Time-based dynamic secondary content placement calls in time-shifted content

Abstract

Apparatus and methods for enabling time-based secondary content scheduling and dynamic placement for users of a content distribution network. In one embodiment, the network comprises a managed network, and the secondary content comprises advertising which was scheduled at the time the primary content was stored/recorded. A management process is adapted to identify the originally scheduled advertisements and utilize a temporal reference (e.g., time stamp) or other data associated with the original recording provided to the management process when an advertisement call is made dynamically, thereby preserving such relationship when the recorded content is requested for playback with a certain period of time, without having to store the advertisements with each recording. In another embodiment, a Campaign Management System (CMS) is used to associate campaigns based on a time period “in the past” (e.g., via use of one or more historic records regarding the advertisement placement for each user individually).

1 .- 17 . (canceled) 
     
     
         18 . A computerized method of delivering digitally rendered content to a computerized client device of a user via a content distribution network, the computerized method comprising:
 receiving data representative of a request for storing digitally rendered programming content, the request initiated from the computerized client device;   based at least on the request, causing storage of the digitally rendered programming content;   causing selection, at a time the storage is effected and based at least on data relating to at least one of (i) the computerized client device, or (ii) the user, of one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements to be inserted within the digitally rendered programming content;   storing data relating to the time the storage is effected;   subsequently receiving data representative of a request for playback of at least a portion of the stored digitally rendered programming content, the request initiated from the computerized client device;   determining that a prescribed temporal relationship between the request for playback and the time the storage is effected using at least the stored data; and   based on the determining, causing delivery of the selected one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements to the computerized client device at one or more insertion points specified within the digitally rendered programming content.   
     
     
         19 . The computerized method of  claim 18 , wherein the causing delivery of the selected one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements to the computerized client device at one or more insertion points comprises causing delivery according to digital data cues within the stored digitally rendered programming content while the stored digitally rendered programming content is being delivered to the computerized client device. 
     
     
         20 . The computerized method of  claim 19 , wherein:
 the causing storage of the digitally rendered programming content comprises causing storage of linear digitally rendered content; and   the causing delivery according to the digital data cues comprises causing delivery according to Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers (SCTE)-35 cues.   
     
     
         21 . The computerized method of  claim 18 , wherein the causing storage of the digitally rendered programming content comprises causing storage of at least a portion of the digitally rendered programming content on a cloud-based storage device and within a storage area designated for use by the user only. 
     
     
         22 . The computerized method of  claim 18 , wherein the causing storage of the digitally rendered programming content comprises causing storage of: (i) a first portion of the digitally rendered programming content in a user-specific storage area, and (ii) a second portion of the digitally rendered programming content in a storage area accessible by a plurality of unrelated computerized client devices. 
     
     
         23 . The computerized method of  claim 22 , wherein the causing storage of the first portion of the digitally rendered programming content in the user-specific storage area comprises:
 applying at least one algorithm to the digitally rendered programming content to identify a plurality of data structures within the digitally rendered programming content, a combination of the identified plurality of data structures being unique to the user;   extracting or copying the identified plurality of data structures to the user-specific storage area; and   storing data indicative of the identified plurality of data structures so as to enable recombination with the second portion.   
     
     
         24 . The computerized method of  claim 22 , wherein the causing storage of the first portion comprises causing storage of only a particular type of data structure within the requested digitally rendered programming content. 
     
     
         25 . The computerized method of  claim 24 , wherein the causing storage of only the particular type of data structure within the requested digitally rendered programming content comprises causing storage of only one of: one or more P-frames, one or more P-slices, one or more I-frames, or one or more I-slices. 
     
     
         26 . The computerized method of  claim 22 , wherein the causing delivery of the selected one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements to the computerized client device comprises assembly of: (i) the selected one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements, and (ii) at least sub-portions of the first and second portions from the user-specific storage area and the storage area accessible by a plurality of unrelated computerized client devices, respectively, into a digital content stream. 
     
     
         27 . The computerized method of  claim 22 , wherein the causing storage of: (i) the first portion of the digitally rendered programming content in the user-specific storage area, and (ii) the second portion of the digitally rendered programming content in the common storage area, comprises allocating a plurality of segments associated with the digitally rendered programming content between the user-specific storage area and the storage area accessible by a plurality of unrelated computerized client devices, based at least on execution of a computerized allocation algorithm. 
     
