WO2015040354A1 - On-line content control system & method - Google Patents

On-line content control system & method Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2015040354A1
WO2015040354A1 PCT/GB2013/052479 GB2013052479W WO2015040354A1 WO 2015040354 A1 WO2015040354 A1 WO 2015040354A1 GB 2013052479 W GB2013052479 W GB 2013052479W WO 2015040354 A1 WO2015040354 A1 WO 2015040354A1
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WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
resource
user
approved
request
preference
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/GB2013/052479
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Adam Freeman
Justin STACH
Anthony May
Original Assignee
Mtl Media Limited
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Mtl Media Limited filed Critical Mtl Media Limited
Priority to PCT/GB2013/052479 priority Critical patent/WO2015040354A1/en
Publication of WO2015040354A1 publication Critical patent/WO2015040354A1/en

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Classifications

    • GPHYSICS
    • G06COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06QINFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • G06Q30/00Commerce
    • G06Q30/02Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
    • G06Q30/0241Advertisements
    • G06Q30/0251Targeted advertisements
    • G06Q30/0257User requested
    • G06Q30/0258Registration
    • GPHYSICS
    • G06COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06QINFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • G06Q30/00Commerce
    • G06Q30/02Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
    • G06Q30/0241Advertisements
    • G06Q30/0251Targeted advertisements
    • G06Q30/0255Targeted advertisements based on user history
    • GPHYSICS
    • G06COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06QINFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • G06Q30/00Commerce
    • G06Q30/02Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
    • G06Q30/0241Advertisements
    • G06Q30/0251Targeted advertisements
    • G06Q30/0269Targeted advertisements based on user profile or attribute
    • G06Q30/0271Personalized advertisement
    • GPHYSICS
    • G06COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06QINFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • G06Q30/00Commerce
    • G06Q30/02Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
    • G06Q30/0241Advertisements
    • G06Q30/0277Online advertisement

Definitions

  • This invention relates generally to a system and corresponding method for controlling online digital content, and more particularly to customising promotional content displayed via internet-enabled technology.
  • the invention is particularly suited, but not limited to, use in customising on-line advertising content provided via a web page or mobile application.
  • the invention is particularly useful for enabling a user to influence the nature, type or source of promotional content which is presented via the user's web browser. Since its inception, the internet has been used as a vehicle for delivering promotional content to individual end users. Companies and other organisations such as charities, education providers, governments etc. regularly harness the power of the internet to promote their causes, products and services to would-be consumers, or to provide noncommercial services such as educational or public service announcements. The advent of mobile technology, such as internet-enabled smart phones, has further enhanced the appeal of such advertising streams.
  • the advertiser's promotional content is provided to a publisher who hosts, owns or manages a web site/mobile application.
  • the advertiser often does this via an ad agency which manages the process on behalf of the advertiser.
  • the chosen publisher incorporates the promotional content into a web page along with non-promotional content.
  • the ad is displayed along with the non-promotional content.
  • the advertiser's ads are often provided via an ad server.
  • Ad servers not only provide the technical means to deliver the promoter's ads to the publisher, but also provide other services such as statistical analysis and data generation relating to the ads.
  • RTB Real time bidding'
  • DSP Demand Side Platforms
  • Ad Networks Ad Exchange
  • the attributes are sent from the exchange server to the DSP which then determines whether the user has the desired attributes that the advertiser wishes to target.
  • RTB enables the publisher to send out a bid request to thousands of advertisers offering them the opportunity to advertise to this particular user. Advertisers are able to place bids based on the perceived value of the user, with the ad placement being awarded to the highest- bidding advertiser. This process is repeated for every ad slot on the web page.
  • a typical RTB exchange is estimated to take one tenth of a second, and so is imperceptible to the end user.
  • the promotional content may relate to a subject which the user has no interest in or even finds offensive, or it may originate from a source which the user does not approve of. For example, a user may perceive a certain company to be unethical and would prefer not to ads from that company. However, the user is not able to dictate which ads are fed through to the web site he is viewing. This can be a source of irritation or even offense for the user.
  • Ad blockers prevent advertisements from being displayed on the user's browser by blocking them before they can be loaded by the user's browser.
  • the ad blocker's approach is simply to prevent undesirable content from being displayed. Even with the use of 'white lists' which maintain a list of approved sources, the content is either allowed or not allowed to be viewed. If it is not allowed, it is not replaced with an alternative. There is no mechanism for fine-tuning the content which is presented. However, there is no mechanism to date for replacing an undesirable on-line resource with a preferred or approved resource. Thus, it is desirable to provide a solution which enables user-driven customisation of on-line content.
  • the on-line content may be promotional content.
  • the promotional content may relate to a commercial or non-commercial entity, such as a business, charity, educational institution, government etc..
  • the method may comprise the steps:
  • the preference indicating whether a resource would or would not be approved for presentation to the user
  • More than one preference may be stored in association with the user. Each preference may indicate whether a particular on-line resource is approved of and/or not approved of by the user. The preference(s) may be stored in, on or by a middleware component.
