Content providing device

Abstract

To provide a terminal device and a content providing device that allow mutually related scenes in a comic and an animation to be enjoyed in parallel. [Solution] The terminal device has a reception unit that receives a switch instruction from a user to switch to displaying a second scene related to the first scene of one of the two contents, an animation created by an animation application or a manga created by a manga application, which are linked to each other, on the display device; a communication control unit that acquires data including the second scene from a server; and a display control unit that switches the display on the display device from the first scene to the second scene in response to the switch instruction.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure provides: Ko This invention relates to a content providing device. [Background technology]

[0002] There is known a technology that allows users to view content such as manga and animation on a terminal device such as a smartphone. A user can view different content such as manga and animation on a single terminal device.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a service that distributes multiple different types of content, such as videos and e-books, to a terminal device. To use both the video service and the e-book service, it is necessary to install dedicated software for each. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2024-012891 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] As with the technology described in Patent Document 1, in order to use multiple pieces of content on a terminal device, it is necessary to install applications corresponding to each piece of content. For example, if a user wants to view manga and animation, it is necessary to install an application for viewing manga and an application for viewing animation on the terminal device. By installing these applications, the user can view both the manga and the animation.

[0006] However, in the past, for example, if a user wanted to see a related scene in a manga while watching an animation, the user had to operate an icon corresponding to the manga application to display the manga instead of the animation on the terminal device. The user then had to search for the related scene in the manga by themselves, which was very time-consuming. For this reason, with the previous technology, it was difficult to enjoy related scenes in both manga and animation at the same time on a single terminal device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] A content providing system according to a preferred aspect of the present disclosure includes: a linking unit that links animation data executed by an animation application that can be installed on a terminal device with comic data that can be executed by a comic application that can be installed on the terminal device; a request receiving unit that receives a user's request to switch from one of the contents, animation by the animation application, to the other of the contents, via the terminal device, while one of the contents, animation by the animation application or comic by the comic application, is being displayed on a display device of the terminal device; and a data providing unit that, in response to the switching request, provides the terminal device with data including a second scene of the other of the contents related to the first scene, instead of providing data including a first scene of the one of the contents. The linking unit generates a relationship information file that associates information about the comic page with information about the playback time of the animation, and links the animation data with the comic data based on the relationship information file. The linking unit generates the relationship information file based on comic character data that associates the comic title, page, character name, and character position, and animation character data that associates the animation title, playback time, character name, and character position. . A content providing system according to a preferred aspect of the present disclosure includes a linking unit that links animation data executed by an animation application that can be installed on a terminal device with comic data that can be executed by a comic application that can be installed on the terminal device; a request receiving unit that receives a user's request to switch from one of the contents, animation by the animation application, or comic by the comic application, via the terminal device while one of the contents is being displayed on a display device of the terminal device, to the other of the contents; and a request receiving unit that, in response to the switch request, sends to the terminal device a request to display a first scene of the one of the contents. and a data providing unit that provides data including a second scene of the other content related to the first scene, instead of providing data including the first scene of the other content, wherein the linking unit generates a relationship information file that associates information about the manga page with information about the playback time of the animation, and links the animation data and the manga data based on the relationship information file, and the linking unit generates the relationship information file based on manga dialogue data that associates the manga title, page, character name, and dialogue, and animation dialogue data that associates the animation title, character name, playback time, and dialogue. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to enjoy scenes related to each other in manga and animation in parallel on one terminal device. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating a content providing system according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2]FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the terminal device illustrated in FIG. [Figure 3] 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of cartoon icons and animated icons displayed on a screen of the display device shown in FIG. 2. [Figure 4] 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a comic displayed on a screen of the display device shown in FIG. 2. [Figure 5] 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an animation displayed on a screen of the display device shown in FIG. 2. [Figure 6] 3 is an example of a cartoon-like operation screen displayed on a screen of the display device shown in FIG. 2. [Figure 7] 3 is an example of an operation screen on an animation displayed on a screen of the display device shown in FIG. 2. [Figure 8] 10 is an example of request data for switching from cartoon to animation. [Figure 9] 10 is an example of animation-to-cartoon switching request data. [Figure 10] 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the content providing device illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 11] 11 is an example of an animation data file shown in FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 shows an example of an animation list file. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is an example of a manga data file shown in FIG. [Figure 14] FIG. 11 shows an example of a manga list file. [Figure 15] 11 is an example of the relationship information file shown in FIG. 10. [Figure 16] 11 is an example of the cartoon character data shown in FIG. [Figure 17] 11 is an example of the animation character data shown in FIG. 10. [Figure 18] 11 is an example of the comic dialogue data shown in FIG. [Figure 19] 11 is an example of animation dialogue data shown in FIG. 10. [Figure 20]FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an overview of the first learning model shown in FIG. [Figure 21] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an overview of the second learning model shown in FIG. [Figure 22] FIG. 22 is a diagram for explaining the second learning model of FIG. 21. [Figure 23] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an overview of the third learning model shown in FIG. [Figure 24] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an overview of the fourth learning model shown in FIG. [Figure 25] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an overview of the fifth learning model shown in FIG. [Figure 26] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of switching from a first scene of a manga to a second scene of an animation. [Figure 27] 10 is a flowchart showing the generation of a relationship information file. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. The embodiments described below are preferred specific examples of the present disclosure. Therefore, various technically preferable limitations are applied to the embodiments. However, the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to these embodiments unless otherwise specified in the following description to the effect that the present disclosure is limited.

[0012] 1. First embodiment 1-1. Overall structure FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a content providing system 100 according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the content providing system 100 includes a content providing device 10 and terminal devices 30-1, 30-2, ... 30-K, ... 30-N. N is an integer equal to or greater than 1. K is an integer equal to or greater than 1 and equal to or less than N. The content providing system 100 is a client-server system. The terminal device 30 corresponds to a client. The content providing device 10 is a server.

[0013] In this embodiment, the multiple terminal devices 30-1 to 30-N have the same configuration. However, configurations that are not identical may be included. Furthermore, each of the multiple terminal devices 30-1 to 30-N communicates with the content providing device 10 via a communication network 50 such as the Internet. Hereinafter, when there is no need to distinguish between the multiple terminal devices 30-1 to 30-N, they will be referred to as terminal devices 30. Furthermore, the owners of the terminal devices 30-1, 30-2, ... 30-K, ... 30-N will be referred to as users U1, U2, ... UK, ... UN. Furthermore, the owner of the terminal device 30 will be referred to as user U.

[0014] The content providing device 10 provides content such as an animation A1 and a comic M1 to a plurality of terminal devices 30-1 to 30-N.

[0015] An animation application for viewing animation A1 and a manga application for viewing manga M1 are installed on terminal device 30. Furthermore, for example, user U watches the content on terminal device 30 by streaming, which receives content data and plays it simultaneously.

[0016] Furthermore, the terminal device 30 can automatically switch the display from a first scene of one of the contents of the animation A1 and the comic M1 to a second scene of the other related content, in response to a request from the user U.

[0017] 1-1a. Terminal device 30 Fig. 2 is a block diagram of an example configuration of the terminal device 30 shown in Fig. 1. Examples of the terminal device 30 include smartphones, portable information terminals such as tablets, personal computers, and wearable devices.

