Apparatus and methods for selective enforcement of digital content viewing

• US 10,721,504 B2
• Filed: 12/22/2017
• Issued: 07/21/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Inventors: Stern, Peter, LaJoie, Michael L., Angus, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Dubasky, Gigi L
• Application Number:
  US15/853,468
• Publication Number:
  US 20180192096A1
• Time in Patent Office: 942 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/00 Security arrangements for protecting computers, components thereof, programs or data against unauthorised activity
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/222 Secondary servers, e.g. proxy server, cable television Head-end provisioning of proxy services in data packet switching networks H04L67/56
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23611 Insertion of stuffing data into a multiplex stream, e.g. to obtain a constant bitrate synchronisation arrangements in time-division multiplex systems using bit stuffing for systems with different or fluctuating information rates H04J3/073
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2407 Monitoring of transmitted content, e.g. distribution time, number of downloads arrangements for monitoring programmes for broadcast or for distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2668 Creating a channel for a dedicated end-user group, e.g. insertion of targeted commercials based on end-user profiles information retrieval from the Internet by querying with filtering and personalisation G06F16/9535; arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast H04H20/10; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; adaptation of message content in packet-switching networks H04L51/063
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2747 Remote storage of video programs received via the downstream path, e.g. from the server
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44204 Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; protecting generic digital content where the protection is independent of the precise nature of the content G06F21/10; arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services in broadcast systems H04H60/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 IP
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6587 Control parameters, e.g. trick play commands, viewpoint selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8358 involving watermark protecting executable software by watermarking G06F21/16; image watermarking in general G06T1/0021; watermarks inserted in still images for transmission purposes H04N1/32144; inserting watermarks during video coding H04N19/467

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for selectively enforcing required insertion or viewing of secondary content, such as advertisements or promotions, in a content distribution network. In one embodiment, the network is a managed network (e.g., cable television, satellite, or the like), and the method includes identifying secondary content with a particular attribute or property (e.g., an advertisement that a user has watched before), and selectively enabling one or more “trick mode” functions relating to that secondary content. In one implementation, audio codes or watermarks are inserted into the secondary content and detected when the content is accessed or rendered; if the detected content matches a database or listing of previously played content for that user or premises, the trick mode functionality (e.g., FF or “skip”) is enabled, thereby allowing the user to bypass the content.

Claims

1. Computer readable apparatus comprising a non-transitory storage medium, the non-transitory storage medium comprising at least one computer program having a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions configured to, when executed on a processing apparatus:

receive a digitally rendered content element via a content distribution network;

extract data relating to at least one watermark encountered as part of the received digitally rendered content element;

determine whether the at least one watermark is already in a database in data communication with the computer readable apparatus; and

based at least on a determination that the at least one watermark is not already in the database, (i) cause storage of the extracted data for a predetermined period of time in the database; and

(ii) disable digital content control functionality.

2. The computer readable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the disablement of the digital content control functionality comprises disablement of at least one option to adjust a playback speed.

3. The computer readable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the disablement of the digital content control functionality comprises disablement of at least one option to adjust a volume of an audio component of the digitally rendered content element.

4. The computer readable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the database in data communication with the computer readable apparatus is specific to a particular consumer premises equipment (CPE).

5. The computer readable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the predetermined period of time is predetermined by a software process controlled by an operator of a managed content distribution network.

6. The computer readable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the digitally rendered content element is received from a cloud-based data storage apparatus, the cloud-based data storage apparatus specifically assigned to or associated with a particular user or subscription account associated with the computer readable apparatus.

7. A computerized method of enabling one or more digital content control functions, the computerized method comprising:

causing provision of a first digitally rendered content element to a computerized client device via a content distribution network, the first digitally rendered content element encoded with first data, the first data identifying at least the first digitally rendered content element;

receiving second data via the content distribution network, the second data comprising information related to the first data, the second data generated by the computerized client device;

utilizing the second data to determine (i) an association between the first data and viewing information stored in at least one portion of a database, and (ii) a position associated with a user of the computerized client device with respect to a linked chain of events;

selecting one or more second digitally rendered content elements, the selecting based at least in part on the position associated with the user in relation to a sequential order of the one or more second digitally rendered content elements with the first digitally rendered content element; and

based at least in part on the determining of (i) and (ii), enabling the one or more digital content control functions, the one or more digital content control functions enabling the user to bypass, via the computerized client device, at least a portion of the first digitally rendered content element in favor of at least the one or more second digitally rendered content elements; and

wherein the linked chain of events spans at least portions of (i) the first digitally rendered content element, and (ii) the one or more second digitally rendered content elements.

