Programs, information processing methods, terminals, systems

Abstract

Diversify the content output from the device when an incoming call or ringing occurs. [Solution] The program executed by the terminal displays a chat room on the terminal's display unit that includes a first account, which is the account of a general user corresponding to the terminal, and a second account; performs a first control regarding the initiation of a call from the first account to the second account; and outputs a ringtone from the terminal's sound output unit based on the first control. The terminal's control unit executes these actions, and it is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit in both cases, whether the second user is a general user account or a business account.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to programs, information processing methods, terminals, systems, etc.

Background Art

[0002] Recently, services that realize calls between terminals using technologies such as Voice over IP (VoIP) have been spreading due to applications executable on terminals such as smartphones. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a program that displays call information including sound information regarding a ringing tone set by a user on a terminal. However, in the method disclosed in Patent Document 1, the content output from the terminal at the time of incoming call or outgoing call was limited.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] The present invention has been made based on the technical background as described above, and an object thereof is to diversify the content output from the terminal at the time of incoming call or outgoing call.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present invention, a program executed by a terminal is performed by the terminal's control unit to display a chat room on the terminal's display unit that includes a first account, which is an account of a general user corresponding to the terminal, and a second account; to perform a first control regarding the initiation of a call from the first account to the second account; and to output a ringtone from the terminal's sound output unit based on the first control. It is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit in both cases, whether the second user is an account of a general user or an account of a business operator. According to a second aspect of the present invention, the program executed by the terminal is performed by the terminal's control unit to display a chat room on the terminal's display unit that includes a first account, which is an account of a general user corresponding to the terminal, and a second account; to perform a second control regarding the initiation of a call from the second account to the first account; and to output a ringtone from the terminal's sound output unit based on the second control. It is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit in both cases, whether the second user is an account of a general user or an account of a business operator. According to a third aspect of the present invention, the information processing method performed by the terminal is as follows: the terminal's control unit performs the following actions: displaying a chat room including a first account, which is an account of a general user corresponding to the terminal, and a second account on the terminal's display unit; performing a first control regarding the initiation of a call from the first account to the second account; and outputting a ringtone from the terminal's sound output unit based on the first control. It is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit in both cases, whether the second user is an account of a general user or an account of a business operator. According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the information processing method performed by the terminal is as follows: the terminal's control unit performs the following actions: displaying a chat room including a first account, which is an account of a general user corresponding to the terminal, and a second account on the terminal's display unit; performing a second control regarding the initiation of a call from the second account to the first account; and outputting a ringtone from the terminal's sound output unit based on the second control. It is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit in both cases, whether the second user is an account of a general user or an account of a business operator. According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, a terminal equipped with a display unit displays a chat room on the display unit that includes a first account, which is an account of a general user corresponding to the terminal, and a second account, performs a first control relating to the initiation of a call from the first account to the second account, and includes a control unit that outputs a ringtone from the sound output unit of the terminal based on the first control, and it is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit in both cases, whether the second user is an account of a general user or an account of a business operator. According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, a terminal equipped with a display unit displays a chat room on the display unit that includes a first account, which is an account of a general user corresponding to the terminal, and a second account, performs a second control regarding the initiation of a call from the second account to the first account, and includes a control unit that outputs a ringtone from the sound output unit of the terminal based on the second control, and it is possible to set the ringtone to be output from the sound output unit in both cases, whether the second user is an account of a general user or an account of a business operator. According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, a system including a terminal according to the fifth aspect and a server that communicates with the terminal is configured such that the control unit of the server estimates a value relating to the number of people who can hear the ringtone, based on at least the output volume of the ringtone at the terminal and the location information of the terminal. According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, a system including a terminal according to the sixth aspect and a server that communicates with the terminal is configured such that the control unit of the server estimates a value relating to the number of people who can hear the ringtone, based on at least the output volume of the ringtone at the terminal and the location information of the terminal. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0006] [Figure 1-1] A diagram showing an example of the system configuration of a communication system according to the embodiment. [Figure 1-2] A diagram showing an example of a function realized by the control unit of the server according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-3] A diagram showing an example of information stored in the storage unit of the server according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-4] A diagram showing an example of account registration data related to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-5] A diagram showing an example of call notification video registration data according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-6] A diagram showing an example of an account management database according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-7] A diagram showing an example of a function realized by the control unit of the terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-8] A diagram showing an example of information stored in the memory unit of the terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-9] A diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-10] A diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-11] A flowchart showing an example of the processing flow performed by each device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 1-12] A diagram showing an example of an account management database related to the first modified example. [Figure 2-1] A diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a terminal according to the second embodiment. [Figure 2-2] A diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of a terminal according to the second embodiment. [Figure 2-3] FIG. showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of the terminal according to the second embodiment. [Figure 2-4] FIG. showing an example of a flowchart of the processing executed by each device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 3-1] FIG. showing an example of a flowchart of the processing executed by each device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 3-2] FIG. showing an example of a population density coefficient reference table according to the third embodiment. [Figure 4-1] FIG. showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of the terminal according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 4-2] FIG. showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of the terminal according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 4-3] FIG. showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of the terminal according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 4-4] FIG. showing an example of a screen displayed on the display unit of the terminal according to the fourth embodiment.

MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[0007] <Compliance with Legal Matters> It should be noted that the disclosure described in this specification is based on compliance with the legal matters of the country of implementation required for the implementation of the present disclosure, such as communication secrecy.

[0008] <Embodiment> In this specification, there are places described as "as an example" or "for example" for easy understanding, but it should be noted that not only the relevant places but also the entire content of the embodiments described below is not limited to the described content.

[0009] Embodiments for implementing the program and the like according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0010] The production of the terminal of the claimed invention (the terminal of the claimed invention) may include the concept that, for example, a state is created in which the functions of the claimed invention become achievable in the terminal when the program described herein (e.g., an application program) is received (or received and stored in the terminal) on a terminal owned (possessed) by a user, thereby creating a state in which the functions of the claimed invention become achievable (a state is created in which the claimed invention becomes executable).

[0011] Furthermore, the production of the system of the claimed invention (the system of the claimed invention) may also include the concept that, for example, a state is created in which the function of the claimed system becomes achievable (a state is created in which the claimed invention becomes executable) by receiving a program described herein (e.g., an application program) transmitted from a server included in the system to a terminal included in the system (or by the received program being stored in the terminal).

[0012] Furthermore, in this specification, a system may be defined as having, for example, multiple devices. Multiple devices may be a combination of devices of the same type, a combination of devices of different types, or a combination of devices of the same type and devices of different types. Furthermore, a system can also be thought of as, for example, a system in which multiple devices work together to perform some kind of processing.

[0013] Furthermore, a system involving a client (client device) and a server can be considered, for example, as at least one of the following: (1) Terminals & Servers (2) Server (3) terminal

[0014] (1) is a system that includes, for example, at least one terminal and at least one server. One example of this is a client-server system.

[0015] The server may consist of the following devices, for example, and may be a single device or a combination of multiple devices.

[0016] Specifically, a server may be configured with, for example, at least one processor (e.g., CPU: Central Processing Unit, GPU: Graphics Processing Unit, APU: Accelerated Processing Unit, DSP: Digital Signal Processor (e.g., ASIC: Application Specific Integrated Circuit, FPGA: Field Programmable Gate Array)), a computer device (processor + memory), a control device, an arithmetic unit, a processing unit, etc., and may be configured with multiple identical units of any one device (e.g., CPU + CPU, homogeneous multicore processor, etc.), or with multiple heterogeneous units of any one device (e.g., CPU + DSP, heterogeneous multicore processor, etc.), or with a combination of multiple devices (e.g., processor + computer device, processor + arithmetic unit, multiple devices made heterogeneous, etc.). Note that the processor may be a virtual processor.

[0017] Furthermore, when a server performs some processing, if it is configured as a single device, the processing described in the embodiment will be performed by that single device. If it is configured as having multiple devices, some processing may be performed by one device and other processing may be performed by the other devices. For example, if it is configured as having a processor and an arithmetic unit, the first processing may be performed by the processor and the second processing may be performed by the arithmetic unit. Furthermore, if the system consists of multiple devices, each device may be arranged in a location that is physically separated from the others.

[0018] Furthermore, server functionality may be provided in the form of PaaS, IaaS, or SaaS in cloud computing, for example.

[0019] Furthermore, the system's control unit can be at least one of either the terminal's control unit or the server's control unit. In other words, for example, the system's control unit can be any of the following: (1A) only the terminal's control unit, (1B) only the server's control unit, or (1C) both the terminal's control unit and the server's control unit.

[0020] Furthermore, the control and processing performed by the system's control unit (hereinafter collectively referred to as "control, etc.") may be (1A) performed solely by the terminal's control unit, (1B) performed solely by the server's control unit, or (1C) performed by both the terminal's control unit and the server's control unit. Furthermore, in (1C), for example, some of the controls that the system would normally perform may be performed by the terminal's control unit, while the remaining controls may be performed by the server's control unit. In this case, the allocation of controls may be equal, or they may be allocated in different proportions.

[0021] Furthermore, when referring to the server's communication unit, if the server is composed of a single device, it may refer to the communication unit itself provided by that single device. Also, if the server is composed of multiple devices, the server's communication unit may include the communication units provided by each of those devices. For example, if a server comprises a first device and a second device, with the first device having a first communication unit and the second device having a second communication unit, the communication unit of the server may be considered a concept that includes both the first and second communication units.

[0022] (2) can be, for example, a system consisting of multiple servers (hereinafter referred to as the "server system"). In this case, the configuration described above can be applied to each server in the same way.

[0023] The control and other functions performed by the server system may be performed by (2A) only one server, (2B) only the other servers, or (2C) one server and the other servers. Furthermore, in (2C), for example, one server may perform some of the control functions that the server system would normally perform, while other servers perform the remaining functions. In this case, the allocation of the controls may be equal, or they may be allocated in different proportions.

[0024] (3) can be, for example, a system composed of multiple terminals. This system can be, for example, as follows: A system that assigns server functions to terminals (a distributed system). This can be achieved, for example, using blockchain technology. A system in which terminals communicate wirelessly with each other. This can be achieved, for example, by using short-range wireless communication technologies such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) to communicate in a P2P (peer-to-peer) manner.

[0025] Furthermore, the above applies not only to the control unit but also to each functional unit that can be a component of the system, such as the input / output unit, communication unit, memory unit, and clock unit.

[0026] In the following embodiments, for example, a system including a terminal and a server (e.g., a client-server system) is illustrated. Furthermore, it is also possible to apply the server system described in (2) above as the server.

[0027] Furthermore, instead of a system that includes terminals and servers, it is also possible to apply a system that does not include servers, such as the system described in (3) above. In this case, the embodiment can be configured based on the aforementioned blockchain technology. Specifically, for example, data stored and managed on the server described in the following embodiment is stored on the blockchain. Then, when a terminal generates a transaction to the blockchain and the transaction is approved on the blockchain, the data stored on the blockchain is updated.

[0028] Furthermore, even when the term "terminal" is used, it is not limited to the meaning of a terminal as a client device in a client-server system. In other words, the term "terminal" can sometimes include the concept of a device that is not part of a client-server relationship. Furthermore, if all or part of the invention described herein is executed by a program installed on a terminal, such program may be a program that is pre-installed on the terminal from the time of shipment (for example, a program pre-installed by the terminal manufacturer), or it may be a program that is additionally installed after the terminal has been shipped. In other words, this also includes programs included in applications installed by the terminal seller or end user via a wired connection to a predetermined recording medium or server, or via the Internet, that perform the invention described herein.

[0029] Furthermore, the expression "by communication I / F" is used as appropriate in this specification. This may, for example, indicate that the device transmits and receives various information and data via a communication I / F (via a communication unit) based on the control of a control unit (such as a processor).

[0030] Furthermore, in this specification, terms such as "related to" or "concerning" may refer to "B concerning A" or "B related to A," for example, "B" which has some kind of relationship with "A." Specific examples will be given later.

[0031] Furthermore, in this specification, when a device processes two or more things, such as "transmitting A and B" or "receiving A and B," it may include both cases where "A" and "B" are performed at the same time (hereinafter referred to as "simultaneous") and cases where "A" and "B" are performed at different times (hereinafter referred to as "non-simultaneous"). For example, when referring to the transmission of first and second information, both concepts are acceptable: one where the first and second information are transmitted at the same time, and another where the first and second information are transmitted at different times. Furthermore, taking into consideration lag (time lag), "simultaneous" may include "almost simultaneous."

[0032] Furthermore, even if "A" and "B" are performed at different times, this only requires that the processing targets "A" and "B," and their purposes do not necessarily have to be the same. For example, when transmitting the first piece of information and the second piece of information as described above, it is sufficient to simply transmit the first piece of information and the second piece of information, and this may include cases where the first piece of information and the second piece of information are transmitted for different purposes, as well as cases where they are transmitted for the same purpose.

[0033] In the following examples, a messaging service is used as an example of a service for users to chat (hereinafter referred to as the "chat service"). Furthermore, an application for implementing the chat service is referred to as a "chat application," and an application for implementing the messaging service is referred to as a "messaging application." A chat application, for example, can allow users to chat in a chat room. In the following examples, the name of the messaging application may be shown as "Messaging App" on the screen diagram.

