JP2003169310A - Two-way broadcast system, method therefor apparatus thereof and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable reliable provision of responses of viewers concerning to a broadcast program to a broadcast station. <P>SOLUTION: In a broadcast apparatus 10 equipped in the broadcast station, an uplink section 12 transmits program data outputted by a program transmitting section 11 to a cable TV station via a satellite 4. In a re-broadcasting apparatus 20 equipped in the cable TV station, a head end section 22 transmits the program data to a subscriber's terminal 30. After that, in the station 20 in the cable TV station, upon reception of response data concerning to a digital broadcast program from the subscriber's terminal, a band control section 26 secures the maximum transmission band which is allowed to transmit the response data in the Internet 5 between the stations. Then, in the apparatus 20, the response data stored in a data storage section 24 are read out within the range of the secured transmission band, and the data are transmitted to the apparatus equipped in the broadcast station via the Internet 5. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a bidirectional broadcasting system, a bidirectional broadcasting method, a rebroadcasting device, and a program for bidirectionally supplying information between a broadcasting station and a subscriber terminal via a cable television. Regarding

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, digital broadcasting services have attracted attention as next-generation interactive high-definition broadcasting services that replace the current analog broadcasting services. The system for providing the above-described interactive high-definition broadcasting service includes the following 1) cable television (CATV: Cable Television) system,
2) There is a digital broadcasting service system that uses communication satellites. 1) A cable television system is a system that collectively receives digital broadcast programs distributed from broadcasting stations and distributes the received digital broadcast programs to homes via a communication network composed of coaxial cables and the like. . 2) A digital broadcasting service system using a communication satellite is a digital broadcasting service system via a communication satellite (CS: Communication Satellite), a broadcasting satellite (BS: Broadcasting Satellite), and a terrestrial wave.

The above-mentioned cable television system not only provides a one-way broadcast program from the cable television station to the viewer (uses only the downlink line of the cable), but also the V from the viewer.
OD (Video On Demand, Video On Demand) and interactive (interactive) services represented by tangents to the Internet using the vacant cable castles (including cable upstream lines) are possible.

Therefore, in the digital broadcasting service, the viewer participation type broadcasting of music programs and quiz programs reflecting the tastes of the viewers by questionnaires or requests using television shopping, telephone, facsimile, electronic mail, etc. It is expected that the number of programs will increase.

In order to view digital broadcasting from the cable television system, the receiving terminal needs to have an STB (Set Top Box). In addition, in order to view digital broadcasts distributed via a path from a communication satellite, etc., the receiving terminal must be equipped with a dedicated receiving device (including an antenna, tuner function, etc.) corresponding to each broadcast path. .

In the above-mentioned digital broadcasting service, when a viewer request or a quiz answer is simultaneously transmitted to a broadcasting station via a telephone line while a viewer participation type program is in progress, the telephone line overflows. Then, the connection becomes impossible or the waiting time becomes long, which not only hinders the smooth progress of the program but also causes inconvenience of lacking convenience for the viewer. As a result, the number of viewers participating may decrease, which may hinder the operation of the program.

Therefore, a technique for solving the above inconvenience or fear is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-240731. In Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-240731, response information generated by a response operation on the receiving side is actually transmitted to the broadcasting station via a telephone line by the broadcasting station based on unique information on the receiving side (viewer side). A system has been proposed for setting a transmission time that is set. The technology disclosed in the above publication is based on the unique information (identification information) on the receiving side, and by dispersing the transmission time of the response information, the access concentration of the telephone line in the area including the broadcasting station is leveled. It is possible to avoid communication (call) failures.

[0008]

However, in the bidirectional broadcasting system disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-240731, a transmission band sufficient for data transmission is provided between the cable television station and the subscriber receiving terminal. However, it cannot be said that a sufficient transmission band can always be secured between a cable television station and a broadcasting station in a network such as the Internet.

