Patent ID: 8060611

Claim:
A server for successively providing content to a predetermined client, comprising: a registration unit that stores first destination information representing a first destination of offering of content in a memory, if said registration unit receives a command for registration accompanied by said first destination information; a content providing unit that provides content to a client device corresponding to said first destination information stored in said memory, wherein said content comprises at least one content item; and a switched content providing unit that operates to switch offering of content by said content providing unit from said first destination of offering of content to a second destination of offering of content for a predetermined time period, if said switched content providing unit receives a command for switching that includes second destination information representing said second destination of offering of content, to provide said content, which would have been provided for the first destination if offering of content was not switched, to a client device corresponding to said second destination of offering of content by said content providing unit, and to switch offering of content from said client device corresponding to said second destination of offering of content if said predetermined time period has elapsed, back to said first destination of offering of content, wherein: the server includes a judgment unit that judges whether it is necessary to provide each content item, which the switched content providing unit has provided to the client device corresponding to the second destination, to the client device corresponding to the first destination; the judgment unit judges that it is necessary to provide each content item to the client device corresponding to the first destination when the client device corresponding to the second destination was not able to receive each content item; and the content providing unit provides newly generated content, which was not provided by the switched content providing unit to the client device corresponding to the second destination and which has not been provided for the first destination of offering of content, to the client device corresponding to the first destination after the switched content providing unit switches back to said first destination of offering of content, and to provide only each content item, which the judgment unit judged it is necessary to provide to the client device corresponding to the first destination and which is selected from the content provided for the second destination of offering of content, to the client device corresponding to the first destination, wherein when the switched content providing unit receives a command for switching, the switched content providing unit extracts the second destination information representing the second destination of offering of content from the command for switching.