Marketing data communication control

Marketing data communication control techniques and systems are described. A digital environment is described in which a plurality of devices are configured to communicate marketing data to one or more of a plurality of marketing services. One or more inputs are received that are entered by a user through interaction with the single unified user interface of the computing device, the one or more inputs specifying marketing data communication settings to control communication of marketing data per individual ones of the plurality of devices and per individual ones of the plurality of marketing data collection services. The marketing data communication settings are propagated by the computing device to respective ones of the plurality of devices, the propagated marketing data communication settings configured to control communication of marketing data by the respective said devices to respective ones of the plurality of marketing data collection services.

BACKGROUND

With the advent of the Internet of Things (IoT), the amount of devices available to users in even everyday scenarios has exploded. In one example, the prevalence of wearable devices continues to increase with the development of watches, fitness bands, shoe pods, and so forth. In other examples, this technology has also continued to expand across home appliances (e.g., thermostats, refrigerators, heating vents, coffee makers), automobiles, televisions, and so on.

Thus, todays users are confronted with a digital environment having a multitude of devices that are configured to expand user functionality and convenience. Further, each of these devices may collect a variety of data that is then disseminated, often without user control.

SUMMARY

Marketing data communication control techniques and systems are described. In one or more implementations, a digital environment is described in which a plurality of devices are configured to communicate marketing data to one or more of a plurality of marketing services. In this digital environment, a method of controlling marketing data communication via a single unified user interface of a computing device is described. One or more inputs are received that are entered by a user through interaction with the single unified user interface of the computing device, the one or more inputs specifying marketing data communication settings to control communication of marketing data per individual ones of the plurality of devices and per individual ones of the plurality of marketing data collection services. The marketing data communication settings are propagated by the computing device to respective ones of the plurality of devices, the propagated marketing data communication settings configured to control communication of marketing data by the respective devices to respective ones of the plurality of marketing data collection services.

In one or more implementations, in a digital environment to control marketing data communication via a single unified user interface, a system includes a display device, a wireless communication device, and a processing system and memory configured to implement a marketing data manager module. The marketing data manager module is configured to receive one or more inputs entered by a user through interaction with the single unified user interface displayed on the display device, the one or more inputs specifying marketing data communication settings to control communication of individual ones of a plurality of different types of marketing data per individual ones of a plurality of devices that are communicatively coupled via the wireless communication device. The module is also configured to propagate the marketing data communication settings by the wireless communication device to respective ones of the plurality of devices. The propagated marketing data communication settings are configured to control communication of marketing data by the respective devices to respective ones of a plurality of marketing data collection services.

In one or more implementations, in a digital environment to control marketing data communication, a method includes transmitting a communication by a device for receipt by a computing device to opt-in to functionality of the computing device to control communication of marketing data by the device that is collected by the device. The method as includes receiving marketing data communication settings by the device that are propagated by the computing device, the marketing data communication settings configured to control communication of individual types of the marketing data by the device to respective ones of a plurality of marketing data collection services.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Overview

The continuing increase in devices in digital environments as a result of the Internet of Things, including wearable technology and home electronics has resulted in a corresponding increase in an amount of marketing data being collected and communicated by the devices within the digital environment. This data may contain personal information, heuristics about an environment in which the device is used (e.g., power usage, number of eggs within a refrigerator, when a user is home) and other information that is typically considered confidential to a user.

Accordingly, this digital environment may collect marketing data that describes user interaction with the device, operation of the device itself, and so forth. This marketing data is typically collected and reported back to the user (e.g., a number of steps taken), but may also be obtained by marketing data collection services, such as to inform a user that it a good time to order new shoes. With both the diversity of devices and the type of marketing data being collected, however, these users lack an ability to determine and control which marketing data is collected and communicated, which may seem intrusive to users and thus cause users to forgo use of these devices or avail themselves of functionality supported through communication of this data.

Although some devices support an ability to restrict communication of this data, such restrictions are limited to use by the individual devices and are also configured specifically for those devices. Accordingly, even if a user is able to determine that a device includes an ability to restrict this communication, the user is forced to manually learn the nuances of implementation of this functionality for individual devices, which is time consuming, frustrating, and limits a user's experience with a digital environment that includes such devices. Further complicating this process is that in some instances a user may actually desire to have this information communicated.

