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`US006701355Bl
`
`(12) United States Patent
`Brandt et al.
`
`(10) Patent No.:
`(45) Date of Patent:
`
`US 6,701,355 Bl
`Mar.2,2004
`
`(54) SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR
`DYNAMICALLY SUBSTITUTING
`BROADCAST MATERIALAND TARGETING
`TO SPECIFIC AUDIENCES
`
`(75)
`
`Inventors: Gary A. Brandt, Oak Park, IL (US);
`Donald R. Largen, Lamont, IL (US);
`Wayne F. Cummings, Naperville, IL
`(US)
`
`(73) Assignee: Susquehanna Media Co., York, PA
`(US)
`
`( *) Notice:
`
`Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this
`patent is extended or adjusted under 35
`U.S.C. 154(b) by O days.
`
`(21) Appl. No.: 09/408,885
`
`(22) Filed:
`
`Sep. 29, 1999
`
`Int. Cl.7 ................................................ G06F 15/16
`(51)
`(52) U.S. Cl. ....................................................... 709/219
`(58) Field of Search ................................. 709/217, 218,
`709/219, 231
`
`(56)
`
`References Cited
`
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`
`5,204,969 A
`5,236,199 A
`5,530,469 A
`5,537,143 A
`5,557,724 A
`5,561,708 A
`5,572,442 A
`5,694,163 A
`5,699,089 A
`5,749,043 A
`5,778,187 A
`5,822,537 A
`5,826,102 A
`5,828,839 A
`5,892,536 A
`5,918,213 A
`5,922,047 A
`5,928,330 A
`
`4/1993 Capps et al. ................ 395/800
`. ........... 273/439
`8/1993 Thompson, Jr.
`6/1996 Garfinkle . .. ... ... ... ... ... .. ... 348/1
`7/1996 Steingold et al. ............. 348/13
`9/1996 Sampat et al. .............. 395/157
`10/1996 Remillard .................... 379/96
`11/1996 Schulhof et al. ............ 364/514
`12/1997 Harrison .. .. ... ... ... ... ... .. . 348/13
`12/1997 Murray ....................... 345/902
`5/1998 Worthy ...................... 455/2.01
`7/1998 Monteiro et al. ........... 709/231
`10/1998 Katseff et al. ......... 395/200.61
`10/1998 Escobar et al. ............. 395/806
`10/1998 Moncreiff .. ... ... ... ... 395/200.34
`4/1999 Logan et al.
`................. 348/13
`6/1999 Bernard et al. ............... 705/26
`7/1999 Newlin et al. .............. 709/217
`7/1999 Goetz et al. ................ 709/231
`
`5,931,901 A
`5,933,811 A
`5,945,988 A
`5,963,916 A
`5,983,005 A
`6,055,508 A
`6,061,716 A
`6,112,192 A
`6,349,329 Bl *
`
`8/1999
`8/1999
`8/1999
`10/1999
`* 11/1999
`4/2000
`5/2000
`8/2000
`2/2002
`
`Wolfe et al. ................ 709/206
`................ 705/14
`Angles et al.
`Williams et al. ............ 345/747
`Kaplan . ... ... ... ... .. ... ... ... 705/26
`Monteiro et al. ........... 709/231
`Naor et al.
`................... 705/11
`Moncreiff ................... 709/204
`Capek .. ... ... ... ... .. ... ... ... 705/59
`Mackintosh et al. ........ 709/219
`
`FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS
`
`WO
`WO
`WO
`
`WO 97/49241
`WO 98/26577
`WO 98/58334
`
`12/1997
`6/1998
`12/1998
`
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`
`Randall E. Stross; "The Microsoft Way :The Real Story of
`How the Company Outsmarts its Competition" Copyright©
`1996, 1997 by Randall E. Stross, Addison-Wesley; Reading,
`Massachusetts.
`* cited by examiner
`Primary Examiner-David Y. Eng
`(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Venable LLP; James R.
