Patent Publication Number: US-2009239514-A1

Title: Methods and apparatuses for providing advertisements to a mobile device

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application generally relates to communications, and more specifically, to communication of advertisements in a broadcast network so as to increase advertisement viewing time by a user. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Electronic devices such as mobile telephone handsets and other mobile devices may be configured to receive broadcasts of sports, entertainment, advertisements, or other informational multimedia content items. For example, audio and or video data may be communicated using a broadband broadcast communications link to the electronic devices. There is a need for improving the delivery of advertisements to mobile device users so that the advertisements are delivered in more attractive and efficient ways. 
     SUMMARY 
     In certain embodiments, a method of increasing advertisement viewing time by a user of a broadcast reception and rendering device comprises: storing a user profile in a storage module of a viewing device; receiving a plurality of broadcast channels by the viewing device; rendering a broadcast stream associated with a channel from the plurality of channels; providing an interface to the user for changing the rendered channel to a second channel from the plurality of channels; detecting that the user is engaging with the interface for changing the rendered channel; and in response to the detecting, displaying at least one advertisement, the advertisement selected by reference to the user profile and displayed during the channel change. 
     In certain embodiments, a method of providing advertisements by a mobile device comprises: receiving at least one advertisement directed to the mobile device; displaying the advertisement by the mobile device; receiving a signal indicative of user interest in the displayed advertisement; detecting a request from the user to change a channel on the mobile device; and in response to the detection, displaying data relating to the advertisement. 
     In certain embodiments, an apparatus for displaying advertisements by a mobile device comprises: a receiver configured to receive at least one advertisement directed to the mobile device; a display configured to display the advertisement on the mobile device; and a processor configured to: generate a signal indicative of user interest in a displayed advertisement; detect a request from the user to change a channel on the mobile device; and in response to the detection, display data relating to the advertisement on the display. 
     In certain embodiments, an apparatus for providing advertisements by a mobile device, comprising: means for receiving at least one advertisement directed to the mobile device; means for displaying the advertisement by the mobile device; means for receiving a signal indicative of user interest in the displayed advertisement; means for detecting a request from the user to change a channel on the mobile device; and means for, in response to the detection, displaying data relating to the advertisement. 
     Methods and apparatuses of the disclosure each have several embodiments. No single one of the embodiments is solely responsible for its desirable attributes. Without limiting the scope of this invention, for example, as expressed by the claims which follow, its more prominent features will now be discussed briefly. After considering this discussion, and particularly after reading the section entitled “Detailed Description” one will understand how the features of this invention provide advantages that include allowing a mobile device to display data relating to an advertisement in which the user is interested. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary system for providing broadcast content items to mobile devices. 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram illustrating an example of a mobile device such as illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for increasing advertisement viewing time by a user of a broadcast reception and rendering device. 
         FIGS. 4A and 4B  are schematic diagrams illustrating examples of a process for detecting user changing channels, detecting user interest in rendered advertisement(s) and rendering advertisements based on user interest in a virtual channel of the broadcast service. 
         FIG. 5  is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for detecting user interest in an advertisement rendered in  FIGS. 3 ,  4 A or  4 B. 
         FIG. 6  is a flowchart illustrating another example of a method for detecting user interest in ad advertisement rendered in  FIGS. 3 ,  4 A or  4 B. 
         FIG. 7  is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for rendering interesting advertisements in a virtual channel of the mobile device broadcast service during channel “surfing.” 
         FIG. 8  is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for rendering interesting advertisements in a virtual channel of the mobile device broadcast service upon request by the user. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following detailed description is directed to certain embodiments of the disclosure. However, the invention can be embodied in a multitude of different ways, for example, as defined and covered by the claims. It should be apparent that the embodiments herein may be embodied in a wide variety of forms and that any specific structure, function, or both being disclosed herein is merely representative. Based on the teachings herein one skilled in the art should appreciate that an embodiment disclosed herein may be implemented independently of any other embodiments and that two or more of these embodiments may be combined in various ways. For example, an apparatus may be implemented or a method may be practiced using any number of the embodiments set forth herein. In addition, such an apparatus may be implemented or such a method may be practiced using other structure, functionality, or structure and functionality in addition to or other than one or more of the embodiments set forth herein. 
