Patent ID: 7519716
Filing Date: 2009-04-14
Classification: H04L,Y10S

Abstract:
1. An information providing method for providing provision information which is to be provided and registered in a central apparatus in response to a request from plural terminal devices which are connected to said central apparatus by a communication network, comprising: accepting, by one terminal device directly connected to said central apparatus, as one set of data provision information, recipient information relating to a recipient who is authorized to receive said provision information, and a provision format of said provision information to be applied to said recipient, the provision format including a portable document format that is non-modifiable and is converted from said provision information at the terminal device and an original format which is modifiable and is not converted from said provision information; transmitting, by said one terminal device to said central apparatus, the one set of data after said accepting; registering, in said central apparatus, the one set of data after said transmitting; receiving, by said central apparatus, a request and recipient information of a recipient who generated the request transmitted from one of the terminal devices; and providing, by said central apparatus to said one of the terminal devices which transmitted the request and the recipient information, the provision information in the portable document format or the original format corresponding to the provision format based on the recipient information registered in the one set of data, said central apparatus performing an operation of judging whether a request from the one of said terminal devices is transmitted through said network or through another network different from said network; registering, as part of the one set of data, auxiliary provision information whose information volume is reduced from said transmitted provision information, and wherein said providing includes providing said auxiliary provision information, according to the provision format registered in the one set of data, to the one of said terminal devices based on the recipient information registered in the one set of data when said judging indicates that the one of said terminal devices transmits the request through the other network.