`Burdett; Daniel G. Vivarelli
`
`(57)
`
`ABSTRACT
`
`An insertion and encoder system monitors broadcasts from
`a first broadcasting system to determine the presence of
`segments that can be substituted in a second broadcast. In
`one embodiment, the system and method determines
`whether the first segment from the first broadcast had been
`sold for the second broadcasting system. In this example
`embodiment, if the first segment had not been sold for the
`second broadcasting system, it is substituted for a second
`segment. The system and method accesses an inventory of
`sold substitution segments and substitutes a sold segment for
`the unsold segment in real time. In one embodiment, sold
`advertisement segments are substituted for unsold advertise(cid:173)
`ment segments that are broadcast to a wide audience over the
`Internet. Segments are selected in accordance with pre(cid:173)
`defined criteria that can include user demographics and/or
`personal preferences.
`
`7 Claims, 25 Drawing Sheets
`
`BROADCAST J 208
`INTERNET
`SERVICE
`PROVIDER
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`OATASERVER
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`~ 216
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`USER TERMINAL
`
`~212
`
`SUPPLEMENTAL SERVER
`
`VW EX1018
`VW v. StratosAudio
`IPR2021-00721
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 1 of 25
`
`US 6,701,355 Bl
`
`PROGRAM
`'PROVIDER
`104
`
`DATA
`SERVE·R
`116
`
`DATA
`118
`
`BROADCAST
`PROVIDER
`108
`
`USER
`112
`
`MATERIAL
`SERVER
`120
`
`DATA
`122
`
`Hg.I
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 2 of 25
`
`US 6,701,355 Bl
`
`DELIVER PROGRAM TO USER
`
`LJ132
`
`I 1134
`DELIVER PROGRAM DATA TO DATA SERVER I--/
`
`;136
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`;-142
`
`DATA SERVER
`RETRIEVES
`SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL
`
`DATA SERVER RETREIVES
`PARAMETERS AND SENDS
`TO USER EQUIPMENT
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`)138
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`SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL
`PROVIDED TO USER
`TERMINAL
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`;144
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`USER EQUIPMENT USES
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`RETRIEVE SUPPLEMENTAL
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`PLAYED IN CONJUNCTION
`WITH PROGRAM MATERIAL
`
`;146
`
`, ..
`SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL
`PLAYED IN CONJUNCTION
`WITH PROGRAM MATERIAL
`
`Fi/J.2
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 3 of 25
`
`US 6,701,355 Bl
`
`PROGRAM
`PROVIDER
`104
`
`DATA
`SERVER
`116
`
`DATA
`118
`
`ENCODING
`106
`
`BROADCAST
`PROVIDER
`108
`
`USER
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`112
`
`MATERIAL
`SERVER
`120
`
`MATERIAL
`122
`
`Rf/,,3
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 4 of 25
`
`US 6,701,355 Bl
`
`PROGRAM MATERIAL DELIVERED TO _) 162
`USER EQUIPMENT
`
`USER EQUIPMENT DELIVERS PROGRAM _ ) 164
`DATA TO DATA SERVER
`
`;136
`
`,
`DATA SERVER
`RETRIEVES
`SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL
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`;142
`
`DATA SERVER RETREIVES
`PARAMETERS AND SENDS
`TO USER EQUIPMENT
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`)138
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`SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL
`PROVIDED TO USER
`TERMINAL
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`;144
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`USER EQUIPMENT USES
`PARAMETERS TO
`RETRIEVE SUPPLEMENTAL
`MATERIAL
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`;140
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`SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL
`PLAYED IN CONJUNCTION
`WITH PROGRAM MATERIAL
`
`r14s
`SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL
`PLA YEO IN CONJUNCTION
`WITH PROGRAM MATERIAL
`
`Fi/J4
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 5 of 25
`.. _,_
`
`US 6,701,355 Bl
`
`BROADCAST _r2oa
`INTERNET
`SERVICE
`PROVIDER
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`
`10 216
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`SUPPLEMENTAL SERVER
`
`212
`
`USER TERMINAL
`
`Rg.5
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 6 of 25
`
`US 6,701,355 Bl
`
`DELIEVER PROGRAM MATERIAL TO A u-
`
`BROADCAST SERVICE PROVIDER
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`__r 234
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`Rg.6
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`

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`TRACK IMAGE
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`TRACK INFO
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`U.S. Patent
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`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 8 of 25
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`US 6,701,355 Bl
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`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar. 2, 2004
`
`Sheet 9 of 25
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`US 6,701,355 Bl
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`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 10 of 25