[0018] The terminal device 30 includes a processing device 31, a storage device 32, a communication device 33, a display device 34, and an input device 35. The elements included in the terminal device 30 are connected to each other using one or more buses for communicating information.

[0019] The processing device 31 is a processor that controls the entire terminal device 30. The processing device 31 is configured using, for example, one or more chips. The processing device 31 includes, for example, a central processing unit (CPU) that includes an arithmetic unit, registers, etc. Note that some or all of the functions of the processing device 31 may be realized using hardware such as a DSP, ASIC, PLD, FPGA, etc. The processing device 31 executes various processes in parallel or sequentially.

[0020] The storage device 32 is a recording medium that can be read from and written to by the processing device 31. The storage device 32 stores a plurality of programs executed by the processing device 31 and various data files. Specifically, the storage device 32 stores an execution program P1. When the processing device 31 executes the execution program P1, the processing device 31 performs the various functions described below.

[0021] The communication device 33 is hardware serving as a transmitting / receiving device for communicating with the content providing device 10. The communication device 33 is also called, for example, a network device, a network controller, a network card, or a communication module. The communication device 33 may include a connector for wired connection and an interface circuit corresponding to the connector. The communication device 33 may also include a wireless communication interface. Examples of the connector and interface circuit for wired connection include products that comply with wired LAN, IEEE1394, and USB. Examples of the wireless communication interface include products that comply with wireless LAN, Bluetooth (registered trademark), etc.

[0022] The display device 34 is a device that displays images and text information. The display device 34 displays various images under the control of the processing device 31. For example, various display panels such as a liquid crystal display panel and an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display panel are suitably used as the display device 34.

[0023] The input device 35 receives operations from the user U. For example, the input device 35 includes a keyboard, a touchpad, a touch panel, or a pointing device such as a mouse.

[0024] In this embodiment, for example, the display device 34 includes a touch panel and also serves as the input device 35. For this reason, hereinafter, it may be stated that the display device 34 receives instructions from the user U.

[0025] The processing device 31 reads and executes the execution program P1 from the storage device 32. As a result, the processing device 31 functions as a display control unit 311, a reception unit 312, a determination unit 313, and a communication control unit 314.

[0026] The display control unit 311 controls the display of the display device 34. The display control unit 311 starts an animation application to display an animation A1 on the display device 34. The display control unit 311 also starts a cartoon application to display a cartoon M1 on the display device 34. The animation A1, which is displayed on the terminal device 30 by executing the animation application, and the cartoon M1, which is displayed on the terminal device 30 by executing the cartoon application, are linked to each other.

[0027] 3 is an example of a cartoon icon X1 and an animation icon Y1 displayed on the screen SC of the display device 34 shown in FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the display control unit 311 displays the cartoon icon X1 and the animation icon Y1 on the screen SC of the display device 34. The cartoon icon X1 is operated by the user U to execute a cartoon application. The animation icon Y1 is operated by the user U to execute an animation application.

[0028] FIG. 4 is an example of a manga M1 displayed on the screen SC of the display device 34 shown in FIG. 2. The display control unit 311 displays the manga M1 on the screen SC of the display device 34. As shown in FIG. 4, multiple characters and multiple lines of dialogue are displayed in the manga M1. In the example of FIG. 4, the manga M1 is displayed page by page, but it may also be displayed frame by frame. For example, the scene of the manga M1 shown in FIG. 4 has three frames. The right side of the figure is the first frame, the upper left is the second frame, and the lower left is the third frame. In this embodiment, a "scene" in the manga M1 refers to a page displayed on the screen SC. In addition, when the manga M1 is displayed frame by frame on the screen SC, the "scene" may refer to a frame.

[0029] In the first frame, characters C01 and C02 are displayed, with line C1 displayed near character C01 and line C2 displayed near character C02. Character C01 is standing near character C02. Character C02 is sleeping on a futon. Line C1 is "Don't sleep forever." Line C2 is "I'm sleepy." In the second frame, line C3 is displayed, but no characters are present. Line C3 is "The live show is about to start." In the third frame, characters C01 and C02 are displayed, with line C4 displayed near character C01 and line C5 displayed near character C02. Character C01 has his left hand raised. Character C02 has both hands raised. Line C4 is "Let's go." Line C5 is "That's right, let's go."

[0030] FIG. 5 is an example of animation A1 displayed on the screen SC of the display device 34 of FIG. 2. The display control unit 311 displays the animation A1 on the screen SC of the display device 34. As shown in FIG. 5, multiple characters and multiple lines are displayed in the animation A1. Furthermore, although subtitles D are displayed in the example of FIG. 5, the subtitles D may be omitted. Note that the subtitles D include, for example, the lines and the names of the characters who are saying the lines. A "scene" in the animation A1 is a part of the animation A1, and refers to a frame or the like.

[0031] For example, in the scene of animation A1 shown in Figure 4, characters C01, C02, and subtitle D are displayed. Character C01 is standing near character C02. Character C01 is sleeping on a futon. Subtitle D contains the text of character C01 saying, "Don't sleep forever."

[0032] Fig. 6 is an example of an operation screen PM on a cartoon M1 displayed on the screen SC of the display device 34 shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 7 is an example of an operation screen PA on an animation A1 displayed on the screen SC of the display device 34 shown in Fig. 2.

[0033] An operation screen PM is displayed on the cartoon M1 in FIG. 6. An operation screen PA is displayed on the animation A1 in FIG. 7. Each of the operation screens PM and PA is displayed, for example, when the user U performs a click operation on the screen SC. Each of the operation screens PM and PA is a pop-up menu, but may be configured with another GUI (Graphical User Interface). The operation screen PM displays a Details button B1, a Share work button B2, a Favorites button B3, and a button B4 for viewing the animation A1. The operation screen PM displays a Details button B1, a Share work button B2, a Favorites button B3, and a button B4 for viewing the cartoon M1.

[0034] The Details button B1 is used when the user U wants to know more information about the author of the manga M1 or animation A1 displayed on the screen SC. The Share Work button B2 is used when the user U wants to share the manga M1 or animation A1 displayed on the screen SC with other users U. The Favorites button B3 is used when the user U wants to register the manga M1 or animation A1 displayed on the screen SC as a favorite.

[0035] The button B4 for viewing animation A1 is used when the user U wants to view a scene from animation A1 related to a scene from manga M1 displayed on screen SC. The button B5 for viewing manga M1 is used when the user U wants to view a scene from manga M1 related to a scene from animation A1 displayed on screen SC. Related scenes are the same scene, or scenes that are similar enough to be considered identical, and scenes that contain the same content.

[0036] A scene from one of the contents, animation A1 or comic M1, currently displayed on screen SC is referred to as the "first scene." A scene from the other content related to the "first scene" is referred to as the "second scene." The first frame of comic M1 shown in FIG. 6 is a scene similar enough to the scene in animation A1 in FIG. 7 that it can be considered identical. Therefore, for example, if a scene from comic M1 shown in FIG. 6 is currently displayed on screen SC, that scene is the "first scene," and the scene from animation A1 shown in FIG. 7 is the "second scene."

