Abstract:
Systems and methods are disclosed herein to a computer program product, comprising a tangible computer-readable medium having computer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readable program code adapted to be executed to implement a method for identifying a platform type of a device, the method including providing a system, wherein the system comprises distinct software modules, and wherein the distinct software modules comprise a secure beacon generator; receiving, by the secure beacon generator, an audio portion of media content from a content playback module; determining, by the secure beacon generator, a platform type of the device; and generating, by the secure beacon generator, a beacon for integrating with a sound wave of the audio portion of the media content, wherein the beacon includes the determined platform type of the device.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0001]    The present invention relates generally to device identification, and more specifically, to a system configured to identify a type of device playing media content. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    Television ratings are very important to both content providers and advertisers. Content providers rely on television ratings to determine which shows are successful, and advertisers rely on television ratings to set a market price for advertising time. Some marketing and advertising research firms or audience rating companies specialize in television ratings, such as Nielsen, Arbitron, TruMedia, and CognoVision. These firms use television rating systems that measure audience size and composition for television programming. 
         [0003]    In order to generate television ratings, a firm, such as Nielsen, monitors the viewing habits of a number of target homes. Before any data can be gathered, the firm first requests that a target home or person opt-in to their television viewing habit monitoring program. By opting into the program, the target home agrees to waive some privacy rights. However, the target homes selected by the firms are usually kept a secret, and the firm provides no identity-specific information about the target homes to any third parties, such as advertisers or content providers. Once the target home agrees to the survey, the firm monitors television viewing habits of the target home for a certain amount of time. The firm selects a number of target homes, which is a sample of all the television viewing homes (e.g., in the United States or particular regions), but the sample is large enough to be statistically significant. The firm gathers data regarding the viewing habits of all the target homes in the sample and generates television ratings by extrapolating the data gathered from the target homes. 
         [0004]    The firm monitors viewing habits of the target homes by using one of a few different methods. A first method is a viewer “diary” method. In the first method, a person in the target home self-records his or her viewing habits in a journal. The first method is not preferable because it is subject to inaccuracies, such as if a member of the target home forgets something he or she watched or is untruthful. A second method uses a technology kit referred to as a “home unit” to monitor viewing habits. In the second method, the firm connects a component of the home kit known as a set meter to a television to measure the viewing habits of the target home. The set meters give the firm more information than the first method, such as the exact moments a viewer switches channels or turns off the television. Additionally, the set meters are not subject to human error and thereby are more accurate at measuring viewing habits. The home unit may even monitor other devices to gather even more data, such as demographic information. Generally, professionals install the home unit soon after the target home agrees to be included in the monitoring program. 
         [0005]      FIG. 1  illustrates the second method of television viewing habit monitoring. As shown in  FIG. 1 , television content  110  is played on a television  120 . The audio of the television content  110  is played through a speaker  125  of the television  120 . A set meter  130  receives the audio of the content  110  through a microphone  132  and determines what content  110  is being viewed by implementing either a watermarking module  134  or fingerprinting module  136 . 
         [0006]    Watermarking is a process of embedding information into a signal that can identify the content. A digital watermark may not be audible to human ears or visible to human eyes, but can be recognized by digital equipment. Most television content contains a watermark, so an audio watermark may be used by the set meter  130  to determine which show is being watched. The watermarked content may be watermarked using an audio algorithm such as Nielsen NASE to uniquely identify the content source. The watermark may further include a time/date stamp, content identification, or a unique numerical assignment, such as an entertainment identifier registry (EIDR) or an international standard audiovisual number (ISAN). 
         [0007]    Fingerprinting, on the other hand, is a condensed digital summary of an audio sound that generates a uniqueness algorithm. For example, the condensed digital summary measures perceptual characteristics such as average zero crossing rate, average spectrum, bandwidth, and spectral flatness to identify content. Once the uniqueness algorithm is generated, it is sent to a database to identify the content. 
         [0008]    As stated above, the set meter  130  identifies the television content  110  using either the watermark module  134  or the fingerprint module  136 . The set meter  130  sends the results of either identification to a server  140  of the firm. The server  140  analyzes the information received from the set meter  130  and creates a report  150 . 
