiving device to execute the receiving processing method described in claim 6.

[0012] The invention described in claim 8 is a recording medium characterized in that the receiving processing program described in claim 7 is recorded in a manner readable by a computer of the receiving device. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0013] [Figure 1] This is a block diagram schematically showing the configuration of a receiving device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This block diagram shows the configuration of the regeneration unit in Figure 1. [Figure 3] This block diagram shows the configuration of the control unit shown in Figure 1. [Figure 4] This is a flowchart illustrating the presentation control process performed by the device shown in Figure 1. [Figure 5] This is a diagram illustrating an example (part 1) of how information can be displayed on a display unit. [Figure 6] This is a diagram illustrating an example (part 2) of how information can be displayed on a display unit. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0014] Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 6. In the following description and drawings, the same or equivalent elements will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions will be omitted.

[0015] [composition] Figure 1 shows a schematic block diagram of a receiving device 100 according to one embodiment. In this embodiment, the receiving device 100 is located inside a mobile vehicle and receives and processes terrestrial digital television broadcast waves. A communication terminal 210 is also located in this vehicle and connected to the receiving device 100. The receiving device 100 then acquires and processes communication content distributed by a service provider via a telecommunications line through the communication terminal 210.

[0016] In other words, the receiving device 100 is a device that implements a broadcast-communication collaboration service that combines broadcasting services and communication services. The broadcast-communication collaboration service is realized by executing applications transmitted from broadcasting stations and service providers. The applications to be executed are classified into linked applications related to broadcast programs and unlinked applications that are not related to broadcast programs.

[0017] Here, the linked application is activated only during the viewing of the linked broadcast program, and terminates when the linked broadcast program ends and when the linked broadcast program is changed to another broadcast program. Also, the non-linked application can be activated and terminated by the user at any timing. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the application of the broadcast communication cooperation service is activated when the user presses the "d" button of the remote input device.

[0018] The communication terminal 210 described above is, for example, a smartphone, and can wirelessly communicate with a mobile communication network to access a communication content server of a service provider, etc. Also, in this embodiment, a usage restriction contract is concluded between the user of the communication terminal 210 and the communication carrier, and when the monthly communication data volume exceeds a predetermined data volume, the communication speed until the end of the month is reduced.

[0019] Note that the communication terminal 210 may be a communication terminal such as a tablet terminal, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), a mobile phone, or a personal computer.

[0020] <Configuration of the receiving device 100> Next, the configuration of the above receiving device 100 will be described.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 1, the receiving device 100 includes an antenna 110, an RF processing unit 120, an interface 130, and a reproduction processing unit 140. Also, the receiving device 100 includes an input unit 150, an audio output unit 160, a display unit 170, and a control unit 190.

[0022] The above antenna 110 receives terrestrial digital television broadcast waves transmitted from a broadcasting station. The received signal RFS by the antenna 110 is sent to the RF processing unit 120.

[0023] The RF processing unit 120 receives the received signal RFS from the antenna 110. The RF processing unit 120 then performs a tuning process to extract the signal of the desired broadcasting station to be tuned to from the received signal RFS, according to the tuning command CSL sent from the control unit 190, and converts it into an intermediate frequency signal IFD (hereinafter simply referred to as "signal IFD") having components in a predetermined intermediate frequency band. The resulting signal IFD is then sent to the regeneration processing unit 140. Here, the signal IFD is a digital signal. The RF processing unit 120 performs some of the functions of the broadcast reception processing unit.

[0024] The interface 130 described above is used for data exchange between the receiving device 100 and the communication terminal 210. For example, communication content signals received by the communication terminal 210 via a mobile communication network are sent to the playback processing unit 140 via the interface 130. The interface 130 also performs some of the functions of the communication content acquisition unit.

[0025] The playback processing unit 140, under the control of the control unit 190, processes the IFD signal sent from the RF processing unit 120 and the communication content signal sent from the interface 130 to generate video data IDT to be sent to the display unit 170. The playback processing unit 140 also processes the IFD signal sent from the RF processing unit 120, under the control of the control unit 190, to generate audio data ADT to be supplied to the sound output unit 160. Details of the configuration of the playback processing unit 140 will be described later.

[0026] The input unit 150 described above is composed of a key section provided on the main body of the receiving device 100, and / or a remote input device equipped with a key section. Here, the key section provided on the main body can be a touch panel provided on the display device of the display unit 170. Alternatively, instead of, or in combination with, a configuration that uses voice recognition technology to input by voice can also be adopted.

[0027] In this embodiment, the input unit 150 is assumed to consist of a remote input device equipped with a key section.

