阅读说明：本技术 用于具有连续性的内容回放的方法及其电子装置 (Method for content playback with continuity and electronic device thereof ) 是由 崔弼植 丘祯焕 金贤 曹在镛 于 2019-07-31 设计创作，主要内容包括：提供了一种电子装置。电子装置包括显示器、至少一个通信电路、操作地连接到显示器和至少一个通信电路的处理器、以及操作地连接到处理器的存储器。当一个或更多外部电子装置被发现时,电子装置可通过物联网(IoT)服务器从内容提供商(CP)服务器接收包括当前正在电子装置中播放或先前已经在电子装置中播放的内容的信息的用户活动信息,并且可基于所发现的一个或更多外部电子装置和外部电子装置的列表、通过一个或更多外部电子装置中的至少一个来在显示器上显示用于推荐播放当前正在电子装置中播放或先前已经在电子装置中播放的内容的第一UI。(An electronic device is provided. The electronic device includes a display, at least one communication circuit, a processor operatively connected to the display and the at least one communication circuit, and a memory operatively connected to the processor. When one or more external electronic devices are discovered, the electronic device may receive user activity information including information of content currently playing in the electronic device or having been previously played in the electronic device from a Content Provider (CP) server through an internet of things (IoT) server, and may display, on a display, a first UI recommending to play the content currently playing in the electronic device or having been previously played in the electronic device through at least one of the one or more external electronic devices based on a list of the discovered one or more external electronic devices and the external electronic devices.)

1. An electronic device, comprising:

a display;

at least one communication circuit;

a processor operatively connected to the display and the at least one communication circuit; and

a memory operatively connected to the processor,

wherein the memory stores instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to:

receiving, by an IoT server, user activity information from a content provider server when one or more first external electronic devices are discovered, the user activity information including content information of content currently playing in the electronic device or previously playing in the electronic device,

obtaining, from the IoT server, a list comprising one or more second external electronic devices that support content playback for content providers associated with the content provider server based on the user activity information, and

displaying, on the display, a first user interface for recommending playing of the content from one of the one or more first external electronic devices based on a comparison between the one or more first external electronic devices and the one or more second external electronic devices.

2. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

performing at least one of Near Field Communication (NFC), Wi-Fi communication, Electromagnetic (EM) sensing, Bluetooth communication, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) communication, voice recognition, ultrasonic communication, user voice detection, or Neighbor Awareness Networking (NAN) using the at least one communication circuit to discover the one or more external electronic devices.

3. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

determining whether the user activity information indicates that the content is currently playing in the electronic device or previously playing in the electronic device at a particular time, and

obtaining the list from the IoT server when the user activity information indicates that the content is currently playing in the electronic device or was previously playing in the electronic device within the particular time.

4. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

determining whether an external electronic device is included in both the one or more first external electronic devices and the list of the one or more second external electronic devices, and

displaying the first user interface on the display when the external electronic device is included in both the one or more first external electronic devices and the one or more second external electronic devices.

5. The electronic device of claim 4, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

determining whether an input to the first user interface is received to request playback of the content using at least one of the one or more first external electronic devices,

identifying, when the input is received, one or more third external electronic devices included in both the one or more first external electronic devices and the one or more second external electronic devices, and

displaying a second user interface having a second list including the one or more third external electronic devices on the display.

6. The electronic device of claim 5, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

playing the content using an external electronic device of the one or more third external electronic devices corresponding to the user input when the user input to the second list is received.

7. The electronic device of claim 6, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

sending a playback request to the IoT server to play the content using the external electronic device.

8. The electronic device according to claim 7, wherein the playback request includes identification information of the external electronic device, a content provider identifier of the content, and access permission information of the content provider.

9. A method of playing content in an electronic device, the method comprising:

receiving, by an IoT server, user activity information from a content provider server when one or more first external electronic devices are discovered, the user activity information including content information of content currently playing in the electronic device or previously playing in the electronic device;

obtaining, from the IoT server based on the user activity information, a list comprising one or more second external electronic devices that support content playback for content providers associated with the content provider server; and

displaying, on a display, a first user interface for recommending playing of the content from one of the one or more first external electronic devices based on a comparison between the one or more first external electronic devices and the one or more second external electronic devices.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

performing at least one of NFC, Wi-Fi communication, EM sensing, Bluetooth communication, BLE communication, voice recognition, ultrasonic communication, user voice detection, or NAN to discover the one or more first external electronic devices.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein obtaining the list comprises:

determining whether the user activity information indicates that the content is currently playing in the electronic device or was previously playing in the electronic device at a particular time; and

obtaining the list from the IoT server when the user activity information indicates that the content is currently playing in the electronic device or was previously playing in the electronic device within the particular time.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein displaying the first user interface on a display of the electronic device comprises:

determining whether an external electronic device is included in both the one or more first external electronic devices and the one or more second external electronic devices,

displaying the first user interface on the display when the external electronic device is included in both the one or more first external electronic devices and the one or more second external electronic devices.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

determining whether an input to the first user interface is received to request playback of the content using at least one of the one or more first external electronic devices;

identifying, when the input is received, one or more third external electronic devices included in both the one or more first external electronic devices and the one or more second external electronic devices; and

displaying a second user interface on the display, the second user interface having a second list including the one or more third external electronic devices.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

controlling the external electronic device corresponding to the user input among the one or more third external electronic devices to play the content when the user input to the second list is received.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein controlling the external electronic device comprises:

sending a playback request to the IoT server to play the content using the external electronic device.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a method for content playback with continuity and an electronic device thereof.

Background

With the widespread distribution of electronic devices having an internet link function, an internet of things (IoT) environment is being established. In an IoT environment, electronic devices connected via the internet can collect, share, and analyze data to provide more intelligent services. For example, an electronic device may provide a service provided by the electronic device via another electronic device of the user by using data associated with the user.

When a Television (TV) or a multimedia device connected to the TV (e.g., a set-top box) has an internet connection, content (e.g., movies, music, and/or multimedia) from a Content Provider (CP) may be played on the TV via the internet. For example, a user of a mobile device may desire to play content provided by a CP on the mobile device and a television. A user may desire to view content that the user is viewing on a mobile device via another electronic device (e.g., a television).

The above information is presented merely as background information to aid in understanding the present disclosure. No determination is made as to whether any of the above information is applicable as prior art with respect to the present disclosure, nor is an assertion made.

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem

An aspect of the present disclosure is to address at least the above problems and/or disadvantages and to provide at least the advantages described below. Accordingly, an aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a content providing method having content continuity.

The user may attempt to play content between multiple devices seamlessly. For example, a user may desire to play content being played on a mobile device via a Television (TV). In this case, the user may turn on the tv and then may install an application of a Content Provider (CP) on the tv by using an application providing service provided on the tv. Further, the user can log in to the service of the CP by using the application of the CP installed in the tv, and can perform remote playback of the content by selecting the corresponding tv using the mobile device.

In this case, since the process of seamless playback is complicated and many parts of the process are also performed on the television, it may be difficult for the user to perform seamless content playback. For example, because televisions are typically controlled by a remote control and do not have a separate keyboard, it is difficult for a user to install an application using the television and to log in to the application.

Technical scheme

Additional aspects will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the presented embodiments.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, an electronic device is provided. The electronic device includes a display, at least one communication circuit, a processor operatively connected to the display and the at least one communication circuit, and a memory operatively connected to the processor. The memory may store instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to: upon discovering one or more first external electronic devices, receiving, by an internet of things (IoT) server, user activity information from a content provider server, the user activity information including content information of content currently playing in the electronic device or previously playing in the electronic device; obtaining, from the IoT server, a list comprising one or more second external electronic devices based on the user activity information, wherein the one or more second external electronic devices support content playback for a CP associated with the CP server; and displaying a first User Interface (UI) for recommending playing of content from one or more first external electronic devices or one or more second external electronic devices on the display.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, an electronic device is provided. The electronic device includes at least one communication circuit, a processor operatively connected to the at least one communication circuit, and a memory operatively connected to the processor and storing CP metadata. The memory stores instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to: the method includes determining whether an input to a first UI is received to request playback of content using at least one of one or more first external electronic devices, identifying a CP associated with a user activity information request when the user activity information request is received from the first external electronic device, and obtaining user activity information associated with the first external electronic device from a CP server of the CP, and displaying a second UI on a display including a second list, wherein the second list includes one or more third external electronic devices.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a content playing method of an electronic device is provided. When one or more external electronic devices are found, the method includes: receiving, by an internet of things (IoT) server, user activity information from a Content Provider (CP) server, the user activity information including content information of content currently playing in an electronic device or previously playing in the electronic device; obtaining, from the IoT server, a list comprising one or more second external electronic devices based on the user activity information, wherein the one or more second external electronic devices support content playback for a CP associated with the CP server; and displaying a first UI for recommending playing of content from one or more first external electronic devices or one or more second external electronic devices on the display.

Other aspects, advantages, and salient features of the disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, which, taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings, discloses various embodiments of the disclosure.

Advantageous effects

According to various embodiments, a seamless content playback method may be provided.

In addition, various effects directly or indirectly understood through the present disclosure may be provided.

Drawings

The above and other aspects, features and advantages of certain embodiments of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of an electronic device in a network environment, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 illustrates a content playback environment according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of an electronic device in a network environment, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 illustrates a signal flow diagram between applications according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 illustrates a first user interface according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 illustrates a second user interface according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 7 illustrates a signal flow diagram of a Content Provider (CP) registration method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 illustrates a third user interface according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 9 illustrates a signal flow diagram of an apparatus search method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 shows a signal flow diagram of a device setup method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 11 illustrates a signal flow diagram of a content playing method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 12 is a flowchart of a content continuity recommendation method of a first electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 13 is a flowchart of a content continuity playing method of an internet of things (IoT) server according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 14 is a flowchart of a content continuity playing method of a first electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 15 shows a schematic diagram of content sequential playback from a first electronic device to a second electronic device, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

fig. 16 shows a schematic diagram of content sequential playback from a second electronic device to a first electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Throughout the drawings, it should be understood that the same reference numerals are used to depict the same or similar elements, features and structures.

Detailed Description

The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings is provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of various embodiments of the disclosure as defined by the claims and their equivalents. It includes various specific details to aid understanding, but these specific details are to be considered exemplary only. Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the various embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions may be omitted for clarity and conciseness.

The terms and words used in the following description and claims are not limited to the bibliographic meanings, but are used only to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the disclosure. Accordingly, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the following description of various embodiments of the present disclosure is for illustrative purposes only and is not intended to limit the present disclosure, as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

It is understood that the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to "a component surface" includes reference to one or more such surfaces.

