- Email: [email protected]
Multimedia Broker project: a tool for electronic information publishers
Computer Networks and ISDN Systems 30 Ž1998. 1233–1236
Multimedia Broker project: a tool for electronic information publishers Alberto G. Corona
)
Department of New Technologies, Ibermatica, Grupo Ibermatica, AÕda. Partenon, ´ ´ 16–18, 28042 Madrid, Spain
Abstract The Multimedia Broker project aims at designing and developing a set of tools to support multimedia publishing for the Internet. This includes support for publishers to structure, disseminate and sell information products over Internet and for consumers to navigate, explore and retrieve multimedia information. q 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Brokering infrastructures; Multimedia Broker; Electronic commerce; Electronic publishing; Database technologies
1. Project aims and objectives Multimedia Broker is an EU-funded research project that will provide a suite of technical support software tools for the development of a multimedia publishing and information access system in several areas including information publishing, transport and education. The core of the project is concerned with search and retrieval in a set of documents and databases organised by the information provider in a natural way, and with the buying of this information by electronic means. It will also provide a set of standard tools for publishers in order to produce electronic content for Internet and CD-ROM. The Multimedia Broker tools will provide an infrastructure for publishers to work more easily with their authors, while providing their end-users
)
E-mail: [email protected].
with the tools to interrogate the networked products using the Internet ŽFig. 1.. 2. Relationship to other work in the field Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø
0169-7552r98r$19.00 q 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 1 6 9 - 7 5 5 2 Ž 9 8 . 0 0 0 0 3 - 8
Multimedia Broker is related with: electronic commerce, Internet search engines, relational database access through Internet, intelligent user profile tracking, co-operative work, online document databases, knowledge representation and exploitation, corporate knowledge, distributed systems, payment systems, Internet shopping, transaction handling, intelligent query advising, metadata definition, Internet and CD-ROM development systems, data navigation, information representation techniques, profile-based information delivery.
1234
A.G. Coronar Computer Networks and ISDN Systems 30 (1998) 1233–1236
IE2005 – Aquarelle. The project will pilot a system to permit users to search computerised multimedia databases across its international network, using their own desktop systems.
3. Methodology
Fig. 1. Selecting a domain.
The Multimedia Broker project is related to the following EU-funded projects: IE2108 – Twenty one. The project will create a multimedia publishing system that will allow a variety of publishers to disseminate educational material relating to the environment in a co-operative manner. The project aims, in particular, to facilitate access across different languages. IE2044 – Europe MMM. The project will pilot methods for improving multimedia publishing in the educational area, with emphasis on design, reuse of material, flexible delivery and business models to protect IPR. The needs of disabled users will be studied in the pilot. The project aims to extend the ability of the user to customise the teaching material. ACTS 096 – Multimediator. The ACTS Multimediator project ŽACTS 096. aims at demonstrating the use of an intelligent multimedia brokerage service for European customers and suppliers in the publishing and electronic commerce areas. Services offered will include specialised video-on-demand, hypervideo, video-rating, conventional publishing services, and electronic commerce on virtual gallery and education. ESPRIT – MODE. The objective of the MODE project ŽMusic On Demand. is to develop, evaluate and commercialise an ISDN based telematics service for marketing, tele-publishing and tele-shopping of music provided by the music industry. The main target groups are private consumers, music retailers, radio stations Žrecorded music. and music schools Žboth recorded and printed music..
Multimedia Broker follows the general guidelines mandatory in the Telematics Applications Program. The consortium represents a balanced set of companies. They are divided into three categories: Ø System developers: Ø Ibermatica ŽSpain. Ø The Swedish Institute for Systems Development ŽSISU. Ø BRAMEUR ŽUK.. Ø Publishers: Ø PTRC ŽUK. as a test site for transport Ø Liber ŽSweden. as the test site for information publishing Ø Anaya ŽSpain. as the test site for education and informatics. Ø Usability and consultancy: Ø City University ŽUK. Ø Coopers and Lybrand ŽNetherlands. Ø Institute for Media Technology ŽSweden.. We have made an extensive market study, which is periodically updated. As the market evolves the project will incorporate new commercial tools and developments to keep the project up to date in the rapidly developing field of electronic information publishing. We have also made an in-depth study of user needs in terms of publisher requirements, usability issues, etc. Finally, we plan to make a detailed industry analysis in terms of business opportunities. We will also provide the publishers with guidelines to adapt their current business to the multimedia Broker infrastructure. The purpose is to test the feasibility of the project by providing specific applications for the three publisher partners in the project.
