Measuring the Effects of Social Sharing on Online Content and Advertising

• US 20120109737A1
• Filed: 10/28/2010
• Published: 05/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: R2 Solutions LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Excalibur IP, LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Inventors: Dodda, Rampradeep, Setty, Vageesh, Goval, Prabhakar
• Granted Patent: US 9,324,093 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.41
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0242 Determining effectiveness of advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0254 based on statistics
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0263 based upon Internet or website rating
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking

Abstract

A computer-implemented method, advertising network, and computer readable medium for measuring ad performance metrics after user-initiated sharing activity at a website. The method commences by receiving an original internet ad, the original internet ad for hosting within a website (e.g. a social networking website), then recoding the original internet ad (also for hosting within a website) wherein the recoded sharable internet ad comprises ad sharing and instrumentation code for capturing, tracking and later reporting various user-initiated sharing activities by measuring online events using the ad sharing and instrumentation code (i.e. the online events being in response to user-initiated sharing activity) without requiring any explicit action to be provided by the website operator. In some cases, the measured event occurs in the form of expanding an ad, clicking a request to share, printing a coupon, or performing an online conversion action. The ad can comprise any forms of internet media.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for measuring ad performance metrics after user-initiated sharing activity at a website, the method comprising:

receiving, in memory, an original internet ad, the original internet ad for hosting within a website;

recoding, in a computer, the original internet ad for producing a recoded sharable internet ad, the recoded sharable internet ad comprising ad sharing and instrumentation code; and

measuring, in a computer, an online event using the ad sharing and instrumentation code, the online event being in response to the user-initiated sharing activity, wherein the measuring does not require any explicit action to be provided by the operator of the website.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising reporting a categorization of sharing activity.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the online event comprises at least one of, an expand_ad event, a share_click event, a share_networks event, a print_coupon event, a conversion_action event.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the original internet ad comprises at least one of, a video clip, a video clip with audio, a video clip with user controls.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the original internet ad comprises a coupon.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the recoded sharable internet ad comprises at least one of, a share device area, a share icon, video clip, a video clip with audio, a video clip with user controls, a click beacon, a crumb.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the recoding is performed using an object cockpit.

8. An advertising server network for measuring ad performance metrics after user-initiated sharing activity at a website comprising:

a module for receiving an original internet ad, the original internet ad for hosting within a website;

a module for recoding the original internet ad for producing a recoded sharable internet ad, the recoded sharable internet ad comprising ad sharing and instrumentation code; and

a module for measuring an online event using the ad sharing and instrumentation code, the online event being in response to the user-initiated sharing activity, wherein the measuring does not require any explicit action to be provided by the operator of the website.

9. The advertising server network of claim 8, further comprising a module for reporting a categorization of sharing activity.

10. The advertising server network of claim 8, wherein the online event comprises at least one of, an expand_ad event, a share_click event, a share_networks event, a print_coupon event, a conversion_action event.

11. The advertising server network of claim 8, wherein the original internet ad comprises at least one of, a video clip, a video clip with audio, a video clip with user controls.

12. The advertising server network of claim 8, wherein the original internet ad comprises a coupon.

13. The advertising server network of claim 8, wherein the recoded sharable internet ad comprises at least one of, a share device area, a share icon, video clip, a video clip with audio, a video clip with user controls, a click beacon, a crumb.

14. The advertising server network of claim 8, wherein the recoding is performed using an object cockpit.

15. A computer readable medium comprising a set of instructions which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to measure ad performance metrics after user-initiated sharing activity at a website, said instructions for:

receiving, in memory, an original internet ad, the original internet ad for hosting within a website;

recoding, in a computer, the original internet ad for producing a recoded sharable internet ad, the recoded sharable internet ad comprising ad sharing and instrumentation code; and

measuring, in a computer, an online event using the ad sharing and instrumentation code, the online event being in response to the user-initiated sharing activity, wherein the measuring does not require any explicit action to be provided by the operator of the website.

16. The computer readable medium of claim 15, further comprising reporting a categorization of sharing activity.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the online event comprises at least one of, an expand_ad event, a share_click event, a share_networks event, a print_coupon event, a conversion_action event.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the original internet ad comprises at least one of, a video clip, a video clip with audio, a video clip with user controls.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the original internet ad comprises a coupon.

20. The computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the recoded sharable internet ad comprises at least one of, a share device area, a share icon, video clip, a video clip with audio, a video clip with user controls, a click beacon, a crumb.