Abstract:
A computer-implemented method of advertising an ad including data content or metadata associated with a time in the future to a plurality of users connected via computer network to a server includes the steps of: (a) receiving data including the ad content at a user interface of at least one of the plurality of users from the server via the network; (b) placing the ad content on a timeline of the user interface; and (c) displaying the ad content on the timeline in relation to its associated time and the current time. Moreover, disclosed herein is a computer-readable medium including computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause a computer to perform such a method.

Description:
FIELD 
       [0001]    The present disclosure relates to a computer-implemented method for advertising an ad to a plurality of users and to a computer system for performing such a method. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    Advertising of new products or any other events via a computer network is commonly known. In particular, online social networks or other environments on a computer network provide the function where a user, including agencies and companies in general, can distribute a message including an advertisement, messages, or other deals (collectively called “ads”). The ads are often presented in order, usually starting with the latest ad and ending with the oldest ad. Thus, a user reading the ads will usually start reading the latest ad at the beginning and scroll down to the other ads. 
         [0003]    For a user or advertiser or any other entity who would like to advertise an event in the future, i.e., to publish an ad associated with an event taking place at a time in the future, the current system has the disadvantage that, when the event comes closer in time, the ad appears further down in the list, such that a user who usually reads the ads from the beginning of the list will lose track of the ad. 
         [0004]    US 2005/0197894 A1 discloses a localized event server apparatus having a central database of events, advertisements, and the like. Interfaces exist for consumers, advertisers, and event promoters and others who may benefit from the available event information. The advertisement surrounds an event calendar configured in real time according to arbitrary filtering and sorting selections made by the user. The user may merely define times and geographical locations of potential advertising targets. 
         [0005]    US 2008/0046311 A1 discloses a computing system for monetizing calendar applications. A calendar interface is presented that is accessible via a network. Advertised events displayed along the side of the user&#39;s calendar interface may be added to the calendar by the user&#39;s interaction. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0006]    There is a continuous need for a multi-user computer system, in particular, an online social community network, providing a more intuitive presentation of ads associated with events or deals in the future. Such ads may comprise an advertisement and/or a deal which includes time-related data content or at least time-related metadata. The advertisement or the deal may refer to an event taking place at a certain point in time or over a span of time in the future. 
         [0007]    A first aspect of the present disclosure provides a computer-implemented method of advertising an ad including data content or metadata associated with a time in the future to a plurality of users connected via a computer network to a server, comprising the steps of: 
         [0008]    (a) receiving data including the ad content at a user interface of at least one of the plurality of users from the server via the network; 
         [0009]    (b) placing the ad content on a timeline of the user interface; and 
         [0010]    (c) displaying the ad content on the timeline in relation to its associated time and the current time. 
         [0011]    The ad, which can be an advertisement, a deal, or any other notice related to an event associated with a point in time or a span of time in the future, is placed on a timeline, e.g., a calendar. The ad can be designed to look like a reminder placed in a timeline or calendar to direct the attention of the user of the interface to the event in the future. If, for example, a company releases a new movie, it places the date of the premiere on the timeline of the movie fans of an online community or social network. Due to placing the ad content on a timeline and displaying it on the timeline in relation to the associated time and the current time, it can be easily seen how far the event is in the future, and it reflects the dynamic nature of the event that comes closer by the day and even the time of day. The urgency of such a representation is more tangible than just displaying the date. 
         [0012]    According to one embodiment, in the step of placing the ad content on the timeline, the user interface is a user interface of an online community or a social network. In such an online community or social network, it is possible to address a particular user or user groups interested in the content of the ad. 
         [0013]    According to one embodiment, in the step of displaying the ad content, the timeline is an online calendar. In an alternative embodiment, the timeline can be a simple thread of entries, showing the entries in the order as entered by a user. The ads associated with a time in the future are placed above the list of ads without a time relation and display as a current ad as soon as the specified time is the current time. In an online calendar, the ad can be immediately placed on the specified date and time of day in the calendar. In an alternative embodiment, the ads are shown in a timeline, but each ad is marked by the calendar date and preferably by the time of day. 
