Patent Publication Number: US-2012036526-A1

Title: Electronic device and method for embedding 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 embedding product information in TV programs with product placements. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     Product placement is increasingly becoming a 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 contributes the lack of sales growth often associated with effective advertising. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of one embodiment of an electronic device including an embedding unit. 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of one embodiment of function modules of the embedding unit of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a flowchart illustrating one embodiment of a method for embedding 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 embedding unit  10 . In the embodiment, functions of the embedding unit  10  are implemented by the electronic device  1 ; the embedding unit  10  can embed advertising information of products presented in a TV program, and display the advertising information on a display device  2  that is electronically connected to the electronic device  1  via a wired or wireless connection during the TV program broadcasts. In one embodiment, the products may be cars, watches, or clothes. The advertising information of the products may include text, audio, an advertisement file, a Web advertisement, and/or a shopping website. 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 embedding unit  10  is configured to receive advertising information of products that may be presented on the TV program from a user  3 . When a viewer  4  selects a product displayed on the TV program, the embedding unit  10  can export the advertising information of the selected product to the TV program, and displays the advertising information concurrently with the TV program. 
     The display device  2  is used for receiving a selection operation of the product from the viewer  4 , and displaying the advertising information of the selected product concurrently with the TV program. 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 embedding unit  10  of  FIG. 1 . In one embodiment, the embedding unit  10  includes an enclosing module  100 , a definition module  102 , a recording module  104 , a receiving module  106 , an export 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 enclosing module  100  encloses presented products of the TV program in a graphic box. The graphic box can be a rectangle, a circle, lines, or a box drawn by the user  3 . In the embodiment, the definition module  102  defines a size of the graphic box according to a displayed size of the product on the display device  2 . 
     The definition module  102  further defines the advertising information of the products. As mentioned above, the advertising information comprises characters, audio, an advertisement file, a Web advertisement, and/or a shopping website. 
     The recording module  104  records the advertising information. In one embodiment, the advertising information of each product can be recorded in an image file that is compatible with the TV program. The image file may be in format of a MPEG-2, MPEG-4, or an AVC format. 
     When the display device  2  displays the TV program, the receiving module  106  receives a selection operation of a product from the viewer  4 . For example, if the display device  2  is a touch-sensitive display, the viewer  4  may use a finger to select the product presented on the TV program, and then the receiving module  106  receives the selection operation. 
     The export module  108  exports the advertising information of the selected product from the image file, and embeds the advertising information of the selected product to the TV program. 
     The output module  110  displays the advertising information of the selected product on the display device  2  so the viewer  4  can browse the advertising information while the display device  2  broadcasts the TV program. 
       FIG. 3  is a flowchart illustrating one embodiment of a method for embedding 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 enclosing module  100  encloses presented products of the TV program in a graphic box. In the embodiment, the TV program may be a movie, a TV series, or any other entertainment shown. The graphic box can be a rectangle, a circle, lines, or a box drawn by the user  3 . In the embodiment, a size of the graphic box can be defined according to a displayed size of the product on the display device  2 . 
     In block S 302 , the definition module  102  defines advertising information related to each product, and the recording module  104  records the advertising information in an image file that is compatible with the TV program. In the embodiment, the advertising information comprises texts, audio, an advertisement file, a Web advertisement, and/or a shopping website. The image file may be in format of a MPEG-2, MPEG-4, or an AVC format. 
     When the display device  2  displays the TV program, in block S 304 , the receiving module  106  determines whether any product presented on the TV program has been selected by the viewer  4 . In one example, the viewer  4  may touch the display device  2  with a finger to select the product. If any product has been selected, block S 306  is implemented. If no product is selected, the flow ends. 
     In block S 306 , the export module  108  exports the advertising information of the selected product from the image file, and embeds the advertising information of the selected product to the TV program. 
     In block S 308 , the output module  110  displays the advertising information of the selected product on the display device  2  concurrently with the TV program, so that the viewer  4  can browse the advertising information of the selected product while the display device  2  broadcasts the TV program. 
     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.