Patent Publication Number: US-2006004630-A1

Title: Advertising through digital watermarks

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention relates to computing devices and software, and more particularly, to displaying digital advertising on computing devices as digital watermarks.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      In a market-driven society, vendors constantly seek for methods to present their advertisements to consumers. While traditional methods of newsprint, television, radio, and the like, are all still effective, vendors have also turned to other advertisement mediums to present their advertisements to consumers. In particular, many vendors have turned to placing digital advertisements on a computer display. Indeed, one can hardly visit any site on the Internet without being presented with numerous advertisements from a variety of vendors. These advertisements are displayed on the computer in various forms, including banner advertisements, sidebar advertisements, pop-up displays, pop-under displays, audio advertisements, and animated advertisements to name just a few.  
      There are numerous drawbacks associated with current advertising mechanisms on computing devices. One of the most annoying drawbacks is that digital advertisements obscure, or otherwise restrict, the content for which a user visits a Web site. For example,  FIG. 1  is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary display device  100  connected to a computer. As shown on the display device  100 , a user has directed a Web browser  102 , such as Microsoft Corporation&#39;s® Internet Explorer, to a specific Web site for the content on that site. As can be seen in exemplary Web browser  102 , the display window/view includes a banner advertisement  104 , and three sidebar advertisements  106 - 110 , in addition to the requested content  112 . In this exemplary view, the advertisements  104 - 110  consume approximately one-third of the useable Web browser&#39;s display space, limiting the amount of content  1112 , for which the user is visiting the Web site, that can be displayed to the user.  
      In addition to the advertisements  104 - 110  displayed in the Web browser&#39;s viewable space, pop-up advertisement  116  obscures some portion of the sought-for content  112 . Still further, pop-under advertisement  114  is also displayed on the display device  100 . While pop-under advertisements, such as pop-under advertisement  114 , do not obscure the sought-for content  112 , they may obscure other content on the display device  100 , and most certainly represent an annoyance as the user must “clean” them off of the display device by individually dismissing each pop-up or pop-under ad.  
      Clearly, with large display screens, more content may be displayed in a Web browser in relation to the advertisement that accompanies the content. However, other computing devices, such as personal digital assistants (PDAs) and other handheld computing devices have a more limited display area. Thus, even small advertisements consume large portions of limited display space, severely impacting the amount of desired content that is displayable.  
      In light of the above-described deficiencies in current digital advertising techniques, what is needed is a system and method for displaying digital advertisements on computing devices while maximizing the available space for the desired content. The present invention addresses these and other issues found in the prior art.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      In accordance with aspects of the present invention, a networked environment for displaying a digital advertisement with content in a client device&#39;s display area is presented. The network environment includes a client device having a display area capable of displaying content and a digital advertisement as a digital watermark advertisement. The network environment also includes an ad provider that distributes digital advertisements over the network. The network environment further includes a content provider. The content provider is communicatively coupled to the ad provider and the client device. In response to a content request from the client device, the content provider combines the requested content with a digital advertisement obtained from the ad provider. The requested content and digital advertisement are combined such that when displayed, the digital advertisement is displayed as a digital watermark advertisement to the requested content. The content provider then returns the requested content combined with the digital advertisement to the client device for display on the client device&#39;s display area.  
      In accordance with other aspects of the present invention, a method for displaying content with a digital watermark advertisement on a client device is presented. A plurality of digital advertisements are obtained and stored on the client device. An advertisement selector for selecting one of the plurality of digital advertisements stored on the client device is received. A digital advertisement selected by the advertisement selector is displayed as a digital watermark advertisement along with other content on the client device.  
      In accordance with yet further aspects of the present invention, a method for displaying content and a digital advertisement on a client device while maximizing the display area for the content in the client device&#39;s display area is presented. A digital advertisement to be displayed in the display area is obtained. The digital advertisement is displayed in the display area as a digital watermark advertisement such that the entire display area is available for displaying content. Content is then displayed over the digital watermark advertisement in the display area  
      In accordance with still further aspects of the present invention, a method for displaying content and a digital advertisement on a mobile phone device, is presented, the mobile phone device having a display area capable of displaying content and a digital watermark advertisement. A digital advertisement is downloaded to the mobile phone device. The digital advertisement is displayed as a digital watermark advertisement on the mobile phone device&#39;s display area. Other content is displayed over the digital watermark advertisement on the mobile phone device&#39;s display area.  