Therefore, in the technique disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-240731, unlike the two-way broadcasting system for transmitting via the telephone line, the access portion from the viewer is rather congested. , Congestion occurs in the network between the cable television and the broadcasting station, which hinders data transmission. In particular, when data transmission is performed using the TCP / IC protocol, if data is discarded due to congestion in the network between the cable television and the broadcasting station, the subscriber terminal waits for a reception notification to be received for a certain time and then Resend the data. Therefore, when each terminal performs such retransmission, it causes congestion on the network, causes a rapid increase in traffic, and causes further data discard.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an interactive broadcasting system and the like which can promptly supply a request of a viewer to a broadcasting station. It is another object of the present invention to provide a bidirectional system or the like that can prevent data discarding in a network and thus can suppress an increase in traffic due to data rebroadcast.

[0011]

In order to achieve the above object, an interactive broadcasting system according to a first aspect of the present invention provides a digital broadcasting program broadcast from a broadcasting station which is installed in a cable television station. A two-way broadcasting system for rebroadcasting to a subscriber terminal via a broadcasting device, and transmitting reply data for the digital broadcast program from the subscriber terminal to the broadcasting station from the rebroadcasting device via a network. , The rebroadcasting device ensures that the transmission band of the network for transmitting the response data is maximized, and the reply band so as not to exceed the transmission band secured by the transmission band securing unit. Response data transmitting means for transmitting data to the broadcasting station via the network.

According to this structure, the transmission band of the network for transmitting the reply data is secured to the maximum, and the reply data is transmitted to the broadcasting station via the network so as not to exceed the secured transmission band. I will send it
It is possible to prevent data discard in the network. Therefore, it is possible to suppress an increase in traffic due to the transmission of reply data. This allows the viewer's request to be promptly supplied to the broadcasting station.

Also, in the bidirectional broadcasting method according to the second aspect of the present invention, a digital broadcasting program broadcast from a broadcasting station is rebroadcast to a subscriber terminal via a cable television station, and at the same time from the subscriber terminal. A bidirectional broadcasting method for transmitting answer data to the digital broadcasting program from a cable television station to the broadcasting station via a network,
The transmission band of the network for transmitting the response data is secured to the maximum, and the response data is transmitted to the broadcasting station via the network so as not to exceed the secured transmission band. .

According to this structure, the transmission band of the network for transmitting the reply data is secured to the maximum, and the reply data is transmitted to the broadcasting station via the network so as not to exceed the secured transmission band. I will send it
It is possible to prevent data discard in the network. Therefore, it is possible to suppress an increase in traffic due to the transmission of reply data. This allows the viewer's request to be promptly supplied to the broadcasting station.

The rebroadcasting apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention retransmits the digital broadcasting program transmitted from the broadcasting station to the subscriber terminal, and responds to the digital broadcasting program received from the subscriber terminal. A re-broadcasting device installed in a cable television station for transmitting reply data to the broadcasting station via a network, and a transmission band securing means for maximizing a transmission band of the network for transmitting the reply data. A response data storage means for storing the response data received from the subscriber terminal in a storage means; and a response data storage means for storing the response data so as not to exceed a transmission band secured by the transmission band securing means. Response data transmitting means for transmitting the response data to the broadcasting station via the network. .

According to this structure, the transmission band of the network for transmitting the reply data is secured to the maximum, and the reply data is transmitted to the broadcasting station via the network so as not to exceed the secured transmission band. I will send it
It is possible to prevent data discard in the network. Therefore, it is possible to suppress an increase in traffic due to the transmission of reply data. This allows the viewer's request to be promptly supplied to the broadcasting station.

Test data storage means for storing test data to be transmitted on the network is further provided, and the transmission band securing means is a band temporary designation means for temporarily designating a transmission band of the network, and the band temporary designation means. Test data reading means for reading test data of a data amount corresponding to the transmission band designated by the above from the test data storing means, and test data transmitting means for transmitting the test data read by the test data reading means to the network. , A transmission result receiving unit that receives information indicating whether the test data transmitted by the test data transmitting unit is normally transmitted to a broadcasting station, and the information is normally received by the transmission result receiving unit. When the information to the effect that it has been received is received, the transmission band designated by the band provisional designating means is transferred to the network. A band specifying unit that specifies a transmission band in, may be provided with a.