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`US 6,701,355 Bl
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`U.S. Patent
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`Mar.2,2004
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`Sheet 16 of 25
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`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 17 of 25
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`US 6,701,355 Bl
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`U.S. Patent
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`Mar.2,2004
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`Sheet 18 of 25
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`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 19 of 25
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`US 6,701,355 Bl
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`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 21 of 25
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`US 6,701,355 Bl
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`1026
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`PLAYBACK
`
`CHANGE
`SOURCE
`ON
`SWITCH
`
`ENCODE DATA ITEM
`
`1028
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 22 of 25
`
`US 6,701,355 Bl
`
`IF SLOT IS BETWEEN 28 & 55 SECONDS,
`INSERT A 30 SECOND AD
`
`IF SLOT> 55 SECONDS, INSERT A 60
`SECOND AD
`
`IF LESS THAN 28 SECONDS, INSERT
`FILLER
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`SET INSERTION LENGTH
`
`1030
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`
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`
`1048
`
`11/J. 22
`
`

`

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`

`U.S. Patent
`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`Mar.2, 2004
`
`Sheet 24 of 25
`Sheet 24 of 25
`
`US 6,701,355 Bl
`US 6,701,355 B1
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`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.2,2004
`
`Sheet 25 of 25
`
`US 6,701,355 Bl
`
`PLAYERW;t
`
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`INSERTION
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`

`

`US 6,701,355 Bl
`
`1
`SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR
`DYNAMICALLY SUBSTITUTING
`BROADCAST MATERIAL AND TARGETING
`TO SPECIFIC AUDIENCES
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`
`1. Field of the Invention
`The present invention relates generally to broadcast
`materials, and more particularly to a system and method for
`dynamically substituting broadcast material and targeting to
`specific audiences.
`2. Related Art
`The proliferation of processors and processor-based sys(cid:173)
`tems in recent years has led to a tremendous increase in the
`ability of businesses, industry and individuals to share
`information. Most computers and workstations in today's
`homes and offices are connected in some manner to another
`computer or workstation, either locally or remotely. An early 20
`form of such inter-connection of computing systems is the
`local area network (LAN). Using LAN technology, several
`computers, workstations, peripherals, or other related
`devices can be connected to share data among one another
`and to share network resources.
`The Internet can be thought of as an extension of local
`area network technology. The Internet originally began as a
`communication network through which government
`researchers, scientists and other personnel could exchange
`data or other information between offices and facilities 30
`throughout the world. Eventually, the Internet became acces(cid:173)
`sible to the public. Initially, the public was slow to embrace
`the Internet, and it seemed as if the Internet would remain
`nothing more than a way for a select group of technologists
`to exchange e-mails and other data or information. 35
`Eventually, however, entrepreneurs who envisioned the
`growth of the consumer market for Internet services were
`able to attract a large number of consumers into the fold. As
`a result, a sort of snowball effect ensued in which more and
`more consumers become Internet users, and in turn, more 40
`and more businesses rushed to get web pages set up on an
`Internet server. With more businesses offering information,
`products and services on the Web, more consumers were
`attracted to the Internet. This cycle rapidly fed on itself
`virtually creating an explosion on the Internet.
`However, the proliferation of the Internet did not stop
`with the provision of web pages to the Internet users, or web
`surfers. In the true capitalistic spirit, providers of popular
`web pages found that they were able to sell advertising space 50
`on their web pages. Thus, the Internet became not only a way
`for businesses to advertise their own businesses on their web
`pages, but also a way for advertisers to include their ads on
`others' web pages.
`Seemingly overnight, the Internet had transformed into
`the new advertising medium of the decade. Virtually every
`business and industry jumped on to the Internet bandwagon.
`On top of that, hundreds, if not thousands, of new businesses
`were created to offer Internet-related services. It seemed as
`if just about everyone was able to capitalize on this new 60
`medium.