[0034] Furthermore, messaging services (MS) (including instant messaging services: IMS) can be considered a form of social networking services (SNS). Therefore, a distinction may or may not be made between messaging services and social networking services. In other words, messaging services may be included within the definition of social networking services.

[0035] Furthermore, in the following embodiment, as an example of a messaging service, we illustrate IMS (Instant Messaging Service), which enables the sending and receiving of simple messages between multiple devices (e.g., terminals) via a server. Instant messaging applications, for example, allow users to have conversations in chat rooms.

[0036] A chat room (for example, a talk room) can be a UI (User Interface) or GUI (Graphical User Interface) that allows each user to view content sent and received between multiple users' devices.

[0037] In messaging services, users can, for example, add any account as a "friend" and exchange messages through a chat room.

[0038] Furthermore, "friends" can be defined as the relationship between a first user and a second user, for example, when their accounts are linked unilaterally or bidirectionally in a messaging application. For example, if there is a mutual association between the first user's account and the second user's account, then it can be said that the first user and the second user are "friends." Also, for example, if there is an association between the first user's account and the second user's account, then it can be said that the first user and the second user are "friends" even if there is no association between the second user's account and the first user's account.

[0039] Furthermore, the chat rooms may include one-on-one chat rooms (hereinafter referred to as "one-on-one chat rooms"), group chat rooms containing multiple users (hereinafter referred to as "group chat rooms"), and chat rooms with OA service providers (for example, businesses that partner with messaging service providers) (hereinafter referred to as "OA chat rooms").

[0040] Furthermore, a messaging application account belonging to a business rather than a regular user may be referred to as "(OA (Official Account))", and a user of such an official account may be referred to as an "official user". This may also be referred to as an "official account user" or "official account business," etc. In contrast, a messaging application account belonging to a user who is not an office automation provider is referred to as a "general account," and a user of a general account is referred to as a "general user." This may also be referred to as a "general account user," etc. In other words, messaging application accounts may include both general accounts and official accounts.

[0041] Furthermore, office automation (OA) service providers may also enable users to send and receive messages with other devices via a server, for example, by using terminals similar to those used by general account users.

[0042] Furthermore, a message (message information) may be, for example, information used in a messaging service that defines the sender and recipient, and may consist of identification information (message ID) for identifying the message and the message content. Furthermore, message content may also refer to the contents of a message excluding the message ID. Message content may consist of one or more pieces of content.

[0043] Furthermore, the information set as identification information for identifying a message is called the "message ID." It can be argued that message content contained within messages with the same message ID is identified by that message ID. Therefore, the identification information used to identify a message can be considered substantially synonymous with the identification information used to identify message content. Alternatively, you may or may not set individual identification information (message content ID) for each message content.

[0044] Content may include, for example, text content in text format, image content in image format (including at least one of still images or moving images), and sound content in sound format (including voice). In addition, other elements such as buttons and icons for user interaction, as well as link content such as URIs (including URLs), may also be included.

[0045] The text may include, for example, at least one of the following: national characters represented by character codes, extended characters, machine-dependent characters, numbers, symbols, figures, and codes. Note that the text does not have to contain at least one of the above characters, extended characters, machine-dependent characters, numbers, symbols, figures, and codes, but may also contain other text.

[0046] An image can contain at least one of several types of image information, such as icons, buttons, stamps, emojis, or banner images.

[0047] Contrary to the definition above, it is also acceptable to define "message" as a higher-level concept than "content," or to define "content" and "message" as synonymous, or not to define them in this way.

[0048] <First Example> The first embodiment is an embodiment in which, for example, a call is made between a user of one terminal 20 (hereinafter referred to as "the first terminal") (hereinafter referred to as "the first user") and a user of another terminal 20 (hereinafter referred to as "the second terminal") (hereinafter referred to as "the second user"), and a call is made between the first terminal and the second terminal, and a call video of the incoming call is displayed on the terminal.

[0049] Here, "call video" refers to a video displayed on one terminal (the calling terminal) based on a call being made from one terminal to the other terminal. For example, it can be a video that the user making the call (the person making the call) watches while the call is in progress. Furthermore, "incoming call video" refers to a video that is displayed on the other terminal (the terminal making the call) based on a call being made from one terminal to the other terminal. For example, it can be a video that the user (the person receiving the call) at the receiving terminal watches while the call is ringing. In the following, for example, the call notification video and the incoming call video may be collectively referred to as the "call notification video."

[0050] The call notification video may be, for example, a video set by the user receiving the call or the user making the call. The call notification video may be broadly categorized into the following four types depending on the user who can set it: • "Self-Incoming Call Video": An incoming call video set by the user at the receiving end (or originating from the caller). • "Self-Call Video": A call video set by the user who initiated the call. • "Recipient's Incoming Call Video": An incoming call video set by the calling user. • "Call-to-recipient video": A video call set by the user at the receiving end (or destination).

[0051] For example, if the user receiving the call has set "Call Video X" as their caller ID, when the user initiating the call makes a call to the recipient, the user initiating the call will be able to view "Call Video X," the set caller ID, while the call is ringing. Furthermore, for example, if the user receiving a call has set "Incoming Video Y" as their incoming video, when the user making the call calls the user receiving the call, the user receiving the call will be able to view "Incoming Video Y," which is the incoming video they set, while the incoming call is being received.

[0052] Furthermore, in the following, the user account that initiates a call will be referred to as the "initiating account," and the user account that receives the incoming call will be referred to as the "receiving account."

[0053] When making a call from the originating account's device to the destination account's device, the call notification video can be set to include only the ringing video, only the incoming call video, or both the ringing video and the incoming call video.

[0054] In other words, (1) based on a call (outgoing call) from one terminal to the other terminal, the call video displayed on one terminal may be (1A) configurable by the user of one terminal, (1B) configurable by the user of the other terminal, or (1C) configurable by either the user of one terminal or the user of the other terminal. Furthermore, (2) based on a call being made from one terminal to the other terminal, the incoming video displayed on the other terminal may be (2A) configurable by the user of the other terminal, (2B) configurable by the user of one terminal, or (2C) configurable by either the user of the other terminal or the user of one terminal.

[0055] The contents described in the first embodiment are applicable to any of the other embodiments and any of the other modifications. Furthermore, components identical to those previously mentioned are given the same symbols, and their explanation is omitted.

[0056] In the following embodiment, a video streaming service is used as an example of a service for users to watch videos. Furthermore, the application used to implement the video streaming service is referred to as a "video application." In a video application, for example, a user can watch any video they choose.

[0057] The videos available for viewing on a video streaming service may include, for example, videos uploaded by users. Furthermore, the videos may be short-form videos (so-called "short videos") that users can watch in a short amount of time. Additionally, the video streaming service may be available, for example, as a function of a messaging application.

[0058] Furthermore, video applications may allow users to download videos to their devices for offline playback, or they may allow videos to be streamed over a network. Additionally, videos may include, for example, motion data and audio data (audio track).

[0059] Furthermore, the following forms can be applied to implement a video streaming service: (A1) A form in which a messaging application has video streaming service functionality as one of its features. (A2) A form in which a messaging service function is incorporated as one of the features of a video application that provides a video streaming service. (B1) Forms of an application that has messaging service functionality and video distribution service functionality (integrated application) (C1) A configuration in which the video application is configured as a separate application from the messaging application. (C2) A configuration in which a messaging application is configured as a separate application from a video application. (D) Configuration of the video application as a standalone application.

[0060] In the forms of (A1), (A2), and (B1), for example, the messaging service provider can be the same provider as the video streaming service provider. In this case, one possible approach is to use a common account for both the user account in the messaging application and the user account in the video application. Alternatively, in this case, the user's account in the messaging application and the user's account in the video application can be automatically associated (linked).

[0061] In the forms (C1) and (C2), for example, the messaging service provider can be a different company from the video streaming service provider. Furthermore, in the (C1)~(C2) configurations, it is possible to perform a process that associates (links) the user's account in the messaging application with the user's account in the video application.

[0062] In the following explanation, for example, we will describe how a server 10 providing messaging services and video distribution services is operated and managed by a messaging service provider, following the configuration of (A1).

[0063] <System Configuration> Figure 1-1 shows an example of the system configuration of the communication system 1 in this embodiment. In the communication system 1, for example, a server 10 and one or more terminals 20 (terminal 20A, terminal 20B, terminal 20C, ...) are connected via a network 30.

[0064] Server 10 has the function of providing services such as messaging services and video streaming services to terminals 20 owned by users via the network 30. Server 10 can also be described as a messaging service server, a video distribution service server, etc. In this embodiment, for example, the user of Server 10 is a company that provides messaging services or video distribution services (a messaging service or video distribution service provider). The number of Server 10 and the number of Terminals 20 connected to Network 30 are not limited to those described above. In this embodiment, "video distribution service" refers to a service provided by a business operator (server 10) such as a company that provides video distribution services, and may be, for example, provided to a user (user's terminal 20).

[0065] Terminal 20 (Terminal 20A, Terminal 20B, Terminal 20C, ...) can be any information processing terminal capable of realizing the functions described in each embodiment. Terminal 20 includes, for example, smartphones, mobile phones (feature phones), computers (e.g., desktops, laptops, tablets, etc.), media computer platforms (e.g., cable, satellite set-top boxes, digital video recorders), handheld computer devices (e.g., PDAs (personal digital assistants), email clients, etc.), wearable devices (glasses-type devices, watch-type devices, etc.), VR (Virtual Reality) terminals, smart speakers (voice recognition devices), or other types of computers or communication platforms. Terminal 20 may also be referred to as an information processing terminal.

[0066] The configurations of terminals 20A, 20B, and 20C can, for example, be identical. Furthermore, if necessary, the terminal used by user X may be referred to as terminal 20X, and user information in a predetermined service associated with user X or terminal 20X may be referred to as user information X, or not. User information refers to information about a user associated with an account used by that user in a given service. User information includes, for example, information associated with the user, such as the user's name, user icon image, user's age, user's gender, user's address, user's hobbies and preferences, and user identifier, which are entered by the user or assigned by the given service. It may consist of any one of these items, a combination thereof, or no combination thereof.

[0067] Network 30 plays the role of connecting each device that constitutes communication system 1. In other words, network 30 refers to a communication network that provides connection paths so that the various devices described above can send and receive data after they have been connected.

[0068] One or more parts of network 30 may or may not be wired or wireless networks. Network 30 may include, for example, an ad hoc network, an intranet, an extranet, a virtual private network (VPN), a local area network (LAN), a wireless LAN (WLAN), a wide area network (WAN), a wireless WAN (WWAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), part of the internet, part of a public switched telephone network (PSTN), a mobile phone network, an integrated service digital network (ISDN), wireless LAN, LTE (long term evolution), CDMA (code division multiple access), Bluetooth (registered trademark), satellite communications, or two or more combinations thereof. Network 30 may include one or more networks 30.

[0069] Server 10 (not limited to, but an example of a server, information processing device, or information management device) has the function of providing predetermined services (in this embodiment, messaging services and video distribution services) to terminals 20, etc. Server 10 may be any information processing device that can realize the functions described in each embodiment. Server 10 includes, for example, a server device, a computer (e.g., desktop, laptop, tablet, etc.), a media computer platform (e.g., cable, satellite set-top box, digital video recorder), a handheld computer device (e.g., PDA, email client, etc.), or other types of computers or communication platforms. Server 10 may also be referred to as an information processing device. If it is not necessary to distinguish between Server 10 and Terminal 20, Server 10 and Terminal 20 may or may not be referred to as information processing devices.

[0070] [Hardware configuration of each device] The hardware configuration of each device included in communication system 1 will be described below.

[0071] (1) Terminal hardware configuration Figure 1-1 shows an example of the hardware configuration of terminal 20. Terminal 20 includes, for example, a control unit 21 (CPU: central processing unit), a storage unit 28, a communication interface 22, an input / output unit 23, a clock unit 29A, and a position calculation information detection unit 29B. Each hardware component of terminal 20 is interconnected via, for example, bus B. It is not necessary for terminal 20's hardware configuration to include all components. For example, terminal 20 may have a configuration in which individual components or multiple components are removed, or it may not.

[0072] The communication interface 22 transmits and receives various types of data via the network 30. Communication may be performed via wired or wireless connections, and any communication protocol may be used as long as communication between the interfaces is possible. The communication interface 22 has the function of communicating with various devices, such as the server 10, via the network 30. The communication interface 22 transmits various types of data to the server 10 and other devices according to instructions from the control unit 21. The communication interface 22 also receives various types of data transmitted from the server 10 and other devices and transmits them to the control unit 21. The communication interface 22 may also be simply referred to as the communication unit. Furthermore, if the communication interface 22 is composed of a physically structured circuit, it may be referred to as the communication circuit.

[0073] The input / output unit 23 includes devices for inputting various operations to the terminal 20, and devices for outputting processing results processed by the terminal 20. The input / output unit 23 may have an integrated input and output unit, or it may have separate input and output units, or it may not have to be integrated.