[0037] The reception unit 312 shown in Fig. 2 receives instructions from the user U via the input device 35 or the display device 34. The instructions from the user U include operations on the screen SC, instructions by voice, and the like. For example, the reception unit 312 receives a switching instruction from the user U to switch from displaying the first scene to displaying the second scene. The switching instruction is given via the operation screen PM or operation screen PA described above.

[0038] 2 determines to switch the display from one of the animation A1 and the comic M1 to the other in response to a switching instruction from the user U received by the reception unit 312. Then, the determination unit 313 generates switching request data RM or RA.

[0039] Fig. 8 is an example of switching request data RM from cartoon M1 to animation A1. Fig. 9 is an example of switching request data RA from animation A1 to cartoon M1. The switching request data RM in Fig. 8 is data used to make a switching request to the content providing device 10 to switch from displaying cartoon M1 to displaying animation A1. The switching request data RA in Fig. 9 is data used to make a switching request to the content providing device 10 to switch from displaying animation A1 to displaying cartoon M1.

[0040] As shown in FIG. 8, for example, the switching request data RM includes an application ID, a manga ID, a volume number, a page, a frame number, and a terminal ID. The application ID is an ID indicating the foreground application that is currently active and can be operated by the user U. In the example of FIG. 8, it is a manga application. The manga ID is an identifier for identifying the manga M1. The manga application can display multiple manga M1. The manga ID is used to identify which of the multiple manga M1 is being displayed. The volume number indicates the volume number if the manga M1 consists of multiple volumes. The page indicates the page that was displayed on the screen SC when the switching instruction was received. The frame number indicates the frame that is estimated from the position where the switching instruction was received. The terminal ID is an identifier for the terminal device 30. The terminal ID makes it possible to identify which user U owns the terminal device 30 from which the switching instruction was issued.

[0041] The switching request data RM shown in Figure 8 includes information indicating that a switching instruction was made at the first frame of page 22 of volume 1 of manga M1 with manga ID "m0001" while a manga application with app ID "ap0m" was running on terminal device 30 with terminal ID "30-1."

[0042] As shown in FIG. 9, for example, the switching request data RA includes an application ID, an animation ID, an episode number, a playback time, and a terminal ID. In the example of FIG. 9, the application ID is an animation application. The animation ID is an identifier for identifying an animation A1. The animation application can display multiple animations A1. The animation ID is used to identify which of the multiple animations A1 is being displayed. The episode number indicates the episode number if the animation A1 is made up of multiple episodes. The playback time corresponds to the time when the switching instruction is received.

[0043] The switching request data RA shown in Figure 9 includes information indicating that a switching instruction was made at 681 seconds into the first episode of animation A1 with animation ID "a0001" while the animation application with app ID "ap0a" was running on terminal device 30 with terminal ID "30-1."

[0044] 2 causes the communication device 33 to transmit and receive various types of information to and from the content providing device 10. For example, the communication control unit 314 causes the communication device 33 to transmit switching request data RM or RA. For example, the communication control unit 314 causes the communication device 33 to receive animation data D10 (described below) which is data related to animation A1, and cartoon data D20 (described below) which is data related to cartoon M1.

[0045] 1-1b. Content providing device 10 Fig. 10 is a block diagram of an example configuration of the content providing device 10 shown in Fig. 1. As shown in Fig. 10, the content providing device 10 includes a processing device 11, a storage device 12, a communication device 13, a display device 14, and an input device 15. The elements of the content providing device 10 are connected to each other using one or more buses for communicating information.

[0046] The processing device 11 is a processor that controls the entire content providing device 10. The processing device 11 is configured, for example, using one or more chips. The processing device 11 is configured, for example, using a central processing unit (CPU) including an arithmetic unit, registers, etc. Some or all of the functions of the processing device 11 may be realized using hardware such as a DSP, ASIC, PLD, and FPGA. The processing device 11 executes various processes in parallel or sequentially.

[0047] The storage device 12 is a recording medium that can be read and written by the processing device 11. The storage device 12 also stores a plurality of programs executed by the processing device 11 and various data files. Specifically, the storage device 12 stores a control program P2. When the processing device 11 executes the control program P2, the processing device 11 performs the functions described below. The storage device 12 also stores an animation list file F1, a cartoon list file F2, an animation data file F10, a cartoon data file F20, a relationship information file F3, a cartoon character data file F41, an animation character data file F51, a cartoon dialogue data file F42, and an animation dialogue data file F52. The storage device 12 also stores a first learning model P01, a second learning model P02, a third learning model P03, a fourth learning model P04, and a fifth learning model P05.

[0048] FIG. 11 is an example of the animation data file F10 shown in FIG. 10. The animation data file F10 shown in FIG. 11 includes animation data D10-1, D10-2, D10-3, ..., D10-α, where α is an integer. Each animation data D10 is segmented data obtained by dividing the original data into multiple pieces for each playback time. For example, an animation data file F10 is provided for each work. Furthermore, if there are multiple episodes, an animation data file F10 is provided for each episode number, such as episode 1, episode 2, etc. Also, for example, animation data D10-1 is data with a playback time from 0 to 1 second. Animation data D10-2 is data with a playback time from 1 to 2 seconds. Note that each animation data D10 does not need to be divided every second, and may be divided for any playback time.

[0049] FIG. 12 is an example of the animation list file F1 shown in FIG. 10. The animation list file F1 shown in FIG. 12 is a playback list of multiple animation data D10. The animation list file F1 includes playback time (#EXTINF:), segment location (segment), and playback order. The segment location (segment) indicates which animation data D10 among the multiple animation data D10 it is. Note that the example in the figure is an example of streaming distribution in HLS format, but other streaming distribution formats such as Smooth Streaming format and MPEG-DASH format may also be used.

[0050] For example, the segment location (segment -000.ts) shown on the second line indicates animation data D10-1, and the segment location (segment -001.ts) shown on the fourth line indicates animation data D10-2. Basically, the multiple animation data D10 are played back sequentially from the top of the animation list file F1. For example, the animation data D10-1 shown on the second line is played back at the playback time (#EXTINF:10.500000) shown on the first line. The animation data D10-2 shown on the fourth line is played back at the playback time (#EXTINF:1.458333) shown on the third line.

[0051] FIG. 13 is an example of the comic data file F20 shown in FIG. 10. The comic data file F20 shown in FIG. 13 includes comic data D20-1, D20-2, D20-3, ..., D20-β, where β is an integer. Each comic data D20 is data obtained by segmenting the original data, for example, by dividing it into multiple pieces, one for each page. For example, a comic data file F200 is provided for each work. Furthermore, if there are multiple volumes, a comic data file F20 is provided for each volume, such as volume 1, volume 2, etc. For example, comic data D0-1 is data for page 0, and comic data D20-2 is data for page 1. Note that each comic data D20 does not have to be divided by page, and may be divided by any number of pages, or may be divided by frame, for example.

[0052] Figure 14 is an example of the manga list file F2 shown in Figure 10. The manga list file F2 shown in Figure 7 is a list of multiple manga data D20. The manga list file F2 includes pages (p.) and page order. Note that instead of pages (p.), a reference expression expressed in epub format or the like may be used.

