Abstract:
The system provides an Internet-based site accessible by customers and broadcasters for tracking the airing of their advertisements. The system includes a software package for creating a database of all events occurring on a broadcast station, which may comprise, for example, a radio or television station, although these are not intended as limitations. The software package receives a recording of a station&#39;s output, which contains metadata on each broadcast element that includes time, date, and content information. As the broadcast proceeds, the start and stop time of each element are stored in a table in the database. This database can then be subsequently queried via the website by a customer or media personnel to ascertain that the spot has aired as intended.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]    This application claims priority to provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/911,614, filed Apr. 13, 2007. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    The present invention relates to devices and methods for tracking broadcast media elements, and, more particularly, to such devices and methods for reconciling advertising elements within a broadcast. 
         [0004]    2. Description of Related Art 
         [0005]    Broadcast media advertising is typically purchased on the basis of the number of times an advertisement will air and the time of day at which it is intended to air. Additionally, network affiliates are provided with network-wide advertisements that are intended to air at certain predetermined times. Further, “live” spots can also be contracted for, wherein an announcer incorporates the spot into the program verbiage. 
         [0006]    Until now, there has been no reliable way to ensure that advertisements are indeed airing as intended, which would be beneficial to the entity contracting for this service. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    The present invention is directed to a system and method for auditing the actual appearances of advertisements. Herein the term “advertisement” is intended to be taken broadly as any non-program broadcast element. An advertisement may include, for example, a commercial spot, a community service announcement, a forward promotion, or sponsorship acknowledgment, for example, although these are not intended as limitations. 
         [0008]    The system in a preferred embodiment comprises an Internet-based site accessible by customers and broadcasters for tracking the airing of their advertisements. The system further comprises a software package for creating a database of all events occurring on a broadcast station, which may comprise, for example, a radio or television station, although these are not intended as limitations. 
         [0009]    In a particular embodiment, the software package receives a recording of a station&#39;s output, which contains metadata that can comprise time, date, and content information. For example, each element of the broadcast can have associated therewith an identifier code that can be mapped to an identity of the element. As the broadcast proceeds, the start and stop time of each element are stored in a table in the database. This database can then be subsequently queried via the website by a customer or media personnel to ascertain that the spot has aired as intended. 
         [0010]    A method for determining an aired status of an element scheduled for broadcasting can comprise receiving a first set of data regarding a plurality of elements broadcast on a broadcast medium. The first data set can include a time at which each element was actually broadcast. A second set of data are received regarding an event that had been scheduled for broadcast on the broadcast medium at a predetermined scheduled time. 
         [0011]    The first data set is scanned for the event. If the event is located in the first data set, the event&#39;s broadcast time is compared with the event&#39;s scheduled time. If the actual broadcast time is within a predetermined range from the event&#39;s scheduled time, an acceptable airing of the event is indicated. If the actual broadcast time is not within the predetermined range from the event&#39;s scheduled time, an error in the event&#39;s airing is indicated. If the event is not located in the first data set, an error in the event airing is indicated. 
         [0012]    The features that characterize the invention, both as to organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, will be better understood from the following description used in conjunction with the accompanying drawing. It is to be expressly understood that the drawing is for the purpose of illustration and description and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. These and other objects attained, and advantages offered, by the present invention will become more fully apparent as the description that now follows is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0013]      FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram of the interconnections of system elements. 
           [0014]      FIG. 2  is an exemplary portion of a media tracking table extracted from a database. 
           [0015]      FIG. 3  is an exemplary diagram of data flow and functionality. 
           [0016]      FIG. 4  is a flowchart of an exemplary embodiment of a method of operation of the system of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0017]    A description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be presented with reference to  FIGS. 1-4 . 
         [0018]    The system  10  of the present invention comprises an audit tool for confirming airplay of broadcast elements. The system  10  comprises an encoder  11  for recording an actual broadcast of, for example, a radio or television station. The encoder  11  can comprise a tuner card in signal communication with a computer  12  and a software package adapted to perform data analysis functions. 
         [0019]    In a preferred embodiment, the encoder  11  records a station&#39;s audio output in 65-min segments, with a 5-min overlap between the top of the hour and five minutes past the hour in order to avoid the possibility of missing data during segment shifts. The encoder  11  saves metadata associated with the broadcast in the database table. The metadata can include, for example, date, time, element identifier, duration of the element, and station signal strength. The encoder  11  also indexes the audio output for subsequent recall.  FIG. 2  contains output from an exemplary table  13 , showing date  14 , start time  15 , and sponsor identifier  19  (“advertiser”). The end time  17  can also be displayed for a highlighted element. This table output can comprise, for example, a computer screen, although this is not intended as a limitation, and other forms of data output can be contemplated by one of skill in the art, such as a printout. 
