Information Processing Apparatus and Information Processing Method

Abstract

Make the objects included in the first video easier for the user to view. 【Solution means】The information processing apparatus 2 includes an acquisition processing unit 231 that acquires a first video, and an object identification unit 232 that identifies a plurality of objects included in the first video. The acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the degree of interest of the user in at least any one of the plurality of objects. The information processing apparatus 2 further includes a transmission unit 235 that transmits to the user terminal used by the user a second video generated by cutting out from the video area of the first video an object area that is an area including at least a part of at least any one of the plurality of objects, based on the first video and the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231, and that is synchronized with the first video.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus and an information processing method.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, services for distributing videos have been known. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for distributing videos.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] Video viewers may not only watch the video as a whole but also pay attention to the objects included in the video. Therefore, there is a need to provide a mechanism for making it easier for viewers to view the objects included in the video.

[0005] Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of these points, and an object thereof is to make it easier for viewers to view the objects included in the video.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] An information processing apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a video acquisition unit that acquires a first video, an object identification unit that identifies a plurality of objects included in the first video, an interest level acquisition unit that acquires an interest level of a user with respect to at least any one of the plurality of objects, and the first video and, based on the interest level acquired by the interest level acquisition unit, a second video generated by cutting out an object area, which is an area including at least a part of at least any one of the plurality of objects, from a video area of the first video and synchronized with the first video, and a transmission unit that transmits the second video to a user terminal used by the user.

[0007] The information processing apparatus may further include a generation unit that generates a plurality of the second videos corresponding to each of the plurality of objects identified by the object identification unit, and the transmission unit may select the second video from among the plurality of the second videos generated by the generation unit based on the interest level acquired by the interest level acquisition unit and transmit the selected second video to the user terminal.

[0008] The information processing apparatus may further include a generation unit that generates the second video based on the interest level acquired by the interest level acquisition unit, and the transmission unit may transmit the second video generated by the generation unit to the user terminal.

[0009] The interest level acquisition unit may acquire the interest level by receiving the interest level set by the user with respect to at least any one of the plurality of objects.

[0010] The interest level acquisition unit may acquire the interest level by acquiring a behavior history of the user with respect to at least any one of the plurality of objects and estimating the interest level corresponding to the object based on the acquired behavior history.

[0011] The action history may be at least any one of a purchase history of goods related to the object, a participation history in an event in which the object has appeared, and a payment history of paying a price for the object or a fee for participating in an event in which the object has appeared.

[0012] The information processing apparatus may further include a storage unit that stores the user ID (Identification) for identifying the user in association with the action history, and the degree-of-interest acquisition unit may acquire the user ID and search the storage unit using the acquired user ID to acquire the action history.

[0013] The information processing apparatus may further include a storage unit that stores information indicating a predetermined object in association with information indicating a similar object defined as an object similar to the predetermined object, and the degree-of-interest acquisition unit may acquire the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object associated with at least any one of the plurality of objects, and the transmission unit may transmit the second video to the user terminal based on the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object acquired by the degree-of-interest acquisition unit.

[0014] The transmission unit may transmit the second video having a size corresponding to the degree of interest corresponding to the object to the user terminal. The transmission unit may transmit the second video having a quality corresponding to the degree of interest corresponding to the object to the user terminal.

[0015] When an upper limit number of the second videos to be displayed on the user terminal is defined, the transmission unit may transmit the second videos up to the upper limit number in descending order of the degree of interest to the user terminal.

[0016] The transmission unit may transmit only the second videos corresponding to the objects among the plurality of objects whose degree of interest is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold value.

[0017] The information processing apparatus may further include a storage unit that stores, for each combination of the user and a predetermined object, a user ID for identifying the user, an object ID for identifying the predetermined object, and the degree of interest of the user in the predetermined object in association with each other. The degree of interest acquisition unit may acquire the degree of interest by searching the storage unit using the user ID corresponding to the user. The information processing apparatus may further include a screen operation acquisition unit that acquires information indicating an operation of the user on the second video displayed on the user terminal when the transmission unit transmits the first video and the second video to the user terminal, and a degree of interest management unit that updates the degree of interest stored in the storage unit in association with the object ID of the object corresponding to the second video based on the operation of the user acquired by the screen operation acquisition unit.

[0018] The transmission unit may further transmit configuration information indicating a configuration for displaying the first video and the second video on a display screen to the user terminal. The information processing apparatus may further include a screen operation acquisition unit that acquires information indicating an operation of the user for changing the configuration of the display screen displayed based on the configuration information. The transmission unit may transmit updated configuration information obtained by updating the configuration for displaying the first video and the second video on the display screen based on the operation of the user acquired by the screen operation acquisition unit to the user terminal.

[0019] The information processing method according to the second aspect of the present invention includes steps executed by a computer: obtaining a first video; identifying a plurality of objects included in the first video; obtaining the degree of interest of a user in at least any one of the plurality of objects; and transmitting to a user terminal used by the user the first video and a second video generated by cutting out from the video area of the first video an object area that is an area including at least a part of at least any one of the plurality of objects based on the obtained degree of interest and synchronized with the first video.

