DETAILED ACTION
This is a final office action on the merits. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (the Office) has received claims 1 – 58 in application 17/700,051.
Claims 10-28, 38, 48, and 58 have been canceled.
Claims 1-3, 5, 7, 9, 29-31, 35, 39-41, 44, 45, 47, 49-51, 55, and 57 have been amended.
Claims 1-9, 29-37, 39-47, and 49-57 are pending and have been examined.
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed on 11/18/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that Anderson does not teach “website” as an input however Anderson in combination with Merriman does teach selecting the message/ad using website context. Applicant also argues that Anderson does not teach a “first entity.” This is not persuasive because the claim’s “first entity” is reasonably read as the ad-serving or selection component that is invoked for the request associated with the identified website. Merriman provides website identification in the request, and the ad server process is the entity that performs the selection responsive to that request “Upon receiving the request in the message 23, the advertising server process 19 determines which advertisement or other object to provide to (Merriman, Column 3, lines 52-55). The “granting” limitation is newly added and taught by Lee as in the rejection below. Lastly, Applicant argues that the second message is different than the first message. Since Merriman selects ads based on “the page being accessed,” different websites predictably yield different selected ads/messages.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 1-9, 29-37, 39-47, and 49-57 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Anderson et al. (US8108895B2) hereinafter Anderson, in view of Lee (US20090083145A1) and in further view of Merriman et al. (US5948061A) hereinafter Merriman.
Regarding Claims 1, 29, 39, and 49. Anderson teaches (in BOLD):
one or more processors; and
Anderson - The software application may be controlled by instructions 3614 stored with storage element 3613 of traffic/billing system 3610. For example, instructions 3614 may direct processor 3612 to deliver an application to advertiser interface 3601 such that GUI 3604 is displayed therewith (Column 68, lines 15-19).
a first user device;
Anderson – plurality of user equipment devices (Claim 1).
a second user device; and
Anderson - plurality of user equipment devices (Claim 1).
a computing device, wherein the computing device is configured to:
Anderson - The software application may be controlled by instructions 3614 stored with storage element 3613 of traffic/billing system 3610. For example, instructions 3614 may direct processor 3612 to deliver an application to advertiser interface 3601 such that GUI 3604 is displayed therewith (Column 68, lines 15-19).
memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one of more processors, cause the apparatus to:
Anderson - The software application may be controlled by instructions 3614 stored with storage element 3613 of traffic/billing system 3610. For example, instructions 3614 may direct processor 3612 to deliver an application to advertiser interface 3601 such that GUI 3604 is displayed therewith (Column 68, lines 15-19).
receiving, by at least one processor of a computing device and from a first user device, a first user command for a digital content asset,
Anderson – (See FIG. 39A; FIG. 39B (Element - 3951)) - receiving, at a network platform, a plurality of inputs from a plurality of user equipment devices of a plurality of broadcast network users, said inputs being free from any contemporaneous acts by said users to trigger said inputs (Claim 1). FIG. 39 is a block diagram of a system that targets content in connection with VOD content. For example, headend 3900 is configured with content selection processor 3901 that selects ads perhaps though not necessarily, based on Votes with respect to ordinary programming ads described above and VOD server 3903 to receive VOD requests and/or actual channel selections from CPES 2810. As described above, content selection processor 3801 may select ads for delivery to CPES 2810. These ads may be forwarded to CPEs and CPES may store ads that match an audience classification of a current user. Separately, a CPE user may request VOD content and transfer a VOD request to VOD server 3903. Server 3903 may process the request and forward the VOD content, which may include tones or messages to trigger ad insertion (and, optionally, delivery constraints such as ad exclusions). Typically, CPEs 2810 receive VOD content in one or more of a plurality of channels that the CPEs independently select. For example, network 3900 may simultaneously convey a plurality of contents across a respective plurality of RF tele vision channels (e.g., via cable). An individual CPE 2810 may select content from a channel via tuning (e.g., either digital tuning or analog tuning). A user of CPE 2810 thus acquires the VOD content by directing the CPE 2810 to a particular VOD channel. From there, the user may select the VOD content by actively choosing from a menu of options presented to the user (e.g., desired VOD content, payment options, etc.). As such, the VOD selection may be similar to ordering a pay-per-view event, with the possible exception of a VOD selection being substantially instantaneous (i.e., "on demand”) (Column 74, lines 3-32).
