Method, system and program product for broadcast advertising and other broadcast content performance verification utilizing digital artifacts
First Claim
1. A method comprising:
- retrieving a unique identification code for an advertisement scheduled to be broadcast as identified in an event log;
combining the unique identification code with broadcast identifying information, including information identifying a broadcasting station broadcasting the advertisement and a date and time of the broadcast of the advertisement by the broadcasting station, wherein the combining creates a unique identifier, wherein the unique identifier uniquely identifies the particular instance of the advertisement being broadcast and distinguishes the particular instance from other instances of the advertisement broadcast at other dates and times or from other stations;
generating a broadcast data stream, wherein the broadcast data stream comprises advertisement content for the advertisement, and wherein generating the broadcast data stream comprises inserting, at the time of a broadcast transmission of the broadcast data stream by a broadcasting station, the unique identifier within the advertisement content within the broadcast data stream; and
transmitting the generated broadcast data stream from the broadcasting station identified by the unique identifier, wherein the transmission of the broadcast data stream occurs contemporaneously with the generation of the broadcast data stream.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A verification system that injects a inaudible identification code into a broadcast advertisement immediately prior to its radio frequency transmission is disclosed. An amplitude modulated sample sequence called a “digital artifact” containing, for example, a date and time code, is generated and inserted into the audio or video or composite audio and video data stream called a content “carrier.” The combined data signal is converted from a digital stream to an analog signal and processed by standard broadcast transmission and transmitted in the radio frequency spectrum in the conventional manner. A radio frequency spectrum radio or television receiver receives the broadcast signal and converts to a digital data stream. A decoder processes the transmitted content carrier and extracts the digital artifact from the data stream. The derived information is evaluated, quantified, and transmitted to a central control point where it is compared with original reference and identification data.
55 Citations
30 Claims
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1. A method comprising:
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retrieving a unique identification code for an advertisement scheduled to be broadcast as identified in an event log; combining the unique identification code with broadcast identifying information, including information identifying a broadcasting station broadcasting the advertisement and a date and time of the broadcast of the advertisement by the broadcasting station, wherein the combining creates a unique identifier, wherein the unique identifier uniquely identifies the particular instance of the advertisement being broadcast and distinguishes the particular instance from other instances of the advertisement broadcast at other dates and times or from other stations; generating a broadcast data stream, wherein the broadcast data stream comprises advertisement content for the advertisement, and wherein generating the broadcast data stream comprises inserting, at the time of a broadcast transmission of the broadcast data stream by a broadcasting station, the unique identifier within the advertisement content within the broadcast data stream; and transmitting the generated broadcast data stream from the broadcasting station identified by the unique identifier, wherein the transmission of the broadcast data stream occurs contemporaneously with the generation of the broadcast data stream. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A method comprising:
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receiving a broadcast of a broadcast data stream comprising a first advertisement; extracting a unique identifier from digital content embedded within the first advertisement contained within the received broadcast data stream, wherein the extracted unique identifier identifies a first unique identification code for the first advertisement and broadcast identifying information for the first advertisement, including information identifying a first broadcasting station broadcasting the first advertisement and a date and time of broadcast of the first advertisement by the first broadcasting station, wherein the extracted unique identifier uniquely identifies a particular instance of the first advertisement being broadcast and distinguishes the particular instance from other instances of the first advertisement broadcast at other dates and times or from other stations; storing the extracted unique identifier in an event log database; comparing the extracted unique identifier with an authenticated unique identifier referenced in a transmission event log as associated with the first advertisement, wherein the authenticated unique identifier comprises a second unique identification code for a second broadcasting station of a second advertisement and a date and time of broadcast of the second advertisement by the second broadcasting station, and further wherein comparing includes comparing broadcast identifying information for the first advertisement in the extracted unique identifier with broadcast identifying information for the second advertisement in the authenticated unique identifier; and verifying the broadcast of the broadcast data stream comprising the first advertisement if the extracted unique identifier and authenticated unique identifier match. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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14. A system comprising:
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a content control system configured to assign a unique identification code to broadcast data associated with an advertisement, and store the unique identification code in association with the broadcast data, wherein a production log identifies the sequence of broadcast performance for the advertisement and other broadcast content; a broadcast production system configured to access a broadcast content database and insert broadcast data from the broadcast content database corresponding to an indicated unique identification code, in accordance with the production log, into a broadcast data stream; a modulation system receiving at least a portion of the broadcast data from the broadcast production system and modulating the at least a portion of the broadcast data periodically with a unique identifier to create modulated broadcast data, wherein the unique identifier comprises the unique identification code and broadcast identifying information, including information identifying a broadcasting station broadcasting the advertisement and a date and time of the broadcast of the advertisement by the broadcasting station, wherein the unique identifier uniquely identifies a particular instance of the advertisement being broadcast and distinguishes the particular instance from other instances of the advertisement broadcast at other dates and times or from other stations; and a transmission system that transmits, contemporaneously with the broadcast data modulation, the broadcast data containing the modulated broadcast data when the unique identifier within the modulated broadcast data is determined to be associated with the unique identification code identified in the production log for the broadcast data and to identify a date and time of the broadcast associated with the sequence of broadcast performance for the advertisement identified in the production log for the broadcast data. - View Dependent Claims (15)
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16. A system comprising:
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means for retrieving a unique identification code for an advertisement scheduled to be broadcast as identified in an event log; means for combining the unique identification code with broadcast identifying information, including information identifying a broadcasting station broadcasting the advertisement and a date and time of the broadcast of the advertisement by the broadcasting station, wherein the combining creates a unique identifier, wherein the unique identifier uniquely identifies the particular instance of the advertisement being broadcast and distinguishes the instance from other instances of the advertisement broadcast at other dates and times or from other stations; means for generating a broadcast data stream, wherein the broadcast data stream comprises advertisement content for the advertisement, and wherein generating the broadcast data stream comprises inserting, at the time of a broadcast transmission of the broadcast data stream by the broadcasting station, the unique identifier within the advertisement content within the broadcast data stream; and means for transmitting the broadcast data stream, wherein the transmission of the broadcast data stream occurs contemporaneously with the generation of the broadcast data stream. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 30)
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24. A non-transitory computer memory medium having instructions stored thereon that, in response to execution by a computing device, cause the computing device to:
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retrieve a unique identification code for an advertisement scheduled to be broadcast as identified in an event log; combine the unique identification code with broadcast identifying information, including information identifying a broadcasting station broadcasting the advertisement and a date and time of the broadcast of the advertisement by the broadcasting station, wherein the combining creates a unique identifier, wherein the unique identifier uniquely identifies the particular instance of the advertisement being broadcast and distinguishes the particular instance from other instances of the advertisement broadcast at other dates and times or from other stations; generate a broadcast data stream, wherein the broadcast data stream comprises advertisement content for the advertisement, and wherein generating the broadcast data stream comprises inserting, at the time of a broadcast transmission of the broadcast data stream by a broadcasting station, the unique identifier within the advertisement content within the broadcast data stream; and transmit the generated broadcast data stream from the broadcasting station identified by the unique identifier, wherein transmission of the generated broadcast data stream occurs contemporaneously with the generation of the broadcast data stream.
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25. A non-transitory computer memory medium having instructions stored thereon that, in response to execution by a computing device, cause the computing device to:
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receive a broadcast data stream comprising an advertisement; extract a unique identifier from digital content embedded within the advertisement contained within the received broadcast data stream, wherein the extracted unique identifier identifies a first unique identification code for the first advertisement and broadcast identifying information for the first advertisement, including information identifying a first broadcasting station broadcasting the first advertisement and a date and time of broadcast of the first advertisement by the first broadcasting station, wherein the extracted unique identifier uniquely identifies a particular instance of the first advertisement being broadcast and distinguishes the particular instance from other instances of the first advertisement broadcast at other dates and times or from other stations; store the extracted unique identifier in an event log database; compare the extracted unique identifier with an authenticated unique identifier referenced in a transmission event log as associated with the first advertisement, wherein the authenticated unique identifier comprises a second unique identification code for a second broadcasting station of a second advertisement and a date and time of broadcast of the second advertisement by the second broadcasting station, and further wherein comparing includes comparing broadcast identifying information for the first advertisement in the extracted unique identifier with broadcast identifying information for the second advertisement in the authenticated unique identifier; and verify broadcast of the first advertisement if the extracted unique identifier and authenticated unique identifier match.
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Specification