         [0009]    The second method of viewing habit monitoring may be preferable for households that watch television content primarily or exclusively on a television set. However, more and more content is being viewed on alternative platforms other than a television set. For example, television shows are available to download through digital media stores or to stream through provider websites. The digital content can be viewed on a desktop computer, laptop computer, a tablet computer, a smart phone, a gaming console, or any other device capable of playing the digital information. Some existing technology is capable of detecting watermarks or digital fingerprints of content played on platforms other than a television set, even if headphones or ear buds are used to listen to the media, so the content being watched in target homes that watch television media on platforms other than a television set can still be identified. 
         [0010]    However, existing technology does not report the type of platform (e.g., desktop computer, laptop computer, tablet computer, smart phone, gaming device) that is playing the television content. As a result, a firm presumes that the content is watched on a television set. 
         [0011]    Watermarking techniques can be used to detect a platform type that is playing media, but given the monitoring technology, each content provider must insert a different watermark into the content for every type of device in order to monitor platforms as well as content. Content providers may find that adding multiple watermarks for every type of device capable of playing content is too large of a burden. But the type of platform viewers are using to watch television content may be valuable information to content providers and advertisers. Thus, technology is desired to assist audience monitoring companies determine the type of platform being used to playback media without requiring multiple watermarks for each item of content provided by the content providers. 
         [0012]    Also, because the firms may be protective of the secrecy of the identity of those who consent to their monitoring program, a platform identification method must meet certain privacy requirements. For example, content providers and advertisers cannot receive any identity-specific information about the participants in the monitoring program. Also, any application used to playback television content cannot be aware that the technology is identifying content or a user&#39;s identity, as such methods may violate privacy policies. Thus, technology that determines the type of platform used to playback media must also satisfy privacy concerns. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0013]    The systems and methods described herein attempt to overcome the drawbacks discussed above by providing a system that identifies a device platform that is playing media content by using a beacon that is consistent with privacy policies of audience rating companies. The beacon may be a watermark that is added to and consistent with existing watermarks embedded into the media content. The system that generates the beacon may give advertisers, content providers, and audience rating companies valuable information regarding how much content is being consumed through alternative platforms other than a television set without requiring the content providers to embed multiple watermarks into the media content for each type of device that can playback media content. 
         [0014]    In one embodiment, a platform playback device identification system includes a computer program product, comprising a tangible computer-readable medium having computer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readable program code adapted to be executed to implement a method for identifying a platform type of a device, the method comprising: providing a system, wherein the system comprises distinct software modules, and wherein the distinct software modules comprise a secure beacon generator; receiving, by the secure beacon generator, an audio portion of media content from a content playback module; determining, by the secure beacon generator, a platform type of the device; and generating, by the secure beacon generator, a beacon for integrating with a sound wave of the audio portion of the media content, wherein the beacon includes the determined platform type of the device. 
         [0015]    In another embodiment, a platform playback device identification system, comprises a computer program product, comprising a tangible computer-readable medium having computer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readable program code adapted to be executed to implement a method for identifying a platform type of a device, the method comprising: providing a system, wherein the system comprises distinct software modules, and wherein the distinct software modules comprise a secure beacon generator; receiving, by the secure beacon generator, an audio portion of media content; determining, by the secure beacon generator, whether a content watermark is included in audio content; determining, by the secure beacon generator, a platform type of the device; generating, by the secure beacon generator, the beacon, wherein the beacon includes data that identifies the platform type of the device; checking, by the secure beacon generator, if the content watermark is embedded into the audio content at the point in time when the device generates the beacon, if the audio content contains the content watermark; embedding, by the secure beacon generator, the beacon into the audio content, if the content watermark is not currently embedded into the audio content; and outputting, by the device, the audio content that includes the embedded beacon through a speaker. 
