Patent Application
20070239546
In the following paragraphs, the present invention will be described in detail by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings. Throughout this description, the preferred embodiments and examples shown should be considered as exemplars, rather than as limitations on the present invention. As used herein, the “present invention” refers to any one of the embodiments of the invention described herein, and any equivalents. Furthermore, reference to various aspects of the invention throughout this document does not mean that all claimed embodiments or methods must include the referenced aspects.
An Internet advertising system is illustrated in
In terms of hardware and software implementation, advertisers 30 and advertising providers 20 may include the requisite computing equipment and software for storage of electronic or optical data, receiving and transmitting signals via an ECN, either wired or wireless, and providing to users 40 web page displays. For example, advertiser websites 30 may include database modules storing one or more advertisements that may be displayed via an interactive media player provided by advertising provider websites 20, as discussed further below. Alternatively, advertising content provide by the advertising providers 20 may reside within such hardware at the advertising providers 20. Also operating on the Internet are plural users (or consumers) who access ECN 10 via their access systems 40, whether computers, laptops, telephone handsets, cellular phones, televisions, personal data assistants (PDAs), media players and so on.
The invention is further described with reference to the Internet commerce websites' 30 method of operation, the advertising suppliers' 20 method of operation, and the users' 40 method of responding to an advertisement.
An advertising provider website 20 may offer an interactive media player 50 capable of displaying images, playing audio or video, and/or displaying text. Preferably, the interactive media player is configured to play selected types of content, and more preferably the content includes video files, such as mpeg, wmv, avi, rm, asx, divx, or psp formats, for example. As used herein, the term “content” refers to any format of media including text, audio files, image files, or video files, and that is capable of transmission via the Internet 10.
Referring now to
At a predetermined time, an advertisement may be shown in the video display of the interactive media player. The advertisement may be shown as part of the content itself or as a separate commercial. For example, if the content is an episode from a cooking series, the chef may be using a particular brand of mixer. In that example, the chef may mention the brand of the mixer as the display shows a close-up view of the mixer. In contrast, the advertisement may be an unrelated commercial, such as a 30-second advertisement that is played during the same cooking segment. The separate commercial may or may not be directly related to the cooking show, as it may advertise a particular line of clothing, for example.
In either of the above-described scenarios, as the advertisement is displayed, an indicator comprising a watermark, icon, or active click region is displayed to the user, as illustrated in step 110. For example, a semi-opaque watermark may be shown as an overlay atop the video display. Alternatively, or in addition, an icon may be displayed in another region of the media player. As yet another alternative, the video display itself may be activated as an active click region that recognizes and accepts clicks from the user. It should be understood that “clicking” as used herein refers to any form of selection or designation operation, and is not limited to the activation of a button on a computer mouse or keyboard.
When a click is received in response to an advertisement, the interactive media player preferably sends a signal to the user acknowledging that the click was recognized, as illustrated in step 120. This signal may be manifested by a visual or audio manner, such as an audio tone, a flashing of the watermark or logo, or a change in the physical appearance of the indicator (such as altering a watermark or icon to be a different color, different size, or briefly animated).
In a preferred embodiment, this signal does not disturb the display of the content on the video display, as the content preferably continues to play. Control features of the interactive media player allow the user to pause, stop, or otherwise control the video display in a conventional manner, although some or all of these features may be temporarily disabled, as discussed below. In embodiments allowing user control, a user desiring to stop the display of the content in order to pursue an advertisement is able to do so easily. This feature may be useful for advertisements that offer an incentive to respond quickly, within a certain time, or within a preselected number of responses from a larger group of users.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the interactive media player may be selectively reconfigured for the display of advertisements. For example, a media player having buttons or other controls to allow a user to “fast forward” or “skip” to a later portion of the content may be selectively altered to temporarily disable the advancement features as the advertisement is playing.
In addition to preferably signaling the user that a click was recognized, information also is conveyed to the advertiser in step 130. This step may be performed before, after, or simultaneously with step 120. In this step, the interactive media player preferably sends user information, such as a user name and e-mail address, to the retailer website 30, but alternatively comprises sending user information to a processing service or other entity affiliate with the retailer website 30. In a preferred embodiment, the communication from the interactive media player to the retailer website 30 also includes the identity of the particular advertisement in which the user expressed interest, as well as the identity of the particular content that the user was watching, and the time that the request was made by the user 40.
