Service platform suite management system

• US 7,669,212 B2
• Filed: 02/01/2002
• Issued: 02/23/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: OpenTV, Inc. (Kudelski SA)
• Original Assignee: OpenTV, Inc. (Kudelski SA)
• Inventors: Alao, Rachad, Dureau, Vincent, Fishwick, Nicholas, Huntington, Matthew, Henrard, Jose, Koussari-Amin, Vahid, Lam, Waiman, Delpuch, Alain, Benson, Adam
• Primary Examiner(s): Kelley, Christopher
• Assistant Examiner(s): Newlin, Timothy R
• Application Number:
  US10/061,136
• Publication Number:
  US 20020147645A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,944 Days
• Field of Search: 725 34- 36, 725/9, 725/14
• US Class Current: 725/32
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0209 Incentive being awarded or redeemed in connection with the playing of a video game
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0256 User search
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0273 Determination of fees for advertising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0276 Advertisement creation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/613 for the control of the source by the destination control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components specially adapted for selective content distribution H04N21/637
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2343 involving reformatting operations of video signals for distribution or compliance with end-user requests or end-user device requirements video transcoding H04N19/40; media packet handling at the source H04L65/762
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234336 by media transcoding, e.g. video is transformed into a slideshow of still pictures or audio is converted into text
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2356 by altering the spatial resolution
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2542 for selling goods, e.g. TV shopping payment schemes, payment architectures or payment protocols for electronic shopping systems G06Q20/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25825 involving client display capabilities, e.g. screen resolution of a mobile phone optimising the visualisation of content during browsing in the Internet G06F16/9577; processing of terminal status or physical abilities in wireless networks H04W8/22; authentication in wireless network security H04W12/06
• 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 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2668 Creating a channel for a dedicated end-user group, e.g. insertion of targeted commercials based on end-user profiles information retrieval from the Internet by querying with filtering and personalisation G06F16/9535; arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast H04H20/10; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; adaptation of message content in packet-switching networks H04L51/063
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4314 for fitting data in a restricted space on the screen, e.g. EPG data in a rectangular grid
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4349 : by extracting from data carousels, e.g. extraction of software modules from a DVB carousel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/437 : Interfacing the upstream path of the transmission network, e.g. for transmitting client requests to a VOD server flow control in data networks H04L47/10; streaming protocols, e.g. RTP or RTCP, H04L65/65; scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests in data packet switching networks H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 : Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/643 : Communication protocols network streaming protocols, e.g. real-time transport protocol [RTP] or real-time control protocol [RTCP], H04L65/65
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64707 : for transferring content from a first network to a second network, e.g. between IP and wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 : involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 : Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8543 : using a description language, e.g. Multimedia and Hypermedia information coding Expert Group [MHEG], eXtensible Markup Language [XML] information retrieval of semistructured data, the underlying structure being taken into account, e.g. mark-up language structure data G06F16/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8545 : for generating interactive applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/165 : Centralised control of user terminal subsequent to an upstream request signal H04N7/17345; Registering at central by two-way working H04N7/17309
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17309 : Transmission or handling of upstream communications

Abstract

The present invention provides a method and apparatus for managing the presentation and regulation of E-Commerce, content and service providers access in an interactive television environment comprising interactions between a server, a client, and a service provider. Components are provided for managing and completing a purchase or delivery of an item offered by a service provider. A purchase transaction uses client information comprising partial client information from the client and a list of purchased items. Upon receiving partial information from the client, the server retrieves corresponding additional related information within its database and transmits this retrieved data from the server, along with the list of purchased items to complete the transaction. Business Agents are provided for logging the transaction, creating an electronic receipt, logging patches, logging error events, and viewer logging. The invention further comprises a method for measuring audience behavior and response to particular events or programs and advertisements; and a method for adaptive delivery of advertisements to a client. Advertisements are scheduled according to an agreement and manifested into campaign rules and desired run times. A profile of a viewer that resides on the client device is used as the criteria for selection of a particular advertisement from a broadcast and for polling of audience viewing habits. The present invention further monitors the integrity and connectivity of the interactive television network and service providers.

