Targeted advertisement in the digital television environment

Abstract

A method for targeted advertisement includes storing a profile tag associated with each user in a device maintained by that user. Each profile tag includes the demographic information of its associated user. A multitude of target tags are also transmitted to the users. Each target tag is associated with an advertiser and includes the demographic information of the users. The advertisements and their corresponding target tags are transmitted and cached in the devices maintained by the users. The number of matches between the target tags and the user profiles are supplied to their respective advertisers. The advertisers use the matching number to modify the prices they are willing to offer for the commercial break. The target tags include information that is used to select one of the cached advertisement for playing during the commercial break.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for targeting an advertisement, the method comprising:
 storing a profile tag in each of a plurality of digital devices, each profile tag comprising demographic information of an associated user;   transmitting first and second target tags each comprising demographic information of a plurality of users, the first target tag being associated with a first advertisement and the second target tag being associated with a second advertisement;   identifying a first number of matches defined by a first measure of similarity between the first target tag and the profile tags of the plurality of users;   supplying the first number to a first advertiser attempting to play the first advertisement during a first commercial break;   identifying a second number of matches defined by a second measure of similarity between the second target tag and the profile tags of the plurality of users;   supplying the second number to a second advertiser attempting to play the second advertisement during the first commercial break;   enabling the first and second advertisers to compete for a right to advertise during the first commercial break, said first and second advertisers to make offers using the first and second matching numbers;   using the offers to select one of the first and second advertisements; and   playing the selected advertisement during the first commercial break.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 transmitting the first advertisement using a first logical channel different than a second logical channel used to broadcast regular programming; 
 transmitting the second advertisement using one of the first logical channel and a third logical channel; and 
 caching the first and second advertisements in the plurality of digital devices. 
 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2  further comprising:
 caching the first and second target tags in the plurality of digital devices. 
 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3  wherein each of said first and third logical channels has a data rate lower than a data rate of the second logical channel. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4  further comprising:
 storing the regular program interrupted during the first commercial break; 
 playing one of the cached first and second advertisements during the first commercial break; and 
 resuming playing of the time-shifted regular program following termination of the first commercial break. 
 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5  further comprising:
 storing the played advertisement in a second cache. 
 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6  further comprising:
 tracking a number of interactions between a user and the advertisement stored in the second cache of the digital device associated with the user. 
 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7  wherein each profile tag further comprises preference information. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8  wherein said preference information is updated in accordance with the user's behavior. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9  wherein said preference information is supplied by its user in a survey. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 8  wherein said first number of matches are further defined by geographical locations of the plurality of digital devices. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11  wherein said first number of matches are determined by the plurality of digital devices. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11  wherein said first number of matches are determined by a remote server. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 6  further comprising:
 refreshing the advertisement stored in the second cache. 
 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 11  further comprising:
 loading a web browser to enable a user to whom one of the first and second cache advertisements is played to access a web site to make an inquiry about the advertised product/service. 
 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 11  further comprising:
 autodialing a phone number to enable a user to whom one of the first and second cache advertisements is played to make an inquiry about the advertised product/service. 
 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 11  further comprising:
 establishing a subscription fee of at least one of the users in accordance with a number or duration of commercial breaks the user is caused to experience. 
 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the selection is made using data included in the target tags of the first and second target tags. 
     
     
         19 . A method for targeting an advertisement, the method comprising:
 storing a profile tag in each of a plurality of digital devices, each profile tag comprising demographic information of an associated user;   transmitting an advertisement and an associated target tag comprising demographic information of a plurality of users;   identifying a number of matches defined by a measure of similarity between the target tag and the profile tags of the plurality of users;   supplying the identified number to an advertiser attempting to play the advertisement during a commercial break;   enabling the advertiser and a service provider to negotiate an offer for the advertisement to be played during the commercial break, said offer being defined by the identified number;   playing the advertisements during the first commercial break if the agreement is reached.   
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19  further comprising:
 transmitting the advertisement using a first logical channel different than a second logical channel used to broadcast regular programming; said first logical channel having a lower data rate than the second logical channel; and 
 caching the advertisement and the target tag in the matching digital devices prior to playing the advertisement. 
 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 20  further comprising:
 storing the regular programming interrupted during the first commercial break; 
 playing the cached advertisements during the first commercial break; and 
 resuming playing of the time-shifted regular programming following termination of the first commercial break. 
 