  • a resource is 'approved' it is deemed to be acceptable for presentation e.g. display to the user. Additionally or alternatively, if a resource is 'non approved' (or simply not listed as 'approved') then it may be deemed as being unacceptable for presentation to the user.
  • the user-related preferences may provide a mechanism for recording what is acceptable/not acceptable for presentation on the user's device.
  • Presentation of the resource may include visual display and/or audible presentation.
  • the user's device may be a PC, a mobile phone, a laptop, a tablet computer or any other internet-enabled device.
  • the at least one preference may be editable. In other words, it may be possible to update, change or delete the preference.
  • the user or an administrator may be able to update the at least one preference.
  • a resource may be any form of on-line content.
  • a resource may comprise an advert (or 'ad').
  • the ad may comprise an image, a portion of text, a video file or any other form of digital content.
  • the first resource request is generated as a result of the user visiting a web site.
  • the first request may be generated upon loading a web page into memory within the user's device.
  • the step of blocking the first resource request may prevent the requested resource from being presented on the user's device. It may prevent the requested resource from being loaded into memory on the user's device.
  • the first resource may be blocked permanently i.e. for the duration of the user's visit to the web site. Alternatively, the first resource may be blocked for a given time period. The user may specify the duration of the time period, or a default time period may be used.
  • the first resource request may be analysed to determine whether or not it is a request for an approved resource. This analysis may comprise one or more steps or checks.
  • the analysis may comprise the step of analysing the request to determine whether it has been tagged or otherwise identified by an embodiment of the invention to flag that it is an approved resource.
  • the tagging or identification may comprise proprietary code which can be searched for in the request.
  • the code may comprise a nested set of iframes or some other code-related mechanism which, although syntactically acceptable, is of an unconventional or unexpected construct.
  • the proprietary code may be constructed such that it would not typically be encountered within a request generated by a web page.
  • the proprietary code is identified within the first resource request it may be deemed to be a request for an approved resource.
  • the resource request does not comprise the proprietary code, the request can be deemed to be a request for a non- approved resource.
  • the analysis may comprise the step of checking the requested resource against a list of non-approved/approved resources.
  • it may comprise the step of checking the request against a list of URLs relating to ad servers. If the request matches a listed URL then the requested resource may be viewed as non-approved.
  • the method comprises the step of presenting the approved resource in lieu of the non-approved resource. Therefore, the non-approved, requested resource may be blocked and subsequently replaced by an approved resource.
  • the approved resource may be presented on the user's device in a location at which the replaced resource would originally have been presented.
  • the approved resource may be configured and/or selected so as to have at least one property (e.g. size, shape) in common with the non-approved (replaced) resource.
  • at least one of the method steps is performed by a web browser extension or a mobile app.
  • the browser extension or mobile app may be configured to analyse the first resource request to determine whether it relates to a request for an approved or a non- approved resource. The analysis may be performed using the one or more preferences stored in association with the user.
  • extension or mobile app may be configured to block the requested resource.
  • the user may be able to download and/or install the browser extension or mobile app onto the user's device.
  • the approved resource may be provided by, via or from a server.
  • the server may be an ad server.
  • the resource source may be any real time bidding (RTB) system.
  • RTB real time bidding
  • the approved resource may be provided by an agency, such as an ad agency.
  • the method may further comprise the step of tagging or otherwise identifying the approved resource to indicate that it is an approved resource.
  • This step may be performed by a middleware component.
  • Tagging the approved resource may comprise associating a portion of computer-readable code with the resource.
  • the approved resource may be 'wrapped' in proprietary code after it is received from the source.
  • the second resource request may comprise content derived from the first resource request and/or the non-approved resource.
  • one or more attributes associated with the first resource request may be captured and used in the generation of the second resource request.
  • attributes may include, for example, the size of the blocked (non-approved) resource. This may ensure that the displayed resource has the same attributes as the blocked resource.
  • the approved resource may be presented to the user via a web page in the same location as the blocked resource was intended to be presented. Alternatively, it may be presented in another location on the web page.
  • the method may include the step of providing data relating to the user's preferences to an interested party. For example, the data may be used for market research purposes, or may be provided to an entity having an interest in a resource which has been approved by the user.
  • the method may comprise the step of enabling the user to rate an on-line resource.
  • the on-line resource may be a resource presented on the user's device, possibly on a web page displayed via a browser.
  • the user may be able to rate the resource using pre-determined labels such as 'like', 'dislike' etc. Additionally or alternatively, a numeric score may be used for the rating.
  • the user's rating may be stored for future retrieval.
  • the user's rating may be used to update the one or more preferences stored in association with the user.
  • the rating may enable the user to indicate whether the resource is approved or non- approved and therefore enabling the user to influence which items of on-line content (resources) are allowed/not allowed/encouraged for display on the user's device.
  • an on-line content control system arranged and configured to implement the method steps described above.
  • the system may comprise:
  • a middleware component configured to store at least one preference in association with an internet user, the preference indicating whether the resource is or is not approved for presentation to the user.