Advantages of the Invention

[0020] According to the present invention, there is an effect that objects included in a video can be made easier for viewers to view.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0021]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0022] [Outline of Information Processing System S] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the outline of the information processing system S. The information processing system S is a service used to provide information processing services. The information processing service is a service that provides videos. The video provided by the information processing service may be a real-time video or an archived video. The information processing system S includes a user terminal 1 and an information processing apparatus 2.

[0023] The user terminal 1 is an information processing terminal used by a user, such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a personal computer, etc. The user is a viewer who watches videos, such as a member of the information processing service. A dedicated application program (hereinafter referred to as "dedicated app") for the user to use the information processing service is installed on the user terminal 1. The user can watch videos using the dedicated app.

[0024] The information processing apparatus 2 is a device that manages the information processing service, such as a server. In the information processing service, as video provision, a first video which is the video and a second video obtained by closing up at least a part of an object included in the first video are provided. The object is a dynamic object that a user can pay attention to, such as a person, an animal, an avatar, etc., but is not limited thereto, and may be a static object. Hereinafter, the processing executed by the information processing system S will be described.

[0025] First, the information processing apparatus 2 acquires the degree of user interest in at least any one of a plurality of objects included in the first video ((1) in FIG. 1). For example, when the user selects a first video that the user wishes to watch from among a plurality of first videos provided by the information processing service in the dedicated app of the user terminal 1 and performs an operation of inputting the degree of user interest in at least any one of a plurality of objects included in the selected first video, the information processing apparatus 2 acquires the degree of interest input by the user.

[0026] Then, the information processing apparatus 2 transmits to the user terminal 1 the first video and a second video generated by cutting out from the video area of the first video an object area that is an area including at least a part of at least one object among a plurality of objects based on the acquired degree of interest and is synchronized with the first video ((2) in FIG. 1). Thereafter, the user terminal 1 displays the first video acquired from the information processing apparatus 2 and the second video synchronized with the first video on the display screen of the dedicated application.

[0027] FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing an example of the first video and the second video. Video V1 is the first video, and four persons H (person H1, person H2, person H3, person H4) appear as objects. Video V2 is the second video. Screen D1 is the display screen of the dedicated application.

[0028] For example, when the degree of interest acquired by the information processing apparatus 2 is the degree of interest corresponding to person H3 and the degree of interest is high, the information processing apparatus 2 transmits to the user terminal 1 the first video and video V2 generated by cutting out from the video area of the first video an area R that is an object area including the face of person H3. Then, the user terminal 1 displays screen D1 on which video V1 and video V2 synchronized with the video V1 are displayed.

[0029] By doing so, the information processing system S can make the objects included in the first video easier for the user to view. In addition, the information processing system S can make it easier for the user to view an object among the plurality of objects included in the first video that has a high probability of being attentively viewed by the user. Hereinafter, the configuration of the information processing apparatus 2 will be described.

[0030] [Functional Configuration of Information Processing Apparatus 2] FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing the functional configuration of the information processing apparatus 2. The information processing apparatus 2 includes a communication unit 21, a storage unit 22, and a control unit 23. In FIG. 3, the arrows indicate the main data flow, and there may be a data flow not shown in FIG. 3. In FIG. 3, each functional block represents a configuration in terms of functions, not in terms of hardware (devices). Therefore, the functional blocks shown in FIG. 3 may be implemented in a single device, or may be divided and implemented in a plurality of devices. The exchange of data between functional blocks may be performed via any means such as a data bus, a network, a portable storage medium, etc.

[0031] The communication unit 21 is a communication interface for connecting to a network and has a communication controller for receiving data from an external device.

[0032] The storage unit 22 is a large-capacity storage device such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores the BIOS (Basic Input Output System) of the computer that realizes the information processing apparatus 2, a RAM (Random Access Memory) that serves as a working area of the information processing apparatus 2, an OS (Operating System), application programs, and an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or SSD (Solid State Drive) that stores various information referred to during the execution of the application programs.

[0033] The storage unit 22 stores information related to the first video provided in the information processing service, information related to a predetermined object, and information related to the user. The predetermined object is an object included in the first video provided in the information processing service.

[0034] The information related to the first video is, for example, information in which a first video ID for identifying the first video and the name of the first video are associated for each first video.

[0035] Information about a predetermined object is, for example, information in which, for each predetermined object, an object ID for identifying the predetermined object, a name of the predetermined object, an object ID corresponding to a similar object, and an identification image of the predetermined object are associated. Similar objects are objects defined as objects similar to a predetermined object based on characteristics of the object such as, for example, gender, appearance, attributes, occupation, type, and the like. The identification image of a predetermined object is, for example, an image used to identify a predetermined object from an unknown image (for example, a first video).

[0036] Information about a user is, for example, information in which, for each user, a user ID for identifying the user and a behavior history of the user are associated. The behavior history of the user is, for example, a payment history of a predetermined fee paid by the user (for example, a membership registration fee, a fee for displaying a second video, a consideration for an object, a fee for participating in an event in which the object appeared, etc.), a purchase history of a predetermined article purchased by the user (for example, an article specified in an information processing service, goods related to an object, etc.), a participation history of a predetermined event participated in by the user (for example, an event specified in an information processing service, an event in which the object appeared, etc.), a viewing history of a video of a predetermined event viewed by the user, and the like.