[0028] By operating this input unit 150, the user can set the operating content and input operation commands for the receiving device 100. For example, the user can input settings such as selecting a broadcasting station, specifying the display of video based on data broadcasting, and specifying the display of video based on communication content using the input unit 150. The input content to the input unit 150 is sent to the control unit 190 as input data IPD. In other words, the input unit 150 functions as an operation unit. The method for issuing display commands for video based on data broadcasting and specifying the display of video based on communication content will be described later.

[0029] The above-described sound output unit 160 comprises (i) a DA (Digital to Analogue) converter that converts audio data ADT sent from the playback processing unit 140 into an analog signal, (ii) an amplifier that amplifies the analog signal output from the DA converter, and (iii) a speaker that converts the amplified analog signal into sound. This sound output unit 160 plays back and outputs broadcast audio corresponding to the broadcast wave of the selected channel.

[0030] The display unit 170 described above includes, for example, (i) a display device such as a liquid crystal panel, an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) panel, or a PDP (Plasma Display Panel), and (ii) a display control circuit that displays an image on the display device based on video data IDT sent from the playback processing unit 140 and communication information video data CDT sent from the control unit 190. Based on the video data IDT, the display unit 170 plays and displays broadcast video, video based on data broadcasting, or video based on communication content corresponding to the selected channel.

[0031] Furthermore, the display unit 170 displays and presents communication information from the communication terminal 210 to the user based on the communication information video data CDT. The manner in which the communication information is presented will be described later. In this embodiment, the display device of the display unit 170 is mounted near the front panel inside the vehicle. The display unit 170 is configured to perform the functions of both a presentation unit and a display unit.

[0032] The control unit 190 described above performs various processes and controls the overall operation of the receiving device 100. Details of the configuration of the control unit 190 will be described later.

[0033] Configuration of the regeneration processing unit 140 Next, the configuration of the playback processing unit 140 will be described.

[0034] As shown in Figure 2, the playback processing unit 140 includes a demodulation unit 141, a decoding unit (demultiplexer unit) 142, an audio processing unit 143, a program video processing unit 144, and a data broadcasting processing unit 145. The playback processing unit 140 also includes a communication input / output unit 146, a communication content processing unit 147, a communication management unit 148, and a display video creation unit 149.

[0035] The demodulation unit 141 receives the IFD signal sent from the RF processing unit 120. The demodulation unit 141 then performs OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplex) demodulation on the IFD signal. The demodulated signal is then sent to the decoding unit 142 as a demodulated signal.

[0036] The decoding unit 142 receives the demodulated signal sent from the demodulation unit 141. The decoding unit 142 then decodes the demodulated signal and sends the decoding result for the audio as decoded audio data to the audio processing unit 143. The decoding unit 142 also sends the decoding result for the program video as decoded program video data to the program video processing unit 144. Furthermore, the decoding unit 142 sends the decoding result for data broadcasting as decoded data broadcasting data to the data broadcasting processing unit 145. The data broadcasting processing unit 145 also receives data broadcasting applications.

[0037] Furthermore, the decoding unit 142 sends the decoding results other than audio, program video, and data broadcasting as a signal DBD to the control unit 190. The information contained in this signal DBD includes an application information table and application files. This application information table includes the application name, application ID, control information that controls the startup and shutdown of the application, location information of the server for distributing application files, and information that identifies the application files.

[0038] The audio processing unit 143 generates audio data ADT based on the decoded audio data. The generated audio data ADT is sent to the audio output unit 160.

[0039] The program video processing unit 144 generates program video data based on the decoded program video data. The generated program video data is sent to the display video creation unit 149. The program video processing unit 144 performs some of the functions of the broadcast reception processing unit.

[0040] The data broadcasting processing unit 145, under the control of the control unit 190, executes a data broadcasting application and generates data broadcasting video data based on the decoded data broadcasting data. The generated data broadcasting video data is sent to the display video creation unit 149. The data broadcasting processing unit 145 performs some of the functions of the broadcast reception processing unit.

[0041] The above-mentioned communication input / output unit 146 performs data input and output through communication via the interface 130, communication terminal 210, and mobile communication network, under the control of the control unit 190. For example, when the communication input / output unit 146 obtains an application information table and an application file transmitted from a service provider, it sends the application information table and application file to the control unit 190.

[0042] Furthermore, the communication input / output unit 146 controls the communication terminal 210 according to the instructions of the application executed by the control unit 190 and receives communication content data distributed from the service provider's communication content server. The communication input / output unit 146 then sends the received communication content data to the communication content processing unit 147. The communication input / output unit 146 performs some of the functions of the communication content acquisition unit.

