Methods and apparatus for user-based targeted content delivery

• US 20090187939A1
• Filed: 09/24/2008
• Published: 07/23/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Inventors: Lajoie, Michael L.
• Granted Patent: US 9,071,859 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0264 based upon schedule
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• 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 21/25875 involving end-user authentication restricting access to computer systems by authenticating users using a predetermined code G06F21/33; arrangements for secret or secure communication including means for verifying the identity or authority of a user of the system H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08; authentication in wireless network security H04W12/06
• 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 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• 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 21/45 Management operations performed by the client for facilitating the reception of or the interaction with the content or administrating data related to the end-user or to the client device itself, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies, resolving scheduling conflicts
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8455 involving pointers to the content, e.g. pointers to the I-frames of the video stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for selecting and delivering advertising or promotional content based on, e.g., the attributes of a desired demographic. In one embodiment, the invention enhances advertising or promotional penetration into a particular demographic of a network subscriber pool by correlating the advertising/promotion (and even the contextual program content) with specific users or groups of users within the pool. This approach decouples the advertising or promotion from any given program or lineup, and gives the network operator flexibility in deciding where, when, and how often to insert advertisements or promotions in order to achieve the desired result. Dynamic network architectures such as broadcast switched architectures can also be leveraged to further enhance flexibility and targeting precision. In effect, the network advertising or promotion model is made results-driven (versus program-centric). Subscriber privacy is also optionally maintained, thus ensuring that stored data is not traceable to a specific user.

Claims

1. For use in a content-based network having a plurality of users associated therewith, a method of delivering targeted advertising or promotional content to a selected one or more of said users, the method comprising:

identifying said one or more users from said plurality using descriptive information relating to said one or more users, said descriptive information being selected so as to correlate to a demographic or psychographic;

identifying one or more advertising or promotional content elements based at least in part on said descriptive information; and

selectively delivering said one or more advertising or promotional content elements to said one or more users via said network.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said identifying one or more advertising or promotional content elements comprises:

accessing metadata associated with at least one of said advertising or promotional content elements; and

evaluating the correlation of said metadata with said descriptive information.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said network comprises a broadcast switched architecture (BSA) network, and said delivering comprises instantiating a new broadcast switched program stream comprising said one or more advertising or promotional content elements.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said one or more users comprises a single user, and said delivering comprises at least one of:

instantiating a new video on-demand (VoD) session and streaming content via said session, said content comprising said one or more advertising or promotional content elements;

or

delivering content comprising said one or more advertising or promotional content elements according to a network digital video recorder (nDVR) or network personal video recorder (nPVR) delivery channel.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said delivering comprises delivering said one or more advertising or promotional content elements within a program stream having non-advertising or promotional content therein also;

said one or more advertising or promotional content elements and said non-advertising or promotional content are contextually related to one another in at least one aspect, and said method further comprises selecting one or more of said identified advertising or promotional content elements based on said at least one aspect.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving feedback information relating to the one or more subscriber'"'"'s viewing of said one or more advertising or promotional content elements; and

adjusting the at least one of (i) the identifying one or more advertising or promotional content elements, or (ii) delivery of said elements, based at least in part on said feedback information.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said feedback information is selected from the group consisting of:

(i) information indicating that one or more of said one or more users has tuned away from said advertising or promotional content elements during their delivery;

(ii) information indicating that one or more of said one or more users has turned off consumer premises equipment during delivery of said advertising or promotional content elements; and

(iii) information indicating that one or more of said one or more users has interacted with their consumer premises equipment in a manner related to said advertising or promotional content elements.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said descriptive information is obtained passively from said one or more users during network operation, said act of passively obtaining descriptive information comprises obtaining data relating to said one or more user'"'"'s tuning habits.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein said descriptive information is obtained from said one or more users during network operation via an interactive interface with said users, said interface being adapted to solicit demographic or psychographic information from said users.

10. For use in a content based network, an apparatus comprising:

a first apparatus adapted to receive information about one or more users of said network;

a second apparatus adapted to select one or more advertising or promotional content streams based at least in part on said information; and

a third apparatus adapted to cause transmission of said one or more content streams to at least one user of said one or more users.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the first apparatus is adapted to receive information about the one or more users by querying a database such that the database elements queried cannot be used to personally identify any user in the one or more users.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the first apparatus is adapted to receive information about the one or more users by receiving at least one encrypted data file from a network subscriber database.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the information about the one or more users comprises data related to at least one program content selection from at least one of the users.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the data related to program content selection comprises at least two of the following:

(i) a history of program requests, (ii) times at which requested programs were broadcast, (iii) frequency of channel changes, (iv), recorded periods of non-activity, and (v) history on-demand requests.

15. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the information about said one or more users comprises demographic information, at least portions of said demographic information being unique to respective ones of said one or more users.

16. The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising a fourth apparatus, the fourth apparatus being adapted to create one or more subsets or groups of users, said one or more subsets created based at least in part on demographic information about said one or more users.

17. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said apparatus comprises a computerized device, and at least portions of said first, second and third apparatus comprise a computer program adapted to run on said computerized device.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein said computerized device comprises a broadcast switched architecture (BSA) controller, or a VoD server.