         [0016]    In yet another embodiment, a computer program product, comprising a tangible computer-readable medium having computer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readable program code adapted to be executed to implement a method for identifying a platform type of a device, the method comprising: providing a system, wherein the system comprises distinct software modules, and wherein the distinct software modules comprise a beacon detection module; receiving, by the beacon detection module, a beacon generated from a secure beacon generator of a device, wherein the beacon includes data that identifies the platform type of the device that is emitting the audio of the media content; determining, by the beacon detection module, the platform type of the device; and generating, by the beacon detection module, a report identifying the platform type of the device that is emitting the audio of the media content. 
         [0017]    Additional features and advantages of an embodiment will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be apparent from the description. The objectives and other advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the exemplary embodiments in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings. 
         [0018]    It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0019]    The accompanying drawings constitute a part of this specification and illustrate an embodiment of the invention and together with the specification, explain the invention. 
           [0020]      FIG. 1  illustrates a technology based viewing habit monitoring method. 
           [0021]      FIG. 2  illustrates the platform playback device identification system according to an exemplary embodiment. 
           [0022]      FIG. 3  illustrates modules included in a device for the platform device identification systems according to an exemplary embodiment. 
           [0023]      FIG. 4  illustrates an anti-collision characteristic of a beacon according to an exemplary embodiment. 
           [0024]      FIG. 5  illustrates a method of emitting a beacon according to an exemplary embodiment. 
           [0025]      FIG. 6  illustrates modules included in a device the platform device identification systems according to an exemplary embodiment. 
           [0026]      FIG. 7  illustrates a method of emitting a beacon according to an exemplary embodiment. 
           [0027]      FIG. 8  illustrates a hardware implementation of the platform device identification systems according to an exemplary embodiment. 
           [0028]      FIG. 9  illustrates a method of receiving a beacon by a set meter according to an exemplary embodiment. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0029]    Various embodiments and aspects of the invention will be described with reference to details discussed below, and the accompanying drawings will illustrate the various embodiments. The following description and drawings are illustrative of the invention and are not to be construed as limiting the invention. Numerous specific details are described to provide a thorough understanding of various embodiments of the present invention. However, in certain instances, well-known or conventional details are not described in order to provide a concise discussion of embodiments of the present inventions. 
         [0030]      FIG. 2  illustrates a platform playback device identification system according to the exemplary embodiments. As shown in  FIG. 2 , content  210 , which may be a television show, a movie, music, a radio show, a video game, or any other piece of content, from a content provider is played on a device  220 . The device  220  may be any device capable of playing media content, such as a television, a gaming console, a tablet computer, a personal computer, a smart phone, or the like. The content provider can be a broadcast television network, a cable television network, a television or movie studio, or any other entity that offers audio, video, or audio and video content for the device  220 . The content may be watermarked using an audio algorithm, such as Nielsen NASE, to uniquely identify the content source (e.g., which program and/or which content provider). The watermark may further include a time/date stamp, content identification, or a unique numerical assignment, such as an entertainment identifier registry (EIDR) or an international standard audiovisual number (ISAN). The audio of the content  210  can be played through a speaker  225  of the device  220  or optionally a remote speaker coupled to the device  220 . In an embodiment where a remote speaker is used, the remote speaker can be coupled to a stereo system, a computer, or other component for amplifying sound from the device  220 . The exemplary embodiment refers to the use of the speaker  225 , which can include a speaker integrated into the device  220  or otherwise coupled to the device  220  wirelessly or with wires. 
         [0031]    A set meter  230 , which can be installed by an audience rating company, can monitor viewing habits of a target home by identifying an audio track of the content  210  from the speaker  225  using a microphone  232 . The set meter  230  can be a software module installed in the device  220 , an add-on component coupled to the device  220  such as using a USB drive, a set-top box coupled to the device, or any other hardware or software connected with wires or wirelessly to the device  220  for implementing the embodiments described herein. The set meter  230  can be a tangible computer-readable medium having computer-readable program code having modules that can be executed by a processor. 
         [0032]    The set meter  230  identifies the content  210  using either a digital watermark detection module  234  or a digital fingerprint detection module  236 . In addition, the set meter  230  receives a beacon sent from the device  220  using a beacon detection module  238 . The beacon may at least contain information that identifies a platform type of the device  220  that is playing the content  210 . The platform type can include a label such as a television, desktop computer, laptop computer, tablet computer, smart phone, gaming console, or the like. The beacon will be described in greater detail below with reference to  FIGS. 3 and 4 . 