     In one embodiment, a device rendering a program on a channel from a plurality of program channels detects a request from the user to change a channel. In response to the detection, the device retrieves data relating to advertisements in which the user is interested and display the retrieved data. In one embodiment, the device displays data relating to the advertisement in which the user is interested immediately after the user changes a single channel or changes a plurality of channels. In one embodiment, the device displays data relating to the advertisement in which the user is interested in a virtual channel. In one embodiment, the device additionally sends the data relating to the advertisement in which the user is interested to an email address of the user. 
     In one embodiment, the user indicates to the device that the user is interested in an advertisement that has been rendered or is being rendered on the device. In other embodiments, the device generates a signal indicative of user interest in an advertisement. Generating data related to user interest in an advertisement may be performed before, during or after the user is changing channels, or alternatively during content or advertisement viewing. 
     In one embodiment, in response to the data indicative of user interest in an advertisement, the device stores data relating to the advertisement (e.g., a user profile) in a storage device. The data relating to the advertisement may include the advertisement itself and/or additional information regarding the advertised products and services. 
     Accordingly, the users of a mobile device can identify an advertisement that they are interested in while watching content items. Subsequently, the user has an opportunity to watch the advertisement of interest without interrupting content viewing since the advertisement is provided during channels “surfing” sessions when the user is more receptive to viewing new content. 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary system  100  for providing broadcast content items to mobile devices  102  from one or more content providers  112  using a distribution system  110 . While a single mobile device  102  is shown in  FIG. 1 , an exemplary system  100  may be configured to use any number of mobile devices  102 . The system  100  also includes a distribution system  110  and a content provider  112 . The distribution system  110  may receive data representing a multimedia content item from the content provider  112 . The multimedia content items may be communicated over a wired or wireless content item communication link  108 . The advertisements may also be communicated over a separate wired or wireless communication link that is different from the wired or wireless content item communication link  108 . In one embodiment, the communications link  108  is a high speed or broadband link. In one embodiment, the content provider  112  communicates content directly over a second wireless or wired link  146  to the mobile device  102 , bypassing the distribution system  110 . It is to be recognized that in other embodiments multiple content providers  112  may provide content items using multiple distribution systems  110  to the mobile devices  102 . 
     In the exemplary system  100  of  FIG. 1 , the content item communication link  108  is illustrated as a unidirectional network. However, the content item communication link  108  may also be a fully symmetric bi-directional network. The content item communication link  108  may comprise one or more wired and/or wireless links, including one or more of a Ethernet, telephone (e.g., POTS), cable, power-line, and fiber optic systems, and/or a wireless system comprising one or more of a code division multiple access (CDMA or CDMA2000) communication system, a frequency division multiple access (FDMA) system, a time division multiple access (TDMA) system such as GSM/GPRS (General Packet Radio Service)/EDGE (enhanced data GSM environment), a TETRA (Terrestrial Trunked Radio) mobile telephone system, a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) system, Mobile-Originated Short Message Service (MO-SMS) system, a 3G data network system, a high data rate (1xEV-DO or 1xEV-DO Gold Multicast) system, an IEEE 802.11 system, a MediaFLO system, a DMB system, an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDM) system, or a DVB-H system. 
     In the exemplary system  100 , the mobile device  102  may also be configured to communicate on a third communication link  106  which may comprise any of the networks described above with reference to the link  108 . In one embodiment, the communication link  106  is a two way communication link such as is illustrated in the exemplary system  100 . The communication link  106  may be used in communication between the mobile device  102  and the broadcast center or distribution system  110  and/or the content provider  112 . In one embodiment, the distribution system  110  is a broadcast center. The third communication link  106  may be a wireless network configured to communicate voice traffic and/or data traffic. The communication link  106  may communicate program guide and other data between the distribution system  110  and the mobile device  102 . 
