JP7799666B2 - Program, method, and system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a program, a method, and a system.

There is a known system that provides users with a virtual space via a network, allowing them to interact with other users in the virtual space (see, for example, non-patent document 1).

In fan activities (known as oshikatsu) where fans support their favorite people or things (known as oshi), such as celebrities, fans typically collect the latest information about their favorite people or things by checking posts from the celebrities themselves on social media, or posts from the accounts of the celebrities' agencies (see, for example, Non-Patent Documents 2 and 3).

"What is the popular virtual SNS "cluster"? Explaining what it can do and its features," [online], [searched September 22, 2023], Internet <https://metaversefor.me/metaverse/cluster/> “Twitter - Official Site”, [online], [searched July 21, 2023], Internet <https://twitter.com/i/flow/login?redirect_after_login=%2F> “SNS is essential for today’s young women’s support activities,” [online], [searched July 21, 2023], Internet <https://news.mynavi.jp/article/womansns-50/>

When a specific user, such as a celebrity who is the target of fan activities, enters a virtual space like the one described in Non-Patent Document 1, fans tend to follow suit and try to enter the same virtual space. Therefore, if they can quickly obtain information that a specific user has entered, their fan activities will be more fulfilling.

However, even specific users may want to keep their entry into a virtual space a secret. If their entry were always notified to their fans, they would eventually become hesitant to enter the virtual space, which could hinder the activation of the virtual space.

The present invention was conceived in light of this situation, and provides a program, method, and system that allows a specific user to choose whether or not to notify other users that they have entered a virtual space.

(1) A program according to an aspect of the present invention is a program for causing a computer (e.g., a distribution server 100, a user terminal, etc.) to perform processing based on a user's entry status into a virtual space,
Computer,
A setting means for performing a process to enable a specific user to individually set whether or not to notify other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space (for example, a notification management unit 135, a process for displaying the screen of FIG. 9B on the user terminal by the display control unit 353, etc.);
When the specific user enters the virtual space and the setting state of the specific user is a setting state for notifying other users (for example, when the "Yes" icon 22Y is selected in FIG. 9(B)), the notification means functions as a notification means that can execute a process for notifying other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space ( for example, see steps S103 to S106 in FIG. 12 and the modified example (regarding the selection of whether to notify other users)) ,
Users other than the specific user are not prompted to set whether or not to notify other users of their entry .

With this configuration, whether or not to notify other users when a specific user enters a room can be set taking into account the specific user's preferences and circumstances, thereby improving convenience for the specific user.

(2) In the above (1), an evaluation value is set for the user that varies depending on external evaluations, which are evaluations from sources other than the user,
The specific users include users who satisfy a predetermined condition according to the evaluation value.

With this configuration, other users can be notified that a specific user who meets certain conditions based on their evaluation value has entered the virtual space, making it easier for other users to obtain information about the specific user and promoting the development of the virtual space.

(3) In (2) above, the specified condition includes a condition that is satisfied when the evaluation value is a predetermined value (for example, as illustrated in FIG. 7(A), the user attribute number is "2," "3," or "5" for celebrities or famous people, and the evaluation index is a positive value).

With this configuration, other users can be notified when a user with a predetermined value enters the room, making it easier to manage the specific users who are the target of notifications to other users.

(4) In (1) above, the specific users include specific users predetermined by the operator of the virtual space (for example, celebrities or famous people with user attribute numbers "2," "3," "5," etc. in Figure 7(A)).

With this configuration, other users can be notified that a specific user predetermined by the administrator has entered the virtual space, making it easier for other users to obtain information about the specific user and promoting the development of the virtual space.

(5) In the above (1), when the specific user is in a setting state to notify other users of his/her entry into the virtual space, the specific user selects to notify other users when entering the virtual space (for example, selects the “Yes” icon 22Y in FIG. 9B ),
The notification means performs processing to notify other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space when the specific user performs a selection operation to notify other users when entering the virtual space (see, for example, steps S103 and S104 in Figure 12, Figure 9 (B), and the modified example (regarding the selection of whether to notify other users)).

With this configuration, when a specific user enters a virtual space, they can select to notify other users that they have entered, allowing the specific user to make effective notifications depending on the situation at the time of entry.

(6) In (1) above, other users who will be notified that the specific user has entered the virtual space include users who are currently in the virtual space (for example, users whose entry status in Figure 7 is "entering").

With this configuration, users who are in the virtual space are also notified that a specific user has entered the virtual space, preventing users from remaining unaware that a specific user has entered the virtual space.

(7) In (1) above, other users who are to be notified that the specific user has entered the virtual space do not include users who have entered the virtual space (e.g., users whose entry status in Figure 7 is "In"), but also include users who have not entered the virtual space (e.g., users whose entry status in Figure 7 is "Leaving") (see, for example, steps S105A and S105B in Figure 13, and the modified example (regarding entry notification process 3)).

With this configuration, users who are in the virtual space are not notified that a specific user has entered, thereby reducing the risk of the notification disrupting the sense of immersion in the virtual space.

(8) In the above (1), the virtual space includes a plurality of types of virtual spaces (e.g., areas, rooms for each content, etc.) each having different content to be provided,
The notification means performs a process for notifying other users every time the specific user enters one of the plurality of types of virtual spaces (see, for example, (Regarding Entry Notification Process) in the modified example).

This configuration allows other users to obtain information about a specific user's activities within the virtual space as needed, making it easier for other users to obtain information about the specific user and promoting the development of the virtual space.

(9) In the above (1), the virtual space includes a plurality of types of virtual spaces each having different content provided,
The notification content that the specific user has entered the virtual space includes information that enables identification of the virtual space that the specific user has entered from among the multiple types of virtual spaces (for example, displaying information about the area that the specific user has entered in the push notification of Figure 10 (A), the content heading 40 of Figure 10 (B), or the contents of the bulletin board object O of Figure 11).

This configuration makes it possible to identify the virtual space a specific user has entered, making it easier for other users to subsequently enter the same space, thereby promoting the development of virtual spaces.

(10) In (1) above, even if the specific user enters the virtual space, the notification means does not perform processing to notify other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space if a predetermined time has not elapsed since the specific user's previous entry into the virtual space (see, for example, (Regarding the entry notification processing) in the modified example).

This configuration prevents notifications from being sent multiple times in a short period of time, thereby reducing the discomfort caused by excessive notifications.

(11) In the above (1), the computer is
functioning as a storage means for storing, for each user, a selected specific user that the user has previously selected from among the specific users in response to an operation from the user (for example, selection of a follow in a virtual space or a favorite talent in a fan community app);
When the user who has entered the virtual space is the specific user, the notification means performs processing to notify users who have selected the specific user as the selected specific user that the specific user has entered the virtual space (see, for example, Figure 10, variant example (for other examples of users to be notified to other users)).

This configuration allows users to be notified of information about specific users who have pre-selected preferences, thereby increasing satisfaction with the information that is notified.

(12) A computer control method according to an aspect of the present invention is a method for causing a computer to perform processing based on a user's entry into a virtual space, the method comprising:
performing a process for enabling a specific user to individually set whether or not to notify other users of the fact that the specific user has entered the virtual space;
a step of executing a process for notifying other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space when the specific user has entered the virtual space and the setting state of the specific user is a setting state for notifying other users ,
Users other than the specific user are not prompted to set whether or not to notify other users of their entry .

With this configuration, whether or not to notify other users when a specific user enters a room can be set taking into account the specific user's preferences and circumstances, thereby improving convenience for the specific user.

(13) A system according to an aspect of the present invention is a system including a computer that performs processing based on a user's entry status into a virtual space,
a setting means for performing processing to enable a specific user to individually set whether or not to notify other users of the fact that the specific user has entered the virtual space;
a notification means for executing a process to notify other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space when the specific user has entered the virtual space and the setting state of the specific user is a setting state for notifying other users ,
Users other than the specific user are not prompted to set whether or not to notify other users of their entry .

With this configuration, whether or not to notify other users when a specific user enters a room can be set taking into account the specific user's preferences and circumstances, thereby improving convenience for the specific user.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of a communication system. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the concept of an overall image of a virtual space provided by a distribution server. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a distribution server. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an administrator terminal. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a specific user information medium management server. A diagram for explaining in detail the configuration of a user terminal (user terminal and broadcast user terminal). FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of user information stored in a storage unit of a distribution server. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the relationship between users' evaluation indices stored in the storage unit of the distribution server and the servers. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a screen of a user terminal when entering a virtual space in the present embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a notification screen displayed on a user terminal in the present embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing another example of a notification screen displayed on a user terminal in the present embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a flowchart of an example of an entry notification process of the distribution server according to the present embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a flowchart of an example of an entry notification process of a specific user information media management server in the present embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a flowchart of another example of the entry notification process of the distribution server in the present embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a flowchart of another example of the entry notification process of the distribution server in the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration of a distribution server according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration of a distribution server according to the present embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a flowchart of an example of virtual space providing server reinforcement processing in the present embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a flowchart of an example of distribution information amount change processing according to the present embodiment.

An overview of the present invention is provided below. In this embodiment, the virtual space (metaverse space) is used by multiple users. These multiple users can be broadly divided into specific users (also called special users) and other users. Specific users include, for example, celebrities and famous people. Celebrities, etc., may have fans. Therefore, if fans can quickly obtain information that a celebrity, etc. has entered the virtual space and follow them into the same virtual space, their fan activities will be enriched. For this reason, in this embodiment, it is possible to notify other users that a specific user has entered the virtual space. This will further enrich the fan activities of fan users who support specific users.

Furthermore, when a specific user enters a virtual space, it is likely that an increase in the number of other users entering the space will occur, and the specific user's entry behavior may increase the load on the distribution server that provides the virtual space to the user. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is possible to change the resources of the server that provides the virtual space in advance, on the condition that a specific user has entered the virtual space (including logging in). Furthermore, it is possible to perform processing to reduce (alleviate) the amount of information distributed from the distribution server that provides the virtual space to the user terminal, on the condition that a specific user has entered the virtual space. These processes of changing server resources and reducing the amount of information enable the distribution server to withstand the expected increase in load due to a specific user entering the virtual space. In this way, by taking load countermeasures against the distribution server in advance, it is possible to smoothly process the entry of users who attempt to enter the virtual space following the specific user, and to smoothly process distribution, thereby improving user satisfaction.

Embodiments of a communication system according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the examples below, but is defined by the claims, and all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims are intended to be included in the present invention. In the following description, identical elements in the drawings will be given the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations will not be repeated.

Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example hardware configuration of communication system 1. Communication system 1 includes a distribution server 100, an administrator terminal 200, multiple user terminals 300a, 300b, 300c, etc., multiple broadcast user terminals 400a, 400b, 400c, etc., and a specific user information media management server 500. The multiple user terminals 300a, 300b, 300c, etc. are terminals owned by multiple users, and are hereinafter collectively referred to as user terminals 300. The multiple broadcast user terminals 400a, 400b, 400c, etc. are terminals owned by multiple broadcast users who are users who can independently distribute content, and are hereinafter collectively referred to as broadcast user terminals 400. The user terminals 300 and broadcast user terminals 400 are both used by users, and are hereinafter collectively referred to as user terminals.

The distribution server 100, administrator terminal 200, user terminal 300, distribution user terminal 400, and specific user information media management server 500 are each communicatively connected via network 2, allowing for bidirectional transmission and reception of information (data). Network 2 is, for example, the Internet, and is composed of access networks such as LANs (Local Area Networks), WANs (Wide Area Networks), mobile communication networks (e.g., 5G, wireless networks, etc.), wired telephone networks, FTTH (Fiber To The Home), and CATV (Cable Television) networks.

The distribution server 100 is, for example, a computer such as a workstation or personal computer with communication capabilities. The distribution server 100 manages multiple virtual spaces (also known as metaverse spaces, for example), which are virtual worlds constructed on a computer, and provides services (content) using the virtual space selected by the user via the network 2.

In this embodiment, users can participate in a virtual space provided by the distribution server 100 in response to operations on their user terminals, and can engage in activities, actions, statements, etc. through user characters, etc. Furthermore, users in this embodiment include general consumers, talents, and celebrities. Talent includes celebrities from various genres, such as talents belonging to service providers (operating companies), entertainers, actors/actresses, comedians, multi-talented people, presenters, news anchors, singers, musicians, models, and other influencers. Celebrities also include celebrities from various genres, such as famous company executives or employees, athletes, e-sports players, famous scholars/cultural figures/cram school instructors, and famous students. In addition, a person may be determined to be an influencer and processed based on the number of followers in the follow function in the virtual space provided by the distribution server 100.

Content provided using virtual spaces is managed and configured for each type of content. Examples of content that can be provided include, but are not limited to, content that allows users to watch or experience games, live performances, events, and programs, as well as content that allows users to interact and communicate using chat and emotes. By accessing the distribution server 100 using the user terminal 300 or the distribution user terminal 400 and selecting the desired content, users can seamlessly participate in (roam) that content and watch or experience the virtual space corresponding to that content.

Depending on the type of content, virtual spaces include three-dimensional spaces (spaces constructed based on three-dimensional data) generated by CG (Computer Graphics) and two-dimensional spaces (spaces constructed based on two-dimensional data). Virtual spaces also contain virtual characters (avatar objects), objects representing backgrounds and virtual objects according to the type of content, and menu objects that users can select. Virtual characters placed in virtual spaces include user characters that are preset for each user participating in the virtual space and can move in response to user operations, as well as non-player characters that move based on a program.

In the case of game content, examples of objects placed in the virtual space include item objects corresponding to the game, character objects corresponding to the game, and user characters (hereinafter also referred to as user avatars) of users playing the game content placed on a field object corresponding to the game field. In the case of live content, for example, stage objects, audience seating objects, lighting objects, etc. are placed, and user characters of entertainers who will be performing the live show are placed on the stage object, and user characters of participating users are placed on the audience seating object. In the case of content that encourages communication, for example, user characters of multiple participating users and item objects that can be used for communication are placed. Additionally, a space modeled after a city may be provided, and objects such as signs and bulletin boards, which are not limited to those that enable communication between users, may be placed to enable users to obtain and view information both inside and outside the virtual space.

The distribution server 100 stores in the storage unit 120 information for displaying images in multiple virtual spaces corresponding to the content that can be distributed on the user terminal, and sound information for outputting sound. In addition, in response to access from the user terminal, the distribution server 100 provides content (services) to users by distributing content data including display information for displaying images in the virtual space of the corresponding content and sound information for outputting sound.

Content data includes, for example, information for identifying information about objects placed within the virtual space (e.g., object type, placement position, orientation, posture, aspect, etc.), information about the user characters of each user participating in the virtual space (e.g., user character type, placement position, orientation, posture, aspect, motion data, audio data, etc.), objects representing background and virtual objects according to the type of content, and information for identifying menu objects selected by the user. The amount of information displayed about objects and user characters is increased or decreased by the data distribution unit 132 of the distribution server 100, or by user settings on the user terminal. Increasing or decreasing the amount of displayed information can include, for example, increasing or decreasing the number of user avatars that can be displayed within the virtual space, increasing or decreasing the number of objects, or increasing or decreasing image resolution.

Objects in the virtual space change their posture, position, and facial expression in response to operations from the user terminal, and the appearance of placed objects changes over time. Therefore, by distributing content data at predetermined intervals (e.g., every 0.016 seconds, which corresponds to approximately 60 fps), images in the virtual space that change from moment to moment can be displayed on the user terminal. Furthermore, the content data distributed at predetermined intervals may be distributed in response to the distribution server 100 receiving a synchronization request signal from the user terminal. The timing of each predetermined interval may also vary depending on the load on the distribution server 100. For example, as the load increases, the number of synchronizations per second may gradually decrease from six to three to one. Furthermore, the distribution server 100 may transmit information (request information) to the user terminal to enable the user terminal to perform processing to reduce the frequency of synchronization request signal transmissions. Even if a request for content data is received from the user terminal, the interval between responses from the distribution server 100 may become longer as the load increases.

The distribution server 100 also manages programs and data that enable content such as live events and games to be progressed (played) on the user terminal. For example, when a user selects game content, the distribution server 100 distributes to the user terminal programs and data for providing services using the virtual space of that game content. Note that the timing of distribution of the programs and data for progressing through the content from the distribution server 100 is not limited to when the user selects the content, but may also be when the user logs in to the distribution server 100 or when a specified achievement condition is met.

The administrator terminal 200 is used by the operator of the service provider company. The administrator terminal 200 is, for example, a computer with operation input functions and communication functions, such as a personal computer. The administrator uses the administrator terminal 200 to create, build, modify, and update content and images in the virtual space managed in the storage unit 120 of the distribution server 100. For example, new content and images in the virtual space are generated and created, and existing content and images in the virtual space are changed and modified. The administrator also uses the administrator terminal 200 to set and update information managed in the storage unit 120 of the distribution server 100. For example, the administrator sets and updates evaluation indices (evaluation values) and attributes (e.g., attribute types, attribute numbers) associated with each user of the user information managed in the storage unit 120 of the distribution server 100. The administrator terminal 200 may also create, build, modify, and update content managed in the storage unit 520 of the specific user information media management server 500. The administrator sets and updates the information managed in the storage unit 520 of the specific user information media management server 500 via the administrator terminal 200.