[0037] Further, the storage unit 22 stores a degree-of-interest management database that manages the degree of interest of a user in a predetermined object. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the degree-of-interest management database. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the degree-of-interest management database stores, for each combination of a user and a predetermined object, a user ID corresponding to the user, an object ID corresponding to the predetermined object, and the degree of interest of the user in the object in association with each other. The degree of interest is expressed by a numerical value, for example, and the higher the numerical value, the higher the degree of interest. Note that the degree of interest is not limited to a numerical value and may be expressed by an index such as "high", "medium", "low", or the like.

[0038] Returning to FIG. 3, the control unit 23 is a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or NPU (Neural network Processing Unit) of the information processing apparatus 2, and functions as an acquisition processing unit 231, an object identification unit 232, an interest degree management unit 233, a generation unit 234, and a transmission unit 235 by executing a program stored in the storage unit 22.

[0039] The acquisition processing unit 231 functions as a video acquisition unit and acquires the first video. For example, when the first video is a real-time video, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the first video from a camera that images an object. Also, for example, when the first video is an archived video, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the first video from a server (not shown) that manages the first video. In addition, when the first video is stored in the storage unit 22, the acquisition processing unit 231 may acquire the first video from the storage unit 22.

[0040] For example, when the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the first video, the acquisition processing unit 231 generates a first video ID corresponding to the first video. Note that the acquisition processing unit 231 may acquire the first video ID corresponding to the first video together with the first video.

[0041] The object identification unit 232 identifies a plurality of objects included in the first video. For example, first, the object identification unit 232 recognizes all the objects included in the first video. The object identification unit 232 can recognize an object using, for example, a known subject recognition technique. Then, for each recognized object, the object identification unit 232 collates the first video including the object with an identification image of a predetermined object stored in the storage unit 22 to identify the object, thereby identifying the object included in the first video.

[0042] The acquisition processing unit 231 further functions as an interest level acquisition unit, and acquires the user's interest level in at least any one of a plurality of objects. The acquisition processing unit 231 acquires, for example, the interest level input by the user. Specifically, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the user's interest level in an object by receiving the interest level set by the user for at least any one of a plurality of objects.

[0043] FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing an example of a display screen of the dedicated application. The screen D2 shown in FIG. 5(a) is a list screen on which a list of first videos is displayed. For example, first, when the user performs an operation of starting the dedicated application on the user terminal 1, the user terminal 1 acquires a list of first videos from the information processing apparatus 2 and displays a screen D2 on which the acquired list of first videos is displayed. When the user selects a first video that the user wishes to view on the screen D2, the user terminal 1 displays a screen D3 shown in FIG. 5(b).

[0044] The screen D3 is a setting screen for setting the interest level of an object. In the example shown in FIG. 5(b), the screen D3 is provided with setting items for setting the interest level of each object (for example, four persons) included in the first video selected by the user. In this case, when the user inputs the interest level corresponding to each object on the screen D3 and presses the setting button, the user terminal 1 transmits the interest level corresponding to each object input by the user to the information processing apparatus 2.

[0045] Then, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the user's interest level in each object from the user terminal 1. Note that when there is an object in a plurality of objects for which the user has not set an interest level, the acquisition processing unit 231 may acquire the interest level corresponding to the object as the lowest interest level, or may handle the interest level corresponding to the object as being unknown.

[0046] Note that the acquisition processing unit 231 may acquire the order of the degrees of interest instead of acquiring a numerical value indicating the degree of interest itself. For example, in the information processing apparatus 2, for each order of the degrees of interest, a numerical value indicating the degree of interest corresponding to the order is defined. In this case, first, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the order of the degrees of interest corresponding to each object from the user terminal 1. Then, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the degree of interest corresponding to each object by specifying the numerical value associated with the order of the degree of interest of the object for each object. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can acquire the degree of interest of the user in the current object.

[0047] When the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the degree of interest from the user terminal 1, it may acquire the degree of interest from the user terminal 1 on the condition that the user satisfies a predetermined condition. For example, in the storage unit 22, permission conditions for determining whether to accept the degree of interest are stored. The permission conditions are, for example, that a specific fee has been paid in the information processing service, a specific item has been purchased, a specific event has been participated in, a video of a specific event has been viewed, and the like.

[0048] In this case, first, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the user ID from the user terminal 1, and refers to the user's action history associated with the acquired user ID in the storage unit 22 to determine whether a predetermined action by the user satisfies the permission conditions. Then, when the acquisition processing unit 231 determines that a predetermined action by the user does not satisfy the permission conditions, it does not accept the degree of interest from the user terminal 1, and when it determines that a predetermined action by the user satisfies the permission conditions, it accepts the degree of interest from the user terminal 1.

[0049] When the information processing apparatus 2 does not accept the degree of interest from the user terminal 1, it may acquire the statistical degree of interest in the object as the degree of interest of the user in the object, or may transmit only the first video without transmitting the second video to the user terminal 1. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can provide an incentive for the user to take actions that satisfy the permission conditions.

[0050] The acquisition processing unit 231 determines using, for example, common permission conditions defined in the information processing service. The acquisition processing unit 231 may also determine using permission conditions defined for each predetermined object. For example, in the storage unit 22, permission conditions are stored for each predetermined object.

