Methods and apparatus for monitoring the insertion of local media content into a program stream

• US 9,544,622 B2
• Filed: 11/28/2014
• Issued: 01/10/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Original Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Kemper, Paul C, Ramaswamy, Arun
• Primary Examiner(s): FLYNN, RANDY A
• Application Number:
  US14/556,095
• Publication Number:
  US 20150089541A1
• Time in Patent Office: 774 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/28 by using information signals recorded by the same method as the main recording G11B27/22 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/3018 used signal is a pilot signal outside the frequency band of the recorded main information signal
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/322 used signal is digitally coded
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/103 Transmitter-side switching
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/106 Receiver-side switching
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/14 for monitoring programmes
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/37 for identifying segments of broadcast information, e.g. scenes or extracting programme ID
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/54 where broadcast information is generated
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23424 involving splicing one content stream with another content stream, e.g. for inserting or substituting an advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2407 Monitoring of transmitted content, e.g. distribution time, number of downloads arrangements for monitoring programmes for broadcast or for distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/14
• 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 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; 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 21/44008 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in the video stream arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• 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 21/44222 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 21/4532 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 21/8352 involving content or source identification data, e.g. Unique Material Identifier [UMID]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8455 involving pointers to the content, e.g. pointers to the I-frames of the video stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for monitoring locally inserted media content are disclosed. A disclosed method includes obtaining identification data and inserting the identification data in the media content after the media content has been received at a media consumption location. Another disclosed method includes receiving media content before the media content is output by a consumer receiving device and monitoring the received media content. Monitoring the received media content may include extracting signatures from the received media content and transmitting the extracted signatures to another location.

Claims

1. A method of detecting locally inserted media, the method comprising:

detecting, by executing an instruction via a processor, for a media signal received at a media presentation location, at least one of;

(a) a change in an absence or presence of a packet identifier in the received media signal,

(b) a change in a rate of the presence of a packet identifier in the received media signal,

(c) a change in a program mapping structure associated with the received media signal,

(d) a change in an absence or presence of errors in the received media signal,

(e) a change in metadata associated with the received media signal, or

(f) a change in a consumer media device associated with the received media signal; and

inserting, by executing an instruction via the processor, a label into the media signal when any of (a) to (f) indicate that locally inserted media has been spliced into the media signal, the label to identify the spliced locally inserted media as locally inserted media, the locally inserted media having been spliced into source media to generate the received media signal after receipt of the source media at the media presentation location.

2. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the consumer media device is a set top box.

3. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the consumer media device is a local media insertion module.

4. The method as defined in claim 1, further including, in response to a change in the metadata, storing an old value of the metadata and storing a new value of the metadata.

5. The method as defined in claim 4, further including storing a duration between a first time when the old value of the metadata was received and a second time when the new value of the metadata was received.

6. A tangible computer readable storage device or storage disk comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a machine to:

detect, for a media signal received at a media presentation location, at least one of;

(a) a change in an absence or presence of a packet identifier in the received media signal,

(b) a change in a rate of the presence of a packet identifier in the received media signal,

(c) a change in a program mapping structure associated with the received media signal,

(d) a change in an absence or presence of errors in the received media signal,

(e) a change in metadata associated with the received media signal, or

(f) a change in a consumer media device associated with the received media signal; and

insert a label into the media signal when any of (a) to (f) indicate that locally inserted media has been spliced into the media signal, the label to identify the spliced locally inserted media as locally inserted media, the locally inserted media having been spliced into source media to generate the received media signal after receipt of the source media at the media presentation location.

7. The tangible computer readable storage device or storage disk as defined in claim 6, wherein the consumer media device is a set top box.

8. The tangible computer readable storage device or storage disk as defined in claim 6, wherein the consumer media device is a local media insertion module.

9. The tangible computer readable storage device or storage disk as defined in claim 6, wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the machine to, in response to a change in the metadata, store an old value of the metadata and storing a new value of the metadata.

10. The tangible computer readable storage device or storage disk as defined in claim 9, wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the machine to store a duration between a first time when the old value of the metadata was received and a second time when the new value of the metadata was received.

11. An apparatus comprising:

a tag detector to detect, for a media signal received at a media presentation location, at least one of;

(a) a change in an absence or presence of a packet identifier in the received media signal,

(b) a change in a rate of the presence of a packet identifier in the received media signal,

(c) a change in a program mapping structure associated with the received media signal,

(d) a change in an absence or presence of errors in the received media signal,

(e) a change in metadata associated with the received media signal, or

(f) a change in a consumer media device associated with the received media signal; and

an analyzer to insert a label into the media signal when any of (a) to (f) indicate that locally inserted media has been spliced into the media signal, the label to identify the spliced locally inserted media as locally inserted media, the locally inserted media having been spliced into source media to generate the received media signal after receipt of the source media at the media presentation location.

12. The apparatus as defined in claim 11, wherein the consumer media device is a set top box.

13. The apparatus as defined in claim 11, wherein the consumer media device is a local media insertion module.

14. The apparatus as defined in claim 11, wherein the analyzer is to, in response to a change in the metadata, store an old value of the metadata and storing a new value of the metadata.

15. The apparatus as defined in claim 14, wherein the analyzer is to store a duration between a first time when the old value of the metadata was received and a second time when the new value of the metadata was received.