[0043] The above-mentioned communication content processing unit 147, under the control of the control unit 190, decodes the communication content data sent from the communication input / output unit 146 and generates communication content video data. The generated communication content video data is sent to the display video creation unit 149.

[0044] The communication management unit 148 has a built-in calendar mechanism and derives and acquires the cumulative value of the communication data volume for the current month from the communication terminal 210. The communication management unit 148 then sequentially sends this cumulative value of communication data volume as communication volume information CMI to the control unit 190. In this embodiment, the cumulative value of communication data volume is reset to zero at the beginning of the month or on a date specified by the user, under the control of the control unit 190. The communication management unit 148 also functions as a communication volume acquisition unit.

[0045] The display image creation unit 149 receives program video data sent from the program video processing unit 144 and data broadcast video data sent from the data broadcast processing unit 145. The display image creation unit 149 also receives communication content video data sent from the communication content processing unit 147. The display image creation unit 149 then creates video data IDT according to the video creation command ICC sent from the control unit 190. Subsequently, the display image creation unit 149 sends the generated video data IDT to the display unit 170.

[0046] Configuration of Control Unit 190 Next, the configuration of the control unit 190 will be described.

[0047] As shown in Figure 3, the control unit 190 comprises a channel selection processing unit 191, a broadcast-communication cooperation service execution unit 192, and a presentation processing unit 193.

[0048] The station selection processing unit 191 generates a station selection command CSL corresponding to the specified desired broadcasting station if the content of the input data IPD sent from the input unit 150 is a station selection specification. The station selection processing unit 191 then sends the generated station selection command CSL to the RF processing unit 120.

[0049] The above-mentioned broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192, if the content of the input data IPD sent from the input unit 150 is a specification for displaying video based on data broadcasting, generates a data broadcasting processing command DEC and sends it to the data broadcasting processing unit 145, and also generates a video creation command ICC indicating that the program video and the video based on data broadcasting should be displayed simultaneously and sends it to the display video creation unit 149.

[0050] Furthermore, the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 executes the broadcast-communication collaboration service application if the content of the input data IPD sent from the input unit 150 is a display specification for video based on communication content, or if the application is automatically started. When such an application is executed, the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 sends a command to the communication input / output unit 146 to receive communication content data from the communication content server according to the application being executed, and generates a communication content processing command CEC to process the received communication content data, and sends it to the communication content processing unit 147. In addition, the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 generates a video creation command ICC to display the program video and the video based on the communication content simultaneously, according to the application being executed, and sends it to the display video creation unit 149.

[0051] In this embodiment, when a user presses the "d" button on the remote input device, the home screen of the broadcast-communication linked service is displayed on the display unit 170. Various menus are displayed on this home screen. When a user selects data broadcasting from the menu on the home screen of the broadcast-communication related service, video based on the data broadcasting is displayed on the display unit 170. Also, when a user selects a communication content menu from the menu on the home screen of the broadcast-communication related service, video based on the selected communication content is displayed on the display unit 170. Therefore, in this embodiment, the operation to specify the display of video based on communication content is the same as the operation to specify the display of video based on data broadcasting.

[0052] Furthermore, during periods when the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 is simultaneously displaying program video and video based on communication content, it sends display information to the presentation processing unit 193 indicating that the communication video is being displayed. Also, during periods when the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 is not simultaneously displaying video based on communication content, it sends display information to the presentation processing unit 193 indicating that the communication video is not being displayed.

[0053] In other words, the broadcast-communication collaborative service execution unit 192 performs the functions of a command acquisition unit and a display control unit. The display specification of video based on data broadcasting corresponds to the first command, and the display specification of video based on communication content corresponds to the second command.

[0054] The presentation processing unit 193 receives the communication volume information CMI sent from the communication management unit 148. Based on the communication volume information CMI, the presentation processing unit 193 generates information video data based on the cumulative amount of communication data from the communication terminal 210 from the beginning of the month to the present.

[0055] Furthermore, if the content of the display information sent from the broadcast-communication collaborative service execution unit 192 is related to the display of a communication video, the display processing unit 193 generates information video data and icon video data indicating that a video based on the communication content is currently being displayed on the display unit 170. Then, the display processing unit 193 generates communication information video data CDT based on the information video data and icon video data and sends it to the display unit 170.

[0056] Furthermore, if the content of the display information sent from the broadcast-communication collaborative service execution unit 192 is such that the communication video is not displayed, the display processing unit 193 generates information video data and icon video data indicating that the video based on the communication content is not currently displayed on the display unit 170. Then, the display processing unit 193 generates communication information video data CDT based on the information video data and icon video data and sends it to the display unit 170.

