Dynamic operator identification system and methods

• US 7,302,419 B2
• Filed: 09/12/2002
• Issued: 11/27/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/13/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Erinmedia
• Inventors: Conkwright, G. Colby, Vinson, Michael J., Foster, IV, Frank S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Colbert, Ella
• Application Number:
  US10/241,833
• Publication Number:
  US 20030105693A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,902 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/35, 705/10, 705/14, 705/26, 705/27, 709/217, 345/721, 345/719, 348/1, 725/1, 725/14, 725/100, 725/2, 725/9, 725/10, 725/27, 725/34, 725/35, 725/46, 725/116, 707/104.1, 707/1, 707/11, 707/100, 707 7- 10
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0204 Market segmentation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0205 Location or geographical consideration
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0242 Determining effectiveness of advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0254 based on statistics
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0255 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0273 Determination of fees for advertising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing

Abstract

A system and method for dynamically determining the demographic identity of an individual operating a set-top box, is disclosed which may include monitoring set top-box events for a plurality of set-top boxes, correlating set-top box events with demographic characteristics, applying with a computer inverse demographic matrix calculation techniques to determine probabilities for demographic characteristic and set-top box event dataset correlations without knowing individual-specific demographic information pertaining to the set-top box event dataset, ascribing demographic characteristic probabilities to each set-top box over time based on observed set-top box events and their relationship to such inverse demographic matrix probabilities, evaluating such ascribed demographic characteristic probabilities over time through statistical analysis, fining probabilities ascribed to demographic characteristics to statistically determine the most likely set of constant dataset possibilities for each set-top box, and fitting set-top box possibility sets to inverse demographic matrix probability sets for a set-top box event.

Claims

1. A method of dynamically determining the demographic identity of an individual operating a set-top box, comprising the steps of:

monitoring set-top box events for a plurality of set-top boxes;

correlating set-top box events with demographic characteristics;

applying with a computer inverse demographic matrix calculation techniques to determine probabilities for demographic characteristic and set-top box event dataset correlations without knowing individual-specific demographic information pertaining to the set-top box event dataset;

ascribing demographic characteristic probabilities to each set-top box over time based on observed set-top box events and their relationship to such inverse demographic matrix probabilities;

evaluating such ascribed demographic characteristics probabilities over time through statistical analysis;

fitting probabilities ascribed to demographic characteristics to statistically determine the most likely set of constant dataset possibilities for each set-top box;

fitting set-top box possibility sets to inverse demographic matrix probability sets for a set-top box event;

storing the demographic identities in an array over time; and

applying statistical analysis to the array to determine predominant demographic identities for a given set-top box.

2. An apparatus that dynamically determines the demographic identity of an individual operating a set-top box, comprising the steps of:

a means for monitoring set top-box events for a plurality of set-top boxes;

a means for correlating set-top box events with demographic characteristics;

a means for applying with a computer inverse demographic matrix calculation techniques to determine probabilities for demographic characteristic and set-top box event dataset correlations without knowing individual-specific demographic information pertaining to the set-top box event dataset;

a means for ascribing demographic characteristic probabilities to each set-top box over time based on observed set-top box events and their relationship to such inverse demographic matrix probabilities;

a means for evaluating such ascribed demographic characteristics probabilities over time through statistical analysis;

a means for fitting probabilities ascribed to demographic characteristics to statistically determine the most likely set of constant dataset possibilities for each set-top box;

a means for fitting set-top box possibility sets to inverse demographic matrix probability sets for a set-top box event;

a means for storing the demographic identities in an array over time; and

a means for applying statistical analysis to the array to determine predominant demographic identities for a given set-top box.