Display control program, display control device, and display control method

Abstract

To enable provision of multiple pieces of content related to a topic to a user in one go.SOLUTION: A display control program disclosed herein makes a computer perform: a first display control procedure for displaying a screen with main content related to a specific topic, and one of multiple pieces of sub-content related to the topic arranged side-by-side; and a second display control procedure for displaying the screen displayed through the first display control procedure with different sub-content as switched according to a user operation.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a display control program, a display control device, and a display control method.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, various types of content such as news articles with various contents have been provided via the Internet. For example, a user can perform various actions such as posting a comment on a news article or spreading a news article being viewed on an SNS (Social Networking Service) (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the prior art, there is room for improvement in providing content to users. For example, in the prior art, arranging and displaying related content has not been considered, and users have had to view each content through screen transitions.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object thereof is to provide a display control program, a display control device, and a display control method capable of collectively providing a plurality of contents related to a topic to a user.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] To solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the objective, the display control program according to the present invention causes a computer to execute a first display control procedure that displays a screen in which main content relating to a specific topic and one of a plurality of subordinate contents relating to the topic are arranged side by side, and a second display control procedure that switches and displays the subordinate contents of the screen displayed by the first display control procedure in response to user operation. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the display control program of the present invention, multiple pieces of content related to a topic can be provided to the user in a single package. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] Figure 1 shows an example of information processing according to the embodiment. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a display screen according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a block diagram showing an example configuration of an information providing device according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] Figure 4 shows an example of information to be stored in the content database according to the embodiment. [Figure 5] Figure 5 is a block diagram showing an example configuration of a user terminal according to this embodiment. [Figure 6] Figure 6 shows an example of a tutorial screen according to the present invention. [Figure 7] Figure 7 shows an example of interest-based content according to this embodiment. [Figure 8] Figure 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing according to the embodiment. [Figure 9] Figure 9 is a flowchart showing an example of the display control process according to the embodiment. [Figure 10] Figure 10 is a hardware configuration diagram showing an example of a computer that implements the functions of the information provision device according to the embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The following describes in detail, with reference to the drawings, embodiments for implementing the display control program, display control device, and display control method according to the present application (hereinafter referred to as "embodiments"). However, these embodiments do not limit the display control program, display control device, and display control method according to the present application.

[0010] [Embodiment] [1. Information Processing] First, an example of information processing according to the embodiment will be described using Figures 1 and 2. Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of an information processing system according to the embodiment. Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a display screen according to the embodiment.

[0011] The information processing system according to the embodiment shown in Figure 1 comprises an information providing device 1 and a user terminal 10. The information providing device 1 is an information providing device that provides various web services. The information providing device 1 operates various portal sites, including news sites.

[0012] Information provider device 1 is an information provider that works in conjunction with each user's user terminal 10 and provides each user's user terminal 10 with API (Application Programming Interface) services for various applications (hereinafter referred to as "apps") and various data, and is implemented by a server device or cloud system. In practice, information provider device 1 may also work in conjunction with various servers that provide the above-mentioned web services and act as an intermediary for web services.

[0013] The user terminal 10 is a terminal operated by the user. While Figure 1 illustrates the case where the user terminal 10 is a smartphone, the user terminal 10 may also be an information-providing device such as a personal computer or a notebook PC. Furthermore, the user terminal 10 corresponds to an example of the display control device according to this embodiment.

[0014] When the user terminal 10 accesses various Web services provided by the information providing device 1 via a predetermined network (step S1), the information providing device 1 provides the information requested by the access to the user terminal 10 that is the access source (step S2).

[0015] Then, the user terminal 10 executes display control processing for displaying the information acquired from the information providing device 1 (step S3). Here, the information providing device 1 provides review content for reviewing the news that has occurred on the user terminal 10 in one year, and the user terminal 10 executes various display control processing on the review content.

[0016] As shown in FIG. 2, after the top screen G1 is displayed, the first screen G2 is displayed for the review content. The top screen G1 is a screen on which the gist and theme of the review content are displayed. For example, when the user accesses the special page, the top screen G1 is displayed on the user terminal 10.

[0017] When the user performs a predetermined operation on the top screen G1, the user terminal 10 switches from the top screen G1 to the first screen G2 and displays it. As shown in FIG. 2, the first screen G2 is a screen on which the main image M1, the sub-image S1, the operation button B, and the interest score Sc are displayed.