The specific user information medium management server 500 is, for example, a computer such as a workstation or personal computer with communication capabilities. A specific user information medium is a fan community app related to a specific user (e.g., a talent) or a website where information about the specific user can be viewed. The operator (subject) who operates the specific user information medium may be the same as or different from the operator or operator of the distribution server 100 or administrator terminal 200. The specific user information medium management server 500 may, for example, manage multiple pieces of content that can be provided to users and manage the communities to which the content is provided. The specific user information medium management server 500 provides the content in response to requests from users via the network 2.

The content provided by the specific user information media management server 500 is managed and configured by type. This content notifies viewers of specific information and includes information such as video, audio, and text. The specific information includes information about specific users. Information about specific users managed by the specific user information media management server 500 includes, for example, news and announcements from the operator (administrator), user posts, posted information such as streaming videos related to specific users provided by external web services obtained using web APIs, schedule information for streaming videos related to specific users, and information on specific users' trends, including information on specific users' entry and exit into virtual spaces. This content can be provided to users by displaying it on the user's terminal via a web browser or a dedicated application on a smartphone or other device.

The specific user information media management server 500 stores in the storage unit 520 information for displaying text, images, etc. on the user terminal according to the content that can be provided to the user, and sound information for outputting sound. In addition, the distribution server 100 provides content (services) to the user by distributing content data including display information for displaying the text, images, etc. of the corresponding content, and sound information for outputting sound, in response to access from the user terminal.

In this embodiment, the distribution server 100, administrator terminal 200, and specific user information media management server 500 are each considered to be independent computers (devices), but they may be realized by a single computer, or the functions of one of these computers (e.g., distribution server 100, specific user information media management server 500) may be realized by multiple computers (e.g., multiple servers).

The user terminal 300 is used by a user to view, experience, etc. the content. The user terminal 300 may be, for example, a computer with operation input and communication functions, such as a personal computer, tablet terminal, or smartphone. The user terminal 300 may also have a motion capture function that captures the user's movements, similar to the broadcasting user terminal 400 described below.

In response to operations on the terminal, the user terminal 300 communicates with the distribution server 100 and the specific user information media management server 500 to receive content data for content selected by the user. Based on the content data received from the distribution server 100, the user terminal 300 constructs a virtual space for the content selected by the user from the virtual spaces constructed in the distribution server 100 in the storage area of the user terminal 300, and displays images within the virtual space and outputs sound. This makes it possible to view, experience, etc. the virtual space of the content via the user terminal 300.

In addition, based on the content data received from the specific user information media management server 500, the user terminal 300 constructs information about the content selected by the user from the content (e.g., articles or schedule information) managed by the specific user information media management server 500 in the storage area of the user terminal 300, and displays images and text of the content. This allows the user to identify and recognize content information (including information about the specific user) via the user terminal 300.

The user terminal 300 also accepts operations on the displayed virtual space and objects, various icon selection operations, content selection operations, character input operations, etc. The user terminal 300 transmits information corresponding to operations on the terminal to the distribution server 100, allowing the user's user character to act, move, etc. within the virtual space of the participating content. As described above, based on the content data transmitted from the distribution server 100 at predetermined intervals, the movement of the user character can be reflected (synchronized) in the virtual space of each user terminal 300 of users participating in the same content.

In addition, while the user terminal 300 allows users to view and experience the virtual space of the content, users can post comments containing arbitrary messages as an example of actions to take in the virtual space of the content in question in response to operations on the terminal. By posting a comment, the comment can be reflected on each user terminal 300 so that it can be confirmed by users participating in the content.

The user terminal 300 also stores the program and data distributed from the distribution server 100 when the user selects content, and based on that program and data, displays a virtual space corresponding to the selected content and enables the user to progress (play) that content. For example, if the user selects Area Y, a space modeled after a city, on the title screen, data including a program for displaying Area Y is received and stored, and Area Y is displayed on the display unit of the user terminal 300 based on that data. Also, if specific game content is selected within the virtual space of any area (or the area itself may be a space providing game content), data including a program for playing that game content is received and stored, allowing the game content to be played.

The broadcasting user terminal 400 is used by a broadcasting user who can broadcast content. In addition to operation input functions and communication functions, the broadcasting user terminal 400 has a motion capture function that captures the broadcasting user's movements (for example, a head-mounted device (HMD), a device equipped with an imaging device that analyzes the user's movements from images captured by the imaging device, etc.). Note that the HMD is worn on the user's head, and the user holding a controller that can communicate with the HMD can operate the displayed virtual space and virtual characters by moving their head or hands or operating buttons on the controller.

The broadcast user terminal 400 acquires motion information for identifying the broadcast user's head or hand movements and controller operations, and audio information for identifying the broadcast user's voice, and transmits this information to the broadcast server 100, allowing the broadcast user's user character's movements and audio to be reflected in the virtual space in which they are participating. This allows the broadcast user's user character to operate in the virtual space as if it were the broadcast user's alter ego. As described above, based on the content data transmitted from the broadcast server 100 at predetermined time intervals, the movements and audio of the broadcast user's user character in the virtual space can be reflected (synchronized) in the user terminals of users (including the broadcast user) participating in the virtual space.

A broadcast user may be a general user (simple viewer/participant) who watches and experiences the broadcast content using a user terminal 300 with the same configuration as the broadcast user terminal 400, or a general user who uses a separate terminal with a different configuration from the broadcast user terminal 400 as the user terminal 300. The broadcast user terminal 400 and the user terminal 300 may have the same configuration or may be different devices. A broadcast user may participate in a virtual space in the role of a broadcaster who broadcasts content, or in the role of a general user (simple viewer/participant) rather than in the role of a broadcaster. For this reason, a broadcast user is included in the term "user." A broadcast user can select or change which role they are in at specific times (e.g., when logging in, when starting content broadcasting, when displaying the broadcast user's user character in the content they broadcast, etc.).

<Overall image of virtual space>
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the overall concept of the virtual space provided by the system 1 of this embodiment. The virtual space ER of this embodiment includes multiple types of spatial areas ER (spatial area ER1, spatial area ER2, etc.). Each spatial area ER can provide content of different genres and types. The multiple types of spatial areas ER are areas selected from the title screen displayed after the user logs in to the virtual space ER, and include areas corresponding to various types of content, such as an entrance, a live venue, game content, and an exhibition hall. For example, an event venue where live content is held is constructed in the entirety of a specified spatial area ER or in part of a specified spatial area ER.

Each spatial area ER has multiple rooms providing the same content. Each room has a set maximum number of users that can enter the room, up to 200 people, for example. Each room is managed, for example, by a real-time synchronization server. Users in the same room can see each other's user avatars and communicate with each other. For example, they can play games together or chat. For example, if spatial area ER1 is a space modeled after a city, rooms ER1a, ER1b, etc. corresponding to spatial area ER1 provide users with spaces modeled after the same city, but the only avatars that can be displayed in the space are user avatars corresponding to users associated with the same room. For example, user avatar 1 of a user associated with room ER1a is not displayed on the user screen of a user associated with room ER1b. However, in exceptional cases, the user avatar of a special user (e.g., a celebrity) can be displayed not only in the room they are actually in, but also in other rooms.

When moving between spatial areas ER, a user may be required to pass through a spatial area ER designated as an area providing specific content (e.g., an entrance) after logging in to the virtual space before moving to another spatial area ER. Alternatively, users may be able to move between spatial areas ER. For example, users may be required to pass through spatial area ER1 before moving from spatial area ER2 to spatial area ER3, or they may be able to move directly between spatial areas ER2 and ER3 without passing through spatial area ER1. Furthermore, when moving between spatial areas ER, a switching effect may be implemented. For example, when moving to another spatial area ER, the display screen may go dark (e.g., a black screen with a message such as "Loading...") before switching. Furthermore, users may first enter an entrance area after logging in to access each spatial area ER. Alternatively, users may be able to select and enter their preferred spatial area ER without passing through the entrance area. Users may also be able to transition to a spatial area ER randomly determined by lottery. Regarding each room, the user may choose to enter a room of their choice, or may enter a room randomly determined by lottery. Hereinafter, the virtual space ER will also be referred to simply as the virtual space.

In this embodiment, entering a virtual space includes logging in to the virtual space and entering a room.

<Configuration of distribution server>
Next, the configuration of the distribution server 100 will be described. As shown in Fig. 3, the distribution server 100 includes a communication unit 110 that communicates with other computers, a storage unit 120 that stores various data, and a control unit 130 that controls the entire computer. The communication unit 110, the storage unit 120, and the control unit 130 are interconnected by a bus line. Note that each function may be defined as a server (container) on a virtualized server and executed as a server.

The communication unit 110 is a communication interface equipped with a NIC (Network Interface Card controller) for wired or wireless communication. The communication unit 110 communicates with other computers via the network 2. For example, it functions as an interface that allows other computers to obtain some of the information stored in the storage unit 120 (for example, the virtual space entry and exit status for each user, evaluation index, attribute number, etc.).

The storage unit 120 is composed of RAM (Random Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory), flash memory, HDD (Hard Disk Drive), etc. The storage unit 120 stores programs for executing various control processes (for example, programs for managing and providing content using virtual spaces), various data, etc. The various data stored in the storage unit 120 includes information for identifying images of the virtual spaces provided for each type of content, and user information 121 related to users. Information for identifying images of the virtual spaces includes, for example, object data 122.

The control unit 130 is composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and other components. The control unit 130 executes programs stored in the storage unit 120 to control the overall operation of the distribution server 100 and perform various calculations.

The functional configuration of the control unit 130 is described below. The control unit 130 functions as at least a content management unit 131, a data distribution unit 132, a user management unit 133, an entry/exit processing unit 134, a notification management unit 135, and a scale management unit 136. Each function may be performed by a separate server, or, for example, multiple functions may be executed on a single server (e.g., a virtual server).

The content management unit 131 stores and updates, via the communication unit 110, information in the storage unit 120 for identifying images within the virtual space corresponding to the content set by the administrator terminal 200. The content management unit 131 stores, for example, information for identifying the type of content set by the administrator terminal 200, information for identifying images within the virtual space for each piece of content, and, for content such as live performances or programs that are distributed at predetermined dates and times, information for identifying the date and time of distribution in the storage unit 120. Furthermore, the information for identifying images within the virtual space includes information about objects placed within the virtual space and user characters corresponding to users participating in the virtual space. The information for identifying the type of content includes information for identifying areas within the virtual space that can be provided to users, information about events being held, etc.

In addition, the content management unit 131 performs processing to provide and associate content and rooms to users via the communication unit 110 in response to requests from the user terminal. For example, in response to a content information acquisition request from the user terminal 300, the content management unit 131 transmits information on the user terminal that identifies content information that can be provided to the user. For example, this is information related to areas and rooms in the virtual space. Based on this content information, areas X to Z and the rooms corresponding to each area can be displayed on the title screen shown in Figure 9 (C) on the display unit of the user terminal 300. The content management unit 131 performs processing to associate and store the area and room ID selected by the user as user information 121.

The data distribution unit 132 periodically distributes content data to accessing user terminals, for example, to display images within the virtual space of the content selected on each terminal and managed by the content management unit 131. The data distribution unit 132 also performs processes such as increasing or decreasing the resolution of the texture of images displayed on the user terminal, increasing or decreasing the number of objects that can be displayed, or changing the amount of information to change the number of synchronizations with the user terminal, in response to manual operation by the administrator from the administrator terminal 200 or when preset conditions are met. For example, when the computer resource usage rate exceeds a predetermined threshold due to heavy server load (e.g., when it exceeds a certain threshold by referencing current metrics or metrics from the past few times), or when a condition is met that assumes heavy server load (e.g., when a specific user logs in), the data distribution unit 132 reduces (reduces) the amount of information (data volume) used to display and output the virtual space that can be distributed to the user terminal via the communication unit 110.

Processes for reducing (alleviating) the amount of information sent to the user terminal by the data distribution unit 132 include reducing the amount of information itself sent from the data distribution unit 132 to the user terminal before distributing it, reducing the number of times the data distribution unit 132 synchronizes with the user terminal, or transmitting a signal from the data distribution unit 132 to the user terminal to cause the user terminal to reduce the amount of information it requests from the distribution server 100. For example, when the number of users entering the virtual space increases, causing congestion and a heavy load in the virtual space, congestion information can be transmitted to the user terminal. Upon receiving the congestion information, the user terminal can be configured to reduce the amount of information requested from the distribution server 100 (e.g., by a program stored in the memory of the user terminal), thereby reducing the amount of information distributed in response to a request from the user terminal. For example, the overall amount of information distributed to the user terminal can be reduced by reducing the amount of information itself, such as image resolution, or by reducing the number of times the user terminal transmits a signal requesting synchronization to the distribution server 100. Note that the congestion information may be congestion information sent when the entire virtual space becomes congested, or congestion information sent when the room the user is in becomes congested (when the room's maximum number of users is reached, or when a certain number of users is reached before the maximum number of users is reached).

The user management unit 133 stores and updates user information related to users in the storage unit 120. For example, the user information is stored in a database as user information 121. User information related to users includes, for example, an ID for identifying the user, a username, a user's evaluation index and attribute number, and information on each user's entry and exit status in the virtual space. The evaluation index and attribute number may be values determined in advance by the administrator, or may vary depending on the user's behavior, the number of followers on social media or in the virtual space, etc. Information on each user's entry and exit status in the virtual space includes entry and exit information for logging in and out of the virtual space, as well as entry and exit information that identifies the area and room currently entered. For example, it can be determined that Area X is currently in Room ID 001, which is provided. The user's behavior history in the virtual space is also acquired and stored in the storage unit 120. The behavior history includes, for example, location information in the virtual space and participation content history (participation event history). The user management unit 133 can calculate the degree of relationship with other users (for example, the degree of intimacy or the amount of tipping given to other users) based on the behavioral history, and associate the user with other users.

The entry/exit processing unit 134 processes users' entry and exit from the virtual space in response to access from the user terminal via the communication unit 110. User entry detected by the entry/exit processing unit 134 includes logging into the virtual space and entering a room within the virtual space after logging in. For example, this includes a function to detect user logins using a login authentication API server and a function to manage user room entry/exit information using the user authentication unit of the real-time synchronization server. Note that the login authentication API server may authenticate that a user has logged in when the distribution server 100 receives information indicating a successful login using another authentication system (for example, a single sign-on system). When the entry/exit processing unit 134 detects a user's entry into the virtual space (including login), the control unit 130 may perform processing related to changing server settings or notifying other users.

When the entry/exit processing unit 134 detects that a user has entered (logged in to) the virtual space, and the entering user is a specific user who meets predetermined conditions, the notification management unit 135 issues a notification (notification) via the communication unit 110 so that other users, including the operator, are notified of their entry. Furthermore, if the user terminal allows the user to select whether or not to notify other users of their entry, and the user selects not to notify other users (no selection is made to notify other users), the notification management unit 135 controls so that other users are not notified even if a specific user who meets predetermined conditions has entered the space.

Notification modes via the communication unit 110 include, for example, notification to the administrator terminal 200 operated by the administrator, notification to a user terminal via a notification function (e.g., push notification) of an app for displaying the virtual space provided by the distribution server 100 or a community app managed by the specific user information media management server 500, or notification to other users by making information about the entry status (e.g., information about a specific user) available for download in response to a user request (viewing request). By making information about the entry status available for download in response to a user request (viewing request), for example, a web page (which may be a specified page within the app) that can display a list of users' entry status can have the entry status of a specific user obtained from another computer using an API, and the information can be displayed when obtainable, or the user's entry status can be displayed on a bulletin board object or the like that allows users' entry status in the virtual space to be checked.

Note that a viewing request is a request from a user terminal to the distribution server 100 or the specific user information media management server 500 for information to display a web page (or a specific page within an app (e.g., a community app)) or a specific image within a virtual space (e.g., information displayed on a bulletin board object, etc.) on the user terminal. For example, a viewing request is made (sent) from the user terminal to the server by accessing a specific web page, selecting a specific icon within an app, or selecting a specific object within a virtual space (or moving to a specific location, etc.). Furthermore, information regarding the user's entry status may be updated and stored in the storage unit 120 so that it can be downloaded upon request from the user. For example, it may be updated as information for a specific user. Note that, hereinafter, a notification may also refer to a notification sent from the server to the user (e.g., a push notification), regardless of whether or not the user has made a viewing request.

The scale management unit 136 performs resource increase/decrease (scaling) processing for the distribution server 100. Resource increase/decrease processing includes scale-out, which horizontally scales resources to increase the number of servers (also known as increasing the number of resources), scale-up, which vertically scales resources to improve the performance of the server's CPU or memory, scale-in, which reduces the number of servers, and scale-down, which reduces server performance. Resource increase/decrease processing is performed manually by the administrator from the administrator terminal 200, or when a preset condition is met. For example, resource increase/decrease processing is performed when computer resource usage exceeds a predetermined threshold due to heavy server load (e.g., when the threshold is exceeded by referencing current metrics or metrics from the past few times), or when a condition is met that assumes heavy server load (e.g., a specific user logs in).

In addition, if a maximum number of people is set in a room (the number of users that can be associated with one room), the resource increase/decrease process may increase resources to increase the number of rooms when the maximum number of people in a room is reached as a result of users entering the room (for example, when the maximum number of people is reached, or when a predetermined number of people is reached just before the maximum number of people is reached). For example, if one room is defined per server, the number of servers may be increased, or multiple rooms may be defined per server, and processing may be performed to improve the processing performance of each server to create a resource state that can accommodate an increase in rooms. Note that the servers of distribution server 100 may be configured to perform load balancing processing as needed in conjunction with scaling.