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      The foregoing aspects and many of the attendant advantages of this invention will become more readily appreciated as the same become better understood by reference to the following detailed description, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:  
       FIG. 1  is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary display device connected to a computer, displaying advertisements according to current practices;  
       FIG. 2  is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary computer display device having a Web browser displaying content from a Web site, and also displaying an associated advertisement as a digital watermark advertisement in the Web browser&#39;s display area;  
       FIG. 3  is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary PDA displaying both content and a digital watermark advertisement in the display area of the PDA in accordance with the present invention;  
       FIG. 4  is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary mobile phone displaying both content and a digital watermark in the mobile phone&#39;s display area, in accordance with the present invention;  
       FIG. 5  is a pictorial diagram of an exemplary network computing environment suitable for implementing aspects of the present invention;  
       FIG. 6  is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary exchange between a client device, such as the client computing device of  FIG. 5 , a content provider, and an ad provider for delivering content and a digital watermark advertisement to the client device;  
       FIG. 7  is a block diagram of an alternative exemplary networked environment suitable for implementing aspects of the present invention;  
       FIG. 8  is a block diagram illustrating an alternative exemplary exchange between a client device, such as the PDA of  FIG. 3 , a content provider, and an ad provider for pre-loading digital watermark advertisements onto the client device and subsequently selecting a digital watermark advertisement for display with content on the client device;  
       FIG. 9  is yet another alternative networked environment suitable for implementing aspects of the present invention;  
       FIG. 10  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary routine executed on a content provider for delivering content and a digital watermark advertisement in response to a content request from a client device;  
       FIG. 11  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary routine executed on a content provider for pre-loading a digital watermark advertisement onto a client device during an inactive period on the client device;  
       FIG. 12  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary routine executed on a service provider for transmitting an advertisement selector to a client device to display a pre-loaded digital watermark advertisement; and  
       FIG. 13  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary routine executed on a client device for displaying a digital watermark advertisement according to the advertisement selector sent from a service provider. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
      As mentioned above, the present invention addresses many issues in current practices related to digital advertising by displaying advertisements as digital watermarks behind content displayed on the display area of a client device. For example,  FIG. 2  is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary display device  100  connected to a client computing device (not shown) having a Web browser  202  displaying content  206  from a Web site, and also displaying an associated advertisement with the content as a digital watermark advertisement  208 .  
      As shown in  FIG. 2 , the exemplary Web browser&#39;s display area  204  displays the digital watermark advertisement  208  as a background image to the content  206  of the particular Web site. Clearly, because the digital watermark advertisement  208  is displayed as a background image to the content  206 , the Web browser&#39;s entire display area  204  is available for displaying the content  206  without being bounded by the digital watermark advertisement. In other words, the content is not restricted in its display by any particular advertisement  208 . As those skilled in the art will appreciate, most content, such as content  206 , is displayed with substantial white space, i.e., display area unoccupied by the content, through which a user may view a background image, such as the digital watermark advertisement  208 .  
      While  FIG. 2  is illustrated completely in black and white, according to aspects of the present invention, those skilled in the art will also appreciate that various colors may be advantageously used when displaying a digital watermark advertisement  208  (not shown). By using various colors to display a digital watermark advertisement  208 , the digital watermark advertisement may be more easily viewed, made more visible, with minimal distractions from content  206 . In addition to displaying a digital watermark advertisement  208  in various colors, the opacity of the digital watermark advertisement may be reduced such that the digital watermark advertisement is displayed as a semi-transparent image behind the content  206  (not shown), thereby further minimizing any content distractions.  
      According to aspects of the present invention, a digital watermark advertisement, such as digital watermark advertisement  208 , may be considered either static or dynamic. A static digital watermark advertisement is one that is displayed simply as an unchanging background image to the displayed content  206 . In contrast, a dynamic digital watermark advertisement is one that is displayed with some form of dynamic behavior, such as, but not limited to, graphic animation, movement, audio output, or any number of combinations of the above.  
      In addition to a digital watermark advertisement being either static or dynamic, another aspect of a digital watermark advertisement is whether the digital watermark advertisement is interactive or passive. An interactive digital watermark advertisement is one with which a user may interact. In other words, an interactive digital watermark advertisement is responsive to some user actions. In contrast, a passive digital watermark advertisement is one with which a user is unable to interact, or is unresponsive to user actions.  
