Methods and apparatus of media device detection for minimally invasive media meters

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11716507-B2
Application number	US-202217666397-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 7, 2022
Priority date	Aug 10, 2017
Publication date	Aug 1, 2023
Grant date	Aug 1, 2023

Abstract

Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture are disclosed for media crediting and, more particularly, methods and apparatus of media device detection for minimally invasive media meters. An example apparatus disclosed herein to detect media devices presenting media includes means for generating a cluster of media locations from a reference population of media locations based on media identifying information received from a presentation of media at an unidentified media device at a first media location, means for determining media devices available at the media locations in the cluster of media locations, means for identifying the unidentified media device based on (1) the media devices available at the media locations in the cluster of media locations and (2) an identity of a media device determined to be available in a majority of media locations in the cluster of media locations, and means for generating a report on the identity of the unidentified media device.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus to detect media devices presenting media, the apparatus comprising:
means for generating a cluster of media locations from a reference population of media locations based on media identifying information received from a presentation of media at an unidentified media device at a first media location;
means for determining media devices available at the media locations in the cluster of media locations;
means for identifying the unidentified media device based on (1) the media devices available at the media locations in the cluster of media locations and (2) an identity of a media device determined to be available in a majority of media locations in the cluster of media locations; and
means for generating a report on the identity of the unidentified media device.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein a means for monitoring at the first media location is a minimally invasive media meter that does not include a direct connection to the unidentified media device.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the reference population of media locations includes at least one media location with a minimally invasive media meter.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the identity of the unidentified media device cannot be directly determined from the media identifying information received from the presentation of media.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the means for generating includes comparing the media identifying information received at a media location of the reference population of media locations and the first media location.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the means for generating includes adding the media location of the reference population to the cluster of media locations when media identifying information received at the media location matches the first media location.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the identity of the unidentified media device is credited via a media credit generated for the media presentation.

8. An apparatus to detect media devices presenting media, the apparatus comprising:
means for generating a cluster of media locations based on media identifying information received from a presentation of media at an unidentified media device;
means for determining media devices available at the media locations in the cluster of media locations; and
means for identifying the unidentified media device based on (1) the media devices available at the media locations in the cluster of media locations and (2) an identity of a media device determined to be available in a majority of media locations in the cluster of media locations.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the means for generating includes generating the cluster of media locations from a reference population of media locations.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the reference population of media locations includes at least one media location with a minimally invasive media meter.

11. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the unidentified media device is at a first media location.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein a media meter at the first media location is a minimally invasive media meter that does not include a direct connection to the unidentified media device.

13. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein an identity of the unidentified media device cannot be directly determined from the media identifying information received from the presentation of media.

14. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the means for generating further includes:
comparing the media identifying information received at a media location of a reference population of media locations and a first media location of the unidentified media device; and
adding the media location of the reference population to the cluster of media locations when media identifying information received at the media location matches the first media location.

15. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein an identity of the unidentified media device is credited via a media credit generated for the presentation of media.

16. An apparatus to detect media devices presenting media, the apparatus comprising:
at least one memory;
instructions in the apparatus; and
processor circuitry to execute the instructions to:
generate a cluster of media locations from a reference population of media locations based on media identifying information received from a presentation of media at an unidentified media device at a first media location;
determine media devices available at the media locations in the cluster of media locations;
identify the unidentified media device based on (1) the media devices available at the media locations in the cluster of media locations and (2) an identity of a media device determined to be available in a majority of media locations in the cluster of media locations; and
generate a report on the identity of the unidentified media device.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein a media meter at the first media location is a minimally invasive media meter that does not include a direct connection to the unidentified media device.

18. The apparatus of claim 17 , wherein the reference population of media locations includes at least one media location with a minimally invasive media meter.

19. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the identity of the unidentified media device cannot be directly determined from the media identifying information received from the presentation of media.

20. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the processor circuitry is further to:
compare the media identifying information received at a media location of the reference population of media locations and the first media location; and
add the media location of the reference population to the cluster of media locations when media identifying information received at the media location matches the first media location.

Assignees

• Nielsen Co Us Llc

Inventors

• Topchy Alexander
• Srinivasan Venugopal

Classifications

• H04N21/44204 Primary

  Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched (monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; protecting generic digital content where the protection is independent of the precise nature of the content G06F21/10; arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services in broadcast systems H04H60/31) · CPC title

• H04H60/00

  Arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linking to broadcast information or broadcast space-time; Broadcast-related systems · CPC title

• H04H60/54

  where broadcast information is generated · CPC title

• H04N21/2547

  Third Party Billing, e.g. billing of advertiser · CPC title

• H04N21/25866

  Management of end-user data (customer care in data networks H04L41/5077) · CPC title