[0018] The main image M1 is an image showing the content of the topic picked up as the review content, and the sub-image S1 is an image related to various news contents related to the main image M1. Note that the main image M1 corresponds to an example of the main content, and the sub-image S1, etc. correspond to an example of the subordinate content.

[0019] For example, as shown in Figure 2, multiple sub-images S1 to S4 are associated with a single main image M1. When the user slides sub-image S1 left or right, the display switches from sub-image S1 to sub-image S2 while the main image M1 remains fixed. Furthermore, once the user terminal 10 has finished displaying all sub-images S1 to S4, it switches the main image M1 to the main image corresponding to the next topic and displays the next sub-images sequentially.

[0020] Operation button B is used to measure the user's level of interest in the currently displayed topic. For example, the level of interest increases in a count-up manner depending on how long the user holds down operation button B. For instance, if the user holds down operation button B for 1 second, the interest score, which represents the level of interest, increases by "1".

[0021] This allows for a more accurate measurement of a user's potential level of interest compared to measuring interest based on the number of button selections, etc. Operation button B is an example of an interactive content that accepts actions indicating the level of interest in a topic.

[0022] Furthermore, the interest score Sc shown in Figure 2 indicates the degree of interest each user has in the displayed topic, and the degree of interest is displayed as a thermometer. In particular, in this embodiment, since the interest score Sc is expressed as a temperature, the interest score Sc can be appropriately displayed even if the displayed topic is a somber one, such as war or obituary.

[0023] If the interest score Sc were to be expressed using a different notation, such as "number of likes," and the displayed topic was a somber subject, users might feel it was inappropriate and hesitate to press operation button B, potentially leading to an inaccurate measurement of the interest score Sc. In contrast, by expressing the interest score Sc using a temperature notation, the above problem can be avoided, allowing for an accurate measurement of the interest score Sc.

[0024] For example, the information provider 1 acquires information from each user terminal 10 regarding the degree of interest each user has in each topic and aggregates this information. The aggregated result is displayed on the user terminal 10 as an interest score Sc. In other words, the interest score Sc makes it possible to visualize each user's interest in each topic. The interest score may also be color-coded according to the current score. For example, the color may change in stages according to the score. That is, the degree of interest of each user may be represented by the temperature of a thermometer.

[0025] In this embodiment, the information processing displays the main content and one of the multiple subordinate contents on the first screen G2, and switches and displays the subordinate contents on the first screen G2 according to the user's operation.

[0026] Therefore, in the information processing according to this embodiment, multiple pieces of content related to a topic can be provided on a single screen, allowing the user to receive multiple pieces of content related to a topic all at once. While this example shows the case where the main content and secondary content are images, the main content and secondary content may also be text or moving images. Furthermore, if the main content and secondary content are moving images, they may also include audio.

[0027] [2. Example of information provision device configuration] Next, an example of the configuration of the information providing device 1 according to the embodiment will be described using Figure 3. Figure 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the information providing device 1 according to the embodiment. As shown in Figure 3, the information providing device 1 has a communication unit 2, a storage unit 3, and a control unit 4.

[0028] (Communications Section 2) This is implemented by a communication unit 2, such as a NIC (Network Interface Card). Furthermore, the communication unit 2 is connected to the network via a wired or wireless connection.

[0029] (Storage unit 3) The storage unit 3 is implemented by, for example, semiconductor memory elements such as RAM (Random Access Memory) and flash memory, or by storage devices such as hard disks and optical discs. As shown in Figure 2, the storage unit 3 has a content database 31 and a ranking database 32.

[0030] (Content Database 31) The content database 31 is a database that stores various information related to the content provided to each user terminal 10. Figure 4 is a diagram showing an example of the information stored in the content database 31 according to this embodiment.

[0031] As shown in Figure 4, the content database 31 stores information on items such as "main content," "genre," "secondary content," and "score" in a manner that associates them with each other. "Main content" refers to the main content related to the topic provided as review content, and for example, information about the content of the main content (images and text data) is stored there.

[0032] The "Genre" field indicates the genre of the main content, and stores information indicating which genre the main content belongs to on the news site. The "Subordinate Content" field indicates the subordinate content corresponding to the main content, and stores information about the content of the subordinate content (images and text data).