  • the system may comprise:
  • a browser extension or a mobile app configured to:
  • the system may comprise:
  • an ad server configured to:
  • the invention may provide a mechanism which detects and intercepts online resources which do not comply with a set of preferences stored in relation to an internet user, and replaces them with alternative, preferred resources.
  • the invention can be viewed as a mechanism for adapting, replacing and/or redirecting a resource request generated by a web site so as to obtain on-line content from an alternative source.
  • the invention allows the user to control a technical process conducted outside the computer.
  • the user is able to influence the selection of the approved and/or non-approved resources by adapting his stored preferences.
  • the invention may be viewed as providing an intermediary between the user and the web site which enables the user to personalise which resources are allowed or not allowed for display.
  • the present invention can be used to customise promotional content within any form of internet-related delivery mechanism.
  • the person skilled in the art will appreciate that that the invention can apply equally to use upon any internet-enabled device including desktop PCs, laptop computers, tablet computers, mobile applications, email applications etc., and the invention is not intended to be limited in this regard.
  • the term 'on-line' is used to refer to internet-related technology.
  • 'advertisement' or 'ad' or 'ad item' is not limited to commercially-oriented content intended to sell a product or service to a consumer. It is used herein, for ease of reference, as a general term encompassing all types of promotional content from any type of commercial or non-commercial entity. For example, it may include a public service announcement, a news item, or educational content. Sources of such content may include, for example, government departments, charities, religious organisations, schools and so on.
  • Figure 1 illustrates a variety of banner ad types and sizes as known in the prior art.
  • Figure 2 shows a process flow diagram for an illustrative embodiment of the invention.
  • a system which enables a user to personalise or influence the on-line promotional content that is displayed via his device.
  • the user is able to guide or dictate the nature and/or source of ad items which are approved for presentation via his web browser.
  • the system broadly comprises three main components:
  • a browser extension (or 'plug in'); this is downloaded by the user and installed upon his device (e.g. Computer, smart phone, tablet etc.) whereupon it interfaces with the user's browser to extend its functionality.
  • the extension serves as a front- end component which detects and captures requests which are generated when the user visits a given web page.
  • the extension is able to intercept a pre-defined set of ad item sizes and replace them with ads delivered by the ad server and having the same attributes.
  • a list of standard ad sizes is used for this purpose, including those shown in figure 1 ;
  • Middleware comprises a database which collects data pertaining to the user's on-line activities. In a preferred embodiment this data capture is performed with the explicit permission of the user.
  • the middleware serves as a conduit through which requests are pushed from one layer of the system to another (e.g. from the extension to the ad server). It is also responsible for tagging or marking ads as 'approved' for viewing so that they can be distinguished from non-approved ads and are not blocked by the browser extension;
  • Ad server platform this component connects the data and preferences gathered by the middleware with the browser extension so as to ensure that the extension's functionality is influenced by the user's explicit, implicit or inferred preferences. It applies the rules and criteria relating to the individual user before sending an ad request. In some embodiments, this request is sent to a RTB system.
  • the user completes a registration process which enables him to interact with and use the invention thereafter. This can be achieved via a dedicated website or via a social media login.
  • the user completes an on-line registration form so as to set up an account containing factual user-related data such as name, gender, age, address etc.
  • Other information relating to the user's preferences may also be captured and stored in the user's account. This may include, for example, information about organisations and/or products that the user does or does not wish to know about.
  • the user is able to log in to the system to perform a variety of tasks. For example, the user is able to edit and update the data stored in his account, and is able to turn the browser extension on or off.
  • the user In order to actually use the content replacement system, the user must download the browser extension and install it on his computing device. During this process, it may be necessary to seek permission from the user to access specific data which is stored and generated by the browser itself. If the user does not consent to such data being accessed by the extension, the installation process will be cancelled. Once the extension is installed, the user is able to build up a profile which guides or influences the choice of ads which are fed through to his browser during on-line activity. The user is able to interact with the system in a variety of ways:
  • the user is able to 'rate' an ad which appears on the web page.
  • a profile can be developed over time which contains very detailed and highly personalised information about the user's likes and dislikes. This also enables the user to influence the choice of 'approved' ads which are deemed acceptable for presentation to the user, or non- approved.
  • the ratings may include, for example:
  • the ratings may relate to the brand (or source) of the ad or the category (type) to which it belongs.
  • An example of a brand might be ⁇ Coffee Shop Limited' while an example of a category might be 'coffee shops'.
  • the ratings do not relate to the individual ad itself. Therefore, when a user rates an ad on a web page this is interpreted as a generalised indication of the user's preference for the brand or category of the ad.
  • Information relating to such data items can be captured from attributes or tags included in the resource request. Over time, data relating to the user's likes and dislikes is built up into a profile. This data can be highly valuable to various organisations.
  • the data generated by the system may be provided to a third party.
  • data relating to a user who has indicated a preference for coffee may be passed to a coffee shop.
  • the coffee shop may then use this information in a variety of ways to target their promotional activities more effectively.
  • the data may be used for market research purposes.