4. Technology Multimedia Broker integrates together standard tools, and so concentrates its efforts on adding value.
A.G. Coronar Computer Networks and ISDN Systems 30 (1998) 1233–1236
The project reuses design ideas and modules of the INTUITIVE w1x project, a pre-Internet data access and discovery tool. The Multimedia Broker project extends the idea of INTUITIVE to the Internet, bearing in mind that the user is non-technical, and uses a standard Internet Browser. On the input side, much of the information is stored in documents, as well as in relational databases. The Broker will have to integrate them. The information stored has to be flexible enough to cope with different user needs and profiles. It also has to provide electronic payment facilities of various kinds: subscriptions, pay per view, pay in advance, etc. The system is made up of a number of modules, and is arranged in a three-tier structure ŽFig. 2.. Each module of this structure is loosely coupled with the rest: the communication is made by means of HTTP protocols and the exchange of documents, mainly in XML w2x format, when structured content is needed. At the user end, there is the Web Browser, which will display the user interface. The user interface is generated in the Web server by means of HTTP post requests: there is an information navigator, selector, a query builder and browsing modules for the results. Each one of these modules will accommodate to user profiles. As an example, we can make the user interface in VRML or HTML for the same information. The Broker will use alternate information representations. Some multimedia applications can be made more interactive by using scripting languages, Java, activeX, etc., but the flexibility to accommodate to user preferences will still apply to these
Fig. 2. The Multimedia Broker system.
1235
complex cases. The user can be a Java application, too. In the centre of the three-tier structure is the broker itself, which deals with user profiles, payment and content delivery to the user interface. It demands and receives information from the third module, the Supplier, as a result of queries issued by the user. It also copes with advertising. The broker mediates between many users and many information suppliers. The third part is the Supplier server. There can be more than one supplier server, usually one for each site the Broker server manages. The supplier contains the Publisher information arranged in a set of documents and relational databases. Part of the relational data Žmetadata. contains part of the document structure. The rest of the structure is generated automatically by a standard index engine. There is a query language which allows for precise, as well as fuzzy queries. It was developed in the INTUITIVE project, and provides the semantic broadness to ask the relational database as well as the index of documents for information to be retrieved. The queries have mixed content from the two databases, both in the information to be retrieved and in the set of constraints in the query. The documents that contain links to multimedia data are stored as templates in the supplier. The template is written in XML1 ŽeXtended Markup Language. and contains embedded HTML, VRML and other formats for alternative representations. The template can be handled by the broker server to make HTML or VRML output to the user’s Browser, taking into account the user profiles. The same approach is used for the composition of the common user interface pieces: navigator, selector, query builder and result Browser. The metadata definition and the template content will drive the user Interface, so there is no need to add code to the system for different applications. The communication between broker and Supplier will be in the form of XML documents. Some commercial applications will be extended to make the Author tools. These consist of multimedia content editor, database configuration, payment manager, and database administrator. There is an intelligent user profile management system which will be flexible to be configured for different client needs. The final system has to be
1236
A.G. Coronar Computer Networks and ISDN Systems 30 (1998) 1233–1236
flexible enough to cope with most aspects of the multimedia, commerce, electronic search and retrieval and enterprise knowledge management applications without adding extra code.
