Patent ID: 8949888
Filing Date: 2015-02-03
Classification: G06Q,H04H,H04N

Abstract:
1. A method comprising: receiving, at a set top box, information indicative of criteria associated with a targeted advertisement; determining, at the set top box, whether the criteria correspond to a characteristic of a household at which the criteria is received by comparing, at the set top box, the criteria to characteristic information stored on the set top box; storing, at the set top box, state information that indicates a plurality of channels that are experiencing an advertisement break, wherein the plurality of channels that are experiencing an advertisement break includes at least one program channel that is not currently being displayed at a video display device; in the event the criteria is determined to correspond to the characteristic of the household at which the criteria is received, joining, at the set top box, a multicast group associated with the criteria and with one of the plurality of channels, the joining step comprising the steps of: (1) tuning to the one of the plurality of channels at substantially the same time as joining the multicast group to allow viewing of the targeted advertisement via the multicast group immediately upon tuning to the one of the plurality of channels experiencing the advertisement break, and (2) sending a request from the set top box to join the multicast group, wherein the request is sent after the criteria associated with the targeted information is received; receiving, at the set top box, via the multicast group, the targeted advertisement associated with the criteria; and displaying, at the video display device, the targeted advertisement on the one of the plurality of channels that are experiencing the advertisement break, based at least in part on the stored state information.