Patent ID: 8219447
Filing Date: 2012-07-10
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
1. A method for selecting an advertising message to include at a distinguished location in a distinguished instance of a web page, comprising: identifying a plurality of candidate advertising messages that are eligible to be included at a distinguished location in a distinguished instance of the web page; for each identified advertising message: determining, across a plurality of instances of the web page served during a foregoing period of time that included the identified advertising message in the distinguished location (a) a set of values associated with the inclusion of the identified advertising message in each of the plurality of instances of the web page; (b) an average of the values associated with the inclusion of the identified advertising message in the plurality of instances of the web page, and (c) a measure of the level of variability of the values associated with the inclusion of the identified advertising message; determining a score by performing a weighted random selection of a value from a normal probability distribution centered on the determined average value, wherein the breadth of the normal probability distribution is based on the determined measure of the level of variability of the values; and selecting the identified advertising message having the highest score to include at the distinguished location in the distinguished instance of the web page, wherein the method is implemented in a computing system having a processor and a memory.