WO2005008515A1

WO2005008515A1 - Method for providing preview service of contents data

Info

Publication number: WO2005008515A1
Application number: PCT/KR2004/001848
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jonghyun Yoon
Original assignee: Nhn Corporation
Priority date: 2003-07-23
Filing date: 2004-07-23
Publication date: 2005-01-27

Abstract

The present invention provides a method of providing a preview service of contents data. The present invention includes a step (a) of receiving a request information of pay contents streaming data from a user, a step (b) of setting up a preview time for the user-requested pay contents streaming data, a step (c) of transmitting a preview time information set up in the step (b) to a client of the user, a step (d) of transmitting the user-requested contents streaming data to the client of the user, and a step (e) of if a billing request information from the client of the user is received, handling a billing of pay contents requested by the user and if the billing is not valid, stopping a contents transmission, wherein a contents player installed in the client of the user stops a playback of the contents and displays a billing menu if a playtime of the contents reaches the preview time and wherein the playback of the contents is restarted if the billing is effectively completed. Therefore, the user enables to decide whether to pay a bill or not after previewing the corresponding contents, whereby the corresponding payment can be made more reasonably.

Description

Method for Providing Preview Service of Contents Data

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a method of providing a preview service of contents data, and more particularly, to a method of providing a service enabling a preview of pay moving picture contents and pay still picture (animation, illustrated magazine) contents prior to billing.

BACKGROUND ART Lately, a data transmission rate of a data network such as Internet has been rapidly sped up. Data transmitted via Internet was mainly a general text or simple image data in the early days. Yet, a transmission service of moving picture data needing a wide bandwidth is provided nowadays. As a data transmission of a moving picture or a multitude of images such as animation provided over Internet needs a wide bandwidth, the corresponding contents data transmission may fail occasionally according to a network status. Moreover, in case of moving picture data, relatively high CPU processing capability is usually required for performing data decoding and the like. In the related art, in order to receive contents data of moving picture, animation, or the like, a user had to pay the bill for contents receipt preferentially.

