IMPRESSION ALLOCATION SYSTEM AND METHODS USING AN AUCTION THAT CONSIDERS LOSING BIDS

• US 20120323701A1
• Filed: 06/17/2011
• Published: 12/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/17/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: OpenX Technologies, Inc. (OpenX Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: OpenX Technologies, Inc. (OpenX Ltd.)
• Inventors: Milgrom, Paul R., Cunningham, Stephan J., Beck, Marissa Renee
• Granted Patent: US 11,574,358 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.71
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions

Abstract

A system and methods for allocating impressions using an auction comprises a delivery engine, a statistics collector, a forecasting module, and optimization engine and a direct demand source. The delivery engine receives indirect demand, direct demand and optimization information that it uses to allocate impressions and serve ads. The statistics collector is coupled to collect information from the delivery engine and input from the forecasting module. The forecasting module provides information to the optimization to smooth the rate at which direct demand is allocated. The optimization engine receives information from the statistics collector, the forecasting module and the direct demand source to produce optimization information that is used to generate bids for the direct demand. The present invention is particularly advantageous because it preserves the incentive for performance bidders to bid honestly; it eliminates adverse selection against the publisher; and it increases the efficiency and total value produced by the auction.

Claims

1. A method for conducting an auction of an item, the method comprising:

receiving one or more bids;

selecting at least one of the one or more bids as an other received bid;

generating a new bid that is a function of the other received bid; and

running the auction for sale of the item, wherein the auction awards the item to a highest received bid selected from a group of the one or more bids and the new bid.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the new bid is a homogeneous function of degree one of the other received bid.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the other received bid is a plurality of other received bids; and

the new bid is a homogeneous function of degree one of the plurality of other received bids.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the new bid is a function of a second highest bid, if any, among the group of one or more bids received.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the new bid is a multiple of a second highest received bid, if any, and the multiple is greater than 1.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the multiple is adaptively adjusted.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the other received bid is a reserve price for the item.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the item is an impression.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein a price for the highest received bid is a greater of a reserve price and a second highest bid multiplied by a multiplier.

10. A method for allocating impressions, the method comprising:

receiving an indirect bid for an impression;

receiving direct bid information;

generating a direct bid; and

allocating an impression using an auction between the indirect bid and the direct bid.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

receiving an ad call; and

serving the allocated impression.

12. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

optimizing the direct bid information to produce a multiplier value; and

wherein the multiplier is used to generate the direct bid.

13. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

optimizing the direct bid information to produce a multiplier value;

retrieving a second highest bid value; and

wherein the direct bid has a value of the multiplier value times the second highest bid value.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the multiplier value is a number greater than 1.

15. The method of claim 10 wherein the auction is a second-bid auction.

16. The method of claim 10 wherein the direct bid is a multiplier times a second highest bid and the impression is allocated at a price of a greater of the direct bid and a reserve price.

17. The method of claim 10 wherein the impression is allocated at a price of a second highest bid.

18. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

receiving a request for an impression;

finding at least one matching campaign; and

selecting a direct campaign to serve.

19. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

determining a priority factor and a cutoff for the direct bid;

determining whether the priority factor is greater than the cutoff; and

wherein the step of allocating the impression allocates the impression to the direct bid if the priority factor is above the cutoff.

20. A system for allocating impressions, the system comprising:

a delivery engine allocating impressions, the delivery engine coupled to receive an ad call, coupled to serve an ad, coupled to receive indirect demand, the delivery engine allocating impressions using an auction;

an optimization engine for producing optimization information for generating a direct bid, the optimization coupled to receive information about an other received bid;

the optimization engine coupled to the delivery engine to provide optimization information; and

a direct demand source for providing information about a campaign, the demand source coupled to provide campaign information to the optimization engine and the delivery engine.

21. The system of claim 20 comprising a forecasting module for providing control information including an estimate of a number of future impressions to the optimization engine, the forecasting module coupled to receive impression information, the forecasting module coupled to the optimization engine.

22. The system of claim 20 comprising a statistics collector for storing and processing impression information for future use, the statistics collector coupled to provide the impression information to the optimization engine.

23. The system of claim 20 wherein the auction is a second-bid auction.

24. The system of claim 20 wherein the delivery engine includes a direct bid engine for generating the direct bid based upon optimization information from the optimization engine.

25. The system of claim 20 wherein the optimization engine generates a multiplier value based upon a priority factor.

26. The system of claim 24 wherein the delivery engine generates the direct bid using a multiplier received from the optimization engine and a second highest bid value.