[0033] The "Score" indicates the interest score (Sc) of the corresponding secondary content, and information regarding the sum of each user's interest scores (Sc) for the corresponding secondary content is stored. Note that this example shows the case where the interest score (Sc) is linked to the secondary content, but it is also possible to link the interest score (Sc) to the primary content.

[0034] (Ranking Database 32) The ranking database 32 stores information regarding the ranking of primary or secondary content. For example, the ranking is determined by the rank of the interest score Sc of each primary content, or by the rank of the interest score Sc of each secondary content.

[0035] (Control Unit 4) The control unit 4 is a controller, and is realized by executing various programs (corresponding to an example of an information processing program) stored in the internal memory of the information providing device 1 using a memory area such as RAM as a working area, for example, by a CPU (Central Processing Unit), MPU (Micro Processing Unit), ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array). In the example shown in Figure 3, the control unit 4 has an acquisition unit 41, an aggregation unit 42, and a provision unit 43.

[0036] (Acquisition part 41) The acquisition unit 41 acquires score information for each topic from each user terminal 10 via the communication unit 2. The score information includes information about the user's interest score (Sc) for each topic.

[0037] (Aggregation Section 42) The aggregation unit 42 aggregates the interest score (Sc) for each topic based on the score information acquired by the acquisition unit 41 from each user terminal 10. The aggregation unit 42 updates the "Score" item in the content database 31 based on the score information acquired by the acquisition unit 41.

[0038] (Providing Department 43) The service provider 43 provides various types of content to each user terminal 10. For example, the service provider 43 provides each user with review content (see Figure 2). For example, the service provider 43 selects topics to be included in the review content from the news content provided over the past year.

[0039] For example, the content provider 43 selects topics to be included in the retrospective content from among the news stories that have been published as special editions on the news site. The content provider 43 selects topics to be included in the retrospective content so that the topics are evenly balanced.

[0040] Here, "topic balance" means that there is a certain level of dispersion across each news category, and that the ratio of serious news to lighthearted news is above a certain level. Serious and lighthearted news are, for example, pre-labeled manually.

[0041] The content provider 43 generates main content and secondary content corresponding to a selected topic. For example, the content provider 43 automatically picks main content and secondary content from news content related to the topic. For example, the content provider 43 automatically picks main content and secondary content based on the page views, likes, and open rate of each news content when the news is sent as a push notification.

[0042] The provisioning unit 43 then registers the main content and the secondary content in the content database 31 and provides content information, including each main content and secondary content, to the user terminal 10. The content information includes information on how multiple secondary content items are linked to each main content item, and information on the interest score (Sc) for each main content item.

[0043] [3. Example of user terminal configuration] Next, an example of the configuration of the user terminal 10 according to the embodiment will be described using Figure 5. Figure 5 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the user terminal 10 according to the embodiment. As shown in Figure 5, the user terminal 10 has a communication unit 11, a storage unit 13, and a control unit 14.

[0044] (Communications Section 11) The communication unit 11 is implemented by, for example, a NIC (Network Interface Card). The communication unit 11 is connected to the network by wire or wireless connection.

[0045] (Storage unit 13) The storage unit 13 is implemented by, for example, a semiconductor memory element such as RAM (Random Access Memory) or flash memory, or a storage device such as a hard disk or optical disc. The storage unit 13 stores the display control program according to the embodiment and various information provided by the information providing device 1.

[0046] (Control Unit 14) The control unit 4 is a controller, and is realized by executing various programs (corresponding to an example of a display control program) stored in the internal storage device of the information providing device 1 using a storage area such as RAM as a working area, for example, by a CPU (Central Processing Unit), MPU (Micro Processing Unit), ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array). In the example shown in Figure 5, the control unit 14 has an acquisition unit 15, a first display control unit 16, a second display control unit 17, an aggregation unit 18, and a generation unit 19.

[0047] (Acquisition part 15) The acquisition unit 15 acquires various content from the information providing device 1 via the communication unit 11. For example, the acquisition unit 15 acquires content information related to review content from the information providing device 1 in response to user operations on the operation unit (not shown).

