Methods and apparatus to measure exposure to streaming media

• US 10,694,254 B2
• Filed: 05/20/2019
• Issued: 06/23/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Original Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Besehanic, Jan
• Primary Examiner(s): Mendoza, Junior O
• Application Number:
  US16/416,986
• Publication Number:
  US 20190273967A1
• Time in Patent Office: 400 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/252 Processing of multiple end-users' preferences to derive collaborative data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44204 Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; protecting generic digital content where the protection is independent of the precise nature of the content G06F21/10; arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services in broadcast systems H04H60/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44224 Monitoring of user activity on external systems, e.g. Internet browsing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4667 Processing of monitored end-user data, e.g. trend analysis based on the log file of viewer selections

Abstract

Methods and apparatus to measure exposure to streaming media are disclosed. An example apparatus includes memory including first instructions that, when executed, cause at least one processor to access media to be provided to a client device, embed advertisement markers and metadata generated in association with the media into a media file, and provide second instructions and the media file to the client device. The second instructions cause the client device to update a multi-file counter with an offset based on a duration of the first media segment, detect that a second media segment is a segment of the multi-segment media based on the media file, add a determined playback time to the multi-file counter to determine a corresponding playback time of the multi-segment media, and attempt to lookup a metadata tag and corresponding playback positions based on the playback time of the multi-segment media.

Claims

1. An apparatus to measure exposure to streaming media, the apparatus comprising:

at least one processor;

memory including first instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to at least;

embed advertisement markers into a media file; and

provide second instructions and the media file to a client device, the second instructions to cause the client device to at least;

upon completion of playback of a first media segment of a multi-segment media, update a multi-file counter with an offset based on a duration of the first media segment;

detect that a second media segment is a segment of the multi-segment media based on the media file;

determine, during presentation of the second media segment, a playback time within the second media segment;

add the playback time to the multi-file counter to determine a corresponding playback time of the multi-segment media;

attempt to perform a lookup of a metadata tag in a table of metadata tags and corresponding playback positions based on the playback time of the multi-segment media; and

in response to successful performance of the lookup, transmit the metadata tag corresponding to the playback time of the multi-segment media to an audience measurement entity.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second instructions are to cause the client device to generate the table of metadata tags and corresponding playback positions based on information included in the first media segment of the multi-segment media.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the table of metadata tags and corresponding playback positions is based on information included in only the first media segment of the multi-segment media.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second instructions are to cause the client device to, upon completion of playback of the second media segment, update the multi-file counter with the offset based on the duration of the second media segment.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the second instructions are to cause the client device to

detect that a third media segment presented intermediate the first media segment and the second media segment is not a segment of the multi-segment media;

and

upon completion of playback of the third media segment, not updating of the multi-file counter.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the third media segment is an advertisement.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second instructions are to cause the client device to detect that the second media segment is a segment of the multi-segment media by detecting that a name of the second media segment is an incremented version of the name of the first media segment.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second instructions are to cause the client device to detect that the second media segment is a segment of the multi-segment media by detecting that a name of the second media segment complies with a file naming convention for the multi-segment media.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second instructions are to cause the client device to, in response to the successful performance of the lookup, add the metadata tag to a list of metadata tags, and transmit the list of metadata tags.

10. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising first instructions which, when executed, cause a machine to at least:

embed advertisement markers into a media file; and

provide second instructions and the media file to a client device, the second instructions to cause the client device to at least;

upon completion of playback of a first media segment of a multi-segment media, update a multi-file counter with an offset based on a duration of the first media segment;

detect that a second media segment is a segment of the multi-segment media;

determine, during presentation of the second media segment, a playback time within the second media segment;

add the playback time to the multi-file counter to determine a corresponding playback time of the multi-segment media;

attempt to perform a lookup of a metadata tag in a table of metadata tags and corresponding playback positions based on the playback time of the multi-segment media, the table of metadata tags and corresponding playback positions generated based on information included in the first media segment; and

in response to successful performance of the lookup, transmit the metadata tag corresponding to the playback time of the multi-segment media to an audience measurement entity.

11. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 10, wherein the second instructions when executed, further cause the client device to, upon completion of playback of the second media segment, update the multi-file counter with the offset based on the duration of the second media segment.

12. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11, wherein the second instructions when executed, further cause the client device to:

detect that a third media segment presented intermediate the first media segment and the second media segment is not a segment of the multi-segment media;

upon completion of playback of the third media segment, not update the multi-file counter.

13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 10, wherein the detecting that the second media segment is a segment of the multi-segment media includes detecting that a name of the second media segment complies with a file naming convention for the multi-segment media.

14. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 10, wherein the second instructions, when executed, further cause the client device to, in response to the successful performance of the lookup:

add the metadata tag to a list of metadata tags; and

transmit the list of metadata tags.

15. A method comprising:

embedding advertisement markers into a media file; and

providing instructions and the media file to a client device, the instructions to cause the client device to at least;

upon completion of playback of a first media segment of a multi-segment media, update a multi-file counter with an offset based on a duration of the first media segment;

detect that a second media segment is a segment of the multi-segment media;

determine, during presentation of the second media segment, a playback time within the second media segment;

add the playback time to the multi-file counter to determine a corresponding playback time of the multi-segment media;

attempt to perform a lookup of a metadata tag in a table of metadata tags and corresponding playback positions based on the playback time of the multi-segment media, the table of metadata tags and corresponding playback positions generated based on information included in the first media segment; and

in response to successful performance of the lookup, transmit the metadata tag corresponding to the playback time of the multi-segment media to an audience measurement entity.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the instructions when executed, further cause the client device to, upon completion of playback of the second media segment, update the multi-file counter with the offset based on the duration of the second media segment.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the instructions when executed, further cause the client device to:

detect that a third media segment presented intermediate the first media segment and the second media segment is not a segment of the multi-segment media;

upon completion of playback of the third media segment, omit updating of the multi-file counter.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the detecting that the second media segment is a segment of the multi-segment media includes detecting that a name of the second media segment complies with a file naming convention for the multi-segment media.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the client device to, in response to the successful performance of the lookup:

add the metadata tag to a list of metadata tags; and

transmit the list of metadata tags.