Method and apparatus for browser based advertisement insertion

• US 8,997,140 B2
• Filed: 03/08/2013
• Issued: 03/31/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GoldSpot Media, Inc. (Japan) (Dentsu Group, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: GoldSpot Media, Inc. (Japan) (Dentsu Group, Inc.)
• Inventors: Feng, Xin, Dharmaji, Srinivasa
• Primary Examiner(s): Lin, Jason K
• Application Number:
  US13/791,712
• Publication Number:
  US 20130185158A1
• Time in Patent Office: 753 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 725/32
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2668 Creating a channel for a dedicated end-user group, e.g. insertion of targeted commercials based on end-user profiles information retrieval from the Internet by querying with filtering and personalisation G06F16/9535; arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast H04H20/10; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; adaptation of message content in packet-switching networks H04L51/063
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4325 by playing back content from the storage medium reproduction of recorded television signals H04N5/76; reproduction of recorded television signals H04N9/79
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44004 involving video buffer management, e.g. video decoder buffer or video display buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44016 involving splicing one content stream with another content stream, e.g. for substituting a video clip
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44209 Monitoring of downstream path of the transmission network originating from a server, e.g. bandwidth variations of a wireless network arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4424 Monitoring of the internal components or processes of the client device, e.g. CPU or memory load, processing speed, timer, counter or percentage of the hard disk space used error monitoring in general G06F11/30; arrangements for monitoring conditions of receiving stations in broadcast systems H04H60/32; diagnosis, testing or measuring for television receivers H04N17/04
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6131 involving transmission via a mobile phone network wireless downlink channel access H04W74/006
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6473 Monitoring network processes errors for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity H04L69/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/165 Centralised control of user terminal subsequent to an upstream request signal H04N7/17345; Registering at central by two-way working H04N7/17309

Abstract

Content is downloaded to a mobile handheld device (MHD) and buffered on the MHD prior to, and during, viewing. Normal wireless bandwidth varies with atmospheric conditions, distance, obstructions in the path, etc. and hence the speed at which a content-buffer (CB) on the MHD is replenished changes. Because this can result in very low quality viewing experience for the user, the capability for alternate content scheduling provided a micro-splicer is used to enable stored alternate content or advertisement insertion during periods of low viewing quality, when the CB does not hold sufficient content during the viewing period. This alternate content insertion allows the CB to be refilled before the user resumes content viewing.

Claims

1. A method for improving viewing quality on a mobile handheld device (MHO) comprising the steps of:

receiving, at the MHO, an initiation of viewing of content on the MHD at the start of the process;

immediately responsive to receiving said initiation of view of content, receiving and loading said content in real-time from a remote source over a wireless medium into a second buffer;

responsive to receiving said initiation of view of content, simultaneously loading alternate content from a storage containing pre-downloaded alternate content into a first buffer;

checking, by a threshold checker, a fill status of the second buffer;

if the second buffer fill status is below an empty threshold value, stopping, by a micro-splicer, loading a display buffer from the second buffer and starting loading the display buffer from the first buffer using the pre-downloaded alternate content;

monitoring the second buffer to detect when the fill status reaches a fill threshold value;

when the second buffer reaches the fill threshold value, stopping, by the microsplicer, the loading of the display buffer from the first buffer at the end of the current loading alternate content and beginning loading the display buffer from the second buffer;

when the second buffer fill status is below an empty threshold value at a second time, stopping, by the micro-splicer, loading the display buffer from the second buffer and starting loading the display buffer from the first buffer using the pre-downloaded alternate content;

checking, by the threshold checker, for an end-of-content-file (EOCF) in the second buffer and when the EOCF is recognized while the display buffer is being loaded from the first buffer, stopping, by the micro-splicer loading the display buffer from the first buffer and starting loading the display buffer from the second buffer after completion of the current alternate content to the EOCF; and

rendering content loaded in the display buffer and sending the rendered content to the display screen and display on the display screen.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said alternate content was pre-downloaded to a storage on said MHD.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said MHD comprises a micro-splicer and wherein said micro-splicer stops displaying said real-time content from said second buffer and starts displaying said preloaded alternate content from said first buffer when the second buffer reaches the second threshold.

4. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium containing computer executable instructions which, when executed by a computer, implement the method of claim 1.

5. A mobile handheld device, comprising:

a display;

a display buffer coupled to said display;

a first content buffer adapted to buffer a received content stream, said content buffer coupled to said display buffer via a switch;

a storage unit for storing preloaded alternate content, said storage unit coupled to said second content buffer;

a second content buffer adapted to buffer, from the storage unit, an alternate content stream of said preloaded alternate content for display on said display, said second content buffer coupled to said display buffer via said switch;

a micro-splicer coupled to said first content buffer, said second content buffer, said storage unit, and said switch;

a threshold checker adapted to monitor a fill status of said first buffer;

if the first buffer fill status is below an empty threshold value, stopping, by the micro-splicer, loading a display buffer from the first buffer and starting loading the display buffer from the second buffer using the preloaded alternate content;

monitoring the first buffer to detect when the fill status reaches a fill threshold value;

when the first buffer reaches the fill threshold value, stopping, by the microsplicer, the loading of the display buffer from the second buffer at the end of the current loading alternate content and beginning loading the display buffer from the first buffer;

when the first buffer fill status is below an empty threshold value at a second time, stopping, by the micro-splicer, loading the display buffer from the first buffer and starting loading the display buffer from the second buffer using the preloaded alternate content;

checking, by the threshold checker, for an end-of-content-file (EOCF) in the second buffer and when the EOCF is recognized while the display buffer is being loaded from the first buffer, stopping, by the micro-splicer loading the display buffer from the second buffer and starting loading the display buffer from the first buffer after completion of the current alternate content to the EOCF; and

rendering content loaded in the display buffer and sending the rendered content to the display screen and display on the display screen;

wherein viewing quality on the mobile handheld device is improved.