[0048] (First display control unit 16) The first display control unit 16 displays a first screen which arranges main content related to a specific topic, one of several subordinate contents related to the topic, and operation content that accepts operations indicating the degree of interest in the topic.

[0049] Prior to displaying the first screen, the first display control unit 16 displays a tutorial screen related to the review content. Figure 6 shows an example of a tutorial screen according to this embodiment.

[0050] As shown in Figure 6, tutorial screen G11 displays instructions on how to operate operation button B, and tutorial screen G12 displays an explanation indicating that the interest score Sc increases according to the time spent operating operation button B. After the tutorial screens are finished, the first display control unit 16 displays the first screen G2 shown in Figure 2.

[0051] When displaying the first screen G2, the first display control unit 16 displays a main content indicating a topic and one of several subordinate contents related to that topic.

[0052] (Second display control unit 17) The second display control unit 17 switches and displays the secondary content of the first screen, which is displayed by the first display control unit 16, according to the user's operation. For example, if the user operates the operation unit (not shown) and performs any operation on the secondary content of the first screen, the second display control unit 17 switches the secondary content to the next secondary content and displays it.

[0053] In this process, the second display control unit 17 fixes the display position of the main content and switches to displaying the next subordinate content. Once the second display control unit 17 has finished displaying all subordinate content related to the main content, it switches to displaying the next main content. The second display control unit 17 repeats these processes until all main and subordinate content has been displayed.

[0054] Furthermore, the second display control unit 17 may rearrange the display order of the subordinate content, such as displaying the subordinate content with the highest score first. Alternatively, the second display control unit 17 may rearrange the display order of the main content according to the interest score Sc of the main content.

[0055] In other words, the display order of each content may be adjusted to prioritize the display of content that is likely to interest the user. This process may be performed in real time, for example, in conjunction with the user's operation on operation button B. For example, in this case, the second display control unit 17 may change the display order according to the similarity of each subordinate content. For example, the second display control unit 17 estimates the similarity of subordinate content according to the cosine similarity of the feature vector obtained by converting the features of the subordinate content into vectors, and prioritizes displaying other subordinate content that has a similar similarity to the subordinate content that the user has shown interest in.

[0056] (Aggregation Section 18) The aggregation unit 18 aggregates the user's interest score Sc for each main content. For example, the aggregation unit 18 aggregates the interest score Sc of the main content by adding the score to the interest score Sc of the currently displayed main content according to the length of time the operation button B is pressed.

[0057] For example, the aggregation unit 18 adds "+1" to the interest score Sc each time the operation button B is pressed and held for 1 second. The aggregation unit 18 performs this for all main content, passes the aggregation results to the generation unit 19, and also provides them to the information providing device 1 via the communication unit 11. The aggregation unit 18 may also aggregate the interest score Sc on a per-sub-content basis.

[0058] (Generation part 19) The generation unit 19 generates interest-based content according to the user's level of interest after the first screen has finished displaying. When all main content and all secondary content have finished displaying on the first screen, the generation unit 19 generates interest-based content according to the aggregation results of the aggregation unit 18.

[0059] Figure 7 shows an example of interest content according to the embodiment. As shown in Figure 7, for example, after the first screen is completed, the ending screen G21 is displayed. On the ending screen G21, the sum of the user's own interest scores Sc in the review content is displayed as an image Gm.

[0060] Furthermore, when the "View Results" button displayed on the completion screen G21 is selected, the content screen G22, which includes the content of interest, is displayed. In the example shown in Figure 7, the content of interest is an image Gm related to the main content that the user showed the most interest in, and within the image Gm, the topic of the main content and the user's interest score Sc for that topic are displayed.

[0061] The content screen G22 displays a posting button Bs that allows users to post content of interest to social media. When a user selects the posting button Bs, they can post the content of interest to social media.

[0062] As shown in Figure 7, for example, if a user's interest score (Sc) is tied for first place across multiple topics, the sum of all interest scores (Sc) will be displayed within the interest content.

[0063] In this way, after the first screen has finished displaying, the generation unit 19 generates interest-based content according to the user's level of interest. This allows the user to understand which topics they showed the most interest in.

[0064] Furthermore, the content of interest is not limited to the examples above; it may also be a ranking of interest scores (Sc) for each topic. The content of interest may also be related to the sub-content with the highest interest score (Sc), or it may be a ranking of interest scores (Sc) for each sub-content. In short, the content of interest may take any form as long as it visualizes the user's interests.