  • requests When the user visits a typical web page, many requests (calls) are generated by the code which makes up the web page. A typical web page might generate 30 to 40 resource calls. Some of these requests may be internal to the domain of the web page. Others, however, may be external requests for some action to be performed by a third party. A common type of external request is a request for an ad item to be supplied from an external source to the user's browser.
  • the browser when the browser detects a request for a resource 1 this is detected by the extension 2 which analyses the request to determine whether the resource is being requested from the ad server of the invention. If it is, then it is deemed to be an 'approved' resource and the resource is supplied from the ad server to the browser for rendering and display 10.
  • the request is analysed to determine whether it is a request for an ad item. If it is a request for a third party resource which is not an ad, the request is resolved in the conventional manner and the resource is obtained and rendered via the user's browser 10.
  • the request is for a third party resource which is an ad item
  • the request is blocked 3 by the extension, preventing the requested (non-approved) resource from being loaded into memory on the user's device.
  • the extension captures certain items of data from the blocked request.
  • data may include, for example, the user ID, the web page URL, the ID of the blocked ad item, the xpath of the blocked ad and so on. This data is saved and stored in the database in association with the user. These data items are only captured and recorded if the user is logged into the extension.
  • the extension Upon blocking the non-approved resource, the extension captures the attributes relating to the requested resource (e.g. size as per Figure 1) and generates a request for an approved ad item having the same attributes. This ensures that the approved ad item will be correctly formatted and dimensioned when it is ultimately rendered for display on the user's device.
  • the middleware receives the request 5 from the extension and passes it to the ad server.
  • the ad server applies a set of rules which have been stored in relation to the user so that the user's attributes are applied to the request 6.
  • the request is then passed to an external RTB mechanism 7.
  • the RTB process involves broadcasting the request to on-line advertisers who bid for the opportunity to place their ad item on the web page for the user to see.
  • the request has been altered to account for criteria or attributes which are influenced by the user's stored preferences, a higher bid is placed by the request for ad items matching the user's criteria. Therefore, the ad item returned from the RTB 7 to the ad server can be assumed to comply with the user's known preferences i.e. it is deemed to be 'approved'.
  • the ad server Upon receipt of the approved ad item from the RTB, the ad server returns the ad item 8 to the middleware.
  • the middleware wraps proprietary code around the ad item 9 so that when it is passed back to the browser it will be recognised as an approved resource and it will be rendered and displayed by the browser rather than being blocked.
  • the extension comprises an interface which enables the user to amend the attributes which describe his preferences. Via the interface, the user is able to influence the ad items which are returned to his browser because the user-related attributes stored by the middleware are used when passing the bid request out to the RTB platform.
  • the invention may be implemented by means of hardware comprising several distinct elements, and by means of a suitably programmed computer.
  • a device claim enumerating several means several of these means may be embodied by one and the same item of hardware.
  • the mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

Abstract

A software-implemented mechanism is provided to enable a user to influence and manage on-line content displayed on a computing device e.g. PC, smartphone, tablet etc. The software enables adaptation, replacement and/or redirection of a resource request generated by a web site visited by the user, so as to permit on-line content to be obtained from an alternative source. The software detects and intercepts online resources which do not comply with a set of preferences stored in relation to the internet user, and replaces them with alternative, preferred resources. The user is able to influence the selection of the approved and/or non-approved resources by adapting his stored preferences. Thus, the software serves as an intermediary between the user and the web site which enables the user to personalise which resources are allowed or not allowed for display.

Description

On-line Content Control System & Method
This invention relates generally to a system and corresponding method for controlling online digital content, and more particularly to customising promotional content displayed via internet-enabled technology. The invention is particularly suited, but not limited to, use in customising on-line advertising content provided via a web page or mobile application. The invention is particularly useful for enabling a user to influence the nature, type or source of promotional content which is presented via the user's web browser. Since its inception, the internet has been used as a vehicle for delivering promotional content to individual end users. Companies and other organisations such as charities, education providers, governments etc. regularly harness the power of the internet to promote their causes, products and services to would-be consumers, or to provide noncommercial services such as educational or public service announcements. The advent of mobile technology, such as internet-enabled smart phones, has further enhanced the appeal of such advertising streams.
In order to enhance the efficacy of promotional content (e.g. advertisements, or 'ads'), online advertisers often identify a target audience. By using 'behavioural targeting' mechanisms such as cookies and click tags an advertiser can identify users who are likely to be consumers of the product or service being promoted. Data is gathered relating to a user's online activities so that a profile of the user's preferences can be constructed, thus enabling the advertiser to target potential consumers in a more focused manner. One common form of on-line ad is known as a 'web banner' or 'banner ad' . These are typically images, video or interactive elements which are delivered by a central ad server for display within a designated space or area on a page known as an 'ad unit'. The Interactive Advertising Bureau has published standardized pixel dimensions for ad units. Figure 1 shows standard banner ad sizes as known in the art.