Yet, as mentioned in the foregoing description, the reception of the moving picture data may fail according to the network status. Moreover, even if the network status is favorable, a user's PC may fail in decoding the corresponding data. Hence, in spite of having paid the bill for the contents, it might occasionally happen that a user was unable to view the paid contents. Besides, the user was unable to grasp the contents without payment for the contents. In order to overcome the above-explained problems, preview service of contents is provided. For instance, a conventional preview service enables a user to view a preview or trailer, which was separately edited from the pay contents, free of charge. However, in the service providing the separately edited preview of the contents, a preview data as well as the corresponding pay contents should be stored in a database, thereby needing a sufficient storage space within the database. Moreover, since data of the real pay contents are different from that of the preview data, a user having paid the bill views not the corresponding pay contents but the preview contents only.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a method of providing a preview service of contents data that substantially obviates one or more of the problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art. An object of the present invention is to provide a method of providing a preview service of contents data, by which a user is able to decide whether to pay a bill after previewing a requested pay contents in part. Another object of the present invention is to provide a method of providing a preview service of contents data, by which a user is able to preview a pay contents without a separate edition of a preview. A further object of the present invention is to provide a method of providing a preview service of contents data, by which a user is able to decide whether to pay a bill after judging a reception environment of the contents. Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the written description and claims thereof as well as the appended drawings. To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention, as embodied and broadly described, a method of providing a preview service of contents data includes a step (a) of receiving a request information of pay contents streaming data from a user, a step (b) of setting up a preview time for the user-requested pay contents streaming data, a step (c) of transmitting a preview time information set up in the step (b) to a client of the user, a step (d) of transmitting the user-requested contents streaming data to the client of the user, and a step (e) of if a billing request information from the client of the user is received, handling a billing of pay contents requested by the user and if the billing is not valid, stopping a contents transmission, wherein a contents player installed in the client of the user stops a playback of the contents and displays a billing menu if a playtime of the contents reaches the preview time and wherein the playback of the contents is restarted if the billing is effectively completed. Preferably, the preview time can be differently set up according to a contents genre. Preferably, the step (b) may include the steps of deciding a genre of the contents requested by the user and extracting the preview time from a database storing the preview time according to the genre. Preferably, the contents transmission keeps being performed even if the playback of the requested contents is stopped. To further achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention, a method of providing a preview service of contents data includes a step (a) of receiving a request information of pay contents streaming data from a user, a step (b) of setting up a preview time for the user-requested pay contents streaming data, a step (c) of transmitting the user-requested contents streaming data to a client of the user, a step (d) of checking a playtime of contents to decide whether the playtime reaches the set preview time, a step (e) of if the set preview time is reached, transmitting an information indicating that the preview time is reached to the client of the user, and a step (f) of if a billing request information from the client of the user is received, handling a billing of pay contents requested by the user and if the billing is not valid, stopping a contents transmission, wherein a contents player installed in the client of the user stops a playback of the contents and displays a billing menu if a playtime of the contents reaches the preview time and wherein the playback of the contents is restarted if the billing is effectively completed. To further achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention, a contents player receiving to play back pay contents streaming data from a contents server includes a preview time determining module determining a preview time for the pay contents streaming data requested by a user, a timer module deciding whether a playtime of contents streaming data reaches the preview time determined by the preview time determining module, a play-stop module stopping a playback of the contents if the playtime of the contents reaches the determined preview time, a billing request module displaying a billing menu to the user and transmitting a billing request information to the contents server if the playtime of the contents reaches the determined preview time and if the user requests a billing of the contents, a contents decoding module decoding contents data transmitted from the contents server, and a user interface module receiving an input information of the user. To further achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention, a contents server providing pay contents streaming data to a client includes a preview time setup module setting up a preview time for contents requested by a user if the user requests the pay contents streaming data, a meta-information/preview time information providing module providing a meta- information of the pay contents streaming data requested by the user and a preview time information set up by the preview time setup module to the client of the user, a contents transmission module transmitting the pay contents streaming data requested by the user to the client of the user, and a billing processing module handling a billing of the contents requested by the user, wherein a contents player installed in the client of the user stops a playback of the contents and displays a billing menu if a playtime of the contents reaches the preview time and wherein the playback of the contents is restarted if the billing is effectively completed. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a diagram of a system applicable to a method of providing a preview service according to the present invention; Fig. 2 is a block diagram of a module configuration of a contents player according to a first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 3 is a block diagram of a module configuration of a contents server according to a first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 4 is a block diagram of a module configuration of a contents player according to a second embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 5 is a block diagram of a module configuration of a contents server according to a second embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 6 is a structural diagram of fields of a preview time database according to one preferred embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 7 is a flowchart of a method of providing a preview service according to a first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 8 is a flowchart of a method of providing a preview service according to a second embodiment of the present invention; and Fig. 9 is a flowchart of a detailed operation of a contents player in progress in case that a playback time of contents reaches a preview time.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Fig. 1 is a diagram of a system applicable to a method of providing a preview service according to the present invention. Referring to Fig. 1, a system applicable to a method of providing a preview service according to the present invention includes a user client 100 and a contents server 102. And, a user database 104, preview time database 106, meta-information database 108, and billing information database 110 may be provided to the contents server 102. The user client 100 and contents server 102, as shown in Fig. 1, are connected via a network 112. And, the network 112 may include Internet, wired network such as private line, wireless Internet, and wireless network including mobile communication network and satellite communication network. A player for contents playback is installed in the user client 100. The contents may include various kinds of moving picture data of movie, animation, and drama. And, the contents player in the user client 100 may be installed to have

