Patent ID: 7178159

Claim:
An information providing apparatus for acquiring contents data representing a high quality still image from a service providing apparatus capable of storing the contents data and of transmitting the contents data in response to a request from a remote user terminal, and for providing the contents data to the remote user terminal, said information providing comprising: reproducing means for reproducing the contents data; picture data relaying means for relaying still picture data obtained from the contents data reproduced by the reproducing means; moving picture coding means for producing compressed moving picture data having a high image quality by transforming still picture data coded using a still picture coding format into said compressed moving picture data coded using a moving picture coding format, said still picture data being obtained from said picture data relaying means, wherein said producing utilizes a stepwise image quality complementary type coding system for complementing an image quality in a stepwise manner, and wherein said moving picture coding means is also for transmitting the compressed moving picture data to the user terminal to display a still display picture using said moving picture coding format; and control means for determining an area of the still picture data coded into the compressed moving picture data in response to a user selection of a portion of the still display picture made from the remote user terminal, and for notifying the selected area to the moving picture coding means.