A program according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is a program for transmitting reply data to a digital broadcast program broadcast from a broadcasting station to the broadcasting station via a network, , A procedure for maximizing the transmission band of the network for transmitting the reply data to the broadcasting station, a procedure for storing the reply data received from the subscriber terminal in a storage unit, and a secured transmission band. In order not to exceed the limit, a procedure of transmitting the answer data stored in the storage means to the broadcasting station via the network is executed.

With such a structure, the transmission band of the network for transmitting the reply data is secured to the maximum, and the reply data is transmitted to the broadcasting station via the network so as not to exceed the secured transmission band. I will send it
It is possible to prevent data discard in the network. Therefore, it is possible to suppress an increase in traffic due to the transmission of reply data. This allows the viewer's request to be promptly supplied to the broadcasting station.

[0020]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A bidirectional broadcasting system according to embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the interactive broadcasting system according to the embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the interactive broadcasting system includes a broadcasting device 10 installed in a broadcasting station, a rebroadcasting device 20 installed in each of a plurality of cable television stations, and a subscriber receiving terminal 3.
0 ₁ to 30 _n (n indicates the total number of terminals, hereinafter simply referred to as 30
That said) and.

The broadcasting device 10 provides a digital broadcasting program as a digital broadcasting service, and a program sending section 11
Uplink unit 12, Internet connection unit 13,
It is composed of an obi castle control unit 14 and a data processing unit 15.

The program sending section 11 sends the broadcast data of the broadcast program to the uplink section 12 in the format of a transport stream of MPEG (Motion Picture Experts Group) 2. The uplink unit 12 distributes the broadcast data from the program transmission unit 11 to the rebroadcast device 20 of each cable television station via the satellite 4.

The Internet connection unit 13 transmits / receives IP packet data to / from each cable television station via the Internet 5. Also, the Internet connection unit 13
Is a rebroadcasting device 2 installed in each cable TV station.
The answer data of 0 to a plurality of subscriber receiving terminals 30 (data indicating a question or answer to a broadcast program) is represented by I of the answer data.
As P packet data, time division multiple access (TDMA,
Received by Time Divison Multiple Access). Then, the Internet connection unit 13 outputs the received reply data to the data processing unit 15. Further, the Internet connection unit 13 receives the transmission band for receiving the response data from the rebroadcasting device 20 via the Internet 5, and outputs the received transmission band to the band control unit 14.

The band control unit 14 controls the transmission band when the Internet connection unit 13 receives the reply data. That is, the band control unit 14 specifies the transmission band for receiving the response data to the Internet connection unit 13.

The data processing unit 15 classifies the viewer response data (data consisting of IP packets) input from the Internet connection unit 13 into corresponding programs by the program identification information added at the beginning, and the classified responses. The correctness / incorrectness of the data is judged and the data is totaled, and the totalized result is sent to the program sending unit
Send to 1.

A part of the transmitted totalization result is transmitted as broadcast data from the program transmission section 11, and
The counting result is used for the program configuration being broadcast (recorded) by the broadcasting device 10 installed in the broadcasting station.

The rebroadcasting device 20 installed in each cable television station shown in FIG. 1 receives the broadcast data of the digital program broadcast transmitted from the broadcast device 10 of the broadcast station via the satellite 4, and receives the received broadcast data. Is redistributed to the subscriber receiving terminal 30. Then, each rebroadcast device 20 includes a cable transmission network 6 including a CATV transmission line.

The rebroadcast device 20 includes a receiving unit 21, a head end unit 22, a converting unit 23, a data storing unit 24,
The Internet connection unit 25, the bandwidth control unit 26, the data transmission control unit 27, and the test data storage unit 28 are included.

The receiving unit 21 receives, via the satellite 4, broadcast data of a digital broadcast program broadcast from the broadcast device 10 installed in the broadcast station, and uses the received broadcast data for the cable transmission network 6. The signal is modulated into the transmission frequency band and output to the head end unit 22.

