The present invention relates generally to a content recording/reproducing apparatus and method for recording and reproducing content, a storage medium, and a computer program. More particularly, the present invention relates to a content recording/reproducing apparatus, a storage medium, and a computer program which allow general viewers (listeners) to record and reproduce content distributed by broadcasting or other means.
To be more specific, the present invention relates to a content recording/reproducing apparatus and method, a storage medium, and a computer program which record and reproduce content limited in recording retention period or reproducing period for the purpose of copyright protection for example. More particularly, the present invention relates to a content recording/reproducing apparatus, a storage medium, and a computer program which allow users who view content limited in recording retention period or reproduction period to easily understand a mechanism of the time limits of the recording retention period and the reproduction period.
Today, the advances in digital technology allow the storage of AV data composed of audio and video and in immense quantities without deterioration in quality. For example, hard disk drives capable of storing several tens of gigabytes or more are now available at comparatively low prices and recorders based on the hard disk unit are emerging (refer to, “Devices Capable of Recording TV Programs on Hard Disk Drives Are Coming to Market One After Another” and NIKKEI Electronics, No. 727, pp. 41-46, 1998, “HDD-Based Digital Recording Technologies Are At Last Coming into Home” for example).
In the United States for example, in order to eliminate audience inconveniences such as that audiences cannot view desired broadcast programs because of unexpected telephone calls or visitors, commercially available are devices which store received broadcast content on a mass storage device such as a hard disk drive to allow audiences to view the continuation of the content later.
However, unconditional storage of broadcast content by terminal audiences makes it difficult to control unauthorized content duplication activities, resulting in the violation of content copyright holders such as broadcast companies for example. Especially, the duplication and alteration of digital data and content are extremely easy, thereby exposing their copyrights to the risk. Consequently, it is desirable to limit in some way of other the use of broadcast content such as recording and reproduction on the recording/reproducing devices owned by audiences.
For example, limiting the recording retention period or reproducible period of the content stored by audiences to some length of time can prevent them from reusing the stored content without permission of the copyright holder; for example, the recorded content can be viewed within one hour after its broadcast time. The content recording/reproducing device may be adapted not to hold the received content which has passed a predetermined period after its broadcast or reception time (more specifically, the content is deleted from the hard disk drive of this device) or not to reproduce the expired content (more specifically, the content is retrieved from the hard disk drive).
Thus, setting a recording retention period or a reproducible period to content can technologically control the unauthorized use of content. However, if audiences do not understand the mechanism of the limited use of content or do not know the valid remaining retention or reproducible period of content, it may invite misunderstanding of audiences that the recording/reproducing device has failed or make them uncomfortable because the recording/reproducing device rejects the resumption of the reproduction of the content disrupted by an unexpected telephone call or visitor for example.