     The mobile device  102  includes a rendering module  122  configured to render the multimedia content items received over the content item communication link  108 . The rendering module  122  may include analog and/or digital technologies. The rendering module  122  may include one or more multimedia signal processing systems, such as video encoders/decoders, using encoding/decoding methods based on international standards such as MPEG-x and H.26x standards. Such encoding/decoding methods generally are directed towards compressing the multimedia data for transmission and/or storage. 
     In addition to communicating content items to the mobile device  102 , the distribution system  110  may also include a program guide service  126 . The program guide service  126  receives program schedule and content related data from the content provider  112  and/or other sources and communicates data representing an electronic programming guide (EPG)  124  to the mobile device  102 . The EPG  124  may include data related to the broadcast schedule of multiple content items available to be received over the content item communication link  108 . The EPG data may include titles of content items, start and end times, category classification of content items (e.g., sports, movies, comedy, etc.), quality ratings, adult content ratings, etc. The EPG  124  may also be communicated to the mobile device  102  over the content item communication link  108  and stored in the mobile device  102 . 
     Mobile devices such as mobile handsets and music/video players are often used by a particular user. Therefore, the mobile device  102  also includes a user profile  128 . For example, the user profile  128  may be configured to store information indicative of content items selected for viewing by a user. In one embodiment, the user profile  128  stores data indicative of one or more content items that will be, or have been, viewed, recorded, or otherwise accessed by the user. The profile may be updated based on data indicative of accessed content items, a category associated with the accessed content items, an elapsed viewing time of the accessed content items, and a channel associated with the content items. 
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram illustrating an example of the mobile device  102  such as illustrated in  FIG. 1 . The mobile device  102  includes a processor  202  that may be in communication with a memory (or storage device)  204  and a network interface  208  that communicates over the content item communication link  108 . The network interface  208  includes a receiver  224  configured to receive the unidirectional content item communication link  108 . The network interface  208  and the receiver  224  may receive signals according to wired technologies which are the same as or similar to those for the content item communication link  108 . 
     The mobile device  102  may include an optional second network interface  206  for communicating using the bi-directional communication link  106 . The network interface  206  may include any suitable antenna (not shown), a receiver  220 , and a transmitter  222  so that the mobile device  102  can communicate with one or more devices over the bi-directional communication link  106 . 
     The mobile device  102  may also includes one or more of a display  210 , a user input device  212  such as a key, touch screen, or other suitable tactile input device, a loudspeaker  214  comprising a transducer adapted to provide audible output based on a signal received over the communication link  106  and/or a microphone  216  comprising a transducer adapted to provide audible input of a signal that may be transmitted over the communication links  106  or  108 . 
     The mobile device  102  may comprise at least one of a mobile handset, a personal digital assistant, a laptop computer, a headset, a vehicle hands free device, or any other electronic device. For example, one or more embodiments taught herein may be incorporated into a phone (e.g., a cellular phone), a personal data assistant (“PDA”), an entertainment device (e.g., a music or video device), a headset (e.g., headphones, an earpiece, etc.), a microphone, or any other suitable device. 
     The components described herein may be implemented in a variety of ways. Referring to  FIG. 2 , the mobile device  102  may be represented as a series of interrelated functional blocks that may represent functions implemented by, for example the processor  202 , software (not shown), some combination thereof, or in some other manner as taught herein. For example, the processor  202  may facilitate user input using the input devices  212 . Further, the transmitter  222  may comprise a processor (not shown in  FIG. 2 ) that provides various functionalities relating to transmitting information, for example, to another mobile device  102 , or to an email address of a user. Also, the receivers  220  or  224  may comprise a processor (not shown in  FIG. 2 ) to provide various functions relating to receiving information, in example, from another mobile device  102 . 
     In some embodiments, the device or apparatus  102  comprises an integrated circuit (“IC”). Thus, the integrated circuit may comprise one or more processors that provide the functionality of the processor components illustrated in  FIG. 2 . For example, in some embodiments a single processor implements the functionality of the illustrated processor components, while in other embodiments more than one processor implements the functionality of the illustrated processor components. In addition, in some embodiments the integrated circuit comprises other types of components that implement some or all of the functionality of the illustrated processor components. 