[0065] [4. Processing Flow] Next, the processing procedure performed by the information providing device 1 according to the embodiment will be explained using Figure 8. Figure 8 is a flowchart of an example of the provision process according to the embodiment. As shown in Figure 8, the information providing device 1 according to the embodiment first generates content (review content) to be provided to the user terminal 10 (step S101).

[0066] Next, the information provider 1 provides the generated content to the user terminal 10 (step S103). Subsequently, the information provider 1 obtains score information regarding the interest score Sc for each topic from the user terminal 10 (step S104). The information provider 1 updates the score for each topic (step S105) and terminates the process.

[0067] Next, the processing procedure executed by the user terminal 10 according to the embodiment will be explained using Figure 9. Figure 9 is a flowchart of an example of the display control processing according to the embodiment. As shown in Figure 9, first, the user terminal 10 acquires content from the information providing device 1 (step S201).

[0068] Next, the user terminal 10 displays a first screen containing a main image (primary content), sub-images (secondary content), and operation button B related to topic 1 (step S202). Subsequently, the user terminal 10 switches and displays the sub-images in response to the user's scrolling operation (step S203).

[0069] The user terminal 10 determines whether or not sub-images related to the current topic have already been displayed (step S204). If it determines that sub-images related to the current topic have already been displayed (step S204; Yes), it switches to the next topic (step S205). In step S204, the user may perform a predetermined operation to switch to the next topic without displaying all sub-images.

[0070] Furthermore, the user terminal 10 determines whether all topics have been displayed (step S206). If it determines that all topics have been displayed (step S206; Yes), it terminates the display of the first screen, compiles the score, displays the completion screen (step S207), and then terminates the process.

[0071] Furthermore, if the user terminal 10 determines in the determination process of step S204 that it has not yet displayed a sub-image related to the current topic (step S204; No), or if it determines in the determination process of step S206 that it has not yet displayed any topics (step S206; No), it proceeds to the process of step S203.

[0072] [5. Variations] The embodiments described above describe the display of news-related content, but are not limited to this. For example, the present invention can be applied to various types of content that visualize users' interests.

[0073] For example, examples of content include product pages for various goods and election manifesto pages. For instance, a product page might display the product's appearance as the main content, while more detailed information, such as its interior, is displayed as secondary content. Similarly, an election manifesto page might display each political party as the main content, with each party's manifesto displayed as secondary content. In this case, it becomes possible to visualize which political party or manifesto users have shown interest in.

[0074] Furthermore, while the above-described embodiment explains how the interest score is calculated by long-pressing operation button B, it is not limited to this. For example, the interest score may be calculated using various sensors that measure the user's body temperature, pulse, heart rate, etc., or it may be calculated using a pressure sensor that detects the pressure applied by the user during operation. In other words, operation button B may be operated by various sensors.

[0075] [6. Effects] As described above, the display control program according to the present invention causes a computer to execute a first display control procedure that displays a screen in which main content relating to a specific topic and one of a plurality of subordinate contents relating to the specific topic are arranged side by side, and a second display control procedure that switches and displays the subordinate contents of the screen displayed by the first display control procedure in response to user operations.

[0076] Furthermore, the first display procedure displays an interactive content that accepts input regarding the degree of interest in a specific topic, on a screen that displays the main content and secondary content side by side. Furthermore, the first display control procedure displays the main content that shows the content of the topic and the secondary content that is news related to the topic.

[0077] Furthermore, the second display control procedure sequentially switches and displays secondary content corresponding to the main content in response to user operations, and if further operations are performed, displays the next main content and the secondary content corresponding to that main content.

[0078] Furthermore, the first display control procedure displays an interest score on the screen, which increases in proportion to the amount of time spent interacting with the content being operated on, indicating the degree of interest in the currently displayed topic. The first display control procedure also displays the total amount of interest in the topic from multiple users on the screen as an interest score.

[0079] Furthermore, the display control program includes a generation procedure that generates interest-based content according to the user's level of interest when the screen display ends. The generation procedure generates content related to the topic that the user showed the highest level of interest in as interest-based content. The generation procedure also generates the interest-based content ranked according to the user's level of interest.