Marketing data communication control techniques and systems within a digital environment are described. In one or more implementations, a single unified user interface is provided via which a user may control communication of which marketing data is communicated by which devices in the digital environment. These control techniques include specification of which types of marketing data (e.g., personal information, usage information) are permitted or restricted from communication by individual devices to individual marketing data collection services.

Marketing data may vary based on differences in functionality of devices that generate the data. As such, marketing data may include different types of data, such as data describing user interaction with the device, data describing operation of the device, data describing interaction with other devices in the digital environment, and so on. Marketing data may also include types of data that are considered confidential to a user, such as information that describes user interaction with devices (e.g., where and how much such as steps), personally identifiable information (e.g., user name, account information), and so forth.

The marketing data is then leveraged in a variety of ways, which includes exposure to a user as well as third parties that are referred to as marketing data collection services described herein. The marketing data collection services are configurable to consume marketing data in a variety of different ways. For example, a running shoe configured as part of the Internet-of-Things may be configured to collect marketing data describing usage of the shoe, e.g., number of steps, timing of the steps. A marketing data collection service associated with a manufacturer of the shoe may use the marketing data to serve ads for other shoes, suggest when to buy a new shoe, and so forth. On the other hand, a marketing data collection service associated with a fitness website may be used to track workouts. Accordingly, through interaction with the single unified user interface a user may control communication such that communication of the marketing data is permitted for the fitness website but restricted from communication to the manufacturer. In this way, a user may receive feedback as desired and have an ability to control communication of this data which was not possible using conventional systems as further described below.

The digital environment described herein may also include functionality to ascertain which marketing data control functionality is supported by individual devices and a determination of which devices have opted-in to control via the single unified user interface. In this way, a user may interact with a single user interface to permit and restrict communication of marketing data as desired without individual manual interaction with each of the devices and without learning nuances of how this functionality is implemented by each of the devices, thereby improving user interaction and desirability of the devices as a whole. Further discussion of these and other examples is included in the following sections and shown in corresponding figures.

In the following, marketing data describes data collected by devices as part of the internet-of-things and which is then disseminated to marketing services. The types of marketing data may thus vary as greatly as the devices used to generate the data, such as usage data that describes a user's interaction with the device, operational data that describes operation of the device itself (e.g., power levels, positional data), and so forth. Marketing data collection services collect and consume this marketing data for a variety of purposes, such as to serve ads, suggest replacement devices, servicing of the devices, and so on through a network connection between the device and the service. The single unified interface is an interface that may be output by any one of the devices within the digital environment that is usable to control dissemination of marketing data by the device as well as other devices in the environment.

Example Environment

FIG. 1is an illustration of a digital environment100in an example implementation that is operable to employ marketing data control techniques described herein. The illustrated environment100includes a computing device102, which may be configured in a variety of ways along with devices included as part of a digital environment at a single premises such as a household, work location, and so on as further described in relation toFIG. 2.

The computing device102, for instance, may be configured as a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a mobile device (e.g., assuming a handheld configuration such as a tablet or mobile phone as illustrated), and so forth. Thus, the computing device102may range from full resource devices with substantial memory and processor resources (e.g., personal computers, game consoles) to a low-resource device with limited memory and/or processing resources (e.g., mobile devices). Additionally, although a single computing device102is shown, the computing device102may be representative of a plurality of different devices, such as multiple servers utilized by a business to perform operations “over the cloud” as further described in relation toFIG. 7.

The computing device102is illustrated as included with a variety of devices within the digital environment100as part of the Internet-of-Things (IoT). The Internet-of-Things describes a digital environment having a plurality of devices with connectivity (e.g., network functionality such as wired or wireless communication devices) to communicate data for receipt by a user or other devices. This allows communication of information to support sensing and control of objects, thereby creating opportunities for integration between a physical environment and these devices. This is used to support functionality to improve efficiency, accuracy, and aide device manufacturers as well as users of the devices.

Illustrated examples of devices as part of this digital environment include communication devices such as a wireless router112and wired modem114, e.g., a cable modem, DSL modem, satellite modem, and so forth. Additional examples of devices include content consumptive devices such as a television116and game console118. Wearable devices are also included as part of the digital environment100such as glasses120and watches122. Traditional personal computers are included such as a laptop124or desktop PC. Content capture devices such as a microphone or camera126are also part of this digital environment100, as well as mobile communication devices such as tablet computers or mobile phones128. Appliances are also included such as washing machines, refrigerators, coffee makers, vents, thermostats130, and so forth. Other examples are contemplated and thus, as is readily apparent, a digital environment100of a typical user's home, work location, and so on may include a multitude of devices supporting a variety of functionality.

