Patent Publication Number: US-2013238433-A1

Title: Method and system for providing relevant advertisements by monitoring scroll-speeds

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     Embodiments of the disclosure relate to the field of providing relevant advertisements by monitoring scroll-speeds. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Currently, when a user is surfing the Internet, a plurality of advertisements are targeted to the user based on one or more user preferences. However, the user preferences have to be provided by the user by filling appropriate online forms which is a time consuming process. One or more parameters, for example mouse clicks, are presently used to target the advertisements to the user. However, such parameters are intrusive to privacy of the user. 
     In light of the foregoing discussion, there is a need for a method and system for an efficient and non-intrusive technique to provide relevant advertisements to the user by monitoring scroll-speeds. 
     SUMMARY 
     The above-mentioned needs are met by a method, a computer program product and a system for providing relevant advertisements by monitoring scroll-speeds. 
     An example of a method of providing relevant advertisements by monitoring scroll-speeds includes determining one or more scroll-speeds of a user as the user scrolls through a webpage. The method also includes tagging the one or more scroll-speeds to web content on the webpage. Further, the method includes recording the one or more scroll-speeds tagged with the web content. Moreover, the method includes targeting the relevant advertisements to the user based on the recording 
     An example of a computer program product stored on a non-transitory computer-readable medium that when executed by a processor, performs a method of providing relevant advertisements by monitoring scroll-speeds includes determining one or more scroll-speeds of a user as the user scrolls through a webpage. The computer program product also includes tagging the one or more scroll-speeds to web content on the webpage. Further, the computer program product includes recording the one or more scroll-speeds tagged with the web content. Moreover, the computer program product includes targeting the relevant advertisements to the user based on the recording. 
     An example of a system for providing relevant advertisements by monitoring scroll-speeds includes one or more electronic devices. The system also includes a communication interface in electronic communication with the one or more electronic devices. The system further includes a memory that stores instructions. Further, the system includes a processor responsive to the instructions to determine one or more scroll-speeds of a user as the user scrolls through a webpage, to tag the one or more scroll-speeds to web content on the webpage, to record the one or more scroll-speeds tagged with the web content, and to target the relevant advertisements to the user based on the recording. 
     The features and advantages described in this summary and in the following detailed description are not all-inclusive, and particularly, many additional features and advantages will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the relevant art in view of the drawings, specification, and claims hereof. Moreover, it should be noted that the language used in the specification has been principally selected for readability and instructional purposes, and may not have been selected to delineate or circumscribe the inventive subject matter, resort to the claims being necessary to determine such inventive subject matter. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
       In the following drawings like reference numbers are used to refer to like elements. Although the following figures depict various examples of the invention, the invention is not limited to the examples depicted in the figures. 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an environment, in accordance with which various embodiments can be implemented; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a server, in accordance with one embodiment; 
         FIG. 3  is a flowchart illustrating a method of providing relevant advertisements by monitoring scroll-speeds, in accordance with one embodiment; and 
         FIG. 4  is an exemplary illustration of scroll-speeds on a webpage, in accordance with one embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
     The above-mentioned needs are met by a method, computer program product and system for providing relevant advertisements by monitoring scroll-speeds. The following detailed description is intended to provide example implementations to one of ordinary skill in the art, and is not intended to limit the invention to the explicit disclosure, as one or ordinary skill in the art will understand that variations can be substituted that are within the scope of the invention as described. 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an environment  100 , in accordance with which various embodiments can be implemented. 
     The environment  100  includes a server  105  connected to a network  110 . The environment  100  further includes one or more electronic devices, for example an electronic device  115   a  and an electronic device  115   b , which can communicate with each other through the network  110 . Examples of the electronic devices include, but are not limited to, computers, mobile devices, tablets, laptops, palmtops, hand held devices, telecommunication devices, and personal digital assistants (PDAs). 
     The electronic devices can communicate with the server  105  through the network  110 . Examples of the network  110  include, but are not limited to, a Local Area Network (LAN), a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN), internet, and a Small Area Network (SAN). The electronic devices associated with different users can be remotely located with respect to the server  105 . 