[0053] For example, the page (p.0) shown in the first line indicates the comic data D20-1, the page (p.1) shown in the second line indicates the comic data D20-2, and the page (p.2) shown in the third line indicates the comic data D20-3. Basically, the multiple comic data D20 are played back in order from the top of the comic list file F2.

[0054] Fig. 15 is an example of the relationship information file F3 shown in Fig. 10. The relationship information file F3 shown in Fig. 15 includes relationship information that associates the playback time of the animation A1 with the pages of the comic M1. In other words, the relationship information file F3 is a linking file that links multiple pieces of animation data D10 with multiple pieces of comic data D20.

[0055] The playback time (#EXTINF:10.500000) shown in the first line of Fig. 15 is associated with the page (p.0) shown in the second line. Therefore, the animation data D10-1 in Fig. 11, which corresponds to the segment location (segment -000.ts) corresponding to the playback time (#EXTINF:10.500000) in Fig. 12, is associated with the comic data D20-1 in Fig. 13, which corresponds to the page (p.0) in Fig. 14.

[0056] 15. The playback time (#EXTINF:1.458333) shown on the third line corresponds to the page (p.0) shown on the fourth line. Therefore, the animation data D10-2 in FIG. 11, which corresponds to the segment location (segment -001.ts) corresponding to the playback time (#EXTINF:1.458333) in FIG. 12, corresponds to the comics data D20-1 in FIG. 13, which corresponds to the page (p.0) in FIG. 4.

[0057] 15, the playback time (#EXTINF:3.875000) shown on line 5 corresponds to the page (p.1) shown on line 6. Therefore, the animation data D10-3 in FIG. 11, which corresponds to the segment location (segment -002.ts) corresponding to the playback time (#EXTINF:3.875000) in FIG. 12, corresponds to the comics data D20-2 in FIG. 13, which corresponds to the page (p.1) in FIG. 4.

[0058] In this way, the relationship information file F3 links the animation data D10 executed by the animation application and the cartoon data D20 executed by the cartoon application, so that the animation A1 and the cartoon M1 are linked.

[0059] The communication device 13 shown in FIG. 10 is hardware serving as a transmitting / receiving device for communicating with the terminal device 30. The communication device 13 is also called, for example, a network device, a network controller, a network card, or a communication module. The communication device 13 may include a connector for wired connection and an interface circuit corresponding to the connector. The communication device 13 may also include a wireless communication interface. Examples of the connector and interface circuit for wired connection include products that comply with wired LAN, IEEE1394, and USB. Examples of the wireless communication interface include products that comply with wireless LAN, Bluetooth (registered trademark), etc.

[0060] The display device 14 is a device that displays images and text information. The display device 14 displays various images under the control of the processing device 11. For example, various display panels such as a liquid crystal display panel and an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display panel are suitably used as the display device 14.

[0061] The input device 15 accepts operations from an administrator of the content providing device 10. For example, the input device 15 includes a keyboard, a touchpad, a touch panel, or a pointing device such as a mouse. If the display device 14 includes a touch panel, the display device 14 may also serve as the input device 15.

[0062] The processing device 11 reads and executes the control program P2 from the storage device 12. As a result, the processing device 11 functions as a communication control unit 111, a data providing unit 112, a linking unit 113, and a display control unit 114.

[0063] The communication control unit 111 causes the communication device 13 to transmit and receive various types of information to and from the terminal device 30. The communication control unit 111 also has a request receiving unit 1111. The request receiving unit 1111 receives switching request data RA and RM. Specifically, the request receiving unit 1111 causes the communication device 13 to receive the switching request data RA and RM. For example, the communication control unit 111 also causes the communication device 13 to transmit animation data D10 and cartoon data D20 to the terminal device 30. The communication control unit 111 may also cause the communication device 13 to transmit a relationship information file F3.

[0064] The data providing unit 112 provides the animation data D10 to the terminal device 30 via the communication device 13. For example, the data providing unit 112 refers to the animation list file F1 and the animation data file F10 and performs a seek process on the animation data D10-1 to D10-α. Through this process, the data providing unit 112 selects predetermined animation data D10. Then, the data providing unit 112 provides the predetermined animation data D10 to the terminal device 30 via the communication device 13. These processes are repeated.

[0065] Furthermore, data providing unit 112 provides cartoon data D20 to terminal device 30 via communication device 13. For example, data providing unit 112 refers to cartoon list file F2 and cartoon data file F20 and performs a seek process for cartoon data D20-1 to D20-β. Through this process, data providing unit 112 selects predetermined cartoon data D20. Then, data providing unit 112 provides the predetermined cartoon data D20 to terminal device 30 via communication device 13. These processes are repeated.

[0066] For example, the data providing unit 112 provides data related to a foreground application on the terminal device 30. Therefore, when an animation application is active on the terminal device 30, the data providing unit 112 provides animation data D10 to the terminal device 30. On the other hand, when a cartoon application is active on the terminal device 30, the data providing unit 112 provides cartoon data D20 to the terminal device 30.

[0067] Furthermore, the data providing unit 112 switches from providing animation data D10 to providing cartoon data D20 in response to switching request data RA from the terminal device 30. Similarly, the data providing unit 112 switches from providing cartoon data D20 to providing animation data D10 in response to switching request data RM from the terminal device 30.

[0068] The display control unit 114 controls the display of the display device 14. The display control unit 114 may also control the display of the screen SC of the terminal device 30.

[0069] The linking unit 113 links the animation data D10 and the cartoon data D20. The linking unit 113 also functions as a generation unit that generates a relationship information file F3 used for this linking. To generate the relationship information file F3, the linking unit 113 generates a cartoon character data file F41, an animation character data file F51, a cartoon dialogue data file F42, and an animation dialogue data file F52.

[0070] Figure 16 is an example of the comic character data file F41 shown in Figure 10. The comic character data file F41 shown in Figure 16 includes multiple comic character data D41. Figure 16 shows, for example, comic character data D41-1 and D41-2 from the multiple comic character data D41. Each comic character data D41 is data that associates the title, volume number, page, character name, and character position of comic M1. The character position indicates the character's position within the page and is expressed in X and Y coordinates.

[0071] For example, the manga character data D41-1 shows content related to the character C02 in the first frame of Figure 4. The manga character data D41-1 includes information indicating that the character C02 is located at coordinates (20, 60) on page 22 of the first volume of the title "No. 1." For example, the manga character data D41-2 shows content related to the character C01 in the first frame of Figure 4. The manga character data D41-2 includes information indicating that the character C01 is located at coordinates (120, 55) on page 22 of the first volume of the title "No. 1."

[0072] FIG. 17 is an example of the animation character data file F51 shown in FIG. 10. The animation character data file F51 shown in FIG. 17 includes multiple pieces of animation character data D51. FIG. 17 shows, for example, animation character data D51-1 and D51-2 from among the multiple pieces of animation character data D51. The animation character data file F51 is data that associates the title, episode number, chapter, appearance time, character name, and character position of the animation A1. The character position indicates the character's position within a scene and is expressed using X and Y coordinates. The appearance time includes the number of seconds from when the character begins to appear on screen and the number of seconds from when the character ends to appear on screen.