5. Progress and achievement The project started in March 1997 and is expected to finish at the end of June 1999. The design phase has now been completed after a detailed study of user needs and market status in terms of technology and products. We have made some changes in the project objectives after the initial study of the publisher needs. We are more focused on providing publisher tools for creating multimedia content, item cost management, database structure browsing-editing and statistics management. We also plan to incorporate some new techniques while they are gaining market acceptance, such as virtual reality, web push channels, online chat and customised content push and advertising. Multimedia Broker is currently at the early development phase. We are working on a minimum functionality system which will be finished at the end of January 1998. The prototype, however, will be a working system with all the basic functionalities of search and retrieval, payment, navigation and user profile guided interface. We plan to present this prototype in successive conferences and exhibitions in 1998, especially at Milia ŽFebruary, Cannes., Frankfurt Bookfair ŽSeptember., PTRC Conference ŽSeptember. and the International WWW Conference ŽDecember–June..
6. Market prospects and benefits Publishing on the Internet is now being done with a set of evolving tools: the traditional publishers do
not have knowledge to keep in touch with the necessary technology. The Multimedia Broker project will provide a set of guidelines, together with an integrated environment, to make electronic publishing easy for the publishers. Multimedia Broker is intended to grow with technological progress, integrating together more and more standard features. Internet push channels, profile guided advertising, and mailing workgroup and client chat are part of our planned upgrade. For a publisher already entered into the field of electronic publishing, Multimedia Broker will act as the glue between the many parts the publisher has already implemented. The Broker will structure the current sites’ contents, and will allow the authors to gather and reuse the information already in the company for creating new content. In fact, Multimedia Broker, as an integrator of relational databases with document databases, could act as a search and retrieval system for all the company-stored knowledge. The official Multimedia Broker Web page is: http:rrwww.sisu.serprojectsrmmbrokerr.
References w1x INTUITIVE Project P6593, http:rrwww.sisu.seroldprojectsrintuitiverintuitive.html. w2x XML: eXtended Markup Language, http:rrwww.w3.orgr xml.
Alberto G. Corona obtained his university degree in physics from the Universidad de Santander, after which he has been working on consultancy and computer science research and development, mainly in the field of Telecommunications and Geographical Information Systems. He is responsible for the liaison and dissemination activities in the Multimedia Broker project.
Multimedia Broker project: a tool for electronic information publishers Alberto G. Corona
)
Department of New Technologies, Ibermatica, Grupo Ibermatica, AÕda. Partenon, ´ ´ 16–18, 28042 Madrid, Spain
Abstract The Multimedia Broker project aims at designing and developing a set of tools to support multimedia publishing for the Internet. This includes support for publishers to structure, disseminate and sell information products over Internet and for consumers to navigate, explore and retrieve multimedia information. q 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Brokering infrastructures; Multimedia Broker; Electronic commerce; Electronic publishing; Database technologies
1. Project aims and objectives Multimedia Broker is an EU-funded research project that will provide a suite of technical support software tools for the development of a multimedia publishing and information access system in several areas including information publishing, transport and education. The core of the project is concerned with search and retrieval in a set of documents and databases organised by the information provider in a natural way, and with the buying of this information by electronic means. It will also provide a set of standard tools for publishers in order to produce electronic content for Internet and CD-ROM. The Multimedia Broker tools will provide an infrastructure for publishers to work more easily with their authors, while providing their end-users
)
E-mail: [email protected].
with the tools to interrogate the networked products using the Internet ŽFig. 1.. 2. Relationship to other work in the field Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø
0169-7552r98r$19.00 q 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 1 6 9 - 7 5 5 2 Ž 9 8 . 0 0 0 0 3 - 8
Multimedia Broker is related with: electronic commerce, Internet search engines, relational database access through Internet, intelligent user profile tracking, co-operative work, online document databases, knowledge representation and exploitation, corporate knowledge, distributed systems, payment systems, Internet shopping, transaction handling, intelligent query advising, metadata definition, Internet and CD-ROM development systems, data navigation, information representation techniques, profile-based information delivery.
1234
A.G. Coronar Computer Networks and ISDN Systems 30 (1998) 1233–1236
IE2005 – Aquarelle. The project will pilot a system to permit users to search computerised multimedia databases across its international network, using their own desktop systems.