[0051] In this case, the acquisition processing unit 231 determines whether a predetermined action by the user satisfies the permission conditions corresponding to the object specified by the object specifying unit 232 in the first video selected by the user. The acquisition processing unit 231 may determine, for each object specified by the object specifying unit 232, whether a predetermined action by the user satisfies the permission conditions corresponding to that object, or may determine whether a predetermined action by the user satisfies any one of a plurality of permission conditions corresponding to each of the plurality of objects specified by the object specifying unit 232.

[0052] The acquisition processing unit 231 may acquire the degree of interest corresponding to the object based on the user's action history. Specifically, the information processing apparatus 2 acquires the degree of interest corresponding to the object based on the user's action history by executing the following two steps.

[0053] As a first step, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the user's action history regarding at least any one of the plurality of objects. The acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the user's action history, for example, by acquiring the user ID corresponding to the user from the user terminal 1 and searching the storage unit 22 using the acquired user ID. The acquisition processing unit 231 may also acquire the user's action history from the user terminal 1.

[0054] As a second step, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the degree of interest of the user in the object by estimating the degree of interest corresponding to the object based on the acquired user behavior history. For example, first, the acquisition processing unit 231 refers to the acquired user behavior history and totals the performance of actions taken by the user for each object included in the first video. The performance of actions taken by the user for an object is, for example, at least one of the number of times goods related to the object were purchased, the total amount of money spent on goods related to the object, the number of times the user participated in an event in which the object appeared, the total amount of consideration paid for the object, and the total amount of fees paid to participate in an event in which the object appeared.

[0055] Then, for each object included in the first video, the acquisition processing unit 231 estimates the degree of interest corresponding to the object by calculating the degree of interest corresponding to the object by applying a predetermined coefficient to the numerical value of the performance of actions taken by the user for the object that has been totaled. The predetermined coefficient is a numerical value determined to convert the numerical value of the performance of actions into the degree of interest. For example, the higher the numerical value of the performance of actions (e.g., the more times goods related to the object are purchased), the higher the calculated degree of interest. The predetermined coefficient may be a numerical value common to each performance of actions, or may be a different numerical value for each type of performance of actions. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can acquire the objective degree of interest of the user in the object.

[0056] The degree of interest management unit 233 functions as a recording unit and records the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231. Specifically, the degree of interest management unit 233 stores, in the degree of interest management database, the acquired user ID, the acquired degree of interest, and the object ID corresponding to the degree of interest in an associated manner.

[0057] Note that when the degree of interest corresponding to the object included in the first video has already been recorded, the acquisition processing unit 231 may acquire the recorded degree of interest. Specifically, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the degree of interest corresponding to the object by searching the degree of interest management database using the user ID corresponding to the user and the object ID corresponding to the object included in the first video.

[0058] The transmission unit 235 transmits to the user terminal 1 a second video generated by cutting out an object area, which is an area including at least a part of at least one of the plurality of objects, from the video area of the first video based on the first video and the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231, and synchronized with the first video. The information processing apparatus 2 transmits to the user terminal 1 the first video and the second video based on the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231, for example, by executing the following two steps.

[0059] As a first step, the generation unit 234 generates the second video based on the attributes of the object area determined in advance. The attributes of the object area are, for example, the face of the object when the object is a person, the entire body of the object, and the like.

[0060] Specifically, first, the generation unit 234 specifies a reference location that serves as a reference for cutting out the object area from the video area of the first video based on the attributes of the object area. The reference location is a location that serves as a reference for cutting out the object area from the video area of the first video, and is, for example, a location determined according to the attributes of the object area. For example, the reference locations when the attribute of the object area is "face" are the eyes, nose, mouth, chin, etc., and the reference locations when the attribute of the object area is "entire body" are the chest, arms, legs, etc.

[0061] Then, the generation unit 234 generates the second video by cutting out a predetermined area including the specified reference location as an object area. The predetermined area is an area determined according to the attributes of the object area and the reference location. By doing so, even when the object is a dynamic object, the information processing apparatus 2 can generate a second video that captures at least a part of the object.

[0062] For example, when generating the second video, the generation unit 234 sets, as the metadata of the second video, an object ID corresponding to the object included in the second video and the attributes of the object area of the second video.

[0063] As a second step, the transmission unit 235 transmits the first video acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231 and the second video based on the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231 and synchronized with the first video in terms of playback time to the user terminal 1. For example, as the second video based on the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231, the transmission unit 235 transmits to the user terminal 1 the second video selected from among a plurality of second videos with different objects based on the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231.

[0064] Specifically, first, when the object identification unit 232 identifies an object included in the first video, the generation unit 234 generates a plurality of second videos corresponding to each of the plurality of objects. Then, the transmission unit 235 selects a second video from among the plurality of second videos generated by the generation unit 234 based on the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231, and transmits the selected second video to the user terminal 1.

[0065] For example, the transmission unit 235 transmits to the user terminal 1 the second video corresponding to an object with a relatively high degree of interest of the user (for example, the object with the highest degree of interest, etc.) among the plurality of second videos generated by the generation unit 234. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can prevent the occurrence of a situation where the consumption of the resources of the information processing apparatus 2 increases due to generating a second video for each user.

