Zone control methods and apparatus
First Claim
1. A method of ensuring delivery of program content and advertising content on-demand from a content delivery network to an Internet Protocol (IP)-capable user device, said advertising content being selected based at least in part on an advertisement zone of a user of said IP-capable user device, said method comprising:
- receiving a request for said program content from said IP-capable user device, said request comprising at least a user identifier (UID);
forwarding said UID to an entity of said network, said entity determining at least a Media Access Control (MAC) address of said IP-capable user device from said UID;
receiving from said entity said MAC address;
forwarding said MAC address to a network controller of said network, said network controller determining at least a quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) identifier using said MAC address;
receiving from said network controller said QAM identifier;
associating said QAM identifier to said advertisement zone; and
providing information regarding said advertisement zone to a content server of said network, said content server providing said program content and said advertising content to said IP-capable user device.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Methods and apparatus for providing control over targeted secondary content based on a zone associated with a user. In one exemplary embodiment, a user request for primary content from a non-legacy device results in the delivery of the same secondary content which would have been provided had the request been generated at a legacy device (so-called “zone preservation”). To accomplish this, the devices are associated with a user'"'"'s zone at a zone preservation server in communication with the server providing content to the devices. The zone preservation server associates each user with an advertisement zone identifier, and utilizes the identifier to direct the delivery of primary and secondary content. In another embodiment, a prescribed rule set for one or more zones is employed, such as where certain types of advertisements or secondary content are inserted given a particular device or user context.
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Citations
41 Claims
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1. A method of ensuring delivery of program content and advertising content on-demand from a content delivery network to an Internet Protocol (IP)-capable user device, said advertising content being selected based at least in part on an advertisement zone of a user of said IP-capable user device, said method comprising:
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receiving a request for said program content from said IP-capable user device, said request comprising at least a user identifier (UID); forwarding said UID to an entity of said network, said entity determining at least a Media Access Control (MAC) address of said IP-capable user device from said UID; receiving from said entity said MAC address; forwarding said MAC address to a network controller of said network, said network controller determining at least a quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) identifier using said MAC address; receiving from said network controller said QAM identifier; associating said QAM identifier to said advertisement zone; and providing information regarding said advertisement zone to a content server of said network, said content server providing said program content and said advertising content to said IP-capable user device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. In a content delivery network capable of providing program and advertising content to a plurality of legacy and non-legacy devices, a method of ensuring delivery of zone-preserved advertising content, said method comprising:
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receiving a request for program content from a non-legacy device, said non-legacy device being associated with a user, said request comprising at least infolination identifying said user; forwarding said information identifying said user to at least one entity of said network, said at least one entity being configured to associate said information to an address of said user; receiving an indicator of said address from said at least one entity; associating said indicator to at least one advertising zone; and providing information regarding said at least one advertising zone to a content server of said network, said content server being configured to provide said program and said advertising content to said plurality of legacy and non-legacy devices; wherein said advertising content received at said non-legacy device located at a first address comprises identical content to that which would have been received by said user at a legacy device located at a second address, said first and second addresses being otherwise associated to different advertising zones. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9)
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10. In a content distribution network comprising at least a content server and a plurality of user devices configured to receive primary and secondary content therefrom, a secondary content zone preservation server apparatus, said zone preservation server apparatus comprising:
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a first interface configured to receive a request from at least one of said plurality of user devices, said request comprising at least user identification information; a storage entity configured to store a plurality of records thereon, said plurality of records configured to indicate at least one secondary content zone applicable to individual ones of a plurality of device indicators; a digital processor, said processor configured to run at least one computer program thereon, said computer program comprising a plurality of instructions which are configured to, when executed; forward said user identification information to a network entity configured to provide a device indicator; receive said device indicator; and compare said device indicator to said plurality of records to identify at least one secondary content zone associated therewith; and a second interface configured to provide data related to said at least one secondary content zone to said content server. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A method of delivering primary and secondary content over a network, comprising:
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receiving a request for said primary content from a packet-enabled user device; receiving entitlement information relating to a subscriber making said request; using said entitlement information to associate said subscriber to a subscriber account, said account indicating said subscriber is authorized to receive said requested primary content; and delivering said primary content to said subscriber in a packetized format via said packet- enabled device, said primary content having secondary content contained therein which is zone- controlled with respect to delivery of said primary content via another non-packet enabled device of said subscriber, said zone-controlled secondary content comprises advertising which is selected irrespective of a physical geographic location of said packet-enabled user device. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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31. A method of operating a network, comprising:
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receiving a request for primary content from an Internet Protocol (IP)-enabled device of a user of said network; determining a first location of said device; and selecting and inserting secondary content that have one or more common attributes to secondary content that would be selected and inserted when said request was received from a non-IP enabled device of said user at a location different from said first location. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37)
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38. Network apparatus, comprising:
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a processor; a storage device in data communication with said processor; and at least one computer program configured to run on said processor and stored in said storage device, said at least one program which is configured to, when executed; receive a request for primary content originated from a user, said request comprising at least a MAC address; when said request originated from a legacy device of said user, determine an advertising zone based on said MAC address associated with said legacy device; and when said request originated from an IP-enabled non-legacy device of said user, apply identical rules for advertising selection or insertion that are applied for said advertising zone associated with said legacy device. - View Dependent Claims (39, 40, 41)
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Specification