      According to one embodiment of the present invention, the entire digital watermark advertisement  208  is a user-interactive region that, when activated by a user such as clicking on the digital watermark advertisement, carries out predetermined behaviors corresponding to the user interaction, such as displaying additional information related to the advertisement, or linking to another Web site. According to additional aspects of the present invention, when the entire digital watermark advertisement  208  represents a user-interactive region, those regions covered by the content  206  may be excluded as interactive regions.  
      According to another embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in  FIG. 2 , a digital watermark advertisement  208  may include specific, identifiable “hot zones” which, when acted upon by a user, cause an associated behavior to occur, such as linking. For example, link  210  of the digital watermark advertisement  208  links to another Web location. As such, digital watermark advertisement  208  is an interactive digital watermark advertisement. If link  210  represented nothing more than advertisement information, the digital watermark advertisement  208  could be said to be a passive digital watermark advertisement.  
      While  FIG. 2  illustrates a digital watermark advertisement  208  embedded in, or displayed behind, the content  206  of a Web browser display area  204 , it should be appreciated that the present invention is not so limited. In particular, the present invention is not limited to displaying digital watermarks in Web browser display areas  204 , or displaying digital watermarks on display devices  100  attached to a computing device.  
      Digital watermark advertisements may be advantageously and beneficially used in any window or area displayed on a display device  100 . For example, digital watermark advertisements may be advantageously displayed in the following: content display areas for any number of software applications, pull-down menus, and dialog boxes. For example, digital watermark advertisements may be displayed behind the content/results of an Internet search, or in conjunction with email, audio-visual, or instant messaging applications. Furthermore, the applications are not limited to those running on a traditional computer. For example, applications such as email, instant messaging, and the like, may display digital watermark advertisements, each running on a PDA or mobile device. Furthermore, digital watermark advertisements may be advantageously displayed as the background image of a display device  100 , such as a computer&#39;s so-called desktop.  
      In addition to not being limited to any particular type of content display area, it should be further appreciated that the present invention is not limited to any particular client devices. Thus, while the present invention may be advantageously implemented on personal computers, tablet computers, notebook computers, workstations, and the like, the present invention may also be advantageously used in conjunction with more non-traditional client devices. These non-traditional client devices include, but are not limited to, personal digital assistants (PDAs), mobile phones having a display device, hybrid computing devices that combine both aspects of mobile phones and PDAs, and MP3 players having a display device In fact, the present invention may be advantageously used with almost any client device having a display device capable of displaying content over, or with, a background image.  FIGS. 3 and 4  illustrate how the present invention may be implemented for use on some alternative client devices.  
       FIG. 3  is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary PDA  300  with a display area  302  displaying both content  304  and a digital watermark advertisement  306  in accordance with the present invention. It should be noted that due to the nature of PDA display devices, more particularly that the display area  302  of a PDA  300  is typically pressure sensitive, the digital watermark advertisement  306  may be an interactive digital watermark advertisement. Additionally, as mentioned above in regard to  FIG. 2 , the digital watermark advertisement may be a dynamic digital watermark advertisement.  
       FIG. 4  is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary mobile phone device  400  with a display area  402  displaying both content  404  and a digital watermark advertisement  406 . As those skilled in the art will realize, the display area  402  on a mobile phone is typically not touch sensitive or otherwise user interactive. When the display area  402  of a client device, such as the mobile phone  400 , is not user interactive, it would be unlikely that the digital watermark advertisement  406  is an interactive digital watermark advertisement. However, on some client devices a user may interact with a digital watermark advertisement  406  using an alternative means other than touch. Control buttons, a mouse, or other user-interaction devices may provide a conduit to interact with an interactive digital watermark advertisement. For example, control buttons  408  and  410  on the mobile phone device  400  could be used to interact with the digital watermark advertisement  406 . In any event, it should be appreciated that the present invention is not limited to any particular type of a digital watermark advertisement, i.e., static versus dynamic and passive versus interactive, on any client device.  
       FIG. 5  is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary networked environment for distributing content and a digital watermark advertisement to a client computing device  502  in accordance with aspects of the present invention. As illustrated in exemplary networked environment  500 , a client computing device communicates with a content provider  504  over a network, such as the Internet  506 . Thus, while  FIG. 5  illustrates that communication between the client computing device  502  and the content provider  504  takes place over the Internet  506 , in an actual embodiment, the client computing device may alternatively communicate with the content provider over a local area network (LAN) or a larger network, such as a wide area network (WAN).  