[0073] For example, animation character data D51-1 indicates content related to character C02 in the scene shown in Figure 5. Animation character data D51-1 includes information indicating that character C02 is located at coordinates (60,60) from 679 seconds to 689 seconds in the first chapter included in the first episode of title "No. 1". For example, animation character data D51-2 indicates content related to character C01 in the scene shown in Figure 5. Animation character data D51-2 includes information indicating that character C01 is located at coordinates (120,30) from 679 seconds to 684 seconds in the first chapter included in the first episode of title "No. 1".

[0074] FIG. 18 is an example of the manga dialogue data file F42 shown in FIG. 10. The manga dialogue data file F42 shown in FIG. 18 includes multiple pieces of manga dialogue data D42. Of the multiple pieces of manga dialogue data D42, FIG. 18 illustrates manga dialogue data D42-1 and D42-2. Each piece of manga dialogue data D42 is data that associates the title of the manga M1, the volume number, the page, the character's name, the character's position, and dialogue. Note that, for example, as shown in the second frame in FIG. 4, if there is no character in the frame, the character's position is omitted in the manga dialogue data D42. The manga dialogue data D42 may also include the position of the dialogue.

[0075] The manga dialogue data D42 also includes a score. The score is the result of scoring using persona estimation, which estimates which character's utterances are similar to lines in the manga M1. Persona estimation uses a learning model that can identify which character's utterances are attributed based on each character's unique expressions, frequently used words, endings, dialect, and other characteristics. The learning model has learned the relationship between lines and character names. When lines are input into this learning model, a score is output for each of the names of multiple characters appearing in the manga. The score indicates the degree of likelihood that the lines are from the corresponding character. The score is expressed as a number, with a larger number indicating a higher likelihood. Each of the multiple training data used to train the learning model is a pair of lines and a character name. The correspondence between lines and character names is manually annotated. Alternatively, annotation may be performed automatically using the animation data D10. As described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, the animation data D10 can display subtitles D that associate lines with character names. The animation data D10 includes subtitle data that indicates the subtitles D. A learning model can be trained by using multiple subtitle data extracted from the animation data D10 as training data. The score may also be a result of scoring based on the distance between the character and the lines and the direction of the speech outlet. Furthermore, the score may also be a result of scoring based on a combination of these multiple elements.

[0076] For example, the manga dialogue data D42-1 indicates the content related to the character C02 in the first frame of FIG. 4. The manga dialogue data D42-1 includes information indicating that the character C02 is located at coordinates (20, 60) on page 22 of the first volume of the title "No. 1" and that the character C02 utters the line "Don't sleep forever." The manga dialogue data D42-1 also includes information indicating that the score for the line uttered by the character C02 is "0.25." The manga dialogue data D42-2 indicates the content related to the character C01 in the first frame of FIG. 4. The manga dialogue data D42-2 includes information indicating that the character C01 is located at coordinates (120, 55) on page 22 of the first volume of the title "No. 1" and that the character C01 utters the line "Don't sleep forever." Furthermore, the comic dialogue data D42-2 includes information indicating that the score of the dialogue spoken by the character C01 is "0.70".

[0077] Fig. 19 is an example of the animation dialogue data file F52 shown in Fig. 10. The animation dialogue data file F52 shown in Fig. 19 includes multiple pieces of animation dialogue data D52. Fig. 18 shows animation dialogue data D52-1 from the multiple pieces of animation dialogue data D52. Each piece of animation dialogue data D52 is data that associates the title, episode number, chapter, character name, character position, dialogue, and playback time of the animation A1. The playback time is specifically the start time of the dialogue.

[0078] For example, the animation dialogue data D52-1 indicates the content related to the character C01 in the scene shown in Fig. 5. The animation dialogue data D52-1 includes information indicating that in the first chapter included in the first episode titled "No. 1", the character C01 is located at the coordinates (60,60) and that the character C01 utters the line "Don't sleep forever" from 679 seconds.

[0079] FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an overview of the first learning model P01 shown in FIG. 10. The aforementioned comic character data file F41 is generated using the first learning model P01. The first learning model P01 includes, for example, an object detection model and a character matching model, and integrates the results of these models. The object detection model is, for example, a model that has learned the relationship between the position of an object and the type of object. The types of object include, for example, people, other animals, and items such as futons. The object detection model can extract where a character is located. The character matching model is, for example, a model that has learned the relationship between the object character and the character's name. This model can analyze which character a character extracted by the object detection model is.

[0080] As shown in FIG. 20, by inputting each piece of cartoon data D20 as input data DI to the first learning model P01, the first learning model P01 outputs cartoon character data D41 as output data DO.

[0081] Figure 21 is a diagram showing an overview of the second learning model P02 shown in Figure 10. The animation character data file F51 described above is generated using the second learning model P02. The second learning model P02 includes, for example, an object detection model and a character matching model, and integrates the results of these models.

[0082] FIG. 22 is a diagram for explaining the second learning model P02 of FIG. 21. In FIG. 22, the second learning model P02 is used as an example for explanation, but the same applies to the first learning model P01. The object detection model extracts an area where a character included in each frame of the animation data D10 exists. For example, in the case of the scene, i.e., the frame image, shown in FIG. 5, the character detection model extracts areas R1 and R2 shown in FIG. 22. Furthermore, images of one or more areas detected by the object detection model are input to the character matching model. The character matching model has learned the relationship between the character image and the character's name. The character's name is output from the character matching model.

[0083] As shown in FIG. 21, by inputting each piece of animation data D10 as input data DI to the second learning model P02, the second learning model P02 outputs animation character data D51 as output data DO.

[0084] FIG. 23 is a diagram showing an overview of the third learning model P03 shown in FIG. 10. The aforementioned manga dialogue data file F42 is generated using the third learning model P03. The third learning model P03 includes, for example, a character detection model and a character recognition model, and integrates the results of these models. The character detection model is a model that has learned the relationship between image features, such as visual patterns such as shapes and colors that make up an image, and character areas. The character detection model can extract dialogue. The character recognition model is a model that has learned the relationship between images of characters in character areas and characters. The character recognition model can convert dialogue into text. The third learning model P03 may also include the aforementioned object detection model and character matching model.

[0085] Furthermore, the third learning model P03 performs scoring on the textual dialogue. As described above, scoring is performed using the distance between the character and the dialogue, the direction of the dialogue outlet, and persona estimation. For example, the closer a character is to the dialogue, the higher the score. For example, a character whose dialogue outlet is facing in the right direction has a higher score. For example, a score is set based on the modeled utterances using the persona estimation described above. Furthermore, a score is set based on a combination of these factors.

[0086] As shown in FIG. 23, by inputting each piece of comic data D20 as input data DI to the third learning model P03, the third learning model P03 outputs comic dialogue data D42 as output data DO.