[0066] The transmission unit 235 may transmit, to the user terminal 1, a second video generated based on the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231 as the second video based on the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231. Specifically, first, the generation unit 234 generates a second video based on the degree of interest when the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the degree of interest. For example, the generation unit 234 generates a second video corresponding to an object with a relatively high degree of user interest among a plurality of objects included in the first video identified by the object identification unit 232.

[0067] Then, the transmission unit 235 transmits the second video generated by the generation unit 234 to the user terminal 1. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can prevent the occurrence of a situation where unnecessary resources of the information processing apparatus 2 are consumed by generating a second video that is not transmitted to the user terminal 1.

[0068] When the attributes of a plurality of object regions are defined, the transmission unit 235 may transmit, to the user terminal 1, a plurality of second videos that are second videos based on the degree of interest and correspond to the respective attributes of the plurality of object regions. For example, as the attributes of the object region, two attributes, namely, the face of the object when the object is a person and the entire body of the object, are defined, and it is assumed that a second video corresponding to one object with the highest degree of interest among a plurality of objects included in the first video is transmitted.

[0069] In this case, the transmission unit 235 transmits, to the user terminal 1, two second videos corresponding to the object with the highest degree of interest, namely, a second video corresponding to the face of the object and a second video corresponding to the entire body of the object. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can present to the user a second video that closes up an object with a high degree of user interest in various manners.

[0070] When the attributes of a plurality of object regions are defined, the transmission unit 235 may transmit a second video corresponding to the attributes of the object region specified by the user to the user terminal 1. Specifically, the acquisition processing unit 231 further acquires, from the user terminal 1, the attributes of the object region specified by the user among the attributes of the plurality of object regions. Then, the transmission unit 235 transmits a second video that is based on the degree of interest and corresponds to the attributes of the object region specified by the user to the user terminal 1.

[0071] As the second video based on the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231, the transmission unit 235 may transmit a second video having a size corresponding to the degree of interest of the object to the user terminal 1. Specifically, first, the generation unit 234 generates, for each object included in the first video, a second video having a size corresponding to the degree of interest of the object.

[0072] The generation unit 234 generates, for example, a second video having a larger size as the degree of interest is higher. For example, the size of the second video is determined for each predetermined degree of interest, and the generation unit 234 generates a second video having a size corresponding to the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231.

[0073] Then, the transmission unit 235 transmits the plurality of second videos generated by the generation unit 234 to the user terminal 1. Note that the transmission unit 235 may select, from among a plurality of pre-generated second videos each having a different size, a second video having a size corresponding to the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231, and transmit the selected second video to the user terminal 1. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can, for example, make it easier to view an object of higher interest to the user.

[0074] As the second video based on the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231, the transmission unit 235 may transmit a second video having a quality corresponding to the degree of interest of the object to the user terminal 1. The quality of the second video is, for example, resolution, frame rate, compression rate, etc. For example, for each predetermined degree of interest, the quality of the second video corresponding to the predetermined degree of interest is defined.

[0075] In this case, the transmission unit 235 transmits the second video generated for each object included in the first video to the user terminal 1 with a quality corresponding to the degree of interest of the user in the object corresponding to the second video. For example, it is determined that the higher the degree of interest, the higher the quality of the second video, and the transmission unit 235 transmits the second video to the user terminal 1 with a higher quality for the object with a relatively high degree of interest than for the object with a relatively low degree of interest. Note that instead of the transmission unit 235 executing processing to make the second video have a quality corresponding to the degree of interest in the object, the generation unit 234 may generate the second video with a quality corresponding to the degree of interest in the object. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can, for example, make it easier to view an object with a high degree of interest of the user.

[0076] The transmission unit 235 may preferentially transmit to the user terminal 1 the second video corresponding to the object with a relatively high degree of interest as the second video based on the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231. For example, an upper limit number is determined for the number of second videos to be displayed on the user terminal 1.

[0077] In this case, the transmission unit 235 transmits to the user terminal 1 the second videos up to the upper limit number in descending order of the degree of interest of the user in the object. For example, if there are four objects included in the first video and the upper limit number of second videos to be displayed on the user terminal 1 is two, the transmission unit 235 transmits to the user terminal 1 the two second videos corresponding to each of the two objects with the highest degrees of interest among the four objects included in the first video. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can concentrate on making it easier to view the objects with high degrees of interest.

[0078] The transmission unit 235 may transmit only the second video corresponding to the object with a certain degree of user interest or more as the second video based on the degree of interest acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231 to the user terminal 1. Specifically, the transmission unit 235 transmits only the second video corresponding to the object with a degree of interest equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold among a plurality of objects to the user terminal 1. The predetermined threshold is, for example, a numerical value used to determine whether the user pays attention to and views the object. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can prevent presenting the user with the second video corresponding to the object with a low degree of user interest.

[0079] Here, the information processing apparatus 2 may transmit the second video to the user terminal 1 based on the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object similar to the object included in the first video. For example, the information processing apparatus 2 transmits the second video to the user terminal 1 based on the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object similar to the object included in the first video by performing the following two steps.

[0080] As the first step, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object associated with at least any one of the plurality of objects included in the first video. For example, the acquisition processing unit 231 refers to the information about the predetermined object and acquires the degree of user interest in the similar object associated with each object included in the first video. The acquisition processing unit 231 may acquire the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object input by the user, or may estimate the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object based on the user's behavior history regarding the similar object.