The head end unit 22 adds a terminal control signal (including a scramble signal) to the program data input from the receiving unit 21, and transmits it to each subscriber receiving terminal 30 via the cable transmission network 6. In addition, the head end portion 22
According to the number of subscriber receiving terminals 30, when performing communication from the subscriber receiving terminals 30 to the rebroadcast device 20, the communication band of the cable transmission network 6 (coaxial cable) is time division multiplexed. Further, the headend unit 22 receives the response data for the programs sequentially transmitted from the respective subscriber receiving terminals 30 in accordance with the time slot in the time division multiplexed upstream communication band, and transmits the response data to the conversion unit 23. The fact that the response data has been received is transmitted to the subscriber receiving terminal 30 that transmitted the response data. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the reply data from being retransmitted from the subscriber receiving terminal 30, and to improve the traffic on the Internet 5 that connects the rebroadcasting device 20 of the cable television station and the broadcasting device 10 of the broadcasting station. it can.

The conversion unit 23 converts the received reply data to the broadcast program from the viewer from an RF (Radio Frequency) signal into a plurality of IP packet data which can be communicated on the Internet, and stores the converted IP packet data as data. It is transmitted to the section 24.

The data storage section 24 identifies the program identification information contained in the response data converted into the received IP packet data, and classifies the response data of the viewer based on the identified program identification information.

The data storage unit 24 is the data transmission control unit 2
The response data of the amount instructed in 7 is sent to the data transmission control unit 2
Output to 7.

The Internet connection unit 25 is used to connect the broadcasting device 10 installed in a broadcasting station via the Internet 5.
IP packet data (including IP packet data of response data) is transmitted and received to and from the Internet connection unit 13. The Internet connection unit 25 has a function of ensuring bandwidth reservation as a protocol when transmitting IP packet data to the Internet 5.
(Resource reSerVation Protocol) is used.

The band control unit 26 measures the transmission band of the Internet 5, for example, before the program broadcasting starts before the Internet connection unit 25 transmits the reply data. That is, the band control unit 26 specifies the band to be initially reserved as a band determined by the physical transmission rate, and notifies the data transmission control unit 27 of that. As a result, when the IP packet data transmission-controlled by the data transmission control unit 27 that has received the notification is not normally transmitted, the bandwidth control unit 26 newly adds a bandwidth obtained by reducing 10% to the previously failed bandwidth. The band specified in. If the bandwidth reservation also fails, the bandwidth control unit 26 further designates a bandwidth obtained by reducing the reservation failure bandwidth by 10%. In this way, the bandwidth control unit 26 tries the bandwidth designation one after another, and finally determines the bandwidth when the transmission of the test data succeeds.
It is measured as the transmission band of. By doing so, it becomes possible to reliably transmit all the response data of the viewer without being discarded during the transmission to the Internet 5. In addition, the band control unit 26 uses the measured transmission band to the broadcasting device 10 installed in the broadcasting station via the data transmission control unit 27, the Internet connection unit 25, and the Internet 5.
The bandwidth control unit 14 is notified.

The data transmission controller 27 is a band controller 26.
Based on the transmission band measured by, the IP packet data (response data) of the data amount corresponding to this transmission band is read from the data storage unit 24, and the read IP is read.
The packet data is output to the internet connection unit 25. Further, when the transmission band designated by the band control unit 26 is input, the data transmission control unit 27 reads the test data of the data amount corresponding to the input transmission band from the test data storage unit 28, and the read test. The data is output to the internet connection unit 25.

The test data storage section 28 includes a bandwidth control section 26.
Thus, the test data used to measure the maximum transmission band that can be taken by the Internet 50 is stored.

The subscriber terminal 30 is connected to the rebroadcasting device 20 installed in each cable television station and the cable transmission network 6, receives the digital broadcast program rebroadcast from each rebroadcasting device 20, and broadcasts it. Data for replying to the program is transmitted to the rebroadcast device 20.
A remote controller 32 and a monitor 33.