Various embodiments of the present disclosure may be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The implementations and terminology used in connection with the implementations are not intended to limit the technology described herein to particular implementations, and are to be understood as including various modifications, equivalents, and/or alternatives to the implementations.

Fig. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an electronic device 101 in a network environment 100, in accordance with various embodiments. Referring to fig. 1, an electronic device 101 in a network environment 100 may communicate with an electronic device 102 via a first network 198 (e.g., a short-range wireless communication network) or with an electronic device 104 or a server 108 via a second network 199 (e.g., a long-range wireless communication network). According to an embodiment, the electronic device 101 may communicate with the electronic device 104 via the server 108. According to an embodiment, the electronic device 101 may include a processor 120, a memory 130, an input device 150, a sound output device 155, a display device 160, an audio module 170, a sensor module 176, an interface 177, a haptic module 179, a camera module 180, a power management module 188, a battery 189, a communication module 190, a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM)196, or an antenna module 197. In some embodiments, at least one of the components (e.g., display device 160 or camera module 180) may be omitted from electronic device 101, or one or more other components may be added to electronic device 101. In some embodiments, some of the components may be implemented as a single integrated circuit. For example, the sensor module 176 (e.g., a fingerprint sensor, an iris sensor, or an illuminance sensor) may be implemented to be embedded in the display device 160 (e.g., a display).

The processor 120 may run, for example, software (e.g., the program 140) to control at least one other component (e.g., a hardware component or a software component) of the electronic device 101 connected to the processor 120, and may perform various data processing or calculations. According to one embodiment, as at least part of the data processing or calculation, processor 120 may load commands or data received from another component (e.g., sensor module 176 or communication module 190) into volatile memory 132, process the commands or data stored in volatile memory 132, and store the resulting data in non-volatile memory 134. According to an embodiment, the processor 120 may include a main processor 121 (e.g., a Central Processing Unit (CPU) or an Application Processor (AP)) and an auxiliary processor 123 (e.g., a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), an Image Signal Processor (ISP), a sensor hub processor, or a Communication Processor (CP)) that is operatively independent of or in conjunction with the main processor 121. Additionally or alternatively, the auxiliary processor 123 may be adapted to consume less power than the main processor 121, or be adapted specifically for a specified function. The auxiliary processor 123 may be implemented separately from the main processor 121 or as part of the main processor 121.

The auxiliary processor 123 may control at least some of the functions or states associated with at least one of the components of the electronic device 101 (e.g., the display device 160, the sensor module 176, or the communication module 190) when the main processor 121 is in an inactive (e.g., sleep) state, or the auxiliary processor 123 may control at least some of the functions or states associated with at least one of the components of the electronic device 101 (e.g., the display device 160, the sensor module 176, or the communication module 190) with the main processor 121 when the main processor 121 is in an active state (e.g., running an application). According to an embodiment, the auxiliary processor 123 (e.g., an image signal processor or a communication processor) may be implemented as part of another component (e.g., the camera module 180 or the communication module 190) that is functionally related to the auxiliary processor 123.

The memory 130 may store various data used by at least one component of the electronic device 101 (e.g., the processor 120 or the sensor module 176). The various data may include, for example, software (e.g., program 140) and input data or output data for commands associated therewith. The memory 130 may include volatile memory 132 or non-volatile memory 134.

The program 140 may be stored in the memory 130 as software, and the program 140 may include, for example, an Operating System (OS)142, middleware 144, or an application 146.

The input device 150 may receive commands or data from outside of the electronic device 101 (e.g., a user) to be used by other components of the electronic device 101 (e.g., the processor 120). The input device 150 may include, for example, a microphone, a mouse, a keyboard, or a digital pen (e.g., a stylus pen).

The sound output device 155 may output a sound signal to the outside of the electronic device 101. The sound output device 155 may include, for example, a speaker or a receiver. The speaker may be used for general purposes such as playing multimedia or playing a record and the receiver may be used for incoming calls. Depending on the embodiment, the receiver may be implemented separate from the speaker, or as part of the speaker.

Display device 160 may visually provide information to the exterior of electronic device 101 (e.g., a user). The display device 160 may include, for example, a display, a holographic device, or a projector, and control circuitry for controlling a respective one of the display, holographic device, and projector. According to embodiments, the display device 160 may include touch circuitry adapted to detect a touch or sensor circuitry (e.g., a pressure sensor) adapted to measure the intensity of a force caused by a touch.

The audio module 170 may convert sound into an electrical signal and vice versa. According to embodiments, the audio module 170 may obtain sound via the input device 150 or output sound via the sound output device 155 or a headset of an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device 102) directly (e.g., wired) connected or wirelessly connected with the electronic device 101.

The sensor module 176 may detect an operating state (e.g., power or temperature) of the electronic device 101 or an environmental state (e.g., state of a user) external to the electronic device 101 and then generate an electrical signal or data value corresponding to the detected state. According to an embodiment, the sensor module 176 may include, for example, a gesture sensor, a gyroscope sensor, an atmospheric pressure sensor, a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, a grip sensor, a proximity sensor, a color sensor, an Infrared (IR) sensor, a biometric sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, or an illuminance sensor.

The interface 177 may support one or more particular protocols to be used to directly (e.g., wired) or wirelessly connect the electronic device 101 with an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device 102). According to an embodiment, the interface 177 may include, for example, a high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI), a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface, a Secure Digital (SD) card interface, or an audio interface.

The connection end 178 may include a connector via which the electronic device 101 may be physically connected with an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device 102). According to an embodiment, the connection end 178 may include, for example, an HDMI connector, a USB connector, an SD card connector, or an audio connector (e.g., a headphone connector).

The haptic module 179 may convert the electrical signal into a mechanical stimulus (e.g., vibration or motion) or an electrical stimulus that may be recognized by the user via his sense of touch or kinesthesia. According to an embodiment, the haptic module 179 may include, for example, a motor, a piezoelectric element, or an electrical stimulator.

The camera module 180 may capture still images or moving images. According to an embodiment, the camera module 180 may include one or more lenses, an image sensor, an image signal processor, or a flash.

The power management module 188 may manage power to the electronic device 101. According to an embodiment, the power management module 188 may be implemented as at least part of a Power Management Integrated Circuit (PMIC), for example.

The battery 189 may power at least one component of the electronic device 101. According to an embodiment, the battery 189 may include, for example, a non-rechargeable primary cell, a rechargeable secondary cell, or a fuel cell.

The communication module 190 may support establishing a direct (e.g., wired) communication channel or a wireless communication channel between the electronic device 101 and an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device 102, the electronic device 104, or the server 108), and performing communication via the established communication channel. The communication module 190 may include one or more communication processors capable of operating independently of the processor 120 (e.g., an Application Processor (AP)) and supporting direct (e.g., wired) communication or wireless communication. According to an embodiment, the communication module 190 may include a wireless communication module 192 (e.g., a cellular communication module, a short-range wireless communication module, or a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) communication module) or a wired communication module 194 (e.g., a Local Area Network (LAN) communication module or a Power Line Communication (PLC) module). A respective one of these communication modules may communicate with external electronic devices via a first network 198 (e.g., a short-range communication network such as bluetooth, wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) direct, or infrared data association (IrDA)) or a second network 199 (e.g., a long-range communication network such as a cellular network, the internet, or a computer network (e.g., a LAN or Wide Area Network (WAN))). These various types of communication modules may be implemented as a single component (e.g., a single chip), or may be implemented as multiple components (e.g., multiple chips) that are separate from one another. The wireless communication module 192 may identify and authenticate the electronic device 101 in a communication network, such as the first network 198 or the second network 199, using subscriber information, such as an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), stored in the subscriber identity module 196.

The antenna module 197 may transmit signals or power to or receive signals or power from outside of the electronic device 101 (e.g., an external electronic device). According to an embodiment, the antenna module 197 may include an antenna including a radiating element composed of a conductive material or conductive pattern formed in or on a substrate (e.g., a PCB). According to an embodiment, the antenna module 197 may include a plurality of antennas. In this case, at least one antenna suitable for a communication scheme used in a communication network, such as the first network 198 or the second network 199, may be selected from the plurality of antennas by, for example, the communication module 190 (e.g., the wireless communication module 192). Signals or power may then be transmitted or received between the communication module 190 and the external electronic device via the selected at least one antenna. According to an embodiment, additional components other than the radiating element, such as a Radio Frequency Integrated Circuit (RFIC), may be additionally formed as part of the antenna module 197.

At least some of the above components may be interconnected and communicate signals (e.g., commands or data) communicatively between them via an inter-peripheral communication scheme (e.g., bus, General Purpose Input Output (GPIO), Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI), or Mobile Industry Processor Interface (MIPI)).

According to an embodiment, commands or data may be sent or received between the electronic device 101 and the external electronic device 104 via the server 108 connected with the second network 199. Each of the electronic device 102 and the electronic device 104 may be the same type of device as the electronic device 101 or a different type of device from the electronic device 101. According to embodiments, all or some of the operations to be performed at the electronic device 101 may be performed at one or more of the external electronic device 102, the external electronic device 104, or the server 108. For example, if the electronic device 101 should automatically perform a function or service or should perform a function or service in response to a request from a user or another device, the electronic device 101 may request the one or more external electronic devices to perform at least part of the function or service instead of or in addition to performing the function or service. The one or more external electronic devices that received the request may perform the requested at least part of the functions or services or perform another function or another service related to the request and transmit the result of the execution to the electronic device 101. The electronic device 101 may provide the result as at least a partial reply to the request with or without further processing of the result. To this end, for example, cloud computing technology, distributed computing technology, or client-server computing technology may be used.

In various embodiments, which will be described below, the operations of the electronic device 101 may be performed by the processor 120. For example, the processor 120 may control the operation of the electronic device 101 based on instructions stored in the memory 130.

Fig. 2 illustrates a content playback environment according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 2, a user 290 of a first electronic device 201 may view content provided by a CP in a content playback environment. For example, the first electronic device 201 may provide content to the user 290 by receiving a content stream from the CP server 241. According to an embodiment, the user 290 may log into the CP-server 241 using the first electronic device 201. For example, the user 290 may log in to the CP server 241 using a CP application installed in the first electronic device 201. In another example, user 290 may log into CP server 241 using information stored in account server 231 based on an account link between CP server 241 and internet of things (IoT) server 221. An embodiment when the first electronic device 201 is a mobile device is illustrated in fig. 2. However, the first electronic device 201 is not limited thereto. The first electronic device 201 may be a user device having a multimedia playback function. For example, the first electronic device 201 may be an electronic device having a configuration similar to that of the electronic device 101 of fig. 1.

