Methods and apparatus to credit internet usage

• US 9,301,173 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2013
• Issued: 03/29/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Original Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Papakostas, Achilleas
• Primary Examiner(s): Gelin, Jean
• Application Number:
  US13/840,594
• Publication Number:
  US 20140273923A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,110 Days
• Field of Search: 455/403, 455/405, 455/406, 455/408, 455/411, 455/414.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/564 Enhancement of application control based on intercepted application data
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/58 based on statistics of usage or network monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8083 involving reduced rates or discounts, e.g. time-of-day reductions or volume discounts
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 for social networking applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/182 Network node acting on behalf of an other network entity, e.g. proxy

Abstract

Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture to monitor mobile internet usage are disclosed. An example method includes identifying an application associated with a first request received at a proxy. The application is credited with a presentation duration based on a time difference between the first request and a second request, the second request associated with a same application as the first request.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring Internet usage, the method comprising:

identifying, with a processor, a first application associated with a first request received at a proxy;

identifying, with the processor, a second request associated with a same application as the first request;

identifying, with the processor, a third request at a time after the second request;

determining, with the processor, a first time difference between the first request and the third request;

crediting, with the processor, the first application with a first presentation duration equal to the first time difference when the first time difference is less than a threshold time; and

crediting, with the processor, the first application with a second presentation duration equal to a second time difference between the first request and the second request when the first time difference is at least one of greater than or equal to the threshold time.

2. The method as described in claim 1, further including identifying a panelist associated with the first request.

3. The method as described in claim 1, further including identifying a device associated with the first request.

4. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the first request is a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) request.

5. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the identification of the first application is based on a user agent of the first request.

6. The method as described in claim 5, wherein the user agent explicitly identifies the first application.

7. The method as described in claim 5, wherein the user agent impliedly identifies the first application.

8. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the identification of the first application is based on a universal resource locator of the first request when a user agent of the first request is generic.

9. The method as described in claim 8, wherein the first application is identified based on a lookup using the universal resource locator and the generic user agent.

10. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the identification of the first application is based on a second application identified in association with a fourth request received at the proxy, the fourth request having a same user agent as the first request and occurring within a time window of the first request.

11. The method as described in claim 10, wherein the time window is prior to the time of the first request.

12. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the first and second requests are first and last consecutive records associated with the same application.

13. The method as described in claim 1, further including crediting the first application with a minimal presentation duration when the second presentation duration is zero.

14. A tangible machine-readable storage medium comprising instructions which, when executed, cause a machine to at least:

identify a first application associated with a first request received at a proxy;

identify a second request associated with a same application as the first request;

identify a third request at a time after the second request;

determine a first time difference between the first request and the third request;

credit the first application with a first presentation duration equal to the first time difference when the first time difference is less than a threshold time; and

credit the first application with a second presentation duration equal to a second time difference between the first request and the second request when the first time difference is at least one of greater than or equal to the threshold time.

15. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 14, wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the machine to identify a panelist associated with the first request.

16. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 14, wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the machine to identify a device associated with the first request.

17. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 14, wherein the first request is a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) request.

18. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 14, wherein the instructions cause the machine to identify the first application based on a user agent of the first request.

19. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 18, wherein the user agent explicitly identifies the first application.

20. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 18, wherein the user agent impliedly identifies the first application.

21. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 14, wherein the instructions cause the machine to identify the first application based on a universal resource locator of the first request when a user agent of the first request is generic.

22. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 21, wherein the instructions cause the machine to identify the first application based on a lookup using the universal resource locator and the generic user agent.

23. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 14, wherein the instructions cause the machine to identify the first application is based on a second application identified in association with a fourth request received at the proxy, the fourth request having a same user agent as the first request and occurring within a time window of the first request.

24. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 23, wherein the time window is prior to the time of the first request.

25. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 14, wherein the first and second requests are first and last consecutive records associated with the same application.

26. The machine-readable storage medium as described in claim 14, wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the machine to credit the first application with a minimal presentation duration when the second presentation duration is zero.

27. An apparatus to monitor Internet usage, the apparatus comprising:

an application identifier to identify a first application associated with a first request received at a proxy server, to identify a second request associated with a same application as the first request, and to identify a third request at a time after the second request; and

a duration calculator to credit the first application with a first presentation duration equal to a first time difference between the first request and the third request when the first time difference is less than a threshold time, and to credit the first application with a second presentation duration equal to a second time difference between the first request and the second request when the first time difference is at least one of greater than or equal to the threshold time.

28. The apparatus as described in claim 27, further including a request filter to filter requests received by the proxy server to prevent the filtered requests from being processed by the application identifier and the duration calculator.

29. The apparatus as described in claim 27, further including a user identifier to identify a user associated with the first request.

30. The apparatus as described in claim 27, further including comprising a device identifier to identify a device associated with the first request.

31. The apparatus as described in claim 27, wherein the first request is a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) request.

32. The apparatus as described in claim 27, wherein the application identifier is to identify the first application based on a user agent of the first request.

33. The apparatus as described in claim 32, wherein the user agent explicitly identifies the first application.

34. The apparatus as described in claim 32, wherein the user agent impliedly identifies the first application.

35. The apparatus as described in claim 27, wherein the application identifier is to identify the first application based on a universal resource locator of the first request when a user agent of the first request is generic.

36. The apparatus as described in claim 35, wherein the application identifier is to identify the first application based on a lookup using the universal resource locator and the generic user agent.

37. The apparatus as described in claim 27, wherein the application identifier is to identify the first application based on a second application identified in association with a fourth request received at the proxy server, the fourth request having a same user agent as the first request and occurring within a time window of the first request.

38. The apparatus as described in claim 37, wherein the time window is prior to the time of the first request.

39. The apparatus as described in claim 27, wherein the first and second requests are first and last consecutive records associated with the same application.

40. The apparatus as described in claim 27, wherein the duration calculator is to credit the first application with a minimal presentation duration when the second presentation duration is zero.