Servers whose scale is managed by the scale management unit 136 include, for example, a login authentication API server that functions as the entry/exit processing unit 134, a lobby API server that functions as the content management unit 131 that allows users to obtain information such as a list of areas and rooms, or a server that corresponds to a room. Note that one server may have one room, or multiple rooms defined.

<Configuration of administrator terminal>
Next, the configuration of the administrator terminal 200 will be described. As shown in Fig. 4, the administrator terminal 200 includes a communication unit 210 that communicates with other computers, a storage unit 220 that stores various data, an input unit 230 for inputting operations, etc., an output unit 240 for outputting images, sounds, etc., and a control unit 250 that controls the entire computer. The communication unit 210, storage unit 220, input unit 230, output unit 240, and control unit 250 are connected to each other by a bus line.

The communication unit 210 is a communication interface equipped with a NIC for wired or wireless communication. The communication unit 210 communicates primarily with the distribution server 100 and the specific user information media management server 500 via the network 2. The storage unit 220 is composed of RAM, ROM, etc. The storage unit 220 stores programs for executing various control processes (for example, programs for managing content using virtual space), various data, etc.

The input unit 230 includes an input device (e.g., a touch panel, touchpad, pointing device such as a mouse, keyboard, etc.) for accepting input operations from the administrator. The output unit 240 includes an output device (display, speaker, etc.) for presenting information to the administrator.

The control unit 250 is composed of a CPU and other components. The control unit 250 controls the overall operation of the administrator terminal 200 by executing programs stored in the storage unit 220.

The functional configuration of the control unit 250 is described below. The control unit 250 functions as at least a content setting unit 251, a user setting unit 252, and a distribution server management unit 253.

The content setting unit 251 stores and updates information about content and virtual spaces managed by the content management unit 131 of the distribution server 100 in response to operations on the administrator terminal 200. This allows information for identifying content, information for identifying images within the virtual space for each piece of content, and information for setting and specifying the date and time of distribution to be stored and updated in the storage unit 120, for example. Furthermore, the information that the content setting unit 251 can store and update in the storage unit 120 can be set for each area and room.

In addition, the content setting unit 251 stores and updates information related to content managed by the content management unit 531 of the specific user information media management server 500 in response to operations on the administrator terminal 200. This makes it possible to store and update, for example, information for setting and identifying content (e.g., articles about specific users, trend information, etc.) in the storage unit 520.

The user setting unit 252 sets user information about users managed by the user management unit 134 of the distribution server 100 and the user management unit 533 of the specific user information media management server 500 in response to operations on the administrator terminal 200. Setting user information includes, for example, setting an evaluation index for each user. Setting an evaluation index includes setting an evaluation index for each user as shown in FIG. 7 (described below), setting evaluation index calculation criteria, and setting attribute numbers and types for each user. For example, an administrator operating the administrator terminal 200 can assign or change attribute numbers in advance to specific users so that general users can be distinguished from specific users who are different from general users. A specific user is, for example, a talent or a famous person. For example, a talent who is the target of support in a fan community app is considered a specific user, and fan users who support the specific user in the community are considered general users.

The distribution server management unit 253 performs processing to set the scaling of the distribution server 100 and the amount of information distributed from the distribution server 100 to user terminals. For example, it stores and updates in the storage unit 120 programs such as a program for scaling resources in the scale management unit 136, and an information amount variation processing program for increasing or decreasing the resolution and number of objects for displaying the virtual space distributed by the data distribution unit 132 of the distribution server 100. It also stores and updates in the storage unit 120 the conditions for a specific user that are included in the conditions for varying the information amount variation processing and scale settings of the distribution server 100.

<Configuration of specific user information media management server>
Next, the configuration of the specific user information medium management server 500 will be described. As shown in Fig. 5, the specific user information medium management server 500 includes a communication unit 510 that communicates with other computers, a storage unit 520 that stores various data, and a control unit 530 that controls the entire computer. The communication unit 510, storage unit 520, and control unit 530 are interconnected by a bus line. Note that each function may be defined as a server (container) on a virtualized server and executed as a server.

The communication unit 510 is a communication interface equipped with a NIC (Network Interface Card controller) for wired or wireless communication. The communication unit 510 communicates with other computers via network 2.

The storage unit 520 is composed of RAM (Random Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory), flash memory, HDD (Hard Disk Drive), etc. The storage unit 520 stores programs for executing various control processes (e.g., programs for managing and providing content), various data, etc. The various data stored in the storage unit 520 includes posted information and trend information for each type of content, and user information related to users. Information related to users includes the user ID in the specific user information medium, attribute numbers and evaluation indices for each user, information for identifying specific users pre-selected by the user (also referred to as "favorites") for each user, and the user ID of the user information 122 stored in the storage unit 120 of the distribution server 100. For example, based on the user information stored in the storage unit 520, it is possible to associate the user ID in the distribution server 100 with the user ID in the specific user information medium management server 500 for the same user. The user ID in the distribution server 100 and the user ID in the specific user information media management server 500 may be the same ID.

The control unit 530 is composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and other components. The control unit 530 controls the overall operation of the specific user information media management server 500 by executing programs stored in the storage unit 520.

The functional configuration of the control unit 530 is described below. The control unit 530 functions as at least a content management unit 531, a data transmission/reception unit 532, a user management unit 533, and an entry/exit status acquisition management unit 534.

The content management unit 531 stores and updates information in the storage unit 520 via the communication unit 510 to identify text, images, etc. corresponding to content posted by the administrator terminal 200 or user terminals. The content management unit 531 stores information in the storage unit 520 regarding attributes that can be associated with content to be provided to users (for example, the group to which a specific user belongs, or the specific user themselves). The content management unit 531 stores and updates information in the storage unit 520 to identify information such as the category and poster of content posted by the administrator terminal 200 or user terminals, and attributes associated with each piece of content.

The data transmission/reception unit 532 receives various information transmitted from the user terminal via the communication unit 510 and transmits (distributes) various information to the user terminal. The data transmission/reception unit 532 references various management tables stored in the memory unit 520 to perform distribution to the user terminal. Alternatively, the data transmission/reception unit 532 distributes data stored in another computer as a result of an API being called via the communication unit 510 by the entry/exit status acquisition unit 534 or the like so that the data can be viewed on the user terminal. The various information transmitted and received by the data transmission/reception unit 532 includes, for example, information related to content managed by the content management unit 531, various notification information, and information based on user information 122 stored in the memory unit 120 of the distribution server 100. Transmission of various information includes, for example, push notifications (including desktop notifications), in-app notifications, and distribution of information about a specific user's entry/exit into a virtual space provided by the distribution server 100 in response to a request from the user terminal. Push notifications, etc. may be sent only if the user terminal has given prior permission (set to ON).

The entry/exit status acquisition management unit 534 acquires information about users who have entered the virtual space provided by the distribution server 100 via the communication unit 510, and causes the data transmission/reception unit 532 to distribute information about specific users entering and exiting the virtual space to the user terminal. The user information may be received from the distribution server 100 and stored in the memory unit 520 of the specific user information medium management server 500, or the results of calling an API for user entry/exit status on the distribution server 100 may be obtained. Furthermore, based on the user information acquired by the entry/exit status acquisition management unit 534 and the user information (including information for identifying the specific user) stored in the memory unit 520 of the specific user information medium management server 500, if a specific user has entered the virtual space, the data transmission/reception unit 532 can notify the user terminal of the specific user's entry into the virtual space.

<Configuration of user terminal>
Next, the configuration of the user terminals (user terminal 300 and broadcast user terminal 400) will be described in detail. As shown in Figure 6, the user terminal comprises a communication unit 310 that communicates with other computers including the broadcast server 100, a memory unit 320 that stores various data, an input unit 330 for inputting operations, etc., an output unit 340 for outputting images, etc., and a control unit 350 that controls the entire computer. The communication unit 310, memory unit 320, input unit 330, output unit 340, and control unit 350 are connected to each other by a bus line.

The communication unit 310 is a communication interface equipped with a NIC for wired or wireless communication. The communication unit 310 communicates with other computers, including the distribution server 100 and the specific user information media management server 500, via the network 2. The storage unit 320 is composed of RAM, ROM, etc. The storage unit 320 stores programs for executing various control processes (for example, programs for viewing content using virtual space, and programs for distributing content using virtual space via the distribution server 100 at the distribution user terminal), various data, etc.

The input unit 330 includes an input device (e.g., a touch panel, touchpad, pointing device such as a mouse, keyboard, microphone, etc.) for receiving input operations and voice from the user. The broadcasting user terminal 400 is equipped with an input device such as an HMD with motion capture functionality, and includes a motion input unit as the input unit 330 that acquires the user's movements as motion information. As such, the broadcasting user terminal 400 used by the broadcasting user for content distribution has different hardware and functions than the user terminal 300 used for participation as a general user. In this embodiment, user operations refer to operations by the user on these input units 330. Examples include touch operations, slide operations, flick operations on the touch panel, button operations, drag (swipe) operations, operations on icons displayed on the display unit of the user terminal 300, operations on a pointing device or keyboard, and voice input into a microphone.

The output unit 340 includes an output device (a display unit such as a display, a speaker, etc.) for presenting and outputting information (text, images, audio, etc.) to the user. The control unit 350 is composed of a CPU, etc. The control unit 350 controls the overall operation of the user terminal 300 by executing programs stored in the memory unit 320.

The functional configuration of the control unit 350 will be described below. The control unit 350 functions as an information acquisition unit 351, a virtual camera control unit 352, a display control unit 353, an audio output control unit 354, and an input information transmission unit 355.

The information acquisition unit 351 acquires content data and comment information from the distribution server 100 via the communication unit 310, and stores in the storage unit 320 information for displaying an image in a virtual space in which various objects are arranged based on the content data, as well as information for displaying comments posted based on the comment information. It also acquires content data from the specific user information media management server 500, and stores in the storage unit 320 information for displaying text and images related to the content (posted information, trend information, etc.) based on the content data.

The virtual camera control unit 352 is placed in the virtual space stored in the memory unit 320 and controls a virtual camera to identify the area (viewing area) of the image in that virtual space to be displayed on the user terminal 300. The virtual camera control unit 352 controls the position, orientation, tilt, etc. of the virtual camera in response to operations on the input unit 330.

Based on the content data acquired by the information acquisition unit 351, the display control unit 353 displays on the display unit (e.g., a monitor) an image corresponding to the field of view of the virtual camera, which is part of the virtual space stored in the storage unit 320. In other words, the user can change the position, orientation, tilt, etc. of the virtual camera located in the virtual space in response to operations on the input unit 330, thereby displaying on the user terminal 300 an image within the field of view of the virtual camera. Furthermore, the image data displayed by the display control unit 353 can change the resolution and the amount of object data displayed, based on the user's arbitrary settings on the input unit 330. Furthermore, based on the content data acquired by the information acquisition unit 351 from the specific user information media management server 500, content information (e.g., headlines of articles about the content) related to the content stored in the storage unit 320 is displayed so as to be identifiable by the user. For example, by displaying a headline such as a broadcast schedule of a specific user, such as a celebrity, on the user terminal 300, the user can recognize that the content is a broadcast schedule related to the celebrity.

In this embodiment, an example has been shown in which information for displaying an image in a virtual space based on content data is stored in the storage unit 320, a virtual camera is placed in the virtual space stored in the storage unit 320, and the field of view displayed on the user terminal 300 is varied by controlling the virtual camera. However, this is not limiting. For example, the user's virtual camera may be placed in a virtual space stored in the storage unit 120 of the distribution server 100, the virtual camera may be controlled by the virtual camera control unit 352 to vary the field of view of the virtual camera, and data for identifying an image within the field of view may be received and displayed on the user terminal 300.

The display control unit 353 also displays the posted comment history stored in the storage unit 320 on a display unit (such as a display) based on the comment information acquired by the information acquisition unit 351. The audio output control unit 354 outputs audio from an audio output unit (such as a speaker) based on the content data acquired by the information acquisition unit 351.

The display control unit 353 also displays UI (User Interface) images (including, for example, user-selectable menu images and operation images for accepting operations) in a format appropriate for the content being distributed based on the program stored in the storage unit 320. In this embodiment, different UI images may be displayed on the user terminal 300 used to participate as a general user and the broadcast user terminal 400 used by the broadcast user for content distribution. For example, a UI image for posting comments may be displayed on the user terminal 300 (when the program is running for viewing/experience) but not on the broadcast user terminal 400 (when the program is running for content distribution) where communication is primarily via voice. Furthermore, because the menu items required for viewing/experience differ from those required for content distribution, the UI images for selecting menus may be different on the user terminal 300 (when the program is running for viewing/experience) and the broadcast user terminal 400 (when the program is running for content distribution).

The input information sending unit 355 sends audio information and operation input information acquired by the input unit 330 to the distribution server 100. Operation input information includes various types of information, such as information about the user's entry and exit into the virtual space, and operation information for specifying operations on objects in the displayed virtual space and on the user character placed in the virtual space (including, for example, motion information acquired by the action input unit 260 (e.g., HMD)). Information about the user's entry and exit into the virtual space includes the user's login information (a request to log in to the virtual space), logout information, and information about moving between areas and rooms in each virtual space.

<Overview of the relationship between specific users and server processing>
In this embodiment, the distribution server 100 performs an entry notification process to notify other users that a specific user has entered the virtual space in response to the specific user's entry into the virtual space. In addition, the distribution server 100 performs a setting change process to change the resource settings of the distribution server 100 (also referred to as a virtual space providing unit) and the setting of the amount of information for providing the virtual space that is distributed to the user terminal in response to the specific user's entry into the virtual space.

<Types of users in virtual space>
(Example of a data table related to users)
Referring to FIG. 7, the users to whom the virtual space is provided in this embodiment and specific users who may influence the behavior of other users will be described. FIG. 7(A) is an example of a data table related to users stored in the user information 121 of the distribution server 100. Each user is associated with a "user ID" (u1, u2, u3, etc.), a "user attribute number," an "evaluation index," and an "entry status." The distribution server 100 in this embodiment determines whether the user is a specific user based on the user's "user attribute number" or "evaluation index," and then performs processing to change the settings of the distribution server 100 and to notify other users of the entry information.

"Entry status" is associated with the entry status of each user into the virtual space. For example, if the user is logged in to the virtual space, "entered" is associated, and if the user is logged out, "left" is associated. It may also be associated with which room the user is currently in (area, room ID, etc.).

Figure 7 (B) is a diagram illustrating an example of a "user attribute number." A "user attribute" is an identification ID used to classify users according to their attribute type. For example, a general user is assigned a user attribute number of "1." If the user is a celebrity, they can be further classified by the group to which the celebrity belongs. Talents belonging to group A are assigned a user attribute number of "2," and those belonging to group B are assigned a user attribute number of "3." The administrator who manages and operates the virtual space is assigned a user attribute number of "4." Other celebrities, such as people who are considered to have influence in the virtual space, are assigned a user attribute number of "5." These attribute type items are managed, for example, by the administrator terminal 200, and can be added or changed as appropriate by the administrator operating the administrator terminal 200. Special privileges can be granted within the virtual space depending on the user's attribute type.

In this embodiment, a specific user is a user whose user attribute type is a celebrity or a famous person. Users who are celebrities or famous people are assigned user attribute numbers "2," "3," or "5." Therefore, when a user associated with a user attribute number "2," "3," or "5" enters a virtual space, the specific user is considered to have entered the virtual space.

For example, in Figure 7 (A), user IDs "u1," "u5," and "u6" have an attribute number of "1" and an attribute type of general user, and therefore are not considered to be specific users. User ID "u4" has an attribute number of "4" and an attribute type of administrator, and therefore is not considered to be a specific user. On the other hand, user IDs "u2" and "u7" have an attribute number of "2" and an attribute type of talent in group A, and therefore are considered to be specific users. User IDs "u3" and "u8" have an attribute number of "3" and an attribute type of talent in group B, and therefore are considered to be specific users. User ID "u10" has an attribute number of "5" and an attribute type of celebrity, and therefore is considered to be a specific user.

Figure 7 (C) shows an example of a numerical value used to set the "evaluation index." The evaluation index is a value that fluctuates depending on external evaluations, i.e., evaluations from sources other than the user themselves. For example, the numerical value may be set in advance by the administrator, or may be a value corresponding to the number of followers on a social networking site other than the virtual space. Alternatively, a mutual follow function may be provided within the virtual space (metaverse space) in this embodiment, and the value may be a value corresponding to the number of followers within the metaverse space. For example, if game content is provided within the virtual space, a follow function for the game content may be provided, and the number of game followers within the virtual space may be used. Note that the number of followers may be a value that serves as an indicator of popularity, such as the number of favorites. Users with a certain number of followers or more are treated as specific users (such as influencers) who have influence over other users. For example, different processing may be performed depending on the number of followers themselves.

Alternatively, the "evaluation index" can be a value calculated using a predetermined formula based on a predetermined popularity index, such as the number of followers. For example, the evaluation index can be determined using a predetermined formula based on the number of followers, and users who achieve a positive value using this formula can be considered specific users. The predetermined formula can be, for example, "[Number of followers - 1,000,000] ÷ specified value = evaluation index (may be rounded up to the nearest decimal point)", but is not limited to this.

