System and method for advertisement sponsored content distribution

• US 6,988,277 B2
• Filed: 02/06/2001
• Issued: 01/17/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/08/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Playmedia Systems, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Playmedia Systems, Inc.
• Inventors: Runje, Davor, Uzelac, Tomislav, Kovac, Mario, Litman, Brian D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Srivastava, Vivek
• Application Number:
  US09/778,234
• Publication Number:
  US 20010056573A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,806 Days
• Field of Search: 725/32, 725/34, 725/35, 725/36, 725/25, 725/28, 705/14
• US Class Current: 725/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2543 Billing , e.g. for subscription services payment schemes, architectures or protocols G06Q20/00; e-commerce G06Q30/00; arrangements for billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/21
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4516 involving client characteristics, e.g. Set-Top-Box type, software version or amount of memory available
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/454 Content or additional data filtering, e.g. blocking advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/458 Scheduling content for creating a personalised stream, e.g. by combining a locally stored advertisement with an incoming stream; Updating operations, e.g. for OS modules ; time-related management operations arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or during the distribution H04H20/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8352 involving content or source identification data, e.g. Unique Material Identifier [UMID]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/162 Authorising the user terminal, e.g. by paying; Registering the use of a subscription channel, e.g. billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only

Abstract

A system and method for advertisement sponsored content distribution. It enables a person to experience advertising embedded content free of charge or to experience advertising free content plus an alternative advertising presentation for a consideration. This requires use of a special, system compatible playback device/program which must support alternative presentation capabilities (such as audio, still images, video, messages, etc.).

Claims

1. A system for alternative presentation of advertising comprising:

a. a file (FILE);

said file including a block including content and advertising segregated from each other (PROTECTED_—

BLOCK), and a block including said content, and said advertising embedded in said content (UNPROTECTED_—

BLOCK);

said file being amenable for play on any playback means; and

b. a special playback means for;

i. separating said advertising from said content in said PROTECTED BLOCK, playing back said content, and making an alternative presentation of said advertising, providing a user desires it and is authorized, and said playback means includes a means for alternative presentation of said advertising; and

ii. otherwise, playing back said UNPROTECTED_—

BLOCK; and

c. a means for distributing said FILE to said special playback means;

whereby when a user plays said FILE, said content is played and said advertising is presented in an alternative format, providing said user is authorized and said special playback means includes a means for alternative presentation of said advertising;

otherwise, said content with embedded advertising is played.

2. A system as claimed in claim 1 further comprising special business rules which define the relationship of the content to the advertising and contains technical information, business information, copyright information, cryptography information, coding information and watermarking information.

3. A system as claimed in claim 1 in which said PROTECTED_—

BLOCK and said UNPROTECTED_—

BLOCK are composed and assembled in a secure manner.

4. A system as claimed in claim 1 in which said system additionally detects whether said advertising is alternatively presented and logs said presentation.

5. A system as claimed in claim 1 in which distribution is over a network.

6. A system as claimed in claim 1 in which distribution is over the Internet.

7. A system as claimed in claim 1 in which distribution is by wireless broadcasting.

8. A system as claimed in claim 1 in which distribution is via magnetic media.

9. A system as claimed in claim 1 in which distribution is via optical media.

10. A method for alternative presentation of advertising comprising the steps of:

a. creating a file (FILE);

said file including a BLOCK_—

HDR, an UNPROTECTED_—

BLOCK and a PROTECTED_—

BLOCK;

said PROTECTED_—

BLOCK including content and advertising segregated from each other;

said UNPROTECTED_—

BLOCK including said content, and said advertising embedded in said content;

said BLOCK_—

HDR including general information about said file, said content and said advertising;

said FILE being amenable for play on any playback means;

b. providing a playback device having a means for alternative presentation of said advertising designed to;

i. separate said advertising from said content in said PROTECTED_—

BOCK, play back said content, and make an alternative presentation of said advertising; and

ii. play back said UNPROTECTED_—

BLOCK;

c. distributing said FILE to said playback device;

d. extracting BLOCK_—

HDR from said FILE;

e. verifying BLOCK_—

HDR'"'"'s signature;

f. if verification fails, terminating the program;

g. if the verification is successful, comparing the type of said playback device (DEVICE_—

TYPE) to DEVICE_—

TYPEs listed in the BLOCK_—

HDR;

h. if there is a match, selecting that DEVICE_—

TYPE

i. if there is no match selecting a default device type (DEFAULT_—

DEVICE);

j. verifying if said playback device supports presentation of any type of advertising that is included in said FILE;

k. if there is at least one type supported, initiating protected playback, providing said user desires it and is authorized, otherwise initiating unprotected playback;

unprotected playback being playback of said embedded content and advertising, and protected playback being playback of said content and alternative presentation of said advertising; and

l. if no types are supported, initiating unprotected playback.

11. A method as claimed in claim 10 in which protected playback comprises the steps of:

a. extracting said content and advertising from said PROTECTED_—

BLOCK;

b. verifying said content and advertising;

c. if verification fails, initiating unprotected playback;

d. if verification is successful, alternatively presenting said advertising and verifying that said advertising is properly presented;

e. if said advertising is not properly presented, reverting to unprotected playback;

f. if said advertising is properly presented, extracting said content, from said PROTECTED_—

BLOCK and playing said content; and

g. updating usage information for said advertising.

12. A method as claimed in claim 10 in which unprotected playback additionally comprises the steps of:

a. adding verifying signature information to said UNPROTECTED_—

BLOCK;

b. verifying that the information is properly signed;

c. if the information is properly signed, allowing play to commence; and

d. if the signature cannot be verified, not allowing play to commence.

13. A method as claimed in claim 10 further comprising the step of defining business rules which define the relationship of the content to the advertising and contains technical information, business information, copyright information, cryptography information, coding information and watermarking information.

14. A method as claimed in claim 10 further comprising the step of composing said PROTECTED_—

BLOCK and said UNPROTECTED_—

BLOCK in a secure manner.

15. A system as claimed in claim 10 further comprising the steps of:

a. detecting whether said advertising is alternatively presented; and

b. loging said alternative presentation.

16. A method as claimed in claim 10 in which said distributing step is performed over a network.

17. A method as claimed in claim 10 in which said distributing step is performed over the Internet.

18. A method as claimed in claim 10 in which said distributing step is performed by wireless broadcasting.

19. A method as claimed in claim 10 in which said distributing step is performed via magnetic media.

20. A method as claimed in claim 10 in which said distributing step is performed via optical media.