[0057] Here, the presentation processing unit 193 performs some of the functions of the presentation unit.

[0058] [Operation] The operation of the receiving device 100 configured as described above will be explained, focusing mainly on the control processing of the presentation of communication-related information by the control unit 190.

[0059] The control process for presenting such communication-related information begins when the power to the receiving device 100 is turned on and the user uses the input unit 150 to select a desired broadcasting station. When the selection of the desired broadcasting station is input to the input unit 150, the station selection processing unit 191 of the control unit 190 generates a station selection command CSL corresponding to the desired broadcasting station and sends it to the RF processing unit 120 (see Figures 1 and 3).

[0060] When the RF processing unit 120 receives the station selection command CSL, it performs a station selection process to extract the signal of the desired broadcasting station from the received signal RFS and converts it into a signal IFD having components in a predetermined intermediate frequency band. The RF processing unit 120 then sends the signal IFD to the playback processing unit 140 (see Figure 1).

[0061] In the playback processing unit 140, the demodulation unit 141 demodulates the IFD signal sent from the RF processing unit 120 and generates a demodulated signal. The demodulation unit 141 then sends the generated demodulated signal to the decoding unit 142. Next, the decoding unit 142 decodes the demodulated signal sent from the demodulation unit 141, generates decoded audio data and sends it to the audio processing unit 143, and generates decoded program video data and sends it to the program video processing unit 144 (see Figure 2). The decoding unit 142 also generates decoded data broadcasting data and sends it to the data broadcasting processing unit 145, and separates the application information table, etc., from the demodulated signal and sends it to the broadcast communication cooperation service execution unit 192 of the control unit 190 (see Figures 2 and 3).

[0062] Next, the audio processing unit 143 processes the decoded audio data to generate audio data ADT and sends it to the sound output unit 160. The program video processing unit 144 generates decoded program video data and sends it to the display video creation unit 149. The display video creation unit 149, under the control of the control unit 190, then sends the decoded program video data as video data IDT to the display unit 170 (see Figure 2).

[0063] Furthermore, when the presentation control process is initiated, the communication management unit 148 of the playback processing unit 140 sequentially sends the cumulative value of the communication data volume of the communication terminal 210 for the current month as communication volume information CMI to the presentation processing unit 193 of the control unit 190.

[0064] Under these circumstances, as shown in Figure 4, first, in step S11, the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 of the control unit 190 determines whether or not video based on communication content is displayed on the display unit 170. If the result of this determination is negative (step S11:N), the process proceeds to step S12.

[0065] In step S12, the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 sends display information to the display processing unit 193 indicating that the communication video is currently not displayed. Subsequently, in step S13, the display processing unit 193 generates icon video data indicating that the video based on the communication content is not displayed on the display unit 170. The display processing unit 193 then generates communication information video data CDT from the icon video data and the information video data of the current cumulative communication data amount of the communication terminal 210 for the current month, and sends it to the display unit 170. After this, the process returns to step S11.

[0066] On the other hand, if the result of the determination in step S11 is positive (step S11: Y), the process proceeds to step S14. In step S14, the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 sends display information to the presentation processing unit 193 indicating that the communication video is being displayed. After this, the process proceeds to step S15.

[0067] In step S15, the presentation processing unit 193 generates icon video data indicating that video based on communication content is being displayed on the display unit 170. The presentation processing unit 193 then generates communication information video data CDT from the icon video data and information video data of the current cumulative communication data volume of the communication terminal 210 for the current month, and sends it to the display unit 170. After this, the process returns to step S11.

[0068] Subsequently, steps S11 to S15 are repeated to perform the display control process for the breaking news information.

[0069] <Example of display information on display unit 170> Figure 5 shows an example of the display shown on the display unit 170 when the result of the judgment in step S11 is negative. Here, only the program video is displayed in area 171 of the display unit 170, and the communication information video is displayed in area 172. The "○" shown in area 172 is an icon indicating that the communication video is not displayed.

[0070] Figure 6 also shows an example of the display shown on the display unit 170 when the result of the judgment in step S11 is positive. Here, area 171 of the display unit 170 shows an example in which weather information video based on communication content is displayed simultaneously with the program video. Area 172 of the display unit 170 displays the communication information video, and the "●" shown in area 172 is an icon indicating that the communication video is being displayed.

