System and method for real-time location-based advertisement insertion into online content

• US 8,769,149 B2
• Filed: 08/08/2008
• Issued: 07/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Original Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Inventors: Sidi, Ariff, Hedinsson, Skarphedinn
• Primary Examiner(s): Rashid, Harunur
• Application Number:
  US12/221,959
• Publication Number:
  US 20100036970A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,153 Days
• Field of Search: 709/245, 709/244, 709/246, 705/14.4, 705/14.72, 705/14.73, 705/14.49
• US Class Current: 709/245
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/16 Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs coordinating program control therefor G06F9/52; in regulating and control system G05B
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/10 Indexing; Addressing; Timing or synchronising; Measuring tape travel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4524 involving the geographical location of the client retrieval from the Internet by querying based on geographical locations G06F16/9537; systems specially adapted for using geographical information in broadcast systems H04H60/70; protocols in which the network application is adapted for the location of the user terminal in communication control or processing H04L67/52; services making use of the location of users or terminals in wireless networks H04W4/02; locating users or terminals in wireless networks H04W64/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8456 by decomposing the content in the time domain, e.g. in time segments

Abstract

There is provided a media content server for inserting a location-based advertisement into an online media content. The media content server comprises a memory including an online media content for online access; a processor configured to receive a request from a client for the online media content; determine an IP address of the client based on the request; map the IP address to a local advertisement server serving an area corresponding to the IP address; request a local advertisement from the local advertisement server; provide the local advertisement to the client; and provide the online media content from the memory to the client. The online media content has a first and second sequential segments, and the local advertisement may be provided to the client after the first segment is provided and before the second segment is provided.

Claims

1. A media content server for inserting a location-based advertisement into an online media content to be provided to a client having an Internet Protocol (IP) address, the IP address being in a geographic IP database mapping a plurality of IP addresses to corresponding geographic areas, the media content server comprising:

a memory including a plurality of online media contents for online access, including a first online media content;

a processor configured to;

receive a request from the client for the first online media content;

determine the IP address of the client based on the request;

map the IP address to a geographic area by using a first geographic area from the geographic IP database and a second geographic area from a client database, wherein the second geographic area is used as the geographic area when the second geographic area is different than the first geographic area and has an indication of accuracy confidence, wherein the accuracy confidence is obtained using a registered geographic area for the client stored in the client database;

associate the geographic area to a local advertisement server serving the geographic area by using a local advertisement server database mapping a plurality of geographic areas to corresponding local advertisement servers serving each of the geographic areas;

provide the first online media content to the client;

request a national advertisement from a national advertisement server;

receive the national advertisement from the national advertisement server;

add a national ad category, associated with the national advertisement, in an excluded ad category in the memory, in response to receiving the national advertisement, wherein the national ad category remains in the excluded ad category for a set period of time;

provide the national advertisement to the client;

send a request for a local advertisement from the local advertisement server, the request for the local advertisement including the excluded ad category retrieved from the memory;

receive the local advertisement from the local advertisement server in response to sending the request for the local advertisement including the excluded ad category to the local advertisement server, wherein the local advertisement has a lower priority than the national advertisement and has a different ad category than the excluded ad category having the national ad category; and

provide the local advertisement to the client.

2. The media content server of claim 1, wherein the first online media content has a first and second sequential segments, and wherein the requested local advertisement is provided to the client after the first segment is provided and before the second segment is provided.

3. The media content server of claim 1, wherein the local advertisement is provided concurrently with the first online media content.

4. The media content server of claim 1, wherein the first online media content is streaming video.

5. The media content server of claim 1, wherein the first online media content is streaming audio.

6. The media content server of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine the registered geographic area for the client using a demographic detail stored in the client database.

7. The media content server of claim 6, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine the accuracy confidence of the registered geographic area by matching the registered geographic area with the geographic area using the geographic IP database; and

associate the registered geographic area to the local advertisement server serving the registered geographic area if the confidence of accuracy meets a threshold level.

