Patent ID: 8438598
Filing Date: 2013-05-07
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
1. An information processing apparatus communicable with a plurality of content viewing devices via a network, comprising: a viewing information receiving unit configured to receive from each of the content viewing devices viewing information, said viewing information including information representing at least one of content previously received by the respective content viewing device, content being received by the respective content viewing device at present, and content to be received by the respective content viewing device in the future, said viewing information further including enthusiasm information representing at least one of an impression of the past content or the present content, a viewing state, and feelings; a processing unit configured to manage a user viewing content database based on the viewing information received from each of the content viewing devices, and a program guide indicating a plurality of contents available to each of the content viewing devices, wherein the user viewing content database associates, in a form of a program guide, past, present, and future contents represented in the program guide and identification information of users associated with at least one of the content viewing devices that at least one of received the past content, are receiving the present content, and may receive the future content, the processing unit further configured to calculate a viewing probability that the future content will be received by respective content viewing devices based on the viewing information received from each of the content viewing devices and attribute information of content contained in the program guide; an acquisition request receiving unit configured to receive a request from a requesting content viewing device associated with the identification information of one of the users for viewing information of identification information of another user, the processing unit further configured to extract from the user viewing content database the viewing information of the identification information of the another user including information representing content received by one of the content viewing devices associated with the identification information of the another user in the past, at the present, and in the future, and further including enthusiasm information representing at least one of an impression of the past content or the present content, a viewing state, and feelings, in response to the request for the viewing information of the identification information of the another user; and a viewing information transmitting unit configured to transmit the extracted viewing information of the identification information of the another user to the requesting content viewing device, the viewing information of the identification information of the another user indicating the viewing probability that the future content will be received by one of the content viewing devices associated with the identification information of the another user, wherein the viewing probability is based on PRG and UM, PRG being a vector representing characteristics of the future content and including at least one of a genre of the future content, a performer of the future content, and a keyword extracted from comments of the future content, UM being a vector determined by a learning processing of at least one of a performer, a keyword, and a genre, wherein the viewing probability is defined by