VIDEO DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM, VIDEO DISTRIBUTION SERVER AND SUBSCRIBER ACCOMMODATION APPARATUS

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To distribute high-quality video contents, without depending on the traffic condition of a subscriber access line. SOLUTION: A video distribution server 10 preliminarily distributes video contents needless to send in real time to a subscriber accommodation terminal 20 before their distributing times. Upon receipt of a distribution request from a subscriber terminal 30, the server 10 judges whether the distribution-requested video contents are already distributed preliminarily, and, if distributed preliminarily, instructs the subscriber accommodation terminal 20 at the preliminarily distributed side to send the preliminarily distributed data. The subscriber accommodation terminal 20 once stores the preliminarily distributed video contents from the video distribution server 10, and upon receipt of the instruction from the distribution server 10 to send the preliminarily distributed data, sends the stored preliminarily distributed video contents to the subscriber terminal 30. COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO