Patent ID: 8181195

Claim:
A data collection system comprising: a first client device of a plurality of client devices each configured to receive content from a content provider, the first client device being configured to perform operations including: receiving an anonymous data collection component from a second client device, the anonymous data collection component having aggregated media access information for at least the second client device; storing media access information of the first client device in the anonymous data collection component, the media access information of the first client device being anonymous within the anonymous data collection component; determining that one or more of the plurality of client devices has not received the anonymous data collection component; and randomly selecting one of the plurality of client devices that has not received the anonymous data collection component to receive the anonymous data collection component such that the anonymous data collection component includes media access information for each of the plurality of client devices, wherein the anonymous data collection component includes random media access information that was stored in the anonymous data collection component, the random media access information obscuring the media access information of one or more client devices that is already stored in the anonymous data collection component, wherein the random media access information is not associated with viewing behavior or viewers of any of the client devices and includes broadcast channels, times that content was viewed, and viewers that viewed content.