[0074] The input unit is implemented by any or a combination of any type of device capable of receiving user input and transmitting the information related to the input to the control unit 21. The input unit includes, for example, hardware keys such as touch panels, touch displays, and keyboards, pointing devices such as mice, cameras (operation input via video), and microphones (operation input via voice).

[0075] The output unit is implemented by any or a combination of any type of device capable of outputting the processing results processed by the control unit 21. The output unit includes, for example, a touch panel, a touch display, a speaker (for audio output), a lens (for example, 3D output or hologram output), a printer, and the like.

[0076] This is just one example, but the input / output unit 23 may include, for instance, a display unit 24, an audio input unit 25, an audio output unit 26, and an imaging unit 27.

[0077] The display unit 24 is implemented by any or a combination of any type of device capable of displaying data according to the display data written to the frame buffer. The display unit 24 includes, for example, touch panels, touch displays, monitors (e.g., liquid crystal displays and OLEDs (organic electroluminescence displays)), head-mounted displays (HDMs), projection mapping, holograms, and devices capable of displaying images, text information, etc., in air (which may or may not be a vacuum). These display units 24 may or may not be capable of displaying display data in 3D.

[0078] The sound input unit 25 is used for inputting sound data (including voice data; the same applies hereinafter). The sound input unit 25 includes a microphone, etc. The sound output unit 26 is used for outputting sound data. The sound output unit 26 includes a speaker and the like. The imaging unit 27 is used to acquire image data (including still image data and moving image data; the same applies hereinafter). The imaging unit 27 includes a camera, etc.

[0079] If the input / output unit 23 is a touch panel, the input / output unit 23 and the display unit 24 may be arranged facing each other and have substantially the same size and shape.

[0080] The clock unit 29A is the built-in clock of the terminal 20 and outputs time information (timing information). The clock unit 29A is configured to include, for example, a clock using a crystal oscillator. The clock unit 29A can also be described as, for example, a timing unit or a time information detection unit.

[0081] The clock unit 29A may or may not have a clock that conforms to the NITZ (Network Identity and Time Zone) standard, etc.

[0082] The position calculation information detection unit 29B is a functional unit that detects (measures) information necessary for the control unit 21 to calculate (measure) the position of its own terminal 20 (hereinafter referred to as "position calculation information"). The position calculation information detection unit 29B can also be described as, for example, a position calculation sensor unit.

[0083] The position calculation information detection unit 29B includes, for example, a satellite positioning sensor (satellite positioning unit) which is a sensor or unit for calculating the position of the terminal 20 using a satellite positioning system such as GPS (Global Positioning System), an inertial measurement sensor (inertial measurement unit (IMU)) which is a sensor or unit for calculating the position of the terminal 20 using an inertial navigation system, and a UWB positioning sensor (UWB positioning unit) which is a sensor or unit for calculating the position of the terminal 20 using UWB (Ultra Wide Band).

[0084] The satellite positioning unit includes, for example, an RF receiving circuit that converts RF (Radio Frequency) signals, including positioning satellite signals transmitted from positioning satellites received by an antenna (not shown), into digital signals, and a baseband processing circuit that performs correlation calculations on the digital signals output from the RF receiving circuit to capture positioning satellite signals, and outputs information such as satellite orbit data and time data extracted from the positioning satellite signals as position calculation information.

[0085] The inertial measurement unit has inertial sensors, which are sensors that detect information necessary to calculate the position of terminal 20 by inertial navigation calculations. The inertial sensors include, for example, a 3-axis accelerometer and a 3-axis gyroscope, and output the acceleration detected by the accelerometer and the angular velocity detected by the gyroscope as position calculation information.

[0086] The UWB positioning unit includes, for example, an ultra-wideband RF (Radio Frequency) receiving circuit that converts an ultra-wideband RF signal, including a positioning ultra-wideband pulse signal transmitted from a positioning beacon received by an antenna (not shown), into a digital signal, and a relative position calculation processing circuit that calculates the relative position between the terminal 20 and the positioning beacon based on the digital signal output from the ultra-wideband RF receiving circuit. For example, the UWB positioning unit may or may not make terminal 20 function as a positioning beacon by transmitting an ultra-wideband RF signal including a positioning ultra-wideband pulse signal from an antenna (not shown).

[0087] The control unit 21 calculates the position of its own terminal 20 at regular or specific intervals, for example, based on the position calculation information detected by the position calculation information detection unit 29B. The position of the terminal is referred to as the "terminal position," and the calculated terminal position is referred to as the "calculated terminal position." The control unit 21 may or may not store the calculated terminal position in the storage unit 28 as calculated terminal position history data, associated with the date and time the calculated terminal position was calculated.

[0088] The control unit 21 has physically structured circuitry to perform functions realized by code or instructions contained within the program, and is realized, for example, by a data processing device built into the hardware. Therefore, the control unit 21 may or may not be described as a control circuit.

[0089] The control unit 21 includes, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a processor core, a multiprocessor, an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit), and an FPGA (field programmable gate array).

[0090] The storage unit 28 has the function of storing various programs and data necessary for the operation of the terminal 20. The storage unit 28 includes various storage media such as HDD (hard disk drive), SSD (solid state drive), flash memory, RAM (random access memory), and ROM (read-only memory). The storage unit 28 may or may not be referred to as memory.

[0091] Terminal 20 stores program P in storage unit 28, and by executing program P, the control unit 21 executes the processing of each part included in the control unit 21. In other words, program P stored in storage unit 28 enables terminal 20 to realize the various functions executed by the control unit 21. Furthermore, this program P may or may not be described as a program module.

[0092] (2) Server hardware configuration Figure 1-1 shows an example of the hardware configuration of server 10. Server 10 includes, for example, a control unit 11 (CPU), a storage unit 15, a communication interface 14, an input / output unit 12, a display unit 13, and a clock unit 19. Each component of the server 10's hardware is interconnected, for example, via bus B. It should be noted that the server 10's hardware configuration does not necessarily include all components. For example, the server 10's hardware may be configured to exclude individual components or multiple components, or it may not.

[0093] The control unit 11 has physically structured circuitry to perform functions realized by code or instructions contained within the program, and is realized, for example, by a data processing device built into the hardware.

[0094] The control unit 11 is typically a central processing unit (CPU), but may also be a microprocessor, processor core, multiprocessor, ASIC, FPGA, or otherwise. In this disclosure, the control unit 11 is not limited to these.

[0095] The storage unit 15 has the function of storing various programs and data necessary for the operation of the server 10. The storage unit 15 is implemented using various storage media such as HDDs, SSDs, and flash memory. However, in this disclosure, the storage unit 15 is not limited to these. Also, the storage unit 15 may or may not be referred to as memory.

[0096] The communication interface 14 transmits and receives various types of data via the network 30. Communication may be performed via wired or wireless connections, and any communication protocol may be used as long as communication between the interfaces is possible. The communication interface 14 has the function of communicating with various devices, such as terminals 20, via the network 30. The communication interface 14 transmits various types of data to various devices, such as terminals 20, according to instructions from the control unit 11. The communication interface 14 also receives various types of data transmitted from various devices, such as terminals 20, and transmits them to the control unit 11. The communication interface 14 may also be simply referred to as the communication unit. Furthermore, if the communication interface 14 is composed of a physically structured circuit, it may be referred to as the communication circuit.

[0097] The input / output unit 12 includes devices for inputting various operations to the server 10, and devices for outputting processing results processed by the server 10. The input / output unit 12 may have an integrated input unit and an output unit, or it may have separate input and output units, or it may not have to be integrated.

[0098] The input unit is implemented by any or a combination of any type of device capable of receiving user input and transmitting the information related to the input to the control unit 11. The input unit is typically implemented by hardware keys such as a keyboard or a pointing device such as a mouse. The input unit may or may not include, for example, a touch panel, a camera (operation input via video), or a microphone (operation input via voice).

[0099] The output unit is implemented by any or a combination of any type of device capable of outputting the processing results processed by the control unit 11. The output unit includes, for example, a touch panel, a touch display, a speaker (sound output), a lens (e.g., 3D output or hologram output), a printer, and the like.

[0100] This is just one example, but the input / output unit 12 may include, for instance, a display unit 13.

[0101] The display unit 13 is implemented by a display or the like. Typically, the display is implemented by a monitor (for example, a liquid crystal display or an OLED (organic electroluminescence display)). The display may also be a head-mounted display (HDM) or not. These displays may or may not be capable of displaying data in 3D. In this disclosure, the display is not limited to these.

[0102] The clock unit 19 is the built-in clock of the server 10 and outputs time information (timing information). The clock unit 19 is configured to include, for example, a hardware clock such as an RTC (Real Time Clock) or a system clock. The clock unit 19 can also be described as, for example, a timing unit or a time information detection unit.

[0103] (3) Others Server 10 stores program P in storage unit 15, and by executing program P, the control unit 11 performs the processing of each part included in the control unit 11. In other words, program P stored in storage unit 15 enables server 10 to realize each function executed by the control unit 11. This program P may or may not be described as a program module. The same applies to other devices.

[0104] Each embodiment of this disclosure is described as being realized by the CPU of terminal 20 and / or server 10 executing program P. The same applies to other devices.

[0105] Furthermore, the control unit 21 of terminal 20 and / or the control unit 11 of server 10 may implement each process not only with a CPU having a control circuit, but also with logic circuits (hardware) or dedicated circuits formed on an integrated circuit (IC (Integrated Circuit) chip, LSI (Large Scale Integration)), etc., or they may not. Also, these circuits may be implemented by one or more integrated circuits, and the multiple processes shown in each embodiment may be implemented by a single integrated circuit, or they may not. In addition, LSIs are sometimes called VLSI, Super LSI, Ultra LSI, etc., depending on the degree of integration. For this reason, the control unit 21 may or may not be described as a control circuit. The same applies to other devices.

[0106] Furthermore, the program P (e.g., a software program, a computer program, or a program module) of each embodiment of the present disclosure may or may not be provided stored on a computer-readable storage medium. The storage medium is a “non-temporary tangible medium” capable of storing the program P. Also, the program P may or may not be for the purpose of implementing some of the functions of each embodiment of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the program P may or may not be a so-called differential file (differential program) that can implement the functions of each embodiment of the present disclosure in combination with a program P already recorded on the storage medium.

[0107] The storage medium may include one or more semiconductor-based or other integrated circuits (ICs) (e.g., field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) or application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs)), hard disk drives (HDDs), hybrid hard drives (HHDs), optical disks, optical disk drives (ODDs), magneto-optical disks, magneto-optical drives, floppy diskettes, floppy disk drives (FDDs), magnetic tapes, solid-state drives (SSDs), RAM drives, secure digital cards, or drives, any other suitable storage medium, or any two or more suitable combinations thereof. The storage medium may be volatile, non-volatile, or a combination of volatile and non-volatile, where appropriate. The storage medium is not limited to these examples and may be any device or medium capable of storing program P. The storage medium may or may not be referred to as memory.

[0108] The server 10 and / or terminal 20 can realize the functions of the multiple functional units shown in each embodiment by reading the program P stored in the storage medium and executing the read program P. The same applies to other devices.

[0109] Furthermore, the program P of this disclosure may or may not be provided to the server 10 and / or terminal 20 via any transmission medium capable of transmitting programs (such as a communication network or broadcast waves). The server 10 and / or terminal 20 realize the functions of the multiple functional units shown in each embodiment by executing the program P downloaded, for example, via the Internet. The same applies to other devices.

[0110] Furthermore, each embodiment of this disclosure can also be realized in the form of a data signal in which the program P is embodied by electronic transmission. At least part of the processing on server 10 and / or terminal 20 may or may not be implemented by cloud computing consisting of one or more computers. The configuration may be such that at least some or all of the processing on terminal 20 is performed by server 10, or it may not be so. In this case, the configuration may be such that at least some or all of the processing of each functional unit of the control unit 21 of terminal 20 is performed by server 10, or it may not be so. The configuration may be such that at least some or all of the processing in the server 10 is performed by the terminal 20, or it may not be so. In this case, the configuration may be such that at least some or all of the processing of each functional unit of the control unit 11 of the server 10 is performed by the terminal 20, or it may not be so. Unless otherwise explicitly stated, the configuration of the determination in the embodiments of this disclosure is not mandatory, and a predetermined process may be performed if the determination condition is met, or if the determination condition is not met, or not.

[0111] The programs disclosed herein are implemented using, for example, scripting languages ​​such as ActionScript and JavaScript®, compiled languages ​​such as Objective-C and Java®, and markup languages ​​such as HTML Living Standard.

[0112] [Functional Configuration of Each Device] (1) Server Functional Configuration Figure 1-2 shows an example of a function realized by the control unit 11 of the server 10 in this embodiment. The control unit 11 includes, for example, an application management processing unit 111 as a functional unit for executing application management processing according to an application management processing program 151 stored in the storage unit 15.

[0113] Figure 1-3 shows an example of the information stored in the storage unit 15 of the server 10 in this embodiment. The memory unit 15 stores, for example, an application management processing program 151 that is executed as an application management process, account registration data 153, call notification video registration data 155, and an account management database 157.

[0114] The account registration data 153 is registration data related to an application account (in this embodiment, a messaging application), and an example of its data structure is shown in Figure 1-4. The account registration data 153 stores, for example, the username, application ID, and other registration information in association with each other.