As described above, part of the provision of functionality within this digital environment100involves communication of data, such as to a user of the device directly, to other devices within a premises of the digital environment100, and also “outside” of the premises such as over the network106. This data includes marketing data that is collected by marketing data collection services108,110to support a variety of functionality within the digital environment100as described in the Overview. Examples of the functionality include suggestions and recommendations (e.g., for content to be consumed), marketing and advertising, and so on. As such, marketing data may also include data that is considered confidential to a user, such as information that describes user interaction with devices (e.g., where and how much such as steps), personally identifiable information (e.g., user name, account information), and so forth.

The digital environment100as illustrated includes a marketing data manager module104. The marketing data manager module104is representative of functionality (e.g., implemented at least partially in hardware of one or more devices as further described in relation toFIG. 7) to control communication of marketing data by the devices within the digital environment100. The marketing data manager module104is configured to implement a single unified user interface132via which a user may interact to control communication of individual types of marketing data by individual ones of the plurality of devices to individual ones of a plurality of marketing data collection services108,110. In this way, rather than forcing a user to individually interact with each of the devices and to learn which functionality, if any, is supported by the devices to control communication of this data, the user instead interacts with the user interface132and has a result of that interaction propagated through the digital environment100as marketing data communication settings. Further discussion of marketing data communication control is included in the following and shown in corresponding figures.

FIG. 2depicts a system200including devices included in the digital environment100ofFIG. 1showing examples of arrangement of communication of marketing data by the devices. In this example, a premises202(e.g., a physical geographic location such as a house, retail establishment, or office) is shown that includes computing devices selected fromFIG. 1that include the wireless router112, mobile phone128, and thermostat130. Each of these devices in this example includes communication functionality204,206that is usable to generate and communicate marketing data by the respective device. In one example, the thermostat130is configured to communicate with the network106via the wireless router112. Communication independent from the wireless router112may also be performed in the premises202, such as by the mobile phone128directly with the network106.

The mobile phone128is illustrated as including the marketing data manager module208, although any of the devices in this system200and even in the digital environment100ofFIG. 1may include this functionality. A user in this example interacts with the user interface132of the marketing data manager module104to control communication of marketing data by the mobile phone128.

Interaction with the user interface132may also be used to control communication of marketing data by the wireless router112and thermostat130, either directly or indirectly. In one example, communication functionality206of the thermostat104in one instance supports control of marketing data communication by the device, such as where this data is sent and what types of data, e.g., temperature versus when a presence is detected. Accordingly, in this example the marketing data manager module104communicates marketing data communication settings directly to the thermostat130to implement desired control, e.g., to permit communication of types of marketing data such as temperature and time but not types of marketing data indicating when a user's presence is detected by the device.

In another example, the thermostat130is not configured to support this type of control, but rather automatically communicates the data through a wireless router112. Accordingly, in this instance the mobile phone128communicates marketing data communication settings to the wireless router112that identifies the individual device (e.g., the thermostat) that originates the marketing data to be controlled as well types of marketing data that are permitted or restricted from communication, e.g., temperature versus presence information. Thus, the user interface132may be used to control communication of marketing data directly or indirectly within a digital environment. This control may also be configured to support different levels of granularity, such as to indicate individual devices, individual types of marketing data that are permitted or restricted by the individual devices, as well as locations that are permitted or restricted from receiving this information as further described in the following regarding user interaction with the user interface132.

FIG. 3depicts an example300of the user interface132ofFIG. 2that is configured to specify individual devices, communication of individual types of marketing data, and destinations of the marketing data that are permitted or restricted. In this example the user interface132includes an option302to block all data uploads for all devices302. Therefore, each device identified by the computing device102or that has “opted in” as further described below is set to block communication of all marketing data.

The user interface132also includes options to permit or restrict communication of marketing data by individual ones of a plurality of computing devices, illustrated examples of which include a refrigerator304, thermostat306, and running shoes308. The user interface132includes options for each of these devices to permit all310,312,314communication of marketing data, individually. Likewise, the user interface132also includes options for each of these devices to restrict all316,318,320communication of marketing data, individually. Thus, a user may select an option to permit all310marketing data communication for the refrigerator310but restrict all318communication of marketing data for the thermostat306.