According to various embodiments, the user 290 may view content from the CP using the second electronic device 211. For example, second electronic device 211 may provide content to user 290 by receiving a content stream from CP server 241. For example, user 290 may log into CP server 241 using a CP application or account link provided to second electronic device 211. An embodiment when the second electronic device 211 is a television (tv) is illustrated in fig. 2. However, the second electronic device 211 is not limited thereto. The second electronic device 211 may be a user device having a multimedia playback function. For example, the second electronic device 211 may be an electronic device having a configuration similar to that of the electronic device 101 of fig. 1.

According to various embodiments, content playback with continuity (e.g., seamless content playback) may be supported between first electronic device 201 and second electronic device 211. For example, content playback with continuity may mean that content played by the first electronic device 201 is played continuously by the second electronic device 211. In the content playback with continuity, when the user 290 plays the corresponding content in the second electronic device 211 after the user 290 plays the content in the first electronic device 201 to a first time point, the second electronic device 211 may play the corresponding content from a second time point corresponding to the first time point. For example, the second point in time may be the same as or similar to the first point in time.

According to an embodiment, the CP associated with CP server 241 may be a CP supporting content playback with continuity (e.g., seamless content playback) and may be registered in IoT server 221. According to an embodiment, when the user 290 plays the content provided from the CP server 241 in the first electronic device 201, the first electronic device 201 may recommend the content playback with continuity to the user 290 when the second electronic device 211 supporting the content playback with continuity is found or when a user input for the content playback with continuity is received. For example, when at least one external electronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 211) discovered to support content playback with continuity supports the CP associated with the CP server 241, the first electronic device 201 may recommend content playback with continuity. For example, the first electronic device 201 may discover at least one external electronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 211) using Near Field Communication (NFC), device-to-device (D2D) communication, Wi-Fi, Electromagnetic (EM) sensing, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Neighbor Aware Network (NAN), voice recognition, ultrasonic communication, and/or user voice detection. For example, the first electronic device 201 may recommend content playback with continuity through a content continuity platform supported by the IoT server 221. For example, the first electronic device 201 may display the found at least one external electronic device on the display as a recommendation for content playback with continuity. According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may perform content playback with continuity through the second electronic device 211 based on a user input of a recommendation for content playback with continuity. For example, when receiving a user input selecting the second electronic device 211 among a plurality of external electronic devices (e.g., found external electronic devices), the first electronic device 201 may perform content playback with continuity through the second electronic device 211. After the first electronic device 201 opens the second electronic device 211, then, after the booting is completed, the first electronic device 201 may allow the second electronic device 211 to log in to the CP server 241 using the user account of the first electronic device 201 and control the second electronic device 211 to play the content having the continuity. For example, when second electronic device 211 does not include a CP application associated with CP server 241, IoT server 221 may control second electronic device 211 to cause second electronic device 211 to install the CP device application. Hereinafter, a method, process, platform, and/or service for content playback with continuity may be referred to as content continuity. For example, hereinafter, content playback with continuity may be referred to as content continuity playback.

According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 and/or the second electronic device 211 may be referred to as an IoT device. For example, an IoT device may refer to an IoT-enabled device. The IoT devices may connect to the IoT server 221 through any communication network, such as the internet.

According to an embodiment, the second electronic device 211 may comprise an IoT agent. IoT agents may refer to software modules of IoT devices that communicate with IoT server 221. For example, an IoT agent may be referred to as an IoT application. The IoT agent may identify the CP device application regarding the content playback status query request and the content playback request transmitted from IoT server 221 and may communicate with IoT server 221.

According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 and/or the second electronic device 211 may be devices that support content continuity. An electronic device that supports content continuity may be referred to as a continuity device. An IoT agent (e.g., an IoT application) of an electronic device (e.g., an IoT device) that supports content continuity may have a continuity resource. The IoT agent may use the continuity resource to inform another electronic device whether content continuity is supported. For example, the continuity resource may include information indicating that content continuity and/or associated CP information is supported. According to an embodiment, an IoT agent may communicate with a software module for media playback in an IoT device. For example, the IoT agent may request a software module for media playback to play content, or may query the current playback state.

According to an embodiment, IoT server 221 may store information for CPs that support content continuity. For example, IoT server 221 may provide information of a CP supporting content continuity to first electronic device 201 and/or second electronic device 211. According to an embodiment, IoT server 221 may store information for at least one CP linked to an account (e.g., IoT account) of user 290. According to an embodiment, IoT server 221 may query CP server 241 for the status (e.g., login and/or playback status) of user 290 and/or playlists associated with user 290. According to an embodiment, IoT server 221 may search for a continuity device (e.g., first electronic device 201 and/or second electronic device 211) associated with the account of user 290 and may request content playback with continuity from the continuity device associated with the account of user 290.

According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may comprise an IoT mobile app. For example, an IoT mobile app (e.g., an IoT app) may monitor and control an IoT device (e.g., second electronic device 211) connected to IoT server 221 through an account (e.g., an IoT account) of user 290. The IoT mobile application may obtain information of the CP supporting content continuity and/or information of the CP associated with (e.g., linked to) the account of the user 290 from the IoT server 221. The IoT mobile application may obtain, from the CP server 241 through the IoT server 221, the status of the user 290 associated with the CP server 241 and/or the playlist associated with the account of the user 290. The IoT mobile application may search for a continuity device associated with the account of the user 290 and may request content continuity playback from the continuity device (e.g., the second electronic device 211). The IoT mobile app may participate in the media router framework by publishing the media such that the CP device app of the second electronic device 211 connects to the media to play the media.

For example, the media router framework may be an interface provided by the OS of first electronic device 201 and/or second electronic device 211. According to embodiments, a CP application using a media router framework may support search of external electronic devices, linking of external electronic devices, and/or media playback via external electronic devices using an abstract interface that is independent of the type, manufacturer, and/or protocol of the device. For example, a manufacturer of an electronic device participating in the media router framework may register a media router for the manufacturer in the OS of first electronic device 201 to cause an electronic device (e.g., second electronic device 211) to run through the media router framework. According to an embodiment, the media router framework may support media remote playback for a remote receiver device (e.g., second electronic device 211) in the OS of first electronic device 201. For example, a CP application included in the first electronic device 201 may play media in a continuity device (e.g., the second electronic device 211) participating in the media router framework through the media router framework.

According to an embodiment, the account server 231 may manage accounts for users 290 associated with the IoT mobile application. For example, the account server 231 may manage and/or store account information (e.g., account identification information) associated with the IoT application and link information for the CP account associated with the account. For example, account server 231 may manage and/or store IoT account information (e.g., account identifier) of IoT server 221 of user 290, CP account information (e.g., account identifier) of CP server 241 of user 290, and link information between IoT account information and CP account information. According to an embodiment, the user 290 may interlock the CP account to the user 290's IoT account using an IoT app or a mobile IoT app.

According to an embodiment, a CP mobile application (e.g., a CP application) may request content playback with continuity from a continuity device (e.g., the second electronic device 211) using a media router framework. For example, the CP mobile application may be an application provided by a CP installed in the first electronic device 201. The CP mobile application may control login to the CP server 241 and reception of content from the CP server 241.

According to an embodiment, the second electronic device 211 may include a CP device application (e.g., a CP application). For example, the CP device application may be a playback-related software module of the CP included in the continuity device. For example, the CP device application may receive login and playback requests from the IoT agent, and then may play the requested content in the second electronic device 211 based on the playback request after logging in to the CP server 241 based on the login information. For example, the CP device application may receive status queries from the IoT agent and may respond to the IoT agent with the login status of the user 290 and/or information associated with the playback status.

According to an embodiment, an IoT agent included in second electronic device 211 may receive a login status and/or playback status query request from IoT server 221, and when a CP device application is not installed in second electronic device 211, IoT server 221 may be notified that the CP device application is not installed. After IoT server 221 determines whether the CP device application can be installed in second electronic device 211, IoT server 221 may transmit a CP device application installation request to an IoT agent of second electronic device 211 when it can be installed. After the IoT agent of the second electronic device 211 downloads and installs the CP device application, the IoT agent may transmit a signal indicating that the installation is complete to the IoT server 221. For example, the IoT agent of the second electronic device 211 may access the CP server 241 and may download the CP device application.

FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of an electronic device in a network environment, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 3, a network environment 300 is shown. According to various embodiments, the first electronic device 201 may include a processor 320 (e.g., the processor 120 of fig. 1), a memory 330 (e.g., the memory 130 of fig. 1), a display 360 (e.g., the display device 160 of fig. 1), and a communication circuit 390 (e.g., the communication module 190 of fig. 1). For example, processor 320 is operatively connected to memory 330, display 360, and communication circuitry 390. The operations of the first electronic device 201 may be performed by the processor 320. For example, memory 330 may store instructions that allow processor 320 to perform specific operations.

According to various embodiments, the second electronic device 211 may include a processor 321 (e.g., the processor 120 of fig. 1), a memory 331 (e.g., the memory 130 of fig. 1), a display 361 (e.g., the display device 160 of fig. 1), and a communication circuit 391 (e.g., the communication module 190 of fig. 1). For example, the processor 321 is operatively connected to the memory 331, the display 361, and the communication circuit 391. The operations of the second electronic device 211 may be performed by the processor 321. For example, memory 331 may store instructions that allow processor 321 to perform specific operations.

An embodiment is illustrated in fig. 3, where each IoT server 221, account server 231, and CP server 241 are shown as a single server. However, the various embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. For example, at least one of IoT server 221, account server 231, or CP server 241 may be comprised of multiple servers. In another example, IoT server 221, account server 231, and/or CP server 241 may be integrated with a single server.

According to various embodiments, the first electronic device 201 may communicate with the IoT server 221, the account server 231, and the CP server 241 over a second network (e.g., the second network 199 of fig. 1). The first electronic device 201 may communicate with the second electronic device 211 over the second network 199 and/or a first network (e.g., the first network 198 of fig. 1).

CP information for IoT Server 221

According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may store and/or manage information associated with CPs. For example, IoT server 221 may store CP metadata and application metadata (e.g., authentication methods, application information, and/or information associated with continuity link methods). IoT server 221 may store and/or manage information associated with at least one CP.