     
         28 . The computerized method of  claim 27 , wherein the execution of the computerized allocation algorithm comprises identifying a plurality of numeric sequences, and the allocating of the plurality of segments comprises allocating the plurality of segments corresponding to one of the plurality of numeric sequences. 
     
     
         29 . Computer readable apparatus comprising a non-transitory storage medium, the non-transitory medium comprising at least one computer program having a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions configured to, when executed on a processing apparatus of a computerized server apparatus within a content distribution network:
 receive first data representative of a request for storing digitally rendered programming content, the request initiated from a computerized client device in data communication with the content distribution network;   based at least on the received first data, cause storage of the digitally rendered programming content;   store second data indicating a time that the storage is effected;   subsequently receive third data representative of a request for playback of at least a portion of the stored digitally rendered programming content, the request for playback initiated from the computerized client device;   determine that the third data is received within a prescribed time period measured from the time indicated by the second data;   based on the determination that the third data is received within the prescribed time period, cause selection, based at least on data relating to the computerized client device or a user associated therewith, of one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements to be inserted within the digitally rendered programming content, the selection of the one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements based at least in part on the second data; and   cause storage of fourth data indicating at least the selected one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements.   
     
     
         30 . The computer readable apparatus of  claim 29 , wherein the selection of the one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements based at least in part on the second data comprises identification of the one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements that would have been selected at the time indicated by the second data and selection of the one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements based on the time indicated by the second data. 
     
     
         31 . The computer readable apparatus of  claim 30 , wherein the identification of the one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements that would have been selected at the time indicated by the first data comprises access of historical data indicating one or more advertising campaigns that were in effect at the time indicated by the first data and are not in effect at a then-current time. 
     
     
         32 . The computer readable apparatus of  claim 30 , wherein the identification of the one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements that would have been selected at the time indicated by the second data comprises access of data indicating one or more user contexts at the time indicated by the second data. 
     
     
         33 . Computerized network apparatus configured for digitally rendered secondary content management within a content distribution network, the computerized network apparatus comprising:
 digital processor apparatus;   first data interface apparatus in data communication with the digital processor apparatus and configured to communicate with one or more computerized network entities configured to select appropriate secondary content for respective ones of a plurality of computerized user devices;   second data interface apparatus in data communication with the digital processor apparatus and configured to communicate with a network content data storage apparatus;   third data interface apparatus in data communication with the digital processor apparatus and configured to communicate with the plurality of computerized user devices via at least one or more data communication channels of the content distribution network; and   storage apparatus in data communication with the digital processor apparatus, the storage apparatus comprising at least one computer program configured to, when executed on the digital processor apparatus:
 receive from one of the plurality of computerized user devices via the third data interface, data representative of a request to record digitally rendered programming content; 
 determine, via at least data communication with the one or more computerized network entities via the first data interface, a transitory secondary content context associated with the digitally rendered programming content; 
 store data relating to the determined transitory secondary content context; 
 cause, via at least data communication with the network content data storage apparatus via the second data interface, recordation of the digitally rendered programming content; and 
 associate the stored data relating to the determined transitory secondary content context with the recorded digitally rendered programming content such that upon access of the recorded digitally rendered programming content by the one of the plurality of computerized user devices, the stored data relating to the determined secondary content context and associated with the recorded digitally rendered programming content is utilized in at least provision of one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements to the one of the plurality of computerized user receiver devices. 
   
     
     
         34 . The computerized network apparatus of  claim 33 , wherein the determined transitory content context comprises data relating to a plurality of digitally rendered secondary content elements temporally appropriate for a time when the data representative of the request was received by the computerized network apparatus. 
     
     
         35 . The computerized network apparatus of  claim 34 , wherein the data relating to the plurality of digitally rendered secondary content elements temporally appropriate for the time when the data representative of the request was received by the computerized network apparatus further comprises one or more digitally rendered secondary content elements that are also contextually appropriate to a subject matter or theme associated with the digitally rendered programming content. 
     
     
         36 . The computerized network apparatus of  claim 33 , wherein the determined transitory content context comprises data indicative of at least one of: (i) one or more demographics associated with a user of the one of the plurality of computerized user devices; and (ii) descriptive data associated with a subscriber account associated with the user. 
     
     
         37 . The computerized network apparatus of  claim 33 , wherein the association of the stored data relating to the determined transitory secondary content context with the recorded digitally rendered programming content is performed by a computerized secondary content decision process and based at least on: (i) data indicative of the one of the plurality of computerized user devices or a user thereof, and (ii) a subject matter or theme associated with the digitally rendered programming content.