Once the retailer website or its affiliate receives the transmitted information, further marketing may be conducted as desired, as illustrated in step 140. For example, the advertiser may take a variety of actions, including sending the user an e-mail message with a coupon or information regarding the product or service of interest, initiating contact by a sales representative, or providing the user with contact information for a sales representative. It should be clear that the nature of the advertiser's response may vary greatly from advertiser to advertiser, and perhaps even between product to product for a particular advertiser. In any event, the user 40 preferably should be provided with additional information in response to the user's request.
The process described above and in
In the embodiment shown in
Icon 230 is another form of indicator that optionally may be included as part of the media player, but is preferably displayed in a location other than the video display 210. Icon 230 may be included in addition to, or in place of, watermark 240. Thus, in describing the use and operation of present invention, steps involving display or clicking of watermark 240 may be practiced with icon 230 instead, unless the context clearly shows otherwise.
Watermark 240 may be selectively activated and displayed according to a control script. One example of a control script follows:
The above script may be used to combine three advertisements with the content, although it will be clear that any number of ads may be used. The first advertisement, “ad1”, is a 30-second advertisement for Buy.com. When the content is selected for playing on the media player, the control script directs ad1 to begin playing and also activates the watermark 230 for display for 30 seconds, the duration of the advertisement. As ad1 is playing, the fast-forward feature of the media player is disabled, thereby preventing the user from “skipping” the advertisement and advancing the playback forward. Preferably, other selected features remain enabled, such as pause and rewind controls.
If a user is interested in the Buy.com advertisement, the user may click indicator (e.g., watermark 240, icon 230, or active click region). If watermark 240 is clicked while ad1 is playing, a signal is sent. In this example, an e-mail will be sent to response-im@buy.com that preferably provides the user's contact information, such as the user's e-mail address. Additionally, the user may receive additional information in Response Queue 250. In this example, the additional information includes the identity of the advertiser, Buy.com, and the nature of the advertisement or promotion, here “Click to get a 10% off coupon on your next purchase.” Moreover, the identity of the advertiser is a clickable hyperlink, and in this example clicking on the Buy.com advertiser name is opens a browser window and displays the contents of the website located at www.buy.com/im-ad-23.htm, preferably in a separate window. It will be appreciated that in addition to text and hyperlinks, Response Queue 250 also may display additional information in the form of images or other HTML text.
It should be clear that clicking on ad2 and ad3 in the present example also provides information regarding Lexus and Sears, respectively, as illustrated in
In a preferred embodiment, scripts are created to accommodate advertisements that are standardized in duration, such as 15-second, 30-second, and 60-second commercials, although advertisements of any length may be used, including full length “infomercials”.
Referring now to
At a predetermined time, an advertisement may be shown in the video display of the interactive media player. The advertisement may be shown as part of the content itself or as a separate commercial. For example, if the content is an episode from a home improvement series, the carpenter may be using a particular brand of power tool. In that example, the carpenter may mention the brand of the power tool as the display shows a close-up view of the power tool. In contrast, the advertisement may be a separate commercial, such as a 30-second advertisement that is played during a preselected commercial break in the same home improvement segment. The separate commercial may or may not be related to the home improvement show, as it may advertise a particular line of clothing.
In either of the above-described scenarios, as the advertisement is displayed, an indicator is displayed to the user, as illustrated in step 310. For example, a semi-opaque watermark may be shown as an overlay atop the video display. Alternatively, or in addition, an icon may be displayed in another region of the media player. As yet another alternative, the video display itself may be activated as an active click region that recognizes and accepts clicks from the user. It should be understood that “clicking” as used herein refers to any form of selection or designation operation, and is not limited to the activation of a button on a computer mouse or keyboard.
When a click is received in response to an advertisement, the interactive media player preferably sends a signal to the user acknowledging that the click was recognized, as illustrated in step 320. This signal may be manifested by a visual or audio manner, such as an audio tone, a flashing of the watermark or logo, or a change in the physical appearance of the indicator (e.g., a different color, different size, or a brief animation).
