Classifications

• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04H—BROADCAST COMMUNICATION
  • H04H60/00—Arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linking to broadcast information or broadcast space-time; Broadcast-related systems
  • H04H60/29—Arrangements for monitoring broadcast services or broadcast-related services
  • H04H60/31—Arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
  • H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
  • H04N21/43—Processing of content or additional data, e.g. demultiplexing additional data from a digital video stream; Elementary client operations, e.g. monitoring of home network or synchronising decoder's clock; Client middleware
  • H04N21/442—Monitoring of processes or resources, e.g. detecting the failure of a recording device, monitoring the downstream bandwidth, the number of times a movie has been viewed, the storage space available from the internal hard disk
  • H04N21/44204—Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
  • H04N21/60—Network structure or processes for video distribution between server and client or between remote clients; Control signalling between clients, server and network components; Transmission of management data between server and client, e.g. sending from server to client commands for recording incoming content stream; Communication details between server and client 
  • H04N21/65—Transmission of management data between client and server
  • H04N21/658—Transmission by the client directed to the server
  • H04N21/6582—Data stored in the client, e.g. viewing habits, hardware capabilities, credit card number

Definitions

• the present invention relates to the metering
• receiver such as an enhanced television, a television
• a set top box provided with a set top box, a computer, and/or the like.
• Video and/or audio played by conventional means are Video and/or audio played by conventional means.
• reference signatures or reference signature sets
• the receivers employ tuners
• Such additional functions may include, for example, the
• Such additional functions may also include the
• the data stream can include a data stream in addition to a video stream and/or an audio stream.
• the data stream can include
• story line information other audio/video streams, and/or
• the data stream the video stream, and the
• audio stream can be transmitted terrestrially, or by
• a page is
• server sends that one requested page and/or stream to the
• a receiver such as a computer, an enhanced
• radio station or an Internet server, and demultiplexes
• a multi-stream signal is its video and/or audio streams.
• Each stream is passed to a corresponding
• the audio stream For example, the audio stream
• the video stream is passed to a speaker, the video stream is passed to a
• processing equipment can include a data demultiplexer for
• tickers tickers, and the like, that is further processed by
• the method comprises the following steps:
• window on a screen of a viewing device comprises the
• the viewing device has a COM interface, determining
• a software meter is arranged to meter
• the software meter comprises first and second
• the first program code is executable in
• a metering system meters viewing of video displayed in a window on a screen of a viewing device
• the software comprises a software meter and a creditor.
• the software comprises a software meter and a creditor.
• meter is arranged to determine identifying data related
• the creditor is
• Figure 1 illustrates an exemplary distribution
• Figure 2 is a schematic block diagram showing a
• Figure 3 is a schematic block diagram depicting
• Figures 4 and 5 are flow charts of a program
• Figure 6 is a flow chart of a program that can
• Figure 7 is a flow chart of a program that can
• FIGS 8 and 9 are flow charts of a program
• a distribution system 10 is shown in Figure 1
• the distribution system 10 includes a plurality of
• panelist sites 12 statistically selected, such as by a
• central facility 14 in order to participate in a viewing
• selected panelist sites 12 may be collectively referred to
• instances may be referred to as a data collection site.
• This viewing includes, but is not
• buttons, etc. are buttons, etc.
• broadcast applications buttons, etc.
• hyperlinks are buttons, etc.
• media data may alternatively be referred to as media data, it
• data collected at each of the panelist sites 12 may be transmitted to the central facility 14 where the data can be transmitted.
• Video, audio, and data may be provided to the user
• panelists 12 may reach the video, audio, and data through
• broadcasters 26, and the Internet Service Provider 28 may be any suitable broadcasters 26, and the Internet Service Provider 28.
• network 30 which, for example, may
• a representative panelist site 100 is shown in
• the panelist site 100 may include televisions 102 and 104 which may be televisions enhanced with
• the panelist site 100 also may include a
• the panelist site 100 may include computers
• site unit is provided for each metered receiver, and all
• the site units meter their corresponding receivers
• the home unit passes the metered data to the home unit .
• the site units and then forwards that assembled and stored data to the central facility 14.
• the central facility 14 For example, the
• home unit may be arranged with dial out capability to
• a site unit 116 is provided for
• a site unit 118 is provided for the television 102.
• a site unit 120 is provided for the set
• a site unit 122 is provided for the computer
• a modem 126 is provided for the
• a home unit 130 which in turn is
• the modem 126 is directly
• site units 116, 118, 120, 122, and 124 may each implement
• the computer 114 does not require a site unit