Claims

1. A method for managing an interactive television system comprising:

accessing a campaign rule at a server, wherein the campaign rule specifies which one or more advertisements of a plurality of advertisements are to be delivered to a target, said target comprising at least one client device;

selecting one or more advertisements at the server based on the campaign rule for delivery to the target;

sending the selected advertisement to the client device;

deciding in a business filter at the client device, whether to store the selected one or more advertisements on the client device

receiving a client device user response to the selected one or more advertisements at a rule generating component of the server, wherein the rule generating component is configured to;

apply one or more rules to the user response to predict further user interests; and

generate a new campaign rule based on the predicted further user interests;

based on the new campaign rule, the server selecting a new advertisement to be delivered to the target; and

the server triggering a delivery manager to deliver the new advertisement to the target.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

measuring client device user responses to the selected one or more advertisements;

storing in a user information database user profile information based on the client device user responses; and

using the user profile information to predict further user interests.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting the one or more advertisements based on the number of client device users watching.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting the one or more advertisements at the server based on a specified time frame.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

accessing a delivery plan to obtain a list of advertisements to send next.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting the one or more advertisements based on at least one of advertisement priority, weight, minimum display time, back fill Boolean, intra-spot-session frequency cap, intra-application frequency cap, industry exclusion, overall frequency cap, and minimum rotation interval.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining the target based on user profile, type of service and context.

8. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

generating the campaign rule based on associating a specified advertisement with a specified service.

9. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

generating a report based on the user response.

10. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

building a product catalog for presentation to the target based on the user response.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

sending a business filter to at least one client device.

12. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

measuring the user response in a client device gadget.

13. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

processing at the server, the user response to generate at least one of a new campaign rule, a new campaign and a new product catalog.

14. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

measuring click through rate, purchase rate and impressions.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sending the one or more advertisements to a client device gadget for rendering.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

simulating a target attempt to determine if an advertising campaign can be fulfilled before sending the one or more advertisements.

17. The method of claim 1, the one or more advertisements further comprising at least one of a video, imagery and audio data.

18. The method of claim 1, the one or more advertisements further comprising at least one of an entertainment program and an interactive game.

19. The method of claim 1, the one or more advertisements further comprising audio data.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising selecting the advertisement based on requested impressions.

21. The method of claim 1, further comprising using a mixture of the one or more rules and statistics of measurements of a plurality of client device user responses to predict further user interests.

22. The method of claim 6, wherein said selecting is further based at least in part on advertisement type and target type.

23. A computer readable medium containing instructions that when executed by a computer cause the computer to:

access a campaign rule at a server, wherein the campaign rule specifies which one or more advertisements of a plurality of advertisements are to be delivered to a target, said target comprising at least one client device

select one or more advertisements at the server based on the campaign rule for delivery to the target;

send the selected advertisement to the client device;

decide in a business filter at the client device, whether to store the selected advertisement on the client device;

receive a client device user response to the selected one or more advertisement at a rule generating component of the server, wherein the rule generating component is configured to;

apply one or more rules to the user response to predict further user interests; and

generate a new campaign rule based on the predicted further user interests;

based on the new campaign rule cause the server to select a new advertisement to be delivered to the target; and

cause the server to trigger a delivery manager to deliver the new advertisement to the target.

24. The medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

measure client device user responses to the one or more advertisement;

build a new campaign rule based on the client device user response;

select an advertisement based on the new campaign rule and

send the advertisement based on the new campaign rule to the target

store in a user information database, user profile information based on the client device user responses; and

use the user profile information to predict further user interests.

25. The medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

select the one or more advertisements based on requested impressions.

26. The medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

select the one or more advertisements based on the number of client device users watching.

27. The medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

select the one or more advertisements at the server based on a specified time frame.

28. The medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

access a delivery plan to obtain a list of advertisements to send next.

29. The medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

select the one or more advertisements based on at least one of advertisement priority, weight, minimum display time, back fill Boolean, intra-spot-session frequency cap, intra-application frequency cap, industry exclusion, overall frequency cap, and minimum rotation interval.

30. The medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

determine the target based on user profile, type of service and context.

31. The medium of claim 24, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

generate the campaign rule based on associating a specified advertisement with a specified service.