The evaluation index in Figure 7 (A) is an example where the evaluation index is determined using a predetermined calculation formula for a value that indicates popularity. User IDs "u1," "u4," and "u5" have negative evaluation indices and are therefore not considered to be specific users. User IDs "u2," "u3," etc. have positive evaluation indices and are therefore considered to be specific users. Here, even if a user is not considered to be a specific user based on either the above-mentioned user attribute number or the evaluation index, if they are considered to be a specific user based on either, the distribution server 100 will treat them as a specific user and perform processing. For example, user ID "u6" is a general user with a user attribute number of "1," but because they are popular in the game in the Metaverse, their evaluation index is positive and they are therefore treated as a specific user and processed accordingly.

(Relationship between evaluation index and server expansion)
In this embodiment, the setting change process of the distribution server 100 can be configured to execute different processes for each specific user. FIG. 8 shows an example of the number of servers to be added according to each evaluation index when the setting change process of the distribution server 100 is scaled out to increase the number of servers in response to a specific user entering the virtual space. As shown in FIG. 8, there are multiple types of servers with different processing capabilities. Normal servers, high-spec servers with higher performance than normal servers, and top-spec servers with even higher performance than high-spec servers are provided. The number of these servers to be added is predetermined according to the evaluation index. For example, if user ID "u2" in FIG. 7A logs in, the evaluation index is 5, so one normal server and one high-spec server are added. If user ID "u7" logs in, the evaluation index is 20, so five high-spec servers and four top-spec servers are added. Note that when scaling up is performed as the setting change process, the scale-up stage for increasing resource performance (CPU and memory specification values) may be different depending on the evaluation index for each user.

Additionally, a resource amount (number of servers, or CPU or memory values) may be defined for each attribute number. In this case, setting change processing is performed according to the resource amount defined for each attribute number. For example, if a user's attribute number is "2," five servers may be added, and if it is "5," three servers may be added. Even for the same attribute type, multiple attribute numbers may be assigned depending on the amount of resources to be changed. For example, even for the same type, "Group A Talent" as shown in Figure 7(B), attribute numbers such as "2," "6," and "7" may be assigned depending on the number of servers to be added. If a Group A talent with attribute number "2" enters the room, three servers may be added; if a Group A talent with attribute number "6" enters the room, five servers may be added; and if a Group A talent with attribute number "7" enters the room, ten servers may be added.

<Example of display screen on user terminal>
Examples of display screens of a user terminal in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 to 11. FIG. 9 shows an example of a screen displayed on a user terminal when entering a virtual space. FIG. 9(A) shows a login screen displayed after launching an application or the like for displaying a virtual space provided by the distribution server 100. Examples of applications for displaying a virtual space include web apps running on a web browser, desktop apps, and smartphone apps. Hereinafter, these may also be referred to as apps or various apps. By selecting the START icon 21 in FIG. 9(A), login request information is transmitted from the user terminal to the distribution server 100. If the user who transmitted the login request information is a specific user, the distribution server 100 determines that the user who made the login request is a specific user based on the login request information, and performs processing to display the screen shown in FIG. 9(B).

Figure 9 (B) shows a screen that allows a user to select whether or not to notify other users that they have logged in. For example, by selecting the "Yes" icon 22Y or the "No" icon 22N, which are displayed along with the message "Would you like to notify other users that you have logged in?", notification availability information is sent to the distribution server 100. For example, when the "Yes" icon 22Y is selected, the notification management unit 135 performs processing to notify other users that they have logged in based on the notification availability information. When the "No" icon 22N is selected, the notification management unit 135 prevents other users from being notified that they have logged in based on the notification availability information, even if they have logged in to the virtual space.

Figure 9 (C) is an example of a title screen displayed after login authentication processing for the virtual space has been performed. On the screen of the user terminal of a user who has been authenticated to log in to the virtual space by the entry/exit processing unit 134, an area list corresponding to each piece of content that can be provided by the content management unit 131 is displayed. The title screen displays an area bar 23, a room icon display area 24, a room list display icon 25, an update icon 26, a room ID input area 27, etc.

The area bar 23 is displayed by the content management unit 131 to indicate the areas (content) currently available to the user. In Figure 9 (C), area bars 23a to 23c indicate that areas X to Z are available, respectively.

The room icon display area 24 is an area that displays icons indicating rooms for entering the various available areas displayed by the area bar 23. By the user selecting a room icon displayed in the various room icon display area 24, the user can enter a room, and various areas will be provided within the room. In Figure 9 (C), a room icon display area 24a for a room where area X is provided, a room icon display area 24b for a room where area Y is provided, and a room icon display area 24c for a room where area Z is provided are displayed. In this way, the user can enter each room by selecting the room icon of the desired room.

Furthermore, each room icon displayed in the room icon display area 24 may display a room ID and may be displayed in a manner that allows users to recognize the status, such as "comfortable," "crowded," or "full," depending on the level of congestion among users (e.g., the number of users present), and the presence status (whether or not a specific user, following user, or friend user) may be displayed. For example, the user may be able to recognize the level of congestion by using text information, a face icon (a smiling face indicates comfortable, a sad face indicates crowded, etc.), or changes in color. The presence status of a specific user, following user, friend user, etc. may be displayed in a manner that allows the user to identify who is present, or alternatively or in addition, an icon indicating that a friend, etc., is present may be displayed without being displayed until the user can be identified.

In Figure 9 (C), the room icon display area 24a displaying the rooms in area X displays the rooms with room ID 001, room ID 002, and room ID 003. The congestion status of room ID 001 is "comfortable," while the congestion status of room ID 002 is "crowded." "Comfortable" means that there is still room to accommodate the maximum number of people in the room, "crowded" means that there is not much room left before the maximum number of people in the room is reached (for example, the maximum number of people is reached with 10 people remaining), and "full" means that the maximum number of people has been reached and no new users can enter the room.

Note that by selecting a room icon, a confirmation pop-up screen may be displayed before entering the room, with a message such as "Do you want to enter?", allowing the user to choose whether to enter or cancel. For example, the room icon display area 24 may display only the room ID, and the pop-up screen may display other information such as congestion information.

The room list display icon 25, when selected, displays all icons representing rooms for entering the various available areas displayed by the area bar 23. Even if there are rooms not displayed in the room icon display area 24, all of them can be displayed. For example, there are six rooms provided in area X, but even if the number of rooms displayed on one screen is limited due to the layout of the display screen (to reduce the number of rooms displayed and increase the area displayed on one screen), or if rooms that are full and unavailable for entry or crowded rooms are given a lower display priority, and rooms with a more comfortable crowded situation are given priority and displayed in the room icon display area 24, all of the rooms can still be displayed. In Figure 9 (C), room list display icons 25a to 25c are displayed corresponding to the area bars 23a to 23c.

The update icon 26, when selected, sends a request to the distribution server 100 to reacquire list data of available areas and rooms, thereby updating (reloading) the title screen. This updates, for example, the rooms displayed in the room icon display area 24.

The room ID input area 27 is a search area that displays rooms by directly inputting and specifying a room ID. For example, if a user knows the ID of a room that a friend user is in, the user can directly input the room ID into the room ID input area 27 to directly specify the room and attempt to enter it. For example, inputting a room ID may cause a pre-entry confirmation pop-up screen to be displayed, which is displayed when a room icon is selected.

Figure 10 is an example of a display screen on a user terminal, and is an example of a screen displaying a push notification from an app downloaded to the user terminal or a specific page within the app. Note that while an example screen of a smartphone is shown, the screen may be that of another computer device. The app downloaded to the user terminal is an app that enables the virtual space provided by the distribution server 100 to be provided on the user terminal (opening the app allows entry to the virtual space), or an app managed by the specific user information media management server 500. Below, an example will be described in which talent BBB is the talent corresponding to user ID "u2" in Figure 7 (A).

Figure 10 (A) is an example of a screen displayed on a user device when a push notification is sent to notify the user that a specific user has entered a room. The push notification screen 30 displays a message such as "BBB has logged in to the Metaverse!", notifying the user that celebrity BBB has logged into the virtual space. The push notification screen may also notify the area or room ID the specific user has entered (for example, "BBB has entered room ID 0001!"). Push notifications may also be configured so that the user can turn notifications on or off. Therefore, if the user has turned push notifications off (has not given permission), the push notification screen will not be displayed on the user device.

Figure 10(B) is an example of the display screen of a fan community app for a talent provided to a user by the specific user information media management server 500, where talent BBB is included in the talents to be supported. Figure 10(B) is a page on which information about a specific user can be viewed. For example, it is a page on which the talent's schedule can be viewed, and the talent's past (most recent, etc.), current, and future video distributions and trends can be viewed. The page on which the talent's schedule can be viewed displays a period selection area 41, a group selection area 42, a date and time display 43, content headings 40, accounts 48, related talents 44, a favorite filter 45, etc. In addition, a schedule icon 18, a notification icon 15, etc., at the bottom of the screen. In this community app, a talent schedule screen may be displayed by selecting the schedule icon 18, etc. In addition, by selecting the notification icon 15, a list of notifications sent via push notification in Figure 10(A) may be confirmed.

The Favorite Filter 45 is an icon that, when a user has previously selected and stored their favorite talent in a fan community (for example, in the memory unit 520 or memory unit 320), can be selected to extract and display only the information about the previously selected and stored favorite talent (favorite).

The period selection area 41 displays time period icons such as "Past," "Present," and "Future Schedule." Selecting the "Past" icon displays, for example, the celebrity's most recent video streaming history and their virtual space entry history (logged out history). Selecting the "Current" icon displays information such as videos currently being streamed and current virtual space entry status. Selecting "Future Schedule" displays upcoming streams and virtual space entry schedules. Schedules for events (such as live performances) within the virtual space related to a specific user may also be displayed, as may the area or room ID that the specific user has entered. For example, selecting the "Current" icon displays information about live events currently being held in the virtual space in which the celebrity is appearing.

For example, if a talent can be categorized by the group to which they belong, the group selection area 42 displays an icon displaying information for each group by selection. The content heading 40 separates the display area into individual content (such as broadcasts and virtual space entry information). The account 48 displayed within the content heading 40 displays icons such as video broadcast channel accounts and virtual space user accounts. The related talent 44 displayed within the content heading 40 displays talents related to the content displayed within the various content headings 40 in association with the content heading 40. For example, icons of talents appearing in the broadcast video (e.g., collaboration partners) or talents who have entered the virtual space are displayed. Because related talents are associated with each piece of content in this way, by selecting the recommended talent filter 45, it is possible to extract and display only content to which the pre-selected talent is associated as a related talent. Note that related talents are automatically associated, for example, based on the poster's operation when posting content or creating the content heading 40, or based on information obtained via API.

Furthermore, in the push notification illustrated in FIG. 10(A), only the entry information of a favorite talent that the user has previously selected and stored may be sent as a push notification. Note that information for identifying the specific user (talent) that the user has previously selected and stored is stored in the storage unit 520 of the specific user information medium management server 500, etc. The specific user information medium management server 500 distributes information identifying the user that the user has previously selected (information identifying whether or not the user has been selected) for each user, along with information including information on other specific users. The user terminal receives the information distributed from the specific user information medium management server 500 and performs a process to extract the specific user that has previously selected, making it possible to display information about the pre-selected user (such as information about the favorite talent extracted when the favorite filter 45 is on).

In Figure 10(B), the "Current" icon is selected in the period selection area 41, Group A is selected in the group selection area 42, and the favorite filter 45 is turned on. Therefore, information related to the current Group A, which is associated with a talent previously selected and stored by the user as a related talent, is extracted and displayed. For example, Figure 10(B) shows an example screen of a user who previously selected and stored talent BBB as a favorite talent. Therefore, content heading 40a, which displays the content of a streaming video associated with talent BBB, and content heading 40b, which displays information about talent BBB's entry into the virtual space, are displayed. Selecting an image portion of each content heading 40 may transition to another screen. For example, selecting the image of content heading 40a may transition to a streaming video (such as a video stream on an external web service), and selecting the image of content heading 40b may transition to the virtual space. For example, a virtual space app may be launched, a login screen may appear, or the user may transition to a room in which the talent is present. Furthermore, when a talent logs out, information indicating the logout may be displayed along with past distribution history in history information displayed by a past icon that allows past information to be viewed, rather than in the current tab. Alternatively, the display itself may be deleted from the list. In other words, the content heading 40 itself may be deleted.

Figure 11 is an example of an image of a virtual space provided by the distribution server 100 and displayed on a user terminal. For example, this is an example screen displayed when a desktop app, smartphone app, web browser, etc. is launched. Figure 11 is a display image of a room corresponding to the spatial area ER1 where an entrance space (entrance content) is provided. A bulletin board object O is displayed at the entrance, allowing users to view information within the virtual space (metaverse). The bulletin board object O displays information about specific users, event information, various other news, breaking news, etc., based on information stored in the memory unit 120. Examples of information about specific users include the name of a specific user who entered the virtual space (e.g., logged in), the time, and information about the area they entered.

Bulletin board object O in Figure 11 displays breaking news and current event information. The breaking news displays a message at 10:00 that reads, "BBB has logged into the Metaverse!" and a message at 10:01 that reads, "BBB has entered Area Y!" This displays information that a specific user, celebrity BBB, has logged into the virtual space, as well as which area of the virtual space she has entered. Other examples of information about special user actions in the virtual space include the breaking news at 8:15 that reads, "P has climbed onto the platform in Area Y!" and current event information that reads, "A mini live show is currently taking place in Area Z!".

Users who are in a room are displayed as user avatars U, and by operating the user avatars U, they can move around the virtual space and change their viewpoint. The image of the virtual space may be an overhead image of the user avatar U, as shown in Figure 11, or an image seen from the perspective of the user avatar U, without displaying the user avatar U operated by the user. Furthermore, by bringing the user avatar U close and selecting the bulletin board object O, the image on the bulletin board may be displayed as a large pop-up on the screen of the user's terminal, or may be displayed across the entire screen.

As a result, when a user wants to obtain information about a specific user, they can view the information about the specific user by, for example, going to a location in the virtual space where a bulletin board or the like is located and obtaining the bulletin board display information from the distribution server 100. In other words, information about the specific user can be obtained at the user's request. Note that even on a page that displays information (schedule, etc.) about a talent that is the target of support in a fan community app such as Figure 10 (B), information about the entry of a user who is not a talent and the actions they are taking in the virtual space may be displayed for users who meet certain conditions (for example, celebrities in Figure 7 (B)).

In addition, information about a specific user is not limited to being displayed as an image in a virtual space, but may also be notified (displayed) within the app, as in the in-app notification bar 50 in Figure 11. The in-app notification bar 50 displays the message "BBB has logged in to the Metaverse!" as a notice. The in-app notification bar 50 and the information about BBB's login in the bulletin board object O can be displayed by the entry/exit processing unit 134 performing login authentication processing for BBB (e.g., a specific user of user "u2"), and the notification management unit 135 performing distribution processing.

<Regarding entry notification processing>
12 to 15, a notification process for notifying other users that a specific user has logged in to a virtual space provided to the user by the distribution server 100 will be described below. In this embodiment, ways of notifying information about a specific user (e.g., a celebrity) include receiving a push notification about the information about the specific user, or receiving and displaying response information delivered (transmitted) to the user terminal based on a viewing request from the user terminal (a request signal transmitted from the user terminal) from a server that enables the user to view information about the specific user in response to a viewing request from the user terminal (transmission of a request signal). Examples of servers that enable the user to view information about the specific user include a server that manages a smartphone app related to the specific user, a server that manages a website that displays information about the specific user (specific user information medium management server 500), or the distribution server 100 that provides the virtual space into which the specific user has logged in. The specific user information media management server 500 (such as a server that manages a smartphone app or a server that manages a website) obtains information on whether a specific user is logged in to the virtual space using an entry status API that enables the user's entry status (for example, the user information data table in Figure 7 (A)) stored in the memory unit 120 of the distribution server 100 to be obtained via the communication unit 110.

(Room entry notification process 1)
Entry notification process 1 is a process for notifying other users of information about a specific user's entry (logging in) to the virtual space (for example, by push notification or by displaying the entry information on the user's terminal in response to a viewing request from the user). Entry notification process 1 will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 12. Entry notification process 1 is repeatedly executed by the control unit 130 in the distribution server 100 at predetermined time intervals when a user logs in to the virtual space. The distribution server 100 performs various processes, including entry notification process 1, based on a program stored in the storage unit 120. An example will be described in which the determination of whether or not a specific user is a specific user is performed based on the user attribute number in FIG. 7(A).