The user interface132also includes options to permit or restrict communication of the marketing data “by destination”322,324,326for individual devices or globally for all devices, e.g., to particular marketing data collection services108,110. For example, there may be instances in which a user does desire that the marketing data be communicated to a particular marketing data collection service108for the running shoes308, such as an online fitness website, yet restrict this communication for another marketing data collection service110, e.g., an online retailer as describe above. To do so, a user may select the retailers from a drop-down menu output in response to selection of the by destination326option.

The user interface132further includes options to permit or restrict communication of the marketing data “by type”328,330,332for individual devices and/or globally for all devices. A variety of different types of marketing data may be defined, such as personally identifiable data, data that describes user interaction with a respective device, operational data of the device, estimated remained usage available of the device (e.g., shoes based on miles run), geographic location of the device, data describing other devices that are in communication with the device, and so on. This data may vary as greatly as the functionality supported by the devices and thus a multitude of other types of marketing data are also contemplated.

Hierarchical and/or joint relationships may also be supported, such that a user may restrict individual types of marketing data to individual marketing data collection services for devices. Thus, the user interface132may be configured to receive inputs from a user to specify marketing data communication settings that may be used to control communication of marketing based on individual device, individual type of marketing data, and/or individual destination for the marketing data. The marketing data communication settings specified through interaction with the user interface132are then propagated to devices, further discussion of which is included in the following and shown in corresponding figures.

FIG. 4depicts a system400in an example implementation in which a result of user interact with the single unified user interface ofFIG. 3is propagated to other devices to control communication of marketing data. This system400is illustrated using first, second, and third stages402,404,406. At the first stage402marketing data communication settings408are set through interaction by a user with the user interface132as described in relation toFIG. 3. To do so, the marketing data manager module104first locates devices that have marketing data to be controlled, which is performable in a variety of ways.

The marketing data manager module104, for instance, may wirelessly “ping” other devices to locate the devices as part of an active discovery phase. In another instance, each of the devices may “opt-in” either manually through user interaction or automatically and without user interaction, such as to wirelessly communicate an identifier that is received by the marketing data manager module104.

Regardless of what technique is used for discovery, a handshake process may be performed in which the marketing data manager module104determines what functionality, if any, is supported by the individual device to control marketing data communication. In one example, a manufacturer of the thermostat130includes a flag that is set to permit or restrict communication of marketing data generated by the thermostat130to the manufacturer. In response to this determination, the marketing data manager module104configures the user interface132to have an option to set this flag and thus takes advantage of functionality of the device itself without requiring the user to manually interact with the device, thereby increasing ease of use and unified control. A variety of other examples are also contemplated.

At the second stage404, the marketing data communication settings are communicated via an API410of the marketing data manager module104to an API412of the communication functionality206of the thermostat130, such as to set the flag as described in the above example. The thermostat130then employs the marketing data communication settings408to control communication of marketing data with the network106without communication of this data through the computing device102. Other examples are also contemplated in which this data is communicated through the device, such as for control via the wireless router112example described in relation toFIG. 2.

Thus, the examples above describe a single unified user interface via which a user can specify control of types of marketing data by individual devices to individual marketing data collection services. In this way, a user may interact with the user interface to control devices within the digital environment100without requiring manual interaction with each of the devices or learning control techniques that are particular to the devices. Further discussion of these and other examples is included in the following procedure description.

Example Procedures

FIG. 5depicts a procedure500in an example implementation in which techniques to control communication of marketing data are described. A digital environment is described in which a plurality of devices are configured to communicate marketing data to one or more of a plurality of marketing services. In this digital environment, marketing data communication is controlled via a single unified user interface of a computing device. One or more inputs are received that are entered by a user through interaction with the single unified user interface of the computing device. The one or more inputs specify marketing data communication settings to control communication of marketing data per individual ones of the plurality of devices and per individual ones of the plurality of marketing data collection services (block502).

A user, for instance, interacts with the user interface132ofFIG. 3to specify that a type of marketing data that describes inventory of a refrigerator is permitted to be sent to an online grocer but not elsewhere through use of “by type”328and “by destination”322options in the user interface132associated with the refrigerator304. The user also specifies that a type of marketing data that describes temperature settings is permitted to be sent to a manufacturer of the device but not data that describes when presence of a user is detected through use of “by type”330and “by destination”324options in the user interface132associated with the thermostat306.