8. The computerized method of claim 7, further comprising:

receiving the viewing information and storing the viewing information in at least the one portion of the database;

wherein the receiving of the viewing information is based on a computerized mobile device associated with the user of the computerized client device (i) being in range of a wireless node in data communication with the computerized client device, and (ii) causing a download of the viewing information to the computerized mobile device, the viewing information indicating that the first digitally rendered content element has been displayed via the computerized mobile device.

9. The computerized method of claim 7, further comprising:

receiving data representative of a user selection of the one or more digital content control functions; and

based on the receiving of the data representative of the user selection, transmitting a signal to a computerized network entity, the signal configured to cause operation of the one or more digital content control functions.

10. The computerized method of claim 7, further comprising:

maintaining data relating to a number of allowed times each of the one or more digital content control functions may be performed with respect to digitally rendered content elements associated with the linked chain of events; and

based at least on a prior rendering of the digitally rendered content elements without performance of any of the one or more digital content control functions, increasing the number of allowed times.

11. The computerized method of claim 7, wherein:

the first data comprises digital watermark data; and

the receiving of the second data comprises receiving at least one of;

(a) raw digital watermark data, the raw digital watermark data comprising the digital watermark data extracted from the first digitally rendered content element by computerized logic on the computerized client device, or (b) state information comprising viewing data associated with the first digitally rendered content element, the state information (i) based on an exchange of one or more protocol-based cookies between a server apparatus of the content distribution network and the computerized client apparatus, and (ii) generated by the computerized logic on the computerized client device.

12. The computerized method of claim 7, wherein utilizing of the second data to determine the position associated with the user of the computerized client device with respect to the linked chain of events comprises utilizing viewing data to determine the position associated with the user in relation to an advertisement series, the viewing data comprising past and current interaction of the user with the advertisement series.

13. A computerized method for digital content control, the computerized method comprising:

receiving a digitally rendered content element via a content delivery network;

extracting data relating to at least one watermark feature encountered as part of the received digitally rendered content element;

determining whether the at least one watermark feature is already in a database associated with the content delivery network; and

based at least on a determination that the at least one watermark feature is not already in the database, (i) causing storage of the extracted data for a predetermined period of time in the database; and

(ii) disabling at least one digital content control functionality.

14. The computerized method of claim 13, wherein the causing the storage of the extracted data for the predetermined period of time in the database comprises causing storage in a cloud-based data storage apparatus, the cloud-based data storage apparatus specifically assigned to or associated with a user of the content delivery network.

15. The computerized method of claim 13, wherein the causing the storage of the extracted data for the predetermined period of time in the database comprises causing storage in a database disposed at a computerized client device, the storage in the database comprising storage in a device-specific database, the storage enabling:

(i) obviation of one or more communications to a computerized network entity disposed upstream from the computerized client device in the content delivery network, and (ii) reduction of processing overhead and latency for searching for the at least one watermark in the device-specific database.

16. The computerized method of claim 13, wherein the causing the storage of the extracted data for the predetermined period of time in the database comprises updating a database indicative of a history of interaction by a computerized client device or user thereof with respect to a plurality of digitally rendered content.

17. The computerized method of claim 13, wherein the disabling of the digital content control functionality comprises disabling at least one option to adjust a playback speed of the digitally rendered content element.

18. The computerized method of claim 13, wherein the disabling of the at least one digital content control functionality comprises disabling at least one option to adjust a volume of an audio component of the digitally rendered content element.

19. The computerized method of claim 13, wherein the extracting of the data relating to the at least one watermark feature comprises extracting one or more codes uniquely identifying the digitally rendered content element.

20. The computerized method of claim 13, wherein the disabling of the at least one digital content control functionality comprises transmitting trick mode command data modified with, or accompanied by, data relating to a disable signal, to a network content server apparatus.