Live on-line advertisement insertion object oriented system and method

• US 20030023973A1
• Filed: 03/22/2002
• Published: 01/30/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Brian Monson, Michael Harris
• Original Assignee: Brian Monson, Michael Harris
• Inventors: Harris, Michael, Monson, Brian
• Application Number:
  US10/105,064
• Publication Number:
  US 20030023973A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0256 User search
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0272 Period of advertisement exposure
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0273 Determination of fees for advertising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2187 Live feed
• 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 21/43076 of the same content streams on multiple devices, e.g. when family members are watching the same movie on different devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/458 Scheduling content for creating a personalised stream, e.g. by combining a locally stored advertisement with an incoming stream; Updating operations, e.g. for OS modules ; time-related management operations arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or during the distribution H04H20/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only

Abstract

The present invention involves a system and method of inserting advertisements into the live on-line broadcast information. A computer has a media player for presenting information to a computer user. The computer also has an interface to a computer network capable of transferring live broadcast information. The system receives at least one advertisement which is capable of insertion into the live broadcast information, and stores the insertable advertisement in the computer. The live broadcast information is presented to the computer user by the media player. The live broadcast is monitored to determine portions of the live broadcast suitable for insertion of the insertable advertisement. The media player then presents the insertable advertisement to the computer user. The live broadcast information includes signals indicating an insertion portion which is suitable for insertion of an advertisement. The system logs the presentation of the insertable advertisement, as well as the completion of the presentation of the insertable advertisement.

Claims

1. A computer for communicating with a computer network and present information received from the network to a computer user, said computer comprising:

a processor;

a plurality of memory locations;

a network interface;

a media player adapted to receive live broadcast information from said computer interface and present the live broadcast information to the computer user; and

advertisement insertion means operably coupled to said network interface and said media player for requesting at least one insertable advertisement capable of insertion into the live broadcast information, for receiving at least one insertable advertisement, for storing said at least one insertable advertisement in said plurality of memory locations, for monitoring the live broadcast to determine portions of the live broadcast suitable for insertion of one of said at least one insertable advertisement, and for enabling said media player to present the at least one insertable advertisement to the computer user.

2. The computer of claim 1 wherein said advertisement insertion means further includes means for obtaining profile information relating to the computer user and transmitting said profile information through said network interface as part of a request for the at least one insertable advertisement.

3. The computer of claim 1 further comprising means for logging the presentation of the at least one insertable advertisement by said media player.

4. The computer of claim 3 wherein said logging means further logs the completion of the presentation of the at least one insertable advertisement by said media player.

5. In computer having a media player for presenting information to a computer user and an interface to a computer network capable of transferring live broadcast information, a method of inserting advertisements into the live broadcast information, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving at least one insertable advertisement capable of insertion into the live broadcast information;

presenting the live broadcast information to the computer user by the media player;

monitoring the live broadcast to determine portions of the live broadcast suitable for insertion of one of said at least one insertable advertisement; and

enabling the media player to present the at least one insertable advertisement to the computer user.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein said receiving step includes storing at least one insertable advertisement in the computer.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein the live broadcast information includes signals indicating an insertion portion which is suitable for insertion of an advertisement, and wherein said receiving step is performed prior to said enabling step.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein said receiving step includes storing the insertable advertisement for later presentation.

9. The method of claim 5 further comprising the step of logging the presentation of the insertable advertisement.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein said logging step includes the step of logging the completion of the insertable advertisement.

11. A machine-readable program storage device for storing encoded instructions for a method of a method of inserting advertisements into live broadcast information transferred over a computer network, the machine-readable program capable of executing on a computer having a media player for presenting information to a computer user, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving at least one insertable advertisement capable of insertion into the live broadcast information;

presenting the live broadcast information to the computer user by the media player;

monitoring the live broadcast to determine portions of the live broadcast suitable for insertion of one of said at least one insertable advertisement; and

enabling the media player to present the at least one insertable advertisement to the computer user.

12. The machine-readable program storage device of claim 11 wherein said receiving step includes storing the at least one insertable advertisement in the computer.

13. The machine-readable program storage device of claim 11 wherein the live broadcast information includes signals indicating an insertion portion which is suitable for insertion of an advertisement, and wherein said receiving step is performed prior to said enabling step.

14. The machine-readable program storage device of claim 13 wherein said receiving step includes storing the insertable advertisement for later presentation.

15. The machine-readable program storage device of claim 11 further comprising the step of logging the presentation of the insertable advertisement.

16. The machine-readable program storage device of claim 15 wherein said logging step includes the step of logging the completion of the insertable advertisement.