     The server  105  is also connected to an electronic storage device  120  directly or via the network  110  to store information, for example scroll-speeds of a user tagged with web content on a webpage, and one or more advertisements. 
     In some embodiments, different electronic storage devices are used for storing the information. 
     A user of an electronic device, for example the electronic device  115   a , views web content on a webpage by scrolling through the web content. The server  105 , for example a Yahoo!® server, determines one or more scroll-speeds of the user as the user scrolls through the webpage. The server  105  tags the one or more scroll-speeds to the web content on the webpage. The scroll-speeds tagged with the web content are then recorded in the electronic storage device  120 . The server  105  further targets relevant advertisements to the user based on recording. The relevant advertisements are selected and retrieved from advertisements stored in the electronic storage device  120 . 
     The server  105  including a plurality of elements is explained in detail in conjunction with  FIG. 2 . 
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram of the server  105 , in accordance with one embodiment. 
     The server  105  includes a bus  205  or other communication mechanism for communicating information, and a processor  210  coupled with the bus  205  for processing information. The server  105  also includes a memory  215 , for example a random access memory (RAM) or other dynamic storage device, coupled to the bus  205  for storing information and instructions to be executed by the processor  210 . The memory  215  can be used for storing temporary variables or other intermediate information during execution of instructions by the processor  210 . The server  105  further includes a read only memory (ROM)  220  or other static storage device coupled to the bus  205  for storing static information and instructions for the processor  210 . A storage unit  225 , for example a magnetic disk or optical disk, is provided and coupled to the bus  205  for storing information, for example scroll-speeds of a user tagged with web content on a webpage, and one or more advertisements. 
     The server  105  can be coupled via the bus  205  to a display  230 , for example a cathode ray tube (CRT), and liquid crystal display (LCD) for displaying the webpage. An input device  235 , including alphanumeric and other keys, is coupled to the bus  205  for communicating information and command selections to the processor  210 . Another type of user input device is a cursor control  240 , for example a mouse, a trackball, or cursor direction keys for communicating direction information and command selections to the processor  210  and for controlling cursor movement on the display  230 . The input device  235  can also be included in the display  230 , for example a touch screen. A scroll input, for example human touch, a scroll key, and a mouse scroll, can be provided to the input device  235  to determine the scroll-speeds. 
     Various embodiments are related to the use of the server  105  for implementing the techniques described herein. In some embodiments, the techniques are performed by the server  105  in response to the processor  210  executing instructions included in the memory  215 . Such instructions can be read into the memory  215  from another machine-readable medium, for example the storage unit  225 . Execution of the instructions included in the memory  215  causes the processor  210  to perform the process steps described herein. 
     In some embodiments, the processor  210  can include one or more processing units for performing one or more functions of the processor  210 . The processing units are hardware circuitry used in place of or in combination with software instructions to perform specified functions. 
     The term “machine-readable medium” as used herein refers to any medium that participates in providing data that causes a machine to perform a specific function. In an embodiment implemented using the server  105 , various machine-readable media are involved, for example, in providing instructions to the processor  210  for execution. The machine-readable medium can be a storage medium, either volatile or non-volatile. A volatile medium includes, for example, dynamic memory, such as the memory  215 . A non-volatile medium includes, for example, optical or magnetic disks, for example the storage unit  225 . All such media must be tangible to enable the instructions carried by the media to be detected by a physical mechanism that reads the instructions into a machine. 
     Common forms of machine-readable media include, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, or any other magnetic media, a CD-ROM, any other optical media, punchcards, papertape, any other physical media with patterns of holes, a RAM, a PROM, and EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge. 