According to an embodiment, the CP metadata may include information on content continuity supported by the CP. For example, the CP metadata may include account link information and/or CP identification information between the IoT account and the CP account. For example, the CP metadata may include a CP identifier, a CP name, CP registration version information, CP type information (e.g., a partner or developer), CP support content information (e.g., general, movie, television program, music, and/or broadcast), continuity link information (e.g., continuity of using links between applications or continuity of using links between cloud services), CP company name, CP Uniform Resource Locator (URL), CP icon information (e.g., icon position (URL) and/or icon display size), CP support country information, CP description information, and/or IoT account link information (e.g., account link information between IoT accounts and CP accounts).

According to an embodiment, the application metadata may include device information supporting the continuity of the CP, application information supporting the continuity of the CP, and/or authentication method information. For example, the application metadata may include an application identifier, an application name, an application address (e.g., a Uniform Resource Indicator (URI)) on a device, authentication information, information about a type of device capable of executing the application, developer information of the application, execution OS information of the application, and/or information about a name of a device model capable of executing the application. For example, the authentication information may include information associated with encryption to be applied to authentication of the application. For example, the authentication information may include information about logging into the CP server 241 through the IoT account link and/or encryption information for authentication.

CP device application installation of the second electronic device 211

According to various embodiments, the second electronic device 211 may register in the IoT server 221. For example, a user of first electronic device 201 may register second electronic device 211 in IoT server 221 using the IoT mobile application of first electronic device 201. In another example, a user may register second electronic device 211 in IoT server 221 using an IoT application for second electronic device 211. The user may register second electronic device 211 in IoT server 221 by logging in to IoT server 221 using the IoT application of second electronic device 211 based on the user's account (e.g., the IoT account associated with first electronic device 201).

According to an embodiment, when the second electronic device 211 supports content continuity, information indicating that the second electronic device 211 supports content continuity may be stored in the IoT server 221. For example, second electronic device 211 may be registered in an IoT account associated with first electronic device 201.

According to an embodiment, after registering the second electronic device 211, the IoT agent of the second electronic device 211 may install the CP device application in the second electronic device 211. For example, the IoT agent may receive CP information (e.g., a CP device application address) of a CP associated with the user account of the second electronic device 211 from the IoT server 221. The IoT agent may use the CP information to determine whether a corresponding CP device application can be installed in the second electronic device 211, and may use the CP information to install the CP device application in the second electronic device 211 when it can be installed. For example, after installing the CP device application, second electronic device 211 may transmit information indicating that the installation is complete to IoT server 221.

Discovery of second electronic device 211

According to various embodiments, the first electronic device 201 may discover the second electronic device 211. For example, while moving during media playback, a user of first electronic device 201 may approach second electronic device 211 using a CP mobile application of first electronic device 201. For example, the IoT mobile app of the first electronic device 201 may discover the second electronic device 211 by receiving a device list (e.g., a list of devices that support content continuity) from the IoT server 221. In another example, the first electronic device 201 may discover the second electronic device 211 by searching for external electronic devices based on user input associated with content continuity. In another example, the first electronic device 201 may discover the second electronic device 211 based at least on the found external electronic device and a list of devices received from the IoT server 221.

According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may discover the second electronic device 211 based on proximity identification. For example, the first electronic device 201 may discover the second electronic device 211 using NFC, D2D communication, Wi-Fi, EM sensing, bluetooth, BLE, NAN, voice recognition, ultrasonic communication, and/or user voice recognition.

According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may use the CP device application to determine whether the second electronic device 211 discovered using the CP mobile application is capable of playing media being played in the first electronic device 201. For example, the first electronic device 201 may determine whether the second electronic device 211 supports the CP device application by receiving a device list supporting the CP device application from the IoT server 221. For example, the first electronic device 201 may distinguish the second electronic device 211 as a discovered device only when the second electronic device 211 supports the CP device application.

4. Recommendation of content continuity

According to various embodiments, the mobile application of the first electronic device 201 may recommend content continuity playback when a device supporting content continuity is turned off (e.g., discovered). For example, the first electronic device 201 may use information stored in the IoT server 221 to determine whether the discovered device (e.g., the second electronic device 211) is a continuity device. According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may provide the user with a list of electronic devices supporting content continuity when a specific condition is satisfied. For example, the first electronic device 201 may provide the user with a list of electronic devices that support content continuity when the media from the CP is currently playing in the first electronic device 201 or when the first electronic device 201 plays the media from the CP within a specific time.

According to various embodiments, the first electronic device 201 may recommend content continuity based on continuity link information of the respective CPs in different methods (e.g., using continuity of links between applications or using continuity of links between clouds).

4-1. content continuity using links between applications

When the continuity link information of the CP for recommending content continuity indicates a link between applications, the IoT mobile application of the first electronic device 201 may support content continuity using communication with the CP mobile application in the first electronic device 201.

Fig. 4 shows a signal flow diagram between applications according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 4, a signal flow diagram 400 is shown. IoT APP (APP)402 may be referred to as an IoT mobile APP for first electronic apparatus 201, and CPAPP401 may be referred to as a CP mobile APP for first electronic apparatus 201.

Referring to fig. 4, in operation 405, IoT APP 402 may request current user activity information from CP APP401, according to various embodiments. For example, IoT APP 402 may transmit a request for user activity information to CP APP 401.

According to various embodiments, in operation 410, CP APP401 may transmit user activity information to IoT APP 402. According to an embodiment, the user activity information may include information of content associated with the CP server 241, and the content is currently playing in the first electronic device 201 or previously playing in the first electronic device 201. For example, the user activity information may include information of content adopted by the user of the first electronic device 201 and playback information of the content from the CP server 241. For example, the user activity information may include: whether content currently being played exists, recently played content information (e.g., timestamp information of the recently played content), linked account information (e.g., CP account information associated with an IoT account of the user of the first electronic device 201), project information, progress information (e.g., a current or last playback progress position of the content), offset information, and/or a number of available projects.

For example, the item information may include a content identifier (e.g., a content identifier defined by the CP and/or an external database), content description information, and/or content-related information (e.g., a content-related image). For example, the content description information may include the type of content (e.g., general, movie, television program, music, and/or radio), release date, broadcast date, title, subtitle, artist, album title, content-related image information (e.g., display size and image address information), composer, disc number, track number, season number, album number, series title, studio, and/or language.

According to various embodiments, IoT APP 402 may determine whether to recommend content continuity based on user activity information. According to various embodiments, when determining recommended content continuity, the IOT APP 402 may provide a first User Interface (UI) in operation 415. For example, IoT APP 402 may provide the first UI when currently playing content is present in the user activity information, or when content playing within a particular time based on timestamp information is present.

FIG. 5 illustrates a first user interface according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 5, the first electronic device 201 may display a first UI 500 in a partial area of the display 360, according to various embodiments. According to an embodiment, the first UI 500 may include CP information 510 for recommending continuity of content. For example, the CP information 510 may include the name of the CP. According to an embodiment, the first UI 500 may include a CP image 520. For example, the CP image 520 may be an icon corresponding to a CP. According to an embodiment, the first UI 500 may include a guide 530 indicating a device supporting the content continuity that has been discovered. For example, the guide 530 may include a name 540 of the content for performing content continuity. According to an embodiment, the first UI 500 may include a first button 551 for disabling content continuity recommendations, a second button 552 for rejecting current content continuity recommendations, and/or a third button 553 for allowing content continuity recommendations. For example, when an input to the third button 553 is received, the first electronic device 201 may provide the second UI through the display 360.

Referring to fig. 4, the first UI may be omitted. That is, when the content continuity recommendation is deactivated, the first electronic device 201 may not perform the operation associated with the content continuity recommendation. In another example, when the first electronic device 201 is configured to always perform content continuity recommendation, the first electronic device 201 may provide the second UI 600 of fig. 6 without providing the first UI 500.

According to various embodiments, in operation 420, IoT APP 402 may provide a second UI.

FIG. 6 illustrates a second user interface according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 6, the first electronic device 201 may display a second UI 600 in a partial area of the display 360, according to various embodiments. According to an embodiment, the second UI 600 may include CP information 610 for recommending continuity of content. For example, the CP information 610 may include the name of the CP. According to an embodiment, the second UI 600 may include a guide 620 indicating a device that supports the continuity of content that has been discovered. For example, the guide 620 may include a name 630 of a CP for performing content continuity. In another example, the name 630 of the CP may be replaced with information associated with the content (e.g., the name of the content).

According to an embodiment, the second UI 600 may include a list 640 of continuity means for content continuity playback. For example, the list 640 may include information of a continuity device supporting continuity associated with a corresponding CP. For example, the list 640 may include a list of continuity devices associated with the first electronic device 201 and received from the IoT server 221, such as television 1 shown in button 641 and television 2 shown in button 642. For example, the list 640 may include a list of continuity devices associated with the first electronic device 201 among the electronic devices discovered by the first electronic device 201 received from the IoT server 221. For example, as shown in fig. 6, at least a portion of the discovered continuity devices may be omitted in the list 640 and may be displayed upon selection of the additional information button 643. According to an embodiment, the list of continuity devices for content continuity playback 640 may show that the electronic device discovered by the first electronic device 201 and the electronic device received from the IoT server 221 are different from each other.

Referring to fig. 4, in operation 425, IoT APP 402 may receive input for a continuity device. For example, IoT APP 402 may obtain information for a continuity device (e.g., second electronic device 211) to perform content continuity playback by receiving a user selection of the second UI.

In operation 430, IoT APP 402 may transmit a user activity information transmission request to CP APP401, in accordance with various embodiments. For example, the user activity information transfer request may include an identifier of the selected continuity device. In operation 435, CP APP401 may transmit a response to IoT APP 402 indicating that transmission of the user activity information is allowed or denied.

According to an embodiment, in operation 440, CP APP401 may transmit a response to IoT APP 402 indicating that transmission of the user activity information is allowed, and CP APP401 may perform remote playback control using the media router. For example, CP APP401 may transmit content information (e.g., a content object) to a device corresponding to device information received from IoT APP 402 using a media router. For example, the content information may include information of content to be played, current playback position information of the content to be played, a total number of content items included in the content information, offset information of corresponding content items in the entire content items, and/or container information of user status information. For example, when the size of the content information exceeds a certain capacity (e.g., an intended certain maximum capacity), the CP APP401 may divide and transmit the content information into a plurality of messages. For example, CP APP401 may use a media router to transmit content information to second electronic device 211.

Referring to fig. 3, according to an embodiment, when the CP supports an account linked to an IoT account, the IoT server 221 may transmit information (e.g., credentials) for accessing the CP server 241 to the second electronic device 211. For example, the credentials may include an IoT account identifier, an IoT account username, a client identifier obtained from the CP, a CP account identifier, an IoT account authentication code for the CP, and/or a backend endpoint address of the account server 231 for user identification. According to an embodiment, the second electronic device 211 may play the content from the CP server 241 using the information for accessing the CP server 241. For example, the second electronic device 211 may log in to the CP server 241 using information for accessing the CP server 241, an IoT account of the user with the first electronic device 201, and a CP account connected to the IoT account.