[0087] FIG. 24 is a diagram showing an overview of the fourth learning model P04 shown in FIG. 10. The animation dialogue data file F52 described above is generated using the fourth learning model P04. The third learning model P03 includes, for example, a character detection model and a character recognition model, and integrates the results of these models. The fourth learning model P04 may also include an object detection model and a character matching model. Furthermore, the fourth learning model P04 may also include a voice recognition model. The voice recognition model is a model that has learned the relationship between the voice of a character's voice actor and the character's name. The voice recognition model can analyze which character is speaking the dialogue.

[0088] As shown in FIG. 24, by inputting each piece of animation data D10 as input data DI to the fourth learning model P04, the fourth learning model P04 outputs animation dialogue data D52 as output data DO.

[0089] FIG. 25 is a diagram illustrating an overview of the fifth learning model P05 shown in FIG. 10. The aforementioned relationship information file F3 is generated using the fifth learning model P05. The fifth learning model P05 includes, for example, a model trained to compare and associate manga character data D41 and animation character data D51, and a model trained to compare and associate manga dialogue data D42 and animation dialogue data D52. The fifth learning model P05, for example, numerically determines whether two pieces of data are similar or identical. If the two pieces of data are most similar or identical, the fifth learning model P05 associates the animation data D10 and manga data D20 corresponding to the two pieces of data. This model allows the first frame of FIG. 4 and the scene of FIG. 5 to be linked, even if the characters and dialogue appearing in the first frame of FIG. 4 and the scene of FIG. 5 are the same but the character drawings are slightly different.

[0090] 25, by inputting comic character data D41, animation character data D51, comic dialogue data D42, and animation dialogue data D52 as input data DI to the fifth learning model P05, the fifth learning model P05 outputs a relationship information file F3 as output data DO. Based on the relationship information file F3, animation data D10 and comic data D20 are associated with each other.

[0091] 1-2. Switching between Manga M1 and Animation A1 26 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of switching from the first scene of the comic M1 to the second scene of the animation A1. The following description will be given taking as an example a case where the instruction from the user U to the terminal device 30 is given by a touch operation on the display device 34.

[0092] In step S101, the reception unit 312 receives an operation on the comic book icon X1 by the user U via the display device 34. In step S102, the display control unit 311 launches a comic book application. In step S103, the reception unit 312 receives an operation by the user U via the display device 34 to select one comic book M1 from multiple comic books M1. In step S104, the communication control unit 314 causes the communication device 33 to transmit a viewing request for the comic book M1 selected by the user U.

[0093] In step S105, communication control unit 111 causes communication device 33 to receive comic book data D20 in response to the viewing request. In step S106, display control unit 311 causes display device 34 to display comic book M1 based on the comic book data D20. In this embodiment, streaming distribution is used as an example, and in this case, segmented comic book data D20 is transmitted to terminal device 30 at any time. Then, for example, the first scene of comic book M1 shown in FIG. 4 is displayed on screen SC.

[0094] In step S107, the receiving unit 312 receives an operation by the user U to display the operation screen PM in the first scene. In step S108, the display control unit 311 causes the display device 34 to display the operation screen PM in the first scene. For example, the operation screen PM shown in FIG. 6 is displayed on the screen SC.

[0095] In step S109, the receiving unit 312 receives a switching instruction from the user U via the operation screen PM. For example, the user U issues a switching instruction by selecting button B4 in FIG. 6. In step S110, the determination unit 313 generates switching request data RM shown in FIG. 8. In step S111, the communication control unit 314 causes the communication device 33 to transmit the switching request data RM. In step S112, the request receiving unit 1111 receives the switching request data RM.

[0096] In step S113, the data providing unit 112 provides animation data D10 including a second scene related to the first scene to the terminal device 30, and the communication control unit 314 of the terminal device 30 causes the communication device 33 to receive the animation data D10. In step S113, the display control unit 311 starts an animation application. In step S114, the display control unit 311 displays the second scene of the animation A1 on the display device 34. For example, the scene of the animation A1 shown in FIG. 5 is displayed.

[0097] By the operations of steps S101 to S115 described above, the display switches from the first scene of the comic M1 to the second scene of the animation A1 corresponding to the first scene.

[0098] In addition, when switching the display from the first scene of animation A1 to the second scene of cartoon M1, in step S101, animation icon Y1 is used instead of cartoon icon X1. In step S102, the animation application is launched. In step S105, the terminal device 30 receives animation data D10, and in step S107, the animation A1 is displayed. In step S107, the operation screen PA is displayed. In step S112, the request receiving unit 1111 receives switching request data RA. In step S113, the data providing unit 112 provides the terminal device 30 with cartoon data D20 including a second scene related to the first scene, and the terminal device 30 receives the cartoon data D20. In step S114, the cartoon application is launched. Then, in step S115, the second scene of cartoon M1 is displayed on the screen SC.

[0099] As described above, the terminal device 30 includes the reception unit 312, the communication control unit 314, and the display control unit 311. In step S109, the reception unit 312 receives a switching instruction from the user U. The switching instruction is an instruction to switch the display device 34 to display a second scene related to the first scene of one of the mutually linked contents, animation A1 generated by an animation application or manga M1 generated by a manga application. The communication control unit 314 acquires data including the second scene from the content providing device 10. In response to the switching instruction, the display control unit 311 switches the display on the display device 34 from the first scene to the second scene.

[0100] According to such a terminal device 30, when a user U is viewing a first scene of one content and wants to view a second scene related to the first scene of the other content, the user can issue a switching instruction to the terminal device 30, thereby automatically switching the display from the first scene to the second scene. Therefore, when the user U is viewing the first scene of one content, the user U can avoid the considerable effort of selecting the icon of the other content and searching for the second scene related to the first scene. Therefore, the user U can enjoy the first scene and the second scene in parallel on a single terminal device 30.

[0101] Also, as described above, in step S108, the display control unit 311 displays the operation screen PM or PA that prompts the user to switch to the other content while the first scene is being displayed on the display device 34. Then, in step S109, the reception unit 312 receives a switching instruction from the user U via the operation screen PM or PA. Because the switching instruction can be given via the operation screen PM or PA, the operation for switching is very simple for the user U, and the user U can perform the switching operation quickly. Therefore, the user U can enjoy the first scene and the second scene in parallel with almost no time loss.

[0102] 1-3. Creating the relationship information file F3 Figure 27 is a flowchart showing the generation of a relationship information file F3. The generation of the relationship information file F3 shown in Figure 27 is performed by the content providing device 10. As shown in Figure 27, in step S21, the content providing device 10 acquires input data DI. For example, externally provided original data is segmented to generate a cartoon data file F20 containing multiple pieces of cartoon data D20 and a cartoon list file F2. Also, for example, externally provided original data is segmented to generate an animation data file F10 containing multiple pieces of animation data D10 and an animation list file F1. Then, the content providing device 10 acquires the multiple pieces of animation data D10 and the multiple pieces of cartoon data D20 as the input data DI.

[0103] In step S22, the collaboration unit 113 inputs input data DI to the learning models. Specifically, a plurality of pieces of cartoon data D20 are input to the first learning model P01 and the third learning model P03, and a plurality of pieces of animation data D10 are input to the second learning model P02 and the fourth learning model P04.

