Patent Publication Number: US-2012036540-A1

Title: Electronic device and method for searching product information in tv programs with product placements

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     1. Technical Field 
     Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to advertisement displaying devices and methods, particularly to an electronic device and method for searching product information in TV programs with product placements. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     Product placement is increasingly becoming a more popular form of advertising in today&#39;s media environment, especially with the growing use of digital recording devices such as TIVO and DVR that allow viewers to skip commercials. While there are numerous advantages to this marketing strategy, one major disadvantage is that the viewers have no concrete information on what the product is or even where to purchase it. This lack of information may inhibit sales growth, keeping this kind of advertising from being a better investment of advertising dollars. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of one embodiment of an electronic device including an information searching unit. 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of one embodiment of function modules of the information searching unit of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a flowchart illustrating one embodiment of a method for searching product information in TV programs with product placements. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In general, the data “module,” as used herein, refers to logic embodied in hardware or firmware, or to a collection of software instructions, written in a programming language, such as, for example, Java, C, or assembly. One or more software instructions in the modules may be embedded in firmware, such as an EPROM. It will be appreciated that modules may comprise connected logic units, such as gates and flip-flops, and may comprise programmable units, such as programmable gate arrays or processors. The modules described herein may be implemented as either software and/or hardware modules and may be stored in any type of computer-readable medium or other computer storage device. 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram of one embodiment of an electronic device  1  including an information searching unit  10 . In the embodiment, functions of the information searching unit  10  are implemented by the electronic device  1 . The information searching unit  10  can search related information of products presented in a TV program from networks, and display the searched information on a display device  2  that is electronically connected to the electronic device  1  via a wired or wireless connection. In one embodiment, the products may be cars, watches, or clothes. The searched information of the products may include web page and/or a website address. The TV program may be a movie, a TV series, or any other entertainment show. 
     In one embodiment, the electronic device  1  may be a computer, a TV, a portable electronic device, or any other electronic device that includes a storage system  12  and at least one processor  14 . 
     The information searching unit  10  is configured to receive keywords and appearance times of products presented on a TV program, and display the keywords of the presented products on the display device  2  concurrently with the TV program according to the appearance times. When a viewer  4  taps any keyword displayed on the TV program (e.g., using a finger or a stylus) to select a presented product, the information searching unit  10  can load the keyword of the selected product in a search engine to search related information of the selected product, and displays the searched information on the display device  2 . The search engine can be predetermined or user configurable as will be shown below. 
     The display device  2  is used for receiving a selection operation of the keyword from the viewer  4 , and displaying the searched information of the selected product. In the embodiment, the display device  2  is a touch-sensitive display or a 3D display, and can receive an input operation of the viewer  4  using a finger or a stylus pen. For example, if the electronic device  1  is a TV, the viewer  4  can use a remote control to operate (i.e., select a product) the electronic device  1 . 
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram of one embodiment of function modules of the information searching unit  10  of  FIG. 1 . In one embodiment, the information searching unit  10  includes a definition module  100 , a recording module  102 , a displaying module  104 , a receiving module  106 , a searching module  108 , and an output module  110 . Each of the modules  100 - 110  may be a software program including one or more computerized instructions that are stored in the storage system  12  and executed by the processor  14 . 
     In one embodiment, the storage system  12  may be a magnetic or an optical storage system, such as a hard disk drive, an optical drive, or a tape drive. 
     Before the display device  2  broadcasts a TV program, the definition module  100  defines keywords and appearance times of the presented products on the TV program. In the embodiment, each of the appearance times includes a start time and an end time of the keywords to be presented on the TV program. For example, if a skirt worn by a woman is presented on a TV series from 9:00 to 9:02, the definition module  102  can define the keyword of the skirt as “ABC skirt,” define the start time of the keyword “ABC skirt” as 9:00, and define the end time of the keyword “ABC skirt” as 9:02. 
     The recording module  104  records the keywords and the appearance times of the presented products in an image file or a movie file that is compatible with the TV program. In one embodiment, the movie file may be in a MPEG-2, MPEG-4, or an AVC format. 
     When the display device  2  broadcasts the TV program, the displaying module  102  displays the keywords of the presented products on the display device  2  concurrently with the TV program according to the appearance times. 
     The receiving module  106  receives a selection operation of a presented product from the viewer  4 . For one example, if the display device  2  is a touch-sensitive display, the viewer  4  may use a finger or a stylus to tap the keyword of the presented product to select the product, and then the receiving module  106  receives the selection operation. For another example, the selection of the keywords is a taping of a mouse, or a depression of a button of a remote control. 
     The searching module  108  loads the keyword of the selected product in a search engine, and searches related information of the selected product from networks using the search engine. In one embodiment, the search engine may be predetermined such as use of an Internet search engine or other searching tools, and the related information may be web pages, and/or website addresses. The search engine may be predetermined or user-defined in other embodiments. 
     The output module  110  displays the searched information of the selected product on the display device  2 , so the viewer  4  can browse the searched information from the display device  2 . 
       FIG. 3  is a flowchart illustrating one embodiment of a method for searching product information in TV programs with product placements. Depending on the embodiment, additional blocks may be added, others removed, and the ordering of the blocks may be changed. 
     In block S 300 , the definition module  100  defines keywords and appearance times of products presented on the TV program. In the embodiment, each of the appearance times includes a start time and an end time of the keywords to be presented on the TV program. The TV program may be a movie, a TV series, or any other entertainment shown. 
     In block S 302 , the recording module  104  records the keywords and the appearance times of the presented products in an image file or a movie file that is compatible with the TV program. The movie file may be in a MPEG-2, MPEG-4, or an AVC format. 
     In block S 304 , the displaying module  102  displays the keywords of the presented products on the display device  2  concurrently with the TV program according to the appearance times. 
     In block S 306 , the receiving module  106  determines whether any keyword presented on the TV program has been tapped by the viewer  4 . In one example, the viewer  4  may touch the display device  2  with a finger or a stylus to select the keyword of a presented product, to select the presented product. If any keyword has been tapped, block S 308  is implemented. If no keyword is tapped, the flow ends. 
     In block S 308 , the searching module  108  loads the keyword of the selected product in a search engine, and searches related information of the selected product from networks using the search engine. As mentioned above, the search engine may be predetermined such as use of an Internet search engine or other searching tools, and the related information of the selected product may be web pages and/or website addresses. 
     In block S 310 , the output module  110  displays the searched information of the selected product on the display device  2 , so that the viewer  4  can browse the searched information of the selected product from the display device  2 . 
     Although certain inventive embodiments of the present disclosure have been specifically described, the present disclosure is not to be construed as being limited thereto. Various changes or modifications may be made to the present disclosure without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.