[0115] The username is the name of the account on device 20 using this application. For example, the name registered by the user of device 20 when using the application is stored.

[0116] An application ID is information used to identify an application account, or the account itself. This application ID is preferably a unique value for each account, for example, a unique value (unique value) is set and stored for each account by the server 10. The Application ID is information associated with terminal 20 or the user of terminal 20, and is an example of information about the terminal or the user of the terminal.

[0117] Other registration information may include, for example, identification information to identify terminal 20, the phone number of terminal 20 (terminal phone number), email address (terminal email address), and authentication information such as passwords used for various authentications in the application (login password, authentication password, etc.).

[0118] Identification information for identifying terminal 20 can be, for example, a terminal ID (e.g., IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity)). Furthermore, the identification information used to identify the user of terminal 20 can be, for example, an application ID for general users or an application ID for official users.

[0119] Note that you may or may not use "User ID" instead of "Application ID". Furthermore, if an application allows only one account to be registered per terminal 20, then, for example, "identification information for identifying terminal 20 = identification information for identifying the user of terminal 20 = application ID" can be used.

[0120] Furthermore, for example, it may or may not be possible to assign multiple terminal IDs to a single application ID. In this case, it may or may not be possible to launch the application simultaneously on multiple terminals 20 using a single application ID as the target for identification (login).

[0121] Furthermore, it is possible to apply a method of managing accounts using information such as the terminal's phone number instead of various IDs such as application IDs. In this case, instead of storing information such as the application ID in the account registration data 153, information such as the terminal phone number can be stored in the account registration data 153. Alternatively, the application ID information may be associated with the terminal phone number information on a one-to-one basis, or it may not be necessary to do so.

[0122] For the sake of simplicity, in the following embodiments, it will be assumed that one account is registered for each terminal 20. Furthermore, in this case, as described above, "identification information for identifying terminal 20 = identification information for identifying the user of terminal 20 = application ID," therefore, the term "user of the account" used in the following explanation may be considered substantially synonymous with "terminal of the account."

[0123] The call notification video registration data 155 is registration data related to call notification videos (calling videos / incoming call videos) in a messaging application, and an example of its data structure is shown in Figure 1-5. The call notification video registration data 155 stores, for example, the call notification video ID, the call notification video name, and the call notification video data URI, all associated with each other.

[0124] The call notification video ID is information used to identify a call notification video. This call notification video ID is set and stored as a unique value (unique value) for each call notification video by, for example, server 10.

[0125] The call notification video name is the name of this call notification video, and for example, the name registered by a user on server 10 when adding a call notification video is stored.

[0126] The call notification video data URI is a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) that indicates the storage location of the video data for this call notification video. For example, it stores the URI of the video file (e.g., an MP4 file) that a user on server 10 registers when adding a call notification video.

[0127] Alternatively, the call notification video may be registered by the user of terminal 20. In this case, for example, the video file to be used as the call notification video can be uploaded from terminal 20 to server 10, and the name registered by the user of terminal 20 can be stored as the name of the call notification video.

[0128] The account management database 157 is a database for managing information about accounts registered in the account registration data 153. Figure 1-6 shows an example of the data structure of account management database 157A, which is an example of account management database 157. The account management database 157A stores account management data as management data for each account.

[0129] Each account management data entry stores, for example, the application ID and call notification video settings data.

[0130] The application ID is information used to identify an account managed in the account management data. For example, the application ID registered in account registration data 153 is stored there.

[0131] The call notification video settings data is data used to store settings related to call notification videos associated with this application ID account. For example, the notification video type and the call notification video ID are stored in association.

[0132] The notification video type is a type of notification video that is output for each condition. For example, it is possible to set up videos for incoming calls by the user, videos for calling the user, videos for incoming calls by the other party, and videos for calling the other party. In this example, terminal 20, which corresponds to one account (Application ID: U0002), can set both the incoming video when it is the destination and the ringing video when it is the originating call. However, it is also possible to set only one of the two: the incoming video when it is the destination or the ringing video when it is the originating call. Furthermore, in this example, terminal 20, which corresponds to one account (Application ID: U0002), can set both its own incoming video when making an outgoing call and the recipient's incoming video when making an outgoing call. However, it is also possible to set only one of the two: the own incoming video when making an outgoing call or the recipient's incoming video when making an outgoing call. Furthermore, in this example, terminal 20, which corresponds to one account (Application ID: U0002), can set both a self-call video when it is the initiating call and a recipient-call video when it is the receiving call. However, it is also possible to set only one of the two: a self-call video when it is the initiating call or a recipient-call video when it is the receiving call.

[0133] The call notification video ID stores the identification information (call notification video ID) of the call notification video registered in the call notification video registration data 155, which is set for each type of notification video. For example, in the example in Figure 1-6, the call notification video settings for the application ID "U0002" and user name "BB" indicate that the call notification video settings are as follows: the incoming call video is "Kame Video" with call notification video ID "VID002", and the incoming call video is "Kame Video" with call notification video ID "VID003".

[0134] The call notification video settings data for each account can be modified, for example, based on user input such as user operations on terminal 20. Furthermore, as the initial (default) value for the call notification video settings data, for example, the call notification video ID set by the user of server 10 can be pre-set for both the incoming call video and the incoming call video.

[0135] (2) Terminal Functional Configuration Figure 1-7 shows an example of a function realized by the control unit 21 of the terminal 20 in this embodiment. The control unit 21 includes, for example, an application processing unit 211 as a functional unit for executing application processing according to an application processing program 281 stored in the storage unit 28.

[0136] Figure 1-8 shows an example of data stored in the storage unit 28 of the terminal 20 in this embodiment. The memory unit 28 stores, for example, an application processing program 281 that is executed as application processing, and an application ID 283 that corresponds to the terminal 20 or the user account of the terminal 20.

[0137] Alternatively, the storage unit 28 of the terminal 20 may be configured to store the data file indicated by the call notification video ID registered in the call notification video registration data 155 in association with the call notification video data URI. In this case, for example, the control unit 21 of terminal 20 receives call notification video registration data 155 from server 10 at predetermined intervals and determines whether the call notification video registration data 155 has been updated. If it determines that the call notification video registration data 155 has been updated, the control unit 21 of terminal 20 can refer to the call notification video data URI for the updated data, download the referenced data file to the storage unit 28, and store it associated with the call notification video ID.

[0138] <Display screen> The following describes examples of display screens. The screen transitions described below are merely examples of screen transitions for implementing the method of this disclosure. Some screens may be omitted or additional screens may be added to the screen transitions exemplified below. Furthermore, the terminology used in the display screens described below may differ from the terminology used in the processes described later (some terms may not be consistent).

[0139] In the following example, we will describe a case where terminal 20 is a smartphone equipped with a vertically oriented display unit 24. The smartphone has, for example, a touch panel that functions as an input unit, positioned opposite its display, to form a touchscreen. When an element such as an icon, button, item, or input area is displayed on the display, and a part of the touch panel that is opposite the area on which the element is displayed is operated by the user, the program associated with that element or a subroutine of that program may be executed.

[0140] In addition, the flow of screen transitions may be explained by showing predetermined screens displayed on different terminals 20, either within a single drawing or across multiple drawings. In this case, for example, the predetermined screen may be displayed on different terminals 20 based on (or triggered by) at least one of the following: • Automatically displayed • When a notification (including push notifications, etc.; the same applies hereinafter) is sent to device 20, and the user takes action in response to the notification, it will be displayed. • No notification is sent to device 20, but it will be displayed when the user performs a specific action on the application. • A notification is sent to terminal 20, and the user performs a specified action on the application that sent the notification, which then displays the message.

[0141] Figures 1-9 to 1-10 show an example of the screen transitions displayed on the display unit 24 of the terminal 20 in this embodiment.

[0142] Figure 1-9, left side, shows an example of the home screen of the messaging application on terminal 20A. In a messaging application, the top right of the screen displays, for example, the icon image and username (user AA in this example) of the user of this terminal 20A in the messaging application. Additionally, a function selection menu is displayed at the bottom of the screen, for example, to switch between functions of the messaging application. Within this function selection menu, buttons such as "Home" to return to the home screen, "Talk" to return to the chat room screen, and "Video" to access video streaming services are displayed.

[0143] The home screen displays a search input area for searching for any function within the messaging application, and a settings button CFB1, indicated by a gear icon, for configuring settings specific to each messaging application account.

[0144] Below that, several function icons are displayed, corresponding to various features of the messaging application. These function icons include icons for each of several functions, such as "Friends," "Businesses (Official Accounts)," and "Services." This screen shows the "Services" function icon tapped among several function icons. Below the function icon display area, icons indicating recommended services are displayed.

[0145] For example, when the settings button CFB1 is tapped by the user, the display changes to the settings screen, and when call settings are selected on the settings screen, the display changes to the call settings screen shown in the center of Figure 1-9.

[0146] The call settings screen displays two sub-items: "General Settings" for configuring general call-related settings, and "Call Notification Video Settings" for configuring call notification video settings. The "Call Notification Video Settings" section displays the CFB2 button for setting your own incoming call video and the CFB3 button for setting your own incoming call video. The incoming call video setting button CFB2 displays the name of the call notification video set as the incoming call video, "Turtle Video". Similarly, the ringing video setting button CFB3 displays the name of the call notification video set as the ringing video, "Rabbit Video".

[0147] For example, when the call video settings button CFB3 is tapped by the user, the display changes to the call settings screen shown on the right side of Figure 1-9. On this screen, the call notification video selection area VMN1 is displayed for selecting a call notification video, based on the fact that the call notification video setting button CFB3 has been tapped.

[0148] The call notification video selection area VMN1 displays a list of call notification video names registered in, for example, the call notification video registration data 155. Furthermore, the call notification video name "bear video," selected by the user, is displayed in a highlighted manner. Furthermore, in the call notification video selection area VMN1, when the item labeled "Video Upload" is selected, the user may be allowed to register any video file. When registering a video file, the user may also be allowed to set a call notification video name.

[0149] The chat room screen on the left in Figure 1-10 shows an example of the chat room screen displayed on terminal 20A when, for example, "bear video" is set as the self-introduction video for user AA in the settings screen on the right in Figure 1-9. The screen shows a one-on-one chat room with user BB as the chat partner.

[0150] The chat room screen is configured with a content display area (hereinafter referred to as the "content display area"), and for example, the content you have sent (content originating from you) may be displayed on the right side of the screen, and the content the other party has sent (content originating from the other party) may be displayed on the left side of the screen. Furthermore, the content may be displayed in association with information that allows for the identification or identification of the source, for example, in association with the user's registered icon image. The content may also be displayed in a speech bubble. In this case, the text within the speech bubble may be considered the content, or the speech bubble as a whole may be considered the content. Additionally, depending on the type of content and the information it contains, you may choose not to display it in a speech bubble. A single piece of content may include different elements (for example, text, images, and objects such as buttons and icons), and such content may be referred to as "composite content."

[0151] For example, when the call button TB1 above the content display area CR is tapped, the call call display area MCR1 is superimposed on the content display area CR to display a call to the user specified in the chat room (user BB in this example). The call outgoing display area MCR1 shows the username "BB" of the account to which the call is being made, along with the icon of that account. Below that, the voice call outgoing button MCB1 for making an audio-only call to the specified user and the video call outgoing button MCB2 for making a video call to the specified user are displayed side by side.

[0152] For example, when the voice call button MCB1 or the video call button MCB2 is tapped, a call (incoming or outgoing call) is initiated with the user specified as the destination account.

[0153] Figure 1-10 shows an example of the call invoicing screen displayed on terminal 20A, which is the originating account. On the call invoicing screen, the username and icon of user BB, the recipient account currently being called, are displayed at the top of the screen. At the bottom of the screen, there is a "Cancel" button indicated by an "x" to cancel the call, and a "Speaker" button to switch to hands-free calling, etc.

[0154] In the center of the call screen, the "bear video" that user AA has set as their self-call video is playing. In addition, the audio track of the "bear video" is playing in sync with the video, and sound is being output.

[0155] Figure 1-10, on the right, shows an example of the incoming call screen displayed on terminal 20B, which is the receiving account. On the incoming call screen, the username and icon of user AA, the calling account, are displayed at the top of the screen. At the bottom of the screen, there is a "Reject" button to reject the call and an "Answer" button to answer the call and start the conversation.

[0156] In the center of the incoming call screen, the "Rabbit Video," which is set as the user BB's own incoming call video, is playing. In addition, the audio track of the "Rabbit Video" is playing and outputting sound in sync with the video.

[0157] In this example, we have shown how to set up your own incoming call video and your own incoming call video, and output them as call notification videos when making or receiving calls. However, you can also set up the other party's incoming call video and the other party's incoming call video, and output them as call notification videos when making or receiving calls.

[0158] <Processing> Figure 1-11 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow performed by each device in this embodiment. This diagram shows, from left to right, examples of processes executed by the control unit 21 of terminal 20A, the control unit 21 of terminal 20B, and the control unit 11 of server 10. In the following, the control unit may be omitted, and the processes will be described as those executed by terminal 20A, terminal 20B, and server 10.