[0104] In step S23, the collaboration unit 113 acquires output data DO. For example, cartoon character data D41 is output from the first learning model P01. Animation character data D51 is output from the second learning model P02. Cartoon dialogue data D42 is output from the third learning model P03. Animation dialogue data D52 is output from the fourth learning model P04.

[0105] In step S24, the linking unit 113 inputs the output data DO to the fifth learning model P05 as input data DI. Therefore, the comic character data D41, the animation character data D51, the comic dialogue data D42, and the animation dialogue data D52 are input to the fifth learning model P05 as input data DI.

[0106] In step S25, the linking unit 113 acquires the relationship information file F3 as output data DO. Through steps S21 to S25 above, the relationship information file F3 is generated. The linking unit 113 then links the animation data D10 and the comic data D20 based on the relationship information file F3.

[0107] As described above, the content providing device 10 includes the linking unit 113, the request receiving unit 1111, and the data providing unit 112. The linking unit 113 links animation data D10 executed by an animation application that can be installed on the terminal device 30 with cartoon data D20 executed by a cartoon application that can be installed on the terminal device 30 through steps S21 to S25 shown in FIG. 27 . In step S112 of FIG. 26 , while one of the contents, animation A1 generated by the animation application and cartoon M1 generated by the cartoon application, is being displayed on the display device 34 of the terminal device 30, the request receiving unit 1111 receives a switching request from the user U via the terminal device 30 to switch from one content to the other content. In step S113 of FIG. 26 , in response to the switching request, the data providing unit 112 provides the terminal device 30 with animation data D10 including a second scene of the other content related to the first scene, instead of providing cartoon data D20 including a first scene of the one content.

[0108] According to this content providing device 10, when a user U operating a terminal device 30 wants to view a second scene related to the first scene of one piece of content while viewing the first scene of the other piece of content, the user U can automatically switch the display from the first scene to the second scene by issuing a switching instruction to the terminal device 30. This allows the user U to enjoy the first scene and the second scene in parallel on a single terminal device 30. In particular, because the content providing device 10 links the animation data D10 and the cartoon data D20, the second scene can be instantly provided to the terminal device 30 in response to the user U's switching request. This allows the user U to enjoy the first scene and the second scene almost simultaneously.

[0109] The linking unit 113 also generates a relationship information file F3 that associates information about the page of the manga M1 with information about the playback time of the animation A1, and links the animation data D10 and the manga data D20 based on the relationship information file F3. Therefore, the second scene is identified based on the relationship information file F3 that associates information about the page of the manga M1 with information about the playback time of the animation A1. Then, in step S113, the identified animation data D10 is provided from the content providing device 10 to the terminal device 30.

[0110] In this way, the existence of the relationship information file F3 allows the second scene to be immediately provided to the terminal device 30 in response to a switching request from the user U. This allows the user U to enjoy the first and second scenes almost simultaneously.

[0111] As described above, the linking unit 113 generates the relationship information file F3 based on the cartoon character data D41 and the animation character data D51. By generating the cartoon character data D41 and the animation character data D51 in advance, the relationship information file F3 can be generated using these data, for example, by the fifth learning model P05, without manual work.

[0112] As described above, the linking unit 113 generates the relationship information file F3 based on the comic dialogue data D42 and the animation dialogue data D52. By generating the comic dialogue data D42 and the animation dialogue data D52, the relationship information file F3 can be generated using the comic dialogue data D42 and the animation dialogue data D52, for example, by the fifth learning model P05, without manual work.

[0113] Furthermore, as described above, the linking unit 113 generates the relationship information file F3 based on the comic character data D41, the animation character data D51, the comic dialogue data D42, and the animation dialogue data D52. By using multiple data in this way, it is possible to generate a highly accurate relationship information file F3. In other words, it is possible to improve the accuracy of the association between the comic data D20 and the animation data D10.

[0114] Furthermore, the cartoon character data D41 is generated by the first learning model P01 as described above. Similarly, the animation character data D51 is generated by the second learning model P02 as described above. Specifically, the linking unit 113 generates each of the cartoon character data D41 and the animation character data D51 using a model including object detection and character matching. Therefore, in generating each of the cartoon character data D41 and the animation character data D51, a huge amount of data can be quickly obtained without manual work.

[0115] Furthermore, the manga dialogue data D42 is generated by the third learning model P03 as described above. Similarly, the animation dialogue data D52 is generated by the fourth learning model P04 as described above. Specifically, the linking unit 113 generates each of the manga dialogue data D42 and the animation dialogue data D52 using a model including character detection and character recognition. Therefore, in generating each of the manga dialogue data D42 and the animation dialogue data D52, a huge amount of data can be quickly obtained without manual work. Note that, as described above, the animation dialogue data D52 may use a voice recognition model instead of character detection.

[0116] As described above, when generating the manga dialogue data D42, the linking unit 113 performs scoring using one or more of the distance between the character and the dialogue, the direction of the dialogue's speech outlet, and persona estimation. Persona estimation estimates which character's remark the dialogue is most similar to. These factors can improve the accuracy of the association between the dialogue and the character.

[0117] In particular, it is preferable that the linking unit 113 performs scoring using persona estimation. As shown in the second frame in Fig. 4, there are cases where a character does not exist in some frames. Even in such cases, by using persona estimation, it is possible to improve the accuracy of association between lines and characters.

[0118] 2. Variations The preferred embodiment has been described above. The preferred embodiment can be modified in various ways. Specific examples of modifications that can be applied to the preferred embodiment described above are given below.

[0119] In the above embodiment, the user U watches the cartoon by streaming, in which the terminal device 30 receives data and plays it simultaneously. However, the terminal device 30 may download the animation data D10 and the cartoon data D20 from the content providing device 10 and play them.

[0120] Even if an account used on one terminal device 30 is used on another terminal device 30, various information is linked to the account.

[0121] 3.Other (1) In the above disclosure, examples of storage device 12 and storage device 32 include ROM and RAM, but may also include flexible disks, magneto-optical disks (e.g., compact disks, digital versatile disks, Blu-ray® disks), smart cards, flash memory devices (e.g., cards, sticks, key drives), CD-ROMs (Compact Disc-ROMs), registers, removable disks, hard disks, floppy® disks, magnetic strips, databases, servers, or other suitable storage media.

[0122] (2) In the present disclosure above, the information, signals, etc. described may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, chips, etc. that may be referred to throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or photons, or any combination thereof.

[0123] (3) In the present disclosure described above, input and output information may be stored in a specific location (e.g., memory) or may be managed using a management table. Input and output information may be overwritten, updated, or added. Output information may be deleted. Input information may be transmitted to another device.

[0124] (4) In the present disclosure described above, the determination may be made based on a value (0 or 1) represented using one bit, a Boolean value (true or false), or a comparison of numerical values ​​(e.g., comparison with a predetermined value).

[0125] (5) The order of the exemplary procedures, sequences, flowcharts, etc., described above in this disclosure may be rearranged unless consistent. For example, the methods described in this disclosure present elements of various steps using an example order and are not limited to the particular order presented.