wherein the digital content asset comprises at least one message slot;
Anderson – (See FIG. 5; FIG. 6) - FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate two different contexts of targeted asset delivery Supported in accordance with the present invention. Specifically, FIG. 5 illustrates the delivery of different assets, in this case ads, to different users watching the same programming channel, which may be referred to as spot optimization. As shown, three different users 500-502 are depicted as watching the same programming, in this case, denoted “Movie of the Week.” At a given break 504 the users 500-502 each receive a different asset package. Specifically, user 500 receives a digital music player ad and a movie promo, user 501 receives a luxury car ad and a health insurance ad, and user 502 receives a minivan ad and a department store ad. Alternately, a single asset provider (e.g., a motor vehicle company) may purchase a spot and then provide different asset options for the spot (e.g., sports car, minivans, pickup trucks, etc.). Similarly, separate advertisers may collectively purchase a spot and then provide ads for their respective products (e.g., where the target audiences of the advertisers are complementary). It will be appreciated that these different asset packages may be targeted to different audience demographics. In this manner, assets are better tailored to particular viewers of a given program who may fall into different demographic groups. Thus, spot optimization refers to the delivery of different assets (by one or multiple asset providers) in a given spot (Column 15, lines 16-40).
determining, by the at least one processor of the computing device, that the first user command comprises a first identification of a first website via which the first user command was received;
Anderson - Systems and methods are presented for insertion of assets into a stream of content (e.g., audio and/or video programming). Such assets may be targeted to network users separate from the surrounding content and deliveries thereof confirmed. Among other things, these systems and methods enable a new advertising paradigm based on guaranteed delivery of targeted commercial impressions. In this regard, the systems and methods generally provide assets with broadcast network programming (e.g., via actual insertion and/or switching to an asset channel) based on actual audience observations. For example, asset providers may wish to target assets for delivery according to specific audience classifications (e.g., gender, income level, locale, age, etc.). Programming providers, such as television programmers and radio programmers (e.g., standard tower broadcast radio and satellite radio), may receive information from broadcast network users and insert the assets into available bandwidth based on that information (Abstract).
determining, by the at least one processor of the computing device, that the second user command comprises a second identification of a second website wherein the second website, via which the second user command was received, is different from the first website;
Anderson - Systems and methods are presented for insertion of assets into a stream of content (e.g., audio and/or video programming). Such assets may be targeted to network users separate from the surrounding content and deliveries thereof confirmed. Among other things, these systems and methods enable a new advertising paradigm based on guaranteed delivery of targeted commercial impressions. In this regard, the systems and methods generally provide assets with broadcast network programming (e.g., via actual insertion and/or switching to an asset channel) based on actual audience observations. For example, asset providers may wish to target assets for delivery according to specific audience classifications (e.g., gender, income level, locale, age, etc.). Programming providers, such as television programmers and radio programmers (e.g., standard tower broadcast radio and satellite radio), may receive information from broadcast network users and insert the assets into available bandwidth based on that information (Abstract).
determining, by the at least one processor of the computing device and based on the first website and the digital content asset, a first entity;
Anderson - selecting a subset of assets from the collection of assets for transmission to all plurality of user equipment devices, wherein the subset of assets is smaller than the collection of assets, and wherein the subset of assets is selected based on the aggregate of the inputs from the plurality of user equipment devices and targeting criteria specified by one or more asset providers; and (Claim 1).
determining, by the at least one processor of the computing device and based on the first website and the digital content asset a second message, wherein the second message is different from the first message;
Anderson - receiving, at a network platform, a plurality of inputs from a plurality of user equipment devices of a plurality of broadcast network users, said inputs being free from any contemporaneous acts by said users to trigger said inputs, wherein said inputs define a collection of assets that are suitable for delivery to the plurality of user equipment devices as targeted assets to be displayed at an asset delivery opportunity associated with real time broadcast programming, said collection of assets being potentially larger than practical for transmission to said plurality of user equipment devices (Claim 1);
delivering, to the first user device and via the first website, the digital content asset comprising the first message, wherein the first message is inserted in the at least one message slot; and
Anderson - receiving, at a network platform, a plurality of inputs from a plurality of user equipment devices of a plurality of broadcast network users, said inputs being free from any contemporaneous acts by said users to trigger said inputs, wherein said inputs define a collection of assets that are suitable for delivery to the plurality of user equipment devices as targeted assets to be displayed at an asset delivery opportunity associated with real time broadcast programming, said collection of assets being potentially larger than practical for transmission to said plurality of user equipment devices (Claim 1);
Anderson does not explicitly teach, however, Lee discloses (in BOLD):
receiving, by the at least one processor of the computing device and from a second user device, a second user command for the digital content asset;
Lee - receives, by the first computing device 102, a notification from the second computing device 104 that the second computing device 104 is executing an application. For example, the user 106 selects a mail application for execution (¶ 0015).