[0159] The processes described below are merely examples of processes for implementing the method of this disclosure, and are not limited to these. You may add other steps to the process described below, or you may omit (delete) some steps from the process described below.

[0160] Here, similar to the display screen, • Sender account = User AA (not specific, but an example of the user on the first device) • Destination account = User BB's account (not limited to this, but an example of a user on a second device) The following is an example of how to handle this situation.

[0161] First, terminal 20A obtains call notification video setting information, including its own application ID, notification video type, and call notification video ID, based on input to terminal 20A's input / output unit 23 (for example, user input (user operation input, sound input, etc.). The same applies to other terminals 20) (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as "input"), and sends it to server 10 (A110).

[0162] Terminal 20A may also be configured to receive information necessary for setting up call notification videos (for example, call notification video registration data) from server 10 prior to this step.

[0163] Additionally, the setting and transmission of call notification video settings information may be performed on terminal 20B (or another terminal 20).

[0164] When the server 10 receives call notification video setting information from terminal 20A, it executes the call notification video setting process (S110). In the call notification video setting process, the server 10 updates the call notification video setting data in the account management database 157 based on the received call notification video setting information.

[0165] Furthermore, if the call notification video setting information includes, for example, the call notification video name and the video file (or call notification video data URI), the server 10 will store the video file and generate the call notification video data URI during the call notification video setting process. The server 10 may then issue a new call notification video ID, associate the issued call notification video ID with the call notification video name and call notification video data URI, and add it to the call notification video registration data 155 for storage. The server 10 may also update the call notification video setting data in the account management database 157.

[0166] Furthermore, if each terminal 20 manages call notification video setting data, the terminal 20 may choose not to send call notification video setting information to the server 10.

[0167] For example, if a call operation is selected based on input to terminal 20A, terminal 20A sends call request information to server 10, including, for example, information about the destination account (e.g., application ID) (A120).

[0168] For example, when server 10 receives call request information from terminal 20A, server 10 starts processing the call (S130). In call processing, for example, server 10 refers to the account management database 157 and reads the call notification video setting data for the destination account. Server 10 then reads the call notification video ID specified by the notification video type "Self incoming call video" or "Party incoming call video". Then, server 10 refers to the call notification video registration data 155, reads the video file data from the call notification video data URI specified by the call notification video ID, and sends it to the terminal 20B of the destination account. Furthermore, server 10 reads the call notification video ID specified by the notification video type "Self-call video" or "Other party call video". Then, server 10 refers to the call notification video registration data 155, reads the video file data from the call notification video data URI specified by the call notification video ID, and sends it to the terminal 20A of the originating account.

[0169] When terminal 20B receives video data set as incoming video, it displays the video data on the display unit 24 and outputs sound from the sound output unit 26. This allows user BB to view the incoming video and notifies them that a call has been requested (B130). When terminal 20A receives video data set as the call video, it displays the video data on the display unit 24 and outputs sound from the sound output unit 26. This allows user AA to view the call video and notifies them that a call is being requested (A130). For example, when a call is accepted based on input to terminal 20B, terminal 20A and terminal 20B perform VoIP processing for the call between users, for example, via server 10. Alternatively, when a call is accepted, the control unit 21 of terminal 20A and the control unit 21 of terminal 20B may perform peer-to-peer communication to perform VoIP processing for the call.

[0170] The control unit 11 of the server 10 may send a call notification video data URI, rather than video file data, to the terminals 20 of the originating and destination accounts. In this case, the control unit 21 of each terminal 20 may read the video file data based on the call notification video data URI and output the incoming video or call video. The video files may be exchanged, for example, through peer-to-peer communication between the terminals 20.

[0171] For example, when a call ends and is disconnected based on input to terminal 20A or terminal 20B, the server 10 may send call processing result information, including, for example, call duration information in the call processing, to terminal 20A and terminal 20B. Then, the control unit 11 of the server 10 makes a termination determination (S190). If it determines to continue processing (S190: NO), the server 10, for example, waits for the reception of call notification video setting information and returns processing to S110. On the other hand, if it determines to terminate processing (S190: YES), the server 10 terminates the processing.

[0172] Furthermore, the call processing result information may include call notification video information. The call notification video information may include at least one of the following, for example: • Information regarding incoming video from the receiving account • Information regarding the video call from the recipient account • Information regarding the video calling the originating account • Information regarding incoming video from the originating account

[0173] Furthermore, information regarding incoming video (ring video) may include, for example, the name of the call notification video and the URI of the call notification video data. Information regarding incoming video (ring video) may also include, for example, a thumbnail image of that incoming video (ring video). And, as will be described later, tapping the call processing result information (e.g., the thumbnail image) may play the incoming video (ring video) corresponding to that thumbnail image.

[0174] For example, when terminal 20A receives call processing result information from server 10, it displays the received call processing result information on display unit 24. Then, terminal 20A performs a termination determination (A190). For example, if it is determined to continue processing based on the input to terminal 20A (A190: NO), terminal 20A returns processing to, for example, A110. On the other hand, if it is determined to terminate processing (A190: YES), terminal 20A terminates the processing.

[0175] The same applies to terminal 20B.

[0176] <Effects of the First Example> In this embodiment, the program executed by terminal 20A (an example of a terminal) performs call processing (an example of call initiation and reception control) related to a call involving user AA (an example of a terminal user) and user BB (an example of a first user) of terminal 20B (an example of a first terminal) which is different from the terminal, and the terminal's control unit performs the following actions: display a call notification video (an example of image information) on the terminal's display unit based on the call initiation and reception control, and the image information shows an example configuration that includes information about incoming call videos of the user, incoming call videos of the other party (an example of an incoming call video), or incoming call videos of the user and incoming call videos of the other party (an example of an incoming call video). As an example of the effects obtained by this configuration, image information including information about incoming call video or ringing video can be displayed on the terminal's display unit to notify the start of a call involving the terminal's user and a first user of a different terminal. This allows the terminal's user to be shown the incoming call video or ringing video and notified of the incoming or ringing call.

[0177] <First variation (1)> For example, it may be possible to set different incoming call videos and call-through videos for each user or account, depending on who you are calling.

[0178] Figure 1-12 shows an example of the data structure of account management database 157B, which is an example of account management database 157 in this modified example. The account management database 157B stores account management data as management data for each account.

[0179] Each account management data includes, for example, the application ID in the account management database 157A, call notification video setting data, and user-specific call notification video setting data.

[0180] User-specific call notification video settings data is data used to store settings related to call notification videos associated with each originating account (in the case of incoming video) or each receiving account (in the case of incoming video). For example, the notification video type, call notification video ID, and the recipient application ID are stored in association with each other.

[0181] The notification video type and call notification video ID are similar to, for example, the call notification video settings data. The "Call Recipient Application ID" field stores the application ID of the account that is the target of outputting the call notification video, as defined by the notification video type and call notification video ID.

[0182] In this example, for instance, if user AA receives an incoming call from the originating account (user AA's application ID = "U0001"), terminal 20B of the destination account (user BB's application ID = "U0002") will use the video identified by call notification video ID "VID008" as the incoming call video. Also, terminal 20A of the originating account will use the video identified by call notification video ID "VID010" as the ringing video. For example, when a call is received with User CC as the originating account (User CC's application ID = "U0003"), the terminal 20B of the destination account uses the video identified by the call notification video ID "VID009" as the incoming call video. However, since the user's individual call notification video settings data does not contain any settings regarding the incoming call video, the terminal 20C of the originating account uses the video identified by the call notification video ID set as the incoming call video in the call notification video settings data in the account management data for application ID "U0003" as the incoming call video.

[0183] In other words, based on the fact that user AA's terminal 20A is the originator and user BB's terminal 20B is the destination, the first video is played as an incoming video on user BB's terminal 20B, the destination. Based on the fact that user CC's terminal 20C is the originator and user BB's terminal 20B is the destination, a second video different from the first video is played as an incoming video on user BB's terminal 20B, the destination. Furthermore, based on the fact that user AA's terminal 20A is the source and user BB's terminal 20B is the destination, a third video is played on user AA's terminal 20A, the source, as the video of the other party calling (for user BB). Also, based on the fact that user CC's terminal 20C is the source and user BB's terminal 20B is the destination, a fourth video, different from the third video, is played on user CC's terminal 20C, the source, as the video of the other party calling (for user BB).

[0184] Furthermore, it may be possible to set call notification videos for arbitrary groups rather than on an application ID basis. In this case, this can be achieved by storing the identification information of the target group (e.g., group ID) in the call recipient application ID of the user's individual call notification video setting data.

[0185] Furthermore, regarding the relationship between the incoming call video set by the caller and the incoming call video set by the recipient, it may be possible to set the incoming call video set by the recipient to take precedence. For example, if user AA, the caller, has set the first video as the incoming call video for user BB, the recipient, and user BB, the recipient, has set the second video as the incoming call video for user AA, user BB's terminal 20B may be configured to play the second video instead of the first video.

[0186] Conversely, the relationship between the incoming call video set by the caller for the recipient and the incoming call video set by the recipient may be such that the incoming call video set by the caller takes precedence. For example, on user BB's terminal 20B, the first video may be played instead of the second video. The playback control of these incoming videos (determining which video to prioritize for playback) may be performed by the control unit 21 of the terminal 20 on which the incoming video is played, or by the control unit 11 of the server 10. For example, the incoming call video set on the terminal 20 of a user who has been charged for the application may be displayed on the latter terminal 20, which is the destination terminal, with priority over the incoming call video set on the terminal 20 of a user who has not been charged for the application.

[0187] Furthermore, regarding the relationship between the caller's self-call video set by the caller and the recipient's caller video set by the caller, it is possible to set the caller's self-call video to take precedence. For example, if user AA, the originator, has set the third video as the self-call video corresponding to user BB, the recipient, and user BB, the recipient, has set the fourth video as the other-party call video corresponding to user AA, then user AA's terminal 20A may be configured to play the third video instead of the fourth video.

[0188] Conversely, the relationship between the caller's self-call video set by the caller and the caller's recipient-call video set by the recipient may be such that the recipient-call video takes precedence. For example, on user AA's terminal 20A, the fourth video may be played instead of the third video. The playback control of these call videos (determining which video to prioritize playback) may be performed by the control unit 21 of the terminal 20 on which the call video is played, or by the control unit 11 of the server 10. For example, a call video set on the terminal 20 of a user who has been charged for the application may be displayed on the latter terminal 20, which is the originating terminal, with priority over a call video set on the terminal 20 of a user who has not been charged for the application.

[0189] <First variation (2)> Since the incoming call video and / or incoming call video are videos that can be output to the other party's terminal during call processing, for example, it is possible to restrict the terminals 20 (account types) that can be configured for the incoming call video and / or incoming call video.

[0190] For example, you could make it so that incoming call videos and / or incoming call videos are not available for regular accounts. For example, in the case of a business with an official account, since the likelihood of inappropriate videos being played on the user's device 20 is lower compared to users with a regular account, it may be possible to set the incoming call video and incoming call video (videos displayed on the regular user's device) only for official accounts. Furthermore, among general accounts, only certain general accounts, such as users who have never previously set inappropriate videos as incoming call videos and / or call videos in messaging applications (for example, users who have never been blocked by others due to setting inappropriate videos) or users who have never shared inappropriate content in messaging applications (for example, users whose accounts have never been banned due to sharing inappropriate messages or images), may be allowed to set incoming call videos and call videos (videos displayed on the general user's device).

[0191] For example, the incoming call video and / or incoming call video of the other party may be set to be available only to authenticated accounts (e.g., official user accounts or general accounts that have been verified).

[0192] Furthermore, for example, incoming call video and / or call video from the other party may be configurable in the user's individual call notification video settings data for accounts approved by the account of the person making the call. In other words, incoming call video and / or call video from the other party may be enabled and output only for approved callers.

[0193] For example, if user BB configures terminal 20B to allow only user AA's account to set caller video and incoming call video for their own account, then user AA can set caller video and incoming call video for user BB's account by inputting into terminal 20A (the setting is permitted), and the notification call video ID for the caller video and the notification call video ID for the incoming call video are stored in user AA's account management data stored in the storage unit 15 of server 10, associated with user BB's call recipient application ID. As a result, the incoming call video and caller video set by user AA (for user AA) become playable on user BB's terminal 20B. In other words, based on user BB's input to terminal 20B, server 10 configures other users who can set playable call videos and incoming call videos on terminal 20B. Then, the control unit 11 of server 10 enables playback of call videos and incoming call videos on terminal 20B based on the configuration.

[0194] On the other hand, in this case, user CC cannot set the incoming call video and incoming call video for user BB's account by inputting to terminal 20C (setting is not permitted), and the notification call video ID for the incoming call video and the notification call video ID for the incoming call video are not stored in the user CC account management data stored in the storage unit 15 of server 10 in association with user BB's call partner application ID. As a result, the incoming call video and incoming call video corresponding to user CC (for user CC) cannot be played on user BB's terminal 20B. In other words, based on user BB's input to terminal 20B, server 10 sets other users who cannot set playable call videos and incoming call videos on terminal 20B. Then, the control unit 11 of server 10 disables playback of call videos and incoming call videos on terminal 20B based on the settings.

