Time-based rating stream allowing user groupings

• US 20030105870A1
• Filed: 11/30/2001
• Published: 06/05/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GFK Custom Research, LLC (Nielsen Holdings plc)
• Original Assignee: Knowledge Networks, Inc. (Nielsen Holdings plc)
• Inventors: Baum, Felix
• Granted Patent: US 7,343,417 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/228
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4756 for rating content, e.g. scoring a recommended movie

Abstract

A system for obtaining a rating stream of information concerning a media presentation is described. The client unit provides a media player. In a preferred embodiment, the client unit also provides a rating indication display. The rating can be adjusted by the user. The rating information, along with time stamp information recorded when the rating changes, is provided from the client unit to a data collection unit. The analysis unit requests data from the data collection unit, and combines the ratings information from multiple users. In a preferred embodiment, the analysis unit combines the rating information according to demographic groups based on the demographic profiles of the users.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

obtaining demographic data concerning users, the demographic data including data for a number of profile categories;

at a client unit, producing a media and rating indication display, the rating information display indicating a user'"'"'s rating of an element in the media;

at the client unit, receiving rating information from a user and transmitting the rating information to a server across a network;

selecting at least one indication for at least one profile category to determine a grouping of multiple users; and

combining the rating information from the multiple users.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein one of the profile categories is gender.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein one of the profile categories is political party affiliation.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of displaying the combined rating information.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein the selecting step is done at an analysis unit.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of displaying the combined rating and the media at the analysis unit.

8. The method of claim 4 wherein the combining step is done at a server.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the media comprises video.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the media is obtained from a TV signal.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the media signal is obtained from a storage medium.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the network is the Internet.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the client unit is a unit that can obtain web page information from the Internet.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the combining step includes weighting individual users to obtain a weighted rating.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein the weights are used to make the responses more accurately fit the demographic of a target population.

16. The method of claim 12 wherein the target population is the general public.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein an administrative application program controls the rate at which data is transmitted from the client unit to the server.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the administrative application uses the control of the data transmission rate to throttle the number of connections that reach the server per time period.

19. The method of claim 1 wherein an administrative application program controls the start time and end time of ratings collection.

20. The method of claim 1 wherein the demographic group results from a number of selections in the users'"'"' demographic profile.

21. An apparatus comprising:

a client unit adapted to produce a media and rating indication display, the rating information display indicating a user'"'"'s rating of an element in the media, the client unit adapted to receive the rating information from a user and transmit the rating information to a server across a network; and

an analysis unit at another location having access to demographic data for a number of profile categories, the analysis unit adapted to determine a grouping of multiple users from a selection of at least one indication for at least one profile category, the analysis unit further adapted to combine the rating information from the server for the multiple users.

22. The apparatus of claim 21 wherein the combining includes using weights.

23. The apparatus of claim 21 wherein the client unit can access the Internet.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein the server provides web page information to the client.

25. The method of claim 24 wherein the web page information includes an application program that can be run at the client unit.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein an application program controls the storing and caching of the rating data, as well as the transmitting of the rating data to the server.

27. The method of claim 21 wherein the media comprises video.

28. The method of claim 21 wherein the analysis unit is adapted to produce a display of the combined information and the media.

29. A method comprising:

at a client unit, receiving from a server a time indication at a first time;

producing data concerning an event at a second time;

transmitting that data along with the time indication to the server across a network wherein a difference indication is produced at the server or client unit indicating the difference between first and second time.

30. The method of claim 29 wherein the event is an event that occurs during a media presentation.

31. The method of claim 29 wherein the media presentation is a video presentation.

32. The method of claim 29, wherein the data comprises rating information.

33. The method of claim 29, wherein the difference indication is transmitted from the client unit to the server.

34. The method of claim 29 wherein the client unit transmits information to the server that allows the server to calculate the difference indication.

35. The method of claim 29 wherein the data comprises rating information concerning a media display.

36. The method of claim 35 wherein the client unit produces a media and rating indication display, the rating information display indicating a user'"'"'s rating of an element in the media.

37. An apparatus comprising:

a server adapted to send a time indication to a client at a first time; and

a client adapted to receive data concerning an event at a second time, the client adapted to transmit the data along with the time indication and the difference indication to the server across a network wherein either the server or the client unit is adapted to produce a difference indication of the difference between the first and second time.

38. The apparatus of claim 37 wherein the event comprises an event that occurs during a media presentation.

39. The apparatus of claim 37, wherein the media presentation is a video presentation.

40. The apparatus of claim 37 wherein the event is a rating information concerning a media presentation.

41. The apparatus of claim 37 wherein the client unit is adapted to produce a media and rating indication display;

the rating information display indicating the user'"'"'s rating of an element in the media.

42. The apparatus of claim 37 wherein the time difference indication is transmitted from the client unit to the server.

43. The apparatus of claim 37 wherein the client unit transmits information to the server that allows the server to calculate the difference indication.