Typically, the advertiser's promotional content is provided to a publisher who hosts, owns or manages a web site/mobile application. The advertiser often does this via an ad agency which manages the process on behalf of the advertiser. The chosen publisher incorporates the promotional content into a web page along with non-promotional content. When the user visits the publisher's web page, the ad is displayed along with the non-promotional content. The advertiser's ads are often provided via an ad server. Ad servers not only provide the technical means to deliver the promoter's ads to the publisher, but also provide other services such as statistical analysis and data generation relating to the ads.
The choice of which advert to display to a certain user at a particular time is often decided via a process known as 'real time bidding' (RTB). Essentially, RTB is a real time auction in which advertising opportunities are traded between buyers and sellers. When a user visits a publisher's website which contains an advertising item, a call is placed by the exchange server (i.e. database web server) which supports RTB to the Demand Side Platforms (DSP) or Ad Networks (Ad Exchange) to determine which advertiser will be allowed to deliver the ad. This occurs as the web page is loading on the user's browser. A set of attributes (cookies) is stored in association with each user relating to information such as the user's age, gender, location, recently purchased products etc.. The attributes are sent from the exchange server to the DSP which then determines whether the user has the desired attributes that the advertiser wishes to target. In effect, RTB enables the publisher to send out a bid request to thousands of advertisers offering them the opportunity to advertise to this particular user. Advertisers are able to place bids based on the perceived value of the user, with the ad placement being awarded to the highest- bidding advertiser. This process is repeated for every ad slot on the web page. A typical RTB exchange is estimated to take one tenth of a second, and so is imperceptible to the end user.
However, the user has no control over which promotional content is displayed via his or her browser. The promotional content may relate to a subject which the user has no interest in or even finds offensive, or it may originate from a source which the user does not approve of. For example, a user may perceive a certain company to be unethical and would prefer not to ads from that company. However, the user is not able to dictate which ads are fed through to the web site he is viewing. This can be a source of irritation or even offense for the user. One known attempt to address this problem is provided in the form of 'ad blocking' technology. Ad blockers prevent advertisements from being displayed on the user's browser by blocking them before they can be loaded by the user's browser. Thus, the ad blocker's approach is simply to prevent undesirable content from being displayed. Even with the use of 'white lists' which maintain a list of approved sources, the content is either allowed or not allowed to be viewed. If it is not allowed, it is not replaced with an alternative. There is no mechanism for fine-tuning the content which is presented. However, there is no mechanism to date for replacing an undesirable on-line resource with a preferred or approved resource. Thus, it is desirable to provide a solution which enables user-driven customisation of on-line content.
Such an improved solution has now been devised.
Thus, in accordance with the present invention there is provided a computer-implemented system and method as defined in the appended claims.
In accordance with the invention there is provided an on-line content control method. The on-line content may be promotional content. The promotional content may relate to a commercial or non-commercial entity, such as a business, charity, educational institution, government etc..
The method may comprise the steps:
storing at least one preference in association with an internet user, the preference indicating whether a resource would or would not be approved for presentation to the user;
blocking a first resource request if it is determined to be a request for a non- approved resource;
using the at least one preference to generate a second resource request for an
approved resource;
sending the second resource request to a resource source; receiving an approved resource from the resource source; and transmitting the approved resource for presentation to the user.
More than one preference may be stored in association with the user. Each preference may indicate whether a particular on-line resource is approved of and/or not approved of by the user. The preference(s) may be stored in, on or by a middleware component.
Preferably, if a resource is 'approved' it is deemed to be acceptable for presentation e.g. display to the user. Additionally or alternatively, if a resource is 'non approved' (or simply not listed as 'approved') then it may be deemed as being unacceptable for presentation to the user.
Thus, the user-related preferences may provide a mechanism for recording what is acceptable/not acceptable for presentation on the user's device. Presentation of the resource may include visual display and/or audible presentation. The user's device may be a PC, a mobile phone, a laptop, a tablet computer or any other internet-enabled device.
The at least one preference may be editable. In other words, it may be possible to update, change or delete the preference. The user or an administrator may be able to update the at least one preference.
Preferably, a resource may be any form of on-line content. For example, a resource may comprise an advert (or 'ad'). The ad may comprise an image, a portion of text, a video file or any other form of digital content.
Preferably, the first resource request is generated as a result of the user visiting a web site. The first request may be generated upon loading a web page into memory within the user's device. Preferably, the step of blocking the first resource request may prevent the requested resource from being presented on the user's device. It may prevent the requested resource from being loaded into memory on the user's device. The first resource may be blocked permanently i.e. for the duration of the user's visit to the web site. Alternatively, the first resource may be blocked for a given time period. The user may specify the duration of the time period, or a default time period may be used.
The first resource request may be analysed to determine whether or not it is a request for an approved resource. This analysis may comprise one or more steps or checks.
The analysis may comprise the step of analysing the request to determine whether it has been tagged or otherwise identified by an embodiment of the invention to flag that it is an approved resource. The tagging or identification may comprise proprietary code which can be searched for in the request. The code may comprise a nested set of iframes or some other code-related mechanism which, although syntactically acceptable, is of an unconventional or unexpected construct. Thus, the proprietary code may be constructed such that it would not typically be encountered within a request generated by a web page. Preferably, if the proprietary code is identified within the first resource request it may be deemed to be a request for an approved resource. Conversely, if the resource request does not comprise the proprietary code, the request can be deemed to be a request for a non- approved resource.
