Systems and methods for advertising television networks, channels, and programs

• US 8,887,192 B2
• Filed: 06/08/2012
• Issued: 11/11/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: UV Corporation (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: United Video Properties Incorporated (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Reynolds, Steven J., Knee, Robert A., Ellis, Michael D.
• Primary Examiner(s): HANCE, ROBERT J
• Application Number:
  US13/492,622
• Publication Number:
  US 20120304220A1
• Time in Patent Office: 886 Days
• Field of Search: 725/25, 725/32
• US Class Current: 725/25
• 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 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02

Abstract

The present invention allows control of the presentation of advertisements that are associated with television networks, channels, and programs, and enables a single broadcasting of each advertisement associated with a network to be made to numerous television systems in parallel. The presentation of advertisements that are associated with television networks, channels, and programs is controlled in the present invention by determining at television viewer equipment whether the television networks, channels, or programs with which the advertisements are associated are unavailable to the television viewer or are undesirable to the television viewer. Once this determination has been made, the television viewer equipment then presents the advertisements, or selects and presents suitable alternative advertisements.

Claims

1. A system of controlling presentation of advertisements to a program viewer, comprising:

a processor configured to;

receive an advertisement from an advertising database;

receive advertisement control information associated with the received advertisement, wherein the received advertisement control information controls a display of the received advertisement;

determine whether the received advertisement is for media that is accessible by a viewer equipment; and

prevent the display of the received advertisement when the processor determines that the received advertisement is for media that is not accessible by the viewer equipment.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the media is a network, channel or programming on a network or channel.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the advertisement control information comprises an identifier, a network, a channel, a program, a date, or a time associated with display of the received advertisement.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

receive a substitute advertisement; and

display the substitute advertisement when the processor determines that the received advertisement is for media that is not accessible by the viewer equipment.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

store parental blocking information; and

prevent the display of the received advertisement based on the stored parental blocking information.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the parental blocking information comprises a channel or program selected by a user of the viewer equipment.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

receive a channel map; and

prevent the display of the received advertisement based on the received channel map.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the channel map comprises a channel number, source identifier, network identifier, channel availability, channel block status, and time period.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine that a network associated with the received advertisement is unavailable based on the channel map and a time of day.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to:

prevent the display of the received advertisement in response to determining that a network associated with the received advertisement is unavailable.

11. A method of controlling presentation of advertisements to a program viewer, comprising:

receiving, by viewer equipment, an advertisement from an advertising database;

receiving advertisement control information associated with the received advertisement, wherein the received advertisement control information controls a display of the received advertisement;

determining whether the received advertisement is for media that is accessible by the viewer equipment; and

preventing the display of the received advertisement in response to determining that the received advertisement is for media that is not accessible by the viewer equipment.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the media is a network, channel or programming on a network or channel.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein the advertisement control information comprises an identifier, a network, a channel, a program, a date, or a time associated with display of the received advertisement.

14. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

receiving a substitute advertisement; and

display the substitute advertisement in response to determining that the received advertisement is for media that is not accessible by the viewer equipment.

15. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

storing parental blocking information; and

preventing the display of the received advertisement based on the stored parental blocking information.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the parental blocking information comprises a channel or program selected by a user of the viewer equipment.

17. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

receiving a channel map; and

preventing the display of the received advertisement based on the received channel map.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the channel map comprises a channel number, source identifier, network identifier, channel availability, channel block status, and time period.

19. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

determining that a network associated with the received advertisement is unavailable based on the channel map and a time of day.

20. The method of claim 19 further comprising:

preventing the display of the received advertisement in response to determining that a network associated with the received advertisement is unavailable.