System And Method For Creation, Distribution And Tracking Of Advertising Via Electronic Networks

What is this patent about?

’051 is related to the field of online advertising, specifically addressing the challenges of creating, distributing, and tracking advertisements across electronic networks. The background involves advertisers struggling with the costs of ad creation and the complexities of effective ad placement, while publishers aim to maximize ad revenue and minimize the effort required to manage advertising. Existing methods often involve upfront fees for content, limiting ROI optimization and potentially undervaluing content licensors' assets.

The underlying idea behind ’051 is to create a system where advertisements are dynamically assembled and served based on a real-time auction, incorporating licensed third-party content with cost-per-use billing. The system uses a 'billboard module' embedded in a webpage or other network location that triggers an auction when a user interacts with it. This auction selects an ad from a pool of bidders, assembles the ad from its constituent digital assets, and serves it to the user, all while tracking usage and billing advertisers, content licensors, and publishers accordingly.

The claims of ’051 focus on a computer program product that renders advertisement content in an ad content display page. The key elements are: (a) determining whether a predefined portion of the predefined area of the ad content display page is in the visible area of the browser window; and (b) in response to a determination that the predefined portion of the predefined area of the ad content display page is in the visible area of the browser window, causing a communication to be sent from the remote computing device to one or more dispatcher servers. The dispatcher servers then serve the advertisement content to the remote computing device, which the browser renders in the predefined area.

In practice, the system relies on a relational database to store ad parameters and execution instructions. When a user's browser requests a webpage containing the 'billboard module', the module communicates with a dispatcher server. This server then initiates a real-time auction, considering factors like advertiser bids, click-through rates, and ad parameters. The winning ad is assembled from digital content files stored on content servers, and the system tracks usage to enable cost-per-use charging for both the licensed content and the ad display.

This approach differentiates itself from prior solutions by offering a dynamic, auction-based system that optimizes ad placement and revenue generation. Unlike traditional methods that rely on pre-paid content and fixed ad placements, ’051 enables advertisers to license content on a cost-per-use basis and participate in real-time auctions for ad space. Furthermore, the system's tracking capabilities provide accurate accounting for all parties involved, ensuring fair compensation and enabling data-driven optimization of advertising campaigns. The use of FSDC (File Server Direct Connection) technology enhances tracking efficiency and user privacy.