[0081] As a second step, the transmission unit 235 transmits the second video to the user terminal 1 based on the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231. Specifically, the transmission unit 235 transmits the second video to the user terminal 1 based on the degree of interest corresponding to the object included in the first video and the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object similar to the object. The transmission unit 235 transmits the second video to the user terminal 1 based on, for example, the total degree of interest obtained by summing the degree of interest corresponding to the object included in the first video and the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object similar to the object.

[0082] The transmission unit 235 may transmit the second video to the user terminal 1 based on the total degree of interest after weighting by applying a predetermined coefficient to at least any one of the degree of interest corresponding to the object included in the first video and the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object similar to the object. The predetermined coefficient is, for example, a numerical value determined such that the degree of interest corresponding to the object is higher than the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can present the user with the second video in consideration of the degree of interest corresponding to the similar object similar to the object included in the first video.

[0083] Note that when there is an unknown object among the plurality of objects included in the first video, the information processing apparatus 2 may transmit the second video to the user terminal 1 based on the degree of interest of the user in the similar object similar to the unknown object. The unknown object is an object whose degree of interest of the user is unknown, and is, for example, an object for which the user did not input the degree of interest, an object for which there is no related user behavior history, or the like.

[0084] Specifically, first, when there is an object among the plurality of objects included in the first video, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the degree of user interest in a similar object similar to the unknown object as the degree of user interest in the unknown object. Then, the transmission unit 235 transmits the second video to the user terminal 1 based on the degree of user interest in each of the plurality of objects acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can estimate the degree of interest corresponding to the unknown object and present the second video to the user.

[0085] The transmission unit 235 transmits, for example, configuration information to the user terminal 1 together with the first video and the second video. The configuration information is information indicating a configuration for displaying the first video and the second video on the display screen of the dedicated application. For example, on the display screen of the dedicated application, it is information indicating the position where the first video is to be displayed and the position where each second video is to be displayed.

[0086] After transmitting the configuration information to the user terminal 1, the information processing apparatus 2 may update the configuration of the display screen of the dedicated application displayed based on the configuration information according to the user's operation. Specifically, first, the acquisition processing unit 231 further functions as a screen operation acquisition unit and acquires information indicating the user's operation for changing the configuration of the display screen of the dedicated application displayed based on the configuration information. The user's operation for changing the configuration of the display screen of the dedicated application is, for example, an operation for changing the position of the second video, an operation for changing the size of the second video, an operation for changing the displayed second video to another second video that is not displayed, and the like.

[0087] Then, the transmission unit 235 transmits updated configuration information, which updates the configuration to display the first video and the second video on the display screen of the dedicated application based on the user operation indicated by the information acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231, to the user terminal 1. For example, when the user performs an operation to change the second video being displayed by the user on the display screen of the dedicated application to another second video that is not being displayed, the transmission unit 235 transmits updated configuration information that updates the configuration to display the first video and the newly displayed second video on the display screen of the dedicated application to the user terminal 1.

[0088] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the display screen of the dedicated application. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the video V3 is the first video and includes four persons as objects. Also, the videos V4, V5, V6, and V7 are the second videos corresponding to each person.

[0089] The display screen D4 shown in FIG. 6(a) is a video playback screen displayed based on the configuration information. In the example shown in FIG. 6(a), the upper limit number of the second videos to be displayed on the user terminal 1 is two, and the videos V4 and V5 are being displayed as the second videos corresponding to the top two persons in terms of interest level among the four persons. The user can swap the display positions of the two second videos (for example, videos V4 and V5) in the display column of the second video on the display screen D4, or scroll up and down to display other second videos that are not being displayed (for example, videos V6 and V7).

[0090] For example, when the user performs an operation to display another second video that is not displayed by scrolling down in the display column of the second video on the display screen D4, the user terminal 1 displays the display screen D4' shown in FIG. 6(b). The display screen D4' shown in FIG. 6(b) is a video playback screen displayed based on the updated configuration information. In the display screen D4' shown in FIG. 6(b), video V5 and video V6 are displayed in the display column of the second video, and it can be confirmed that the second video displayed in the display column of the second video has changed from video V4 and video V5 to video V5 and video V6. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can cause the user to correct the second video displayed based on the degree of interest of the user in the object.

[0091] After transmitting the first video and the second video to the user terminal 1, the information processing apparatus 2 may update the degree of interest corresponding to the object included in the first video according to the user's operation. Specifically, first, the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires information indicating the user's operation on the second video displayed on the user terminal 1 when the transmission unit 235 transmits the first video and the second video to the user terminal 1. The user's operation on the second video is, for example, an operation to change the position of the second video, an operation to change the size of the second video, an operation to change the displayed second video to another second video that is not displayed, an operation to show a positive indication for the second video such as pressing the "like" button, etc.

[0092] Then, based on the user's operation on the second video indicated by the information acquired by the interest degree management unit 233, the interest degree stored in the interest degree management database associated with the object ID of the object corresponding to the second video is updated. For example, when the user performs an operation of swapping the positions of two second videos on the video playback screen, the transmission unit 235 updates the interest degree corresponding to the object of the second video swapped to the upper position in the order of the second videos among the two second videos to be high, and updates the interest degree corresponding to the object of the second video swapped to the lower position in the order of the second videos among the two second videos to be low. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can update the user's interest degree in the object according to the user's operation.