The marketing data communication settings are propagated by the computing device to respective ones of the plurality of devices. The propagated marketing data communication settings are configured to control communication of marketing data by the respective devices to respective ones of the plurality of marketing data collection services (block504). The marketing data manger module104, for instance, then communicates marketing data communication settings408to the respective devices, e.g., the refrigerator and the thermostat130wirelessly. These devices are then configured to control communication of the marketing data without further interaction with the computing device102that originated the settings, thereby supporting self-reliance and robustness in operation of the devices.

FIG. 6depicts another procedure600in an example implementation in which techniques to control communication of marketing data are described. As before, a digital environment is configured to control marketing data communication. A communication is transmitted by a device for receipt by a computing device to opt-in to functionality of the computing device to control communication of marketing data by the device that is collected by the device (block602). A user, for instance, may install the thermostat130at a premises202such that the thermostat130is operational. The thermostat130then broadcasts an identifier periodically to other devices that is discoverable by the devices for inclusion as part of the marketing data communication control techniques described. In another instance, the opt-in is performed responsive to receipt of a communication from the marketing data manager module104, which a user may then select to include the device as part of the system.

Marketing data communication settings are received by the device that are propagated by the computing device, the marketing data communication settings configured to control communication of individual types of the marketing data by the device to respective ones of a plurality of marketing data collection services (block604). As described in relation toFIG. 5, user interaction with the user interface132is used to specify marketing data communication settings that are then used by the device to control marketing data communication. This may be used to control marketing data originated by the device itself or “passed through” from another device, such as part of the wireless router112example ofFIG. 2. A variety of other examples are also contemplated.

Example System and Device

FIG. 7illustrates an example system generally at700that includes an example computing device702that is representative of one or more computing systems and/or devices that may implement the various techniques described herein. This is illustrated through inclusion of the marketing data manager module104. The computing device702may be, for example, a server of a service provider, a device associated with a client (e.g., a client device), an on-chip system, and/or any other suitable computing device or computing system.

The example computing device702as illustrated includes a processing system704, one or more computer-readable media706, and one or more I/O interface708that are communicatively coupled, one to another. Although not shown, the computing device702may further include a system bus or other data and command transfer system that couples the various components, one to another. A system bus can include any one or combination of different bus structures, such as a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, a universal serial bus, and/or a processor or local bus that utilizes any of a variety of bus architectures. A variety of other examples are also contemplated, such as control and data lines.

The computer-readable storage media706is illustrated as including memory/storage712. The memory/storage712represents memory/storage capacity associated with one or more computer-readable media. The memory/storage component712may include volatile media (such as random access memory (RAM)) and/or nonvolatile media (such as read only memory (ROM), Flash memory, optical disks, magnetic disks, and so forth). The memory/storage component712may include fixed media (e.g., RAM, ROM, a fixed hard drive, and so on) as well as removable media (e.g., Flash memory, a removable hard drive, an optical disc, and so forth). The computer-readable media706may be configured in a variety of other ways as further described below.

Combinations of the foregoing may also be employed to implement various techniques described herein. Accordingly, software, hardware, or executable modules may be implemented as one or more instructions and/or logic embodied on some form of computer-readable storage media and/or by one or more hardware elements710. The computing device702may be configured to implement particular instructions and/or functions corresponding to the software and/or hardware modules. Accordingly, implementation of a module that is executable by the computing device702as software may be achieved at least partially in hardware, e.g., through use of computer-readable storage media and/or hardware elements710of the processing system704. The instructions and/or functions may be executable/operable by one or more articles of manufacture (for example, one or more computing devices702and/or processing systems704) to implement techniques, modules, and examples described herein.

The cloud714includes and/or is representative of a platform716for resources718. The platform716abstracts underlying functionality of hardware (e.g., servers) and software resources of the cloud714. The resources718may include applications and/or data that can be utilized while computer processing is executed on servers that are remote from the computing device702. Resources718can also include services provided over the Internet and/or through a subscriber network, such as a cellular or Wi-Fi network.

The platform716may abstract resources and functions to connect the computing device702with other computing devices. The platform716may also serve to abstract scaling of resources to provide a corresponding level of scale to encountered demand for the resources718that are implemented via the platform716. Accordingly, in an interconnected device embodiment, implementation of functionality described herein may be distributed throughout the system700. For example, the functionality may be implemented in part on the computing device702as well as via the platform716that abstracts the functionality of the cloud714.

CONCLUSION