ActiveX Control type to interoperate with Web browser. Moreover, the contents player installed in the client 100 may be a dedicated player for contents playback. In the related art method, if a user requests transmission of contents data to the contents server 102, the contents server 102 provided the contents data to the client after completion of deciding whether the user has paid the bill for the requested contents. Yet, in case that a user requests transmission of contents data, the present invention provides the contents data during a previously set preview time instead of providing the contents data after completion of a billing processing and then provides a billing menu after completion of the preview time. The present invention enables a user to view contents data during a preview time without billing, whereby the user is able to decide whether the pay contents can be played back or not prior to billing. Namely, the user is able to previously decide whether current network and client status are available for playing back the contents transmitted at high speed. Moreover, the user is allowed to preview a front part of the contents, thereby enabling to pay the bill after deciding whether the contents are interesting. The contents data provided to the client 100 prior to billing is the same contents data provided when a user pays a bill for the pay contents and is not the contents data separately edited for the preview. Hence, the present invention needs not to edit contents separately for the preview and not to store the same contents in duplicate. And, the present invention enables to accurately decide whether the requested contents will be correctly played. The contents server 102 sets up a preview time for the requested contents in case of receiving a contents request signal from a user client. Besides, the contents server 102 may previously set up a preview time according to a genre of contents prior to the reception of the contents request signal to keep it as information for the contents. The contents requested by the user is provided to the client 100 during the time set up by the contents server 102. In the first embodiment of the present invention, the contents player provided to the client 100 decides whether the preview time is up. If the preview time is over, the contents player stops playing back the contents data. In case that the user intends to pay the bill for the contents, the contents player requests the contents server 102 to carry on a billing process. If the user pays the bill for the contents, the contents continue being played back. In the second embodiment of the present invention, the contents sever 102 decides whether the preview time is up. If the preview time is over, the contents server 102 requests the contents player to stop playing back the contents. In case that the user intends to pay the bill for the contents, the contents server 102 carries on a billing process. The user database 104 stores log-in information such as user ID and password and user's personal information therein. The preview time database 106 stores preview time information that was previously set up. In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the preview time is differently set up according to a contents genre and the preview time database 106 stores preview time information according to the contents genre. If a user requests specific contents, the contents server 102 decides the genre of the requested contents and queries the preview time database 106 of the preview time according to the corresponding genre to decide the preview time. As mentioned in the foregoing description, instead of querying the preview time database 106, the preview time can be already stored in the contents information. If contents are moving picture contents, time information for playing back the contents without billing may be stored in the preview time database 106. The meta-information database 108 stores meta-information of the contents. If the contents are moving picture contents, the meta-information database 108 stores information for type, playtime, and the like of moving picture data. And, the billing information database 110 stores information of user's billing particulars. Fig. 2 is a block diagram of a module configuration of a contents player according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 2, a contents player according to a first embodiment of the present invention may include a preview time determining module 200, a billing request module 202, a timer module 204, a play-stop module 206, a contents decoding module 208, and a user interface module 210. The preview time determining module 200 receives preview time information for the contents requested by a user and then determines a contents playtime without billing. It is not mandatory that a preview time should be transmitted from the contents server. Instead, the preview time may be previously set up in the contents player. In doing so, the preview time determining module 200 determines the preview time with a previously setup value. The timer module 204 is operative in deciding whether the preview time outputted from the preview time determining module 200 passes or not. The timer module 204 compares the playtime information of the contents player to the preview time outputted from the preview time determining module 200 to decide whether a playtime reaches the preview time. The play-stop module 206 is operative in stopping a playback of the contents if the playtime of the contents reaches the preview time. If the playtime reaches the preview time, the play-stop module 206 deactivates input buttons displayed on the player so that a user cannot input a command. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, even if the playback of the contents is stopped by the play-stop module 206, it is preferable that the reception of the contents data keeps being maintained. Namely, while a billing process according to a billing menu is executed after completion of the preview time, the contents keep being received from the server without playback of the corresponding contents. If the contents keep being received during the billing processing, the previously stored contents are just played back after completion of the billing process, whereby the playback of the contents can be performed more stably. The billing request module 202 displays a menu querying whether the billing process proceeds or not in case of the completion of the preview time. If the user intends to pay a bill, the billing request module 202 requests the server to carry on a billing processing. If a user intends to pay the bill after expiration of the preview time, a billing menu is displayed on a display screen of the player so that the user can pay the bill using the displayed menu. Alternatively, the billing menu can be provided as a separate pop-up menu. The contents decoding module 208 is operative in deciding contents data received from the contents server. As meta-information transmitted from the contents server includes information of a contents file type, the contents decoding module 208 decodes the contents data according to decoding algorithm corresponding to the received file type. And, the user interface module 210 receives information inputted by a user and then delivers the inputted information to a corresponding module to perform an operation corresponding to the inputted information. The information can be inputted via such an information input means as a keyboard, mouse, and the like. Fig. 3 is a block diagram of a module configuration of a contents server according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 3, a contents server according to a first embodiment of the present invention may include a preview time setup module 300, a billing processing module 302, a meta-information/preview time information providing module 304, an authentication module 306, a contents transmission module 308, and a contents data storage part 310. If a user requests contents, the preview time setup module 300 is operative in setting up a preview time for the requested contents. The preview time setup module 300 decides a genre of the requested contents and then queries quires the preview time database 106, which stores the preview time information according to each genre, to set up the preview time. As mentioned in the foregoing description, if the requested contents are the moving picture data of movie, animation, or the like, the preview time setup module 300 outputs a preview time value. The billing processing module 302 is operative in handling a billing process in case of receiving billing request information from the contents player after completion of the preview time. When a user intends to pay a bill using cyber money, the billing processing module 302 handles the billing in a manner of subtracting a due amount of the bill from user's cyber money. If a user intends to pay a bill using a credit card or the like, the billing processing module 302 interoperates with an external credit card billing server to handle the billing. In case that a user requests contents, the meta-information/preview time information providing module 304 provides meta-information for the requested contents and the preview time information outputted from the preview time setup module 300 to the contents player. In the related art, meta-information is just provided to the contents player in case of contents request. Yet, in the first embodiment of the present invention, the preview time information is provided to the contents player together with the meta-information. The authentication module 306 decides whether the user is a registered user or not. The authentication module 306 authenticates the user in a manner of deciding whether an ID and password inputted by the user coincide with those stored in the user database 104. The contents transmission module 308 is operative in transmitting the contents data requested by the user to the client. And, the contents data storage part 310 stores the contents data therein. Fig. 4 is a block diagram of a module configuration of a contents player according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 4, a contents player according to a second embodiment of the present invention may include a billing request module 400, a play-stop module 402, a contents decoding module 404, and a user interface module 406. Unlike the contents player accordmg to the first embodiment of the present invention, the contents player according to the second embodiment of the present invention does not decide whether the preview time is up or not. Instead, the contents server decides whether the preview time is up or not. Hence, the contents player according to the second embodiment of the present invention is not provided with the timer module of the first embodiment of the present invention. The play-stop module 402 is operative in stopping decoding if information that the preview time is over is received from the contents server. The play-stop module 402 deactivates input buttons displayed on the player so that a user cannot input a command. In the second embodiment of the present invention, it is preferable that the reception of the contents data keeps being maintained as well. The billing request module 400 requests the server to carry on a billing processing if receiving the information of completion of the preview time from the contents server and if the user intends to pay a bill. As mentioned in the foregoing description, a billing menu is displayed on a display screen of the player so that the user can pay the bill using the displayed menu. Alternatively, the billing menu can be provided as a separate pop-up menu. After receiving information that the user paid the bill from the contents server, the play-stop module 402 releases a contents play-stop mode to continue playing back the contents. Operations of the contents decoding module 404 and user interface module 406 are equivalent to those in FIG. 2, whereby their detailed explanations are skipped. Fig. 5 is a block diagram of a module configuration of a contents server accordmg to a second embodiment of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 5, a contents server according to a second embodiment of the present invention may include a preview time setup module 500, a timer module