3. Methodology
Fig. 1. Selecting a domain.
The Multimedia Broker project is related to the following EU-funded projects: IE2108 – Twenty one. The project will create a multimedia publishing system that will allow a variety of publishers to disseminate educational material relating to the environment in a co-operative manner. The project aims, in particular, to facilitate access across different languages. IE2044 – Europe MMM. The project will pilot methods for improving multimedia publishing in the educational area, with emphasis on design, reuse of material, flexible delivery and business models to protect IPR. The needs of disabled users will be studied in the pilot. The project aims to extend the ability of the user to customise the teaching material. ACTS 096 – Multimediator. The ACTS Multimediator project ŽACTS 096. aims at demonstrating the use of an intelligent multimedia brokerage service for European customers and suppliers in the publishing and electronic commerce areas. Services offered will include specialised video-on-demand, hypervideo, video-rating, conventional publishing services, and electronic commerce on virtual gallery and education. ESPRIT – MODE. The objective of the MODE project ŽMusic On Demand. is to develop, evaluate and commercialise an ISDN based telematics service for marketing, tele-publishing and tele-shopping of music provided by the music industry. The main target groups are private consumers, music retailers, radio stations Žrecorded music. and music schools Žboth recorded and printed music..
Multimedia Broker follows the general guidelines mandatory in the Telematics Applications Program. The consortium represents a balanced set of companies. They are divided into three categories: Ø System developers: Ø Ibermatica ŽSpain. Ø The Swedish Institute for Systems Development ŽSISU. Ø BRAMEUR ŽUK.. Ø Publishers: Ø PTRC ŽUK. as a test site for transport Ø Liber ŽSweden. as the test site for information publishing Ø Anaya ŽSpain. as the test site for education and informatics. Ø Usability and consultancy: Ø City University ŽUK. Ø Coopers and Lybrand ŽNetherlands. Ø Institute for Media Technology ŽSweden.. We have made an extensive market study, which is periodically updated. As the market evolves the project will incorporate new commercial tools and developments to keep the project up to date in the rapidly developing field of electronic information publishing. We have also made an in-depth study of user needs in terms of publisher requirements, usability issues, etc. Finally, we plan to make a detailed industry analysis in terms of business opportunities. We will also provide the publishers with guidelines to adapt their current business to the multimedia Broker infrastructure. The purpose is to test the feasibility of the project by providing specific applications for the three publisher partners in the project.
4. Technology Multimedia Broker integrates together standard tools, and so concentrates its efforts on adding value.
A.G. Coronar Computer Networks and ISDN Systems 30 (1998) 1233–1236
The project reuses design ideas and modules of the INTUITIVE w1x project, a pre-Internet data access and discovery tool. The Multimedia Broker project extends the idea of INTUITIVE to the Internet, bearing in mind that the user is non-technical, and uses a standard Internet Browser. On the input side, much of the information is stored in documents, as well as in relational databases. The Broker will have to integrate them. The information stored has to be flexible enough to cope with different user needs and profiles. It also has to provide electronic payment facilities of various kinds: subscriptions, pay per view, pay in advance, etc. The system is made up of a number of modules, and is arranged in a three-tier structure ŽFig. 2.. Each module of this structure is loosely coupled with the rest: the communication is made by means of HTTP protocols and the exchange of documents, mainly in XML w2x format, when structured content is needed. At the user end, there is the Web Browser, which will display the user interface. The user interface is generated in the Web server by means of HTTP post requests: there is an information navigator, selector, a query builder and browsing modules for the results. Each one of these modules will accommodate to user profiles. As an example, we can make the user interface in VRML or HTML for the same information. The Broker will use alternate information representations. Some multimedia applications can be made more interactive by using scripting languages, Java, activeX, etc., but the flexibility to accommodate to user preferences will still apply to these
Fig. 2. The Multimedia Broker system.