32. The medium of claim 24, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

generate a report based on the user response.

33. The medium of claim 24, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

build a product catalog for presentation to the target based on the user response.

34. The medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

sending a business filter to at least one client device.

35. The medium of claim 24, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

measuring the user response in a client device gadget.

36. The medium of claim 24, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

process at the server, the user response to generate at least one of a new campaign rule, a new campaign and a new product catalog.

37. The medium of claim 24, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

measure click through rate, purchase rate and impressions.

38. The medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

send the one or more advertisements to a client device gadget for rendering.

39. The medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to:

simulate a target attempt to determine if an advertising campaign can be fulfilled before sending the one or more advertisements.

40. The medium of claim 23, the one or more advertisements further comprising at least one of a video, imagery and audio data.

41. The medium of claim 23, the one or more advertisements further comprising at least one of an entertainment program and an interactive game.

42. The medium of claim 23, the one or more advertisements further comprising audio data.

43. The medium of claim 23, further comprising instructions that cause the computer to use a mixture of the one or more rules and statistics of measurements of a plurality of client device user responses to predict further user interests.

44. A service platform for use in an interactive television system, the service platform comprising:

an advertising manager; and

a delivery manager;

wherein the advertising manager is configured to;

access a campaign rule, wherein the campaign rule specifies which one or more advertisements of a plurality of advertisements are to be delivered to a target, said target comprising at least one client device;

based on the campaign rule, select one or more advertisements for delivery to the target;

send the selected one or more advertisements to the delivery manager for delivery to the client device;

apply one or more rules to a client device user response to the selected one or more advertisements to predict further user interests;

generate a new campaign rule based on the predicted further user interests;

based on the new campaign rule, select a new advertisement to be delivered to the target; and

trigger the delivery manager to include the new advertisement in the one or more advertisements for delivery to the target.

45. The service platform of claim 44, further comprising a viewer manager, wherein the viewer manager is configured to:

measure client device user responses to the selected one or more advertisements;

and

store in a user information database, user profile information based on the client device user responses; and

wherein the advertising manager is further configured to;

retrieve user profile information from the user information database; and

use the retrieved user profile information to predict further user interests.

46. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the advertising manager is further configured to use a mixture of the one or more rules and statistics of measurements of a plurality of client device user responses to predict further user interests.

47. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the advertising manager is further configured to select the one or more advertisements based on the number of client device users watching.

48. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the advertising manager is further configured to select the advertisement based on a specified time frame.

49. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the advertising manager is further configured to access a delivery plan to obtain a list of advertisements to send next.

50. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the advertising manager is further configured to select the advertisement based on at least one of advertisement priority, weight, minimum display time, back fill Boolean, intra-spot-session frequency cap, intra-application frequency cap, industry exclusion, overall frequency cap, and minimum rotation interval.

51. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the advertising manager is further configured to determine the target based on user profile, type of service and context.

52. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the advertising manager is further configured to generate the campaign rule based on associating a specified advertisement with a specified service.

53. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the viewer manager is further configured to generate a report based on the user response.

54. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the delivery manager is further configured to building a product catalog for presentation to the target based on the user response.

55. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the service platform is further configured to send a business filter to at least one client device.

56. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the client device is configured to measure the user response in a client device gadget.

57. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the advertising manager is further configured to process the user response to generate at least one of a new campaign rule, a new campaign, and a new product catalog.

58. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the viewer manager is further configured to measure click through rate, purchase rate, and impressions.

59. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the delivery manager is further configured to send the advertisement to a client device gadget for rendering.

60. The service platform of claim 44, wherein the advertising manager is further configured to simulate an attempt by a target to determine if an advertising campaign can be fulfilled before triggering the delivery manager.

61. The service platform of claim 44, at least one of the one or more advertisements further comprising at least one of a video, imagery, and audio data.

62. The service platform of claim 44, at least one of the one or more advertisements further comprising at least one of an entertainment program and an interactive game.

63. The service platform of claim 44, at least one of the one or more advertisements further comprising audio data.

64. The service platform of claim of claim 44, wherein the advertising manager is further configured to select the one or more advertisements based on requested impressions.