502, a billing processing module 504, a meta-information providing module 506, an authentication module 508, a contents transmission module 510, and a contents data storage part 512. In the second embodiment of the present invention unlike the first embodiment of the present invention, the contents server decides whether a preview time is up or not. If a user requests contents, the preview time setup module 500 decides a genre of the requested contents and then queries the preview time database 106, which stores the preview time information according to each genre, to set up the preview time. The timer module 502 decides whether a playtime of the contents reaches the preview time set up by the preview time setup module 500. Timestamp information of contents data is included in a contents data packet transmitted from the contents server to the client, and the timer module 502 decides whether the contents playtime reaches the set preview time by means of the timestamp information of the transmitted packet. Even if data corresponding to 1 -minute is transmitted from the contents server, the contents player may not be able to play back the entire data corresponding to 1 -minute in accordance with a network status and the like. Hence, the second embodiment of the present invention may be unable to decide whether the playtime reaches the preview time more accurately than the first embodiment of the present invention. In order to overcome such the problem, the timer module 502 controls the contents data corresponding to the preview time only to be transmitted to the client, whereby the contents corresponding to the preview time can be transmitted despite network instability. If the playtime reaches the preview time, the timer module 502 transmits information of expiration of the preview time to the contents player installed in the client. After receiving the information, the client player stops playing back the contents and then requests a billing to the contents server. The billing processing module 504 handles a billing process in response to the billing request information of the contents player. When a user intends to pay a bill using cyber money, the billing processing module 504 handles the billing in a manner of subtracting a due amount of the bill from user's cyber money. If a user intends to pay a bill using a credit card or the like, the billing processing module 504 interoperates with an external credit card billing server to handle the billing. In case that a user requests contents, the meta-information providing module

