Systems and methods for enhancing audience measurement data

• US 8,910,195 B1
• Filed: 02/20/2014
• Issued: 12/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/20/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Cai, Chao, Barney, David, Wright, Timothy, Kee, William Patrick
• Primary Examiner(s): Montoya, Oschta
• Application Number:
  US14/185,534
• Time in Patent Office: 292 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 725/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/31 Arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/45 for identifying users
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/66 for using the result on distributors' side
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25883 being end-user demographical data, e.g. age, family status or address arrangements for identifying locations of users in broadcast systems H04H60/52
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44213 Monitoring of end-user related data arrangements for monitoring the users' behaviour or opinions in broadcast systems H04H60/33

Abstract

The present disclosure provides systems and methods for enhancing audience measurement data. Offline and online audience measurement data may be compared and correlated to improve the quality of each data and source set. Positive correlations between the offline and online data sets related to a particular event may indicate demographic traits that are likely true, such that outliers may be removed from the set or considered at a reduced weight. Negative correlations may indicate that demographic information within a source set, such as the online measurement data, may be false or suspect.

Claims

1. A method for enhancing audience measurement data, comprising:

receiving, by an audience measurement server from an audience panel provider, demographic data for a broadcast event;

identifying, by the audience measurement server, a plurality of communications from a corresponding plurality of client devices, the plurality of communications associated with the broadcast event;

receiving, by the audience measurement server, demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices;

calculating, by the audience measurement server, a correlation between a first value of the received demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices and a corresponding value of the received demographic data for the broadcast event;

determining, by the audience measurement server, that the correlation exceeds a predetermined threshold;

identifying demographic information of a first client device of the plurality of client devices as suspect, by the audience measurement server, responsive to the determination that the correlation exceeds the predetermined threshold and responsive to the demographic information of the first client device not including the first value; and

calculating, by the audience measurement server, a correlation between a second value of the received demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices and a corresponding second value of the received demographic data for the broadcast event;

determining, by the audience measurement server, that the correlation does not exceed the predetermined threshold; and

decreasing a confidence score of the received demographic data for the broadcast event.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving demographic data for a broadcast event comprises receiving demographic data from an audience panel provider for a broadcast block including the event.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying a plurality of communication from a corresponding plurality of client devices associated with the broadcast event comprises identifying a plurality of requests for content associated with the broadcast event within a predetermined period of time from the broadcast event.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying a plurality of communication from a corresponding plurality of client devices associated with the broadcast event comprises identifying a plurality of search queries for terms associated with the broadcast event within a predetermined period of time from the broadcast event.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices further comprises receiving results of a demographic survey for each of the plurality of client devices.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein calculating a correlation between a first value of the received demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices and a corresponding value of the received demographic data for the broadcast event further comprises aggregating the received demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices, and correlating the aggregated demographic information and the received demographic data for the broadcast event.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising increasing a confidence score of the first value of the received demographic data from the audience panel provider, responsive to the correlation exceeding the predetermined threshold.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising decreasing a confidence score of the received demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices not including the first value.

9. A system for enhancing audience measurement data, comprising:

a first device in communication with a plurality of client devices and an audience panel provider, comprising a processor and a memory, the processor configured for;

receiving, from the audience panel provider, demographic data for a broadcast event;

identifying a plurality of communications from the plurality of client devices, the plurality of communications associated with the broadcast event;

receiving demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices;

calculating a correlation between a first value of the received demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices and a corresponding value of the received demographic data for the broadcast event;

determining that the correlation exceeds a predetermined threshold;

identifying demographic information of a first client device of the plurality of client devices as suspect, responsive to the determination that the correlation exceeds the predetermined threshold and responsive to the demographic information of the first client device not including the first value; and

calculating a correlation between a second value of the received demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices and a corresponding second value of the received demographic data for the broadcast event;

determining that the correlation does not exceed the predetermined threshold; and

decreasing a confidence score of the received demographic data for the broadcast event.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured for receiving demographic data from an audience panel provider for a broadcast block including the event.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured for identifying a plurality of requests for content associated with the broadcast event within a predetermined period of time from the broadcast event.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured for identifying a plurality of search queries for terms associated with the broadcast event within a predetermined period of time from the broadcast event.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured for receiving results of a demographic survey for each of the plurality of client devices.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured for aggregating the received demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices, and correlating the aggregated demographic information and the received demographic data for the broadcast event.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured for increasing a confidence score of the first value of the received demographic data from the audience panel provider, responsive to the correlation exceeding the predetermined threshold.

16. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured for decreasing a confidence score of the received demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices not including the first value.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that when executed by one or more data processors, cause the one or more data processors to perform operations comprising:

receiving, from an audience panel provider, demographic data for a broadcast event;

identifying, by the audience measurement server, a plurality of communications from a corresponding plurality of client devices, the plurality of communications associated with the broadcast event;

receiving demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices;

calculating a correlation between a first value of the received demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices and a corresponding value of the received demographic data for the broadcast event;

determining that the correlation exceeds a predetermined threshold;

identifying demographic information of a first client device of the plurality of client devices as suspect, responsive to the determination that the correlation exceeds the predetermined threshold and responsive to the demographic information of the first client device not including the first value; and

calculating a correlation between a second value of the received demographic information for each of the plurality of client devices and a corresponding second value of the received demographic data for the broadcast event;

determining that the correlation does not exceed the predetermined threshold; and

decreasing a confidence score of the received demographic data for the broadcast event.