In a preferred embodiment, this signal does not disturb the display of the content on the video display, thereby allowing the content to continue to play. Nevertheless, some or all of the control features of the interactive media player may be active, allowing the user to pause, stop, or otherwise control the video display in a conventional manner. In this regard, a user desiring to stop the display of the content in order to pursue an advertisement is able to do so easily. This feature may be useful for advertisements offering an incentive to respond quickly, within a certain time, or within a preselected number of responses from a larger group of users.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the interactive media player may be selectively reconfigured as an advertisement is playing. For example, a media player having buttons or other controls that allow a user to “fast forward” or “skip” to a later portion of the content may be selectively reconfigured to temporarily disable the advancement features as the advertisement is playing.
In addition to preferably signaling to the user that a click was recognized, information also is conveyed to an intermediary, such as a content supplier, in step 330. This step may be performed before, after, or simultaneously with step 320. In this step, the interactive media player preferably sends user information, such as a user name and e-mail address, to the intermediary, which preferably is advertising provider website 20.
In step 340, the intermediary may optionally acknowledge the user's request and identification and also store data relating to that request. This stored data may be used for subsequent selection of relevant advertisements to accompany content. In this regard, the content may be selected as specific to the user (“the user was interested in Buy.com”), or as related to the content (“30 percent of all users watching this particular content were interested in the new Lexus”), or the like (“7 percent of all users who watched any video content were interested in washers from Sears”).
In step 350, the intermediary may signal the advertiser or retailer website (or its affiliate) and indicate that a user expressed interest or desired further information as related to an identified advertisement. The intermediary may send information that may be used to identify or contact the user, such as an e-mail address or telephone number. The intermediary also may send usage or statistical reports related to the advertisement, such as the number of users that expressed interest relative to the number of users who were exposed to the advertisement. The report may be given as an aggregate report that does not identify the user, such as by providing the viewing time, number of clicks, and selected profile information. Alternatively, the report may be an individual report that includes information identifying the user.
Once the retailer website receives the transmitted information, further marketing may be conducted as desired, as illustrated in step 360. For example, the advertiser may take a variety of actions, including sending the user an e-mail message with a coupon or information regarding the product or service of interest, initiating contact by a sales representative, or providing to the user with information listing contact information for a sales representative. It should be clear that the nature of the advertiser's response may vary greatly from advertiser to advertiser, and perhaps even between product to product for a particular advertiser. In any event, user 40 preferably should be provided with additional information in response to the user's request.
In step 430, a password is created. For example, the user may select a password associated with the user name, or a password may be generated automatically. The user's e-mail address also is obtained, in the step 440. It should be understood that these steps may be combined or reordered. For example, a user's e-mail address may also be used as a user name, satisfying steps 410 and 440.
Step 450 optionally queries the user's age. This step may be beneficial prior to providing content to the user, as particular types of content may not be suitable for all age groups for reasons of language, violence, or other considerations. This step may also be useful in determining which advertisements may be appropriate for the user. The media player may include features that limit the file transfer or viewing of certain types of content based on a user's age or other factors, such as parental controls.
The user's profile is updated in step 460. There, some or all of the user's information is saved. This information may be stored on a user's device 40, an advertising provider's website 20, or other location. Of course, the user's profile also may be updated at other times, such as after entry of any user information or following a user's selection of content, interest in a particular advertisement, or lack of interest in a particular type of product, for example.
A user's profile also may be updated in response to a validation request that may be submitted following the creation of a user name, or at any other appropriate time, as shown in
Step 520 queries whether a response is received from the validation request. If no response is received, the system may wait for a predetermined time, as indicated in step 530, and then return to step 510 to resubmit a validation request. The waiting time of step 530 may be varied according to different factors including the number of time step 530 is visited.
Once a response is obtained at step 520, step 540 queries whether the user accepts the validation request. If so, the user's profile may be updated in step 550. Alternatively, the user name may be released in step 560.
Referring now to
Permission to share some or all of a user's information is requested in step 620. Step 630 queries whether the user has given permission to share some or all of the data. If permission is granted, the information may be sent to the database in step 640, and the profile may be updated accordingly in step 650 to reflect the user's preferences, selections, or other information. Alternatively, if the user does not give permission to share the information, the information is withheld in step 660, and the profile is updated to reflect the user's preferences.