[0080] Furthermore, the second display control procedure changes the display order of the main content or secondary content according to the user's level of interest.

[0081] Through any or a combination of the above-described processes, the display control program according to the present invention can provide users with a collection of multiple pieces of content related to a topic.

[0082] [7. Hardware Configuration] Furthermore, the information providing device 1 according to the above embodiment is realized by a computer 1000 having a configuration such as that shown in Figure 10. Figure 10 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration. The computer 1000 is connected to an output device 1010 and an input device 1020, and has a configuration in which an arithmetic unit 1030, a primary storage device 1040, a secondary storage device 1050, an output interface 1060, an input interface 1070, and a network interface 1080 are connected by a bus 1090.

[0083] The arithmetic unit 1030 operates based on programs stored in the primary storage device 1040 and the secondary storage device 1050, as well as programs read from the input device 1020, and executes various processes. The arithmetic unit 1030 can be implemented using, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an MPU (Micro Processing Unit), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array).

[0084] The primary storage device 1040 is a memory device, such as RAM (Random Access Memory), that temporarily stores data used by the arithmetic unit 1030 for various calculations. The secondary storage device 1050 is a storage device where data used by the arithmetic unit 1030 for various calculations and various databases are registered, and can be implemented using ROM (Read Only Memory), HDD (Hard Disk Drive), SSD (Solid State Drive), flash memory, etc. The secondary storage device 1050 may be internal storage or external storage. The secondary storage device 1050 may also be a removable storage medium such as a USB memory stick or an SD (Secure Digital) memory card. Furthermore, the secondary storage device 1050 may be cloud storage (online storage), NAS (Network Attached Storage), a file server, etc.

[0085] The output I / F 1060 is an interface for transmitting information to be output to output devices 1010, such as displays, projectors, and printers, and is implemented using connectors of standards such as USB (Universal Serial Bus), DVI (Digital Visual Interface), and HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface). The input I / F 1070 is an interface for receiving information from various input devices 1020, such as mice, keyboards, keypads, buttons, and scanners, and is implemented using, for example, USB.

[0086] Furthermore, the output interface 1060 and input interface 1070 may be wirelessly connected to the output device 1010 and input device 1020, respectively. In other words, the output device 1010 and input device 1020 may be wireless devices.

[0087] Furthermore, the output device 1010 and the input device 1020 may be integrated as a touch panel. In this case, the output I / F 1060 and the input I / F 1070 may also be integrated as an input / output I / F.

[0088] The input device 1020 may also be a device that reads information from, for example, an optical recording medium such as a CD (Compact Disc), DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), or PD (Phase Change Rewritable Disk), a magneto-optical recording medium such as an MO (Magneto-Optical disk), a tape medium, a magnetic recording medium, or a semiconductor memory.

[0089] The network interface 1080 receives data from other devices via network N and sends it to the computing unit 1030, and also transmits data generated by the computing unit 1030 to other devices via network N.

[0090] The arithmetic unit 1030 controls the output device 1010 and the input device 1020 via the output interface 1060 and the input interface 1070. For example, the arithmetic unit 1030 loads a program from the input device 1020 or the secondary storage device 1050 onto the primary storage device 1040 and executes the loaded program.

[0091] For example, when computer 1000 functions as information providing device 1, the arithmetic unit 1030 of computer 1000 realizes the functions of control unit 4 by executing a program loaded onto primary storage device 1040. Alternatively, computer 1000's arithmetic unit 1030 may load a program obtained from another device via network interface 1080 onto primary storage device 1040 and execute the loaded program. Furthermore, computer 1000's arithmetic unit 1030 may cooperate with other devices via network interface 1080 and call and use program functions, data, etc., from other programs on other devices.

[0092] [8. Other] Although embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited by the content of these embodiments. Furthermore, the aforementioned components include those that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art, those that are substantially the same, and those that fall within the so-called equivalent range. Moreover, the aforementioned components can be combined as appropriate. Furthermore, various omissions, substitutions, or modifications of the components can be made without departing from the gist of the embodiments described above.

[0093] Furthermore, among the processes described in the above embodiments, all or part of the processes described as being performed automatically can be performed manually, or all or part of the processes described as being performed manually can be performed automatically by known methods. In addition, the processing procedures, specific names, and information including various data and parameters shown in the above document and drawings can be arbitrarily changed unless otherwise specified. For example, the various information shown in each figure is not limited to the information shown.

