Media properties selection method and system based on expected profit from profile-based ad delivery

What is this patent about?

’745 is related to the field of behavioral targeting and electronic advertisement placement. In digital advertising, behavioral targeting (BT) companies track user actions on one site to serve relevant ads on another. However, a significant technical and economic challenge exists in identifying these users across different domains and ensuring that the cost of purchasing ad space on a secondary site does not exceed the potential revenue generated by the specific user profile.

The underlying idea behind ’745 is the use of a profit-based filter to decide whether to tag a user for future tracking. Instead of indiscriminately tagging every visitor, the system calculates the expected revenue of a specific profile attribute—such as a high-value search for 'mortgage' versus a low-value search for 'socks'—and compares it against the cost of ad space on potential secondary media properties. By establishing a price cap, the system ensures that tracking and authorization only occur when a positive margin is anticipated.

The claims of ’745 focus on an automated method and system for authorizing third-party media properties to display targeted ads based on a visitor's profile attributes. The independent claims specifically require determining a profile-attribute-dependent revenue and then electronically authorizing a second media property to serve an ad only if the price of that ad space remains below a calculated cap. This cap is derived by subtracting a selected margin or cost from the expected revenue associated with the user's specific behavioral data.

In practice, the invention works by intercepting user behavior on a first property and immediately evaluating the economic viability of following that user. If the expected revenue from a 'Travel' category profile exceeds the cost of a second site's inventory plus serving fees, the BT company arranges for a readable tag or cookie to be placed. This tag acts as a signal to the second media property that the BT company is willing to buy an ad impression for this specific visitor at a pre-determined price point.

This approach differs from prior solutions like DoubleClick’s Boomerang by introducing a real-time economic gatekeeper to the tagging process. Traditional methods focus on the technical ability to recognize a user across domains, whereas this invention integrates financial logic into the tracking handshake. By selectively authorizing third parties only when a profit is mathematically likely, the system optimizes ad spend and prevents the accumulation of tracking data that would result in a net loss for the advertiser.