Additionally or alternatively, the analysis may comprise the step of checking the requested resource against a list of non-approved/approved resources. For example, it may comprise the step of checking the request against a list of URLs relating to ad servers. If the request matches a listed URL then the requested resource may be viewed as non-approved.
Preferably, the method comprises the step of presenting the approved resource in lieu of the non-approved resource. Therefore, the non-approved, requested resource may be blocked and subsequently replaced by an approved resource. The approved resource may be presented on the user's device in a location at which the replaced resource would originally have been presented. The approved resource may be configured and/or selected so as to have at least one property (e.g. size, shape) in common with the non-approved (replaced) resource. Preferably, at least one of the method steps is performed by a web browser extension or a mobile app. The browser extension or mobile app may be configured to analyse the first resource request to determine whether it relates to a request for an approved or a non- approved resource. The analysis may be performed using the one or more preferences stored in association with the user.
Additionally or alternatively, the extension or mobile app may be configured to block the requested resource.
The user may be able to download and/or install the browser extension or mobile app onto the user's device.
The approved resource may be provided by, via or from a server. The server may be an ad server. In some embodiments, the resource source may be any real time bidding (RTB) system. The approved resource may be provided by an agency, such as an ad agency.
The method may further comprise the step of tagging or otherwise identifying the approved resource to indicate that it is an approved resource. This step may be performed by a middleware component. Tagging the approved resource may comprise associating a portion of computer-readable code with the resource. For example, the approved resource may be 'wrapped' in proprietary code after it is received from the source.
The second resource request may comprise content derived from the first resource request and/or the non-approved resource. For example, one or more attributes associated with the first resource request may be captured and used in the generation of the second resource request. Such attributes may include, for example, the size of the blocked (non-approved) resource. This may ensure that the displayed resource has the same attributes as the blocked resource. The approved resource may be presented to the user via a web page in the same location as the blocked resource was intended to be presented. Alternatively, it may be presented in another location on the web page. The method may include the step of providing data relating to the user's preferences to an interested party. For example, the data may be used for market research purposes, or may be provided to an entity having an interest in a resource which has been approved by the user. The method may comprise the step of enabling the user to rate an on-line resource. The on-line resource may be a resource presented on the user's device, possibly on a web page displayed via a browser. The user may be able to rate the resource using pre-determined labels such as 'like', 'dislike' etc. Additionally or alternatively, a numeric score may be used for the rating. The user's rating may be stored for future retrieval. The user's rating may be used to update the one or more preferences stored in association with the user. Thus, the rating may enable the user to indicate whether the resource is approved or non- approved and therefore enabling the user to influence which items of on-line content (resources) are allowed/not allowed/encouraged for display on the user's device. Also in accordance with the invention, there is provided an on-line content control system arranged and configured to implement the method steps described above.
The system may comprise:
a middleware component configured to store at least one preference in association with an internet user, the preference indicating whether the resource is or is not approved for presentation to the user.
The system may comprise:
a browser extension or a mobile app configured to:
detect and/or analyse a first resource request;
block the first resource request if it is determined to be a request for a non- approved resource; and/or generate a second resource request using the at least one user preference, the second request being for an approved resource;
The system may comprise:
an ad server configured to:
send the second request to a resource source; and/or
receive an approved resource from the resource source.
Therefore, in summary, the invention may provide a mechanism which detects and intercepts online resources which do not comply with a set of preferences stored in relation to an internet user, and replaces them with alternative, preferred resources. In another sense, the invention can be viewed as a mechanism for adapting, replacing and/or redirecting a resource request generated by a web site so as to obtain on-line content from an alternative source. Thus, the invention allows the user to control a technical process conducted outside the computer.
Preferably, the user is able to influence the selection of the approved and/or non-approved resources by adapting his stored preferences. Thus, the invention may be viewed as providing an intermediary between the user and the web site which enables the user to personalise which resources are allowed or not allowed for display.
This provides an advantage over the prior art in which on-line promotional content is served to the user on a site-by-site basis with the user having no option but to either view or completely block the content. The invention provides control over blocked content at a more granular level, allowing the user to fine tune what is presented rather than simply allow or prohibit it.
It should be noted that the present invention can be used to customise promotional content within any form of internet-related delivery mechanism. The person skilled in the art will appreciate that that the invention can apply equally to use upon any internet-enabled device including desktop PCs, laptop computers, tablet computers, mobile applications, email applications etc., and the invention is not intended to be limited in this regard. In this document, the term 'on-line' is used to refer to internet-related technology.
The term 'advertisement' or 'ad' or 'ad item' is not limited to commercially-oriented content intended to sell a product or service to a consumer. It is used herein, for ease of reference, as a general term encompassing all types of promotional content from any type of commercial or non-commercial entity. For example, it may include a public service announcement, a news item, or educational content. Sources of such content may include, for example, government departments, charities, religious organisations, schools and so on.