First, in step S101, a determination is made as to whether a user has logged in to the virtual space. If it is not determined that a user has logged in, the process proceeds to step S107. On the other hand, if it is determined that a user has logged in, the process proceeds to step S102, where a determination is made as to whether the logged-in user is a specific user. For example, the entry/exit processing unit 134 (e.g., the login authentication device 101 described below with reference to FIG. 16) determines whether the logged-in user is a specific user when performing login authentication processing based on a user's login request. The user's login request is transmitted to the distribution server 100, for example, by selecting the START icon 21 in FIG. 9(A). For example, if the logged-in user is user ID "u1" in FIG. 7(A), the user is a general user with a user attribute number of 1, and therefore is not determined to be a specific user. On the other hand, if the logged-in user is user ID "u2," the user is a talent in group A with a user attribute number of 2, and therefore is determined to be a specific user. If it is not determined in step S102 that the user is a specific user, proceed to step S107.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S102 that the user is a specific user, the process proceeds to step S103. In step S103, display information for displaying a selection screen for whether or not to notify other users that the user has logged in is distributed (transmitted) to the user terminal of the specific user who logged in. At this time, the distribution server 100 performs processing to display the post-login title screen illustrated in FIG. 9(C) on the user terminal of the logged-in user. For example, if the logged-in user has user ID "u2," who is a specific user, the control unit 130 transmits display information for displaying the selection screen of FIG. 9(B) on the user terminal of "u2" to the user terminal of the specific user who logged in. This allows the specific user "u2" to select whether or not to notify other users that they have logged in by selecting either the "Yes" icon 22Y or the "No" icon 22N in FIG. 9(B). When either the "Yes" icon 22Y or the "No" icon 22N is selected, notification availability information is transmitted to the distribution server 100.

In step S104, it is determined whether the specific user determined to have logged in in steps S101 and S102 has permitted notification of their login, based on the notification permission information transmitted from the specific user's user terminal. If it is determined that permission has not been granted, the process proceeds to step S107. For example, if the specific user logs in by selecting the "No" icon 22N on the screen shown in FIG. 9(B), the notification management unit 135 (for example, the notification device 104 described below with reference to FIG. 16) restricts processing to notify the specific user that they have logged in, based on the received notification permission information.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S104 that permission has been granted, the process proceeds to step S105, where notification information is distributed to notify the user terminal that the specific user has logged in. The notification information is distributed from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal and the specific user information media management server 500. For example, when the "Yes" icon 22Y is selected and a login is performed on the screen in FIG. 9(B), it is determined that permission has been granted to be notified to other users based on the notification permission information received by the notification management unit 135. When the notification information is distributed from the distribution server 100, the user terminal generates, for example, a push notification as illustrated in FIG. 10(A) or an in-app notification as illustrated in in-app notification 50 in FIG. 11, based on the information received from the distribution server 100.

The administrator terminal 200 may also be notified, and even if a specific user has not permitted other users to be notified, the administrator terminal 200 may be notified. For example, even if the "No" icon 22N is selected on the screen in FIG. 9(B), other user terminals may not be notified, but the administrator terminal 200 operated by the administrator may be notified.

In step S106, the user entry status information is updated so that information indicating that the specific user, who was determined to have permitted notification in step S104, has logged in can be viewed as information about the specific user in response to a user request (viewing request). For example, the notification management unit 135 updates the user entry status and stores it in the storage unit 120 (which may be user information 121). This allows another server (e.g., the specific user information media management server 500) that acquires the user entry status via the user entry/exit status API to acquire the login information of the specific user in steps S101-S104, and the app in FIG. 10(B) or a web browser that displays information about the specific user displays information indicating that specific users, including the specific user in steps S101-S104, have logged in. Furthermore, by updating the entry status, information about the specific user can be displayed in the virtual space, and the message that the specific user has logged in can be displayed in the bulletin board object O illustrated in FIG. 11. After receiving the notification availability information, the distribution server 100 performs processing to display the post-login title screen shown in Figure 9 (C) on the user terminal of the logged-in user.

In step S107, it is determined whether a request for viewing information about a specific user (a request from the user) has been made. If no request for viewing has been made, processing ends. If it is determined in step S107 that a request for viewing has been made, processing proceeds to step S108, where information about the specific user, including information indicating that the specific user has logged in, is delivered to the user terminal, and processing ends. For example, a viewing request may be made from the user terminal to display a bulletin board object O in the virtual space illustrated in FIG. 11 (for example, a request to obtain information for displaying the space in which the bulletin board object O is placed, or a request to obtain information about the bulletin board object O by selecting the bulletin board object O), and the user screen of the user terminal will display a message indicating that the specific user has logged in. For example, information from the most recent specified period (for example, the past three hours) may be displayed.

(Room entry notification process 2)
Entry notification process 2 is a process executed in the specific user information medium management server 500, and is a process for notifying a user terminal of information that a specific user has entered a virtual space based on information received from the distribution server 100 in the entry notification process 1 described in FIG. 12 (for example, by push notification or by displaying entry information on the user terminal in response to a viewing request from the user). Entry notification process 2 will be described below with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 13. Entry notification process 2 is repeatedly executed at predetermined time intervals by the control unit 530 of the specific user information medium management server 500. The specific user information medium management server 500 performs various processes, including entry notification process 2, based on programs stored in the storage unit 520.

First, in step S201, it is determined whether or not notification information has been received at the user terminal to notify that a specific user has logged in. If it is determined that notification information has not been received, the process proceeds to step S203. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S201 that notification information has been received, in step S202, processing is performed to notify (announce) to the user terminal that a specific user has logged in based on the received notification information. For example, when celebrity BBB logs in, notification information is sent from the distribution server 100 in step S105 of FIG. 12. When the notification information is received by the specific user information media management server 500, a push notification is sent to the user terminal to notify that celebrity BBB, as illustrated in FIG. 10(A), has logged in to the virtual space.

In step S203, the user entry status is obtained from the distribution server 100. For example, the user entry status API of the distribution server 100 is used to obtain a list of user entry statuses stored in the storage unit 120 updated in step S106 of FIG. 12. The obtained user entry status information may be stored in the storage unit 520 of the specific user information media management server 500.

In step S204, it is determined whether a request to view information about a specific user has been made from the user terminal (a request from the user). If it is determined that a request to view information about a specific user has not been made, the process is terminated. On the other hand, if it is determined that a request to view information about a specific user has been made, in step S205, information about the specific user, including the login information of the specific user acquired in step S203, is delivered to the user terminal, and the process is terminated. For example, when a request to display a screen displaying the schedule of a specific user as shown in Figure 10 (B) is made as a viewing request, content heading 40a, which is video distribution information for the specific user, and content heading 40b, which is login information for the specific user's virtual space, are displayed on the user screen.

(Room entry notification process 3)
Entry notification process 3 is a process for distributing notification information to user terminals of users who are not currently in the virtual space, informing them that a specific user has entered (logged in). This process differs from entry notification process 1 described with reference to FIG. 12 in the user terminals to which the notification information is distributed. Entry notification process 1 notifies users regardless of whether they are currently in the virtual space (user terminals of users whose entry status in FIG. 7A is "in the room" are also included as notification recipients), whereas entry notification process 3 notifies users who are not currently in the virtual space. Entry notification process 3 will be described below with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 14. Entry notification process 3 differs from entry notification process 1 in steps S105A and S105B, which are enclosed by dotted lines. Hereinafter, a description of processes that overlap with entry notification process 1 will be omitted. Entry notification process 3 is repeatedly executed at predetermined time intervals by the control unit 130 of the distribution server 100. The distribution server 100 performs various processes including the entry notification process 3 based on the programs stored in the storage unit 120 .

If it is determined in step S104 that the specific user has permitted other users to be notified that they have logged in, the process proceeds to step S105A, where users who are not in the virtual space are extracted. In step S105B, notification information that notifies the user terminal that the specific user has logged in is distributed to the user terminals of users who are not in the virtual space. For example, the notification management unit 135 references user information 122 and extracts users who are not currently in the virtual space and are logged out. In step S105B, notification information is distributed (e.g., push notification) to the user terminals of the users extracted in step S105A. For example, notification information is distributed to user IDs "u3," "u5," "u7," etc., whose entry status in Figure 7(A) is "Leaving the room." Note that push notifications may be sent only to the terminals of general users, for example.

As a result, in step S105 of FIG. 12, a notification is sent regardless of whether the user to be notified has entered the virtual space or not, but in entry notification process 3 of FIG. 14, it is possible to extract and send notifications to users who have not entered the virtual space and are likely to be unaware that a specific user has entered. It is also possible to avoid sending notifications to users who have already entered the virtual space and are aware that a specific user has entered the virtual space.

(Room entry notification process 4)
Entry notification process 4 is a process for distributing notification information to the user terminals of users, excluding users who have entered the virtual space under specified circumstances, to notify them that a specific user has entered (logged in). The notification information is distributed to different user terminals than entry notification process 1 described with reference to FIG. 12 . Users are notified regardless of their status in the virtual space (e.g., whether they are participating in an event or have entered the virtual space while planning to participate in an event). In contrast, entry notification process 4 notifies users (including users who have not entered the virtual space) except for users who have entered the virtual space under specified circumstances. The entry notification process 4 will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 15 . It differs from entry notification process 1 in steps S105C and S105D, which are enclosed by dotted lines. Hereinafter, a description of processes that overlap with entry notification process 1 will be omitted. Entry notification process 4 is repeatedly executed at predetermined intervals by the control unit 130 of the distribution server 100. The distribution server 100 performs various processes including the entry notification process 4 based on the programs stored in the storage unit 120 .

If it is determined in step S104 that a specific user has permitted other users to be notified that they have logged in, the process proceeds to step S105C, where users are extracted excluding users who have entered the virtual space under specified circumstances. In step S105D, notification information that notifies the user terminal of the user's login in step S104 is distributed to the user terminals of users excluding users who have entered the virtual space under specified circumstances.

A specified situation refers to, for example, a situation in which the user is participating in specified content within a virtual space, including when the user is participating in highly immersive content such as a live event held within the virtual space, a fan meeting, or a game. For example, notifications may not be sent in games that require immediate operation, such as battle games, but may be sent in games where operation is relatively less urgent, such as building games. In this way, notifications can be suppressed in situations where the user would be disadvantaged by being distracted by notifications or where there is a risk of the sense of immersion being diminished.

Other examples of specified circumstances may include a specified period of time before an event that the user is planning to attend, or a specified period of time before an event that is scheduled to be held in the virtual space (for example, one hour before the event starts). This is because when a predetermined event is held, the information for a specific user to enter the virtual space may already be known.

As described above, information about a specific user's entry into a virtual space can be notified to the user's terminal. This makes it possible, for example, to feel closer to the specific user more quickly, enhancing fan activities, enjoying various content (activities) with the specific user through the virtual space, and anticipating the possibility of an event being held as a result of the specific user's entry into the virtual space (for example, a surprise live performance by a celebrity), thereby enhancing the enjoyment of the user's experience through the virtual space.

<About setting fluctuation processing>
16 to 19 , a description will be given of a process for changing the setting of the distribution server 100 to a continuous provision state, which may change depending on user behavior, including entry into a virtual space. In this embodiment, the control unit 130 of the distribution server 100 can perform a process for changing the setting of the distribution server 100 to a continuous provision state in which the distribution server 100 can continuously provide a virtual space to users, either manually by an administrator via the administrator terminal 200 or when a preset condition is met. A state in which continuous provision is not possible (a state that is not a continuous provision state) is a state in which, when the distribution server 100 provides a virtual space to users, waiting times or failures occur due to the processing capabilities (number of active servers, specifications, etc.) of the distribution server 100, making it difficult to smoothly and continuously provide the virtual space or causing a temporary interruption. In contrast, a continuous provision state is a state in which such a risk is low or absent.

The following are examples of user behaviors that are expected to make it difficult or temporarily interrupt the smooth and continuous provision of the virtual space to the user by the distribution server 100 (maintaining a continuous provision state).
(1) A situation in which a large number of users request to log in (enter) the virtual space in a short period of time (concentrated), increasing the load on the distribution server 100 (such as a situation in which the CPU usage rate of the distribution server 100 remains high for a predetermined period of time).
(2) A situation in which requests for entry are made by a number of users exceeding the predetermined upper limit of the number of people who can be associated (enter) a room (for example, the upper limit of the number of users who can be associated with one server), resulting in a waiting time to start a new room.
(3) A situation in which the load on the distribution server 100 increases due to an increase in the number of behavioral actions of users who have already entered the virtual space.
Note that a motion action is an action that is considered to increase the amount of communication between the user terminal and the distribution server 100, such as, for example, a user's movement in the virtual space, the use of an item, or chatting. For example, the amount and frequency of information to be synchronized with other user terminals, such as synchronization of user avatar position information or synchronization of performance information due to the use of an item, increases, which increases the processing load on the distribution server 100.

In conventional systems, when user behavior that is expected to make it difficult to maintain the above-mentioned continuous provision state increases the load on the distribution server 100 or exceeds the allowable number of users, setting change processes to maintain the continuous provision state on the distribution server 100 are performed, such as increasing the server resources of the distribution server 100 (server augmentation process) or reducing the information delivered to user terminals. However, if processing is performed after the load increases, the distribution server 100 requires more time to process due to the increased load, causing users to wait longer than when the load is not increased. In other words, when the load on the distribution server 100 increases, processing by the distribution server 100 becomes slower than usual, and it takes more time to process users into the virtual space and to deliver data to user terminals. In particular, in this embodiment, when a specific user enters the virtual space, it can affect the behavior of other users, increasing the load on the distribution server 100. Furthermore, if other users are notified that a specific user has entered the virtual space, this could have a greater impact on the behavior of those other users, which could result in longer processing wait times and increased susceptibility to server failures. Therefore, in this embodiment, the entry of a specific user into the virtual space is used as a trigger to perform processing to reduce the load on the distribution server 100 in advance. This makes it possible to maintain the continuous provision state even if there is user behavior that is expected to make it difficult to maintain the continuous provision state.

The process of increasing the resources of the distribution server 100 (increasing the processing capacity of the server) in this embodiment includes the following aspects.
(1) Processing for increasing the number of servers for providing a virtual space (scale-out).
(2) Processing to increase the performance of the server that provides the virtual space (scale-up).

In addition, the process of reducing (alleviating) the amount of information distributed from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal in this embodiment includes the following aspects.
(1) Reducing the overall amount of information by reducing the number of synchronizations between the distribution server 100 and the user terminal.
(2) The amount of information delivered from the delivery server 100 to the user terminal is reduced.
These processes may be achieved by sending a signal from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal to reduce the number of synchronization requests from the user terminal or the amount of information requested from the user terminal. Alternatively, the distribution user 100 may suppress the number of synchronizations to the user terminal or the amount of information transmitted. For example, the distribution server 100 may periodically transmit a signal regarding server congestion information to the user, and transmit a server congestion information signal generated when the server load increases to the user terminal. In this way, the user terminal that receives the congestion information signal performs processing to reduce the number of synchronization requests and the amount of information requested from the user terminal. The requested amount of information may include, for example, drawing information, such as the display volume of objects (including user avatars) in the virtual space and image resolution. This reduces the processing load on the distribution server 100, which is required to read information to be distributed to the user terminal, and the processing load caused by reading heavy data and the frequent data input/output.

(Example of system configuration and process)
FIG. 16 shows an example of the system configuration and processing process of the distribution server 100. As an example of the configuration, the distribution server 100 is composed of a login authentication device 101, a lobby management device 102, a real-time synchronization device 103, a notification management device 104, and a server management device 105. Each of the devices may be composed of one or more servers (communication infrastructure). For example, the login authentication device 101 may be an API server for performing login authentication, and the lobby management device 102 may be a lobby API server for providing information about areas and rooms in the virtual space to user terminals. For example, the login authentication device 101 is composed of multiple servers such as server 101a, server 101b, etc., and the lobby management device 102 is composed of multiple servers such as server 102a, server 102b, etc.

The login authentication device 101 is a computer that performs processing for user login authentication, which is executed by the entry/exit processing unit 134 and the like. The login authentication device 101 receives login information from the user terminal, determines whether login is permitted, and transitions the user to a logged-in state once authentication is complete. For example, authentication is performed by referencing the user information included in the login information and the user data table stored in the user information 121.

When the user who performed the login authentication process in the login authentication device 101 is a specific user, the login authentication device 101 transmits predetermined information to the notification device 104 and the server management device 105. Information identifying that a specific user has logged in is transmitted to the notification device 104. A processing request to increase server resources is transmitted to the server management device 105.

The notification management device 104 is a computer that performs processing executed by the notification management unit 135 or the like to notify (notify) a user terminal or the like that a specific user has logged in. For example, when the notification management device 104 receives information from the login authentication device 101 that a specific user has logged in (which may include entry notification availability information), the notification management device 104 performs processing to send a push notification to the user terminal or the administrator terminal 200. The information that a specific user has logged in may include entry notification availability information sent from the user terminal of the specific user. Alternatively, the notification management device 104 may be an entry status API server that obtains the entry status of users into a virtual space in response to a request from another server. Note that the login authentication device 101 may also perform processing to notify (notify) the administrator terminal 200 itself or the user terminal itself of the information that a specific user has logged in.

The server management device 105 is a computer that performs processing to vary the resource settings of servers, which is executed by the scale management unit 136 and the like. The login authentication device 101 and the lobby management device 102 are examples of servers for which the server management device 105 increases resources. When the server management device 105 increases the number of servers as a process to increase resources, as illustrated in FIG. 17, servers 101c and 101d are added as servers for the login authentication device 101, and servers 102c and 102d are added as servers for the lobby management device 102.

Increasing the number of servers in the login authentication device 101 enables the login authentication device 101 to withstand the load caused by login requests (access) from a large number of users in a short period of time, thereby reducing the risk of users having to wait and enabling the virtual space to be continuously provided to users. Furthermore, increasing the number of servers in the lobby management device 102 enables the lobby management device 102 to withstand the load caused by requests for virtual space information such as area and room information from a large number of users in a short period of time, thereby reducing the risk of users having to wait and enabling the virtual space to be continuously provided to users.