19. A method of doing business within a content-based network, said method comprising:

receiving a request from a third party for delivery of advertising or promotional content over said network, said advertising or promotional content having at least one target demographic or psychographic associated therewith;

obtaining information about a first set of users of said network;

identifying at least a portion of said first set of users correlating to said at least one demographic or psychographic based at least in part on said information;

delivering said advertising or promotional content to said at least portion of said first set of users based at least in part on said at least one demographic or psychographic; and

receiving consideration based at least in part on said delivering.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising providing said third party an assurance or guarantee that said advertising or promotional content will be delivered to at least a certain number of said users within said target demographic.

21. The method of claim 19, further comprising providing said third party an assurance or guarantee that said advertising or promotional content will be perceived by at least a certain number of said users within said target demographic.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein said receiving information about a first set of users comprises receiving information about the first set of users by querying a user-specific database;

provided, however, that said user specific database does not contain information enabling personal identification of any users in said first set.

23. The method of claim 19, wherein said network comprises a cable television network, and said first set of users comprises a set of subscribers of said network that have opted-into a program offered by an operator of said network whereby said information can be obtained, said subscribers of said set receiving consideration for opting-into said program.

24. A method for non-program restricted advertising or promotion delivery within a content-based network, said method comprising:

receiving a request from a third party for delivery of advertising or promotional content over said network, said advertising or promotional content having at least one target demographic or psychographic associated therewith;

obtaining information about a first set of users of said network;

identifying at least a portion of said first set of users correlating to said at least one demographic or psychographic based at least in part on said information; and

delivering said advertising or promotional content to said at least portion of said first set of users based at least in part on said at least one demographic or psychographic, said delivering being substantially agnostic to program content being delivered to said at least portion of users substantially contemporaneously with said advertising or promotional content.

25. A method of delivering targeted advertising or promotional content to one or more users of a content-based network, comprising:

determining one or more descriptive features associated with said advertising or promotional content;

identifying one or more target users of said network based at least in part on said descriptive features;

identifying one or more non-advertising or non-promotional content elements to be delivered over said network; and

delivering said advertising or promotional content to said identified one or more target users along with said non-advertising or promotional content elements;

wherein said advertising or promotional content and said non-advertising or non-promotional content elements are contextually related to one another.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein said contextual relationship comprises at least one of:

a common theme;

a common persona;

or

a common inanimate object.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein at least one of said one or more descriptive features comprises a basis for said contextual relationship.

28. A method of delivering a plurality of related advertising or promotional content elements to one or more users of a content-based network, comprising:

determining one or more descriptive features associated with said plurality of advertising or promotional content elements;

identifying one or more target users of said network based at least in part on said descriptive features;

identifying one or more program content elements to be delivered over said network; and

delivering said plurality of advertising or promotional content elements to said identified one or more target users along with said program content elements, said delivering comprising delivering said plurality of content elements according to a prescribed schedule or sequence.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein said advertising or promotional content elements are contextually related to said program content elements.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein said advertising or promotional content elements are each contextually related to one another, yet differ from each other in at least one aspect.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein said prescribed schedule or sequence comprises:

delivering said advertising or promotional content elements at different points within the same one of said one or more program content elements;

delivering said advertising or promotional content elements substantially one after another with no substantial intervening content;

or

delivering said advertising or promotional content elements within the same one of said one or more program content elements, yet each on a different program channel.

32. The method of claim 28, wherein said prescribed schedule or sequence comprises a schedule of said program content elements and said advertising or promotional content elements arranged in a prescribed order.

33. The method of claim 28, wherein said advertising or promotional content elements delivered in said prescribed schedule or sequence are selected based at least in part on metadata associated with said advertising or promotional content elements that relates to behavior of said one or more target users.

34. A method of advertising or promoting goods or services over a content-based network having a plurality of users, comprising:

delivering one or more advertising or promotional content elements of an advertiser or promoter to a target demographic within said plurality of users, said delivering being substantially independent of the program content with which said advertising or promotional content is delivered; and

providing information to said advertiser or promoter relating to the delivering of said elements.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein said providing information comprises providing data relating to actual or estimated impressions of said elements by said target demographic.

36. The method of claim 34, further comprising a warranty or guarantee to said advertiser that said elements have been delivered to a prescribed number or percentage of target demographic.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein said network comprises a broadcast-switched architecture (BSA) cable television network and said delivering comprises switching said BSA network so as to selectively provide said elements to said target demographic.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein said switching so as to selectively provide comprises instantiating a new program stream comprising said elements for a user within said target demographic when said user requests a channel change, said switching comprising rebinding an existing program stream to a new source, said new source being adapted to provide said elements.

39. The method of claim 34, wherein said providing information comprises providing data relating to actual or estimated impressions of said elements by said target demographic.

40. The method of claim 34, wherein said providing information comprises providing data relating to indirect indicia of impressions of said elements by said target demographic, said data comprising at least one of:

data relating to user tuning events that occurred during delivery said elements;

or

data relating to user interaction with a telescoping function during delivery said elements.