Patent ID: 8260950

Claim:
A method for delivering an ad to a user of a primary media stream, the method comprising: transmitting at least one of a video and an audio within a Real-time Transport Protocol; transmitting a Real-time Transport Protocol header extension as part of the Real-Time Transport Protocol in the primary media stream; encoding at least a group of one or more bits within the Real-time Transport Protocol header extension to specify at least one of a group of a starting point and an ending point of the ad, with respect to a point in the primary media stream; identifying a cue point, defined in the Real-time Transport Protocol header extension, for an ad to be inserted into at least one of the primary media stream or one or more secondary media streams, wherein the Real-time Transport Protocol header extension includes an ad-type field that indicates a type of ad format that is allowable in response to the cue point, and wherein identifying the cue point comprises decoding a group of timing bits in the Real-time Transport Protocol header extension to determine a delivery time of the ad with respect to a content of the primary stream; selecting the at least one of the primary media stream or the one or more secondary media streams based on information in the Real-time Transport Protocol header extension; selecting the ad based at least on the type of ad format that is allowable; inserting the ad by way of a splicer at the cue point in the selected at least one of the primary media stream the one or more secondary media streams; and delivering the ad to the user.