The lobby management device 102 is a computer executed by the content management unit 131 that has the function of providing users with information about areas in the virtual space and a list of rooms related to the areas that can be entered. The user terminal of a user who has been logged in by the login authentication device 101 requests information about areas and rooms from the lobby management device 102, and based on the information obtained in response to the request, displays on the display unit of the user terminal a screen that displays information about the areas of the virtual space that can be entered and various rooms, as shown, for example, in Figure 9 (C).

The real-time synchronization device 103 is a computer executed by the content management unit 131 and scale management unit 136, which performs real-time synchronous communication within and between rooms. It is also possible to set an upper limit on the number of users who can be associated with (enter) each room (for example, a maximum of 200 users). The real-time synchronization device 103 is composed of, for example, a room management device 1031, a room server 103a, a room server 103b, etc. The room management device 1031 controls communication related to rooms. This communication control involves allocating rooms in response to communication requests from user terminals. For example, when a user terminal makes a request to enter one of the rooms to the real-time synchronization device 103 based on information acquired by the lobby management device 105, the room connection information is acquired from the room management device 1031, allowing the user to enter the room.

The room management device 1031 can also vary the room server's resources depending on the load on the room server or the number of people entering a room. For example, this can be done by scaling out or scaling up the room server. When a specific user enters a room, the room management device 1031 may be configured to increase the number of rooms that provide content corresponding to the room the specific user has entered (e.g., a specific area, specific content within an area, etc.). For example, in multiple rooms corresponding to each area, only the user avatars of users who have entered the same room are generally displayed. However, the user avatar of a specific user can be mirrored and reflected in rooms of the same type that provide the same content, even if the specific user is not in the same room. This makes it possible to provide users of other rooms with the experience of being in the same room as the specific user. Therefore, since it is expected that the number of users attempting to enter similar rooms that provide the same content will increase, processing is performed to increase the number of rooms in advance.

In addition, in this embodiment, the room management device 1031 may be configured to vary the amount of information in the virtual space provided to the user by the room server. For example, the amount of drawing information in a room where content corresponding to a room entered by a specific user is provided may be reduced. Note that the server management device 105 may also perform processing to reduce the amount of drawing information in a room.

The room management device 1031 may change the resources of the room server or the amount of information provided to the user when the login authentication device 101 authenticates the login of a specific user. For example, when the login authentication of a specific user is performed, multiple rooms may be started and put on standby, and after the specific user enters a room, the room server on standby may provide content corresponding to the content the specific user has entered. Also, the amount of information may be reduced only for the room the specific user has entered. However, this is not limited to this, and changes to the resources of the room server may be made regardless of the area (content) the specific user enters.

(Virtual space provision server expansion processing)
FIG. 18 is a flowchart illustrating a virtual space providing server augmentation process for varying server resources, which is part of the distribution server 100 setting variation process executed by the distribution server 100. The virtual space providing server augmentation process is repeatedly executed at predetermined time intervals by the control unit 130 of the distribution server 100. The distribution server 100 performs various processes, including the virtual space providing server augmentation process, based on programs stored in the storage unit 120. Note that an example will be described in which the determination of whether or not a user is a specific user is made based on the evaluation index of FIG. 7(A). In the virtual space providing server augmentation process, a situation when the server load becomes heavy or just before (before) the server load becomes heavy is referred to as a predetermined situation.

First, in step S301, it is determined whether a predetermined situation has occurred. If it is determined in step S301 that a predetermined situation has occurred, the process proceeds to step S302, where server resources are increased according to the predetermined situation, the server is placed in a continuous provisioning state, and the process ends. For example, if a predetermined situation occurs in which the server load becomes heavy due to factors including user behavior (e.g., entering a room by logging in, or an action), the scale management unit 136 increases the number of servers as a process to increase server resources.

On the other hand, if it is not determined in step S301 that the predetermined situation has occurred, it is determined in step S303 whether a specific user has logged in. If it is not determined that a specific user has logged in, processing is terminated. On the other hand, if it is determined that a specific user has logged in, processing proceeds to step S304. For example, when the entry/exit processing unit 134 (e.g., the login authentication device 101) performs login authentication processing based on a user's login request, it determines whether the user who logged in is a specific user. For example, if the user who logged in is user ID "u1" in Figure 7 (A), the evaluation index is negative, so it is not determined that a specific user has logged in, and processing is terminated. On the other hand, if the user who logged in is user ID "u2", the evaluation index is positive, so it is determined that a specific user has logged in.

In step S304, server resource expansion processing is performed according to the specific logged-in user, and the server is placed in a continuous provisioning state, ending the processing. For example, if the type and number of servers to be increased are determined according to the evaluation index, and if the logged-in user has user ID "u2," the evaluation index is 5, so the scale management unit 136 (e.g., server management device 105) executes processing to increase the number of normal servers and high-spec servers by one. If the logged-in user has user ID "u3," the evaluation index is 18, so the scale management unit 136 executes processing to increase the number of high-spec servers by four and the number of highest-spec servers by three. This increases the number of servers according to the influence of each specific user, thereby improving the processing capacity of the distribution server 100.

This means that even when the specified situation has not yet been reached and the server load has not increased, the server can be strengthened in advance when a specific user logs in, before the specified situation is reached.

The process of increasing server resources may involve scaling up, which improves server performance. The specified situation may also include exceeding the maximum number of people in a room (when the room is full, or when a certain number of people is reached just before full capacity). When the maximum number of people in a room is exceeded, the number of servers may be increased to increase the number of rooms, or server performance may be improved to increase the number of rooms that can be provided on one server.

(Distribution information volume change processing)
FIG. 19 is a flowchart illustrating a distribution information amount variation process for varying the amount of information distributed from the distribution server 100 to a user terminal, which is part of the distribution server 100 setting variation process executed in the distribution server 100. The distribution information amount variation process is repeatedly executed at predetermined time intervals by the control unit 130 of the distribution server 100. The distribution server 100 performs various processes, including the distribution information amount variation process, based on programs stored in the storage unit 120. Note that an example will be described in which the determination of whether or not a user is a specific user is made based on the evaluation index in FIG. 7(A). In the distribution information amount variation process, a time when the server load becomes heavy or a time just before (before) the server load becomes heavy is referred to as a predetermined situation.

First, in step S401, it is determined whether a predetermined situation has occurred. If it is determined in step S401 that a predetermined situation has occurred, the process proceeds to step S402, where the server enters a continuous provision state by sending information to the user terminal to reduce the number of synchronization signal transmissions depending on the predetermined situation (load situation). For example, if a predetermined situation occurs in which the server load becomes heavy due to factors including user behavior (e.g., entering a room by logging in, entering a room, or an action), the data distribution unit 132 sends information to the user terminal that the server is congested, reducing the number of synchronizations from the user terminal, thereby reducing the amount of information distributed from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal.

In step S403, the amount of information (the amount of information itself) delivered from the delivery server 100 to the user terminal is reduced according to a predetermined situation, the server is placed in a continuous provision state, and processing ends. For example, processing is performed to change the settings so that the virtual space drawing information (drawing load amount) delivered from the data delivery unit 132 to the user terminal is reduced before being delivered to the user terminal. For example, if a predetermined situation occurs in which the server load becomes heavy due to factors including user behavior, processing is performed to reduce the amount of objects (including user avatars) displayed from the server, the amount of drawing information such as image resolution, etc.

On the other hand, if it is not determined in step S401 that the predetermined situation has occurred, then in step S404 it is determined whether a specific user has logged in. If it is not determined that a specific user has logged in, processing ends. On the other hand, if it is determined that a specific user has logged in, processing proceeds to step S405. For example, when the entry/exit processing unit 134 (e.g., the login authentication device 101) performs login authentication processing based on a user's login request, it determines whether the user who logged in is a specific user. For example, if the user who logged in to the room is user ID "u1" in Figure 7 (A), the evaluation index is negative, so it is not determined that a specific user has logged in, and processing ends. On the other hand, if the user who logged in is user ID "u2," the evaluation index is positive, so it is determined that a specific user has logged in.

In step S405, the server is put into a continuous provision state by sending information to the user terminal to reduce the number of synchronization signal transmissions for a specific user. For example, the data distribution unit 132 sends information to the user terminal that the server is congested, thereby reducing the number of synchronizations from the user terminal, thereby reducing the amount of information distributed from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal. For example, the number of synchronizations is changed depending on the evaluation index, and for users with an evaluation index of 1 to 5, the number of synchronizations per second is controlled to be three instead of the usual six, and for users with an evaluation index of 6 or higher, the number of synchronizations is controlled to be once per second.

In step S406, the amount of information delivered from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal is reduced according to the specific user, the server is placed in a continuous provision state, and processing ends. For example, processing is performed to change settings so that the virtual space drawing information (drawing load) delivered from the data distribution unit 132 to the user terminal is reduced before being delivered to the user terminal. Different processing may also be performed according to the specific user. For example, the amount of information may be reduced so that the number of objects displayed in the virtual space is reduced when a user with a rating index of 11 or higher enters the room compared to when a user with a rating index of 1 to 10 enters the room.

This means that even when the specified situation has not yet occurred and the server load has not increased, processing can be performed in advance to reduce the amount of information delivered from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal when a specific user logs in, before the specified situation occurs.

The processing in steps S402 and S405 is not limited to transmitting information to the user terminal to reduce the number of synchronization signal transmissions, but may also involve changing settings to reduce the number of synchronizations performed from the data distribution unit 132 to the user terminal (synchronization count reduction setting), thereby placing the server in a continuous provision state by reducing the number of synchronizations between the distribution server 100 and the user terminal. The processing in steps S403 and S406 may also involve, for example, transmitting information from the data distribution unit 132 to the user terminal that the server is congested, thereby reducing the amount of virtual space rendering information requested by the user terminal, thereby placing the server in a continuous provision state.

The specified situation may also include when the room's maximum number of occupants is exceeded (when it is full, or when it reaches a specified number of occupants just before it is full). When the room's maximum number of occupants is exceeded, processing may be performed to reduce the amount of information distributed to the distribution server 100 and user terminals. This prevents the risk of increased server load as the number of people in the room increases, for example, as user actions increase and the amount of information required to update (synchronize) information in the virtual space increases. Therefore, processing can be performed in advance to put the server into a continuous provision state.

<Examples of specific configurations and effects>

(1-1) In the above-described embodiment, when a predetermined situation occurs, such as when the load on the distribution server 100 exceeds a threshold or when the maximum number of people that can be associated with a room is reached, depending on factors including multiple types of user behavior (for example, entering by logging in, entering a room, or action actions within the virtual space), server reinforcement processing such as steps S301 to S302 in Figure 18 or distribution information volume change processing such as steps S401 to S403 in Figure 19 is executed, thereby placing the virtual space in a continuous provision state so that it can be continuously provided to users. However, even in situations where the load on the distribution server 100 does not exceed a threshold or does not reach the maximum number of people that can be associated with a room, and other specific situations do not occur, such as when a specific user, such as a celebrity or famous person with user attribute numbers "2," "3," or "5" in FIG. 7A or a positive evaluation index, enters the virtual space, the server reinforcement process of steps S303-S304 in FIG. 18 and the distribution information volume change process of steps S404-S406 in FIG. 19 are executed to set the distribution server 100 to a continuous provision state. This allows the virtual space provider's setting to the continuous provision state to be changed in advance when the specific user enters the virtual space. This makes it possible to take measures in advance to deal with the load that may arise when the specific user enters the virtual space.

(1-2) In the above-described embodiment, the process of setting the virtual space providing unit to a continuous provision state involves performing server augmentation processing (resource expansion processing) for the distribution server 100 in steps S302 and S304 in FIG. 18. As server augmentation processing, the server management device 105 in FIGS. 16 and 17 scales out the distribution server 100 (increases the number of servers), such as by adding servers 101c and 101d of the login authentication device 101, or scales up the distribution server (increases the CPU and memory specifications of the server). This increases the resources functioning as the distribution server 100, improving the processing power of the distribution server 100 and enabling it to withstand the load, thereby enabling the virtual space to be continuously provided to users.

(1-3) In the above-described embodiment, the process of setting the distribution server 100 to a continuous provision state involves performing a distribution information amount change process to reduce the overall amount of information distributed from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal, such as steps S402, S403, S405, and S406 of FIG. 19. The distribution information amount change process includes a process of transmitting information to reduce the number of synchronization signal transmissions from the user terminal, such as steps S402 and S405 of FIG. 19, a process of transmitting information to reduce the amount of requested drawing information, thereby reducing the number of synchronizations between the distribution server 100 and the user terminal, a process of reducing the amount of information distributed from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal, such as steps S403 and S406 of FIG. 19, and a process of reducing the number of synchronizations from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal, thereby reducing the amount of information itself when distributed from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal. This reduces the amount of information distributed from the distribution server 100 to user terminals, reducing the processing burden on the distribution server 100 and making it more tolerable, allowing the virtual space to be continuously provided to users.

(1-4) In the above-described embodiment, a setting change process is performed to change the settings of the distribution server 100 to a continuous provision state in preparation for the possibility that a predetermined situation will occur when a specific user enters the virtual space or when a specific user enters the virtual space. Predetermined situations include situations in which the load on the distribution server 100 exceeds a predetermined threshold due to a user entering the virtual space, a user's movement within the virtual space, or an action action such as the use of an item, and a waiting time occurs due to a number of users requesting entry in excess of the number of people allowed to enter the room. By performing the setting change process in this embodiment, even if the load on the distribution server 100 exceeds a predetermined threshold and there is a possibility that the virtual space will no longer be able to be continuously provided to users, the setting change process can be performed to change the settings of the distribution server 100 to a continuous provision state. This makes it possible to continuously provide the virtual space to users.

(1-5) In the above-described embodiment, in response to the entry of a specific user into the virtual space, such as a celebrity or famous person with a user attribute type of "2," "3," or "5" in FIG. 7, or a user with a positive evaluation index, the setting change processing of the distribution server 100 in FIG. 18 and FIG. 19 is executed so as to be processing according to the evaluation index, etc., of the specific user. This makes it possible to change the settings of the distribution server 100 to a continuous provision state in the event of a predetermined situation being reached in response to the entry of a user into the virtual space who is thought to have an influence on the behavior of other users.

(1-6) In the above-described embodiment, entry into a virtual space includes entry by logging into the virtual space, and the distribution server 100 performs setting change processing in response to the login of a specific user. Furthermore, in step S304 of the server augmentation processing in FIG. 18, it is possible to increase the resources of the login authentication API server that performs authentication (processing) to determine whether the user's login was successful, the login authentication device 101 in FIG. 16, the entry/exit processing unit 134, etc. This makes it possible to ensure that the server that performs login authentication processing is able to withstand the load, even if a load is placed on the server that performs login authentication processing due to other users logging in after a specific user has logged in.

(2-1) In the above-described embodiment, when a specific user (FIG. 7(A)) with a positive evaluation index that fluctuates depending on external evaluations, which are evaluations from sources other than the user, or a specific user such as a celebrity or famous person with a user attribute number of "2," "3," or "5," enters a virtual space, an entry notification process (FIGS. 12 to 15) is executed to notify (notify) other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space. This allows other users to be notified that the specific user has entered the virtual space, making it easier for other users to obtain information about the specific user and promoting the development of the virtual space.

(2-2) In the above-described embodiment, the users of the user terminals to which notification information is delivered in step S105 of FIG. 12 include users whose entry status in FIG. 7 is "in the room." This allows a notification that a specific user has entered the room even if the user is in the virtual space, thereby preventing users from remaining unaware that a specific user has entered the virtual space.

(2-3) In the above-described embodiment, in steps S105A and S105B of entry notification process 3 in FIG. 14, the users of user terminals who are notified (notified) that a specific user has entered the virtual space do not include users whose entry status in FIG. 7 is "in," but include users who have not entered the virtual space whose entry status in FIG. 7 is "leaving." This prevents users who are in the virtual space from being notified that a specific user has entered the virtual space, thereby reducing the risk of the notification disrupting the sense of immersion in the virtual space.

(2-4) In the above-described embodiment, the push notification in FIG. 10(A), the page displaying information about a specific user in FIG. 10(B), and the contents of the bulletin board object O in FIG. 11 can include information about the area (e.g., "Entered area X!") or room (e.g., "Entered room ID 0001") that the specific user has entered. This allows other users who have received the push notification or viewed the information in the bulletin board object O to identify the virtual space that the specific user has entered. This makes it easier for other users to subsequently enter the same space (e.g., the same area or the same room), thereby promoting the development of the virtual space.

(2-5) In the above-described embodiment, in a fan community app such as the one illustrated in FIG. 10(B), a user can pre-select and store a favorite user as a favorite talent from among specific users such as talents. Furthermore, when a pre-selected talent (specific user) enters a virtual space, a push notification can be sent as shown in FIG. 10(A) to notify the user that the talent has entered the virtual space. Furthermore, by selecting the favorite filter 45 on a specific page within the app that displays information about the specific user in FIG. 10(B), information about the pre-selected talent entering the virtual space can be extracted and displayed. This allows the notified information about the specific user to be that of the favorite user, thereby improving satisfaction with the notified information.