      As will be described in greater detail below in regard to  FIG. 6 , when a content provider  504  receives a content request from a client computer  502 , the content provider obtains an advertisement from the ad provider  508 . Just as the client computing device  502  and the content provider  504  are in communication, the content provider and the ad provider  508  may also communicate over the Internet  506 , or some other communication channel. Additionally, it should be appreciated that while, according to the present discussion, the content provider  504  downloads advertisements from the ad provider  508  upon receiving a client request, it is for illustration purposes only, and should not be construed as limiting upon the present invention. For example, as an alternative to obtaining an advertisement upon receiving a client request, the content provider  504  may obtain advertisements from the ad provider  508  asynchronously to any particular content request. After obtaining an advertisement, the content provider  506  combines the requested content with the advertisement and returns the combination to the client computing device  502 .  
       FIG. 6  is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary exchange  600  between a client device, such as the client computing device  502  of  FIG. 5 , a content provider  504 , and an ad provider  508 , for delivering content and a digital watermark advertisement to the client device. The exemplary exchange is illustrated with events that occur at the client device  502 , the client provider  504 , and at the ad provider  508 . An event falling on a line extended below one of the client device  502 , the client provider  504 , and the ad provider  508  indicates that event takes place on that component.  
      To begin, at event  602 , the client device  502  requests content from the content provider  504 . At event  604 , the content provider  504  assembles the requested content. Those skilled in the art will realize that assembling may comprise, but is not limited to, retrieving a file, searching for and retrieving data from a database corresponding to the request, retrieving content from other locations distributed throughout the Internet  506 , generating the content according to the request, and the like. All of these aspects of assembling the requested content are known in the art.  
      At event  606 , the content provider  504  requests a digital advertisement from the ad provider  508 . According to one aspect of the present invention, the request for a digital advertisement may correspond to the subject matter of the content request. At event  608 , the ad provider  508  returns a digital advertisement to the content provider  504 . According to aspects of the present invention, the digital advertisement obtained from the ad provider  508  is already formed as a digital watermark advertisement. Alternatively, the content provider may be required to process the digital advertisement received from the ad provider  508  to form a digital watermark advertisement.  
      At event  610 , the content provider  504  combines the digital watermark advertisement to the assembled content. As those skilled in the art will recognize, combining the digital watermark advertisement with the assembled content may entail embedding a link in the content to the digital watermark advertisement on the Internet  506  and letting the displaying software on the client device  502  download the actual digital watermark advertisement image for display on the client device. Alternatively, combining the digital watermark advertisement with the assembled content may entail combining the assembled content with the actual digital watermark advertisement image.  
      At event  612 , the content provider  504  returns the combined content and digital watermark advertisement to the client device  502 . Thereafter, at event  614 , the client device  502  displays the combined content and digital watermark advertisement on its display device.  
      It should be appreciated that while the content provider  504  and ad provider  508  are illustrated as separate entities, this is a logical separation for illustration purposes and should not be construed as limiting upon the present invention. In one embodiment, a content provider  504  may also be an ad provider  508 . Additionally, as discussed above, it should be appreciated that the illustrated exchange of information should be viewed as exemplary only, and should not be construed as limiting upon the present invention. Numerous variations may be made, such as downloading multiple digital advertisements to the content provider  504  prior to and in anticipation of receiving a client request.  
       FIG. 7  is a block diagram illustrating an alternative exemplary networked environment  700  suitable for implementing aspects of the present invention. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, many hand-held computing devices, such as PDA  300 , communicate wirelessly with a server  710 . Thus, the PDA  300  requests content from the content provider  504  via a wireless access point  702 . As illustrated in  FIG. 7 , communication between the content provider  504  and the wireless access point  702  may be over a network, such as the Internet  506 . However, it should be understood that the exemplary networked environment  700  is illustrative only. The present invention is not limited to communication with hand-held computing devices over a wireless communication channel.  
      As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, communication bandwidth between a wireless computing device, such as PDA  300 , and its wireless access point  702  is often limited. Even when the computing device uses a wired connection, the bandwidth available or supported by the computing device may be limited. Thus, in order to alleviate the usage spike that could occur when requesting content combined with a digital watermark advertisement, according to aspects of the present invention, digital watermark advertisements may be pre-loaded onto the PDA  300  prior to a content request. Digital watermark advertisements may be pre-loaded onto a client device, such as PDA  300 , directly from ad provider  508  or indirectly from a content provider  504 . Advantageously, the digital watermark advertisements may be downloaded during “idle” periods on the client device. What is meant by an “idle” period is those times that the client device, such as PDA  300 , is making minimal use of communication bandwidth, and/or is otherwise utilized at less than full capacity.  