`However, in spite of this proliferation, there were still a
`few business that were left out of the Internet craze. One
`example of such a business is the radio industry. Although
`stations could offer their own web sites on the Internet, such 65
`sites typically were not popular among the web surfers, and
`thus were not a good source of advertising revenues. Thus,
`
`2
`even though radio stations could participate in the Internet,
`their only gains from doing so were PR-related.
`Eventually, enterprising web developers decided that they
`could offer a mechanism by which one or more radio stations
`5 or radio networks could offer their broadcast materials over
`the Internet. One popular Internet site offering this service is
`www.broadcast.com, although there are others. While many
`radio stations have agreed to provide their programming
`across the Internet by such service providers, most have
`10 found that this has not led to an increase their advertising
`revenues. Although these providers offer an excellent ser(cid:173)
`vice to radio stations and their listeners, most advertisers are
`not willing to pay a premium for advertising slots simply
`because the broadcast material is additionally offered to
`15 listeners over the Internet. Thus, even though these services
`allowed radio stations to further participate in the Internet(cid:173)
`related industry, their ability to fully take advantage of
`Internet opportunities is still somewhat limited.
`Solutions to this problem have been disclosed in several
`previously filed patent applications listed below. These
`applications have been filed by a common assignee,
`Radiowave.com, of the present patent application. Solutions
`disclosed by these patent applications relate to systems and
`methods for supplementing Internet radio broadcasts with
`25 coordinated and related audio and visual content. These
`United States Patent Applications are:
`U.S. Pat. No. 6,317,784, issued on Nov. 13, 2001, entitled
`"SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING BROAD(cid:173)
`CAST MATERIAL HISTORY";
`U.S. Pat. No. 6,349,329, issued on Feb. 19, 2002, entitled,
`"SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR COORDINATING
`SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIALS WITH BROADCAST
`MATERIAL";
`U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/163,297, filed on Sep.
`29, 1998 entitled "SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PLAY(cid:173)
`ING SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIALS WITH BROAD(cid:173)
`CAST MATERIAL";
`U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/163,288, filed on Sep.
`29, 1998 entitled "SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR COOR(cid:173)
`DINATING COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK ADVER(cid:173)
`TISING MATERIAL"; and
`U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/172,064, filed on Oct.
`13, 1998 entitled "SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR AUDI-
`45 ENCE MEASUREMENT".
`Each of the these above referenced patent applications are
`of common assignee and each are fully incorporated by
`reference herein as though set forth in full.
`A problem encountered by using the above systems and
`methods relates to the advertising spots of local radio
`stations. The advertising spots that are traditionally broad(cid:173)
`cast in a relatively narrow market are now getting virtually
`unlimited coverage in a national and worldwide market over
`55 the Internet.
`The problem is that local advertisers may not benefit from
`this increased exposure and are therefore not willing to pay
`for the increased distribution of their radio advertisements.
`Further, advertisers that could benefit from these wide
`distribution markets are not able to participate in a conve(cid:173)
`nient fashion. Thus, it would be desirable to substitute, in
`real time, different advertisements for local and/or unsold
`advertisement spots when such spots are widely distributed
`by Internet broadcasts.
`Additional background information on the use of com(cid:173)
`puter networks as a broadcast medium is available from
`"BROADCAST AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM AND
`
`

`

`US 6,701,355 Bl
`
`3
`METHOD," U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/961,314,
`filed Oct. 30, 1997, and "AUDIO CONTENT PLAYER
`METHODS AND ARTICLES OF MANUFACTURE," U.S.
`patent application Ser. No. 08/976,971, filed Nov. 25, 1997
`now abandoned, both of which are fully incorporated by 5
`reference herein as though set forth in full.
`
`SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
`
`4
`wide distribution network, such as the Internet. For example,
`a local advertisement that is not suitable for wide distribu(cid:173)
`tion market is replaced with a national advertisement that is
`targeted to a national or worldwide market.
`Further, the present invention provides for the selection of
`substituted advertisements based on the demographics of
`actual listeners. This is accomplished by taking into account
`user demographics that are determined by user surveys or
`the like.
