System and method for encouraging viewers to watch television programs

• US 20040205810A1
• Filed: 04/29/2004
• Published: 10/14/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Zigmond, Daniel J., Matheny, John R.
• Granted Patent: US 7,840,975 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/23
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0226 Incentive systems for frequent usage, e.g. frequent flyer miles programs or point systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0235 constrained by time limit or expiration date
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/38 Arrangements for distribution where lower stations, e.g. receivers, interact with the broadcast
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/82 the transmission system being the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42684 Client identification by a unique number or address, e.g. serial number, MAC address, socket ID network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming H04L61/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4758 for providing answers, e.g. voting
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4784 receiving rewards
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6582 Data stored in the client, e.g. viewing habits, hardware capabilities, credit card number arrangements where receivers interact with the broadcast H04H20/38
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17309 Transmission or handling of upstream communications

Abstract

Described are methods and apparatus for encouraging viewers to pay attention to television programs, commercials in particular, by offering viewers some incentive to watch. In one embodiment, viewers are notified that they can receive frequent-flier miles for answering one or more simple questions at the conclusion of the commercial. To verify that the viewer paid attention to the commercial, the answer to the question may be based on the content of the commercial. A sponsor might ask, for example, that the viewer identify the name of the sponsor or the color of an announcer'"'"'s shirt. A correct answer indicates that the viewer watched the commercial, and that the viewer is therefore entitled to some reward. For example, viewers who watch the commercial may be entered in a prize drawing, or may receive prize points, such as frequent-flier miles. In other embodiments, viewers may verify that they watched a given program by selecting an icon or pressing a button on a remote control.

Claims

1-38. -38 (Cancelled).

39. At a television receiver that is configured to display television programming that is broadcast from a broadcast signal source to one or more viewers, a method for offering reward incentives for the one or more viewers to watch the television programming, the method comprising:

receiving a broadcast from a broadcast signal source, the broadcast including a program that can be viewed by one or more viewers at the television receiver;

monitoring the broadcast for one or more reward notice triggers; and

upon detecting a reward notice trigger, generating a reward notice to alert the one or more viewers of a possibility of receiving a reward for viewing at least a portion of the program, wherein the reward notice is associated with the one or more reward notice triggers, and wherein each of the one or more reward notice triggers includes a time stamp, thereby enabling a time to be determined in which the one or more viewers tune into the program and select the reward notice.

40. A method as recited in claim 39, wherein the one or more reward notice triggers are repeatedly transmitted with the broadcast.

41. A method as recited in claim 39, wherein upon receiving a user selection of the reward notice, the method further includes displaying a solicitation for a user response verifying that the viewer watched the program.

42. A method as recited in claim 41, further including:

receiving a user response to the solicitation; and

sending the user response to a remote information store.

43. A method as recited in claim 41, wherein the solicited response comprises a request for information derived from the program.

44. A method as recited in claim 41, wherein the solicited response comprises an email from the one or more viewers.

45. A method as recited in claim 39, wherein the reward notice comprises a user selectable icon.

46. A method as recited in claim 39, further comprising displaying the reward notice at a time closer to the beginning of a program than to the end of the program.

47. A method as recited in claim 39, wherein at least one reward notice trigger includes an expiration attribute, and wherein the receiver only generates the reward notice for the at least one reward notice, upon detecting the at least one reward notice and upon determining that a time specified by the expiration attribute has not yet expired.

48. A computer program product comprising one or more computer-readable media having computer-executable instructions for implementing the method recited in claim 39.

49. A computer program product as recited in claim 48, wherein the one or more reward notice triggers are repeatedly transmitted with the broadcast.

50. A computer program product as recited in claim 39, wherein upon receiving a user selection of the reward notice, the method further includes displaying a solicitation for a user response verifying that the viewer watched the program.

51. A computer program product as recited in claim 50, further including:

receiving a user response to the solicitation; and

sending the user response to a remote information store.

52. A computer program product as recited in claim 50, wherein the solicited response comprises a request for information derived from the program.

53. A computer program product as recited in claim 48, wherein at least one reward notice trigger includes an expiration attribute, and wherein the receiver only generates the reward notice for the at least one reward notice, upon detecting the at least one reward notice and upon determining that a time specified by the expiration attribute has not yet expired.

54. In a broadcasting network that includes a broadcast signal source configured to broadcast television programming to one or more television receivers that are configured to display the television programming to one or more viewers, a method for offering reward incentives for the one or more viewers to watch the television programming, the method comprising:

broadcasting a television program to one or more television viewers via one or more television receivers;

using a reward notice to alert the one or more viewers of a possibility of receiving a reward for viewing at least a portion of the program, the reward notice being associated with reward notice triggers having time stamps that are repeatedly transmitted with the broadcast of the program and that can be used to determine a time in which the one or more viewers tune into the program and select the reward notice;

soliciting a response from the one or more the viewers;

identifying a group of the one or more viewers who viewed the program and that will be rewarded for viewing the program, wherein a determination that the one or more viewers in the identified group viewed the program is at least partially based upon whether the one or more viewers submitted the response.

55. A method as recited in claim 54, further including:

providing a reward to each viewer in the identified group of viewers.

56. A method as recited in claim 54, wherein the solicited response comprises a request for information derived from the television program.

57. A method as recited in claim 54, wherein the reward notice comprises an icon.

58. A method as recited in claim 54, wherein the method further comprises displaying the reward notice at a time closer to the beginning of the program than to the end of the program.

59. A computer program product comprising one or more computer-readable media having computer-executable instructions for implementing the method recited in claim 58.

60. A computer program product as recited in claim 58, wherein the method further includes:

providing a reward to each viewer in the identified group of viewers.

61. A computer program product as recited in claim 58, wherein the solicited response comprises a request for information derived from the television program.

62. A computer program product as recited in claim 58, wherein the reward notice comprises an icon.

63. A computer program product as recited in claim 58, wherein the method further comprises displaying the reward notice at a time closer to the beginning of the program than to the end of the program.