[0195] This prevents a user of any terminal 20 (for example, user CC not authorized by user BB) from setting an inappropriate video for the incoming call video and / or the calling video, and forcing the other party (for example, user BB) to watch it as a call notification video.

[0196] This modified example shows a configuration where the user on the other end of the call (an example of the first user) is a user of an authenticated account (an example of a user who meets the first permission condition). This allows a user who meets the first permission condition to set the image information displayed on the user's device.

[0197] Furthermore, this modified example shows an example configuration where the first setting permission condition is that the first user is an official user account (an example of a business). According to this, if the first user is a business, it is possible to set the image information displayed on the user's device.

[0198] <First variation (3)> In the above embodiment, an example was given in which the server 10 manages call notification video settings data for each account, but the embodiment is not limited to this. For example, each terminal 20 may be configured to store the call notification video settings data for the account of that terminal.

[0199] In this case, the process can be carried out as follows, for example: In Figure 1-11, for example, if a call is selected based on input to terminal 20A, terminal 20A reads call notification video setting data from storage unit 28, for example, and sends call notification video information A, which includes information about incoming video and / or calling video, and call request information, which includes information about the destination account (e.g., application ID), to server 10 via communication interface 22 (A120). Terminal 20A may also send call notification video information A to terminal 20B of the recipient account. Alternatively, terminal 20A may choose not to send call notification video information A.

[0200] When server 10 receives call request information from terminal 20A, it starts processing the call (S130). In call processing, for example, server 10 sends call notification video request information to terminal 20B of the destination account. Upon receiving call notification video request information from server 10, the control unit 21 of terminal 20B reads call notification video setting data from storage unit 28 and sends call notification video information B, which includes information about incoming video and / or call video, to server 10.

[0201] Subsequently, based on the received call notification video information B, server 10 reads the video file data from the call notification video data URI specified by the call notification video ID specified by the notification video type "Caller Call Video" and sends it to terminal 20A of the originating account. Also, based on the received call notification video information A, server 10 reads the video file data from the call notification video data URI specified by the call notification video ID specified by the notification video type "Caller Incoming Call Video" and sends it to terminal 20B of the destination account.

[0202] If the terminal 20B of the calling account is unable to communicate for reasons such as being outside the communication range, the server 10 cannot obtain the call notification video information B. In this case, the server 10 sends, for example, default call video data (for example, a guidance video indicating that the terminal 20 of the calling account is outside the communication range) to the terminal 20A of the calling account.

[0203] When terminal 20A receives video data set as the call video, it outputs the video data from the display unit 24, etc. (A130). When the control unit 21 of terminal 20B receives video data set as incoming video, it outputs the incoming video from the display unit 24, etc. (B130).

[0204] In the example above, if user BB has set up self-incoming video notifications, server 10 may, based on the received call notification video information B, read the video file data from the call notification video data URI specified by the call notification video ID specified by the notification video type "self-incoming video", and send it to the terminal 20B of the destination account. On the other hand, in the above example, if user AA has set up a self-call video, server 10 may, based on the received call notification video information A, read the video file data from the call notification video data URI specified by the call notification video ID specified by the notification video type "self-call video", and send it to the terminal 20A of the originating account.

[0205] Alternatively, the control unit 11 of the server 10 may send a call notification video data URI to the originating account's terminal 20 instead of the video file data. In this case, the control unit 21 of each terminal 20 reads the video file data based on the call notification video data URI and outputs the incoming video or ringing video as sound.

[0206] Alternatively, the call notification video registration data 155 may be stored in the memory unit 28 of the terminal 20. In this case, each terminal 20 can refer to the call notification video data URI from the call notification video ID. The control unit 21 of the terminal 20 synchronizes the call notification video registration data 155 with the contents of the server 10, for example, at set intervals (for example, "8 hours").

[0207] When a call ends and is disconnected, the server 10 may send call processing result information, including, for example, call notification video information A and / or call notification video information B, to terminals 20A and 20B. If terminal 20B is unable to communicate for reasons such as being outside the communication range, the call processing result information may include, for example, information such as the call status "out of range".

[0208] <First variation (4)> The above embodiment illustrates an example of a two-way call in a one-on-one chat room, but is not limited to this. For example, it may also be applied to a multi-way call in a group chat room.

[0209] For example, in a group chat room including users AA, BB, and CC, incoming and outgoing calls to individual users can be configured in the same way as in the above embodiment. For example, when a user in a certain group (e.g., user AA) makes a group call (a simultaneous call with three or more parties) to several other users who are members of the group (e.g., users BB and CC), the video that is set as the call notification video could be something like the following: • Video of the originating account calling itself • Incoming call video from the originating account • Call video of any recipient account among the group members • Incoming call video from any of the group members' designated recipient accounts • Video of the group's representative account calling the other party • Incoming call video from the group's representative account • Any videos set for the group (for example, videos that group members frequently watch on video streaming services, or videos that are streamed (posted) by accounts that group members follow)

[0210] <Second Example> The second embodiment is an embodiment in which a video distributed (posted) on a video distribution service is set as the call notification video.

[0211] Here, the videos in a video streaming service may include, for example, the following types of videos. (1) Videos posted by users with general accounts using video streaming services (including so-called UGC (User Generated Content) videos). (2) Videos posted by users of official accounts that are affiliated with video streaming services or messaging services (including advertising videos distributed from official accounts). (3) Advertisement videos delivered by an advertisement server not shown. Furthermore, the video format can be either a full-length video or a short video that can be viewed in a short amount of time.

[0212] Furthermore, the account for the video streaming service and the account for the service used for making calls (e.g., a messaging service) may be linked. Alternatively, the account for the video streaming service and the account for the service used for making calls may be a common account.

[0213] The contents described in the second embodiment are applicable to any of the other embodiments or any of the other modifications. In other words, it is possible to set the edited video as one of the following videos: "Your incoming call video," "Your incoming call video," "The other party's incoming call video," or "The other party's incoming call video." Furthermore, components identical to those previously mentioned are given the same symbols, and their explanation is omitted.

[0214] <Display screen> Figures 2-1 to 2-3 show an example of the screen transitions displayed on the display unit 24 of the terminal 20 in this embodiment. Figure 2-1, left side, shows an example of a video viewing screen from a video streaming service on terminal 20A, which is the source account.

[0215] This video viewing screen is configured to display a video content display area VCR1 for showing the video being watched. On this screen, the video content display area VCR1 displays a video distributed (posted) by user CC. Specifically, the video content display area VCR1 shows footage of the broadcaster dancing.

[0216] This video viewing screen could be accessed, for example, by tapping the "Video" button in the function selection menu of a messaging application and selecting the desired video from a list of video content.

[0217] In the upper left corner of the video content display area VCR1, the name and icon of the broadcaster, "User CC," are displayed. The video content display area VCR1 is configured to display a seek bar SB1 at the bottom, which visually indicates the video's playback position. For example, the video's playback position can be changed by sliding the seek bar SB1. Below the seek bar SB1, playback control function buttons for temporarily pausing video playback and the like are arranged and displayed. Also, on the right side thereof, the recording time of the video (for example, "1 minute" on this screen) and the current playback time starting from the beginning of the video (for example, "15 seconds" on this screen) are configured to be displayed.

[0218] For example, when the video menu button VB1 in the upper right part of the video content display area VCR1 is tapped by the user, the display changes to, for example, the video viewing screen in the center of FIG. 2-1. On this video viewing screen, for example, an incoming call video setting button CFB4 for setting the currently playing video as an incoming call video for the other party and a calling video setting button CFB5 for setting it as a calling video for the other party are displayed. For example, when the incoming call video setting button CFB4 is tapped by the user, the display changes to the video editing screen on the right side of FIG. 2-1.

[0219] On the video editing screen, for example, a part of the video can be cut out to create a call notification video. On this screen, a seek bar SB2 and an area where images of scenes of the corresponding video are displayed in time series are displayed across the center of the screen.

[0220] At the lower part of the screen, a start point setting button ECB1 for designating the start point of the cut-out call notification video and an end point setting button ECB2 for designating the end point are configured. The user can configure to set the time that becomes the start point of the call notification video by operating the start point setting button ECB1 in accordance with the time with the cursor of the seek bar SB2 as the start point. Also, when the setting of the start point is completed, the time that becomes the start point of the call notification video can be configured by operating the end point setting button ECB2 in the same manner.

[0221] In this example, for example, the start point and the midpoint of the video distributed by the user C.C are set as the start point and the end point of the video to be cut out as the call notification video, respectively.

[0222] Additionally, the top of the screen features a preview area that displays a preview of the video scene corresponding to the cursor position on the seek bar SB2.

[0223] For example, once the user sets the start and end points of a video to be used as a call notification video, the operation on the video clipping button ECB3 is enabled to set the clipped video as the call notification video (in this example, the incoming call video). Then, when the user taps the video clipping button ECB3, the clipped video is set as the call notification video.

[0224] Note that video editing is not required. You can also allow users to set videos streamed on video distribution services as call notification videos.

[0225] The chat room screen on the left in Figure 2-2 is an example of the chat room screen displayed on terminal 20A when, for example, the edited call notification video is set as the incoming call video for user AA in the settings screen on the right in Figure 2-1. In the call out display area MCR1, for example, when the voice call out button MCB1 or the video call out button MCB2 is tapped, a call (incoming or outgoing call) is initiated with user BB, who is designated as the destination account.

[0226] Figure 2-2, on the right, shows an example of the incoming call screen displayed on terminal 20B, which is the recipient account. In the center of the incoming call screen, a video of a dancing woman, posted by user CC, is playing, which is set as the incoming call video for user AA, the account of the caller. The audio track of the video is also playing in sync with the video, and sound is being output.

[0227] By allowing users to set their desired video as the incoming call video or the video of the person calling them, they can, for example, naturally share videos they find interesting with the person they are talking to.

[0228] Figure 2-3, on the left, shows an example of the call initiation screen displayed on terminal 20A, which is the originating account. In the center of the call screen, a video of a singing woman, set as the caller's video for user BB (the recipient's account), is playing. The video's audio track is also playing in sync with the video, and sound is being output.

[0229] The chat room screen in the center of Figure 2-3 is an example of a chat room screen that appears on the caller's account's device 20A after a call has ended. On this screen, for example, the content display area CR shows the message content that initiated the call, followed by the call processing result information CRR1. The call processing result information CRR1 displays the call duration of the previous call as the call status. Below that, a call notification video reference button VRB1 is displayed for viewing the ringing video that played during the call (in this case, the ringing video of the other party set by user BB). Note that the call processing result information CRR1 may include thumbnail images of incoming calls (the incoming call video set by the destination and the incoming call video set by the caller) when terminal 20 is the destination, and may also include thumbnail images of ringing videos (the incoming call video set by the caller and the ringing video of the other party set by the destination) when terminal 20 is the caller.

[0230] When the call notification video reference button VRB1 (or a thumbnail image if one is included) is tapped, the display changes to, for example, the video viewing screen on the right side of Figure 2-3. On this screen, the video content display area VCR1 shows a video of a singer distributed by "User DD". This video is, for example, the video that User BB, the recipient account, set as the video for calling the other party (or the video from which the clipped video was created).

[0231] In other words, users can easily re-view (play) videos that have been set as the caller's video or incoming call video.

[0232] Furthermore, after the call ends, the recipient's terminal 20B may display a call notification video reference button as call processing result information, allowing the user to refer to the incoming call video that played during the call (in this case, the incoming call video set by user AA). When the call notification video reference button is tapped, the video set as the call notification video may be played. If the call notification video is a clipped video, the video played may be the original, unedited video.

[0233] Furthermore, while this example shows how to set up incoming call videos and incoming call videos for the other party and output them as call notification videos when making or receiving calls, it is also possible to set up your own incoming call videos and incoming call videos for your own phone and output them as call notification videos when making or receiving calls.

[0234] <Processing> Figure 2-4 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow performed by each device in this embodiment.

[0235] For example, based on input to terminal 20A, terminal 20A sends video viewing request information to server 10, including the video ID of the video being distributed in the video distribution service (A210).

[0236] When the server 10 receives video viewing request information from terminal 20A, it searches for the corresponding video in a video database (not shown) based on the video ID of the video viewing request information. Then, it sends video information, including the video data of the found video, to terminal 20A (A220).

[0237] When terminal 20A receives video information from server 10, it outputs the video data for playback (A220). Then, terminal 20A, for example, obtains call notification video setting information including the video ID based on the input to terminal 20A and sends it to server 10 (A230).

[0238] When the server 10 receives call notification video setting information from the terminal 20A, it executes call notification video setting processing (S220). In the call notification video setting processing, the server 10 searches for a corresponding video from a video database (not shown) based on, for example, the received call notification video setting information. Then, for example, it obtains a URI indicating the video data and updates the call notification video setting data in the account management database 157.

[0239] In addition, in the call notification video setting processing, the server 10 may execute video editing processing. In the video editing processing, the server 10, for example, cuts out a part of the video data based on video editing request information from the terminal 20A to create a call notification video. Then, it may issue a call notification video ID for the created call notification video, associate it with the call notification video name and the call notification video data URI, and add it to and store it in the call notification video registration data 155.