     In another embodiment, the machine-readable media can be transmission media including coaxial cables, copper wire and fiber optics, including the wires that comprise the bus  205 . Transmission media can also take the form of acoustic or light waves, such as those generated during radio-wave and infra-red data communications. Examples of machine-readable media may include, but are not limited to, a carrier wave as described hereinafter or any other media from which the server  105  can read, for example online software, download links, installation links, and online links. For example, the instructions can initially be carried on a magnetic disk of a remote computer. The remote computer can load the instructions into its dynamic memory and send the instructions over a telephone line using a modem. A modem local to the server  105  can receive the data on the telephone line and use an infra-red transmitter to convert the data to an infra-red signal. An infra-red detector can receive the data carried in the infra-red signal and appropriate circuitry can place the data on the bus  205 . The bus  205  carries the data to the memory  215 , from which the processor  210  retrieves and executes the instructions. The instructions received by the memory  215  can optionally be stored on the storage unit  225  either before or after execution by the processor  210 . All such media must be tangible to enable the instructions carried by the media to be detected by a physical mechanism that reads the instructions into a machine. 
     The server  105  also includes a communication interface  245  coupled to the bus  205 . The communication interface  245  provides a two-way data communication coupling to the network  110 . For example, the communication interface  245  can be an integrated services digital network (ISDN) card or a modem to provide a data communication connection to a corresponding type of telephone line. As another example, the communication interface  245  can be a local area network (LAN) card to provide a data communication connection to a compatible LAN. Wireless links can also be implemented. In any such implementation, the communication interface  245  sends and receives electrical, electromagnetic or optical signals that carry digital data streams representing various types of information. 
     The server  105  is also connected to the electronic storage device  120  to store the scroll-speeds of the user tagged with the web content, and the advertisements. 
     The processor  210  in the server  105 , for example a Yahoo!® server, determines one or more scroll-speeds of a user as the user scrolls through a webpage. The processor  210  tags the scroll-speeds to the web content on the webpage. The scroll-speeds tagged with the web content are then recorded in the storage unit  225  or the electronic storage device  120 . The processor  210  further targets relevant advertisements to the user based on recording. The relevant advertisements are selected and retrieved from the advertisements stored in the storage unit  225  or the electronic storage device  120 . 
       FIG. 3  is a flowchart illustrating a method of providing relevant advertisements by monitoring scroll-speeds, in accordance with one embodiment. 
     At  305 , one or more scroll-speeds of a user are determined as the user scrolls through a webpage. The scroll-speeds include one or more of horizontal scroll-speeds and vertical scroll-speeds. The webpage includes web content in different horizontal sectors of a screen. Examples of the web content include, but are not limited to, advertisements, and data. Examples of the data include, but are not limited to, textual information, non-textual information, and interactive information. 
     In some embodiments, the textual information is displayed in extensible markup language (XML) format or in hypertext markup language (HTML) format. In some embodiments, the non-textual information is displayed as images, audio, or video format. In some embodiments, the interactive information is displayed in Dynamic HTML (DHTML) format. 
     In some embodiments, the user scrolls through the webpage by providing a scroll input, for example human touch, a scroll key, and a mouse scroll. 
     At  310 , the scroll-speeds are tagged to the web content on the webpage. If the user is less interested in the web content present in a horizontal sector, the user tends to scroll over the horizontal sector at a high scroll-speed. Similarly, if the user is highly interested in the web content present in the horizontal sector, the user tends to scroll over the horizontal sector at a low scroll-speed. Hence high scroll-speeds are tagged to the web content having less user interest and low scroll-speeds are tagged to the web content having high user interest. 
     In some examples, the scroll-speeds can be tagged to advertisement content, brand, product metrics, and product data. 
     At  315 , the scroll-speeds tagged with the web content are recorded. The web content thus recorded enables a learning process for providing the relevant advertisements. 
     In some embodiments, the scroll speeds tagged to the web content can be recorded or stored in an electronic storage device, for example the electronic storage device  120 . 
     In some embodiments, the scroll speeds tagged to the web content can be recorded or stored in and retrieved from a storage unit, for example the storage unit  225 , in a server, for example the server  105 . In one example, the server can be a centralized server or a distributed server of Yahoo!®. 
     At  320 , target the relevant advertisements to the user based on the recording. The user can then view the relevant advertisements. 
     The scroll-speeds are first compared to determine a low scroll-speed. The relevant advertisements associated with the web content tagged to the low scroll-speed are then targeted to the user. If there are multiple low scroll-speeds, the multiple low scroll-speeds can be prioritized and the relevant advertisements can be targeted accordingly. 