         [0020]    The computer  12  also receives data from a system  18  within the station that produces schedule transfer and reconciliation data. This system  18  adds to the table the element name associated with the element identifier  16 , the time  20  at which the element was originally scheduled to be aired, and the event status  71  (e.g., “aired”). This system  18  can also add, in certain embodiments, data on future scheduled events. 
         [0021]    The system  18  also periodically submits reconciled data to the computer  12 . These data provide time marks of where to “point to” in the media file when an element is requested for audit. 
         [0022]    A user can request to review a broadcast element, and can receive both scheduled and as-run information. In one embodiment of the system  10 , the reconciled data can be submitted on demand by the user; in another, the reconciled data are submitted automatically at predetermined intervals; in yet another, the reconciled data are submitted in “real time,” that is, within an hour of having been played. 
         [0023]    The user can request audit information based upon any of a plurality of criteria, including, but not intended to be limited to, advertiser, product, identifier code, date, time, duration, ISCI (Industry Standard Coding Identification), and Ad-ID values (Advertising Digital Identification). 
         [0024]    Among the users can be station personnel  21  for performing daily reconciliation of commercial airplay, for example. These users are able to check discrepancies from the reconciliation step. Instant access is provided to the aired media, and data retrieved from any time desired. The user can then scan across time, seeing a read-out of the actual airtime, permitting a reconciliation of “live read” advertisements. 
         [0025]    The system  10  also permits a realignment of the clocks in the encoder  11  and the reconciler  18 , and performs a corresponding realignment of the data in the table. The user can also choose to parse out the commercial elements and save them in a binary large object record field. Additionally, if a live program has a built-in time delay, that can be reconciled as well. 
         [0026]    The system  10  further permits the user to adjust the displayed table&#39;s layout and field sizes. Traffic data that can be provided can include, for example, advertiser, product, ISCI or AD-ID, duration, contract time range, schedule time, advertiser number, target program segment number, and competitive code of the product advertised. 
         [0027]    Access can be granted to various classes of users. At the corporate or station management level  21 , an administrative account permits the creation of “super-user” accounts for their employees, granting rights on functions they can perform. These super-users can create logins for their advertisers and agencies  22 , and define what these advertiser and agencies can see upon entry. These created logins limit the advertisers to seeing only their commercials. An agency that has contracted for multiple buys from a plurality of advertisers may be granted dominion over those advertisers&#39; elements. 
         [0028]    Employee users are then permitted access to broadcast history, to create and send queries, and may be given selective access to create advertiser logins depending upon permission granted. 
         [0029]    If an advertiser does not receive login privileges, an account representative can create an ad hoc query and email it to that advertiser  23 . That client can then receive a link that produces the items of interest and the ability to play the associated elements. 
         [0030]    The length of time the elements are available to be audited online is determined by contractual details with the broadcaster, and may include, for example, 60-90 days, although this is not intended as a limitation. Files older than that period can be archived in ways known in the art. 
         [0031]    If the identifier code is the same for two elements, the content should be the same. The system  10  can also perform a waveform comparison of the audio data associated with these elements to ensure that this is indeed the case. 
         [0032]    Another potential user is a network  24  of which the broadcaster is a member. Since the networks typically provide “must-carry” advertisements to their affiliated stations, these should be audited to ensure that the station is not pre-empting their mandated elements. 
         [0033]    Another level of automation can be provided by permitting the system  10  to perform automatic audits for the network, for example, by comparing the scheduled network elements with actual broadcast elements. An alert could then be automatically sent to the network to alert them of the discrepancy. Another type of discrepancy could comprise one in a returned data file written to the specification of the network, so that an automatic update of their records could be effected. 
         [0034]    The system  10  can also serve to instruct the encoder  11  to start and stop recording for capturing only a time of interest to a party, for example, for event-driven programming that are occasional events and not continual programs. 
         [0035]    In a particular overall system  50  ( FIG. 3 ) and method  100  ( FIG. 4 ) in which the system  10  discussed above operates, playable events&#39; instructions originate from the programming sources”  51 , such as a local station&#39;s traffic system  52 , a first  53  and a second  54  network affiliation, and a local template or promotions output from a promotions suite  55 . Incoming playlist modules (IPMs)  56  perform several functions, including flagging the origin of each element with a name for subsequent querying and reconciliation purposes. The IPMs  56  can also flag an availability for a network spot, which serves as a “reservation” for a certain amount of time. 
         [0036]    The IPMs  56  channel the media for consolidation to a scheduling process, merging, and viewing software package  57  that places the programmed elements into “playback alignment” for final airplay, and consolidates the sources&#39; output into a single playlist and then dispatches their portion of the playlist in the format needed to at least one of a plurality of playback systems  58 . The dispersal of the playlist portion is achieved by means of outgoing playlist modules (OPMs)  59 , which ensure correct preparation of playlist files for automation systems. The playback systems  58  to which the media are sent can comprise, for example, a primary  60  and a secondary  61  automation playback system; a sports, newsroom, or morning show automation playback system  62 ; Internet streaming  63 ; and HD radio programming  64 . 