`In one embodiment, an insertion and encoder system
`monitors broadcasts from an on-air system to determine the
`presence of an advertisement segment. Once an advertise(cid:173)
`ment segment is identified, the system and method deter(cid:173)
`mines whether the advertisement has been sold to for the
`"global market" (i.e. in this example, for wide-range,
`Internet-based radio broadcasting).
`If the ad has been sold for the global market, it is then
`broadcast over the Internet as is. However, if the ad has not
`been sold for the global market, the system and method of
`the present invention accesses an inventory of advertise(cid:173)
`ments that have been sold for the global market. From this
`inventory, an advertisement is selected in accordance with
`predefined criteria that includes variety of parameters,
`depending on each specific implementation of the present
`invention.
`In one embodiment, those parameters include user demo(cid:173)
`graphics so that advertisements are targeted to specific users
`or groups of users. In another embodiment, personal
`30 preferences, and user actions, such as web-based buying
`habits and the like, are taken into account to select an
`appropriate substituted advertisement.
`Further features and advantages of the invention as well
`as the structure and operation of various embodiments of the
`35 invention are described in detail below with reference to the
`accompanying drawings.
`
`25
`
`The present invention is directed toward systems and
`methods for providing enhanced features for the delivery of 10
`broadcast material to a listener, viewer or, more generally, a
`user. According to one aspect of the invention, supplemental
`materials can be provided to a user in a coordinated fashion
`with the broadcast materials being delivered. The supple(cid:173)
`mental materials can be provided in a coordinated fashion 15
`such that they relate to the actual broadcast materials as they
`are being streamed or otherwise delivered to the user. For
`example, according to one embodiment, the broadcast mate(cid:173)
`rial is delivered to the user in segments such as, for example,
`tracks of music, advertisements, and promotional materials 20
`in a radio broadcast. In this embodiment, the supplemental
`materials can be coordinated with the individual segments
`(e.g., tracks) such that supplemental materials relating to the
`segments can be provided as the segments are being pro-
`vided to the user.
`Supplemental materials can include, for example, images,
`video clips, audio clips, data, or other materials that may be
`provided to the user in conjunction with the broadcast
`materials. The supplemental materials can also include
`advertising information that is provided to the user during
`particular segments of the broadcast material. In one
`embodiment, this advertising information can be coordi(cid:173)
`nated with the particular segments of the broadcast material
`such that the value of the advertising is enhanced.
`One example application of this aspect of the invention is
`found in the broadcast of radio broadcast materials over the
`Internet. According to this example application, the radio
`broadcast materials can include a plurality of tracks that can
`be streamed to a user via the Internet. The tracks can include, 40
`for example, music tracks, advertising tracks, DJ voice or
`introduction tracks, promotional tracks, and any other track
`that a station my wish to broadcast as part of its broadcast
`material. In one embodiment, the tracks are provided along
`with program data that can indicate, for example, an iden- 45
`tification of the track, the type of track, and other pertinent
`or relevant information regarding the particular track being
`broadcast at that time. This information can be provided to
`an Internet broadcast service provider that "broadcasts" the
`broadcast materials and the program data to the listener's 50
`Internet terminal.
`The listener receives the broadcast material and the pro(cid:173)
`gram data via the Internet connection and plays it on his or
`her computer, workstation or other Internet terminal. This
`can be a web page type player or a downloaded player that 55
`is resident on the user's terminal. When the user's terminal
`receives a track to be played, the user's terminal takes the
`program data associated with that track and uses that data to
`access one or more servers to retrieve the supplemental
`information.
`One aspect of the present invention is that it allows
`advertisers to take full advantage of the wide distribution
`market available when broadcasting over the Internet. An
`advantage of the present invention is that it increases the
`value and potential revenues generated for advertisement 65
`spots in radio broadcasting by providing for the dynamic
`substitution of advertisements when broadcasting over a
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`
`The present invention is described with reference to the
`accompanying drawings. In the drawings, like reference
`numbers indicate identical or functionally similar elements.
`FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example archi(cid:173)
`tecture for providing supplemental materials in coordination
`with broadcast materials according to one embodiment of
`the invention.
`FIG. 2 is an operational flow diagram illustrating a
`process for coordinating supplemental materials with the
`program provided to user equipment according to one
`embodiment of the invention.
`FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an alternative
`embodiment to the architecture illustrated in FIG. 1.
`FIG. 4 is an operational flow diagram describing the
`coordination of supplemental materials with the broadcast
`material according to the example embodiment illustrated in
`FIG. 3.
`FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating the example appli(cid:173)
`cation of the invention in which a radio station provides its
`broadcast materials to a listener at a user terminal according
`60 to one embodiment of the invention.
`FIG. 6 is a operation flow diagram illustrating an example
`process by which supplemental information can be coordi(cid:173)
`nated with the broadcast material in the example application
`illustrated in FIG. 5.
`FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example user interface
`for an example player according to one embodiment of the
`invention.
`
`

`

`US 6,701,355 Bl
`
`5
`FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example functional
`architecture for a player according to one embodiment of the
`invention.
`FIG. 9 is an operational flow diagram illustrating a
`process for implementing a history window according to one
`embodiment of the invention.
`FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example implemen(cid:173)
`tation of an architecture for providing supplemental mate(cid:173)
`rials with broadcast material.
`FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example song table
`and provider table according to one embodiment of the
`invention.
`FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example player
`according to one embodiment of the invention.
`FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example computer
`architecture according to one embodiment of the invention.
`FIG. 14 is a block diagram that is useful for describing the
`advertisement insertion system and method in accordance
`with a an embodiment of the present invention.
`FIG. 15 is a block diagram depicting an example embodi(cid:173)
`ment of the present invention.
`FIG. 16 is a block diagram depicting primary components
`of the insertion and encoder system in accordance with an
`embodiment of the present invention.
`FIG. 17 is a block diagram depicting primary components
`of the user interface module in accordance with one embodi(cid:173)
`ment of the present invention.
`FIG. 18 is a block diagram depicting typical modules
`comprising the business components module in accordance
`with an embodiment of the present invention.
`FIG. 19 is a block diagram depicting typical components
`in the external services module in accordance with an
`embodiment of the present invention.
`FIG. 20 is a block diagram depicting some of the func(cid:173)
`tional components of the insertion and encoder system 904
`and their interaction with other components of the present
`invention.
`FIG. 21 is a flowchart of a process that can be used to
`implement part of the functionality of the service manager in
`accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
`FIG. 22 is a flowchart depicting a process that can be used
`to implement the get item step in FIG. 21, in accordance
`with one embodiment of the present invention.
`FIG. 23 is a block diagram depicting an alternate embodi(cid:173)
`ment of the present invention.
`FIG. 24 is a block diagram depicting another embodiment
`of the present invention that can be used to target ads
`according to individual preferences.
`FIG. 25 is a block diagram depicting another embodiment
`of the present invention.
`
`55
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF IBE
`INVENTION
`The present invention is directed toward a system and
`method for coordinating supplemental materials with broad(cid:173)
`cast materials delivered to a viewer, listener or other pro(cid:173)
`gram user. According to one specific implementation of the
`invention, the invention is directed toward a system and
`method for coordinating supplemental information such as
`advertising and promotional information with a radio station
`broadcast over the Internet. However, as described below,
`alternative embodiments can include the coordination of
`supplemental materials such as images, video clips, audio 65
`clips, text, data or other materials with the delivery of
`broadcast material.
`
`6
`FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example archi(cid:173)
`tecture for providing supplemental materials in coordination
`with broadcast materials according to one embodiment of
`the invention. The example embodiment illustrated in FIG.
`5 1 includes a program provider 104 for providing broadcast
`materials to a user equipment 112. Program provider 104 can
`provide, for example, broadcast materials such as a radio
`program, a video program, or other broadcast materials on
`another program medium. For example, in one embodiment,
`10 program provider 104 can be a radio station broadcasting its
`radio program to a number of listeners.
`Program provider 104 can provide its broadcast materials
`directly to a user's user equipment 112 or alternatively, via
`a broadcast provider 108. Broadcast provider 108 may be
`15 included to allow the broadcast material to be forwarded to
`the user via an alternative medium. For example, in one
`embodiment, an example of a broadcast provider 108 can be
`a service provider such as, for example, www.b