These and other aspects of the present invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to, the embodiment described herein.
An embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompany drawings, in which:
Figure 1 illustrates a variety of banner ad types and sizes as known in the prior art.
Figure 2 shows a process flow diagram for an illustrative embodiment of the invention.
In an illustrative embodiment of the invention, a system is provided which enables a user to personalise or influence the on-line promotional content that is displayed via his device. Thus, the user is able to guide or dictate the nature and/or source of ad items which are approved for presentation via his web browser.
The system broadly comprises three main components:
1. A browser extension (or 'plug in'); this is downloaded by the user and installed upon his device (e.g. Computer, smart phone, tablet etc.) whereupon it interfaces with the user's browser to extend its functionality. The extension serves as a front- end component which detects and captures requests which are generated when the user visits a given web page. In certain embodiments of the invention, the extension is able to intercept a pre-defined set of ad item sizes and replace them with ads delivered by the ad server and having the same attributes. A list of standard ad sizes is used for this purpose, including those shown in figure 1 ;
2. Middleware; this comprises a database which collects data pertaining to the user's on-line activities. In a preferred embodiment this data capture is performed with the explicit permission of the user. As part of its functionality, the middleware serves as a conduit through which requests are pushed from one layer of the system to another (e.g. from the extension to the ad server). It is also responsible for tagging or marking ads as 'approved' for viewing so that they can be distinguished from non-approved ads and are not blocked by the browser extension;
3. Ad server platform; this component connects the data and preferences gathered by the middleware with the browser extension so as to ensure that the extension's functionality is influenced by the user's explicit, implicit or inferred preferences. It applies the rules and criteria relating to the individual user before sending an ad request. In some embodiments, this request is sent to a RTB system.
In use, the user completes a registration process which enables him to interact with and use the invention thereafter. This can be achieved via a dedicated website or via a social media login. The user completes an on-line registration form so as to set up an account containing factual user-related data such as name, gender, age, address etc. Other information relating to the user's preferences may also be captured and stored in the user's account. This may include, for example, information about organisations and/or products that the user does or does not wish to know about.
Following creation of the user's account, the user is able to log in to the system to perform a variety of tasks. For example, the user is able to edit and update the data stored in his account, and is able to turn the browser extension on or off.
In order to actually use the content replacement system, the user must download the browser extension and install it on his computing device. During this process, it may be necessary to seek permission from the user to access specific data which is stored and generated by the browser itself. If the user does not consent to such data being accessed by the extension, the installation process will be cancelled. Once the extension is installed, the user is able to build up a profile which guides or influences the choice of ads which are fed through to his browser during on-line activity. The user is able to interact with the system in a variety of ways:
1. By interacting with the ads served on a web page his visits;
2. By interacting with the browser extension;
3. By updating the data stored in the user' s account.
The user is able to 'rate' an ad which appears on the web page. By rating each ad a profile can be developed over time which contains very detailed and highly personalised information about the user's likes and dislikes. This also enables the user to influence the choice of 'approved' ads which are deemed acceptable for presentation to the user, or non- approved. The ratings may include, for example:
Figure imgf000012_0001
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the ratings may relate to the brand (or source) of the ad or the category (type) to which it belongs. An example of a brand might be Ά Coffee Shop Limited' while an example of a category might be 'coffee shops'. The ratings do not relate to the individual ad itself. Therefore, when a user rates an ad on a web page this is interpreted as a generalised indication of the user's preference for the brand or category of the ad. Information relating to such data items can be captured from attributes or tags included in the resource request. Over time, data relating to the user's likes and dislikes is built up into a profile. This data can be highly valuable to various organisations. Therefore, the data generated by the system may be provided to a third party. For example, data relating to a user who has indicated a preference for coffee may be passed to a coffee shop. The coffee shop may then use this information in a variety of ways to target their promotional activities more effectively. Alternatively, the data may be used for market research purposes.
When the user visits a typical web page, many requests (calls) are generated by the code which makes up the web page. A typical web page might generate 30 to 40 resource calls. Some of these requests may be internal to the domain of the web page. Others, however, may be external requests for some action to be performed by a third party. A common type of external request is a request for an ad item to be supplied from an external source to the user's browser.
Referring to Figure 2, when the browser detects a request for a resource 1 this is detected by the extension 2 which analyses the request to determine whether the resource is being requested from the ad server of the invention. If it is, then it is deemed to be an 'approved' resource and the resource is supplied from the ad server to the browser for rendering and display 10.
Alternatively, if the request is not for a resource from the ad server, the request is analysed to determine whether it is a request for an ad item. If it is a request for a third party resource which is not an ad, the request is resolved in the conventional manner and the resource is obtained and rendered via the user's browser 10.
If, however, the request is for a third party resource which is an ad item, the request is blocked 3 by the extension, preventing the requested (non-approved) resource from being loaded into memory on the user's device.