(3-1) In the above-described embodiment, when a specific user enters a virtual space, information about the specific user's entry can be displayed in response to a user's request for viewing, such as in steps S105 to S107 of FIG. 12 and steps S203 to S205 of FIG. 13, on a community app such as FIG. 10(B) that allows users to view information about the specific user, or on a bulletin board object O located in a virtual space such as FIG. 11. This allows other users to view the fact that the specific user has entered the virtual space as information about the specific user, thereby improving convenience for users seeking information about the specific user.

(3-2) In the above-described embodiment, information about a specific user can be displayed in a specific area within the virtual space, such as the bulletin board object O in Figure 11. This allows users to view information about a specific user even while they are inside the virtual space, increasing convenience for users seeking information about a specific user.

(4-1) In the above-described embodiment, when a specific user logs in through steps S102 and S103 in FIG. 12, a screen can be displayed on the screen of the specific user's user terminal that allows the specific user to select whether or not to notify other users of the login. When the setting is set to allow other users to log in, such as by selecting the "Yes" icon 22Y in FIG. 9(B), steps S105 and S106 allow other users to be notified that they have entered the room. This allows the specific user's preferences, circumstances, and other factors to be taken into consideration when setting whether or not to notify other users when the specific user enters the room, thereby improving convenience for the specific user.

(4-2) In the above-described embodiment, when a specific user enters a virtual space, a selection to allow, such as selecting the "Yes" icon 22Y on the screen in FIG. 9(B) that allows the user to select whether or not to notify other users of their login, triggers notification to other users of their entry in steps S105 and S106 in FIG. 12. This allows the specific user to select whether or not to notify other users of their entry when entering the virtual space, allowing the specific user to notify other users effectively depending on the circumstances at the time of entry.

(5-1) In the above-described embodiment, in steps S105C and S105D of the entry notification process 4 in FIG. 15, the entry of a specific user is notified to the user terminals of users other than users who have entered the virtual space under a specific situation, such as when participating in specific content such as a live event. This prevents notifications from being sent when there is little need to notify users that a specific user has entered the virtual space due to the user's entry under a specific situation. Furthermore, because notifications are not sent when the user is participating in a specific event, it is possible to prevent the user's immersion in the event from being interrupted.

<Modification>
Modifications to the above-described embodiment are listed below.

<Other examples of specific users and setting change processing>
(About attribute numbers and server expansion processing)
In the above-described embodiment, an example has been described in which, when executing the server augmentation process described with reference to Fig. 18, if a user with a positive evaluation index logs in in step S303, it is determined that a specific user has logged in. However, this is not limiting, and if a user who is a celebrity or a famous person with an attribute number such as "2,""3," or "5" logs in, it may be determined that a specific user has logged in, and resources may be increased according to the attribute number.

(Relationship between evaluation index, attribute number and amount of information delivered)
In the above-described embodiment, with reference to FIG. 8 , an example was described in which server resources (number of servers, CPU and memory specifications) that are varied for each evaluation index are determined, and the server resources are varied according to the evaluation index of a specific user. Similarly, with regard to the amount of information delivered, the number of synchronizations between the delivery server 100 and the user terminal may be changed or the amount of information to be reduced that is delivered from the delivery server 100 may be adjusted according to the evaluation index. For example, when a user with an evaluation index of 1 to 5 enters the room, the number of synchronizations may be set to three, and when a user with an evaluation index of 6 or higher enters the room, the number of synchronizations may be set to one. Furthermore, the number of objects displayed in the virtual space may be reduced when a user with an evaluation index of 11 or higher enters the room compared to when a user with an evaluation index of 1 to 10 enters the room.

The amount of information delivered may be adjusted for each attribute number. For example, when a specific user associated with attribute number "2" in Figure 7(B) enters the room, the number of synchronizations per second may be set to one, and when a specific user associated with attribute number "5" enters the room, the number of synchronizations per second may be set to three.

(Regarding evaluation index and entry notification processing)
In the above-described embodiment, the determination of whether or not a user is a specific user in step S102 of Fig. 12 is made based on an attribute number associated with the user. However, the determination of whether or not a user is a specific user may also be made based on an evaluation index. For example, if a user has a positive evaluation index, the user is determined to be a specific user, and a process for notifying other users that the user has entered the virtual space is executed. However, if a user has a negative evaluation index, the user is not determined to be a specific user, and the process for notifying other users that the user has entered the virtual space may not be executed.

(User attribute number and evaluation index)
In the above embodiment, an example in which a user attribute number and a user evaluation index are associated with each user has been described with reference to Fig. 7. However, this is not limiting, and only one of the "user attribute number" and the "evaluation index" may be defined.

Also, when a user account is created (when a user ID is created), the default attribute number may be set to "1", which indicates a general user. The administrator may also arbitrarily change and store the attribute number of an already created user account. Alternatively, the administrator may assign an attribute number in advance and then add the user to the data table of user information 121. Attribute numbers are not limited to defaults or numbers assigned at the administrator's discretion, but may also vary depending on other factors. For example, depending on the "evaluation index", users whose "evaluation index" exceeds a predetermined value may be assigned the user attribute number "5", indicating that they are celebrities.

In the above-described embodiment, with reference to Figure 8 and other figures, an example was described in which the degree of variation (resource amount, distribution volume, etc.) in the setting variation processing of the distribution server 100 is predetermined for each evaluation index or attribute number. In addition to this, a predetermined number of servers may also be associated with each user ID. For example, the number of servers can be set to three for user ID "u2" and ten for user ID "u7". When "u2" logs in, three servers are added, and when "u7" logs in, the number of servers is added by ten.

Alternatively, the administrator may pre-determine an evaluation index for each user corresponding to the desired number of servers, etc., so that each user has the desired number of servers, etc. For example, if the administrator wants to add one normal server and one high-spec server when user ID "u2" enters the room, the administrator may pre-determine the evaluation index for user ID "u2" to "5."

(Another example of determining a specific user (special user))
In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which a determination as to whether or not a user is a specific user is made based on an attribute number or an evaluation index. However, as exemplified by the user ID "u6" in FIG. 7A, an example has also been described in which, when both an attribute number and an evaluation index are defined, if a user is a specific user in either of the two, the user may be determined to be a specific user and processing may be performed. However, this is not limited to this. When both an attribute number and an evaluation index are defined, if the user is not considered to be a specific user in either the user attribute number or the evaluation index, processing as a specific user may not be performed. For example, regardless of whether the user has a specific user attribute number (e.g., 2, 3, or 5 in FIG. 7B), if the evaluation index is not a positive value, the user may not be determined to be a specific user.

Alternatively, when both the attribute number and the evaluation index are defined, the criteria to be referenced when determining whether a user is a specific user may be determined in advance, depending on the processing content, such as the entry notification processing or the distribution server 100 setting change processing, and the criteria to be referenced when determining whether a user is a specific user may differ depending on the processing content. For example, when performing entry notification processing to notify other users that they have entered a virtual space, the attribute number of the entering user may be referenced and the notification processing may be executed if it is determined that the user is a specific user, and for the distribution server 100 setting change processing, the evaluation index of the entering user may be referenced and processing may be performed depending on whether it is determined that the user is a specific user.

<Regarding entry notification processing>
(About choosing whether to notify other users)
In the above-described embodiment, an example was described in which, for example, if the "No" icon 22N in FIG. 9B was selected in step S104 of FIG. 12 and thus permission to notify other users when a specific user logs in is not granted, the specific user's login is not notified. The notification permission method is not limited to displaying the screen in FIG. 9B each time a user logs in. Instead of or in addition to displaying the screen in FIG. 9B, the notification may be enabled or disabled in advance on a settings screen. Alternatively, either notification on or notification off may be set by default, and the user may be able to select on or off each time a user logs in. Furthermore, the specific user may be able to select the content of the information to be notified, such as whether or not to notify entry into a room or whether or not to notify the room ID.

In the above-described embodiment, an example was described in which, after a login request in FIG. 9(A) is sent to the distribution server 100 in step S101 in FIG. 12, if it is determined in step S102 that the user is a specific user, a screen in FIG. 9(B) is displayed that allows the user to select whether or not to notify other users. However, this is not limited to this. For example, the user terminal may be a dedicated terminal for a specific user, and the selection screen in FIG. 9(B) may be displayed before a login request is sent to the distribution server 100. When the "Yes" icon 22Y or the "No" icon 22N in FIG. 9(B) is selected, a login request may be sent to the distribution server 100 along with information indicating whether or not to notify other users.

(About push notifications)
In the above-described embodiment, a push notification has been exemplified with reference to FIG. 10(A) as an example of a mode for informing (notifying) other users that a specific user has entered a room. The push notification may be displayed on a user terminal, and a transition to the virtual space the specific user has entered may be made. For example, a login screen for the virtual space may be displayed in response to the push notification. Alternatively, the user may be allowed to enter a room in which the specific user is present, or a room that provides an area corresponding to the room in which the specific user is present.

The push notification may also include bonus granting information for granting a bonus. For example, a serial code may be displayed in the push notification message along with the login information of a specific user, and the user may be granted a bonus by entering the serial code when entering the virtual space. This can further encourage users to enter the virtual space via push notifications. An expiration date may also be set for the serial code, so that the bonus will not be granted unless the serial code is entered within a specified period (e.g., within three hours) after being notified. The serial code may also be entered not only when entering the virtual space, but also in a specified area within the virtual space, an item shop, etc.

(Examples of where information about a specific user is displayed)
In the above embodiment, with reference to FIG. 10(B), a page on which information about a specific user provided by the specific user information media management server 500 can be viewed was described, exemplifying the display in a fan community app. Information about a specific user that can be displayed on the display screen of a user terminal may also be displayed on a website screen that can be viewed by the user via a web browser. For example, if the specific user is a celebrity, the information page may display information about the celebrity's video streaming on a video streaming site, their entry status into the virtual space, and the like. The website information page may use an API to acquire information about the streams by the celebrity's account on the video streaming site, the handle in the description section, and the like, and display appearance information. Furthermore, by utilizing an API for the virtual space user's entry status, if the account of a specific user celebrity is included among the users currently in the virtual space, the entry information may be displayed on the web page along with the celebrity's icon, as shown in FIG. 10(B), for example. When the celebrity logs out, the entry information may be deleted or displayed as having left the virtual space. When the user accesses the website, the web page is displayed on the web browser of the user's terminal, allowing the user to obtain information about the talent. The user may also be able to transition to a virtual space based on the entry information.

(Other examples of users who will be notified to other users)
In the above-described embodiment, as described with reference to FIG. 10(B), for example, by selecting the favorite filter icon 45 in a fan community app, information about a talent or other user previously selected by the user as a favorite can be extracted and displayed (or a push notification can be sent). Therefore, an example was described in which information about a specific user previously selected by the user entering a virtual space can be notified. In the entry notification process, not only when the specific user has been previously selected as a favorite in the fan community app, but also when the specific user has previously been selected by the user, only information about the entry of the pre-selected user may be notified. For example, the entry notification process may be performed for a user previously selected in the virtual space, or only information about the entry of a specific user followed by the user in the virtual space or a specific user previously selected by the user from a list of specific users (e.g., a talent list) may be notified. By storing the user previously selected by the user in the storage unit 120 of the distribution server 100 or the user terminal 320, when a login by the specific user is detected, a notification can be sent on the user terminal of the user who previously selected the specific user.

In the above-described embodiment, an example was described in which information identifying a user previously selected by a user (information identifying whether or not the user has been selected), stored in the storage unit 520 of the specific user information medium management server 500, along with information including information on other specific users, is transmitted from the specific user information medium management server 500 for each user, and processing to extract the pre-selected specific user is performed on the user terminal receiving the transmitted information. However, a similar processing may also be performed on the distribution server 100. For example, information identifying a user previously selected by a user (information identifying whether or not the user has been selected), stored in the storage unit 120 of the distribution server 100, along with information on the other specific users, may be transmitted from the distribution server 100 for each user, and processing to extract the pre-selected specific user may be performed on the user terminal. Alternatively, the specific user previously selected by the user may be extracted based on information stored in the storage units 120, 520 of the distribution server 100 or the specific user information medium management server 500, and only information on the entry of the extracted specific user may be distributed to the user terminal.

It may also be possible to calculate an engagement index between users based on their behavioral history within the virtual space, and to notify users whose engagement index with a specific user who has entered the virtual space is equal to or greater than a predetermined value that the specific user has entered the space. The engagement index is calculated by the control unit 130 based on behavioral history, such as the number of events attended by the specific user, the amount of charges related to the specific user (e.g., tips, merchandise purchases, etc.), or the number of times the user was in the same room (or the same area) as the specific user. The calculation of the engagement index may not be limited to a specific period, or may be calculated based on the amount of charges during a specific period.

In the above-described embodiment, an example was described in which the information notified to other users was information related to the entry of a specific user. However, in addition to this, if a user has performed a specific action in the virtual space, other users may be notified of the presence of the user who performed the specific action, even if that user is not a specific user. For example, this includes detecting that a user has moved to a position corresponding to a specific area in the virtual space. A specific area is, for example, a platform used for holding an event, where the presence of a user moving to the specific area suggests that an event will begin. When a user has climbed onto the platform, a notification such as "P-san has climbed onto the platform in area Y!" is issued, as shown by way of example in the bulletin board object O in Figure 11.

(Information about specific users)
In the above embodiment, as illustrated with reference to Figures 10(B) and 11, the information about a specific user that can be viewed in response to a viewing request from a user includes information other than entry information into the virtual space about the specific user (for example, video distribution information, event information in the virtual space, etc.). However, the information is not limited to this, and may be a page in an app where only information about entry into the virtual space of the specific user can be viewed, or an object in the virtual space, etc.

(Regarding entry notification processing)
In the above-described embodiment, an example in which an entry notification process is performed in response to a specific user logging into a virtual space has been described with reference to FIGS. 12 to 15. However, instead of or in addition to this, for example, in step S101 of FIG. 12, it may be determined whether a specific user has entered a room in the virtual space, and other users may be notified of the specific user's entry into any room. It may also be possible to notify other users of which room the specific user has entered. For example, in response to a specific user entering area Y, a push notification or the like may be sent along with information about the area the specific user has entered.

Alternatively, as shown in the example of bulletin board object O in Figure 11, notification may be provided in stages, such as when a specific user logs in and when the specific user has entered a specific area. Also, instead of or in addition to area information, the room ID of the room the specific user has entered may be notified.

Furthermore, when a specific user moves to a room different from the one they were in, processing may be performed each time the user moves to notify the user that the specific user has moved.

Furthermore, even if a specific user enters a virtual space, no notification may be sent if a predetermined time has not passed since the previous entry. For example, if the predetermined time is 10 minutes and a specific user logs in, no notification of the subsequent (current) login may be sent if 10 minutes have not passed since the previous login. Similarly, no notification may be sent if the user re-enters the same room within a predetermined time since the previous entry into the same room. This can prevent push notifications from being sent multiple times due to a specific user accidentally logging out, for example.

(Regarding entry notification process 2)
In the above embodiment, in step S201 of Fig. 13, when the specific user information medium management server 500 receives notification information distributed from the distribution server 100 in step S105 of Fig. 12, an example has been described in which information about the login of a specific user is notified to the user terminal. In other words, an example has been described in which the identification of the newly logged-in specific user who is the target of notification to other users is performed by the distribution server 100. However, without being limited to this, the specific user information medium management server 500 may identify the newly logged-in specific user based on the user entry status acquired in step S203. It may be determined whether the newly logged-in specific user is included in the user entry status acquired in step S203, and if the newly logged-in specific user is included, a push notification or the like may be sent spontaneously from the specific user information medium management server 500 to the user terminal.

In the above-described embodiment, an example was described in which the entry status is obtained using the user entry status API of the distribution server 100 in step S203 of Figure 13. However, this is not limited to this, and when a specific user logs in, the distribution server 100 may distribute (transmit) the latest information regarding the user entry status to the specific user information media management server 500.

(Regarding entry notification process 3)
In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which the distribution server 100 notifies (notifies) users who have not entered (logged in) into the virtual space that a specific user has entered (logged in) into the virtual space through steps S105A and S105B of FIG. 14 , but similar processing may also be performed in the specific user information medium management server 500. For example, the storage unit 520 of the specific user information medium management server 500 may associate in advance the user ID in the specific user information medium management server with the user ID in the virtual space provided by the distribution server 100, or the same ID may be used for both user IDs. In this way, a notification may be sent to the user terminals of users not included in the user entry status acquired in step S203 of FIG. 13 .

In the above embodiment, steps S105A and S105B in FIG. 14 describe an example in which users who have not entered (logged in) into the virtual space are notified (notified) that a specific user has entered (logged in) into the virtual space. However, users who are logged in to the virtual space but are not in a room in the same area as the specific user (or the same room as the specific user) may also be notified.

In addition, in entry notification process 3, for users who are not logged in to the virtual space extracted in step S105A, the information about the specific user delivered in step S108 may include information indicating that the specific user has logged in, while the information delivered to users who are logged in to the virtual space may not include information indicating that the specific user has logged in.

(Regarding entry notification process 4)
In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which, in the distribution server 100, steps S105C and S105D of Fig. 15 notify (notify) users other than users who have entered the virtual space under predetermined circumstances that a specific user has entered (logged in) into the virtual space, but as explained above (regarding entry notification process 3), similar processing may also be performed in the specific user information medium management server 500. For example, the user entry status acquired in step S203 of Fig. 12 may include information on the content in which each user is participating, and based on the acquired user entry status, a notification may not be sent to the user terminal of a user who has entered the virtual space under predetermined circumstances.

