Mobile content tracking platform methods

• US 8,667,520 B2
• Filed: 12/30/2011
• Issued: 03/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Symphony Advanced Media, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Symphony Advanced Media, Inc.
• Inventors: Bhatia, Manish, Saxon, Michael Scott, Pratt, Nigel Stephen, Gurha, Pyeush
• Primary Examiner(s): MONTOYA, OSCHTA I
• Application Number:
  US13/341,217
• Publication Number:
  US 20130014145A1
• Time in Patent Office: 795 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 725/12
• 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 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0245 Surveys
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/31 Arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/251 Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies details of learning user preferences for the retrieval of video data in a video database G06F16/739; computer systems using learning methods G06N3/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/252 Processing of multiple end-users' preferences to derive collaborative data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2541 Rights Management protecting software against unauthorised usage in a vending or licensing environment G06F21/10; security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25808 Management of client data terminal profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/303
• 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 21/41265 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 21/42203 sound input device, e.g. microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4222 Remote control device emulator integrated into a non-television apparatus, e.g. a PDA, media center or smart toy remote control device for a television receiver integrated into a mobile phone H04M1/72415
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42221 Transmission circuitry, e.g. infrared [IR] or radio frequency [RF]
• 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 21/44204 Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; protecting generic digital content where the protection is independent of the precise nature of the content G06F21/10; arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services in broadcast systems H04H60/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44218 Detecting physical presence or behaviour of the user, e.g. using sensors to detect if the user is leaving the room or changes his face expression during a TV program methods or arrangements for recognising human body or animal bodies or body parts G06V40/10; methods or arrangements for acquiring or recognising human faces, facial parts, facial sketches, facial expressions G06V40/16; methods or arrangements for recognising movements or behaviour G06V40/20; arrangements for identifying users in broadcast systems H04H60/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44222 : Analytics of user selections, e.g. selection of programs or purchase activity monitoring of user selections in data processing systems G06F11/34; arrangements for monitoring the user's behaviour or opinions in broadcast systems H04H60/33
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44224 : Monitoring of user activity on external systems, e.g. Internet browsing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44226 : on social networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4758 : for providing answers, e.g. voting
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47815 : Electronic shopping payment schemes, payment architectures or payment protocols for electronic shopping systems G06Q20/12
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 : End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4821 : using a grid, e.g. sorted out by channel and broadcast time
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4826 : using recommendation lists, e.g. of programs or channels sorted out according to their score
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6334 : for authorisation, e.g. by transmitting a key wireless communications network key management H04W12/04; wireless communications network access security H04W12/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 : involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8545 : for generating interactive applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 : by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02

Abstract

The MOBILE CONTENT TRACKING PLATFORM METHODS (“Mobile-Track”) transforms TV program schedule listing information and user channel selection via Mobile-Track components, into TV audience viewing data and ad effects data. A method is disclosed, comprising: obtaining TV program schedule listing data; providing the obtained TV program schedule listing data to a user mobile device; receiving an indication of user channel selection; determining a media program associated with the received indication of user channel selection; determining an ad associated with the determined media program; providing a survey question related to the determined ad to the user mobile device; and receiving a user response to the survey question.

Claims

1. A TV mobile control processor-implemented method, comprising:

obtaining a user mobile device identifier;

monitoring data traffic coming in and out of the user mobile device based on the obtained user mobile device identifier via a mobile usage tracking entity;

retrieving a first data message from the monitored data traffic;

determining the first data message comprises a user media program selection message from the user mobile device,

wherein the user mobile device transmits a TV remote channel selection indication to a TV set via an infrared communication component,

wherein the user media program selection message and the TV remote channel selection indication comprise the same user selected channel;

retrieving a second data message from the monitored data traffic;

determining the second data message comprises audience atmospherics data;

analyzing the audience atmospherics data to identify audience watching environment background noise;

determining whether the received user media program selection message indicates a user watching event based on the identified audience watching environment background noise; and

generating and storing a user media exposure report including a user watching event indicating the user selected channel.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

filtering the received user media program selection message when the received user media program selection message is determined not to indicate a user watching event.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the user mobile device comprises any of a smartphone, a personal data assistant, a cellular phone, a laptop, a tablet computer, and a standalone table unit.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing TV program schedule listing data to the user mobile device via a wireless network.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the user mobile device transmits a TV remote channel selection indication to a TV set-top box via the infrared communication component, wherein the infrared communication component comprises a plug-in component.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the TV remote channel selection message comprises a non-live media program selection message.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the non-live media program selection message comprises any of a DVD control message, a DVR control message and an on-demand media control message.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining whether the received user media program selection message indicates a user watching event comprises:

calculating a time lapse between two consecutively received program selection messages; and

determining whether the time lapse is sufficiently long to indicate a user watching event.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a user watching time length; and

determining whether a time lapse between two consecutively received program selection messages exceeds a capping threshold.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the determining a user watching time length comprises applying watching time caps based on any of TV on/off events, set-top box on/off events and heuristics.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising feeding the user watching event log file for user viewing data record associated with the selected media program.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the user mobile device is configured to operate any of the following:

automatically scan on a communication stack for a physical address of a TV set; and

connecting to a TV set based on user configured physical address.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the user mobile device receives user submitted TV parameters to scan for a TV set.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving an atmospherics data package from the user mobile device; and

obtaining an atmospherics data artifact from the atmospherics data package.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

extracting user instant activities information based on analysis of the atmospherics data artifact.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

generating a user viewing status indication based on the user instant activities information; and

incorporating the user viewing status indication into viewer measurement data of the user selected channel.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the received TV program schedule listing data is received at a server and comprises a plurality of ad tags.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

retrieving an ad tag associated with the user selected media program from the TV program schedule listing data.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

retrieving an ad tag associated with the user selected media program from the TV program schedule listing data; and

generating a product survey question based on the ad tag.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving audience monitoring atmospherics data from the user mobile device; and

determining audience watching status indicia from the received audience monitoring atmospherics data.

21. A mobile content tracking processor-implemented method, comprising:

obtaining a user mobile device identifier;

monitoring data traffic coming in and out of the user mobile device based on the obtained user mobile device identifier via a mobile usage tracking entity;

retrieving a first data message from the monitored data traffic;

determining the first data message comprises a user media program selection message from the user mobile device,

wherein the user mobile device transmits a TV remote channel selection indication to a TV set via an infrared communication component,

wherein the user media program selection message and the TV remote channel selection indication comprise the same user selected channel;

retrieving a second data message from the monitored data traffic;

determining the second data message comprises audience atmospherics data;

analyzing the audience atmospherics data to identify audience watching environment background noise;

determining whether the received user media program selection message indicates a user watching event related to a user experienced media asset based on the identified audience watching environment background noise;

retrieving a third data message from the monitored data traffic;

determining the third data message includes user social media content;

determining the user social media content is related to user exposure to the user experienced media asset;

determining user exposure to the user experienced media asset based on the user watching event and the user social media content; and

generating a user media content exposure report based on the user exposure to the user experienced media asset.