         [0033]    The set meter  230  transmits the content identification using the watermark detection module  234  or the fingerprint detection module  236  to a server  210 , and the set meter  230  also transmits the platform identification using the beacon detection module  238  to the server  240 . The server  240  may be owned and operated by the audience rating company. The server  240  analyzes the information received from the set meter  230  and can create a report  250 . The server  240  may include one or more servers and databases that receive information over a network such as the internet, store the received information, and generate reports based upon the stored information. 
         [0034]      FIG. 3  illustrates modules included in a device  320  for the platform device identification system. The device  320  includes a content playback module  322  and a monitoring module  324 . The content playback module  322  may be a media player implemented by hardware or a software application on the device  320 . For many devices, the content playback module  322  may be integrated as part of the device&#39;s  320  operating system, and the content playback module  322  may be any multimedia framework capable of handling various formats of digital video, sound, picture, panoramic images, and interactivity. The monitoring module  324  may be implemented by hardware or a software application installed on the device  320 . The monitoring module  322  may be implemented as a software package, a mobile “app,” a firmware update, an operating system update, or any other method of updating the device to include the processes and routines of the monitoring module  324 . As described above in the background section, a meticulous installation process of a home unit is performed by professionals of the audience rating company before any data is collected. As part of the installation process, the device  320 , such as a tablet, a smart phone, a smart television, a gaming console, or the like, may have the monitoring module  324  installed by the audience rating company professionals. Alternatively, the monitoring module  324  may be a software application a user installs before any viewing habits are recorded, an additional hardware component connected to the device  320 , or a separate component that is not connected to the device  320 , yet capable of receiving media playback from the content playback module  322 . The various configurations of the monitoring module  324  will be described in greater detail below. 
         [0035]    The monitoring module  324  includes a secure beacon generator  326 . The secure beacon generator  326  generates a beacon that identifies the type of platform playing the content  310 , and for example, the type of platform may be identified as a tablet, a smart phone, a television, a gaming console, a DVD player, a computer or the like. If the content  310  includes a content watermark that identifies the content  310 , the beacon may be a second watermark that identifies the type of device  320 . Alternatively, if the content  310  is not watermarked, but instead is recognized using a fingerprint detection module, the beacon may be a first watermark to be output by the device&#39;s speaker  325 . Additionally, the beacon may be another wired or wireless signal that is configured to identify the platform of the device  320 . The secure beacon generator  326  receives the audio of the content  310  and generates the beacon at appropriate points in time. For example, if the content playback module  322  is paused, the secure beacon generator  326  may not output the beacon. As a further example, the secure beacon generator  326  outputs the beacon when the audio of the content  310  is at a certain sound level or when the audio of the content  310  is a certain sound type so that the beacon cannot be heard by a human ear. 
         [0036]    The sound of the content  310 , which may include a sub-audible watermark identifying the content  310 , such as Nielsen NASE, an entertainment identifier registry (EIDR), or an international standard audiovisual number (ISAN), is sent from the content playback module  322  to an audio summing module  328 , and the beacon is sent from the secure beacon generator  326  to the audio summing module  328 . The audio summing module  328  may be a module included in the monitoring module  324 , or the audio summing module  328  may be an audio generating driver included as part of the operating system of the device  320 , or the audio summing module  328  may be an additional piece of hardware connected between the device  320  and the speaker  325 . In general, the audio summing module  328  includes a combination of a processor, pre-amplifier, amplifiers, stereo balance, equalizer, or the like. The audio summing module  328  mixes the beacon with the audio from the content  310  received from the content playback module  322 , which may include a watermark identifying the content  310 . In other words, the audio summing device  328  can embed the beacon into the audio signal of the content  310 . The speaker  325  outputs the audio of the content  310  and the beacon as sound waves. The beacon, like other conventional watermarks, is sub-audible. Thus, the addition of the beacon signal in the sound wave emitted from the speaker  325  does not distort the audio of the content  310  if the beacon is emitted at an appropriate time, such as when the audio of the content  310  is not silence. However, the microphone  232  of the set meter  230  is configured to detect and receive the beacon, and a beacon detection module  238  is configured to decode the information included in the beacon. It is to be noted that because the beacon is a watermark, the beacon detection module  238  may be unnecessary because the watermark detection module is capable of decoding any watermark, including the beacon. However, the beacon detection module is illustrated as a separate module for illustration purposes. 