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 21  further comprising:
 caching the played advertisement in a second cache. 
 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 22  further comprising:
 tracking a number of interactions between a user and the advertisement stored in the second cache of the user's associated digital device. 
 
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 23  wherein each profile tag further comprises preference information. 
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 24  wherein said preference information is updated in accordance with the user's behavior. 
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 25  wherein said preference information is supplied by its user in a survey. 
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 19  wherein said number of matches is further defined by geographical locations of the plurality of digital devices. 
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 19  wherein said number of matches is determined by the plurality of digital devices. 
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 19  wherein said first number of matches is determined at a remote server. 
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 22  further comprising:
 refreshing the advertisement stored in the second cache. 
 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 27  further comprising:
 loading a web browser to enable a user to whom the cached advertisement is played during first commercial break to access a web site to make an inquiry about the advertised product/service. 
 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 27  further comprising:
 autodialing a phone number to enable a user to whom the cached advertisement is played during the commercial break to make an inquiry about the advertised product/service. 
 
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 19  further comprising:
 establishing a subscription fee of at least one of the plurality of users in accordance with a number or duration of commercial breaks the user is caused to experience. 
 
     
     
         34 . A digital receiver comprising:
 a memory configured to store a profile tag comprising demographic information of an associated user;   a first cache configured to store a plurality of advertisements and a plurality of target tags received via a first channel, each target tag being associated with a different one of a plurality of advertisements and comprising an offer price for the associated advertisement; said digital receiver further configured to:
 compare the profile tag to each of the target tags to identify a plurality of measures of similarity; 
 transmit the plurality of measures of similarity; 
 compare the plurality of advertisement offers included in the plurality of target tags; and 
 select and play one of the plurality of stored advertisements during a commercial break. 
   
     
     
         35 . The digital receiver of  claim 34  wherein said digital receiver is configured to receive the plurality of advertisements using a first logical channel different than a second logical channel used to broadcast regular programming, wherein said first logical channel has a data rate lower than a data rate of the second logical channel. 
     
     
         36 . The digital receiver of  claim 35  wherein said digital receiver is further configured to:
 interrupt a regular program during the commercial break; 
 play the selected advertisements during the commercial break; and 
 resume playing the regular program following termination of the commercial break in a time-shifted manner. 
 
     
     
         37 . The digital receiver of  claim 36  further comprising:
 a second cache adapted to store the played advertisement; said digital receiver further configured to track a number of interactions between the associated user and the advertisement stored in the second cache. 
 
     
     
         38 . The digital receiver of  claim 37  wherein each profile tag further comprises preference information. 
     
     
         39 . The digital receiver of  claim 38  wherein said preference information is supplied by the associated user in a survey, said preference information to be updated in accordance with the associated user's behavior. 
     
     
         40 . The digital receiver of  claim 39  wherein the measure of similarity for the digital receiver is further determined by its geographical location. 
     
     
         41 . The digital receiver of  claim 40  further comprising a module adapted to refresh the advertisement stored in the second cache. 
     
     
         42 . The digital receiver of  claim 40  further comprising a web browser adapted to enable the associated user to access a web site to make an inquiry about the advertised product/service. 
     
     
         43 . The digital receiver of  claim 40  further comprising an autodialer adapted to autodial a phone number to enable the associated user to make an inquiry about the advertised product/service. 
     
     
         44 . A digital receiver comprising:
 a memory configured to store a profile tag comprising demographic information of an associated user;   a first cache configured to store an advertisements and a target tag received via a first channel, the target tag comprising an offer price for playing the associated advertisement; said digital receiver further configured to:
 compare the profile tag to the target tag to determine a measure of similarity; 
 transmit the measure of similarity to the advertiser; 
 receive an updated offer price representative of the measure of similarity; and 
 play the advertisement during a commercial break if the updated agreement is accepted by a service provider. 
   