     Any illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented within or performed by an integrated circuit, an access terminal, or an access point. The IC may comprise a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, electrical components, optical components, mechanical components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein, and may execute codes or instructions that reside within the IC, outside of the IC, or both. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. 
     Those skilled in the art will recognize that the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinations of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of this disclosure. 
     The steps of a method or algorithm described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. A software module may reside in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium may be coupled to the processor such the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal. In the alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discrete components in a user terminal. 
       FIG. 3  is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method  300  for increasing advertisement viewing time by a user of a broadcast reception and rendering device, such as mobile device  102 . Advertisements may be selected by reference to the user profile and rendered while the user is changing channels. At block  302 , the mobile device  102  receives a plurality of broadcast channels of content items. The content items may be received over a broadcast network such as the content item communication link  108 . 
     Next, at block  304 , the mobile device  102  renders a broadcast stream associated with a channel from the plurality of channels. An advertisement may be rendered at the same time as rendering the content items received by the mobile device  102 . The advertisement may also be rendered while the content item rendering is “paused,” e.g., via user request. The advertisements and the content items may be rendered in different areas (e.g., windows) of the screen of the display  210  or in the same area but in temporal succession. 
     Continuing from block  304 , at block  306  user profile data are stored in the user profile  128  which may be stored on a storage module of the mobile device  102 . In one embodiment, the user profile includes demographic information, such as the user&#39;s age range, living area, particular interest, etc. Correspondingly, metadata may be incorporated in the broadcast stream of advertisements so that particular users may view particular advertisements based on the demographic information stored in their user profile  128 . 
     The user profile  128  may also include the user&#39;s preferences to particular advertisements. In one embodiment, the user notifies the mobile device  102  of his or her interest in an advertisement being rendered during block  304  by selecting a trigger in the advertisement. In another embodiment, the user presses a certain key or key sequence on the device to notify the mobile device  102  of his or her interest in the advertisement being rendered. Upon receiving the user&#39;s indication of his or her interest in an advertisement, the mobile device  102  updates the user profile  128  correspondingly. 
     In another embodiment, the mobile device  102  receives a signal indicative of user interest in an advertisement that has been rendered or is being rendered during block  304 . This signal may be generated by the user via the input device  212 . For example, the user selects a soft key on the device to indicate that he or she is interested in the advertisement that has been rendered or is being rendered on the mobile device  102 . In a further example, the user selects a designated area of the touch screen of the display  210  to indicate his or her interest in the rendered advertisement. The signal received in block  406  may also be generated by the mobile device  102 . Two embodiments of generating a signal indicative of user interest in an advertisement are described in later portions of this specification with respect to  FIGS. 5 and 6 . 
     Method  300  further includes block  308  where the mobile device  102  provides an interface to the user so that the user may change the rendered channel to a second channel from the plurality of channels. In one embodiment, the user presses a channel up or channel down key on the device to generate a linear channel change request. In another embodiment, the user selects a soft channel up or channel down key on the touch screen of the display  210 . 
     Next, at block  310 , the mobile device  102  detects that the user is engaging the interface to change the rendered channel as part of “surfing” between channels. An exemplary process for performing this detection is described below with respect to  FIG. 7 , but, as may be appreciated, this detection may be implemented in other ways, which will be apparent to those skilled in the art from this discussion. In one embodiment, the mobile device  102  determines whether the user has generated a predetermined number of channel change requests in a predetermined period of time. For example, the mobile device  102  may determine that the user is engaging the interface as part of “surfing” between channels if the user presses the channel up or channel down key at least three times in a period of time of ten seconds. Additionally, the channel change request may be linear or nonlinear. For example, the user may change channels from Channel  5  to Channel  6  and then to Channel  8  and so on. The user may also change channels from Channel  5  to Channel  1  and then to Channel  7  and to Channel  8  and so on. Regardless of the particular sequence, the device is particularly configured to detect that the user is in “surfing” mode. In another embodiment, the device modifies the criteria for detecting “surfing” sessions by reference to the user profile and other historical data. 