[0240] In the above flowchart, the server of the messaging service that performs call processing and the server of the video distribution service are exemplified as a common server 10, but the server 10A of the messaging service and the server 10B of the video distribution service may be separate entities. In this case, for example, when the server 10A receives call notification video setting information from the terminal 20A, it may receive video data from the server 10B based on the video ID. Then, it may issue a call notification video ID for the received call notification video, associate it with the call notification video name and the call notification video data URI, and add it to and store it in the call notification video registration data 155. In addition, for example, by using a URI on the server 10B as the call notification video data URI, the server 10A may be able to set it as a call notification video without acquiring the video data of the server 10B.

[0241] By completing the registration of video data on server 10 (or servers 10A and 10B), it is possible to prevent the leakage of the original video data that could lead to copyright infringement, while still allowing it to be set as a call notification video.

[0242] <Effects of the second example> This embodiment shows an example of a configuration in which image information includes information about a video streamed on a video streaming service that can be viewed by both the user and a first user. According to this configuration, it is possible to set a video streamed on a video streaming service as an incoming call video or a ringing video.

[0243] <Second variation (1)> Since the incoming call video and / or calling video of the other party are videos that can be output to the other party's terminal during call processing, for example, it may be possible to restrict the types of videos that can be set for the incoming call video and / or calling video of the other party.

[0244] For example, in a video streaming service, videos streamed by authenticated users (e.g., regular users who have received creator authentication or users linked to official accounts) may be set as incoming call videos and / or call videos. Conversely, videos streamed by unauthenticated users (e.g., regular users) may not be set as incoming call videos and / or call videos.

[0245] This prevents users of any device 20 from setting inappropriate videos as incoming call videos and / or call notification videos, and forcing the other party to watch them as call notification videos.

[0246] Furthermore, for example, in a video streaming service, videos that the streamer has authorized to be set as call notification videos may be set as incoming call videos and / or call-in videos. Videos that are not authorized may not be set as incoming call videos and / or call-in videos.

[0247] This allows video streaming service providers to prevent their videos from being unintentionally spread as call notification videos.

[0248] This modified example shows a configuration in which, if the broadcaster authorizes the video to be set as a call notification video (an example where the broadcast video satisfies the second setting permission condition), it can be set as image information. According to this, if the second setting permission condition is met, the broadcast video can be set as image information and displayed on the terminal's display.

[0249] Furthermore, this modified example shows an example configuration where the second setting permission condition is that the user distributing the video is an authenticated user. This allows the video to be set as image information and displayed on the terminal's display if the user distributing the video is an authenticated user.

[0250] <Second variation (2)> In the above embodiment, the video data to be set as a call notification video was transferred and handled within the server 10, but it may also be possible to transfer the video data from the terminal 20.

[0251] For example, when terminal 20A receives video data from the video distribution service server 10B, it performs video editing and other processing to create video data for call notification videos. Then, terminal 20A may send the video data for call notification videos to the messaging service server 10A.

[0252] This allows users to set videos streamed on a video streaming service as call notification videos, even if there is no link between their video streaming service account and their calling service account, or if the video streaming service and calling service are not affiliated.

[0253] <Third Example> The third embodiment is an embodiment that estimates the effect of an advertising video when it is set as a call notification video.

[0254] In call notification videos, due to their nature of notifying of incoming calls or rings, it's highly likely that the video's audio track won't be muted. Therefore, when setting an advertising video as a call notification video, the playback volume of the audio track (which could also be called the notification volume) can be adjusted to allow people around the incoming or outgoing device to hear the advertising video.

[0255] For example, the effect of an advertising video can be estimated using an advertising effectiveness coefficient calculated by, for example, the following formula (1). Advertising effectiveness coefficient = Audio track playback volume × Population density around the device ... (1) Furthermore, the population density around the device can be considered a value related to, for example, the device's location information and the audio track playback time. This is based on the fact that, for example, a crowded train during rush hour is more populated than an office district during the daytime.

[0256] The contents described in the third embodiment are applicable to any of the other embodiments or other modifications. Furthermore, components identical to those previously mentioned are given the same symbols, and their explanation is omitted.

[0257] <Processing> Figure 3-1 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow performed by each device in this embodiment. This section explains, for example, the case where an advertisement video is set as the incoming call video played on terminal 20B, but the same process can be performed for the incoming call video on terminal 20A.

[0258] For example, when terminal 20B performs call processing (B130), it obtains incoming call status information regarding the circumstances of the incoming call. The incoming call status information may include, for example, the following information: • Terminal location information (e.g., latitude and longitude) based on information acquired by the location calculation information detection unit 29B. • Playback volume for incoming video (If muted, you can set this to "0"). • Call incoming time

[0259] Then, terminal 20B sends incoming call status information to server 10 (B310).

[0260] When server 10 receives incoming call status information from terminal 20B, it performs advertising effectiveness coefficient estimation processing (S310). In the advertising effectiveness coefficient estimation process, server 10, for example, refers to the received incoming call status information and calculates a population density coefficient based on the terminal location information and the call incoming time.

[0261] The population density coefficient may be calculated, for example, based on a population density coefficient reference table stored in the storage unit 15 of the server 10. An example of a population density coefficient reference table is shown in Figure 3-2.

[0262] By referring to this table, it can be seen that the population density coefficient is determined based on the location information of terminal 20B and the playback time of the audio track of the call notification video.

[0263] For example, in Figure 3-2, instead of using the call reception time, the population density coefficient may be calculated based on, for example, the terminal location information during the "daytime" period of the call reception.

[0264] The server 10 then calculates (estimates) an advertising effectiveness coefficient by multiplying, for example, the playback volume of the incoming video by the population density coefficient. In other words, the larger the advertising effectiveness coefficient, the more effective the advertising video played as a call notification video is estimated to be. By analyzing advertising effectiveness coefficients, it is possible to perform marketing analysis of advertising videos.

[0265] For example, once the advertising effectiveness coefficient is estimated, the server 10 may determine the playback price for the played advertising video based on the advertising effectiveness coefficient. That is, it may set and store a higher playback price for plays with a large advertising effectiveness coefficient and a lower playback price for plays with a large advertising effectiveness coefficient. This makes it possible to implement billing based on video ad playback performance, such as setting a higher price per view for ad videos that have a high playback rate.

[0266] Furthermore, in the advertising effectiveness coefficient estimation process, for example, the server 10 may obtain the number of terminals 20 with a messaging application installed at a predetermined location, based on the location information of each terminal 20 via the messaging application. Furthermore, for example, the number of terminals "X" (where "X" is a natural number) present within a predetermined range (for example, within a radius of 10m) around terminal 20B that viewed the incoming video at the time the incoming video was played may be measured (estimated). Then, for example, when the messaging application's market share (application installation rate) is "Y"%, the server 10 may calculate (estimate) the advertising effectiveness coefficient as follows. Advertising effectiveness coefficient = X ÷ Y × 100 In this case, the advertising effectiveness coefficient will be the total number of devices that are likely to be within a predetermined range of the device 20 that viewed the call notification video.

[0267] Please note that the playback volume of the incoming video will be taken into consideration. Advertising effectiveness coefficient = Playback volume of incoming video × X ÷ Y × 100 That is also acceptable. Alternatively, instead of using messaging application sharing, the advertising effectiveness coefficient may be estimated using population density information based on statistical data from the location information of the terminal 20 that viewed the call notification video.

[0268] Alternatively, for example, the advertising effectiveness coefficient estimation process may be performed on terminal 20B. Terminal 20B may then send the estimated advertising effectiveness coefficient to server 10.

[0269] <Effects of the third embodiment> This embodiment shows an example of a system including a terminal 20B (an example of a terminal) and a server 10 (an example of a server) that communicates with the system, wherein the audio track (an example of sound information) of the call notification video is an advertisement, and the server's control unit performs the estimation of an advertising effectiveness coefficient (an example of a value relating to the number of people who can hear the advertisement) based on at least the playback volume on the terminal (an example of the output volume of the sound information) and the terminal's location information. According to this, the server can estimate the number of people who can listen to the advertisement based on the output volume of the sound information related to the sound that notifies the start of a call when it is output from the terminal, and the terminal's location information.

[0270] <Fourth Example> The fourth embodiment is an embodiment in which sound information (referred to as "call notification sound") is used instead of the video for the call notification video described above. Call notification sounds can also be broadly categorized into the following four types, depending on the user who has the ability to configure them. • "Personal Ringtone": The ringtone set by the user of the caller (or recipient). • "Self-Ring Tone": A ring tone set by the user making the call. • "Recipient's ringtone": The ringtone set by the calling user. • "Caller's ringtone": The ringtone set by the user at the receiving end (or destination).

[0271] When making a call from the originating account's device to the destination account's device, the call notification sound can be set to either a ringtone only, a call tone only, or both a ringtone and a call tone.

[0272] In other words, (1) based on a call (outgoing) from one terminal to the other terminal, the ringtone output from one terminal may be (1A) configurable by the user of one terminal, (1B) configurable by the user of the other terminal, or (1C) configurable by either the user of one terminal or the user of the other terminal. Furthermore, (2) based on a call (outgoing call) from one terminal to the other terminal, the ringtone output from the other terminal may be (2A) configurable by the user of the other terminal, (2B) configurable by the user of one terminal, or (2C) configurable by either the user of the other terminal or the user of one terminal.

[0273] The call notification sound may also be used as the audio track for the call notification video.

[0274] The contents described in the fourth embodiment are applicable to any of the other embodiments or any of the other modifications. In other words, the processing related to "call notification sound" can be applied to the processing related to "incoming call video" and "call video" (excluding the parts related to image processing of the video). Also, the processing related to "incoming call video" and "call video" (excluding the parts related to image processing of the video) can be applied to the processing related to "call notification sound". Furthermore, components identical to those previously mentioned are given the same symbols, and their explanation is omitted.

[0275] The left side of Figure 4-1 shows a one-to-one chat room containing User AA's account and User BB's account, displayed on User AA's terminal 20A.

[0276] For example, when the call button TB1 above the content display area CR is tapped, the call call display area MCR1 is displayed superimposed on the content display area CR to initiate a call to the specified user in the chat room (user BB in this example). For example, when the voice call button MCB1 or the video call button MCB2 is tapped, a call (incoming or outgoing call) is initiated with the user specified as the destination account.

[0277] Figure 4-1 shows an example of the call invoicing screen displayed on terminal 20A of user AA, the originating account. On the call invoicing screen, the username and icon of user BB, the recipient account being called, are displayed at the top of the screen. In the center of the call screen, for example, the "ringtone ABC" that user AA, the caller, has set as their own ringtone is being output from the sound output unit 26 of terminal 20A. The same display will also appear if the "ringtone ABC" set by user BB, the recipient of the call, is output from the sound output unit 26 of terminal 20A. Furthermore, for example, information that can identify whether "Ringtone ABC" is a ringtone set as the user's own ringtone (i.e., a ringtone set by user AA) or a ringtone set as the recipient's ringtone (i.e., a ringtone set by user BB, the recipient) may be displayed on the screen (the same applies to the examples in Figures 4-2 to 4-4 below).

[0278] Figure 4-1, on the right, shows an example of the incoming call screen displayed on terminal 20B of user BB, the recipient account. On the incoming call screen, the username and icon of user AA, the initiating account, are displayed at the top of the screen. In the center of the incoming call screen, for example, "Ringtone DEF," which user BB, the recipient of the call, has set as their own ringtone, is output from the sound output unit 26 of terminal 20B. The same display will also appear if the ringtone "DEF," which user AA (the caller) has set as the recipient's ringtone, is being output from the sound output unit 26 of terminal 20B. Furthermore, for example, information that can identify whether "Ringtone DEF" is a ringtone set as the user's own ringtone (i.e., a ringtone set by user BB himself) or a ringtone set as the recipient's ringtone (i.e., a ringtone set by the caller user AA) may be displayed on the screen (the same applies to the examples in Figures 4-2 to 4-4 below).

[0279] Similarly, when user BB is the originator and user AA is the recipient, the ringtone set by user BB (user BB's own ringtone) or user AA (user AA's recipient ringtone) can be output from terminal 20B, and the ringtone set by user AA (user AA's own ringtone) or user BB (user BB's recipient ringtone) can be output from terminal 20A.

[0280] The left side of Figure 4-2 shows the state in which the chat room of business operator X's account (official account) is displayed on user AA's device 20A. For example, user AA is friends with business X and can exchange messages between business X's official account and their own account. For instance, inquiries about products sold by business X can be handled via chat or phone calls. Another example is that a user who has purchased a product from business X can receive product support via phone calls within a chat room.

[0281] For example, when the call button TB1 above the content display area CR is tapped, the call call display area MCR1 is displayed superimposed on the content display area CR to initiate a call to the user specified in the chat room (in this example, carrier X). For example, when the voice call button MCB1 or the video call button MCB2 is tapped, a call (incoming or outgoing) is initiated with the user (carrier X) designated as the destination account.

[0282] Figure 4-2 shows an example of the call invoicing screen displayed on terminal 20A of user AA, the originating account. On the call invoicing screen, the username (official account name of company X) and icon of carrier X, the recipient account being called, are displayed at the top of the screen. In the center of the call screen, for example, the "ringtone GHI" set by the calling carrier X as the recipient's ringtone is output from the sound output unit 26 of terminal 20A. The same display will appear if the "ringtone GHI" set by the calling user AA as their own ringtone is output from the sound output unit 26 of terminal 20A.