         [0037]    If the content  310  contains a content watermark identifying the content  310 , the beacon is set to not collide with or disrupt the output of the content watermark, as described in more detail in  FIG. 4 . More specifically, the secure beacon generator  326  does not output the beacon at the same time as the content watermark. If the content watermark and the beacon are output at the same time, the first watermark and/or the beacon may be distorted. For example, the content  310  may include a content watermark that is output through the speaker  325  periodically. The secure beacon generator  326  receives the audio of the content  310  and listens for the watermark of the content  310 . In other words, the secure beacon generator  326  determines if the content watermark is being output by the speaker  325  at any given time. In one embodiment, the secure beacon generator  326  may wait for the first watermark to finish outputting through the speaker  325  and subsequently output the beacon. In another embodiment, the beacon may be output at regular intervals that are between intervals when the content watermark is output. So the beacon can be output through the device&#39;s speaker  325  between periods of time or pulses when the content watermark is output through the speaker  325 . Preferably, the beacon is output immediately after the content watermark is output because the audio of the content  310  at the time immediately following the output of the watermark is likely still an appropriate sound level or sound type for outputting watermarks. 
         [0038]    The anti-collision characteristic is illustrated in  FIGS. 4A ,  4 B, and  4 C.  FIG. 4A  illustrates an audio sound wave  410 .  FIG. 4B  illustrates the audio sound wave  410  including a content watermark  420 , which is illustrated as a solid line. As shown, the content watermark  420  is output at periodically. While the content watermark  420  is illustrated as a line, this is for illustration purposes only, and the content watermark is actually a signal that is part of the sound wave  410 . In the illustration of  FIG. 4B , the content watermark  420  is embedded into the sound wave  410  at regular periods to provide information about the content. This is for illustration purposes only, and the content watermark  420  may not be output regularly.  FIG. 4C  illustrates the audio sound wave  410  including the content watermark  420  and a beacon  430 , which is illustrated as a dashed line. Like the content watermark  420 , the beacon  430  may also be output at regular periods, but the beacon is not limited to being output at regular periods. Also like the content watermark  420 , the beacon  430  is actually a signal embedded into the sound wave  410 . As can been seen, the content watermark  420  and the beacon  430  are output at different points in time, and the beacon  430  may be output between two consecutive content watermark “pulses.” Also, as noted above, the beacon  430  and the content watermark  420  may not be periodically output at all times because the sound track of the content  410  may not always be at an appropriate sound level or sound type for watermarking. For example, during a prolonged silence in the sound track of the content  410 , no watermarks may be output during the prolonged silence. 
         [0039]    Referring again to  FIG. 3 , if the content  310  does not contain a watermark, and fingerprinting technology is used by the set meter  230  to identify the content  310 , the timing of the beacon does not matter because of the nature of fingerprinting technology. Fingerprinting technology identifies content by analyzing a predetermined amount of sound. The timing and frequency of the beacon has no effect on fingerprinting identification. Thus, if no watermark is included in the content  310 , the secure beacon generator  326  may periodically output the beacon without any restrictions other than those inherently imposed by the sound track of the content  310 . 
         [0040]    The information included in the beacon may include any information useful in determining the platform playing the content  310 . For example, the secure beacon generator  326  may include a manufacturer&#39;s serial number of the device. The serial number could be used by the beacon detection module to determine the type of device playing the content  310 . Alternatively, the beacon could include a user-set parameter, such as the name given to the device when the device was first activated by the user. In another embodiment, the professionals who install the home unit may identify the device  320  and program the type of device into the secure beacon generator  326 . In yet another embodiment, the secure beacon generator  326  may be able to look into the device&#39;s memory and determine the type of device using the information gathered from the device&#39;s memory. Those skilled in the art will recognize that the secure beacon generator  326  may determine the device&#39;s type in a plurality of methods, and any method that determines the device&#39;s type may be included in the scope of the exemplary embodiments to determine the type of device. 