         [0014]    In accordance with one embodiment, the ad content changes over time based on at least one of: receiving data from the server and a user input at the user interface, and the method further comprises the steps of displaying the ad content, and updating the display of the ad content in accordance with the changes of the ad content. The ad can change over time, e.g., due to social impact and user interaction. Moreover, the company responsible for the ad content may wish to update the ad content due to recent developments, e.g., if an event was canceled, the company advertising the event will indicate in the ad that the event has been canceled. 
         [0015]    According to one embodiment, the method further comprises the steps of: 
         [0016]    (d) interacting with an ad by at least one user via the user interface; and 
         [0017]    (e) transmitting data relating to the ad content from the user interface to the server. 
         [0018]    This embodiment allows for updating the ad content by a user as mentioned in the previous embodiments. Moreover, it is preferred that in step (e) the data relating to the ad content includes a time stamp when the at least one user interacted with the ad. Thus, ad agencies can retrieve precise data from the interaction with the placed ad. The interaction around the advertisement creates a history of interactions as it is always possible to see when certain interactions happened, e.g., instead of having one value that defines how many users interacted with the ad (or starting a poll every time you want to collect data for a certain time), each interaction is registered with its time resulting in a cloud of data that is much more precise for any data mining (which can happen any time). 
         [0019]    According to one embodiment, the associated time is a certain point in time, e.g., a fixed date and time of day of a particular event. Moreover, the associated time may also cover a span of time such as a duration of time at which a festival takes place, a special offer is available, etc. In this embodiment, the ad content may be displayed continuously as a still-valid “ad of the day” when the current time is in the defined span of time. 
         [0020]    According to a further aspect of the present disclosure, a computer program product comprises a computer-readable medium with computer-executable instructions that, when executed on the computer, cause the computer to perform the method of any of the preceding embodiments. 
         [0021]    According to a further aspect of the present disclosure, a server is configured to perform a method as described above. 
         [0022]    Further embodiments and benefits are specified in the following description in connection with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0023]    The foregoing aspects and many of the attendant advantages of the claimed subject matter 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: 
           [0024]      FIG. 1  shows a possible implementation and visualization of future ads in a user interface in accordance with a first embodiment; and 
           [0025]      FIG. 2  shows a further embodiment of a user interface including a calendar function. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0026]      FIG. 1  depicts a view of the user interface of an online social network. On the left part of the display, a list of ads is displayed. The sorting usually starts with the latest (i.e., the item the farthest in the future) and ends with the oldest ad. Ad  101  shows a sponsored future ad for an event that is due to occur in five days. This ad is displayed at the beginning of a timeline as the ad farthest in the future. The user can click on an icon to interact with the ad. The ad  102  is a future ad for a deal that is due to occur in two hours and thus sorted below ad  101 . Ad  103  shows a normal text message that was already sent by another connected user without specifying a particular time for an event to occur. Thus, it is shown as a current ad which is valid at the current time. 
         [0027]    The ad  101  may, for example, refer to a future event and may include a provider asking a user to guess the future success of the product, to guess the timing of a feature event, to participate in the future product design, and/or to guess the future audience. The user can add the event to his personal calendar and set up a reminder. 
         [0028]    The future event  102  may refer to a future deal and may include a provider enabling a user to pre-order a future deal immediately. The user may add this event to his personal calendar and set up a reminder. 
         [0029]    Moreover, ads  104  and  105  refer to a time which has already passed. These ads are shown in the timeline as historical ads. 
         [0030]      FIG. 2  shows a further embodiment of the user interface which already implements a calendar function in the timeline. Each ad  201 ,  203 , and  204  is provided with a top bar showing a calendar entry referring to the date and, optionally, to the time of day associated with the ad content. The ad  202  is a user&#39;s text message carrying no particular associated time. 
         [0031]      FIG. 2  shows all the ads  201 ,  202 ,  203 , and  204  in the calendar view. The calendar sorts ads starting with the oldest ones and sorts downward, showing the ad with the associated time that is furthest in the future positioned at the bottom. Moreover, the user interface includes a scroll bar  205  allowing the user to scroll in the timeline or calendar. 
         [0032]    The following examples illustrate how to use the future ads in an online community or social network, e.g., in a computer network including at least one server and at least two clients each including a user interface as described above. 