     After performing the “surfing” detection, method  300  proceeds to block  312 . In block  312 , the mobile device  102 , in response to detecting a “surfing” session, renders at least one advertisement. The advertisement is selected by reference to the user profile  128  and is rendered during the channel change session. As described earlier, the mobile device  102  may select advertisements based on the demographic information stored in the user profile  128  and the metadata incorporated in the broadcast stream. The mobile device  102  may also select advertisements based on the user&#39;s preference to particular advertisements. The user&#39;s preference is preferably stored in the user profile  128 . 
     Advertisements or data relating to the advertisements may be rendered immediately before rendering the next content item in the arrived-at channel. In this case, data relating to the advertisement is rendered in an area (e.g., window) of the screen of the display  210  in which the next content item is rendered. The data relating to the advertisement may include the advertisement itself, any portion of the advertisement, or additional information regarding the advertised products and services. In one embodiment, the additional information regarding the advertised products and services includes the telephone numbers, web addresses, mailing addresses, etc. of the advertised company. In so doing, the system provides a new channel that renders the advertisement in which the user is interested. The data relating to the advertisement may also be rendered at the same time as the next content item, but at different areas (e.g., different windows) of the screen of the display  210 . The data relating to the advertisement may be rendered in the virtual channel specifically for rendering advertisements in which the user is interested. 
     In other embodiments, the advertisement includes an on-line survey, an on-line contest, on-line voting, or similar on-line events, and do not advertise any products and services. In this case, the additional data relating to the advertisement include results of the events or any important stages where the on-line events require or allow user participation. 
     Method  300  may also store a history of rendered advertisements in response to channel change detection of block  3   10 . Method  300  may also synchronize the rendering of a broadcast stream, for example, of the destination channel, with an end of the advertisement rendered by block  312 . 
     Method  300  has been described above, but it should be noted that the number of the blocks, the sequence of the blocks and the process in each block are only intended to illustrate one embodiment. Various changes may be made to the illustrated method. For example, block  308  may be moved to right before block  306 . Thus, the interface for changing to a second channel is provided to the user before the user profile data are stored in the storage module of mobile device  102 . Another example is that blocks  304  and  306  are combined into a single block. Thus, the user profile data are stored in the storage module of the mobile device  102  at substantially the same time as the broadcast stream is being rendered. It is noted that such rearrangement of blocks could also be performed with respect to certain blocks of  FIGS. 5 ,  6 ,  7  and  8 . 
     The process in blocks  310  and  312  of  FIG. 3  can be illustrated in  FIGS. 4A and 4B .  FIGS. 4A and 4B  are schematic diagrams illustrating examples of a process for detecting user channel changing sessions, detecting user interest in rendered advertisements, and rendering advertisements based on user interest in a virtual channel of the broadcast service.  FIGS. 4A and 4B  illustrate blocks  401 - 420 , which are each representative of a time period during which content items are rendered on the display  210 . As illustrated in  FIG. 4A , the user initially views content items received on Channel  5  for a first period of time indicated by block  401 . Then, the user switches to Channel  6 , for example, by selecting a channel up key on the mobile device  102 , to view the content items received on Channel  6  for a second period indicated by block  402 . The second period (block  402 ) may be less than five seconds. Next, the user may decide they are not interested in the content items delivered on Channel  6 . Thus, the user switches to Channel  7 , for example, by selecting the channel up key again. In this embodiment, an advertisement is being rendered on Channel  7 , and the user views this particular advertisement for a third period of time indicated by block  403 . During the third period, the user may feel he or she is interested in this particular advertisement and therefore selects a certain key or key sequence to notify the mobile device  102  of their interest in this particular advertisement. As described above with respect to blocks  304  and  306  of  FIG. 3 , the user profile  128  may be updated accordingly to indicate that the user is interested in this particular advertisement. 
