Appeal No. 2005-1760
Application 09/316,649
The disclosed invention relates to a method and apparatus
for obtaining via the Internet audience data on TV programs
watched by a viewer.
Claim 1 is illustrative of the claimed invention, and it
reads as follows:
1. A method for obtaining audience data on TV programs, in
an audience data obtaining device which uses a computer, the
method comprising the steps of:
obtaining, from outside, TV program table data for an area
where a viewer resides, said TV program table data including
channel information and time information for each of TV programs
planned to be broadcast in that area;
detecting a channel that is being viewed by the viewer;
detecting times at which a viewing of the channel is started
and ended;
identifying a program ID of a currently viewed program from
said TV program table data by comparing said detected channel and
a current time with the channel and time information of said TV
program table data;
obtaining audience data which include at least the program
ID and viewed time information of the viewed program based on
said TV program table data and results of the detecting of times,
said viewed time information including at least one of (1) a view
start time of each viewed program, (2) a view end time of each
viewed program, and (3) a difference between the view start time
and the view end time; and
transferring, via the Internet to a collection center, the
obtained audience data along with ID data of the viewer.
2
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Next
Last modified: November 3, 2007