      When digital watermark advertisements are pre-loaded/stored on a client device, such as PDA  300 , the content provider  504  assembles the requested content and includes an advertisement selector corresponding to a digital watermark advertisement currently stored on the client device. Thus, in displaying the content on the client device&#39;s display area, a digital watermark advertisement corresponding to the advertisement selector is displayed, along with the requested content. This aspect of the present invention, i.e., pre-loading a client device with digital watermark advertisements and displaying content with a selected digital watermark advertisement, is described in greater detail in regard to  FIG. 8 .  
       FIG. 8  is a block diagram illustrating an alternative exemplary exchange  800  between a client device, such as the PDA  300  of  FIG. 3 , a content provider  504 , and an ad provider  506  for pre-loading digital watermark advertisements to the client device and subsequently selecting a digital watermark advertisement for display with content on the client device. Similar to that of  FIG. 6 , the exemplary exchange  800  is illustrated with events that occur at a client device  300 , a client provider  504 , and an ad provider  508 . An event falling on a line extended below one of the client device  300 , the client provider  504 , and the ad provider  508  indicates that event takes place on that component. Additionally, it should be understood that the illustrated exchange  800  is merely exemplary, and should not be construed as limiting upon the present invention. Numerous variations of events may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.  
      Beginning at event  802 , the content provider  504  requests digital watermark advertisements from the ad provider  506 . In response, at event  804 , the ad provider  506  returns the digital watermark advertisements to the content provider  504 . At event  806 , the content provider  504  downloads at least one of the digital watermark advertisements to the client device  702  for subsequent selection and display on the client device. At event  808 , the digital watermark advertisements are stored on the client device  702 .  
      At some point after the digital watermark advertisements have been pre-loaded/stored on the client device  702 , at event  810 , the client device requests content from the content provider  504 . At event  812 , the content provider  504  assembles the content, as described above, to respond to the request. At event  814 , the content provider  504  combines the assembled content with an advertisement selector, the advertisement selector corresponding to one of the digital watermark advertisements pre-loaded/stored on the client device  702 . At event  816 , the content and the advertisement selector are returned to the client device  702 . At event  818 , the client device  702  displays the content from the content provider  504  with a pre-loaded digital watermark advertisement selected according to the advertisement selector returned from the content provider.  
       FIG. 9  illustrates yet another exemplary alternative networked environment  900  suitable for implementing aspects of the present invention. In particular,  FIG. 9  illustrates an exemplary environment  900  suitable for delivering digital watermark advertisements to a mobile phone  400  ( FIG. 4 ) for display on the mobile phone&#39;s display area  402 . As those skilled in the art will recognize, while similar to the other exemplary networked environments described above, the mobile phone  400  communicates with or through a service provider  902  via a mobile communication infrastructure  904 . As with the other exemplary networked environments, this exemplary networked environment  900  also includes an ad provider  506 .  
      In operation, the exchange between the mobile phone  400  and the service provider  902  may be quite similar to that described above in regard to  FIG. 8 . More particularly, digital watermark advertisements are downloaded during idle times, such as when the mobile phone  902  is in contact with the mobile communication infrastructure  904 , but is not actively communicating, such as when the mobile phone is on and detects an available mobile service, but is not trying to communicate via the service. Thus, the service provider  902 , instead of the content provider  504  of  FIG. 8 , would download the digital watermark advertisements to the mobile phone  400  during the mobile phone&#39;s inactive period. However, in contrast to the exemplary exchange in  FIG. 8 , the service provider  902  may issue advertisement events to the mobile phone  400 , an advertisement event including an advertisement selector and indicating to the mobile phone that the digital watermark advertisement pre-loaded onto the mobile phone corresponding to the advertisement selection should be displayed on the mobile phone&#39;s display area  402 . According to alternative aspects, the mobile phone  400  may itself generate the advertisement events to select and display digital watermark advertisements. These advertisement events may be generated on a periodic basis, or according to particular detected conditions  
      Clearly, not all users will wish to have digital watermarks advertisements displayed on their client device. While a content provider  504  may mandate that digital watermark advertisements to be displayed with their content, in other situations it could be optional. Thus, according to aspects of the present invention, content providers and/or service providers cause digital watermark advertisements to be displayed on client devices according to whether a user has so consented. For example, a user of any client device, including a computer, a PDA, or a mobile phone, may optionally opt in or opt out of receiving digital watermark advertisements from a content provider  504  and/or a service provider  902 . Furthermore, opting in to display digital watermark advertisements on the client device may be associated with a consumer benefit, such as a reduced rate on the services or in making requested content available at no cost.  