[0126] (6) Each function illustrated in Figures 2 and 10 is realized by any combination of hardware and / or software. Furthermore, there are no particular limitations on the method for realizing each functional block. That is, each functional block may be realized using a single device that is physically or logically coupled, or may be realized using two or more physically or logically separated devices that are connected directly or indirectly (for example, by wire, wirelessly, etc.) and these multiple devices. A functional block may also be realized by combining software with the single device or multiple devices.

[0127] (7) The programs exemplified in the above disclosure should be broadly construed to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, threads of execution, procedures, functions, etc., whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or by other names.

[0128] Software, instructions, information, etc. may also be transmitted or received over a transmission medium. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using wired technologies (such as coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)), and / or wireless technologies (such as infrared, microwave), then these wired and / or wireless technologies are included within the definition of transmission media.

[0129] (8) In the foregoing disclosure, the terms "system" and "network" are used interchangeably.

[0130] (9) The information, parameters, etc. described in this disclosure may be expressed using absolute values, relative values ​​from a predetermined value, or corresponding other information.

[0131] (10) In the above-described present disclosure, the content providing device 10 and the terminal devices 30-1 to 30-N may be mobile stations (MS). A mobile station may also be referred to by those skilled in the art as a subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handset, user agent, mobile client, client, or some other appropriate term. In addition, in the present disclosure, terms such as "mobile station," "user terminal," "user equipment (UE)," and "terminal" may be used interchangeably.

[0132] (11) In the above disclosure, the terms "connected," "coupled," or any variation thereof, refer to any direct or indirect connection or coupling between two or more elements, and may include the presence of one or more intermediate elements between two elements that are "connected" or "coupled" to each other. The coupling or connection between elements may be a physical coupling or connection, a logical coupling or connection, or a combination thereof. For example, "connected" may be read as "access." As used in this disclosure, two elements may be considered to be "connected" or "coupled" to each other using at least one of one or more wires, cables, and printed electrical connections, as well as electromagnetic energy having wavelengths in the radio frequency range, microwave range, and optical (both visible and invisible) range, as some non-limiting and non-exhaustive examples.

[0133] (12) In the above disclosure, the phrase "based on" does not mean "based only on," unless expressly stated otherwise. In other words, the phrase "based on" means both "based only on" and "based at least on."

[0134] (13) As used in this disclosure, the terms "determining" and "determining" may encompass a wide variety of actions. "Determining" and "determining" may include, for example, judging, calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, looking up, searching, inquiring (e.g., searching in a table, database, or other data structure), ascertaining, and the like. "Determining" and "determining" may also include receiving (e.g., receiving information), transmitting (e.g., sending information), input, output, accessing (e.g., accessing data in memory), and the like. Furthermore, "judgment" and "decision" can include regarding resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, comparing, etc. as having been "judged" or "decided." In other words, "judgment" and "decision" can include regarding some action as having been "judged" or "decided." Furthermore, "judgment (decision)" can be interpreted as "assuming," "expecting," "considering," etc.

[0135] (14) In the above disclosure, where "include," "including," and variations thereof are used, these terms are intended to be inclusive, similar to the term "comprising." Furthermore, the term "or," as used in this disclosure, is not intended to be an exclusive or.

[0136] (15) In this disclosure, where articles are added by translation, such as a, an, and the in English, this disclosure may include the nouns following these articles being plural.

[0137] (16) In this disclosure, the term "A and B are different" may mean "A and B are different from each other." The term may also mean "A and B are each different from C." Terms such as "separate" and "combined" may also be interpreted in the same way as "different."

[0138] (17) The first embodiment and the modified examples described in this disclosure may be used alone, in combination, or switched depending on the implementation. Notification of predetermined information (e.g., notification that "X is true") is not limited to explicit notification, but may be implicit (e.g., not notifying the predetermined information).

[0139] Although the present disclosure has been described in detail above, it is clear to those skilled in the art that the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described herein. The present disclosure can be implemented in modified and altered forms without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the claims. Therefore, the description of the present disclosure is intended to be illustrative and does not have any limiting meaning on the present disclosure.

[0140] It is clear to those skilled in the art that the present disclosure is not limited to the first embodiment and the modified examples described in this specification. The present disclosure can be implemented in modified and altered forms without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the claims. Therefore, the description in this specification is intended as an illustrative explanation and does not have any limiting meaning on the present disclosure. In addition, configurations selected from the first embodiment and the modified examples exemplified in this specification may be combined. [Explanation of symbols]

[0141] 10...content providing device, 100...content providing system, 111...communication control unit, 112...data providing unit, 113...coordination unit, 114...display control unit, 1111...request receiving unit, 311...display control unit, 312...receiving unit, 313...determining unit, 314...communication control unit, A1...animation, D10...animation data, D20...comic data, D41...comic character data, D42...comic dialogue data, D51...animation character data ,D52...Animation dialogue data, F3...Relationship information file, F41...Character data file, F42...Dialogue data file, F51...Character data file, F52...Dialogue data file, M1...Manga, P01...First learning model, P02...Second learning model, P03...Third learning model, P04...Fourth learning model, P05...Fifth learning model, PA, PM...Operation screen, RA, RM...Switching request data, SC...Screen, U...User.

Claims

1. a linking unit that links animation data executed by an animation application that can be installed on a terminal device with cartoon data that can be executed by a cartoon application that can be installed on the terminal device; a request receiving unit that receives a user's request to switch from one of the contents, an animation by the animation application, and the comic by the comic application, to the other content via the terminal device while the display device of the terminal device is displaying one of the contents, an animation by the animation application, and a comic by the comic application; a data providing unit that provides, in response to the switching request, data including a second scene of the other content related to the first scene, instead of providing data including the first scene of the one content, to the terminal device; the linking unit generates a relationship information file that associates information about the comic page with information about the playback time of the animation, and links the animation data with the comic data based on the relationship information file; the linking unit generates the relationship information file based on manga character data that associates the title, page, character name, and character position of the manga, and animation character data that associates the title, playback time, character name, and character position of the animation. A content providing device characterized by:

2. a linking unit that links animation data executed by an animation application that can be installed on a terminal device with cartoon data that can be executed by a cartoon application that can be installed on the terminal device; a request receiving unit that receives a user's request to switch from one of the contents, an animation by the animation application, and the comic by the comic application, to the other content via the terminal device while the display device of the terminal device is displaying one of the contents, an animation by the animation application, and a comic by the comic application; a data providing unit that provides, in response to the switching request, data including a second scene of the other content related to the first scene, instead of providing data including the first scene of the one content, to the terminal device; the linking unit generates a relationship information file that associates information about the comic page with information about the playback time of the animation, and links the animation data with the comic data based on the relationship information file; the linking unit generates the relationship information file based on manga dialogue data that associates the title, page, character name, and dialogue of the manga, and animation dialogue data that associates the title, character name, playback time, and dialogue of the animation. A content providing device characterized by:

3. the collaborating unit generates each of the cartoon character data and the animation character data using a model including an object detection model that detects the characters and a character matching model that identifies the names of the characters detected by the object detection model; The content providing device according to claim 1 .

4. the linking unit performs scoring by estimating which character's utterance the line is closest to in generating the manga line data; The content providing device according to claim 2 .

Images