4-2 content continuity through links between clouds

Referring to fig. 3, when the continuity link information of the CP for content continuity recommendation indicates a link between cloud services, the IoT mobile application of the first electronic device 201 may support content continuity using communication with the IoT server 221.

According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may request current user activity information from the IoT server 221. For example, to obtain user activity information, IoT server 221 may request access permission (e.g., a token) from account server 231 for accessing CP server 241. For example, IoT server 221 may request access permission to access a CP account associated with the IoT account of first electronic device 201.

According to an embodiment, IoT server 221 may obtain activity information of the current user from CP server 241 using the access permission. For example, IoT server 221 may receive information from CP server 241 that is similar to the user activity information described with reference to fig. 4.

According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may transmit user activity information to first electronic device 201, and first electronic device 201 may determine whether to recommend content continuity based on the user activity information. For example, the first electronic device 201 may perform content continuity recommendation when content currently being played exists in the user activity information or when content played within a specific time based on the time stamp information exists. When performing the content continuity recommendation, the first electronic device 201 may receive list information of electronic devices supporting the content continuity for the corresponding CP from the IoT server 221.

According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may determine whether to recommend content continuity based on the user activity information. According to various embodiments, when determining the recommended content continuity, the IoT server 221 may transmit list information of electronic devices supporting the content continuity for the corresponding CP to the first electronic device 201. For example, when receiving the electronic device list information, the first electronic device 201 may provide a first UI (e.g., the first UI 500 of fig. 5) or a second UI (e.g., the second UI 600 of fig. 6). For example, IoT server 221 may determine the content continuity recommendation when content currently being played exists in the user activity information or when content playing within a particular time based on the timestamp information exists.

According to various embodiments, the first electronic device 201 may receive the continuity device selection by providing a second UI (e.g., the second UI 600 of fig. 6) and then receiving an input to the second UI 600. For example, the first electronic device 201 may provide the second UI 600 based on user input to the first UI. The description regarding the second UI 600 may refer to the description associated with the example of fig. 6.

According to an embodiment, when the continuity device is selected, the first electronic device 201 may transmit a device ready request to the IoT server 221. When the CP supports account linking but the link between the CP account and the IoT account is released, the first electronic device 201 may provide a UI indicating that the account link is released.

According to an embodiment, IoT server 221 may transmit a standby command (e.g., power on) to second electronic device 211 when the device ready request is received. The second electronic device 211 may be powered on according to the standby command. The IoT agent of the second electronic device 211 may determine whether the CP device application is currently installed in the second electronic device 211. When the CP device application is not installed, the IoT agent of the second electronic device 211 may attempt to install the CP device application. In another example, when the CP device application is not installed in the second electronic device 211, the IoT agent of the second electronic device 211 may transmit a response to the IoT server 221 to cancel the content continuity playback.

According to an embodiment, the IoT agent of the second electronic device 211 may use the renderer resource (e.g., CP device application information) to determine whether the CP device application is installed. For example, the renderer resource may include content continuity version information, IoT account identifiers, activated renderer identifiers, and/or available renderer information in the device. The available renderer information may include at least one piece of renderer information. For example, the renderer information may include a renderer identifier, a renderer name, a content renderer supported content type (e.g., general, movie, video, television program, music, and/or broadcast), a package name of a CP device application, fingerprint information indicating that a hash function of the secure hash algorithm 1(SHA1) has been applied to a signer's public key, application address information, information regarding actions requested from IoT server 221 (e.g., renderer information search request, renderer application installation request, user addition request, content playback request, and/or renderer termination request), current state information (e.g., installation, standby, playback, termination, and/or busy of renderer application), result information regarding requested actions, final update time information, session Identifier (ID), credentials, and/or content information to be played based on content continuity playback. For example, the credentials may include an IoT account identifier, an IoT account username, a client identifier obtained from the CP, a CP account identifier, an IoT account authentication code for the CP, and/or a backend endpoint address of the account server 231 for user identification.

According to various embodiments, when the second electronic device 211 is ready, the first electronic device 201 requests the permission code "validation code" for the IoT account for the CP account from the account server 231. For example, the first electronic device 201 may obtain information indicating that the second electronic device 211 is ready through the IoT server 221.

According to various embodiments, upon receiving the permission code, the first electronic device 201 may transmit a playback request to the IoT server 221. For example, the playback request may include the license code, the device identifier of the second electronic device 211, and the CP account identifier.

According to various embodiments, upon receiving the playback request, IoT server 221 may obtain access permission (e.g., a token) for CP server 241 from account server 231 using a permission code included in the playback request. IoT server 221 may obtain user activity information (e.g., whether content currently playing exists, recently played content information (e.g., timestamp information for recently played content), linked account information (e.g., CP account information associated with IoT accounts for users of first electronic device 201), project information, progress information (e.g., current or last playback progress position of the content), offset information, and/or number of available projects) using the obtained access permissions. The description on the user activity information may refer to a description of content continuity based on a link between applications.

According to an embodiment, IoT server 221 may transmit the playback request to the IoT agent of second electronic device 211. For example, the playback request may include at least a portion of the user activity information, the authentication code, the IoT account information, the CP client identifier, and/or the link information between the CP device application and the IoT agent. For example, the second electronic device 211 may log into the CP server 241 using the authentication code, the IoT account information, and the CP client identifier.

According to an embodiment, when the second electronic device 211 logs in to the CP server 241 by using an account of the first electronic device 201, the first electronic device 201 that logs in to the CP server 241 with the same account may be charged. For example, the second electronic device 211 may perform content continuity playback by receiving a stream from the CP server 241. For example, when the second electronic device 211 interrupts (i.e., terminates) the content continuous playback, the first electronic device 201 may perform the content continuous playback from a time point corresponding to a time point at which the playback of the second electronic device 211 is interrupted after logging in to the CP server 241 again.

According to an embodiment, the second electronic device 211 logs in to the CP server 241 by using an account of the first electronic device 201, and the first electronic device 201 may interrupt playback of the content being played. For example, when the second electronic device 211 performs content continuity playback, the first electronic device 201 may remain in a state in which the first electronic device 201 logs in to the CP server 241. For example, when the second electronic device 211 interrupts (i.e., terminates) the content continuous playback, the first electronic device 201 may perform the content continuous playback from a time point corresponding to a time point at which the playback of the second electronic device 211 is interrupted.

According to an embodiment, when the first electronic device 201 discovers the second electronic device 211 by performing NFC, Wi-Fi communication, EM sensing, bluetooth communication, BLE communication, voice recognition, ultrasonic communication, user voice recognition, or NAN communication, the first electronic device 201 may support content continuity playback through the second electronic device 211 even if the first electronic device 201 does not receive a user input. For example, when the first electronic device 201 is configured to always perform content continuity recommendation and when the second electronic device 211 supports content continuity playback, the first electronic device 201 may support content continuity playback through the second electronic device 211 without user input. For example, the second electronic device 211 may be an electronic device having a history of supporting continuous playback of content through the first electronic device 201.

Fig. 7 illustrates a signal flow diagram of a CP registration method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 7, a registration method 700 is shown. In operation 705, the first electronic device 201 may receive a user input for CP registration. For example, in operation 705, the first electronic device 201 may receive a user input to request provision of a CP list. For example, the request for the CP list may include a request for information to support CPs for accounts linked to IoT accounts.

According to various embodiments, in operation 710, the first electronic device 201 may transmit an available CP list request to the IoT server 221. For example, the first electronic device 201 may transmit an available CP list request in response to receiving a user input.

According to various embodiments, the IoT server 221 may transmit the CP list to the first electronic device 201 in operation 715. For example, IoT server 221 may generate a CP list supporting accounts of the IoT account linked to first electronic device 201 using the CP metadata of IoT server 221, and may transmit the generated CP list to first electronic device 201.

FIG. 8 illustrates a third user interface according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 8, a user interface is shown. Referring to fig. 7 and 8, in operation 720, the first electronic device 201 may receive a user input. For example, the first electronic device 201 may provide the third UI and may receive a user input to the third UI. Referring to fig. 8, according to various embodiments, the first electronic device 201 may provide a third UI 800 through the display 360 based on a user input (e.g., a user input to a CP list). According to an embodiment, the third UI 800 may include a CP list 810 and a recommended CP list 820 currently registered in the IoT account of the first electronic device 201. For example, the registered CP list 810 may include information of a CP corresponding to a CP account connected to the IoT account of the first electronic device 201 and stored in the account server 231. For example, the recommended CP list 820 may include a list of CPs that can connect to IoT accounts even if there is no IoT account connected to the first electronic device 201 (i.e., CPs that support accounts linked to IoT accounts), such as CP2 in indication 821 and CP2 in indication 822. For example, recommended CP list 820 may include at least a portion of a CP list received from IoT server 221. For example, a portion of the registered CP list 810 and/or the recommended CP list 820 and the omission indication 823 may be omitted together.

Referring to fig. 7, according to an embodiment, when an input (i.e., indication 821 or indication 822) to one CP of the recommended CP list 820 of fig. 8 is received, the first electronic device 201 may transmit a link state information request of a CP account of the CP corresponding to the received input to the IoT server 221 in operation 725. For example, the account link status information may include information indicating whether an account of the CP corresponding to the received input is linked to an IoT account of the first electronic device 201.

According to various embodiments, in operation 730, the first electronic device 201 may receive account link state information from the IoT server 221. For example, the account link status information may include information indicating that the IoT account of the first electronic device 201 is not linked to the CP account.

According to an embodiment, in operation 710, the first electronic device 201 may receive a CP list including CP information not associated with an IoT account of the first electronic device 201 from the IoT server 221. In this case, operations 725 and 730 may be omitted.

According to various embodiments, when the account link status information indicates that the IoT account of the first electronic device 201 is not linked to the CP account, the first electronic device 201 may transmit an account link request to the account server 231 in operation 735. For example, the account link request may include information of the IoT account and/or CP account for which account link is requested.

According to various embodiments, in operation 740, account server 231 may transmit the redirect URL to IoT server 221. For example, account server 231 may transmit the backend endpoint address of account server 231 to IoT server 221.

According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may request a CP token for accessing the CP account from account server 231 by using the received URL in operation 745. In operation 750, account server 231 may transmit the CP token to IoT server 221. For example, IoT server 221 may use the CP token to connect the CP account corresponding to the CP token to the IoT account of first electronic device 201.