         [0041]    The device platform type reported by the beacon may be general or specific. For example, the beacon may generally report that the device  320  is a tablet computer. The beacon may also be more specific, such as by listing a manufacturer and model of the tablet (for example, the beacon may report the device is an Apple® iPad®). Even more specifically, the beacon may report a model generation (for example, the beacon my report that the device is an Apple® iPad 2®). As described above, the beacon may even report the device&#39;s serial number or a UPC number. Any information that describes the device&#39;s type may be included within the scope of the exemplary embodiments. 
         [0042]    A method of the configuration of the platform playback device identification system of  FIG. 3  is shown in  FIG. 5 . Referring to  FIG. 5 , in step  510 , the monitoring module  324  receives the audio of the content  310  from the content playback module  322 . In step  520 , the secure beacon generator  326  generates the beacon. In step  525 , the monitoring module  324  determines the platform type. In step  530 , the monitoring module  324  analyzes the audio of the content  310  to determine if a watermark is currently being output. If in step  540  the monitoring module  324  determines that no watermark is currently present in the content  310 , the method  500  continues to step  550 . If a watermark is present, the method  500  repeats step  540  until no watermark is detected by the monitoring module  324 . In step  550 , the audio summing module  328  embeds the beacon into the audio of the content  310 . The audio summing module sends the audio of the content  310  including the embedded beacon to the speaker to output the beacon in step  560 . 
         [0043]    As shown in  FIG. 3 , the secure beacon generator is part of the monitoring module  324 , which is separate from the content playback module  322 . As a result, the content playback module  322  may not be aware that the secure beacon generator  326  is identifying the device  320  playing the content  310 . For example, the secure beacon generator  326  may run in the background while the content playback module  322  plays the content  310 . Because the content playback module  322  is unaware of the actions of the secure beacon generator  326 , the audience rating company&#39;s secrecy and privacy requirements may be met. 
         [0044]      FIG. 6  illustrates the modules included in a device  620  according to another exemplary embodiment. The watermarked content  610  is played using a content playback module  622 . A monitoring module  624  is also included in the device  620 . The sound of the content  610 , which may include a content watermark, is output to an audio summing module  628 . A secure beacon generator  626 , which is included in the monitoring module  624 , may output a beacon to the audio summing module  628 . The summing device is configured to embed the beacon into the audio of the content  610 , which may include a content watermark. The sound of the content  610  and the beacon is output to the speaker  625 . However, in the embodiment of  FIG. 6 , the secure beacon generator  626  is also connected to a wireless antenna  630 . The wireless antenna  630  may be connected to Wi-Fi, 3G, 4G, EDGE, or any other local area or wide area wireless network. Alternatively, the device  620  may be connected through a wired connection, such as Ethernet, USB, or the like. The secure beacon generator  626  transmits the beacon through either the speaker  625  or the wireless antenna  630  depending on the location or status of the device  620 . For example, if the device  620  is a smart phone, the device  620  may not be close enough to the set meter to transmit the beacon audibly. Instead, the secure beacon generator  626  sends the beacon over the network that the wireless antenna  630  is connected to. Alternatively, the secure beacon generator  626  may use the wireless antenna  630  to determine whether the device  620  is connected to or within range of the set meter. If the device  620  is not connected to set meter, the device  620  may cache the beacon until the set meter can receive the beacon. In this exemplary embodiment, content  610  consumed while on the go or away from home can also be monitored by the audience rating company. 
         [0045]    Information received from the wireless antenna  630  may be included in the information of the beacon. For example, the device  620  may be configured to determine a location of the device  620  and a time of day using information received by the wireless antenna  630 . The location, time, etc. may be included in the beacon. 
