Systems, methods, and apparatus to monitor mobile internet activity

• US 8,910,259 B2
• Filed: 08/14/2010
• Issued: 12/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation), Nielsen Company (US) LLC (RR Donnelley & Sons Company)
• Original Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Papakostas, Achilleas, Yonker, Michael Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): DADA, BEEMNET W
• Application Number:
  US12/856,643
• Publication Number:
  US 20120042367A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,578 Days
• Field of Search: 726 4- 7, 726 11- 12, 726/22
• US Class Current: 726/7
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0281 Proxies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/563 Data redirection of data network streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/068 using credential vaults, e.g. password manager applications or one time password [OTP] applications

Abstract

Systems, methods, and apparatus to monitor mobile Internet activity are disclosed. An example method comprises determining if an application identified by an identifier of a content request from a client device supports authentication; transmitting content identified by the content request to the client device if the identifier of the content request identifies an application that supports authentication; and storing an identifier of the content requested by the content request in association with the client device.

Claims

1. A method to monitor Internet activity of mobile computing devices, the method comprising:

determining if a content request originated from a desktop computer or a mobile device by examining a user agent identifier of the content request;

blocking the content request if the content request originated from the desktop computer; and

if the content request originated from the mobile device;

determining if the application identified by the user agent identifier supports authentication;

not requesting authentication credentials if the application does not support authentication;

transmitting content identified by the content request to the mobile device; and

storing an identifier of the content requested by the content request in association with an identified mobile device.

2. The method as described in claim 1, wherein storing the identifier of the content further comprises storing a portion of the content in association with the identifier of the mobile device if the content request originated from the mobile device.

3. The method as described in claim 1, wherein determining if the content request originated from the desktop computer or the mobile devices comprising examining a user agent identifier of the content request.

4. The method as described in claim 1, further comprising:

determining if valid credentials are supplied in association with the content request;

transmitting a request for credentials to the mobile device if (1) the user agent identifier substantially matches a pattern of applications that support authentication, (2) valid credentials are not supplied in association with the content request, and (3) the content request originated from the mobile device; and

transmitting content identified by the content request to the mobile device if (1) the user agent identifier substantially matches the pattern of applications that support authentication, (2) valid credentials are supplied in association with the content request, and (3) the content request originated from the mobile device.

5. The method as described in claim 4, further comprising associating a panelist identifier associated with the credentials with the identifier of the content request.

6. The method as described in claim 5, wherein the panelist identifier is the credentials supplied in association with the content request.

7. The method as described in claim 1, further comprising instructing the mobile device to transmit content requests via a proxy server.

8. The method as described in claim 7, further comprising:

transmitting the credentials and an Internet proxy address of the proxy server; and

causing the mobile device to transmit subsequent requests for content to the proxy server.

9. The method as described in claim 8, wherein transmitting the credentials and the Internet proxy address further comprises generating a configuration document comprising the credentials and the Internet proxy address.

10. The method as described in claim 8, further comprising generating a configuration document comprising instructions to instruct a panelist associated with the mobile device to configure the mobile device to transmit subsequent request for content to the proxy server.

11. A method to monitor Internet activity comprising:

receiving a request for Internet content at a proxy server, the request originating from a client device transmitting requests via a wireless access point;

determining if a user agent identifier of the request for Internet content identifies an application supporting proxy authentication;

determining if valid credentials are provided in association with the request for Internet content;

determining if the client device is a mobile device or a desktop computer;

blocking the request if the client device is the desktop computer, the blocking to prevent Internet activity running on the desktop computer from affecting a monitoring result related to mobile device usage;

if the client device is the mobile device;

(A) transmitting a request for credentials if (1) the user agent identifier of the request for Internet content identifies the application supporting proxy authentication, and (2) valid credentials are not provided in association with the request for Internet content;

(B) associating the request for Internet content with the mobile device if (1) the user agent identifier of the request for Internet content identifies an application supporting proxy authentication, and (2) valid credentials are provided;

(C) requesting content from an Internet content provider identified in the request for Internet content, the Internet content provider being different than the proxy server; and

(D) transmitting the content to the mobile device.

12. The method as defined in claim 11, wherein associating the request with the mobile device further comprises storing the request for Internet content in a database.

13. The method as defined in claim 11, wherein associating the request with the mobile device further comprises storing the association between the request for Internet content and the client device in a database.

14. A system to monitor Internet activity comprising:

a proxy server to service Internet data requests from a client device for Internet data, the proxy server comprising;

a request port to receive a request for Internet data;

an Internet port to retrieve Internet data based on the request for Internet data;

a request servicer to determine if (1) the client device is a mobile device or a desktop computer, (2) if a user agent identifier of the request received by the request port identifies an application which supports proxy authentication, and (3) if valid credentials are provided in association with the request received by the request port; and

a database to store an identification of the Internet data requested via the request port in association with a panelist identifier (1) if the client device is the mobile device (2) if the user agent identifier identifies the application which supports proxy authentication, and (3) if valid credentials are provided in association with the request.

15. The system as described in claim 14, further comprising:

a registrar to register the client device, to uniquely assign credentials to the client device, and to generate a configuration document to transmit the credentials and an Internet proxy address to the client device.

16. The system as described in claim 15, wherein the registrar is to store an association between the credentials, the panelist identifier, and the client device in the database.

17. The system as described in claim 14, wherein the proxy server is to store the Internet data request from the client in the database if the client device is the mobile device but not if the client device is the desktop computer.

18. The system as described in claim 14, wherein the proxy server is to store the retrieved Internet data transmitted to the client in the database if the client device is the mobile device but not if the client device is the desktop computer.

19. The system as described in claim 14, wherein the proxy server is to receive the request for Internet data and transmit Internet data via a wireless network.

20. The system as described in claim 19, wherein the wireless network is a WiFi network.

21. An apparatus to monitor Internet activity comprising:

a first port to receive a request for Internet content;

a request servicer to receive the request for Internet content via the first port, to determine whether the request for Internet content originated from a mobile device or a desktop computer, and to transmit Internet content identified in the request for Internet content via the first port or a second port if the request originated from the mobile device but not if the request originated from the desktop computer;

an Internet content processor to store the request for Internet content in a database if the request originated from the mobile device but not if the request originated from the desktop computer;

an Internet port; and

a content gatherer to receive the Internet content identified in the request for Internet content via the Internet port when (1) an identifier of the request for Internet content identifies an application which supports proxy authentication, (2) valid credentials are provided in association with the request for Internet content, and (3) the request for Internet content originated from the mobile device.

22. The apparatus as described in claim 21, wherein the Internet content processor is to store the credentials associated with the request in the database.

23. The apparatus as described in claim 21, wherein the Internet content processor is to store a portion of the Internet content identified in the request for Internet content.