     Alternatively, the mobile device  102  may also monitor the viewing length of an advertisement and comparing the viewing length with a predetermined threshold length. As illustrated in  FIG. 4A , the viewing length of the advertisement in Channel  7  is greater than or equal to the predetermined threshold length  450 . Therefore, the mobile device  102  determines that the user is interested in this particular advertisement and thus updates the user profile  128  to indicate the user&#39;s preference to this particular advertisement. 
       FIG. 4A  also illustrates that a user, after having viewed Channel  7  for the third period of time, switched to Channel  8  and then viewed the content items on Channel  8  for a fourth period of time, as indicated by block  405 . At this particular point in the illustrated embodiment, the mobile device  102  detects a user “surfing” session and therefore renders an advertisement, as indicated by block  404 , in a virtual channel. The rendered advertisement may be selected by reference to the user preference data stored in the user profile  128  or by reference to the demographic information stored in the user profile  128 . The user preferred advertisements may be rendered in the same window as content items or in a separate window. In some implementations, the rendered advertisement is retrieved from a storage device of the mobile device  102 . 
     After the fourth period (block  405 ), in addition to rendering the user preferred advertisement, the mobile device  102  may stop rendering content items on Channel  8  and may also receive input from the user to switch to other channels. The mobile device  102  may also continue rendering the content items on Channel  8  while rendering the advertisement in another window, as illustrated in  FIG. 4B . In  FIG. 4B , the content items of Channel  8  are rendered, as indicated by block  405 , at the same as the whole, part, or a portion of the user preferred advertisements that are rendered, as indicated by block  404 , in the virtual channel. 
     In  FIG. 4A  the mobile device  102  stops rendering the content items on Channel  8  when the user chooses to switch to Channel  9 . After rendering the user preferred advertisement in the virtual channel, content items corresponding to Channel  9  are preferably rendered, as indicated in block  420 . The user may also wait until rendering the user preferred advertisements is completed before selecting to switch to Channel  9 . Therefore, the mobile device  102  may include a mechanism which synchronizes rendering the content items in the destination channel, e.g., Channel  9  in  FIG. 4A , with the ending of rendering of the user preferred advertisement, either by user action or reaching an end of segment, in the virtual channel. 
       FIG. 4B  illustrates another example for providing advertisement to a user in response to detecting a user “surfing” session. While  FIG. 4A  shows that the mobile device  102  detects a user “surfing” session in response to at least three requests of channel change (e.g., Channel  6 →Channel  7 , Channel  7 →Channel  8 , Channel  8 →Channel  9 ) during a predetermined time,  FIG. 4B  shows that the mobile device  102  detects a user “surfing” session in response to at least two requests of channel change (e.g., Channel  6 →Channel  7 , Channel  7 →Channel  8 ) during a predetermined time. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 4B , at the end of the third period (block  403 ), the mobile device  102  detects a user “surfing” session. The mobile device  102  responds by rendering, as indicated by block  404 , the user preferred advertisement in a virtual channel. At substantially the same time, the mobile device  102  renders, as indicated by block  405 , the content items of a channel, Channel  8  for example, in a separate window on the display  2   10 . 
     At the end of the fourth period (block  405 ), the user selects to switch to Channel  9 , and the mobile device  102  renders, as indicated by block  420 , content items of Channel  9 . As may be appreciated, the mobile device  102  may further include a mechanism or method to synchronize rendering content items from a destination channel, e.g., Channel  9  in  FIG. 4B , with the completion of rendering the user preferred advertisement in the virtual channel. 
     As described above with respect to blocks  304  and  306  of  FIG. 3 , the signal indicative of user interest in an advertisement can be generated by the device in response to input by the user via the input device  212  or in response to detection by the mobile device  102 .  FIG. 5  illustrates a method  500  by which the mobile device  102  generates a signal indicative of user interest in an advertisement. 
     As shown in  FIG. 5 , method  500  begins at block  502  where the mobile device  102  measures the presentation time of an advertisement that has been rendered or is being rendered on the mobile device  102 . In one embodiment, the processor  202  of the mobile device  102  is programmed to record start and stop times for each rendered advertisement in block  302  of  FIG. 3  and calculate a presentation time for each advertisement. 