         [0046]    The monitoring module  624  may include additional features that gather additional information about the device  620  that can be reported through the beacon. For example, the monitoring module  624  may be able to determine a state of the device  620 , such as an orientation of the device  620 , if the device  620  is equipped with an accelerometer, whether headphones are used to listen to the audio of the content  610 , the location of the device  620 , if the device  620  includes location determining hardware or to what wireless network the device  620  is connected, if the device  620  includes a wireless antenna. Further, the monitoring module  624  may be able to report a status of the content playback module  622 , such as whether the content  610  is paused, whether the playback is continuous, and whether a user has used a fast forward or rewind function. Any such information about the device  620  or the playback of the content  610  may be included in the beacon. 
         [0047]    The monitoring module  624  may also be able to determine biometric information about a viewer watching the content  610 . For example, the monitoring module  624  may determine which viewer in the target home is watching the content  610  when the content playback module  622  begins to play the content  610 . The monitoring module  624  may use facial recognition or fingerprint recognition to determine the biometric data. Once the viewer is recognized, the secure beacon generator  626  may report which viewer is watching the content  610  by including such information in the beacon. Viewer recognition and determination may be useful in demographic statistics gathering. 
         [0048]    A method of the configuration of the platform playback device identification system of  FIG. 6  is shown in  FIG. 7 . Referring to  FIG. 7 , in step  710 , a monitoring module receives the audio of the content from the content playback module. In step  720 , a secure beacon generator generates a beacon. In step  725 , the monitoring module determines a platform type. In step  730 , the monitoring module analyzes the audio of the content to determine if a watermark is currently being output. If in step  740 , the monitoring module determines that no watermark is currently present in the content, the method  700  continues to step  750 . If a watermark is present, the method  700  repeats step  740  until no watermark is detected by the monitoring module. In step  750 , the monitoring module determines the location of the device, which may be using a wireless antenna, a GPS system, accessing the memory, user prompt, or any other method to determine the location of the device. In step  760 , the monitoring module determines if the device, is near the set meter using the location determined in step  750 . If the device is within a designated range, the audio summing module embeds the beacon into the audio of the content in step  770  and outputs the audio of the content including the embedded beacon through the speaker in step  760 . If the monitoring module determines the device is not within the designated range in step  760 , the monitoring module outputs the beacon through the wireless antenna  790 . In another embodiment, if the device is not within the designated range, the monitoring module stores the beacon in memory and outputs the beacon when the device is determined to be within the designated range. 
         [0049]    The monitoring module  624  may be included as software installed on a device  620 . The software may be installed as an application (or “app”) on a smart phone, tablet computer, gaming console, digital media receiver, personal computer, or other device such as a smart TV that allows installation and use of applications. The monitoring module  624  may also be included in a firmware update for any device. 
         [0050]    However, not all device that are capable of presenting content are able to be easily updated with a simple software application or firmware update.  FIG. 8  illustrates an example of a separate piece of hardware acting as the monitoring module. Referring to  FIG. 8 , content  810  is played on a device  820  through a content playback module  822  and the audio of the content  810  is output through the speaker  825 . Monitoring hardware  830 , which may or may not be connected to the device  820 , includes a microphone  832 , a secure beacon generator  834 , and another speaker  835 . The microphone  832  receives the audio of the content  810  emitted from the speaker  825  of the device  820 . The secure beacon generator  834  receives the audio from the microphone  832 , checks for watermarks in the content  810 , and generates a beacon. The beacon is output through the speaker  835  of the monitoring hardware  830  This hardware monitoring module  830  may be an option for older televisions that cannot download additional software. 
         [0051]    Finally, if a device cannot be updated with a firmware or software monitoring module  624 , the set meter  230  may presume that if no beacon is received, the device that could not be updated is the device playing the content  610 . Although, this solution may not be preferable if more than one device cannot be updated with the monitoring module  624 . 