506 extracts meta-information corresponding to the requested contents from the meta-information database and then provides the extracted meta-information to the client. In the second embodiment of the present invention unlike the first embodiment of the present invention, the contents server decides whether the preview time is reached or not. Hence, the preview time information is not transmitted together with the meta-information. Operations of the authentication module 508, contents transmission module 510, and contents data storage part 512 are equivalent to those in FIG. 3, whereby their detailed explanations are skipped. Fig. 6 is a structural diagram of fields of a preview time database according to one preferred embodiment of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 6, a preview time database according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a contents genre field 600 and a preview time field 602. Identifier information for identifying a contents genre is recorded in the contents genre field 600 and preview time information set up to correspond to each contents genre is recorded in the preview time field 602. For instance, the contents genre can be categorized into general movie, animation, adult movie, and the like. In this case, a preview time for general movie, a preview time for animation, a preview time for adult movie are recorded in the preview time field 602, respectively. If a user request contents, the preview time setup module of the contents server decides a genre identifier of the requested contents and then extracts the preview time information corresponding to the decided genre identifier from the preview time field 602. Fig. 7 is an overall flowchart of a method of providing a preview service according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 7, a user preferentially transmits log-in request information to the contents server through the client (S700). The log-in request information includes a user-inputted ID and password information therein. After receiving the log-in request information, the contents server decides whether the user-inputted ID and password included in the log-in request information coincide with an ID and password stored in the user database 104, respectively and then transmits log-in response information to the client (S702). After completion of the user's log-in, the user transmits contents request information to the contents server through the client (S704). The user may be able to request contents in a manner of clicking a moving picture request icon provided to a Web page. After receiving the contents request information, the contents server decides the genre of the contents requested by the user and then sets up a preview time corresponding to the decided genre (S706). After having set up the preview time, the contents server transmits meta- information and preview time information of the contents requested by the user to the client (S708). Once the preview time information is transmitted to the client, the contents player sets the preview time using the received information. The contents server transmits contents data requested by the user to the client (S710). And, the contents player installed in the client decodes the received contents data to display (S712). The contents player then decides whether a playtime of the contents reaches the set up preview time (S714). If the playtime of the contents reaches the preview time, the contents player stops playing back the contents and then decides whether the user pays a bill corresponding to the contents (S716). As mentioned in the foregoing description, even if the playback of the contents is stopped as the playtime reaches the preview time, reception of the contents preferably keeps being performed. If the user fails to pay the bill, the playback of the contents is terminated (S718). In case of receiving information that the user has paid the bill, the contents player restarts to play back the contents from a time point of stopping the playback of the contents (S720). Fig. 8 is a flowchart of a method of providing a preview service according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 8, a step S800 of transmitting log-in information to a step

S806 of setting up a preview time are equivalent to those in Fig. 7. Once the setup of the preview time is completed, the contents server transmits meta-information corresponding to the requested contents to the client

(S808). Unlike the first embodiment of the present invention, the contents player does not decide whether a playtime reached the preview time. Hence, preview time information is not provided to the contents player. And, the contents server transmits the requested contents data to the client (S810). The player provided to the client decodes the transmitted contents data according to decoding algorithm corresponding to a contents format included in the meta-information (S812). While transmitting the contents data to the client, the contents server decides whether the playtime of the contents reached the preview time (S814). As mentioned in the foregoing description, the contents server may be able to decide whether the preview time is reached using a timestamp of the contents data transmitted to the client. If the playtime of the contents reaches the preview time, the contents server transmits information of expiration of the preview time to the contents player. The contents player then stops playing back the contents (S816). After stopping the playback of the contents, the contents player decides whether information indicating completion of payment is received or not (S818). If the payment fails to be made, the contents player stops the playback of the contents (S820). If the payment is made, the contents player restarts to play back the contents from a time point of stopping the playback (S822). Fig. 9 is a flowchart of a detailed operation of a contents player in progress in case that a playback time of contents reaches a preview time. Referring to Fig. 9, the contents player decides whether a playtime reaches a preview time (S900). In accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention, the contents player monitors the playtime to decide whether the playtime reaches the preview time. In accordance with the second embodiment of the present invention, the information indicating that the preview time is reached is received from the contents server to decide whether the playtime reaches the preview time. If the playtime of the contents reaches the preview time, the contents player stops a playback of the contents (S902). The contents player deactivates input buttons of the contents player not to enable a user to input a command as soon as stops the playback of the contents (S904). The contents player stops a decoding operation of the contents only but preferably keeps performing a reception operation of contents data. The received contents data are stored in a buffer (S809). Fig. 9 shows that the reception of the contents data is maintained. Yet, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that a case of stopping the reception of the contents data for load reduction of the server lies within a scope of the present invention. After stopping the playback of the contents, the contents player inquires the user whether he intends to pay a bill for the contents. If the user intends to pay the bill, the contents player displays a payment menu (S908). As mentioned in the foregoing description, the payment menu can be displayed on the contents player. Alternatively, the billing menu may be displayed as a separate pop-up menu. Once the user inputs payment information in the displayed menu, the contents player transmits the payment information to the contents server to request a billing processing (S910). The contents player decides whether payment completion information is received from the server. If the payment fails to be made, the contents player terminates the playback of the contents (S914). If the payment is completed, the contents player restarts the playback of the contents (S916).