     Next in block  504 , the mobile device  102  compares the presentation time of an advertisement with a first threshold. The first threshold may have a default value of, for example, five seconds. If the result of the comparison in block  504  is “No,” method  500  returns to block  502  and waits to measure the presentation time of another advertisement. Alternatively, method  500  may also be stopped or paused until it is revoked to measure the presentation time of another advertisement starting from block  502 . 
     If the result of the comparison in block  504  is “Yes,” method  500  proceeds to block  506 . In block  506 , the mobile device  102  stores data relating to the advertisement in a storage device. The storage device may be any volatile or non-volatile storage devices internal or external to the mobile device  102 . For example, the storage device may include the memory  204  as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . The data relating to the advertisement has been provided in this description above with respect to block  312  of  FIG. 3 . For example, the data relating to the advertisement may include the advertisement itself, any portion of the advertisement, or additional information regarding the advertised products and services. 
     After storing advertisement data, method  500  proceeds to block  508 . In block  508 , the mobile device  102  stores data indicative of the user&#39;s interest in the advertisement. Such storage may be implemented by updating the user profile  128 . The mobile device  102  may also generate a signal indicative of user interest in the advertisement. The signal may be a flag or an indicator that is stored in a memory module of the mobile device  102  or in any other volatile or non-volatile storage devices internal or external to the mobile device  102 . Update of the user profile may trigger off message, event, or other communication to another routine on the mobile device  102  or elsewhere. 
     Next, method  500  returns to block  502  and waits to measure the presentation time of another advertisement. Alternatively, method  500  may pause until it is revoked to measure the presentation time of another advertisement starting from block  502 . 
       FIG. 6  illustrates the flowchart of another embodiment by which the mobile device  102  generates a signal indicative of user interest in an advertisement. Method  600  begins at block  602  where the mobile device  102  decides whether the user interacted with a rendered advertisement. In one embodiment, the advertisement is an interactive advertisement. While watching the interactive advertisement, the user may participate, for example, through the use of the input  212 , the display  210 , or the microphone  216  of the mobile device  102 , and retrieve additional information regarding the advertised subject. In one embodiment, the additional information regarding the advertised subject includes the telephone numbers, web addresses, mailing addresses, etc. of the retail company. 
     In other embodiments, the advertisement is for an on-line survey, an on-line contest, on-line voting, or similar on-line events. In this case, the additional data relating to the advertisement is any results of the events or any important time when the on-line events require user participation. 
     If the result of the comparison in block  602  is “No,” method  600  returns to block  602  and waits until the user interacts with an advertisement. Alternatively, method  600  may also be stopped or paused until it is revoked to recognize the user&#39;s interaction with an advertisement starting from block  602 . 
     If the result of the comparison in block  602  is “Yes,” method  600  proceeds to block  604 . In block  604 , the mobile device  102  generates data relating to the advertisement by reference to the user&#39;s interaction with the advertisement. As described above, the data relating to the advertisement may include the telephone number, web addresses, mailing addresses, etc. of the advertised company if the advertisement is an interactive advertisement. 
     Then, in block  606 , the mobile device  102  stores data relating to the advertisement in a storage device. Here, the storage device may be any volatile or non-volatile storage devices internal or external to the mobile device  102 . For example, the storage device may include the memory  204  as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . Various examples of the data relating to the advertisement have been given in the description above with respect to block  312  of  FIG. 3 . For example, the data relating to the advertisement may include the advertisement itself, any portion of the advertisement, or additional information regarding the advertised products and services. 
     Next, method  600  proceeds to block  608 . In block  608 , the mobile device  102  stores data indicative of the user&#39;s interest in the advertisement. This may be implemented by updating the user profile  128 . The mobile device  102  may also generate a signal indicative of user interest in the advertisement. The signal may be a flag or an indicator that is stored in a memory module of the mobile device  102  or in any other volatile or non-volatile storage devices internal or external to the mobile device  102 . Update of the user profile may trigger the transmission of a message, event, or other communication to another routine on the mobile device  102  or elsewhere. 