determining, by the at least one processor of the computing device and based on the first website and the digital content asset, a first entity;
Lee - all advertisement tags are cleared and in-house image tags are inserted into web page data displayed to the user (¶ 0030). responsive to the received notification, selecting one of the plurality of advertisement components based on the application executing on the second computing device (Claim 1);
granting, to the first entity, access to a message inventory comprising a first message;
Lee - stored locally…(e.g., in a library, pool, or repository of available advertisements (¶ 0020). select an advertisement from a library of static advertisements available…for selection and rendering (¶ 0022).
determining, by the at least one processor of the computing device and based on the first website and the digital content asset a second message, wherein the second message is different from the first message;
Lee - the server computing device transmits another value client computing device to select a different advertising system for the advertisement component on the client computing device to use. In response, the client computing device re-configures the advertisement component as a function of this new value to receive and display advertisements by the different advertising system. Subsequent user interactions with the application on the client computing device prompt the advertisement component to receive and display advertisements in the format corresponding to the newly selected advertising system (¶ 0029). all advertisement tags are cleared and in-house image tags are inserted into web page data displayed to the user (¶ 0030).
delivering, to the second user device and via the second website, the digital content asset comprising the second message, wherein the second message is inserted in the at least one message slot.
Lee - transmitting a value from the first computing device to the second computing device, said value identifying one of the advertising systems for execution by the second computing device, wherein the second computing device configures the transmitted advertisement component as a function of the value to receive and display advertisements by the advertising system identified by the value, said advertisements being displayed in the advertising format corresponding to the identified advertising system (Claim 1).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the plurality of user equipment devices of Anderson with the second computing device of Lee because doing so supports a different advertising format and displays it in a particular format.
The combination of Anderson and Lee, does not disclose, however Merriman discloses (in BOLD):
determining, by the at least one processor of the computing device, that the first user command comprises a first identification of a first website via which the first user command was received;
Claim interpretation – The “page (website)” is carried in the request itself; this is the website identification “via which” the request is received.
Merriman - Included in each message…(iii) a substring key indicating the page in which the advertisement to be provided from the server is to be embedded (Column 3, lines 44-49).
determining, by the at least one processor of the computing device, that the second user command comprises a second identification of a second website via which the second user command was received, wherein the second website is different from the first website;
Claim interpretation – A first site (affiliate web site 12) and a second, different site (advertiser web site 18) is shown. The user’s HTTP command is redirecting to a second website.
Merriman - The basic architecture of the network 10 comprises at least one affiliate web site 12, an advertisement (ad) server web site 19 and one or more individual advertisers web sites 18 (Column 2, lines 59-62). process will be at entirely different nodes on the Internet. Upon clicking through or otherwise Selecting the advertisement object, which may be an image Such as an advertisement banner, an icon, or a Video or an audio clip, the browser ends up being connected to the advertiser's server or web site 18 for that advertisement object (Column 3, lines 17-23). …(iii) a substring key indicating the page in which the advertisement to be provided from the server is to be embedded (Column 3, lines 44-49).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the plurality of user equipment devices of Anderson with the second computing device of Lee and the site-id and targeting of Merriman because doing so gives site operators ad control.
Regarding Claims 2, 30, 40, and 50. The combination of Anderson, Lee, and Merriman further teaches:
The method of claim 1, the apparatus of claim 29, the non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 39, and the system of claim 49 wherein the at least one message slot is associated with a predetermined time of day, and wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to determine and determining the first entity and the determining the second message are further based on the predetermined time of day.
Anderson - Assets are typically interleaved with the broadcast network programming, or content, during the predetermined intervals in the programming (e.g., commercial breaks designated by cues within the programming). In a similar fashion, audio assets may be interleaved with audio only broadcast network programming, Such as tower broadcast radio and satellite radio (Column 1, lines 33-39).
Regarding Claims 3, 31, 41, and 51. The combination of Anderson, Lee, and Merriman further teaches:
The method of claim 1, the apparatus of claim 29, the non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 39, and the system of claim 49 wherein the at least one message slot is associated with a predetermined geographic region, and wherein the instructions, when execute cause the determining the first entity and the determining the second message are further based on the predetermined geographic region.