         [0052]      FIG. 9  illustrates a method of receiving the beacon by the set meter  230  according to an exemplary embodiment. Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 9 , after the beacon has been output by a speaker  225  of the a device  220  or a wireless antenna of the device  230 , the set meter  230  receives the beacon through the microphone in step  910 . If the beacon is not sent audibly, the set meter  230  may receive the beacon through a network, such as the Internet, LAN, WAN, or any other type of network. The set meter  230  determines the type of platform watching content  210  in step  920 . The beacon detection module  238  may be configured to decode the beacon to determine all the information contain in the beacon. The beacon detection module  238  may decode the platform type as well as all the other information that may also be included in the beacon such as biometric data, location data, device status data, and all the other things discussed above. After the device platform has been determined in step  920 , the set meter generates a report in step  930  that includes the device platform used to playback the content  210 . 
         [0053]    The exemplary embodiments can include one or more computer programs that embody the functions described herein and illustrated in the appended flow charts. However, it should be apparent that there could be many different ways of implementing aspects of the exemplary embodiments in computer programming, and these aspects should not be construed as limited to one set of computer instructions. One or more acts described herein may be performed by hardware, software, or a combination thereof, as may be embodied in one or more computing systems. 
         [0054]    The functionality described herein can be implemented by numerous modules or components that can perform one or multiple functions. Each module or component can be executed by a computer, such as a server, having a non-transitory computer-readable medium and processor. In one alternative, multiple computers may be necessary to implement the functionality of one module or component. 
         [0055]    Unless specifically stated otherwise as apparent from the following discussion, it is appreciated that throughout the description, discussions utilizing terms such as “providing” or “receiving” or “generating” or “processing” or “computing” or “calculating” or “determining” or “displaying” or “checking” or “embedding” or “outputting” or the like, can refer to the action and processes of a data processing system, or similar electronic device, that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical (electronic) quantities within the system&#39;s registers and memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the system&#39;s memories or registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices. 
         [0056]    The exemplary embodiments can relate to an apparatus for performing one or more of the functions described herein. This apparatus may be specially constructed for the required purposes, or it may comprise a general purpose computer selectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program stored in the computer. Such a computer program may be stored in a machine (e.g. computer) readable storage medium, such as, but is not limited to, any type of disk including floppy disks, optical disks, CD-ROMs and magnetic-optical disks, read only memories (ROMs), random access memories (RAMs) erasable programmable ROMs (EPROMs), electrically erasable programmable ROMs (EEPROMs), magnetic or optical cards, or any type of media suitable for storing electronic instructions, and each coupled to a bus. 
         [0057]    The exemplary embodiments described herein are described as software executed on at least one server, though it is understood that embodiments can be configured in other ways and retain functionality. The embodiments can be implemented on known devices such as a personal computer, a special purpose computer, cellular telephone, personal digital assistant (“PDA”), a digital camera, a digital tablet, an electronic gaming system, a programmed microprocessor or microcontroller and peripheral integrated circuit element(s), and ASIC or other integrated circuit, a digital signal processor, a hard-wired electronic or logic circuit such as a discrete element circuit, a programmable logic device such as a PLD, PLA, FPGA, PAL, or the like. In general, any device capable of implementing the processes described herein can be used to implement the systems and techniques according to this invention. 
         [0058]    It is to be appreciated that the various components of the technology can be located at distant portions of a distributed network and/or the Internet, or within a dedicated secure, unsecured and/or encrypted system. Thus, it should be appreciated that the components of the system can be combined into one or more devices or co-located on a particular node of a distributed network, such as a telecommunications network. As will be appreciated from the description, and for reasons of computational efficiency, the components of the system can be arranged at any location within a distributed network without affecting the operation of the system. Moreover, the components could be embedded in a dedicated machine. 
         [0059]    Furthermore, it should be appreciated that the various links connecting the elements can be wired or wireless links, or any combination thereof, or any other known or later developed element(s) that is capable of supplying and/or communicating data to and from the connected elements. The term module as used herein can refer to any known or later developed hardware, software, firmware, or combination thereof that is capable of performing the functionality associated with that element. The terms determine, calculate and compute, and variations thereof, as used herein are used interchangeably and include any type of methodology, process, mathematical operation or technique. 
         [0060]    The embodiments described above are intended to be exemplary. One skilled in the art recognizes that numerous alternative components and embodiments that may be substituted for the particular examples described herein and still fall within the scope of the invention.