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY Accordingly, a method of providing a preview service of contents data according to the present invention has the following advantages or effects. First of all, a user enables to decide whether to pay a bill or not after previewing the corresponding contents, whereby the corresponding payment can be made more reasonably. Secondly, even if a separate preview or trailer is edited and stored, a user enables to preview the pay contents. While the present invention has been described and illustrated herein with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers the modifications and variations of this invention that come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A method of providing a preview service of contents data, comprising: a step (a) of receiving a request information of pay contents streaming data from a user; a step (b) of setting up a preview time for the user-requested pay contents streaming data; a step (c) of transmitting a preview time information set up in the step (b) to a client of the user; a step (d) of transmitting the user-requested contents streaming data to the client of the user; and a step (e) of if a billing request information from the client of the user is received, handling a billing of pay contents requested by the user and if the billing is not valid, stopping a contents transmission, wherein a contents player installed in the client of the user stops a playback of the contents and displays a billing menu if a playtime of the contents reaches the preview time and wherein the playback of the contents is restarted if the billing is effectively completed.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the preview time is differently set up according to a contents genre.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the contents transmission keeps being performed even if the playback of the requested contents is stopped.

4. A method of providing a preview service of contents data, comprising: a step (a) of receiving a request information of pay contents streaming data from a user; a step (b) of setting up a preview time for the user-requested pay contents streaming data; a step (c) of transmitting the user-requested contents streaming data to a client of the user; a step (d) of checking a playtime of contents to decide whether the playtime reaches the set preview time; a step (e) of if the set preview time is reached, transmitting an information indicating that the preview time is reached to the client of the user; and a step (f) of if a billing request information from the client of the user is received, handling a billing of pay contents requested by the user and if the billing is not valid, stopping the contents transmission, wherein a contents player installed in the client of the user stops a playback of the contents and displays a billing menu if the playtime of the contents reaches the preview time and wherein the playback of the contents is restarted if the billing is effectively completed.

5. The method of claim 1 or claim 4, the step (b) comprising the steps of: deciding a genre of the contents requested by the user; and extracting the preview time from a database storing the preview time according to the genre.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein in the step (d), whether the playtime of the contents reaches the preview time is decided using a timestamp information of the transmitted contents.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein in the step (c), if the contents set up to be transmitted for a preview fail to be entirely transmitted due to a network status, a remainder of the contents data is transmitted to the client of the user despite expiration of the preview time.

8. A contents player receiving to play back pay contents streaming data from a contents server, comprising: a preview time determining module determining a preview time for the pay contents streaming data requested by a user; a timer module deciding whether a playtime of the contents streaming data reaches the preview time determined by the preview time determining module; a play-stop module stopping a playback of the contents if the playtime of the contents reaches the determined preview time; a billing request module displaying a billing menu to the user and transmitting a billing request information to the contents server if the playtime of the contents reaches the determined preview time and if the user requests a billing of the contents; a contents decoding module decoding contents data transmitted from the contents server; and a user interface module receiving an input information of the user.

The contents player of claim 8, wherein the preview time determining module receives a preview time information corresponding to the contents requested by the user from the contents server to determine the preview time.

10. The contents player of claim 8, wherein the play-stop module deactivates an input button to prevent the user from inputting a command if the playback of the contents is stopped.

11. A contents server providing pay contents streaming data to a client, comprising: a preview time setup module setting up a preview time for contents requested by a user if the user requests the pay contents streaming data; a meta-information/preview time information providing module providing a meta-information of the pay contents streaming data requested by the user and a preview time information set up by the preview time setup module to the client of the user; a contents transmission module transmitting the pay contents streaming data requested by the user to the client of the user; and a billing processing module handling a billing of the contents requested by the user, wherein a contents player installed in the client of the user stops a playback of the contents and displays a billing menu if a playtime of the contents reaches the preview time and wherein the playback of the contents is restarted if the billing is effectively completed.

12. The contents server of claim 11, wherein the preview time information is stored in a preview time database and wherein the preview time setup module decides a genre information of the contents requested by the user and extracts the preview time information corresponding to the decided genre information from the preview time database.