8. A method for use by a media content server to provide location-based advertisement insertion into an online media content, the method comprising:

receiving a request from a client for the online media content;

determining the IP address of the client based on the request;

mapping the IP address to a local advertisement server serving an area corresponding to the IP address by using a first geographic area from a geographic IP database mapping a plurality of IP addresses to corresponding geographic areas and a second geographic area from a client database, wherein the second geographic area is mapped to the local advertisement server when the second geographic area is different than the first geographic area and has an indication of accuracy confidence, wherein the accuracy confidence is obtained using a registered geographic area for the client stored in the client database, and wherein the mapping queries a local advertisement server database mapping a plurality of geographic areas to corresponding local advertisement servers serving each of the geographic areas;

providing the online media content to the client;

requesting a national advertisement from a national advertisement server;

receiving the national advertisement from the national advertisement server;

adding a national ad category, associated with the national advertisement, in an excluded ad category in the memory, in response to the receiving of the national advertisement, wherein the national ad category remains in the excluded ad category for a set period of time;

providing the national advertisement to the client;

sending a request for a local advertisement from the local advertisement server, the request for the local advertisement including the excluded ad category retrieved from the memory;

receiving the local advertisement from the local advertisement server in response to sending the request for the local advertisement including the excluded ad category to the local advertisement server, wherein the local advertisement has a lower priority than the national advertisement and has a different ad category than the excluded ad category having the national ad category; and

providing the local advertisement to the client.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the online media content has a first and second sequential segments, and wherein the local advertisement is provided to the client after the first segment is provided and before the second segment is provided.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the local advertisement is provided concurrently with the online media content.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the online media content is streaming video.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the online media content is streaming audio.

13. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

determining the registered geographic area for the client using a demographic detail stored in the client database.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising:

determining the accuracy confidence of the registered geographic area by matching the registered geographic area with the geographic area using the geographic IP database; and

associating the registered geographic area to the local advertisement server serving the registered geographic area if the confidence of accuracy meets a threshold level.

15. A media content server for inserting a location-based advertisement into an online media content, the media content server comprising:

a memory including an online media content for online access;

a processor configured to;

receive a request from a client for the online media content;

determine an IP address of the client based on the request;

map the IP address to a local advertisement server serving an area corresponding to the IP address by a first geographic area from a geographic IP database mapping a plurality of IP addresses to corresponding geographic areas and a second geographic area from a client database, wherein the second geographic area is mapped to the local advertisement server when the second geographic area is different than the first geographic area and has an indication of accuracy confidence, wherein the accuracy confidence is obtained using a registered geographic area for the client stored in the client database, and wherein the mapping queries a local advertisement server database mapping a plurality of geographic areas to corresponding local advertisement servers serving each of the geographic areas;

provide the online media content to the client;

request a national advertisement from a national advertisement server;

receive the national advertisement from the national advertisement server;

add a national ad category, associated with the national advertisement, in an excluded ad category in the memory, in response to receiving the national advertisement,

wherein the national ad category remains in the excluded ad category for a set period of time;

provide the national advertisement to the client;

send a request for a local advertisement from the local advertisement server, the request for the local advertisement including the excluded ad category retrieved from the memory;

receive the local advertisement from the local advertisement server in response to sending the request for the local advertisement including the excluded ad category to the local advertisement server, wherein the local advertisement has a lower priority than the national advertisement and has a different ad category than the excluded ad category having the national ad category; and

provide the local advertisement to the client.

16. The media content server of claim 15, wherein the online media content has a first and second sequential segments, and wherein the local advertisement is provided to the client after the first segment is provided and before the second segment is provided.

17. The media content server of claim 15, wherein the local advertisement is provided concurrently with the online media content.

18. The media content server of claim 15, wherein the online media content is streaming video.

19. The media content server of claim 15, wherein the online media content is streaming audio.

20. The media content server of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine the registered geographic area for the client using a demographic detail stored in the client database.

21. The media content server of claim 20, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine the accuracy confidence of the registered geographic area by matching the registered geographic area with the geographic area using the geographic IP database; and

associate the registered geographic area to the local advertisement server serving the registered geographic area if the confidence of accuracy meets a threshold level.