According to various embodiments, the first electronic device 201 may request an activated CP list in operation 755. For example, the first electronic device 201 may request CP list information corresponding to CP accounts linked to IoT accounts in the IoT server 221. In operation 760, the IoT server 221 may transmit a CP list corresponding to a CP account linked to the IoT account of the first electronic device 201 to the first electronic device 201. For example, information of CPs registered according to the above-described CP registration method may be added to the registered CP list 810 of the third UI 800 of fig. 8, and the information may be displayed.

Fig. 9 illustrates a signal flow diagram of an apparatus search method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 9, a signal flow diagram 900 is shown. According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may receive content renderer resource information from at least one electronic device (e.g., second electronic device 211) in operation 905. For example, the content renderer resource information may include information of a CP device application installed in the second electronic device 211. For example, the content renderer resource information may include information on whether the second electronic device 211 supports content continuity.

According to various embodiments, in operation 910, the first electronic device 201 may receive a user input. According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may provide a UI (e.g., the first UI 500 of fig. 5) for content continuity recommendation based on a specific condition, and may receive a user input to the UI.

According to various embodiments, in operation 915, the first electronic device 201 may request available device information associated with a CP in which content continuity is recommended, in response to a user input (e.g., a content continuity playback request). In operation 920, IoT server 221 may search for devices with continuity renderer resources. For example, for a CP associated with the requested content continuity playback, IoT server 221 may use application metadata of IoT server 221 to search for an electronic device (e.g., second electronic device 211) that is capable of supporting the content continuity associated with the IoT account of first electronic device 201. In operation 925, IoT server 221 may transmit the device list information to first electronic device 201. For example, the device list information may include information of a continuity device (e.g., the second electronic device 211) supporting the continuity of the content. For example, the first electronic device 201 may provide a user interface (e.g., the second UI 600 of fig. 6) for device selection using the received device list information.

Fig. 10 shows a signal flow diagram of a device setup method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 10, a signal flow diagram 1000 is shown. According to various embodiments, in operation 1005, the first electronic device 201 may receive a user input. For example, the first electronic device 201 may receive an input to the second UI (e.g., the second UI 600 of fig. 6) as a selection input of the external electronic device for content continuous playback.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1010, first electronic device 201 may transmit a ready request of a continuity electronic device (e.g., second electronic device 211) to IoT server 221. For example, the ready request may include information of the target continuity electronic device and/or information of the CP in which the continuous playback of the content is requested.

According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may direct second electronic device 211 to power on in operation 1015. In operation 1020, second electronic device 211 may transmit a response to IoT server 221 after being powered on.

According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may obtain the state information of the second electronic device 211 from the IoT server 221 or the second electronic device 211. For example, first electronic device 201 may obtain information from IoT server 221 or second electronic device 211 indicating that second electronic device 211 is in an on state, a standby state, or an off state. For example, when the state of the second electronic device 211 indicates an on state, the above operations 1015 and 1020 may be omitted. In another example, IoT server 221 may manage information indicating that second electronic device 211 is in an on state, a standby state, or an off state. When IoT server 221 determines that second electronic device 211 is in an on state, operations 1015 and 1020 described above may be omitted.

According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may request content renderer information (e.g., CP device application state information of second electronic device 211) in operation 1025. In operation 1030, the second electronic device 211 may transmit the requested content renderer information to the IoT server 221. For example, the content renderer information may include information of the CP (e.g., identifier, name, and/or supported content type information) and CP device application information (e.g., CP device application state information). For example, IoT server 221 may use the content renderer information to determine whether a CP device application is currently installed in second electronic device 211.

According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may use the content renderer information to determine whether a CP device application (CP device APP) corresponding to the CP information included in the ready request is installed in second electronic device 211 in operation 1035. For example, the IoT server 221 may determine whether a CP device application of the CP requested by the first electronic device 201 is installed in the second electronic device 211 using the information of the CP and the CP device application information included in the content renderer information.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1040, IoT server 221 may request second electronic device 211 to install the CP device application when the CP device application is not installed. For example, IoT server 221 may transmit an address (e.g., a download address) for installing the CP device application to second electronic device 211. According to an embodiment, in operation 1045, second electronic device 211 may install the CP device application based on the application installation request from IoT server 221. For example, the second electronic device 211 may download the CP device application using an address (e.g., a download address of the CP device application of the CP server 241) received from the IoT server 221, and may install the downloaded CP device application. According to an embodiment, in operation 1050, the second electronic device 211 may transmit content renderer information including information of the installed CP device application to the IoT server 221. According to an embodiment, when receiving content renderer information including CP device application information of a CP of a ready request, the IoT server 221 may transmit the received content renderer information to the first electronic device 201 in operation 1055.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1055, the IoT server 221 may transmit the content renderer information received from the second electronic device 211 in which the CP device application is installed to the first electronic device 201.

Fig. 11 illustrates a signal flow diagram of a content playing method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 11, a signal flow diagram 1100 is shown. In operation 1105, the first electronic device 201 may transmit a playback request to the IoT server 221. For example, when the content renderer information received from IoT server 221 indicates that content continuity of second electronic device 211 is available, first electronic device 201 may transmit a playback request to IoT server 221. For example, the playback request may include CP information of the playback-requested content.

According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may transmit the current playback information to CP server 241 in operation 1110. In operation 1115, the CP server 241 may transmit playback information (e.g., whether the content is currently playing and/or playback progress information of the content) associated with the CP account of the first electronic device 201 to the IoT server 221. In operation 1120, IoT server 221 may transmit a request to CP server 241 for information about currently played back content or recently played back content. In operation 1125, CP server 241 may transmit information (e.g., at least a portion of the user activity information described with reference to fig. 3) of the currently played back content or the recently played back content to IoT server 221. In operation 1127, IoT server 221 may convert the CP-specific content information into a format for supporting content continuity.

According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may transmit an account authentication code request to account server 231 for access to CP server 241 in operation 1130. In operation 1135, account server 231 may transmit the account authentication code to IoT server 221.

According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may transmit a playback request to second electronic device 211 in operation 1140. For example, the playback request may include the credential information received from the account server 231 and the content information to be played. In operation 1145, the second electronic device 211 may transmit a playback request to the CP server 241 based on the received credential information and the content information to be played.

Fig. 12 is a flowchart of a content continuity recommendation method of a first electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 12, a flow diagram 1200 is shown in which the first electronic device 201 may include a display (e.g., the display 360 of fig. 3), a communication circuit (e.g., the communication circuit 390 of fig. 3), a processor (e.g., the processor 320 of fig. 3) operatively connected to the display and the communication circuit, and a memory (e.g., the memory 331 of fig. 3) operatively connected to the processor.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1205, the first electronic device 201 may receive user activity information from the CP server 241 through the IoT server 221. For example, the user activity information may include information of content currently playing in the first electronic device 201 or previously playing in the first electronic device 201. According to an embodiment, when one or more external electronic devices (e.g., second electronic device 211 of fig. 2) are discovered, first electronic device 201 may receive user activity information from CP server 241 through IoT server 221. For example, the first electronic device 201 may obtain the user activity information using the methods described above in fig. 3-5. For example, the first electronic device 201 may discover one or more external electronic devices by performing NFC, Wi-Fi communication, EM sensing, bluetooth communication, BLE communication, voice recognition, ultrasonic communication, user voice recognition, or NAN communication using the communication circuit.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1210, the first electronic device 201 may obtain a list of external electronic devices from the IoT server 221 based at least on the user activity information. For example, the external electronic device list may include an external electronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 211) among external electronic devices associated with the first electronic device 201 (e.g., external electronic devices registered in an IoT account of the first electronic device 201) that supports content playback of a CP associated with content continuity playback or supports content continuity. According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may obtain a list of external electronic devices from the Io T server 221 when the user activity information indicates that content is currently playing in the first electronic device 201 or indicates that content has been playing in the first electronic device 201 within a certain time. For example, the first electronic device 201 may obtain the external electronic device list by performing operations 915, 920, and 925 of fig. 9.

According to various embodiments, the first electronic device 201 may display a first UI (e.g., the first UI 500 of fig. 5) on the display based at least on the external electronic device list in operation 1215. For example, the first electronic device 201 may display a first UI on the display based on the discovered external electronic devices and the received list of external electronic devices. For example, the first UI may be a UI for recommending that content currently being played or previously played be played through an external electronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 211). According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may display the first UI on the display when at least one external electronic device included in the list of the discovered one or more external electronic devices and the list of the received external electronic devices exists.

According to various embodiments, when receiving an input to the first UI for requesting content continuous playback, the first electronic device 201 may display a second UI (e.g., the second UI 600 of fig. 6) on the display, the second UI including a list of at least one external electronic device included in the list of the discovered one or more external electronic devices and the received list of external electronic devices. According to an embodiment, when an input to the external electronic device list of the second UI is received, the first electronic device 201 may play content using an external electronic device corresponding to the user input. For example, the first electronic device 201 may play content using an external electronic device corresponding to the user input by transmitting a playback request to the IoT server 221. For example, the playback request may include identification information of the external electronic device, a CP identifier of the content, and/or access permission information about a CP of the first electronic device 201.

Fig. 13 is a flowchart of a content continuity playing method of an IoT server according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 13, a method of continuously playing contents is shown. According to various embodiments, IoT server 221 may include at least one communication circuit (e.g., communication module 190 of fig. 1), a processor (e.g., processor 120 of fig. 1) operatively connected to the at least one communication circuit, and a memory (e.g., memory 130 of fig. 1) electrically connected to the processor and configured to store CP metadata.

According to various embodiments, when a user activity information request is received from a first external electronic device (e.g., the first electronic device 201), the IoT server 221 may obtain user activity information associated with the first external electronic device from the CP server 241 in operation 1305. For example, the user activity information request may include an identifier of the first CP. For example, the user activity information may include at least one of information indicating that the content of the first CP is currently being played in the first external electronic device or information indicating a time point at which the content of the first CP is played in the first external electronic device. According to an embodiment, upon receiving a user activity information request from a first external electronic device, IoT server 221 may obtain access permission from account server 231 to CP server 241 of a CP associated with the first external electronic device, and may obtain user activity information associated with the first external electronic device from CP server 241 using the access permission.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1310, the IoT server 221 may transmit the obtained user activity information to the first external electronic device.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1315, when a device list request is received from a first external electronic device, the IoT server 221 may transmit a list of at least one second electronic device supporting the first CP to the first external electronic device. For example, the IoT server 221 may transmit a list of second electronic devices supporting the first CP among the second electronic devices associated with the first external electronic device to the first external electronic device. For example, the device list request may include an identifier of the first CP.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1320, upon receiving a playback request from a first external electronic device, the IoT server 221 may control a third external electronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 211 of fig. 2) to play content from the first CP. For example, upon receiving a playback request from a first external electronic device, IoT server 221 may transmit a turn-on command to a third external electronic device, which may then be controlled to be in a ready state. For example, the playback request may include an identification request for a third electronic device of the second electronic device. According to an embodiment, upon receiving the playback request, IoT server 221 may obtain access permission from account server 231 to CP server 241 associated with the first external electronic device. IoT server 221 may obtain user activity information associated with the first external electronic device from CP server 241 by using the access permission. The IoT server 221 may transmit information for accessing the CP server 241 to a third external electronic device.