[0094] Furthermore, the components of each illustrated device are functionally conceptual and do not necessarily need to be physically configured as shown. In other words, the specific forms of distribution and integration of each device are not limited to those shown, and all or part of them can be functionally or physically distributed and integrated in any unit according to various loads and usage conditions.

[0095] For example, the information provision device 1 described above may be implemented using multiple server computers, and depending on the function, it may be implemented by calling external platforms, etc., via APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) or network computing, so the configuration can be flexibly changed.

[0096] Furthermore, the embodiments and modifications described above can be combined as appropriate, provided that the processing content is not inconsistent.

[0097] Furthermore, the terms "section, module, unit" mentioned above can be replaced with "means" or "circuit," etc. For example, the acquisition unit can be replaced with acquisition means or acquisition circuit. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0098] 1 Information provision device 2 Communications Department 3 Storage section 4. Control Unit 10. User terminals 11 Communications Department 13 Storage section 14 Control Unit 15 Acquisition Department 16. First Display Control Unit 17. Second Display Control Unit 18. Aggregation Department 19 Generation part 31 Content Database 32 Ranking Database 41 Acquisition Department 42. Aggregation Department 43 Providing Department

Claims

1. A first display control procedure for displaying a screen that shows a main content related to a specific topic and one of several subordinate contents related to the said topic side by side, A second display control procedure that switches and displays the subordinate content of the screen displayed by the first display control procedure in response to user operations. Have the computer run it, The second display control procedure is as follows: In response to user operations, the system sequentially switches and displays the secondary content corresponding to the main content. After all secondary content has been displayed, if further operations are performed, the system displays the next main content and the corresponding secondary content. A display control program characterized by the following:

2. The first display control procedure is as follows: Displaying an interactive content that accepts input regarding the degree of interest in a particular topic on the screen where the main content and the secondary content are placed side by side. The display control program according to claim 1, characterized by the following:

3. The first display control procedure is as follows: Displaying the main content which shows the content of the topic, and the secondary content which is news related to the topic. The display control program according to claim 1, characterized by the following:

4. The first display control procedure is as follows: An interest score is displayed on the screen, which increases in degree of interest in the displayed topic according to the time spent interacting with the content. The display control program according to claim 2, characterized by the following:

5. The first display control procedure is as follows: The total amount of interest levels of multiple users in the topic is displayed on the screen as the interest score. The display control program according to claim 4, characterized by the following:

6. A generation procedure for generating interest-based content that corresponds to the user's level of interest, which is displayed after the aforementioned screen has finished. Further includes The display control program according to claim 2, characterized by the following:

7. The aforementioned generation procedure is: To generate content related to the topic that the user showed the highest level of interest in as the interest content. The display control program according to claim 6, characterized by the following:

8. The aforementioned generation procedure is: To generate interest-based content that ranks the degree of interest of the aforementioned users. The display control program according to claim 6, characterized by the following:

9. The operation content is The system can accept input regarding the degree of interest in the main content or secondary content displayed on the screen. The second display control procedure is as follows: The display order of the main content or the secondary content is changed according to the user's level of interest. The display control program according to claim 2, characterized by the following:

10. A first display control unit that displays a screen in which main content relating to a specific topic and one of several subordinate contents relating to the topic are placed side by side, A second display control unit switches and displays the subordinate content of the screen displayed by the first display control unit in response to user operations. Equipped with, The second display control unit is: In response to user operations, the system sequentially switches and displays the secondary content corresponding to the main content. After all secondary content has been displayed, if further operations are performed, the system displays the next main content and the corresponding secondary content. A display control device characterized by the following:

11. A display control method performed by a computer, A first display control step that displays a screen in which main content relating to a specific topic and one of several subordinate contents relating to the topic are displayed side by side, A second display control step which switches and displays the subordinate content of the screen displayed by the first display control step in response to user operation. Includes, The second display control step is: In response to user operations, the system sequentially switches and displays the secondary content corresponding to the main content. After all secondary content has been displayed, if further operations are performed, the system displays the next main content and the corresponding secondary content. A display control method characterized by the following.

Images