In the above-described embodiment, an example was described in which a user who has entered a room under a predetermined situation is not notified that a specific user has entered (logged in). However, this is not limited to this, and when a specific user enters a room under a predetermined situation, the entry of the specific user may not be notified. For example, this may include a case in which the specific user enters a room to host or carry out a pre-planned event in a virtual space under a predetermined situation. If the specific user is a celebrity and enters a room for a pre-planned live event in which the celebrity is the main character, the entry may not be notified to other users. In this case, if the distribution server 100 determines that a predetermined specific event is in progress when the specific user logs in, the process of notifying other users may not be performed.

Furthermore, if a specific user's login occurred under a predetermined circumstance, the information about the specific user distributed in response to a user's viewing request in step S107 of FIG. 12 and step S204 of FIG. 13 may not include the login information of the specific user who logged in under the predetermined circumstance. For example, it is possible to prevent a notification when the user can predict in advance that a specific user will log in or when the login will occur, or when the user knows in advance that a specific user will enter a room. For example, by notifying the user of planned entry information or event information as information about the specific user illustrated in FIG. 10(B) and FIG. 11, the user can obtain information about the specific user's possible entry in advance. Furthermore, it is possible to prevent the amount of information notified from becoming too large, for example, when a large number of specific users are expected to participate. In this way, depending on whether a specific user's entry is planned, it is possible to prevent other users from being notified if the entry is planned.

In addition, in entry notification process 4, for users other than those who have entered the virtual space extracted in step S105C under specified circumstances, the information about the specific user distributed in step S108 may include information indicating that the specific user has logged in, and the information distributed to users who have logged in to the virtual space under specified circumstances may not include information indicating that the specific user has logged in.

<Regarding the setting change process of the distribution server 100>
(Regarding entry into the virtual space)
In the above-described embodiment, an example has been described in which a determination is made as to whether a specific user has logged in at step S303 of FIG. 18 and step S404 of FIG. 19 . However, this is not limiting. It is also possible to determine whether a specific user has entered a virtual space at the time of entering a room, rather than by logging in to the virtual space, and perform processing accordingly. For example, if it is determined in step S303 of FIG. 18 or step S404 of FIG. 19 that a specific user has entered a specific room in the virtual space, a process of increasing server resources may be performed in step S304, or a process of reducing the amount of information in steps S405 and S406 may be performed. Note that the server whose resources fluctuate may be a server corresponding to the entry/exit processing unit 134 that performs login authentication (e.g., a login authentication API server), a server having a function for providing a user with information about an area of the virtual space, a list of rooms that can be entered related to the area, or a server corresponding to a room. 19 may be performed on the user terminals of all users who have entered the virtual space, or may be performed on the user terminals of some of the users. The "some" may include, for example, users who have entered a room in the same area as the area into which a specific user has entered, or users who have entered the same room as the room into which a specific user has entered.

(Example of when not changing)
In the above-described embodiment, an example was described in which, in step S303 of Fig. 18 and step S404 of Fig. 19, if the user who entered the room is a specific user, setting change processing is performed. However, if the desired resource level or information volume level has already been reached, processing may not be performed even if the specific user enters the room. For example, in Fig. 8, the number of servers to be increased in operation is set, but a maximum number of servers may be set, and if the number of servers is already at the maximum number of servers, the number may not be increased even if a specific user logs in.

(Regarding the degree of setting fluctuation in setting fluctuation processing)
In the above-described embodiment, as illustrated in steps S304 of FIG. 8 and FIG. 18 , steps S405 and S406 of FIG. 19 , examples of varying the degree of resource availability (e.g., number of servers) and the amount of information (e.g., number of synchronizations) have been described as examples of varying the degree of variation of settings predetermined for a specific user. However, this is not limiting, and the degree of variation of settings performed when a specific user enters the room may be uniform. In other words, a certain process may be performed for a specific user regardless of the associated evaluation index or attribute number. For example, the number of servers may be increased by three when user ID "u2" in FIG. 7A logs in or when user ID "u7" logs in. Alternatively, the number of synchronizations may be three regardless of whether "u2" or "u7" logs in.

Alternatively, the degree of change in settings for a specific user may be calculated each time the specific user enters the room. For example, the degree of change may be calculated each time using a predetermined formula that defines variables such as the evaluation index of the specific user at the time of entry and the current resource usage rate.

(When multiple specific users are logged in)
In the above-described embodiment, the setting change processing may be performed by calculating the degree of change in resources or information volume based on the degree of change in settings by the specific users who have already entered the virtual space and the degree of change in settings by the specific users who entered later, and then performing processing according to the calculation results by the control unit 130 in response to the entry of the specific users. For example, if user ID "u2" in FIG. 7 enters the virtual space and user ID "u8" subsequently enters, the degree of change may be calculated using a criterion that combines the respective evaluation indices of "5" and "3." For example, the degree of resources or the degree of information volume may be determined according to the evaluation index obtained by adding up the evaluation indices, or the degree of resources or the degree of information volume may be determined according to the higher evaluation index. For example, if a user with an evaluation index of "3" has already entered the room and a user with an evaluation index of "5" enters the room later, the setting change processing has already been performed according to the evaluation index of "3." However, setting change processing according to the evaluation index of "5" (e.g., increasing the number of servers from the maximum number of operating servers according to the evaluation index of "3" to the maximum number of operating servers according to the evaluation index of "5") may be performed. Also, for example, if a user with an evaluation index of "5" has already entered the room and a user with an evaluation index of "3" (lower than "5") enters the room later, the setting change processing has already been performed according to the evaluation index of "5," so no new setting changes may be performed. Alternatively, the resource level or information volume level may be determined according to the evaluation index obtained by adding half of the lower evaluation index to the higher evaluation index, or the degree of change may be calculated using each evaluation index as a variable in a predetermined calculation formula.

(Regarding setting change processing according to content load)
The setting variation process in the above-described embodiment may be performed according to the load for each piece of content provided by distribution server 100. For example, the increase in resources and the decrease in distribution volume may be greater when a specific user enters a room providing game content that is thought to have a heavy load than when the specific user enters a room providing chat-only content that has a relatively light load.

Also, settings may be changed in response to a specific user's room movement within the virtual space. For example, in the case of server expansion processing, processing may be performed to increase server resources corresponding to game content when a specific user moves from a room providing chat-only content (where server resources may have already been increased in response to the room providing the chat-only content) to a room providing game content. Also, server resources for the room providing chat-only content that the user was in before the move may be reduced. Alternatively, when a user moves from a room providing game content to a room providing chat-only content, server resources for the room providing game content that the user was in before the move may be reduced. Note that such rooms include rooms corresponding to areas, rooms to which transitions can be made by selecting content from within an area, rooms to which transitions can be made from within an area via a portal, and rooms that are set up regardless of the area.

Furthermore, in the case of distribution information amount variation processing, for example, processing may be performed to reduce the amount of information distributed from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal when a specific user moves from a room where chat-only content is provided to a room where game content is provided and the load is heavy. For example, since the processing load is relatively light in a room where chat-only content is provided, setting variation processing may not be performed, but setting variation processing may be performed when the user moves to a room with content that has a heavy load.

(Regarding the relationship between areas and rooms)
The relationship between areas and rooms in the virtual space in the above-described embodiment is not limited to one type of room being defined for each area, but multiple types of rooms each providing different content may be defined within the area. For example, in an area modeled after a city, a transition may be made between a room modeled after the city and a room providing different content via a portal provided within the room or by an operation to select game content.

In the above-described embodiment, with reference to FIG. 18, an example was described in which the number of servers may be increased in steps S302 and S304 to increase the number of rooms. The rooms to be increased may be, for example, automatically assigned to each room by a load balancing function when the user enters a room (for example, on the screen of FIG. 9(C), the user may only need to select an area, and the room to enter may be automatically determined), and entry processing may be performed so that the number of people in each room is distributed evenly. Furthermore, when the number of people in a room exceeds the upper limit (when the room is full, or when it reaches a predetermined number just before full), the number of servers may be increased to increase the number of rooms. Even if rooms are automatically assigned, entering a room ID in the room ID input field 27 may allow entry to the room with that room ID.

(For example, a server)
The term "server" in the above-described embodiments refers to any server that has the functionality of a server, and includes, for example, a physical server and a server configured using virtualization technology. Servers configured using virtualization technology include, for example, host OS-based virtualization, hypervisor-based virtualization, and container-based virtualization. In addition, all or part of the various servers may be configured on a cloud service (cloud system), which is an infrastructure configured using virtualization technology. For example, different servers may be defined for each function or content.

For example, in the case of a container-type virtualized server, one container or multiple containers are defined as one server, and control is performed to increase the number of servers being executed. For example, if the login authentication device 101 detects that a specific user, such as a talent, has logged in, it sends a command to the server management device 105 to increase the number of containers being executed by the login authentication device 101. This increases the number of containers (servers) functioning as the login authentication device 101 (increasing the amount of CPU and memory allocated, which are computer resources), and improves the processing performance of the server.

(Regarding processing of changes in the amount of information delivered)
In the above-described embodiment, an example of reducing the amount of drawing information in the virtual space has been described in relation to the reduction in the amount of information itself when distributed from the distribution server 100 to the user terminal, as explained in steps S403 and S404 of FIG. 19 . The reduced drawing information includes, for example, reducing the number of user avatars. For example, in a room, user avatars located a predetermined distance from the user avatar being operated are displayed, but user avatars located farther than the predetermined distance are not displayed. However, user avatars of specific users such as celebrities or friends (e.g., users being followed) may be displayed even if they are farther than the predetermined distance.

In addition, distribution server 100 may transmit to the user terminal information for each user (information specifying whether or not a user has been selected) that identifies the users the user has followed and that has been previously selected by the user and that is stored in distribution server 100, as well as a list of users currently in the same room, including information for identifying the specific users.The user terminal may then extract the IDs of the following users and the specific users, and request distribution server 100 to display only the avatars of the extracted users as other user avatars.This reduces the processing load on both distribution server 100 and the user terminal.

In addition, the distribution information volume change process may involve either the process for reducing the information requested by the user terminal (e.g., the process for transmitting information to reduce the number of synchronization signal transmissions in step S402 and step S405 in FIG. 19) or the process for reducing the amount of information distributed to the user terminal (e.g., step S403 and step S406 in FIG. 19), whichever is executed first, or may be executed simultaneously. Furthermore, both processes are not limited to being executed in one go, and may be executed in stages depending on the load situation or specific users. For example, if the load is at a relatively light level even in a heavy state, or if a specific user with a relatively low evaluation index is logged in, the process for reducing the number of synchronizations may be executed. Furthermore, if the load is at a heavy level exceeding a predetermined threshold even in a heavy state, or if a specific user with a high evaluation index is logged in, in addition to the process for reducing the number of synchronizations, the process may also reduce the amount of information distributed from distribution server 100 to the user terminal.

<About user devices>
The user terminal operated by the specific user in the above-described embodiment may be the user terminal 300 or the broadcast user terminal 400. Furthermore, the specific user may enter the virtual space from a dedicated application that is different from the applications installed on the user terminals of other users.

<About the room you will be entering>
In the above-described embodiment, an example has been described in which a user can log in to a virtual space from, for example, the screens of Figures 9(A) and 9(B), and then enter a room by selecting a room corresponding to each area from the screen of Figure 9(C). However, this is not limiting, and a room may be automatically assigned (associated) when a user logs in to a virtual space. Alternatively, in Figure 9(C), a room may be automatically assigned by a load balancing function when an area is selected.

<Example of execution order of entry notification process and setting change process>
In the above-described embodiment, the entry notification process such as that shown in Fig. 12 and the setting change process of distribution server 100 shown in Fig. 18 and Fig. 19 may be performed either first or simultaneously. For example, when login authentication device 101 shown in Fig. 16 performs login authentication process for a specific user, login authentication device 101 may first transmit a command to server management device 105 to execute the process, and then transmit information to notification management device 104 to notify that the specific user has logged in.

Furthermore, the setting change processes, the virtual space providing server augmentation process and the distribution information volume change process, may be executed alone, or both may be executed depending on the load situation or the specific user who has entered the room. Alternatively, one may be executed preferentially, and both may be executed depending on the load situation or the specific user who has entered the room. For example, the setting change process of the distribution server 100 may be executed when a specific user logs in, and the entry notification process may be performed when the specific user enters any room.

[Software implementation example]
The various control blocks of the control unit of a computer such as a server or terminal in the above-described embodiments may be implemented by logic circuits (hardware) formed on an integrated circuit (IC chip) or by software using a CPU (Central Processing Unit). When implemented by software using a CPU, the computer equipped with the control unit includes a CPU that executes instructions from a program, which is software that implements each function; a ROM (Read Only Memory) or storage device (collectively referred to as a "recording medium") in which the program and various data are recorded so as to be readable by the computer (or CPU); and a RAM (Random Access Memory) in which the program is deployed. The object of the present invention is achieved when the computer (or CPU) reads and executes the program from the recording medium. The recording medium may be a "non-transitory tangible medium," such as a tape, disk, card, semiconductor memory, or programmable logic circuit. The program may also be supplied to the computer via any transmission medium capable of transmitting the program (such as a communication network or broadcast waves). Note that one aspect of the present invention may also be realized in the form of a data signal embedded in a carrier wave, in which the program is embodied by electronic transmission.

The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the claims, not the above description, and is intended to include all modifications that are equivalent in meaning to and within the scope of the claims.

1 Communication system, 2 Network, 100 Distribution server, 200 Administrator terminal, 300 User terminal, 400 Distribution user terminal, 500 Specific user information medium management server

Claims (12)

A program for causing a computer to perform processing based on a user's entry status into a virtual space,
The computer
a setting means for performing processing to enable a specific user to individually set whether or not to notify other users of the fact that the specific user has entered the virtual space;
when the specific user enters the virtual space and the setting state of the specific user is a setting state for notifying other users, functioning as a notification means that can execute a process for notifying other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space;
Users other than the specific user are not required to set whether or not to notify other users of their entry,
The other users to be notified of the specific user's entry into the virtual space include users who have not entered the virtual space ;
When the specific user is in a setting state of notifying other users of his/her entry into the virtual space, the specific user performs a selection operation to notify the other users when entering the virtual space,
The notification means is a program that performs processing to notify other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space, when the specific user performs a selection operation to notify the other users when entering the virtual space . An evaluation value is set for the user that varies depending on external evaluations that are evaluations from sources other than the user,
The program according to claim 1 , wherein the specific users include users who satisfy a predetermined condition according to the evaluation value. The program described in claim 2, wherein the specified condition includes a condition that is satisfied when the evaluation value is a predetermined value. The program described in claim 1, wherein the specific users include specific users predetermined by the operator of the virtual space. The program described in claim 1, wherein other users who are to be notified when the specific user enters the virtual space include users who are currently in the virtual space. The program described in claim 1, wherein the other users to be notified when the specific user enters the virtual space do not include the user currently in the virtual space. The virtual space includes a plurality of types of virtual spaces that provide different contents,
The program according to claim 1 , wherein the notification means performs processing for notifying other users every time the specific user enters one of the plurality of types of virtual spaces. The virtual space includes a plurality of types of virtual spaces that provide different contents,
The program according to claim 1 , wherein the notification content of the specific user's entry into the virtual space includes information that enables identification of the virtual space into which the specific user has entered from among the plurality of types of virtual spaces. The program of claim 1, wherein the notification means does not perform processing to notify other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space if a predetermined time has not elapsed since the specific user's previous entry into the virtual space. The computer
a storage unit configured to store, for each user, a selected specific user previously selected by the user from among the specific users in response to an operation by the user;
The program according to claim 1, wherein the notification means, when the user who enters the virtual space is the specific user, performs processing to notify users who have selected the specific user as the selected specific user that the specific user has entered the virtual space. A method for causing a computer to perform processing based on a user's entry status into a virtual space, comprising:
performing a process for enabling a specific user to individually set whether or not to notify other users of the fact that the specific user has entered the virtual space;
a step of executing a process for notifying other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space when the specific user has entered the virtual space and the setting state of the specific user is a setting state for notifying other users,
Users other than the specific user are not required to set whether or not to notify other users of their entry,
The other users to be notified of the specific user's entry into the virtual space include users who have not entered the virtual space ;
When the specific user is in a setting state of notifying other users of his/her entry into the virtual space, the specific user performs a selection operation to notify the other users when entering the virtual space,
In the step of enabling the execution of the process for notifying, the method performs a process for notifying the other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space, triggered by the specific user selecting to notify the other users when entering the virtual space . A system including a computer that performs processing based on a user's entry status into a virtual space,
a setting means for performing processing to enable a specific user to individually set whether or not to notify other users of the fact that the specific user has entered the virtual space;
a notification means for executing a process to notify other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space when the specific user has entered the virtual space and the setting state of the specific user is a setting state for notifying other users,
Users other than the specific user are not required to set whether or not to notify other users of their entry,
The other users to be notified of the specific user's entry into the virtual space include users who have not entered the virtual space ;
When the specific user is in a setting state of notifying other users of his/her entry into the virtual space, the specific user performs a selection operation to notify the other users when entering the virtual space,
The notification means performs processing to notify other users that the specific user has entered the virtual space, when the specific user performs a selection operation to notify the other users when entering the virtual space .