The STB 31 receives the modulated program data and the terminal control signal transmitted from the rebroadcasting apparatus 20 installed in the cable television station via the cable transmission network 6, and if necessary, according to the terminal control signal. The scramble is released, the broadcast data is demodulated and separated, and the video signal and the audio signal are output from the monitor 33. Also, STB31
Responds to the operation of the remote controller 32 to generate answer data for the program (for example, in the case of a quiz program, select a number or a correct answer) and add program identification information to the generated answer data. Furthermore, STB31
Is a rebroadcast device 20 installed in a cable television station.
Using the band of the upstream communication line of the cable transmission network 6 secured by the headend unit 22, the viewer's reply data with the program identification information added to the headend unit 22 is transmitted as an RF signal according to the terminal control signal. To do.

Remote controller (remote controller) 32
Inputs into STB 31 request data for communication with the rebroadcasting device 20 such as participation in a program and reply data to the program being received.

The monitor 33 outputs the video signal and the audio signal transmitted from the STB 31 from the screen and the speaker.

Next, the operation of this interactive broadcasting system will be described.
This will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. In addition,
The flowchart shown in FIG. 2 shows that after broadcast data of a program (hereinafter referred to as program data) is broadcasted, other program data is not transmitted until answer data is received, but this is not always the case. It goes without saying that other program data has been transmitted from the broadcasting station by the time the response data is received.

The program transmission section 11 of the broadcasting device 10 installed in the broadcasting station converts the broadcast data of the program (hereinafter referred to as program data) into a program in the transport stream format of MPEG (Motion Picture Experts Group) 2. The data is output to the uplink unit 12 (step S
1). When the uplink section 12 receives the program data,
The received program data is distributed to each cable television station via the satellite 4 (step S2).

When receiving the program data received from the broadcasting station, the receiving unit 21 of the rebroadcasting device 20 installed in each cable television station receives the received program data from the electric power of the transmission frequency band used in the cable transmission network 6. The signal is modulated into a signal, and the modulated electrical signal (hereinafter referred to as program data electrical signal) is transmitted to the head end unit 22 (step S3).

The head end section 22 generates an electric signal by adding a terminal control signal (including a scramble signal) to the program data electronic signal received from the receiving section 21, and the generated electric signal is transmitted via the cable transmission network 6. , To the subscriber receiving terminal 30 (step S4).

After that, when the head end unit 22 receives the reply to the broadcast program, the head end unit 22 ascends the CATV transmission line (coaxial cable) constituting the cable transmission network 6 in accordance with the number of subscriber receiving terminals 30 in accordance with the communication request. The communication band is time-division multiplexed (step S5).

Next, the head end unit 22 sequentially receives response data and the like for the programs transmitted from the respective subscriber receiving terminals 30 in accordance with the time slot in the time division multiplexed upstream communication band, and the converting unit. It outputs to 23 (step S6).

The conversion unit 23 converts the received reply data of the viewer from an RF (Radio Frequency) signal into IP packet data that can be communicated on the Internet, and converts the converted IP.
The packet data is transmitted to the data storage unit 24 (step S7).

The data storage unit 24 stores the IP packet data input from the conversion unit 23 in, for example, a RAM (Random A).
It is stored in a storage means such as ccess Memory) (step S
8). When the data storage unit 24 stores the IP packet data as the response data, the Internet connection unit 25
It is output that there is data to be transmitted (step S9).

Upon receiving the data to be transmitted, the Internet connection unit 25 can carry the data from the data storage unit 24 to the transmission band permitted by the band control unit 26.
The response data of the viewer is read, and the read IP packet data is transmitted to the Internet connection unit 13 of the broadcasting device 10 installed in the broadcasting station via the Internet 5 (step S10).

The Internet connection unit 13 of the broadcasting apparatus 10 installed in the broadcasting station is a time division multiple access (TDM).
A, Time Divison Multiple Access), the IP packet data of the response data is received, and the received IP packet data is output to the data processing unit 15 (step S1).
1).