1235
complex cases. The user can be a Java application, too. In the centre of the three-tier structure is the broker itself, which deals with user profiles, payment and content delivery to the user interface. It demands and receives information from the third module, the Supplier, as a result of queries issued by the user. It also copes with advertising. The broker mediates between many users and many information suppliers. The third part is the Supplier server. There can be more than one supplier server, usually one for each site the Broker server manages. The supplier contains the Publisher information arranged in a set of documents and relational databases. Part of the relational data Žmetadata. contains part of the document structure. The rest of the structure is generated automatically by a standard index engine. There is a query language which allows for precise, as well as fuzzy queries. It was developed in the INTUITIVE project, and provides the semantic broadness to ask the relational database as well as the index of documents for information to be retrieved. The queries have mixed content from the two databases, both in the information to be retrieved and in the set of constraints in the query. The documents that contain links to multimedia data are stored as templates in the supplier. The template is written in XML1 ŽeXtended Markup Language. and contains embedded HTML, VRML and other formats for alternative representations. The template can be handled by the broker server to make HTML or VRML output to the user’s Browser, taking into account the user profiles. The same approach is used for the composition of the common user interface pieces: navigator, selector, query builder and result Browser. The metadata definition and the template content will drive the user Interface, so there is no need to add code to the system for different applications. The communication between broker and Supplier will be in the form of XML documents. Some commercial applications will be extended to make the Author tools. These consist of multimedia content editor, database configuration, payment manager, and database administrator. There is an intelligent user profile management system which will be flexible to be configured for different client needs. The final system has to be
1236
A.G. Coronar Computer Networks and ISDN Systems 30 (1998) 1233–1236
flexible enough to cope with most aspects of the multimedia, commerce, electronic search and retrieval and enterprise knowledge management applications without adding extra code.
5. Progress and achievement The project started in March 1997 and is expected to finish at the end of June 1999. The design phase has now been completed after a detailed study of user needs and market status in terms of technology and products. We have made some changes in the project objectives after the initial study of the publisher needs. We are more focused on providing publisher tools for creating multimedia content, item cost management, database structure browsing-editing and statistics management. We also plan to incorporate some new techniques while they are gaining market acceptance, such as virtual reality, web push channels, online chat and customised content push and advertising. Multimedia Broker is currently at the early development phase. We are working on a minimum functionality system which will be finished at the end of January 1998. The prototype, however, will be a working system with all the basic functionalities of search and retrieval, payment, navigation and user profile guided interface. We plan to present this prototype in successive conferences and exhibitions in 1998, especially at Milia ŽFebruary, Cannes., Frankfurt Bookfair ŽSeptember., PTRC Conference ŽSeptember. and the International WWW Conference ŽDecember–June..
6. Market prospects and benefits Publishing on the Internet is now being done with a set of evolving tools: the traditional publishers do
not have knowledge to keep in touch with the necessary technology. The Multimedia Broker project will provide a set of guidelines, together with an integrated environment, to make electronic publishing easy for the publishers. Multimedia Broker is intended to grow with technological progress, integrating together more and more standard features. Internet push channels, profile guided advertising, and mailing workgroup and client chat are part of our planned upgrade. For a publisher already entered into the field of electronic publishing, Multimedia Broker will act as the glue between the many parts the publisher has already implemented. The Broker will structure the current sites’ contents, and will allow the authors to gather and reuse the information already in the company for creating new content. In fact, Multimedia Broker, as an integrator of relational databases with document databases, could act as a search and retrieval system for all the company-stored knowledge. The official Multimedia Broker Web page is: http:rrwww.sisu.serprojectsrmmbrokerr.
References w1x INTUITIVE Project P6593, http:rrwww.sisu.seroldprojectsrintuitiverintuitive.html. w2x XML: eXtended Markup Language, http:rrwww.w3.orgr xml.
Alberto G. Corona obtained his university degree in physics from the Universidad de Santander, after which he has been working on consultancy and computer science research and development, mainly in the field of Telecommunications and Geographical Information Systems. He is responsible for the liaison and dissemination activities in the Multimedia Broker project.