METHODS AND APPARATUS TO ACCESS MEDIA

• US 20130051772A1
• Filed: 08/31/2011
• Published: 02/28/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Original Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Ramaswamy, Arun, Bosworth, Alan Nguyen
• Granted Patent: US 8,861,937 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 386/291
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/43 Querying
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/1015 to users
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• 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 21/4788 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

Abstract

Methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture to share media are disclosed. An example method involves receiving from a mobile device a representation of media content detected at the mobile device. The example method also involves receiving from the mobile device a first user identifier of a first user of the mobile device and a second user identifier of a second user different from the first user. In addition, the media content is identified based on the representation of the media content. The second user is selectively provided with access to the media content based on the second user identifier.

Claims

1. A method to share media, comprising:

receiving from a mobile device;

a representation of media content detected at the mobile device via a sensor, the media content being presented by a media presentation device separate from the mobile device, and

a first user identifier of a first user of the mobile device and a second user identifier of a second user different from the first user;

identifying the media content based on the representation of the media content; and

selectively providing the second user with access to the media content based on the second user identifier.

2. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising identifying additional content relevant to at least one of the first user or the second user based on at least one of a characteristic of the media content, an identity of the media content, or demographic information of the first user or the second user.

3. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising sending a hyperlink to the first user based on the first user identifier, the hyperlink corresponding to an Internet location that provides access to the media content.

4. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein the representation of the media content is at least one of a segment of the media content, a signature generated based on the media content, or a code extracted from the media content.

5. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein the first and second user identifiers are email addresses.

6. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein the media content is at least one of a television program, a movie, a newscast, radio content, a song, an image, or an advertisement.

7. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein selectively providing the second user with access to the media content comprises providing the second user with a copy of the media content or a hyperlink to access the media content via the Internet.

8. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request from the mobile device to store the media content; and

initiating storing of at least one of a copy of a television program episode advertised in the media content, a copy of a movie advertised in the media content, or a copy of a song advertised in the media content, the storing occurring at a cloud-based digital video recorder location accessible by the first user.

9. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising awarding an audience-interest credit to at least one of the media content, a television program episode advertised in the media content, a movie advertised in the media content, or a song advertised in the media content based on receiving the representation of the media content from the mobile device.

10. A system to share media, comprising:

an application program distribution interface to download an application program to a user device, the application program to receive user input from a first user to cause the user device to;

initiate a sampling of ambient sound detectable by the user device;

collect representative information corresponding to media content contributing to the ambient sound, the media content being presented by a media presentation device separate from the user device; and

receive an indication of a second user to receive access to the media content;

a query interface to receive the representative information and the indication of the second user from the user device via internetwork communications;

a media content recognizer to identify the media content based on the representative information; and

a media access provider to selectively provide the second user with access to the media content.

11. A system as defined in claim 10, wherein the media access provider is further to send to the first user a hyperlink to access to the media content.

12. A system as defined in claim 10, further comprising an advertisement interface to indicate a first advertisement to combine with a presentation of the media content when the media content is accessed via the hyperlink by the first user and to indicate a second advertisement to combine with a presentation of the media content when the media content is accessed by the second user.

13. A system as defined in claim 12, wherein the first advertisement is selected based on at least one of a first demographic characteristic of the first user, an identity of the media content, or a characteristic of the media content, and the second advertisement being selected based on at least one of a second demographic characteristic of the second user, an identity of the media content, or the characteristic of the media content.

14. A system as defined in claim 13, further comprising an advertiser interface to:

submit at least one of the first demographic characteristic, the second demographic characteristic, the identity of the media content, or the characteristic of the media content to an advertisement network proprietor; and

receive a first advertisement identifier of the first advertisement and a second advertisement identifier of the second advertisement, the advertisement interface to indicate the first advertisement based on the first advertisement identifier and to indicate the second advertisement based on the second advertisement identifier.

15. A system as defined in claim 10, further comprising a cloud-based digital video recorder interface to initiate storing of at least one of a copy of the media content, a copy of a television program episode advertised in the media content, a copy of a movie advertised in the media content, or a copy of a song advertised in the media content, the storing occurring at a cloud-based digital video recorder location in response to receiving a request from the mobile device to store the media content.

16. A system as defined in claim 10, further comprising an audience-interest interface to award an audience-interest credit to at least one of the media content, a television program episode advertised in the media content, a movie advertised in the media content, or a song advertised in the media content based on the query interface receiving the representative information from the user device.

17. A system as defined in claim 10, wherein the representative information is at least one of a code extracted from the media content or a signature generated based on the media content.

18. A tangible machine accessible medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause a machine to at least:

receive from a mobile device;

a representation of media content detected at the mobile device via a sensor, and

a first user identifier of a first user of the mobile device and a second user identifier of a second user different from the first user;

identify the media content based on the representation of the media content;

send a hyperlink to the first user based on the first user identifier, the hyperlink corresponding to an Internet location that provides access to the media content; and

selectively provide the second user with access to the media content based on the second user identifier.

19. A machine accessible medium as defined in claim 18 having instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause the machine to identify additional content relevant to at least one of the first user or the second user based on at least one of demographic information of the first user or the second user, an identity of the media content, or a characteristic of the media content.

20. A machine accessible medium as defined in claim 19, wherein the additional content is an advertisement.

21. A machine accessible medium as defined in claim 18, wherein the representation of the media content is at least one of a segment of the media content, a signature generated based on the media content, or a code extracted from the media content.

22. A machine accessible medium as defined in claim 18, wherein the media content is at least one of a television program, a movie, a newscast, radio content, a song, an image, or an advertisement.

23. A machine accessible medium as defined in claim 18 having instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause the machine to:

receive a request from the mobile device to store the media content; and

initiate storing of at least one of a copy of a television program episode advertised in the media content, a copy of a movie advertised in the media content, or a copy of a song advertised in the media content, the storing occurring at a cloud-based digital video recorder location accessible by the first user.

24. A machine accessible medium as defined in claim 23 having instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause the machine to award an audience-interest credit to at least one of the television program episode, the movie, or the song based on the initiating of the storing.