TELEVISION ADVERTISING FOR LOCAL BUSINESSES

• US 20100122287A1
• Filed: 11/13/2008
• Published: 05/13/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Data Services LLC (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: BEYABANI, Syed, BEYABANI, Syed Zafar
• Granted Patent: US 8,341,668 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2547 Third Party Billing, e.g. billing of advertiser
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25841 involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; arrangements for identifying locations of receiving stations in broadcast systems H04H60/51; location of the user terminal in data switching networks H04L67/52; services making use of the location of users or terminals in wireless networks H04W4/02; locating users or terminals in wireless networks H04W64/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/16 Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

A server may select an advertisement based on a location of a set-top box and information relating to television programming to be provided to the set-top box or being provided to set-top box. The server may further provide the selected advertisement to the set-top box for simultaneously displaying with the television programming.

Claims

1. A server comprising:

a memory to store instructions; and

a processor to;

receive information identifying a set-top box,

obtain information identifying a location of the set-top box using the information identifying the set-top box,

select an advertisement to provide to the set-top box using the information identifying the location of the set-top box and television programming that is being provided or will be provided to the set-top box, and

provide the advertisement to the set-top box for display with the television programming.

2. The server of claim 1, where the television programming includes a television commercial that is associated with a business, and

where, when selecting the advertisement, the processor is configured to:

select the advertisement that is associated with a location of the business that is in a geographical vicinity of the set-top box.

3. The server of claim 1, where the television programming is associated with content, and

where, when selecting the advertisement, the processor is configured to:

select the advertisement based on the content and the obtained location of the set-top box.

4. The server of claim 1, where, when providing the advertisement to the set-top box, the processor is configured to:

generate a message that includes the selected advertisement and information relating to a display of the selected advertisement, and

transmit the message to the set-top box.

5. The server of claim 4, where the information relating to the display of the selected advertisement includes information that causes the selected advertisement to be statically displayed while the television programming is being displayed.

6. The server of claim 4, where the information relating to the display of the selected advertisement includes information that causes the selected advertisement to be displayed in a scroll bar while the television programming is being displayed.

7. The server of claim 4, where the information relating to the display of the selected advertisement includes information that causes the selected advertisement to be superimposed on a particular portion of the television programming as the television programming is being displayed.

8. The server of claim 1, where the selected advertisement is associated with a business and includes at least one of:

a telephone number of the business,

a network address of the business, or

information relating to a sale at the business.

9. A method comprising:

receiving information identifying a set-top box;

obtaining information identifying a location of the set-top box using the information identifying the set-top box;

selecting an advertisement using the information identifying the location of the set-top box and information relating to television programming that is being provided or will be provided to the set-top box; and

providing the advertisement to the set-top box for display simultaneously with the television programming.

10. The method of claim 9, where the information identifying the location of the set-top box is obtained from a first database that associates identifiers of set-top boxes with locations of the set-top boxes.

11. The method of claim 10, where the advertisement is selected from a second database that associates contact information for businesses with information identifying locations of the businesses and at least one of names of the businesses or business types with which the businesses are associated.

12. The method of claim 9, where the television programming includes a television commercial that is associated with a business, and

where the selecting the advertisement includes:

selecting the advertisement that is associated with a location of the business that is in a geographical vicinity of the set-top box.

13. The method of claim 9, where the television programming is associated with content, and

where the selecting the advertisement includes:

selecting the advertisement based on the content and the obtained information identifying the location of the set-top box.

14. The method of claim 9, where the providing the advertisement to the set-top box includes:

generating a message that includes the selected advertisement and information relating to a display of the selected advertisement, and

transmitting the message to the set-top box.

15. The method of claim 14, where the information relating to the display of the selected advertisement includes at least one of:

information that causes the selected advertisement to be statically displayed while the television programming is being displayed, or

information that causes the selected advertisement to be displayed in a scroll bar while the television programming is being displayed.

16. The method of claim 9, where the selected advertisement is associated with a business, and

where the method further comprises:

calculating a charge for the business for providing the advertisement to the set-top box.

17. A system comprising:

a server to;

select an advertisement based on a location of a set-top box and information relating to television programming to be provided to the set-top box or being provided to set-top box, and

provide the selected advertisement to the set-top box for simultaneously displaying with the television programming.

18. The system of claim 17, where, when providing the selected advertisement to the set-top box, the server is configured to:

generate a message that includes the selected advertisement and information relating to a display of the selected advertisement, and

transmit the message to the set-top box.

19. The system of claim 18, where the information relating to the display of the selected advertisement includes at least one of:

information that causes the selected advertisement to be statically displayed while the television programming is being displayed, or

information that causes the selected advertisement to be displayed in a scroll bar while the television programming is being displayed.

20. The system of claim 18, where the message further includes information that at least one of:

causes the set-top box to establish a telephone call when the advertisement is selected by a user, or

causes the set-top box to send a request for a web page when the advertisement is selected by a user.