Systems and methods for embedding commercial information into broadcast media

• US 7,349,668 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2001
• Issued: 03/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Optinetix (Israel) Ltd. (Optinetix Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Optinetix (Israel) Ltd. (Optinetix Inc.)
• Inventors: Ilan, Gabriel, Morag, Meir
• Primary Examiner(s): Gesesse; Tilahun
• Application Number:
  US10/296,439
• Publication Number:
  US 20030171096A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,500 Days
• Field of Search: 455/552.1, 455/553.1, 455/41.1, 455/41.2, 455/414.1, 455/466, 455/66.1, 455/3.01, 455/344, 455/566, 348/10, 348/465
• US Class Current: 455/66.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/48 for recognising items expressed in broadcast information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/58 of audio determination or detection of speech characteristics in general G10L25/00; speech recognition in general G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/59 of video recognising characters or patterns in general G06F18/00, G06V20/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/63 for services of sales data processing systems or methods specially adapted for electronic commerce G06Q30/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/91 Mobile communication networks for accessing the Internet H04H60/85
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2007/1739 the upstream communication being transmitted via a separate link, e.g. telephone line
• 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 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4784 receiving rewards
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/08 Systems for the simultaneous or sequential transmission of more than one television signal, e.g. additional information signals, the signals occupying wholly or partially the same frequency band , e.g. by time division H04N7/007 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/16 Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems

Abstract

There are disclosed systems, methods and processes for the distribution of information, typically digital information that is distributed actively, through broadcast media such as television and radio, displays, such as signage, etc., or passively, through displays such as signage or the like. The information can be captured from broadcasted transmissions, scanned from a display, or obtained by being transmitted to the user, who responded to a broadcast with a transmission to a receiving point during a period synchronized with the broadcast, requesting the information sent to his transmitted address. The captured or obtained information may include coupons or the like, that may be redeemed after being successfully captured or obtained. Redemption may be either on-line, where a transmission of coupon information is transmitted to a call center, that places a product order with a supplier and handles payment details, or off-line, where the user takes to coupon to the retailer, for redemption at the point of sale.

Claims

1. A method for information distribution comprising:

electronically inserting digital information encoded as a noticeable indicator into a broadcast signal containing a related content, said inserting comprising providing a coupon and converting said coupon into digital information;

prompting a user, via said noticeable indicator, to capture said digital information from said noticeable indicator within said broadcast signal;

transforming said captured digital information from said noticeable indicator into a format recognizable to a mobile communication device, thereby to produce transformed information; and

storing said transformed information on said mobile communication device for display of the digital information

the method additionally comprising redeeming said coupon by;

storing said transformed information in a form that is suitable for display on a display screen of a said mobile communication device in a manner that can be read by an optical reader; and

activating said mobile communication device to display said information on said display screen, for said information to be readable by an optical reader at a point of sale.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said placing digital information into a broadcast signal comprises coupling said digital information with at least one video signal.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein coupling said digital information with said at least one video signal comprises encoding said digital information into said at least one video signal.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein said encoding comprises amplitude modulation.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein said encoding comprises frequency modulation.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said placing digital information into a broadcast signal comprises coupling said digital information into at least one audio signal.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said storing said transformed information comprises storing said transformed information in a form that is visible on a display screen.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said storing said transformed information comprises storing said transformed information in a form that is transmittable over a cellular network.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein said storing said transformed information comprises storing said transformation transformed information in a form that is transmittable by radio frequency (RF).

10. The method of claim 9, wherein said RF comprises Bluetooth®

.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein said storing said transformed information comprises storing said transformed information in a form that is transmittable by Infra Red (IR).

12. The method of claim 1, wherein said placing information corresponding to at least one coupon into a broadcast signal comprises coupling said information corresponding to at least one coupon with at least one video signal.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein said placing information corresponding to at least one coupon into a broadcast signal comprises coupling said information corresponding to at least one coupon with at least one audio signal.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein said information on said display screen comprises a bar code and said reader is a bar code reader.

15. The method of claim 1, additionally comprising, redeeming said coupon comprising:

storing said transformed information in a form that is transmittable by infra red (IR) light; and

activating said mobile communication device to transmit said infra red light, for said infra red light to be readable by a receiver at a point of sale.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein said coupon is redeemed comprising:

storing said transformed information in a form that is transmittable by radio frequency (RF); and

activating said mobile communication device to transmit said RF, for said RF to be readable by a receiver at a point of sale.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein said radio frequency is in accordance with Bluetooth®

.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein said coupon is redeemed comprising:

storing said transformed information in a form that is transmittable by cellular telephony; and

activating said mobile communication device to transmit said information via cellular telephony to be receivable by telephony at a point of sale.