         [0037]    The scheduling process, merging, and viewing software package  57  can also have other functions, such as, but not intended to be limited to, performing time alignment by recalculating airtime or start time of an event based upon a new lineup. Another function can include performing a “separation check” on product codes, advertiser names, or other field that contains data that need separation from others. This function prevents similar products from being scheduled in a conflicting manner. 
         [0038]    The broadcast is monitored at the server  65  running the scheduling process, merging, and viewing software package  57 , along the pathway labeled “automation inventory info.” The server  65  comprises a schedule integration point, where various contributing playlists are assembled using processes to assemble the master playlist according to the station&#39;s programming objectives. “As-play” data can comprise a text file written in real time, preferably in read-only manner. Data are also sent that confirm a code, such as an ISCI code. These data can then serve as a reference to confirm that an event has been played, ensuring on-air accountability. The “as-scheduled” data are transmitted to the reconcile engine  30 . “As-run” data are also channeled to the reconcile engine  30 , and the reconciled findings are stored in a database and dispersed back to the originating sources  51 , as well as reported to the user via an ad verify and client/buyer interface  66 , as discussed above. In addition, a production control application  67 , working with data supplied by a media check system, alerts production and continuity departments of production deadlines and copy to be dubbed. 
         [0039]    Warnings can also be issued for certain exceptions, such as that a significant portion of airtime is not accounted for, an inordinate number of events have not been aired, and an inordinate number of moved events are present in the “as-play” data. 
         [0040]    An exemplary method  100  ( FIG. 4 ) for reconciliation operates as follows: Log information is read into the reconcile engine  30 , as well as the “as-play” data, subject to whatever filters or restrictions have been imposed by the user (block  101 ). These data are then sorted based upon an identifier such as cart number and on date and time (block  102 ). The as-run data are scanned, and the filtered events are flagged as such (block  103 ), and are not included in the reconciliation. The scheduled events are then compared with the as-run list by looking through the program log for each reconcilable event and looking to the as-play data for the closest available event in time with the equivalent identifier (block  104 ). In this mode, the closest time value is sought; in another mode, the first occurrence of the event is sought (block  105 ), which is preferable for sports events, for which the timing of advertisements is typically highly variable. In yet another mode, when reliable data are made available from the playback system, an “original schedule time” is used to ascertain that the correct instances of the scheduled to aired events have been paired (block  106 ). For example, in order to confirm that the identifier came from a particular scheduled element, the data from the as-run file or entry is examined to ensure that the event in question indeed originated from a certain scheduled position. 
         [0041]    Each event has now been flagged as “aired,” “moved,” “not aired”, or “aired but not on the original log,” this latter option referred to as “inserted” (see  FIG. 2 ). The “inserted” event can have been added by the station in order to give a “bonus” to someone or to comply with a last-minute contract that necessitates events to be manually placed in the playback system playlist, circumventing the normal program log owing to its lateness. Any event that has not been reconciled is dropped (block  107 ), unless it had been flagged to avoid being reconciled, in which case the status is changed to “aired,” with the schedule time becoming its air time (block  108 ). The system reviews the as-play data for any event that has not been accounted for by reconciliation to a scheduled event, and adds those data to the played file with whatever associated data are available (block  109 ). 
         [0042]    The user, depending upon permission level, is then presented with the reconciled data (block  110 ), along with tools for performing further investigation, such as listening to the event (for example, by selecting “play”  70  on the screen of  FIG. 2 ). The viewing screen can show all results or those that are problematic, and can sort by key values or search according to a user query. The user can toggle to the originally scheduled information and the raw as-play information for investigation as desired (block  111 ). The reconciliation process can also provide a report showing the duration of events that are scheduled but do not match, as well as titles of events that did play that do not match up with scheduled titles. The user can manually reconcile a played event with a scheduled event if a continuity error, identifier change, or copy change is detected (block  112 ). Changes made to the reconciliation should be auditable. The reconciliation data can be made available over the Internet  69  if desired, or via any other output device (block  113 ) as desired. 
         [0043]    In the foregoing description, certain terms have been used for brevity, clarity, and understanding, but no unnecessary limitations are to be implied therefrom beyond the requirements of the prior art, because such words are used for description purposes herein and are intended to be broadly construed. Moreover, the embodiments of the apparatus illustrated and described herein are by way of example, and the scope of the invention is not limited to the exact details of construction. 
         [0044]    Having now described the invention, the operation and use of preferred embodiments thereof, and the advantageous new and useful results obtained thereby, the new and useful constructions, and reasonable equivalents thereof obvious to those skilled in the art, are set forth in the appended claims.