SYSTEMS AND METHODS TO IDENTIFY CANDIDATES FOR TARGETED ADVERTISING IN AN ONLINE SOCIAL GAMING ENVIRONMENT

• US 20140194208A1
• Filed: 01/10/2013
• Published: 07/10/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Original Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Splaine, Steven John, Long, Clayton S.
• Granted Patent: US 9,311,682 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking

Abstract

Systems and methods to identify candidates for targeted advertising in an online social gaming environment are disclosed. Example methods include generating a network graph representative of relationships between users associated with an online social gaming environment, the relationships based on connections between the users. Example methods also include collecting first social gaming data corresponding to participation by a first user and a second user in the online social gaming environment during a first period of time. The example methods further include calculating a first degree of influence of the first user of the online social gaming environment on the second user of the online social gaming environment, the first degree of influence based on the first social gaming data.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

generating a network graph representative of relationships between users associated with an online social gaming environment, the relationships based on connections between the users;

collecting first social gaming data corresponding to participation by a first user and a second user in the online social gaming environment during a first period of time; and

calculating a first degree of influence of the first user of the online social gaming environment on the second user of the online social gaming environment, the first degree of influence based on the first social gaming data.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

predicting a behavior of the second user based on the first degree of influence of the first user on the second users;

comparing the predicted behavior of the second user to second social gaming data corresponding to participation by the second user in the online social gaming environment during a second period of time after the first period of time; and

updating the first degree of influence of the first user on the second user based on the comparison.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising analyzing the network graph to identify the first user as a candidate for targeted advertising when the first degree of influence is above a threshold.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating a sub-network graph representative of relationships between a group of users, the group of users corresponding to a portion of the users associated with the online social gaming environment having a same characteristic determined from the first social gaming data, wherein the portion of the users includes the first user and the second user, and wherein the characteristic is associated with the targeted advertising; and

analyzing the sub-network graph to identify the first user as a candidate for targeted advertising when the first degree of influence is above a threshold.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first social gaming data includes a historical timeline of transactions, at least some of the transactions corresponding to a purchase of a game, a purchase of a virtual product associated with a game, or a purchase of a real product associated with a game.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first social gaming data includes at least one of a duration of the relationship between the first user and the second user, a game preference, an interaction between the first user and the second user, a purchase of a real product associated with a game, a group with which the first or second user is associated, a primary group with which the first or second user is associated, a geographic location of the first user or the second user, an amount of time online, a last date online, or a frequency of time online.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first social gaming data includes at least one of a game played, a game purchased, a type of game played, a type of game purchased, a frequency of game play, an amount of time of game play, a game most frequently played with another user, or a time of day of game play.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first social gaming data includes an overlap of game play with another user.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first social gaming data includes a purchase of a virtual product associated with a game.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the first degree of influence of the first user on the second user is based on an amount of the social gaming data associated with the first user that corresponds to the social gaming data associated with the second user.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein different types of the social gaming data are weighted differently when calculating the first degree of influence of the first user on the second user.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the online social gaming environment corresponds to one of a social networking website or a dedicated social gaming network.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the first degree of influence of the first user on the second user is different than a second degree of influence of the second user on the first user.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

calculating a second degree of influence of the first user of the online social gaming environment on a third user of the online social gaming environment; and

calculating a combined degree of influence for the first user based on the first degree of influence of the first user and the second degree of influence of the first user.

15. A system comprising:

a network graph generator to generate a network graph representative of relationships between users associated with an online social gaming environment, the relationships based on connections between the users;

an analyzer to determine a first degree of influence of a first user in the online social gaming environment on a second user in the online social gaming environment, the analyzer to determine the first degree of influence based on first social gaming data corresponding to participation by the first user and the second user in the online social gaming environment during a first period of time.

16. The system of claim 15, further comprising:

a prediction model generator to predict a behavior of the second user based on the first degree of influence of the first user on the second user; and

wherein the analyzer is further to;

compare the predicted behavior of the second user to second social gaming data corresponding to participation by the second user in the online social gaming environment during a second period of time after the first period of time; and

update the first degree of influence of the first user on the second user based on the comparison.

17. The system of claim 15, further comprising a target identifier to identify the first user as a candidate for targeted advertising when the first degree of influence is above a threshold.

18-28. -28. (canceled)

29. A tangible machine readable storage medium comprising instructions which, when executed, cause a machine to at least:

generate a network graph representative of relationships between users associated with an online social gaming environment, the relationships based on connections between the users;

collect first social gaming data corresponding to participation by a first user and a second user in the online social gaming environment during a first period of time; and

calculate a first degree of influence of the first user of the online social gaming environment on the second user of the online social gaming environment, the first degree of influence based on the first social gaming data.

30. The storage medium of claim 29, wherein the instructions further cause the machine to:

predict a behavior of the second user based on the first degree of influence of the first user on the second users;

compare the predicted behavior of the second user to second social gaming data corresponding to participation by the second user in the online social gaming environment during a second period of time after the first period of time; and

update the first degree of influence of the first user on the second user based on the comparison.

31. The storage medium of claim 29, wherein the instructions further cause the machine to analyze the network graph to identify the first user as a candidate for targeted advertising when the first degree of influence is above a threshold.

32-42. -42. (canceled)