The data processing unit 15 classifies the viewer response data received from the Internet connection unit 13 for each corresponding program by the program identification information added at the beginning, and judges whether the classified response data is correct or incorrect and collects the data. Then, the counting result is output to the program sending section 11 (step S12).

The program transmission section 11 generates program data showing the result based on the received totalization result (step S13). The uplink unit 12 transmits the program data generated based on the counting result to the rebroadcasting device 20 installed in the cable television station (step S1).
4), process.

Upon receiving the program data indicating the totalization result, the rebroadcasting device 20 transmits it to the subscriber receiving terminal 30 as described above (step S15), and ends the process.

Next, the operation of reserving the transmission band of the Internet performed by the rebroadcasting apparatus 20 installed in the cable television station will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

The band control unit 26 tentatively designates a band to be initially reserved which is determined by the physical transmission rate (step S21), and the tentatively designated transmission band is designated by the data transmission control unit 2
7 (step S22).

The data transmission control unit 27 stores the test data of the data amount corresponding to the received transmission band in the test data storage unit 2.
Then, the test data read out is output to the Internet connection unit 25 (step S23).

The Internet connection unit 25 transmits the test data input from the data transmission unit control unit 27 to the Internet 5 (step S24). After that, the Internet connection unit 25 determines whether or not a response indicating that the test data has been normally transmitted is received from the Internet connection unit 13 of the broadcasting device 10 installed in the broadcasting station (step S25).

When the Internet connection section 25 determines that the response indicating that the test data has been normally transmitted is received (step S25; YES), it outputs that fact to the band control section 26 (step S26). .

When the band control unit 26 receives from the Internet connection unit 25 that the test data has been normally transmitted, the band control unit 26 outputs the previously designated transmission band to the data transmission control unit 27 (step S27). The data transmission control unit 27
The transmission band received from the band control unit 26 is stored in the data storage unit 24.
It is held as a transmission band read from (step S2
8), the process ends.

When it is determined in step S25 that the Internet connection section 25 has received a response indicating that the test data has not been normally transmitted (data has been discarded) (step S25; NO), that effect is received. Is output to the band control unit 26 (step S29).

The bandwidth control unit 26 designates a transmission bandwidth obtained by subtracting 10% from the previously designated transmission bandwidth as a new transmission bandwidth (step S30), shifts the processing to step S22,
The same processing as that described above is performed.

As described above, according to the two-way broadcasting system of this embodiment, the band control unit 26 is installed in the broadcasting station before the Internet connection unit 25 transmits the reply data. Since the maximum transmission band of the Internet 5 with the device 10 is secured at that time, the reply data can be transmitted without being discarded, and efficient transmission is possible. Further, according to the interactive broadcasting system of this embodiment, since the reply data is received from the subscriber terminal and then the reply indicating that the reply data is received is transmitted to the subscriber receiving terminal 30, the subscriber receiving terminal 30 It is possible to suppress the transmission of the reply data again. This makes it possible to prevent an increase in Internet traffic. As described above, the interactive broadcast system of this embodiment can reliably provide the broadcast station with the viewer's reply to the broadcast program.

The bidirectional broadcasting system of the above embodiment is
The response data to the program transmitted from the subscriber receiving terminal 30 is transmitted from the rebroadcasting device 20 of the cable television station to the broadcasting device 10 of the broadcasting station via the Internet 5. As a configuration other than this, the network connecting the rebroadcasting device 20 of each cable television station and the broadcasting station is arbitrary, and may be, for example, an ATM dedicated line other than the Internet 5.

In the bidirectional broadcasting system of the above embodiment, each cable transmission line forming the cable transmission network 6 is formed of a coaxial cable. As another configuration, for example, H
Like FC (Hybrid Fiber / Coax), the trunk line between the cable TV station and the node is made into an optical fiber, and the short-distance transmission line from each node to the subscriber receiving terminal 30 is made a coaxial cable, and each node has a photoelectric conversion function. It may be a hybrid type cable network.