[0093] [Processing of Information Processing Apparatus 2] Subsequently, the processing flow of the information processing apparatus 2 will be described. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the processing flow executed by the information processing apparatus 2. This flowchart starts when the acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the first video (S1).

[0094] The object identification unit 232 identifies the objects included in the first video (S2). The generation unit 234 generates a plurality of second videos corresponding to each of the plurality of objects when the object identification unit 232 identifies the objects included in the first video (S3).

[0095] The acquisition processing unit 231 acquires the user's interest degree in at least any one of the plurality of objects identified by the object identification unit 232 based on the first video (S4). The transmission unit 235 selects a second video from among the plurality of second videos generated by the generation unit 234 based on the interest degree acquired by the acquisition processing unit 231 (S5). Then, the transmission unit 235 transmits the first video and the selected second video synchronized with the first video to the user terminal 1 (S6).

[0096] [Effects in this Embodiment] As described above, the information processing apparatus 2 transmits to the user terminal 1 the first video and the second video that is synchronized with the first video and is based on the degree of user interest in at least any one of the plurality of objects included in the first video. By doing so, the information processing apparatus 2 can make the objects included in the first video easier for the user to view. In addition, the information processing apparatus 2 can make it easier for the user to view the objects in the plurality of objects included in the first video that are highly likely to be watched attentively by the user.

[0097] In addition, according to the present invention, it becomes possible to contribute to Goal 9, "Build the infrastructure for industry and technological innovation," of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) led by the United Nations.

[0098] As described above, the present invention has been described using the embodiments. However, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the gist. For example, all or part of the device can be configured by being functionally or physically dispersed and integrated in any unit. In addition, new embodiments resulting from an arbitrary combination of a plurality of embodiments are also included in the embodiments of the present invention. The effects of the new embodiments resulting from the combination have the effects of the original embodiments combined.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0099] 1 User terminal 2 Information processing apparatus 21 Communication unit 22 Storage unit 23 Control unit 231 Acquisition processing unit 232 Object identification unit 233 Interest degree management unit 234 Generation unit 235 Transmission unit S Information processing system

Claims

1. A storage unit that stores, in association with each other, information indicating a predetermined object and information indicating a similar object defined as an object similar to the predetermined object; a video acquisition unit that acquires a first video; an object identification unit that identifies a plurality of objects included in the first video; an interest degree acquisition unit that acquires the degree of interest of the user in the similar object associated with at least any one of the plurality of objects; a transmission unit that transmits to a user terminal used by the user, the first video and a second video generated by cutting out, from the video area of the first video, an object area that is an area including at least a part of at least any one of the plurality of objects, the second video being synchronized with the first video, based on the degree of interest in the similar object acquired by the interest degree acquisition unit; An information processing apparatus having the above.

2. A video acquisition unit that acquires a first video; an object identification unit that identifies a plurality of objects included in the first video; an interest degree acquisition unit that acquires the degree of interest of the user in at least any one of the plurality of objects; a transmission unit that transmits to a user terminal used by the user, the first video and a second video generated by cutting out, from the video area of the first video, an object area that is an area including at least a part of at least any one of the plurality of objects, the second video being synchronized with the first video and having a size corresponding to the degree of interest in the object, based on the degree of interest acquired by the interest degree acquisition unit; An information processing apparatus having the above.

3. A video acquisition unit that acquires a first video; an object identification unit that identifies a plurality of objects included in the first video; an interest degree acquisition unit that acquires the degree of interest of the user in at least any one of the plurality of objects; A transmission unit that transmits, to a user terminal used by the user, the first video and a second video that is generated by cutting out, from the video area of the first video, an object area that is an area including at least a part of at least one of the plurality of objects and that is synchronized with the first video, and the second video has a quality corresponding to the degree of interest in the object. An information processing apparatus having the above.

4. A video acquisition unit that acquires a first video, An object identification unit that identifies a plurality of objects included in the first video, A degree-of-interest acquisition unit that acquires the degree of interest of the user in at least one of the plurality of objects, When transmitting, to the user terminal used by the user, the first video and a second video that is generated by cutting out, from the video area of the first video, an object area that is an area including at least a part of at least one of the plurality of objects and that is synchronized with the first video, and when an upper limit number of the second videos to be displayed on the user terminal is determined, a transmission unit that transmits, to the user terminal, the second videos up to the upper limit number in descending order of the degree of interest. An information processing apparatus having the above.