• computers 110 and 112 may each implement the measurement
• the home unit 130 may also be
• 116, 118, 120, 122, and 124 may be retained even though the televisions 102 and 104, the set top box 108, and the
• computers 110 and 112 each implement the measurement
• USB universal serial bus
• bus and a serial port may be used with the present
• 150 includes a software meter 200 that periodically
• a television tuner application 202 (such as
• Operation of the software meter 200 may be initiated in response to a timer tick as shown, upon
• a television tuner application 202 for
• the software meter 200 also varies
• tuner application 202 or from operating system messages.
• This other information can include size, occlusion, and
• the software meter 200 can receive
• the channel and other information are passed to
• a crediting rules block 206 which applies a set of
• the transmit block 208 may be arranged to
• the transmit block 208 receives
• the user ID block 210 may
• the user ID block 210 may be arranged to prompt a viewer to
• portion 200A at a block 301 determines whether the
• television tuner application 202 has a COM interface.
• Each COM object is comprised of COM objects.
• Each COM object is comprised of COM objects.
• This interface provides current tuned channel information of a corresponding television
• the first portion 200A may be arranged to return
• 200A at a block 302 may also be arranged to obtain other
• 200A may be arranged at the block 302 to construct an SQL
• the first portion 200A is likewise arranged at
• portion 200A at a block 304 determines whether an
• the first portion 200A at a block 308 determines whether
• the television tuner application 202 has a known
• API application programming interface
• the first portion 200A may be
• the first portion 200A at a block 310 may be arranged to monitor system messages
• each child window handle The first portion 200A at a
• block 320 determines whether one of the window handles
• This second portion 200B may be
• program flow returns to the block 301 after an
• Ancillary identification codes are
• identification code is extracted at a block 406 and is
• identification code is formatted and sent to the
• the crediting rules block 206 is shown in
• FIG. 1 The size of a viewing window containing a television program is obtained at a block 500.
• block 206 at a block 502 relates to minimization of the
• rule relates to size of the viewing window containing a
• window occlusion is applied. In order to apply this
• the amount of window occlusion i.e., the
• a block 510 implements the
• occlusion computed at the block 508 is greater that the
• the size of the display screen is obtained at a block
• a block 516 implements the
• this viewing window meets a minimum window size
• window occlusion computed at the block 508 is not
• the channel is not set to NO_CHANNEL and,
• the transmit block 208 is shown in Figure 7.
• transmit block 208 determines what method of data
• This server is listening.
• the data is then encrypted and
• serial port the serial port is opened at a block 606 and
• USB port is opened at a block 610 and the appropriate
• the parallel port is
• the 1394 port is opened at a block 618
• block 208 can also send data to the home unit 130 by way
• Winsock has a component referred to as Winsock which
• the home unit 130 which forwards data to the central
• the data may be sent out over a modem
• serial port a USB port, a parallel port, a 1394 port, or
• the data transmitted by the transmit block 208 is the data transmitted by the transmit block 208.
• household items may comprise any of the following: household
• stamps and, specific viewed data such as an URL, a
• program ID a source ID, a station name, a program name, program ID codes, signatures taken from the viewed
• the server at the central facility 14 performs
• This received data is validated/authenticated, decrypted,
• the serial data comes in through a modem at a block 708
• This data is loaded by
• the request may come in over the
• the customer is validated at a block 720 by
• This inquiry is formatted at a
• This information is properly formatted into a
• the report may be
• meter 200 may respond to a timer tick in order to
• the software meter 200 may be arranged to monitor operating system messages in order to detect
• the metering may be
• the transmit block 208 may be likewise arranged.
• the present invention may be arranged to meter each such
• crediting rules block 206 may be arranged to credit

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Signal Processing (AREA)
• Databases & Information Systems (AREA)
• Multimedia (AREA)
• Computer Networks & Wireless Communication (AREA)
• Testing, Inspecting, Measuring Of Stereoscopic Televisions And Televisions (AREA)
• Computer And Data Communications (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=22769683

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (8)

Families Citing this family (4)

Family Cites Families (5)

• 1999
  • 1999-07-19 EP EP99935703A patent/EP1147631A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 1999-07-19 AU AU51128/99A patent/AU5112899A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1999-07-19 HK HK02103094.7A patent/HK1043673A1/zh unknown
  • 1999-07-19 WO PCT/US1999/016321 patent/WO2000035131A1/en not_active Ceased
  • 1999-07-19 CA CA002351340A patent/CA2351340A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1999-07-19 CN CN99814227A patent/CN1329783A/zh active Pending
  • 1999-07-19 JP JP2000587480A patent/JP2002532952A/ja active Pending
  • 1999-08-24 AR ARP990104235A patent/AR026847A1/es not_active Application Discontinuation

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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