     
     
         45 . The digital receiver of  claim 44  wherein said digital receiver is further configured to receive the advertisement using a first logical channel different than a second logical channel used to broadcast regular programming, wherein said first logical channel has a data rate lower than a data rate of the second logical channel. 
     
     
         46 . The digital receiver of  claim 45  wherein said digital receiver is further configured to:
 interrupt a regular program during the commercial break; 
 play the advertisement during the commercial break; and 
 resume playing the regular program following termination of the commercial break in a time-shifted manner. 
 
     
     
         47 . The digital receiver of  claim 46  further comprising:
 a second cache adapted to store the played advertisement; said digital receiver further configured to track a number of interactions between a user and the advertisement stored in the second cache. 
 
     
     
         48 . The digital receiver of  claim 47  wherein the profile tag further comprises preference information. 
     
     
         49 . The digital receiver of  claim 48  wherein said preference information is supplied by its user in a survey and is updated in accordance with the user's behavior. 
     
     
         50 . The digital receiver of  claim 49  wherein the measures of similarity is further determined by a geographical location of the digital receiver. 
     
     
         51 . The digital receiver of  claim 50  further comprising a module adapted to refresh the advertisement stored in the second cache. 
     
     
         52 . The digital receiver of  claim 51  further comprising a web browser adapted to enable the associated user to access a web site to make an inquiry about the advertised product/service. 
     
     
         53 . The digital receiver of  claim 51  further comprising an autodialer adapted to autodial a phone number to enable the associated user to make an inquiry about the advertised product/service. 
     
     
         54 . A system adapted to transmit targeted advertisement to a plurality of digital devices associated with a plurality of users, the system comprising:
 a transmitter adapted to transmit a first target tag, a first advertisement, a second target tag, and a second advertisement to the plurality of digital receivers associated with a plurality of users, each of the first and second target tags comprising demographic information of the plurality of users, the first target tag being associated with the first advertisement of a first advertiser and the second target tag being associated with the second advertisement of a second advertiser;   a receiver adapted to receive a first number of matches identified by a first measure of similarity between the first target tag and a plurality of profile tags associated with the plurality of users, and a second number of matches identified by a second measure of similarity between the second target tag and the plurality of profile tags; and   a networked system adapted to enable the first and second advertisers to make offers for a right to advertise during a commercial break, said first and second advertisers being enabled to vary their offers in accordance with the received first and second number of matches, wherein said transmitter is further adapted to transmit modified target tags comprising modified offers to at least a subset of the plurality of users characterized as having profile tags matching the first and second target tags, wherein one of the modified target tags causes a subset of the plurality of devices associated with the subset of plurality of users to play one of the first and second advertisement during a commercial break.   
     
     
         55 . The system of  claim 54  wherein the system is adapted to transmit the first advertisement using a first logical channel different than a second logical channel used to broadcast regular programming, and transmit the second advertisement using one of the first logical channel and a third logical channel, wherein said first and third logical channels have data rates lower than a data rate of the second logical channel. 
     
     
         56 . A system adapted to transmit targeted advertisement to a plurality of digital devices associated with a plurality of users, the system comprising:
 a transmitter adapted to transmit a target tag and an advertisement to the plurality of digital devices, the target tag comprising demographic information of the plurality of users, the target tag being associated with the advertisement of an advertiser;   a receiver adapted to receive a number of matches identified by a first measure of similarity between the target tag and a plurality of user profile tags associated with the plurality of users; and   a networked system adapted to enable the advertiser and a service provider to negotiate and reach a financial agreement for the advertisement in accordance with the identified number; wherein said transmitter is further adapted to transmit updated information to at least a subset of the users identified by the matches and in response causing the advertisement to be played during a commercial break to the subset of the users.