       FIG. 10  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary routine  1000  executed by a content provider  504  for delivering requested content and a digital watermark advertisement to a client device in response to a content request. Beginning at block  1002 , a content request is received from a client device. At block  1004 , the content provider  504  assembles, collects, or otherwise generates the requested content. At block  1006 , the content provider  504  obtains a digital advertisement from an ad provider  508 . At block  1008 , the content provider combines the obtained digital advertisement as a digital watermark advertisement with the assembled content. Thereafter, at block  1010 , the content provider  504  returns the requested content with the digital watermark advertisement to the client device, and the exemplary routine  1000  terminates.  
      While  FIG. 10  illustrates how digital watermark advertisements may be delivered in combination with requested content, as already discussed, it is often advantageous to pre-load digital watermark advertisements onto a client device. Accordingly,  FIG. 11  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary routine  1100 , executed on a content provider  504  and/or a service provider  902 , for pre-loading digital watermark advertisements onto a client device for subsequent display. Beginning at decision block  1102 , a determination is made as to whether the user of the client device has opted in to receive digital watermark advertisements. If the user has not opted in, i.e., indicated a willingness to receive digital watermark advertisements, the exemplary routine  1100  terminates. However, if the user of the client device has opted in to receive digital watermark advertising from the content provider  504  or service provider  902 , at decision block  1104 , a further determination is made as to whether the client device is currently idle. For many client devices, such as a mobile phone  400 , the client device is idle if it is actively connected to its communication network, such as the Internet  506  or the mobile communication infrastructure  904 , but is not actively communicating with another device. However, for some client devices, idle time is less relevant and decision block  1104  may be viewed as an optional decision.  
      If, at decision block  1104 , the client device is not idle, the content provider enters a delay period, as indicated by delay block  1106 , after which the routine returns to decision block  1104  to again determine whether the client device is idle. Once it is determined that the client device is idle, at block  1108 , the content provider  504  downloads digital watermarks, obtained from an ad provider  508 , to the client device. Thereafter, the routine ends.  
       FIG. 12  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary routine  1200 , executed on a client provider  504 , for causing digital watermark advertisements to be displayed on a client device, such as mobile phone  400  or PDA  300 . Beginning at block  1202 , an event is detected indicating that the content provider should change to the digital watermark advertisement displayed on a client device. The event may be determined on any number of criteria including, but not limited to, a periodic basis, according to an established agreement, the occurrence of particular communication conditions, or at the request of an advertiser or ad provider  508 .  
      At decision block  1204 , a determination is made as to whether the user of the client device has opted in to receive digital watermark advertising. If the user has opted in to receive digital watermark advertising on the client device, at block  1206 , the content provider  504  transmits an advertisement selector to the client device. Thereafter, or alternatively, if the client device&#39;s user has not opted in to receive digital watermark advertising, the routine  1200  terminates. As the event indicating a change to the digital watermark advertisement to be displayed on the client device may be caused by a request from the client computing device for content, or may be caused by a connection established by the client device with another cell phone, the advertisement selector may be transmitted to the client device along with content, or alternatively may simply be transmitted to the client device alone.  
       FIG. 13  is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary routine  1300 , executed on a client device, for displaying a digital watermark advertisement according to the advertisement selector sent from a service provider  902 . It should be understood that while the following discussion of routine  1300  is made in regard to receiving information from a service provider  902 , it is illustrative only, and should not be construed as limiting upon the present invention. As already discussed above, alternatively, the advertisement selector may be from a content provider  504 .  
      Beginning at block  1302 , the client device receives an advertisement selector from the service provider  902 . At decision block  1304 , a determination is made as to whether the client device has been configured to display digital watermark advertisements, i.e., has the client device&#39;s user opted in to display digital watermark advertisements. If the client device has been configured to display digital advertisements, at block  1306 , a digital watermark advertisement is selected according to the advertisement selector and displayed on the client device&#39;s display device. Thereafter, or if the client device has not been configured to display digital watermark advertisements, the routine  1300  terminates.  
      While various embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, including the preferred embodiment, it will be appreciated that various changes can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.