19. A method for information distribution comprising:

placing digital information encoded into a printable visual pattern within a noticeable indicator;

prompting a user, via said noticeable indicator to capture said digital information from said printable visual pattern by scanning said printable visual pattern, transforming said digital information into a format recognizable by a mobile communication device to produce transformed information, and storing said transformed information on said mobile communication device for display

the method additionally comprising redeeming said coupon, said redeeming comprising;

storing said transformed information in a form that is transmittable by cellular telephony; and

activating said mobile communication device to transmit said information via cellular telephony to be receivable by telephony for reading at a point of sale.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein placing encoded digital information into a printable visual pattern comprises providing a coupon and converting said coupon into digital information.

21. The method of claim 20, additionally comprising redeeming said coupon, said redeeming comprising:

storing said transformed information in a form suitable for display on a display screen of a said mobile communication device; and

activating said mobile communication device to display said information on said display screen, for said information to be readable by an optical reader at a point of sale.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein said information on said display screen comprises a bar code, and said reader is a bar-code reader.

23. The method of claim 19, wherein said printable visual pattern comprises a bar code.

24. The method of claim 19, additionally comprising redeeming said coupon, said redeeming comprising:

storing said transformed information in a form that is transmittable by infra red (IR) light; and

activating said mobile communication device to transmit said infra red light, for said infra red light to be readable by a receiver at a point of sale.

25. The method of claim 19, additionally comprising redeeming said coupon, said redeeming comprising:

storing said transformed information in a form that is transmittable by radio frequency (RF); and

activating said mobile communication device to transmit said RF, for said RF to be readable by a receiver at a point of sale.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein said radio frequency is in accordance with Bluetooth®

.

27. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

receiving at least one transmission from a receiving device operated by at least one user in response to said prompting, said at least one transmission including time information and at least one address of the receiving device operated by said at least one user;

using said time information indicator to indicate a request by the user to receive said further data corresponding to said first data and

providing said at least one user with said indicated data at said receiving device for display thereupon.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein said user perceptible information comprises a coupon.

29. The method of claim 27, wherein said address comprises a telephone number.

30. The method of claim 27, wherein said address comprises an electronic mail address.

31. The method of claim 27, wherein said address comprises a postal address.

32. The method of claim 27, wherein receiving said at least one transmission from at least one user comprises receiving a cellular transmission.

33. The method of claim 27, wherein receiving said at least one transmission from at least one user comprises receiving an electronic message.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein said electronic message comprises at least one electronic mail.

35. The method of claim of claim 27, wherein said broadcasting said user perceptible information comprises broadcasting a plurality of portions of information, each of said portions including at least one identifier associated therewith.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein said step of receiving said at least one transmission from said at least one user additionally comprises receiving data corresponding to at said at least one identifier associated with said portion of said user perceptible information.

37. The method of claim 27, wherein at least one of said transmission and said further information are transferred by SMS messaging.

38. The method of claim 19, comprising:

allowing capturing said visual user perceptible information with a video camera;

allowing transforming said captured visual user perceptible information into a format recognizable by said mobile communication device to produce transformed information, and

allowing storing said transformed information on said mobile communication device.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein said visual user perceptible information comprises information in text form.

40. The method of claim 38, wherein said visual user perceptible information comprises information in at least one machine readable visual form.

41. The method of claim 40, wherein said at least one machine readable form is selected from the group comprising:

visual patterns, bar codes, and combinations thereof.

42. The method of claim 38, wherein said visual user perceptible information comprises information corresponding to a coupon.

43. The method of claim 19, wherein said information capture is made from a light pulser associated with a display, the capture comprising:

scanning said light pulser with a tight pulse reader to capture digital user perceptible information conveyed by pulses at said pulse reader;

transforming said captured digital user perceptible information into a format recognizable to said mobile communication device to produce transformed information, and

storing said transformed information on said mobile communication device.

44. The method of claim 43, wherein said light pulse reader comprises a video camera.

45. The method of claim 43, wherein said light pulse reader comprises a photodetector.

46. The method of claim 43, wherein said digital user perceptible information comprises information corresponding to a coupon.