     Then, method  600  returns to block  602  and waits to detect user interaction with another advertisement. Alternatively, method  600  may pause until it is revoked to detect user interaction with another advertisement starting from block  602 . 
       FIG. 7  is a flowchart illustrating method  700  for rendering advertisements in a virtual channel of the mobile device broadcast service during channel “surfing.” Method  700  begins at block  702  where the mobile device  102  determines whether a channel change request has been generated by the user. If the decision in block  702  is “No,” method  700  returns to block  702  to wait for a channel change request. If the decision in block  702  is “Yes,” method  700  proceeds to block  704 . In block  704 , the mobile device  102  decides whether the number of channel changes is greater than or equal to a predetermined number over a predetermined time. For instance, the predetermined number may be three and the predetermined time may be twenty seconds. 
     If the decision in block  704  is “No,” method  700  returns to block  702  to wait for another channel change request. If the decision in block  704  is “Yes,” method  700  proceeds to block  706 . If so, the mobile device may have detected that the user is surfing between channels. 
     In block  706 , the mobile device  102  retrieves data relating to the advertisement from a storage device of the mobile device  102 , and then in block  708 , renders the retrieved data in a virtual channel on the mobile device  102 . For various embodiments of methods for retrieving and displaying the data relating to the advertisements, reference may be made to the description of block  312  of  FIG. 3 . 
       FIG. 8  is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method  800  for rendering advertisements in a virtual channel of the mobile device or in response to a user indication of interest. The mobile device  102  may have received the user interest signal, for example, in blocks  304  or  306  of  FIG. 3  and therefore the user profile  128  has been updated with the request for additional information. As described above, the users may have selected a trigger in an advertisement to indicate their interest. As illustrated in  FIG. 8 , method  800  begins at block  802  where the mobile device  102  receives this request from the users to render additional information regarding an advertisement in which they are interested. This request may be made by the user via the input device  212 . Sometime thereafter, the user presses a channel up or channel down key on the device one or more times so as to change the channel to a special channel number. This special channel number may represent a virtual channel in which the information for advertisements in which the user is interested is rendered. In another embodiment, the user presses a particular key on the remote control or the keypad of the mobile device  102 , which directly changes the channel to the virtual channel. In a further embodiment, the user selects a soft channel up or channel down key or a particular soft key on the touch screen of the display  210 . 
     Next, in block  804 , the mobile device  102  retrieves data relating to the advertisements from a storage device. For example, the storage device may include the memory  204  as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . Various examples of the data relating to the advertisement have been given in the description above with respect to block  312  of  FIG. 3 . For example, the data relating to the advertisement may include the advertisement itself, any portion of the advertisement, or additional information regarding the advertised products and services. In one embodiment, the data relating to the advertisements have been saved to the storage device previously in block  506  of  FIG. 5  or in block  606  of  FIG. 6 . 
     In other embodiments, the mobile device  102  requests advertisements from the content provider  112  by transmitting advertisement identification numbers. The device then receives the requested advertisements via the content item communication link  108 . Next, in block  806 , the mobile device  102  displays the retrieved data, for example, in a virtual channel. 
     The apparatuses and methods described herein may be used to improve targeted advertising systems by providing the content provider  112  with feedback data relating to the user or the mobile device as well as advertisements in which the user expressed an interest. The feedback data from the mobile device  102  allow the content provider  112  to deliver other advertisements in which the user is likely to be interested. Accordingly, instead of clogging network by delivering all advertisements over the broadcast network  108 , the system  100  may be configured to allow for the filtering of delivered advertisements to take place at the content provider  112  location. 
     While the above detailed description has shown, described, and pointed out novel features of the invention as applied to various embodiments, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the form and details of the device or process illustrated may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of this disclosure. As will be recognized, the invention may be embodied within a form that does not provide all of the features and benefits set forth herein, as some features may be used or practiced separately from others. The scope of this disclosure is defined by the appended claims, the foregoing description, or both. All changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.