The extension captures certain items of data from the blocked request. Such data may include, for example, the user ID, the web page URL, the ID of the blocked ad item, the xpath of the blocked ad and so on. This data is saved and stored in the database in association with the user. These data items are only captured and recorded if the user is logged into the extension.
An alternative resource request is then generated by the extension 4, requesting an
'approved' resource based upon the user's stored preferences. In this way, requests for resources which have not been approved by the user are altered and redirected so as to substitute the non-approved resource with an acceptable resource.
Upon blocking the non-approved resource, the extension captures the attributes relating to the requested resource (e.g. size as per Figure 1) and generates a request for an approved ad item having the same attributes. This ensures that the approved ad item will be correctly formatted and dimensioned when it is ultimately rendered for display on the user's device. The middleware (or 'business logic layer') receives the request 5 from the extension and passes it to the ad server. The ad server applies a set of rules which have been stored in relation to the user so that the user's attributes are applied to the request 6. The request is then passed to an external RTB mechanism 7. As explained above, the RTB process involves broadcasting the request to on-line advertisers who bid for the opportunity to place their ad item on the web page for the user to see. As the request has been altered to account for criteria or attributes which are influenced by the user's stored preferences, a higher bid is placed by the request for ad items matching the user's criteria. Therefore, the ad item returned from the RTB 7 to the ad server can be assumed to comply with the user's known preferences i.e. it is deemed to be 'approved'.
Upon receipt of the approved ad item from the RTB, the ad server returns the ad item 8 to the middleware. The middleware wraps proprietary code around the ad item 9 so that when it is passed back to the browser it will be recognised as an approved resource and it will be rendered and displayed by the browser rather than being blocked.
The extension comprises an interface which enables the user to amend the attributes which describe his preferences. Via the interface, the user is able to influence the ad items which are returned to his browser because the user-related attributes stored by the middleware are used when passing the bid request out to the RTB platform.
It should be noted that the above-mentioned embodiments illustrate rather than limit the invention, and that those skilled in the art will be capable of designing many alternative embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. In the claims, any reference signs placed in parentheses shall not be construed as limiting the claims. The word "comprising" and "comprises", and the like, does not exclude the presence of elements or steps other than those listed in any claim or the specification as a whole. In the present specification, "comprises" means "includes or consists of and "comprising" means "including or consisting of. The singular reference of an element does not exclude the plural reference of such elements and vice-versa. The invention may be implemented by means of hardware comprising several distinct elements, and by means of a suitably programmed computer. In a device claim enumerating several means, several of these means may be embodied by one and the same item of hardware. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

Claims

CLAIMS:
1. An on-line content control method comprising the steps:
storing at least one preference in association with an internet user, the preference indicating whether a resource would or would not be approved for presentation to the user;
blocking a first resource request if it is determined to be a request for a non- approved resource;
using the at least one preference to generate a second resource request for an
approved resource ;
sending the second resource request to a resource source;
receiving an approved resource from the resource source; and
transmitting the approved resource for presentation to the user.
2. A method according to claim 1 and further comprising the step of:
presenting the approved resource in lieu of the non-approved resource.
3. A method according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein at least one step is performed by a web browser extension or a mobile app.
4. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the preferences are stored in or by a middleware component.
5. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the resource source is a real time bidding (RTB) system or an ad server.
6. A method according to any preceding claim and further comprising the step of:
tagging the approved resource to indicate that it is an approved resource.
7. A method according to claim 6 wherein tagging the approved resource comprises associating a portion of computer-readable code to the resource.
8 A method according to claims 6 or 7 wherein the step of tagging the resource is performed by a middleware component.
9. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the second resource request comprises content derived from the first resource request and/or the non-approved resource.
10. A method according to any preceding claim and further comprising the step of:
enabling the user to update the at least one preference.
11. A method according to any preceding claim and further comprising the step of:
enabling a user to download and/or install a browser extension or mobile app configured to perform at least one step of the method.
12. A method according to any preceding claim and further comprising the step of:
analysing a resource request to determine if it is a request for an approved or non- approved resource.
13. A method according to any preceding claim and further comprising the step of:
enabling a user to rate a resource presented on an internet-enabled device.
14. A method according to claim 13 wherein the rating enables the user to indicate
whether the resource is approved or non-approved.
15. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the non-approved resource is blocked for the entire duration of the user's visit to a particular web site, or for a specified time period.
16. An on-line content control system arranged and configured to perform the steps of any preceding claim.
17. A system according to claim 16 wherein the system comprises: a middleware component configured to store at least one preference in association with an internet user, the preference indicating whether the resource is or is not approved for presentation to the user.
18. A system according to claim 16 or 17 wherein the system comprises:
a browser extension or a mobile app configured to:
detect and/or analyse a first resource request;
block the first resource request if it is determined to be a request for a non- approved resource; and/or
generate a second resource request using the at least one user preference, the second request being for an approved resource;
19. A system according to claims 16 to 18 wherein the system comprises
an ad server configured to:
send the second request to a resource source; and/or
receive an approved resource from the resource source.
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