A user may selectively update her profile in step 820. For example, if a user moves, she may enter her new address. Likewise, the user's interests or activities may be displayed, along with additional interests and activities that the user may select to include in her profile. The user may then select or de-select activities and interests as desired. She may, for example, de-select an interest in investing and select an interest in sky diving to reflect a change in hobbies.
Step 830 queries whether the changes are correct. This step may include displaying an updated profile to include the modified information. If the information is not correct or the user desires to further modify her profile, the method returns to step 820. Otherwise, the method continues to step 840 where the profile is updated and saved.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, an interactive media player may be provided having an information display screen that is selectively activated.
Features of interactive media player 900 may be described by way of example. For instance,
In
In
Control of whether to provide curtain 940 or credits page 960, as well as control of other features such as the selection of advertisements, may by performed by control scripts. A first control script may be provided that defines how a collection of advertisements, video segments, and interactive credit pages are coordinated together and may operate in conjunction with a second control script that defines the timing and the content that appears in curtain 940.
The first control script may be used to support vlogs, television show sequences, and other media. This script may be generated manually or programmatically for automated ad-insertion. It should be understood that this script allows flexible insertion of advertisements, curtain 940, and/or credits pages 960 into the program. An example of a first control script, named Example_Vlog_Sequence.xml, is shown below.
In this script, the term “video id” refers to an identification of a particular vlog, television show, or other program. “Curtain id” refers to an identification of a particular second control script that may control curtain 940. And “credits id” refers to an identification of a particular credit page 960. Thus, in this example, a vlog identified as “RB12342” may be played concurrently with the display of curtain 940 and the associated content determined by the second control script. Once the vlog has been played in its entirely, credit page 960 is displayed.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, vlogs may be displayed concurrently with curtain 940 and any associated content. In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a vlog may be played in its entirely, followed by the display of advertisements on video display 910 or curtain 940, followed by the display of credits page 960.
As another example of a first control script, a portion of a first control script named Example_TV-Show_Sequence.xml is shown below.
In this embodiment, a show identified as “Lost2342” is displayed concurrently with curtain 940 for the first 30 seconds of the viewing. During this time, advertisements may be displayed on curtain 940 as determined by curtain-ids “Ford-234”, “Miller-717”, and “FedEx-2343”. After 30 seconds has elapsed, video display 910 may be displayed in a larger size as curtain 940 is removed or disabled. Later in the show other advertisements may be presented in a similar manner. It should be appreciated that the presence, ordering, and content of video display 910, curtain 940, and credits page 960 may be selectively altered as desired. Thus, in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a show may be depicted on video display 910, preceded by, followed by, and/or interwoven with advertisements depicted on video display 910 or curtain 940. Likewise, credits page 960 may be displayed following these depictions or at another appropriate time.
Curtain 940 may be controlled by the second control script, as described above. This second control script maybe used to selectively activate and control content 950, provide rules for ad-insertion, and provide other features as described herein. One example of a second control script follows and is named Example_Curtain.xml.
This script controls the playing of a video named “TruckVid01” in video display 910, disabling skip features during that playing, as previously discussed. During the first 15 seconds of this video, a message named “msg1” (for Buy.com) is displayed in curtain 940, followed by message “msg2” (for Lexus) for another 15 seconds. It will be appreciated that other scripts may operate concurrently, allowing the display of other content 950 in curtain 940 as the video is playing. The above script associates the included material with a display category of “extreme-sports”, which may be beneficial for selecting appropriate advertising when automating the scripting process.
Credits pages 960 may be determined in part by the selection of the media by the user. For example, in
Here, the script defines a credits page 960 named “Credit1”, which displays the title of the show, the sponsor of the show, additional information in the footer, and also a preselected advertisement for Ford. Of course, it should be understood that additional information may be included in the credits page 960, as discussed above.
Thus, it is seen that a system and method of interactive advertising are provided. One skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention can be practiced by other than the preferred embodiments which are presented in this description for purposes of illustration and not of limitation, and the present invention is limited only by the claims that follow. It is noted that equivalents for the particular embodiments discussed in this description may practice the invention as well.
Priority is claimed to Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/791,045, filed Apr. 10, 2006, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60791045 | Apr 2006 | US |