[0067]

As described above, according to the present invention, the answer of the viewer to the broadcast program can be surely provided to the broadcast station.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a two-way broadcasting system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an operation of the interactive broadcasting system according to the exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation of the interactive broadcasting system according to the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Broadcasting equipment 11 Program transmitter 12 Uplink department 13 Internet connection 14 Band control unit 15 Data processing unit 20 Rebroadcast device 21 Receiver 22 Head end part 23 Converter 24 Data storage 25 Internet connection 26 Band control unit 27 Data transmission control unit 28 Test data storage 30 subscriber receiving terminal 31 STB 32 Remote controller 33 monitors 4 satellites 5 Internet 6 cable transmission network

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (71) Applicant 000005016             Pioneer Corporation             1-4-1 Meguro, Meguro-ku, Tokyo (71) Applicant 000005821             Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd             1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka (72) Inventor Hiroshi Nakamoto             2-31-19 Shiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo Communications and Broadcasting Organization             Within (72) Inventor Yoshinori Rokugo             2-31-19 Shiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo Communications and Broadcasting Organization             Within (72) Inventor Kazushi Tahara             2-31-19 Shiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo Communications and Broadcasting Organization             Within (72) Inventor Takeo Matsuura             2-31-19 Shiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo Communications and Broadcasting Organization             Within F-term (reference) 5C064 BA01 BB05 BC11 BC23 BD05                       BD08 BD09 BD14

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A digital broadcast program broadcast from a broadcasting station is rebroadcast to a subscriber terminal through a rebroadcasting device installed in a cable television station, and the subscriber terminal responds to the digital broadcasting program. Is transmitted from the rebroadcasting device to the broadcasting station via a network, wherein the rebroadcasting device is a transmission that secures a maximum transmission band of the network for transmitting the reply data. And a response data transmission unit for transmitting the response data to the broadcasting station via the network so as not to exceed the transmission band secured by the transmission band securing unit. A two-way broadcasting system. 2. A digital broadcasting program broadcast from a broadcasting station is rebroadcast to a subscriber terminal via a cable television station, and reply data to the digital broadcasting program is sent from the subscriber terminal via a network from the cable television station. A two-way broadcasting method for transmitting to the broadcasting station, which secures a maximum transmission band of the network for transmitting the response data, and transmits the response data to the network so as not to exceed the secured transmission band. And transmitting to the broadcasting station via the two-way broadcasting method. 3. A digital broadcast program transmitted from a broadcasting station is retransmitted to a subscriber terminal, and response data to the digital broadcast program received from the subscriber terminal is transmitted.
A rebroadcasting device installed in a cable television station for transmitting to the broadcasting station via a network, wherein a transmission band securing means for securing a maximum transmission band of the network for transmitting the reply data, An answer data storage means for storing the answer data received from the user terminal in a storage means, and an answer data stored in the answer data storage means so as not to exceed the transmission band secured by the transmission band securing means. And a response data transmitting unit that transmits the response data to the broadcasting station via the network. 4. A test data storage unit for storing test data to be transmitted on the network, wherein the transmission band securing unit is a temporary band designation unit for temporarily designating a transmission band of the network; Test data reading means for reading from the test data storage means test data of a data amount corresponding to the transmission band designated by the designating means, and test data transmission for transmitting the test data read by the test data reading means to the network. Means, a transmission result receiving means for receiving from the broadcasting station information indicating whether the test data transmitted by the test data transmitting means has been normally transmitted to the broadcasting station, and the transmission result receiving means When the information indicating that it has been received by the Rebroadcast apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that it comprises a band specifying unit that specifies a transmission band of over click, the. 5. A program for transmitting reply data to a digital broadcast program broadcast from a broadcasting station to the broadcasting station via a network, the program causing a computer to transmit the reply data to the broadcasting station. The procedure for maximizing the transmission band of the network, the procedure for storing the response data received from the subscriber terminal in the storage means, and the procedure for storing the reply data so as not to exceed the secured transmission band. A program for executing a procedure for transmitting reply data to the broadcasting station via the network.