System providing sponsored content

• US 8,863,167 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2009
• Issued: 10/14/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola Mobility LLC (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Reilly, Craig P., Yacobellis, Robert H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pendleton, Brian T
• Assistant Examiner(s): Saint Cyr, Jean D
• Application Number:
  US12/608,729
• Publication Number:
  US 20110107362A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,811 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 725/23
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/472 End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content end-user interfaces for retrieving video data from a database G06F16/739; network services for supporting unicast streaming H04L65/612
• 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 21/812 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

A system receives an indication of selection of an item in a broadcast segment from an end device. A broadcast segment is identified by the selection and a broadcast segment schedule. An item ID is determined using the identified broadcast segment and the broadcast segment schedule, and a corresponding sponsor of the item is determined using the item ID and the identified broadcast segment. An anonymized message, including the item ID and a request for information, is sent to the corresponding sponsor. A reply is received from the corresponding sponsor, and forwarded to an end user contact.

Claims

1. A system providing sponsored content to an end device, the system comprising:

a data storage device storing a broadcast segment schedule, wherein the broadcast segment schedule contains a plurality of broadcast segments, each broadcast segment having;

a broadcast channel and a time of broadcast,

an item identification (ID) corresponding to an item in the broadcast segment, and

a sponsor ID identifying a corresponding sponsor for the item ID;

an input/output module interface that receives an indication of selection of an item from a plurality of items in a broadcast segment of the plurality of broadcast segments from an end device;

a server containing a processor that is configured to execute the following;

a segment sponsor module that identifies the broadcast segment using the indication of selection of the item and the broadcast segment schedule, identifies an item ID of the item using the identified broadcast segment and the broadcast segment schedule, and identifies a corresponding sponsor of the item using the item ID and the identified broadcast segment;

a messaging module that generates an anonymized message, wherein the anonymized message includes the item ID, and a request for information based on the indication of the selection of the item, and

the anonymized message conceals the identity of an end user of the end device to the corresponding sponsor, and maintains validity for a reply to the end user for a limited time; and

wherein the input/output module interface further-sends the anonymized message to the corresponding sponsor, receives a reply from the corresponding sponsor, and forwards the reply from the corresponding sponsor to an end user contact.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor generates the anonymized message by including the item ID, assigns an anonymous temporary

address to the end user, removes all identifying information of the end user, and maintains the validity for the reply to the end user by maintaining the anonymous temporary address for the limited time.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the processor maintains the validity of the anonymous temporary address for the reply to the end user if the reply by the corresponding sponsor is within an allowed limit of replies by the corresponding sponsor to the end user.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the input/output interface receives the reply from the corresponding sponsor and wherein the messaging module prepares the reply for forwarding by transferring the end user contact to the input/output interface of the system if the anonymous temporary address is valid.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the anonymized message is sent to multiple corresponding sponsors.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the broadcast segment schedule includes at least one broadcast segment defined by a broadcast channel and a time of broadcast, and the indication of the selection of the item from the plurality of items includes an indication of the broadcast channel and a time stamp.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the broadcast segment schedule further includes a location of the item in a screen at the time of broadcast, and the indication of the selection of the item from the plurality of items further includes the location.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the broadcast segment schedule includes at least one broadcast segment defined by a time of broadcast and a menu item at the time of broadcast, and wherein the indication of the selection of the item from the plurality of items includes a time stamp and a menu item ID.

9. A method for providing sponsored content to an end device, the method comprising:

receiving an indication of selection of an item from a plurality of items in a broadcast segment of a plurality of broadcast segments from the end device;

identifying, by a computer system, a broadcast segment using the indication of the selection and a broadcast segment schedule, wherein the broadcast segment schedule contains a plurality of broadcast segments, each broadcast segment having a broadcast channel and a time of broadcast, an item ID corresponding to an item in the broadcast segment, and a sponsor ID having a corresponding sponsor for the item ID;

identifying an item ID using the identified broadcast segment and the broadcast segment schedule;

identifying a corresponding sponsor of the item using the item ID and the identified broadcast segment;

generating an anonymized message, wherein the anonymized message includes the item ID, and a request for information based on the indication of the selection of the item, and

the anonymized message conceals the identity of an end user of the end device to the corresponding sponsor, and maintains validity for a reply to the end user for a limited time;

sending the anonymized message to the corresponding sponsor;

receiving a reply from the corresponding sponsor; and

forwarding the reply to an end user contact.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

determining whether the reply is received from the sponsor is valid by determining whether reply is received within the limited time; and

if the reply is received within the limited time, determining the end user contact for forwarding the reply to the end user device by using an anonymous temporary address of the end user and an end user account.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein determining whether the reply is received from the sponsor is valid by determining whether a total number of replies by the corresponding sponsor is within an allowed limit.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein sending the anonymized message to the corresponding sponsor comprises:

removing all identifying information of the end user to anonymize the message;

assigning an anonymous temporary address to the end user that conceals the identity of the end user of the end device to the corresponding sponsor; and

including the anonymous temporary address in the sent anonymized message.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein receiving the indication of the selection of the item from the plurality of items comprises receiving a time stamp and a broadcast channel.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein receiving the indication of the selection of the item from the plurality of items further comprises receiving a vector denoting a location of the item on a screen.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein receiving the indication of the selection of the item from the plurality of items further comprises receiving a menu item ID.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein determining the corresponding sponsor comprises:

retrieving the broadcast segment schedule;

determining the broadcast segment by using the indication of selection of the item from the plurality of items and the broadcast segment schedule; and

determining the corresponding sponsor by identifying a sponsor corresponding to the broadcast segment in the broadcast segment schedule.

17. The method of claim 9, wherein the broadcast program comprises one of an instructional program and a sales program and the item comprises one of an instruction and a coupon.

18. The method of claim 9, wherein the anonymized message is sent to multiple corresponding sponsors associated with the item.

19. The method of claim 9, wherein a same item ID may correspond to multiple different broadcast segments.

20. A non-transitory computer readable storage device storing at least one computer program that when executed by a computer system performs a method providing sponsored content, the method comprising:

receiving an indication of selection of an item from a plurality of items in a broadcast segment of a plurality of broadcast segments from the end device;

identifying a broadcast segment using the indication of the selection and a broadcast segment schedule, wherein the broadcast segment schedule contains a plurality of broadcast segments, each broadcast segment having a broadcast channel and a time of broadcast, an item ID corresponding to an item in the broadcast segment, and a sponsor ID having a corresponding sponsor for the item ID;

identifying an item ID using the identified broadcast segment and the broadcast segment schedule;

identifying a corresponding sponsor of the item using the item ID and the identified broadcast segment;

generating an anonymized message, wherein the anonymized message includes the item ID, and a request for information based on the indication of the selection of the item, and

the anonymized message conceals the identity of an end user of the end device to the corresponding sponsor, and maintains validity for a reply to the end user for a limited time;

sending the anonymized message to the corresponding sponsor;

receiving a reply from the corresponding sponsor; and

forwarding the reply to an end user contact.