Detecting Repeating Content in Broadcast Media

• US 20070124756A1
• Filed: 11/27/2006
• Published: 05/31/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Baluja, Shumeet, Fink, Michael, Covell, Michele
• Granted Patent: US 7,991,770 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/18
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/635 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/683 using metadata automatically derived from the content
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/034 on discs G11B27/036, G11B27/038 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/28 by using information signals recorded by the same method as the main recording G11B27/22 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/14 for monitoring programmes
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 2201/90 characterised by the use of signatures
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/06 Arrangements for scheduling broadcast services or broadcast-related services
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/37 for identifying segments of broadcast information, e.g. scenes or extracting programme ID
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/372 Programme
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/375 Commercial
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/45 for identifying users
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/58 of audio determination or detection of speech characteristics in general G10L25/00; speech recognition in general G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/59 of video recognising characters or patterns in general G06F18/00, G06V20/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/64 for providing detail information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/65 for using the result on users' side
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/66 for using the result on distributors' side
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/80 characterised by transmission among terminal devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/87 accessed over computer networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/252 Processing of multiple end-users' preferences to derive collaborative data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26603 : for automatically generating descriptors from content, e.g. when it is not made available by its provider, using content analysis techniques
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 : embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4143 : embedded in a Personal Computer [PC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42203 : sound input device, e.g. microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4394 : involving operations for analysing the audio stream, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in audio streams arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58
• 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 21/440236 : by media transcoding, e.g. video is transformed into a slideshow of still pictures, audio is converted into text
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44213 : Monitoring of end-user related data arrangements for monitoring the users' behaviour or opinions in broadcast systems H04H60/33
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4542 : Blocking scenes or portions of the received content, e.g. censoring scenes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 : Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 : for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4756 : for rating content, e.g. scoring a recommended movie
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 : Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 : communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 : for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8106 : involving special audio data, e.g. different tracks for different languages
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 : involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8133 : specifically related to the content, e.g. biography of the actors in a movie, detailed information about an article seen in a video program
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/858 : Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/445 : for displaying additional information H04N5/50 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17336 : Handling of requests in head-ends

Abstract

Systems, methods, devices, and computer program products provide social and interactive applications for detecting repeating content in broadcast media. In some implementations, a method includes: generating a database of audio statistics from content; generating a query from the database of audio statistics; running the query against the database of audio statistics to determine a non-identity match; if a non-identity match exists, identifying the content corresponding to the matched query as repeating content.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

generating a query from a database of audio statistics;

running the query against the database of audio statistics to determine a non-identity match; and

if a non-identity match exists,

identifying the content corresponding to the matched query as repeating content.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

validating the non-identity match using non-auditory information.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining end points of the repeating content.

4. The method of claim 3, where the end points are determined using dynamic programming techniques.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

applying metrics to the repeating content to determine if the repeating content is an advertisement.

6. The method of claim 5, where the metrics are from a group of metrics consisting of time duration, volume, visual activity, and blank frame bracketing.

7. The method of claim 1, where the audio statistics are generated from ambient audio snippets of a media broadcast.

8. The method of claim 1, where the audio statistics are frame descriptors.

9. The method of claim 1, where video statistics are used with the audio statistics to determine a non-identity match.

10. The method of claim 1, where the non-identity matches are determined using hashing techniques.

11. A system, comprising:

a processor;

a computer-readable medium operatively coupled to the processor and having instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by the processor, causes the processor to perform the operations of;

generating a query from a database of audio statistics;

running a query against the database of audio statistics to determine a non-identity match, where the audio statistics are generated from content; and

if a non-identity match is found,

identifying content corresponding to the matched query as repeating content.

12. The system of claim 11, where the process further performs the operation of:

validating the non-identity match using non-auditory information.

13. The system of claim 11, where the processor further performs the operation of:

determining end points of the repeating content.

14. The system of claim 13, where the end points are determined using dynamic programming techniques.

15. The system of claim 11, where the processor further performs the operation of:

applying metrics to the repeating content to determine if the repeating content is an advertisement.

16. The system of claim 15, where the metrics are from a group of metrics consisting of time duration, volume, visual activity, and blank frame bracketing.

17. The system of claim 11, where the audio statistics are generated from ambient audio snippets of a media broadcast.

18. The system of claim 11, where the audio statistics are frame descriptors.

19. The system of claim 11, where video statistics are used with the audio statistics to determine a non-identity match.

20. The system of claim 11, where the non-identity matches are determined using hashing techniques.

21. A system, comprising:

means for generating a database of audio statistics from content;

means for generating a query from the database of audio statistics;

means for running the query against the database of audio statistics to determine a non-identity match; and

if a non-identity match exists,

means for identifying the content corresponding to the matched query as repeating content.

22. A computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to perform the operations of:

generating a query from a database of audio statistics;

running the query against the database of audio statistics to determine a non-identity match; and

if a non-identity match exists,

identifying the content corresponding to the matched query as repeating content.

23. A method, comprising:

generating a database of ambient audio statistics associated with a media broadcast;

generating a query from the database;

running the query against the database of audio statistics to determine non-identity matches;

identifying repeating content based on positive matches between the query and the database of audio statistics;

determining endpoints of the repeating content;

identifying content before or after the endpoints of the repeating content; and

generating statistics based on the identified content.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

applying at least one metric to the repeating content to determine if the repeating content is an advertisement.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the metric is associated with a length of the media broadcast.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein the metric is associated with a volume of the media broadcast.