       Guessing the Future Success of a Product 
       [0033]    A film company starts an advertisement about two months before a certain film starts. The advertisement is targeted toward film fans that are active in an online community. The content of the ad is the question, “How many people will watch the movie during the first week?” This question, along with a visual cue like the movie poster, is distributed as an advertisement. 
         [0034]    The users who get the advertisement are now able to read the advertisement and guess the correct answer as a multiple choice selection of possible answers. To motivate users into actually trying to guess right and not just clicking a random answer (or deliberately clicking the wrong answer), people who guess right are able to win something, e.g., they earn virtual currency used in the online community for participating, they earn substantially more currency for guessing the right answer, and, finally, they are able to win a “real” prize like tickets to actually see the movie for free. 
         [0035]    As the social aspect is important for the online community, the participants can also compare their performance not only of one, but of all guesses made at this advertisement and the guessing skill in general. Every guess they make is saved persistently in the online community network, and connected to the profile of the said user. 
       Guessing the Timing of a Future Event 
       [0036]    A company starts an advertisement before a certain product is launched. The advertisement is targeted toward fans of the product that are active in an online community. The content of the ad is the question, “When the product will be launched?” This question is distributed as an advertisement. 
         [0037]    The users who are targeted by the advertisement are now able to read the advertisement and guess the correct answer as a multiple choice selection of possible answers. To motivate users into actually trying to guess right and not just clicking a random answer (or deliberately clicking the wrong answer), people who guess right are able to win something. First, they earn virtual currency used in the online community for participating, they earn substantially more currency for guessing the right answer, and, finally, they are able to win a “real” prize like a reduction in price for the final product. 
         [0038]    As the social aspect is important for the online community, the participants can also compare their performance not only of one, but of all guesses made at this advertisement. A comparison with other users is also possible. 
       Participating in Future Product Design (e.g., Name, Color, Look, and Feel) 
       [0039]    A company is interested in finding the correct product design for an upcoming product before it is launched. The content of the ad is a question relating to how a product should look when it is launched. This question is distributed as an advertisement. 
         [0040]    The advertiser wants to see which product design the participants prefer and how to change the product more toward a desirable product the audience would purchase. With this method, the advertiser is able to respond to the requirements before the product is actually launched. 
         [0041]    The users that get the advertisement are now able to read the advertisement and select a choice from a multiple selection of possible answers, e.g., designs. Additionally, they are able to express their thoughts on how the product should look. 
         [0042]    While the product company might have already decided on one design, this advertisement is useful to test if the planned design is actually the preferred one and how high it ranks among the choices, and, simultaneously, the audience gives an answer to a question relating to what design (instead of the planned one) they would prefer. 
         [0043]    To motivate users into trying to guess right and not just clicking a random answer (or deliberately clicking the wrong answer), people who guess right are able to win something. They earn virtual currency used in the online community for participating. They earn substantially more currency for guessing the right answer, and, finally, they are able to win a “real” prize like reduction in price for the final product. 
         [0044]    As the social aspect is important for the online community, the participants can also compare their performance not only of one, but of all guesses made at this advertisement and to other users. 
       Guessing the Future Audience 
       [0045]    A company is interested in finding the correct consumers and potential new consumers of a new product before it is launched. Therefore, the new product is promoted by a campaign. The content of the ad is, on the one hand, the promotion of the upcoming product. On the other hand, the ad allows recipients to guess who could be interested. This question is distributed as an advertisement. 
         [0046]    The guessing of the audience is executed in two ways. One way is that users who are targeted to the advertisement read the advertisement and guess the correct answer as a multiple choice selection of possible answers. The second way is that they can guess if a friend might be interested in it. This method allows the indication if someone likes or dislikes something. The system notifies the mentioned user (i.e., the friend) about the guess of someone directly and asks if they are really interested in it or not. Once a user confirms that he is interested or not, he becomes a newly detected customer. Additionally, the system pushes time by time the new product to linked persons to figure out if they react to it or not. Based on the detection system, it is possible to add users to the list of potential customers. 
         [0047]    It is to be understood that many modifications may be provided to the exemplifying embodiments of the method or program product without leaving the scope of the invention. Consequently, the invention may be practiced within the scope of the claims differently from the examples described. Also, the described features and characteristics of the invention may be of importance for the invention in any combination.