[0283] Figure 4-2, on the right, shows an example of the incoming call screen displayed on terminal 20X of the receiving account, which is business operator X (for example, an employee of business operator X who is responsible for product support). On the incoming call screen, the username and icon of user AA, the calling account, are displayed at the top of the screen. In the center of the incoming call screen, for example, the "Ringtone JKL" that carrier X, the recipient of the call, has set as its own ringtone is being output from the sound output unit 26 of terminal 20X. The same display will appear if the "Ringtone JKL" that user AA, the caller, has set as the recipient's ringtone is being output from the sound output unit 26 of terminal 20X.

[0284] Similarly, when carrier X is the originator and user AA is the recipient, the ringtone set by carrier X (carrier X's own ringtone) or user AA (user AA's recipient ringtone) can be output from terminal 20X, and the ringtone set by user AA (user AA's own ringtone) or carrier X (carrier X's recipient ringtone) can be output from terminal 20A.

[0285] <Effects of the 4th embodiment> In this embodiment, the program executed by terminal 20A (an example of a terminal) displays a chat room on the terminal's display unit that includes user AA (an example of a terminal user) and user BB (an example of a first user) of terminal 20B (an example of a first terminal) which is different from the terminal; performs call processing (an example of call initiation and reception control) related to a call involving the user and the first user; and outputs a call notification tone (an example of sound information related to a sound that notifies the start of a call) to the terminal's sound output unit based on the call initiation and reception control. The control unit can change the sound information in both cases where the user is a regular user and where the first user is either an official account user or a regular user. The sound information is shown as an example of a configuration that includes information related to an incoming call tone or ringtone. According to this, the sound information for notifying the start of a call can be changed and output from the device depending on whether the first user is an official account user or a regular user.

[0286] Similar to the examples of incoming call videos and ringing videos mentioned earlier, it is possible to set ringtones (your own ringtone, the other party's ringtone) and ringing videos (your own ringing video, the other party's ringing video) for groups to which multiple users belong.

[0287] For example, in a group chat room including users AA, BB, and CC, incoming and outgoing calls to individual users can be configured in the same way as in the above embodiment. For example, when a user in a certain group (e.g., user AA) makes a group call (a simultaneous call with three or more parties) to several other users who are members of the group (e.g., users BB and CC), the following are some examples of sounds that could be set as the call notification tone. • The ringtone of the originating account • Caller's ringtone from the originating account • The ringtone of any recipient account among the group members • The ringtone of any recipient account among the group members • The ringtone for the group's representative account (for example, the account of the user who created the group, or the account designated by the user who created the group as the representative account). • The ringtone for the group's representative account (for example, the account of the user who created the group, or the account designated by the user who created the group as the representative account). • Any sound set for the group (for example, songs that group members frequently listen to on music streaming services, or songs that are streamed (posted) by accounts that group members follow, etc.)

[0288] Thus, when applied to multi-person calls in a group chat room, the ringtone and / or call tone of the other party may be set to music that suits the tastes of the group members. Music that suits the tastes of the group members may be, for example, songs that the group members like to play (e.g., songs that are frequently listened to) on a music distribution service that partners with the messaging service.

[0289] As mentioned above, the caller's ringtone and / or call tone are sounds that can be output to the caller's terminal during call processing. For example, similar to the incoming call video and / or call video mentioned above, it is possible to restrict the terminals 20 (account types) that can be configured for the caller's ringtone and / or call tone.

[0290] For example, on terminal 20 with a general account, it may be possible to prevent the setting of the recipient's ringtone and / or call tone. Furthermore, among general accounts, only certain general accounts, such as users who have never previously set inappropriate audio or music as the recipient's ringtone and / or call tone in a messaging application (for example, users who have never been blocked by the recipient due to setting inappropriate audio or music), or users who have never sent inappropriate content to a messaging application (for example, users whose account has never been banned due to sharing inappropriate messages or images), may be allowed to set the recipient's ringtone and call tone (the sound displayed on the general user's device).

[0291] Additionally, for example, the official account's device 20 may be configured to allow the user to set the recipient's ringtone and / or call tone. In other words, in the case of a business with an official account, the possibility of inappropriate audio or music being played on the user's device 20 is lower compared to a user with a regular account. Therefore, it may be possible to set the caller's ringtone and call tone (the sound output on a regular user's device) only for official accounts.

[0292] Furthermore, taking into consideration the first modified example (1), the user's own ringtone and the recipient's ringtone may be changed depending on the originating account. For example, the ringtone could change depending on whether the originating account is a regular account, an official account, or a group account (allowing users to set different ringtones for each type of account, including their own ringtone and the recipient's ringtone).

[0293] Similarly, the ringtone can also be varied depending on the account type (allowing users to set different ringtones for each type of account, including their own ringtone and the other party's ringtone).

[0294] For example, in the relationship between user AA and user BB, who belong to the same group (a group of 3 or more users), if user AA taps user BB's icon in a group account-compatible chat room to initiate a call with user BB, the ringtone on user AA's terminal 20A will be the ringtone set for the group account (caller ringtone), and the ringtone on user BB's terminal 20B will be the ringtone set for the group account (destination ringtone). However, if user AA taps user BB's icon in a one-on-one chat room between user AA and user BB to initiate a call with user BB, the ringtone on user AA's terminal 20A will be either user AA's self-ringtone or user BB's recipient ringtone, and the ringtone on user BB's terminal 20B will be either user BB's self-ringtone or user AA's recipient ringtone.

[0295] The left side of Figure 4-3 shows the state in which the chat room of a group account (Group EAST), to which 10 users including users AA, BB, and CC belong, is displayed on the display unit 24 of terminal 20A. Here, user AA initiates a call to user BB's device 20B by tapping the icon of user BB, who sent a message to the chat room.

[0296] As shown in the center of Figure 4-3, terminal 20A outputs the ringtone "GHI," which is set for "Group EAST." As shown on the right side of Figure 4-3, terminal 20B outputs the ringtone "JKL" which is set for "Group EAST". Note that the sounds set for a group account are not limited to both the ringtone and the incoming call tone; one or the other may be used. In the example in the center of Figure 4-3, either the ringtone set by user AA or the incoming call tone set by user BB may be output, and in the example on the right of Figure 4-3, either the incoming call tone set by user BB or the incoming call tone set by user AA may be output.

[0297] The left side of Figure 4-4 shows the state in which the one-to-one chat room between user AA and user BB is displayed on the display unit 24 of terminal 20A. Here, user AA initiates a call to user BB's device 20B by tapping the icon of user BB, who sent a message to the chat room.

[0298] As shown in the center of Figure 4-4, terminal 20A outputs the ringtone "MNO" which is set for "User BB". This ringtone may be the self-ringtone set by User AA, or it may be the other party's ringtone set by User BB. As shown on the right side of Figure 4-4, terminal 20B outputs the ringtone "PQR" which is set for "User AA". This ringtone may be the ringtone set by User BB for itself, or it may be the ringtone set by User AA for the other party.

[0299] The examples shown in Figure 4-3 and Figure 4-4 both illustrate cases where a call is made from User AA's account to User BB's account. However, it is possible to have different ringtones and / or incoming call tones depending on whether User AA initiates the call based on (i) input into a group chat room (tapping User BB's icon) or (ii) input into a one-on-one chat room (tapping User BB's icon).

[0300] Thus, in a group to which both the first user (e.g., user AA) and the second user (e.g., user BB) belong, the call notification sound for a call originating from the second user may be changed depending on whether the originating account is the group or the first user.

[0301] <Other> In the above embodiments, at least some of the processing that the server 10 is supposed to perform may be performed by the terminal 20. Conversely, in the above embodiments, at least some of the processing that the terminal 20 is supposed to perform may be performed by the server 10.

[0302] Furthermore, the operator of server 10 may also be a video streaming service provider that partners with messaging service providers. In this case, the processing described in the above embodiment may be implemented by a single server, or the processing described in the above embodiment may be implemented by a server system consisting of multiple servers, with each server handling a portion of the processing.

[0303] For example, a system consisting of one or more servers may be defined as a server system, and the server of the present invention may be considered a server system. Furthermore, for example, the server system may consist of an information processing device and a video distribution device.

[0304] Furthermore, in the above embodiments, the server for distributing various applications (the server from which terminal 20 downloads applications) may be configured as a different server from the server that provides the corresponding services (applications). In other words, the server for distributing applications and the server that performs the application management processing described in the above embodiments may be configured as physically separate servers, or they may be configured as a single server.

[0305] Furthermore, the term "application" may include not only programs for various applications, but also programs that provide the functionality of other services as a function of the underlying application (for example, a program that provides the functionality of an advertising delivery service as a function of a messaging application, or vice versa), and programs for updating the underlying application. It may also include data used by application programs (which may include data for application updates, etc.).

[0306] Furthermore, while the above embodiments describe, for example, a method of realizing the present invention using a client-server system, the invention is not limited to this. As mentioned above, it may also be realized by a distributed system or other system in which the functions of a server or server system are provided to the terminal 20. For example, the processing described in the flowchart described in the above embodiments as being performed by a server or server system may be performed by the terminal.

[0307] Furthermore, as mentioned above, the contents described in each of the above embodiments, each of the modifications, other embodiments, and so on can be combined and applied accordingly. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0308] 1. Communication System 10 servers 20 devices 30 Networks

Claims

1. A program executed by a terminal, To display a chat room on the terminal's display unit that includes a first account, which is a general user account corresponding to the terminal, and a second account, To perform a first control regarding the initiation of a call from the first account to the second account, Based on the first control, the control unit of the terminal outputs a ringtone from the sound output unit of the terminal, In both cases, whether the second user is a general user account or a business account, it is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit. program.

2. The program according to claim 1, The aforementioned second account is a regular user account, The aforementioned chat room is a chat room of the first group, which includes the first account and the second account. When the first account makes a call to the second account from the chat room of the first group, the ringtone is the first ringtone. When the first account makes a call to the second account from a chat room different from the first group, the ringtone is a second ringtone that is different from the first ringtone. program.

3. A program according to claim 1 or claim 2, The aforementioned ringtone is set by the first account. program.

4. A program according to claim 1 or claim 2, The aforementioned ringtone is set by the second account. program.

5. A program executed by a terminal, To display a chat room on the terminal's display unit that includes a first account, which is a general user account corresponding to the terminal, and a second account, The second control is performed regarding the initiation of a call from the second account to the first account, Based on the second control, the terminal's control unit is configured to output a ringtone from the terminal's sound output unit. In both cases, whether the second user is a general user account or a business account, it is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit. program.

6. L according to claim 5, The aforementioned second account is a regular user account, The aforementioned chat room is a chat room of the first group, which includes the first account and the second account. When the second account makes a call to the first account from the chat room of the first group, the ringtone is the first ringtone. When the second account makes a call to the first account from a chat room different from the first group, the ringtone is a second ringtone that is different from the first ringtone. program.

7. A program according to claim 5 or claim 6, The ringtone is set by the first account. program.

8. A program according to claim 5 or claim 6, The aforementioned ringtone is set by the second account. program.

9. An information processing method performed by a terminal, To display a chat room on the terminal's display unit that includes a first account, which is a general user account corresponding to the terminal, and a second account, To perform a first control regarding the initiation of a call from the first account to the second account, Based on the first control, the control unit of the terminal outputs a ringtone from the sound output unit of the terminal, In both cases, whether the second user is a general user account or a business account, it is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit. Information processing methods.

10. An information processing method performed by a terminal, To display a chat room on the terminal's display unit that includes a first account, which is a general user account corresponding to the terminal, and a second account, The second control is performed regarding the initiation of a call from the second account to the first account, Based on the second control, the terminal's control unit is configured to output a ringtone from the terminal's sound output unit. In both cases, whether the second user is a general user account or a business account, it is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit. Information processing methods.

11. A terminal equipped with a display unit, The system includes a display unit that displays a chat room containing a first account, which is a general user account corresponding to the terminal, and a second account, performs a first control for initiating a call from the first account to the second account, and, based on the first control, outputs a ringtone from the sound output unit of the terminal, In both cases, whether the second user is a general user account or a business account, it is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit. Terminal.

12. A terminal equipped with a display unit, The system includes a control unit that displays a chat room on the display unit, which includes a first account and a second account, which are accounts of general users corresponding to the terminal; performs a second control for initiating a call from the second account to the first account; and outputs an incoming call tone from the sound output unit of the terminal based on the second control. In both cases, whether the second user is a general user account or a business account, it is possible to set the ringtone output from the sound output unit. Terminal.

13. A system comprising a terminal as described in claim 11 and a server that communicates with the terminal, The control unit of the server performs the following operation: estimating a value relating to the number of people who can hear the ringtone, based at least on the output volume of the ringtone at the terminal and the location information of the terminal. system.

14. A system comprising a terminal as described in claim 12 and a server that communicates with the terminal, The control unit of the server performs the following operation: estimating a value relating to the number of people who can hear the ringtone, based at least on the output volume of the ringtone in the terminal and the location information of the terminal. system.

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