GOVERNING THE SERVING OF ADVERTISEMENTS BASED ON A COST TARGET

• US 20110010240A1
• Filed: 09/18/2010
• Published: 01/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Veach, Eric
• Granted Patent: US 7,991,642 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.48
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0247 Calculate past, present or future revenues
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0249 based upon budgets or funds
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0273 Determination of fees for advertising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement

Abstract

Helping advertisers to control marketing expenditures by governing the delivery of an advertisement over a time period. Such governing may be accomplished by (a) determining an expected cost associated with delivering the advertisement, ungoverned, over the time period; and (b) governing the delivery of the advertisement based on the expected cost and a target cost. The delivery of the advertisement may be also governed based on time remaining in the time period, budget deficits from past periods, budget surpluses from past periods, a start date and an end date associated with the advertisement, time since a start date associated with the advertisement, and/or time until an end date associated with the advertisement. The target cost may be based on a predefined budget.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for governing delivery of an advertisement over a specified time period, the method comprising:

a) determining, using a computer system including one or more computers, an expected total cost associated with delivering multiple impressions of the advertisement, not subject to budget constraints, over the specified time period, wherein a budget constraint is a maximum cost for a given time period; and

b) reducing, using the computer system, the delivery of the advertisement over the specified time period responsive to a determination that the expected total cost is greater than a target cost for the specified time period.

2. Apparatus for governing delivery of an advertisement over a specified time period, the apparatus comprising:

a) at least one processor; and

b) at least one storage device storing processor-executable instructions which, when executed by the at least one processor,

1) determine an expected total cost associated with delivering multiple impressions of the advertisement, not subject to budget constraints, over the specified time period, wherein a budget constraint is a maximum cost for a given time period; and

2) reduce the delivery of the advertisement over the specified time period responsive to a determination that the expected total cost is greater than a target cost for the specified time period.