Fig. 14 is a flowchart of a content continuity playing method of a first electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 14, a flow diagram 1400 for continuously playing content is shown. The first electronic device 201 may include a display (e.g., the display 360 of fig. 3), communication circuitry (e.g., the communication circuitry 390 of fig. 3), a processor (e.g., the processor 320 of fig. 3) operatively connected to the display and the communication circuitry, and memory (e.g., the memory 331 of fig. 3) operatively connected to the processor.

According to an embodiment, when an external electronic device (e.g., second electronic device 211) is discovered, first electronic device 201 may receive user activity information from CP server 241 through IoT server 221. For example, the first electronic device 201 may discover one or more external electronic devices by performing NFC, Wi-Fi communication, EM sensing, bluetooth communication, BLE communication, voice recognition, ultrasonic communication, user voice recognition, or NAN communication using the communication circuit.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1405, the first electronic device 201 may receive user activity information from the CP server 241 through the IoT server 221. For example, the user activity information may include information of content currently playing in the first electronic device 201 or previously playing in the first electronic device 201. According to an embodiment, when one or more external electronic devices (e.g., the second electronic device 211 of fig. 2) are discovered, the first electronic device 201 may receive user activity information from the CP server 241 through the IoT server 221. For example, the first electronic device 201 may obtain the user activity information using the methods described above in fig. 3-5.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1410, the first electronic device 201 may determine whether the user activity information satisfies a particular condition. According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may determine that a certain condition is satisfied when the user activity information indicates that the content is currently playing in the first electronic device 201 or indicates that the content has been playing in the first electronic device 201 within a certain time. For example, the first electronic device 201 may obtain the external electronic device list by performing operations 915, 920, and 925 of fig. 9.

According to various embodiments, when the user activity information satisfies a certain condition, the first electronic device 201 may obtain the external electronic device list from the IoT server 221 in operation 1415. For example, the external electronic device list may include, among external electronic devices associated with the first electronic device 201 (e.g., external electronic devices registered in an IoT account of the first electronic device 201), content playback supporting a CP associated with content continuity playback or an external electronic device thereof supporting content continuity (e.g., the second electronic device 211).

According to various embodiments, in operation 1420, the first electronic device 201 may display a first UI (e.g., the first UI 500 of fig. 5) on the display based at least on the list of external electronic devices. For example, the first electronic device 201 may display a first UI on the display based on the discovered external electronic devices and a list of external electronic devices received from the IoT server 221. For example, the first UI may be a UI for recommending, by an external electronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 211), to play content that is currently playing or that was previously played. According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may display the first UI on the display when at least one external electronic device included in the list of the discovered one or more external electronic devices and the list of the received external electronic devices exists.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1430, the first electronic device 201 may determine whether a specific user input to the first UI is received. For example, the particular user input may correspond to a request for continuous playback of the content. For example, the input may include touch input and/or voice commands.

According to various embodiments, when an input to a first UI requesting continuous playback of content is received, the first electronic device 201 may display a second UI (e.g., the second UI 600 of fig. 6) including a list of at least one external electronic device included in the list of the discovered one or more external electronic devices and the received list of external electronic devices on the display in operation 1435.

According to various embodiments, in operation 1440, the first electronic device 201 may determine whether a particular user input to the second UI was received. For example, the particular user input may include an input to a list of external electronic devices of the second UI. For example, the particular user input may include an input corresponding to one of the displayed list of external electronic devices.

According to various embodiments, when an input to the external electronic device list of the second UI is received, the first electronic device 201 may play the content using the external electronic device corresponding to the user input in operation 1445. For example, first electronic device 201 may play content by transmitting a playback request to IoT server 221 using an external electronic device corresponding to the user input. For example, the playback request may include identification information of the external electronic device, a CP identifier of the content, and/or access permission information about a CP of the first electronic device 201. According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may interrupt content playback according to the content playback using an external electronic device. For example, the first electronic device 201 may log out from the CP server 241. In another example, the first electronic device 201 may maintain a state in which the first electronic device 201 logs in to the CP server 241.

Fig. 15 shows a schematic diagram of content sequential playback from a first electronic device to a second electronic device, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 15, a schematic diagram illustrating an example of continuous content playback is shown. At a time point t1, the first electronic device 201 may play first multimedia (e.g., first music) from a first CP (e.g., the CP server 241). According to an embodiment, at a point in time t1, the first electronic device 201 may receive a first input 1510 to the display 361. For example, the first input 1510 may be a drag input or a swipe input from a particular region of the display 360 (e.g., an upper region of the display 360) in a particular direction (e.g., a lower direction of the display 360). The specific area and the specific direction may be relatively set according to a current setting (e.g., portrait mode or landscape mode) of the display 360.

According to an embodiment, at point in time t2, the first electronic device 201 may display the state UI 1521 on the display 360 in response to the first input 1510. For example, the state UI 1521 may include information associated with a state and/or setting of the first electronic device 201. According to an embodiment, the state UI 1521 may include an external electronic device list UI 1523 and a playback state UI 1525. For example, the external electronic device list UI 1523 may include a list of external electronic devices associated with the first electronic device 201. The list of external electronic devices may include icons corresponding to the external electronic devices. For example, the first electronic device 201 may include a list of external electronic devices received from the IoT server 221 or a list of external electronic devices in the first electronic device 201 stored in the external electronic device list UI 1523. For example, the playback state UI 1525 may include an interface for information about the first multimedia currently being played in the first electronic device 201 (e.g., a CP name, a title, an artist, and/or related images) and playback control of the first multimedia (e.g., playback start, playback pause, playback end, previous multimedia playback, and/or next multimedia playback).

According to an embodiment, at the time point t2, the first electronic device 201 may receive a second input 1520 to an icon corresponding to the second electronic device 211 of the external electronic device list UI 1523. For example, the second input 1520 may be a touch input to an icon.

According to one embodiment, at a point in time t3, the first electronic device 201 may be connected to the second electronic device 211 in response to receiving the second input 1520. For example, the second electronic device 211 may be an IoT device that supports content continuity, and may be an electronic device in which a CP device application associated with the first CP is installed. For example, the second electronic device 211 may be an intelligent speaker or an Artificial Intelligence (AI) speaker.

According to an embodiment, at the time point t3, the first electronic device 201 may change an icon corresponding to the second electronic device 211 of the external electronic device list UI 1523 in response to being connected to the second electronic device 211. For example, when the first electronic device 201 is connected to the second electronic device 211, the first electronic device 201 may change at least one of an image, a color, a transparency, a size, a brightness, a contrast, and/or a shape of an icon corresponding to the second electronic device 211.

For example, at time point t3, the second electronic device 211 may have previously played the second multimedia (e.g., the second music) from the first CP. According to an embodiment, the first electronic device 201 may display an external electronic device playback state UI 1531 in the state UI 1521. For example, the external electronic device playback state UI 1531 may include information for the second electronic device 211, such as a name (e.g., AI speaker living room) of the second electronic device 211 and/or location information (e.g., home) associated with the second electronic device 211, an interface of information on the second multimedia being played in the currently connected second electronic device 211, such as a CP name, a title, an artist, and/or a related image, and a playback control (e.g., playback start, playback pause, playback end, previous multimedia playback, and/or next multimedia playback) of the second multimedia. For example, the first electronic device 201 may obtain the information of the second electronic device 211 and the information of the second multimedia through the IoT server 221.

According to an embodiment, at the time point t3, the first electronic device 201 may display a recommendation UI1533 on the state UI 1521. For example, the recommendation UI1533 may include a phrase for recommending content continuous playback using the second electronic device 211 (e.g., playing phone music on an AI speaker). For example, when the connected second electronic device 211 is an electronic device that supports continuous playback of content associated with the first CP, the first electronic device 201 may display the recommendation UI 1533.

According to an embodiment, at point in time t3, the first electronic device 201 may receive a third input 1530 to the recommendation UI 1533. For example, the third input 1530 may include a touch input to the recommendation UI 1533.

According to an embodiment, at the time point t4, the second electronic device 211 may perform content continuity playback on the first multimedia. For example, as described with reference to fig. 11, the first electronic device 201 may transmit a playback request to the IoT server 221 in response to the third input 1530 (e.g., operation 1105). For example, the second electronic device 211 may perform content continuous playback by using the playback information of the first electronic device 201. The second electronic device 211 may continuously play the first multimedia being played in the first electronic device 201. In this case, the first electronic device 201 may interrupt the playback of the first multimedia.

For example, at the time point t4, the first electronic device 201 may display information about the first multimedia currently being played in the external electronic device playback state UI 1531. For example, at time point t4, the first electronic device 201 may display information in the playback state UI 1525 indicating that the current first multimedia is playing in the second electronic device 211 (e.g., listening on the AI speaker of the living room).

According to an embodiment, at point in time t4, the first electronic device 201 may display the playback switch UI 1541 in the state UI 1521. For example, the playback switch UI 1541 may include information for recommending, in the first electronic device 201, content-continuous playback with respect to multimedia (e.g., first multimedia) currently playing in the second electronic device 211 (e.g., switching AI speaker music to a phone).

Fig. 16 shows a schematic diagram of content sequential playback from a second electronic device to a first electronic device, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to fig. 16, a schematic 1600 for continuous content delivery is shown. The first electronic device 201 and the second electronic device 211 may be in a connected state. For example, the second electronic device 211 may perform content continuity playback on multimedia (e.g., first multimedia) being played in the first electronic device 201. For example, the time point t5 may be a time point after the time point t4 of fig. 15.

According to an embodiment, at a point in time t5, the first electronic device 201 may receive a fourth input 1610 to the playback switch UI 1541. For example, the fourth input 1610 may be a touch input to the playback switch UI 1541.

According to an embodiment, at the time point t6, the first electronic device 201 may perform content continuity playback on the first multimedia in response to the fourth input 1610. For example, the first electronic device 201 may continuously play music being played in the second electronic device 211. In this case, the second electronic device 211 may interrupt the playback of the first multimedia.