[0071] As described above, in this embodiment, the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 of the control unit 190 determines whether or not video based on communication content is being displayed on the display unit 170. When it determines that video based on communication content is being displayed on the display unit 170, the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 sends display information to the presentation processing unit 193 indicating that communication video is being displayed. Upon receiving this display information, the presentation processing unit 193 generates communication information video data CDT indicating that video based on communication content is being displayed on the display unit 170 and sends it to the display unit 170.

[0072] On the other hand, if the broadcast-communication collaboration service execution unit 192 determines that video based on communication content is not being displayed on the display unit 170, it sends display information to the presentation processing unit 193 indicating that the communication video is not being displayed. The presentation processing unit 193 then generates communication information video data CDT indicating that video based on communication content is not being displayed on the display unit 170 and sends it to the display unit 170.

[0073] Therefore, when the operation for specifying the display of video based on communication content is the same as the operation for specifying the display of video based on data broadcasting, the user can be made aware of whether the currently displayed video is based on communication content.

[0074] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the cumulative amount of communication data from the communication terminal 210 from the beginning of the month to the present is presented to the user, regardless of whether or not video based on communication content is displayed on the display unit 170. This allows the user to be provided with information to avoid restrictions on the use of mobile communication, thereby improving user convenience.

[0075] Therefore, according to this embodiment, when using the broadcast-communication collaboration system, it is possible to improve user convenience by making the user aware of whether the currently displayed video is based on communication content.

[0076] [Variations of the Embodiment] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible.

[0077] For example, in the above embodiment, a "●" icon is displayed when video based on communication content is displayed on the display unit, and a "○" icon is displayed when video based on communication content is not displayed on the display unit. In contrast, during communication by the communication terminal, other display methods, such as blinking an icon, may be used to indicate that communication is in progress.

[0078] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the current cumulative amount of communication data on the communication terminal is displayed to the user. However, the receiving device may acquire the usage limit value in advance and display the cumulative amount of communication data along with that limit value to the user. In this case, convenience can be improved if the user is unaware of the usage limit value.

[0079] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, when the user presses the "d" button on the remote input device, the home screen of the broadcast-communication collaboration service is launched, and when the user selects data broadcasting from the menu on the home screen, video based on data broadcasting is displayed, and when the user selects a communication content menu, video based on the selected communication content is displayed. However, video based on data broadcasting and video based on communication content may be displayed by other operating methods. It is designed that way.

[0080] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the usage restriction for the communication terminal was set so that if the amount of communication data used each month exceeds a predetermined amount, the communication speed would be reduced until the end of the month. However, other forms of usage restrictions may also be used.

[0081] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the presentation processing unit sends the generated communication information video data to the display unit, but it may also send it to the display video creation unit. In this case, the display video creation unit should create video data to send to the display unit based on the program video data, data broadcast video data, communication content video data, and the communication information video data sent from the presentation processing unit.

[0082] Furthermore, although the present invention was applied to a receiving device mounted on a vehicle in the above embodiment, the present invention can also be applied to receiving devices located on other mobile devices other than vehicles, as well as to receiving devices located in homes.

[0083] Furthermore, the functions of the control unit in the above embodiment may be realized by configuring part or all of the above control unit as a computer with a central processing unit (CPU) or the like as a computing means, and executing a pre-prepared program on the computer. This program is recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a hard disk, CD-ROM, or DVD, and is read from the recording medium and executed by the computer. This program may also be acquired in the form of being recorded on a portable recording medium such as a CD-ROM or DVD, or by being acquired in the form of distribution via a network such as the Internet. [Explanation of symbols]

[0084] 100 ... Receiver 120 … RF processing unit (part of the broadcast reception processing unit) 130… Interface (part of the communication content acquisition unit) 144... Program video processing unit (part of the broadcast reception processing unit) 145 … Data broadcasting processing unit (part of the broadcast reception processing unit) 146 ... Communication input / output unit (part of the communication content acquisition unit) 148 ... Communications Management Department (Communication Volume Acquisition Department) 150 ... Input unit (input section) 170 ... Display unit (part of the display section, display section) 192 … Broadcasting and Communications Interoperability Service Execution Unit (Command Acquisition Unit, Display Control Unit) 193 … Presentation processing unit (part of the presentation unit)

Claims

[Claim 1] A broadcast reception processing unit that generates video signals based on digital broadcasting, including data broadcasting and program broadcasting; A communication content acquisition unit that acquires communication content information from a communication terminal; A display control unit that controls the display unit to display at least one of the video based on the data broadcast and the video based on the communication content information simultaneously with the video based on the program broadcast; A display unit that indicates that the display control unit is displaying video based on the communication content information on the display unit; A receiving device equipped with the following features.

Images