5. A video acquisition unit that acquires a first video, An object identification unit that identifies a plurality of objects included in the first video, A degree-of-interest acquisition unit that acquires the degree of interest of the user in at least one of the plurality of objects, A transmission unit that transmits, to the user terminal used by the user, the first video, a second video that is generated by cutting out, from the video area of the first video, an object area that is an area including at least a part of at least one of the plurality of objects and that is synchronized with the first video, and configuration information indicating a configuration for displaying the first video and the second video on a display screen, A screen operation acquisition unit that acquires information indicating an operation of the user for changing the configuration of the display screen displayed based on the configuration information. An information processing apparatus having the above. The transmission unit transmits updated configuration information, which updates a configuration for causing the display screen to display the first video and the second video based on the operation of the user acquired by the screen operation acquisition unit, to the user terminal. An information processing apparatus. **Claim 6** The information processing apparatus further includes a generation unit that generates a plurality of the second videos corresponding to the plurality of objects identified by the object identification unit. The transmission unit selects the second video from among the plurality of the second videos generated by the generation unit based on the degree of interest acquired by the degree-of-interest acquisition unit, and transmits the selected second video to the user terminal. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5. **Claim 7** The information processing apparatus further includes a generation unit that generates the second video based on the degree of interest acquired by the degree-of-interest acquisition unit. The transmission unit transmits the second video generated by the generation unit to the user terminal. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5. **Claim 8** The degree-of-interest acquisition unit acquires the degree of interest by receiving the degree of interest set by the user for at least any one of the plurality of objects. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5. **Claim 9** The degree-of-interest acquisition unit acquires the degree of interest by acquiring the behavior history of the user regarding at least any one of the plurality of objects and estimating the degree of interest corresponding to the object based on the acquired behavior history. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5. **Claim 10** The behavior history is at least any one of a purchase history of goods related to the object, a participation history in an event in which the object appeared, and a payment history of paying a price for the object or a fee for participating in an event in which the object appeared. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9. **Claim 11** The information processing apparatus further includes a storage unit that stores in association a user ID (Identification) for identifying the user and the behavior history. The degree-of-interest acquisition unit acquires the behavior history by acquiring the user ID and searching the storage unit using the acquired user ID. The information processing apparatus according to claim 10. **Claim 12** The transmitting unit transmits only the second video corresponding to the object among the plurality of objects whose degree of interest is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold value. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

13. The information processing apparatus further includes a storage unit that stores, in association with each other, a user ID for identifying the user, an object ID for identifying the predetermined object, and the degree of interest of the user in the predetermined object, for each combination of the user and the predetermined object. The degree-of-interest acquisition unit acquires the degree of interest by searching the storage unit using the user ID corresponding to the user. The information processing apparatus A screen operation acquisition unit that acquires information indicating an operation of the user on the second video displayed on the user terminal by the transmitting unit transmitting the first video and the second video to the user terminal; A degree-of-interest management unit that updates the degree of interest stored in the storage unit in association with the object ID of the object corresponding to the second video based on the operation of the user acquired by the screen operation acquisition unit; further comprising The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

14. An information processing method executed by a computer having a storage unit that stores, in association with each other, information indicating a predetermined object and information indicating a similar object defined as an object similar to the predetermined object. A step of acquiring a first video; A step of specifying a plurality of objects included in the first video; A step of acquiring the degree of interest of the user in the similar object associated with at least any one of the plurality of objects; A step of transmitting, to a user terminal used by the user, a second video generated by cutting out an object area, which is an area including at least a part of at least any one of the plurality of objects, from the video area of the first video, the second video being synchronized with the first video, based on the first video and the degree of interest corresponding to the acquired similar object; having

15. Executed by a computer A step of acquiring a first video; A step of specifying a plurality of objects included in the first video; A step of obtaining the degree of interest of a user in at least any one of the plurality of objects; A step of transmitting, to a user terminal used by the user, the first video and a second video generated by cutting out an object area, which is an area including at least a part of at least any one of the plurality of objects, from the video area of the first video based on the obtained degree of interest, the second video being synchronized with the first video and having a size corresponding to the degree of interest in the object; An information processing method having the above.

16. Executed by a computer, A step of obtaining a first video; A step of specifying a plurality of objects included in the first video; A step of obtaining the degree of interest of a user in at least any one of the plurality of objects; A step of transmitting, to a user terminal used by the user, the first video and a second video generated by cutting out an object area, which is an area including at least a part of at least any one of the plurality of objects, from the video area of the first video based on the obtained degree of interest, the second video being synchronized with the first video and having a quality corresponding to the degree of interest in the object; An information processing method having the above.

17. Executed by a computer, A step of obtaining a first video; A step of specifying a plurality of objects included in the first video; A step of obtaining the degree of interest of a user in at least any one of the plurality of objects; When transmitting, to a user terminal used by the user, the first video and a second video generated by cutting out an object area, which is an area including at least a part of at least any one of the plurality of objects, from the video area of the first video based on the obtained degree of interest, the second video being synchronized with the first video, if an upper limit number of the second videos to be displayed on the user terminal is defined, a step of transmitting the second videos up to the upper limit number in descending order of the degree of interest to the user terminal; An information processing method having the above.

18. Executed by a computer, A step of obtaining a first video; A step of identifying a plurality of objects included in the first video; A step of obtaining the degree of interest of the user in at least any one of the plurality of objects; A second video generated by cutting out an object area, which is an area including at least a part of at least any one of the plurality of objects, from the video area of the first video based on the first video and the obtained degree of interest, and synchronized with the first video, and configuration information indicating a configuration for displaying the first video and the second video on a display screen, and transmitting the information to a user terminal used by the user; A step of obtaining information indicating an operation of the user for changing the configuration of the display screen displayed based on the configuration information; A step of transmitting updated configuration information obtained by updating a configuration for displaying the first video and the second video on the display screen based on the obtained operation of the user to the user terminal; An information processing method having the above.

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