According to an embodiment, at the time point t6, the first electronic device 201 may display the recommendation UI 1533. For example, when the content continuous playback of the second electronic device 211 is interrupted, the first electronic device 201 may display a recommendation UI1533 for recommending the content continuous playback to the second electronic device 211 in the state UI 1521.

The UIs described with reference to fig. 15 and 16 are exemplary descriptions, and various embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto.

According to various embodiments, an electronic device (e.g., the first electronic device 201 of fig. 2) may include a display (e.g., the display 360 of fig. 3), at least one communication circuit (e.g., the communication circuit 390 of fig. 3), a processor (e.g., the processor 320 of fig. 3) operatively connected to the display and the at least one communication circuit, and a memory (e.g., the memory 330 of fig. 3) operatively connected to the processor. The memory may store instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to perform the operations to be described.

According to various embodiments, when one or more external electronic devices (e.g., the second electronic device 211) are discovered, the electronic device may receive user activity information including information of content currently being played in the electronic device or having been previously played in the electronic device from a Content Provider (CP) server (e.g., the CP server 241 of fig. 2) of a CP through an internet of things (IoT) server (e.g., the IoT server 221 of fig. 2), may obtain a list of external electronic devices associated with the electronic device supporting content playback of the CP from the IoT server based on the user activity information, and may display a first User Interface (UI) for recommending playing of the content currently being played in the electronic device or having been previously played in the electronic device through at least one of the one or more external electronic devices on a display based on the discovered list of one or more external electronic devices and the external electronic device (e.g., first UI 500 of fig. 5).

According to an embodiment, the electronic device may discover one or more external electronic devices by performing NFC, Wi-Fi communication, EM sensing, bluetooth communication, BLE communication, voice recognition, ultrasonic communication, user voice detection, or NAN using the at least one communication circuit.

According to an embodiment, when the user activity information indicates that the content is currently playing in the electronic device or indicates that the content has been playing in the electronic device within a specific time, the electronic device may obtain a list of external electronic devices supporting content playback of the CP from the IoT server.

According to an embodiment, when there is at least one external electronic device included in the list of external electronic devices and the one or more external electronic devices found, the electronic device may display the first UI on the display.

According to an embodiment, when receiving an input of a first UI corresponding to a playback request of content using at least one of one or more external electronic devices, the electronic device may display a second UI (e.g., the second UI 600 of fig. 6) including a list of at least one external electronic device included in the list of the discovered one or more external electronic devices and external electronic devices on the display.

According to an embodiment, when a user input to a list of at least one external electronic device is received, the electronic device may play content using the external electronic device corresponding to the user input.

According to an embodiment, the electronic device may play the content using an external electronic device corresponding to a user input by transmitting a playback request to the IoT server.

For example, the playback request may include identification information of the external electronic device corresponding to the user input, a CP identifier of the content, and access permission information regarding a CP of the electronic device.

According to various embodiments, an electronic device (e.g., IoT server 221 of fig. 2) may include at least one communication circuit, a processor operatively connected to the at least one communication circuit, and a memory operatively connected to the processor and storing CP metadata. The memory may store instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to perform the operations to be described.

For example, when a user activity information request is received from a first external electronic device (e.g., the first electronic device 201 of fig. 2), the electronic device may obtain user activity information associated with the first external electronic device from a CP server (e.g., the CP server 241 of fig. 2) of a first CP associated with the user activity information request, may transmit the obtained user activity information to the first external electronic device, may transmit a list of second electronic devices supporting the first CP among second electronic devices associated with the first external electronic device to the first external electronic device when a device list request including a CP identifier of the first CP is received from the first external electronic device, and when a playback request including identification information about the CP and a third electronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 211 of fig. 2) among the second electronic devices is received from the first external electronic device, the third electronic device may be controlled to play the content from the first CP.

According to various embodiments, the user activity information may include at least one of information indicating that the content of the first CP is currently being played in the first external electronic device or information indicating a time at which the content of the first CP is played in the first external electronic device.

According to various embodiments, when a user activity information request is received from a first external electronic device, the electronic device may obtain access permission from an account server to a CP server associated with the first external electronic device, and may obtain user activity information associated with the first external electronic device from the CP server using the access permission.

According to various embodiments, when a playback request including a CP identifier and identification information on a third electronic device among the second electronic devices is received from the first external electronic device, and when a CP device application is not installed in the third electronic device, the electronic devices may transmit a command allowing the third electronic device to install the CP device application.

According to various embodiments, when a playback request including a CP identifier and identification information about a third electronic device among the second electronic devices is received from the first external electronic device, the electronic devices may transmit information for accessing the CP server to the third electronic device.

According to various embodiments, a content playing method of an electronic device (e.g., the first electronic device 201 of fig. 2) may include: receiving, by an IoT server (e.g., IoT server 221 of fig. 2), user activity information from a CP server (e.g., CP server 241 of fig. 2) of a CP when one or more external electronic devices are discovered, the user activity information including information of content currently playing in the electronic devices or having been previously played in the electronic devices, obtaining a list of external electronic devices associated with the electronic devices supporting content playback of the CP from the IoT server based on the user activity information, and displaying, on a display of the electronic device, a first UI (e.g., the first UI 500 of fig. 5) recommending playing of content that is currently playing on the electronic device or has been previously played in the electronic device, through at least one of the one or more external electronic devices, based on the discovered one or more external electronic devices and the list of external electronic devices.

According to an embodiment, the data communication method may further include discovering the one or more external electronic devices by performing NFC, Wi-Fi communication, EM sensing, bluetooth communication, BLE communication, voice recognition, ultrasonic communication, user voice detection, or NAN.

According to an embodiment, obtaining the list of external electronic devices associated with the electronic device from the IoT server may include: when the user activity information indicates that the content is currently playing in the electronic device or indicates that the content has been playing in the electronic device within a specific time, a list of external electronic devices supporting content playback of the CP is obtained from the IoT server.

According to an embodiment, displaying the first UI on the display of the electronic device may include: displaying the first UI on the display when there is at least one external electronic device included in the list of the discovered one or more external electronic devices and the external electronic device.

According to an embodiment, the content playing method may further include: when an input of the first UI corresponding to a playback request of content using at least one of the one or more external electronic devices is received, displaying a second UI on the display, the second UI including a list of at least one external electronic device included in the discovered one or more external electronic devices and in the list of external electronic devices.

According to an embodiment, the content playing method may further include: when a user input to a list of at least one external electronic device is received, the external electronic device is controlled to play content using the external electronic device corresponding to the user input.

According to an embodiment, the controlling of the external electronic device may include playing the content using the external electronic device corresponding to the user input by transmitting the playback request to the IoT server.

The electronic device according to various embodiments may be one of various types of electronic devices. The electronic device may comprise, for example, a portable communication device (e.g., a smartphone), a computer device, a portable multimedia device, a portable medical device, a camera, a wearable device, or a home appliance. According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronic devices are not limited to those described above.

It should be understood that the various embodiments of the present disclosure and the terms used therein are not intended to limit the technical features set forth herein to specific embodiments, but include various changes, equivalents, or alternatives to the respective embodiments. For the description of the figures, like reference numerals may be used to refer to like or related elements. It will be understood that a noun in the singular corresponding to a term may include one or more things unless the relevant context clearly dictates otherwise. As used herein, each of the phrases such as "a or B," "at least one of a and B," "at least one of a or B," "A, B or C," "at least one of A, B and C," and "at least one of A, B or C" may include any or all possible combinations of the items listed together with the respective one of the plurality of phrases. As used herein, terms such as "1 st" and "2 nd" or "first" and "second" may be used to distinguish one element from another element simply and not to limit the elements in other respects (e.g., importance or order). It will be understood that, if an element (e.g., a first element) is referred to as being "coupled to", "connected to" or "connected to" another element (e.g., a second element), it can be directly (e.g., wiredly) connected to, wirelessly connected to, or connected to the other element via a third element, when the term "operatively" or "communicatively" is used or not.

As used herein, the term "module" may include units implemented in hardware, software, or firmware, and may be used interchangeably with other terms (e.g., "logic," "logic block," "portion," or "circuitry"). A module may be a single integrated component adapted to perform one or more functions or a minimal unit or portion of the single integrated component. For example, according to an embodiment, the modules may be implemented in the form of Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs).

The various embodiments set forth herein may be implemented as software (e.g., program 140) comprising one or more instructions stored in a storage medium (e.g., internal memory 136 or external memory 138) that is readable by a machine (e.g., electronic device 101). For example, under control of a processor, a processor (e.g., processor 120) of the machine (e.g., electronic device 101) may invoke and execute at least one of the one or more instructions stored in the storage medium, with or without the use of one or more other components. This enables the machine to be operable to perform at least one function in accordance with the invoked at least one instruction. The one or more instructions may include code generated by a compiler or code capable of being executed by an interpreter. The machine-readable storage medium may be provided in the form of a non-transitory storage medium. Where the term "non-transitory" simply means that the storage medium is a tangible device and does not include a signal (e.g., an electromagnetic wave), the term does not distinguish between data being semi-permanently stored in the storage medium and data being temporarily stored in the storage medium.

According to embodiments, methods according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may be included and provided in a computer program product. The computer program product may be used as a product for conducting a transaction between a seller and a buyer. The computer program product may be distributed in the form of a machine-readable storage medium (e.g., compact disc read only memory (CD-ROM)), or may be distributed via an application Store (e.g., Play Store)^TM) The computer program product is published (e.g. downloaded or uploaded) online, or may be distributed (e.g. downloaded or uploaded) directly between two user devices (e.g. smartphones). At least part of the computer program product may be temporarily generated if it is published online, or at least part of the computer program product may be at least temporarily stored in a machine readable storage medium, such as a memory of a manufacturer's server, a server of an application store, or a forwarding server.

According to various embodiments, each of the above components (e.g., modules or programs) may comprise a single entity or multiple entities. According to various embodiments, one or more of the above-described components may be omitted, or one or more other components may be added. Alternatively or additionally, multiple components (e.g., modules or programs) may be integrated into a single component. In such a case, according to various embodiments, the integrated component may still perform one or more functions of each of the plurality of components in the same or similar manner as the corresponding one of the plurality of components performed the one or more functions prior to integration. Operations performed by a module, program, or another component may be performed sequentially, in parallel, repeatedly, or in a heuristic manner, or one or more of the operations may be performed in a different order or omitted, or one or more other operations may be added, in accordance with various embodiments.

While the disclosure has been shown and described with reference to various embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.