     In some embodiments, the advertisements can be recorded or stored in the electronic storage device  120  or the storage unit  225 . The relevant advertisements are then selected from the advertisements and subsequently retrieved from the electronic storage device  120  or the storage unit  225 . 
     In some embodiments, the relevant advertisements can be displayed on the webpage instantly. In other embodiments, the relevant advertisements can be displayed on another webpage in near future. 
     In some embodiments, the relevant advertisements can be displayed as polyads. 
       FIG. 4  is an exemplary illustration of the scroll-speeds on the web page, for example a webpage  405 , in accordance with one embodiment. The webpage  405  includes an article  410  and an advertisement  415 . A screen is divided into horizontal sectors, for example sectors 1 to 6.The article  410  provides information on different topics. For example, the article provides information on iPad in sectors 1 and 2, on HTC in sector 3, on Baskin Robbins and Pizza Hut in sector 4, on pens in sector 5, and on perfumes in sector 6. The advertisement  415  is further present in sectors 1 and 2. 
     The user is not interested in the information on the iPad and the HTC and hence scrolls through sectors 1, 2 and 3 at a high scroll-speed S1. When the user reaches the information on Baskin Robbins and Pizza Hut in sector 4, the user shows interest and scrolls through the sector 4 at a low scroll-speed S2. Further, the user is not interested in the information on the pens and the perfumes and hence scrolls through sectors 5 and 6 at a high scroll-speed S3. The scroll-speeds, S1, S2, and S3 are then tagged to associated information and subsequently recorded. 
     As S2 is the low scroll-speed, the relevant advertisements corresponding to Baskin Robbins and Pizza Hut are targeted to the user either in the webpage  405  or in a future webpage. As S1 and S3 are high scroll-speeds, the advertisements associated with the information in sectors 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6 are either terminated or put on hold. Hence, the relevant advertisements can be targeted to the user based on the scroll-speeds and interest of the user. 
     The present disclosure provides relevant advertisements to a user by monitoring scroll-speeds. The present disclosure enables advertisers to be aware of marketing potential of advertisements based on the scroll-speeds of the user. Yahoo! uses the scroll-speeds as a parameter to increase user experience for viewing web content. Further, the monitoring of the scroll-speeds is a non-intrusive method to determine user interest. Hence, the method and system in the present disclosure enables Yahoo! to introduce higher accuracy in serving the relevant advertisements to the users. 
     It is to be understood that although various components are illustrated herein as separate entities, each illustrated component represents a collection of functionalities which can be implemented as software, hardware, firmware or any combination of these. Where a component is implemented as software, it can be implemented as a standalone program, but can also be implemented in other ways, for example as part of a larger program, as a plurality of separate programs, as a kernel loadable module, as one or more device drivers or as one or more statically or dynamically linked libraries. 
     As will be understood by those familiar with the art, the invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. Likewise, the particular naming and division of the portions, modules, agents, managers, components, functions, procedures, actions, layers, features, attributes, methodologies and other aspects are not mandatory or significant, and the mechanisms that implement the invention or its features may have different names, divisions and/or formats. 
     Furthermore, as will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the relevant art, the portions, modules, agents, managers, components, functions, procedures, actions, layers, features, attributes, methodologies and other aspects of the invention can be implemented as software, hardware, firmware or any combination of the three. Of course, wherever a component of the present invention is implemented as software, the component can be implemented as a script, as a standalone program, as part of a larger program, as a plurality of separate scripts and/or programs, as a statically or dynamically linked library, as a kernel loadable module, as a device driver, and/or in every and any other way known now or in the future to those of skill in the art of computer programming. Additionally, the present invention is in no way limited to implementation in any specific programming language, or for any specific operating system or environment. 
     Furthermore, it will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the relevant art that where the present invention is implemented in whole or in part in software, the software components thereof can be stored on computer readable media as computer program products. Any form of computer readable medium can be used in this context, such as magnetic or optical storage media. Additionally, software portions of the present invention can be instantiated (for example as object code or executable images) within the memory of any programmable computing device. 
     Accordingly, the disclosure of the present invention is intended to be illustrative, but not limiting, of the scope of the invention, which is set forth in the following claims.