Queue based advertisement scheduling and sales

• US 10,231,031 B1
• Filed: 02/06/2018
• Issued: 03/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Prime Research Alliance E, LLC
• Original Assignee: Prime Research Alliance E., Inc.
• Inventors: Eldering, Charles A., Flickinger, Gregory C., Schlack, John A., Blasko, John P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheleheda, James R
• Application Number:
  US15/890,032
• Time in Patent Office: 399 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23424 involving splicing one content stream with another content stream, e.g. for inserting or substituting an advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25883 being end-user demographical data, e.g. age, family status or address arrangements for identifying locations of users in broadcast systems H04H60/52
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26233 involving content or additional data duration or size, e.g. length of a movie, size of an executable file
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44016 involving splicing one content stream with another content stream, e.g. for substituting a video clip
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/458 Scheduling content for creating a personalised stream, e.g. by combining a locally stored advertisement with an incoming stream; Updating operations, e.g. for OS modules ; time-related management operations arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or during the distribution H04H20/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02

Abstract

In accordance with the invention, advertisement identifiers are stored in a queue in memory in the set top box or elsewhere corresponding to individual subscribers of a television service delivery network. The advertisements are retrieved and displayed in the order dictated by the queue as advertisement avails are detected in the particular channel information stream being watched by that subscriber. Accordingly, the subscriber sees the advertisements regardless of what channel or television program is being watched and sees them in the order dictated by the queue. The invention also is applicable to other information streams including Internet advertising, audio/radio advertising and advertising in electronic program guides.

Claims

1. A method of inserting advertisements into a programming stream in a communications network, the method comprising:

receiving the programming stream from a central location by a receiver via the communications network;

storing one or more queues at the receiver, each of the one or more queues associated with one or more subscribers and comprising a plurality of queue locations forming an ordered list of advertisements, each advertisement being previously matched to one or more of the subscribers;

selling one or more individual locations in the one or more queues and reordering, in the one or more queues, the corresponding ordered list of advertisements based on the sold one or more individual locations;

detecting one or more intervals in the programming stream within which advertisements may be inserted; and

inserting advertisements from the queues into the programming stream within the detected one or more intervals, the advertisements being inserted in accordance with the ordered list.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the order of the advertisements in the queues is independent of the substance of the programming stream.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein each of the one or more queues is associated with a channel in the programming stream.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the receiving includes receiving a plurality of channels within the programming stream and selecting one of the channels, and wherein the inserting includes inserting the advertisements from a queue associated with the selected channel into the detected intervals in the selected channel.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the queues are stored at the receiver.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the specific queue slots are sold to advertisers.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the specific queue slots are sold based at least partially on a repetition rate within the queue of the sold specific queue slots.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

recording a portion of the programming stream for subsequent playback.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the advertisements are inserted into the programming stream as the stream is being recorded.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the advertisements are inserted into the programming stream when the stream is played back.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein the advertisements are inserted into the programming stream between the time the stream is recorded and the time the stream is played back.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the inserted advertisement is not dependent on a selection of that advertisement.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the order of the advertisements in the ordered list is independent of the substance of the advertisements in the queue.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the order of the advertisements in the ordered list is independent of the timing of the detected intervals.

15. A system for inserting advertisements into a programming stream in a communications network, the system comprising:

a receiver configured to receive the programming stream from a central location via the communications network;

a first processor configured to store one or more queues, each of the one or more queue queues associated with one or more subscribers and comprising a plurality of queue locations forming an ordered list of advertisements, each advertisement being previously matched to one or more of the subscribers;

a second processor configured to sell one or more individual locations in the one or more queues; and

a third processor configured to;

reorder, in the one or more queues, the corresponding ordered list of advertisements based on the sold one or more individual locations at least partially determine the order of one or more queues;

detect one or more intervals in the programming stream within which advertisements may be inserted; and

insert advertisements from the queues into the programming stream within the detected one or more intervals, the advertisements being inserted in accordance with the ordered list.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the specific queue slots are sold to advertisers.

17. The method of claim 15 wherein the specific queue slots are sold based at least partially on a repetition rate within the queue of the sold specific queue slots.

18. A method of inserting advertisements into a programming stream in a communications network, the method comprising:

receiving the programming stream from a central location by a receiver via the communications network;

storing one or more queues at the receiver, each of the one or more queue queues associated with one or more subscribers and comprising a plurality of queue locations forming an ordered list of advertisements, each advertisement being previously matched to one or more of the subscribers;

receiving data describing one or more sold individual locations in the one or more queues that and reordering, in the one or more queues, the corresponding ordered list of advertisements based on the one or more sold individual locations at least partially determine the order of one or more queues;

detecting one or more intervals in the programming stream within which advertisements may be inserted; and

inserting advertisements from the queues into the programming stream within the detected one or more intervals, the advertisements being inserted in accordance with the ordered list.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the specific queue slots are sold to advertisers.

20. The method of claim 18 wherein the specific queue slots are sold based at least partially on a repetition rate within the queue of the sold specific queue slots.