Anderson - In the case of audience classification parameters, the asset provider may specify the gender, age range, income range, geographical location, lifestyle interest or other information of a targeted audience. The additional dis semination parameters may relate to delivery time, frequency, audience size, or any other information useful to define a target audience. Combinations of parameters may also be specified. For example, an asset provider may specify an audience size of 100,000 in a particular demographic group and further specify that the asset is not delivered to any user who has already received the asset a predetermined number of times (Column 22, lines 39-50).
Regarding Claims 4, 32, 42, and 52. The combination of Anderson, Lee, and Merriman further teaches:
The method of claim 1, the apparatus of claim 29, the non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 39, and the system of claim 49 wherein the first message is associated with a plurality of predetermined delivery paths, and wherein the instructions, when executed by the one of more processors, cause the apparatus and the method further comprises determining that the plurality of predetermined delivery paths comprises a delivery path associated with the first user command for the digital content asset.
Anderson - Further, such out-of-band portions of the bandwidth may be utilized for the delivery of the asset option list as well as a return path for use in collect ing votes and reporting information from the CPE. More generally, it will be appreciated that in the various cases referenced herein where messaging occurs between the CPE and a network platform, any appropriate messaging channels may be used including separate IP or telephony channels. The metadata for particular assets may be included in the out-of-band portion of an associated asset channel and may be in the form of text messages (Column 39, lines 49-59).
Regarding Claims 5, 33, 43, and 53. The combination of Anderson, Lee, and Merriman further teaches:
The method of claim 1, the apparatus of claim 29, the non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 39, and the system of claim 49 wherein the first user command is associated with a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) call for the digital content asset.
Merriman - The basic architecture of the network 10 comprises at least one affiliate web site 12, an advertisement (ad) server web site 19 and one or more individual advertisers web sites 18 (Column 2, lines 59-62). process will be at entirely different nodes on the Internet. Upon clicking through or otherwise Selecting the advertisement object, which may be an image Such as an advertisement banner, an icon, or a Video or an audio clip, the browser ends up being connected to the advertiser's server or web site 18 for that advertisement object (Column 3, lines 17-23). …(iii) a substring key indicating the page in which the advertisement to be provided from the server is to be embedded (Column 3, lines 44-49).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the plurality of user equipment devices of Anderson with the second computing device of Lee and the site-id and targeting of Merriman because doing so gives site operators ad control.
Regarding Claims 6, 34, 44, and 54. The combination of Anderson, Lee, and Merriman further teaches:
The method of claim 1, the apparatus of claim 29, the non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 39, and the system of claim 49 wherein the first user command for the digital content asset comprises an identification of the first website.
Anderson - may be an Internet link as is used to transport communications via Internet protocol (e.g., TCP/IP). As such, GUI 3604 may be configured as an applet that operates within a Web browser, such as Microsoft's Internet Explorer. In such an embodiment, GUI 3604 may download information from traffic/billing system 3610 that enables an advertiser to manage an ad campaign (Column 68, lines 1-7).
Regarding Claims 7, 35, 45, and 55. The combination of Anderson, Lee, and Merriman further teaches:
The method of claim 1, the apparatus of claim 29, the non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 39, and the system of claim 49 wherein the first user command for the digital content asset comprises an identification of an associated entity via which the digital content asset originated.
Anderson - This information will generally not be available to the CPE. Also, different numbers of asset channels may be available at different time periods of a break. Signals received from CPES, e.g., recent or historical signals, may be utilized for arbitration purposes. Further, it will be appreciated that in some instances one or more channels may include aligned breaks. For instance, channels having a common ownership entity (e.g., ESPN and ABC) may have aligned breaks for certain programming. Accordingly, band width for targeted asset delivery for these common channels may be shared (Column 32, lines 27-37).
Regarding Claims 8, 36, 46, and 56. The combination of Anderson, Lee, and Merriman further teaches:
The method of claim 1, the apparatus of claim 29, the non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 39, and the system of claim 49 further comprising determining and logging one or more metrics of usage of the digital content asset.
Anderson - Generally, any information that may entail privacy concerns or identify network usage information may be considered sensitive information. More particularly, the system learns of current network conditions prior to transmission of asset options via votes that identify assets without any sensitive information. Reports may also be limited to identifying assets that have been delivered (which assets are associated with target audience parameters) or characterization of the fit of audience classification parameters of a user(s) to a target audience definition (Column 23, lines 46-55).
Regarding Claims 9, 37, 47, and 57. The combination of Anderson, Lee, and Merriman further teaches:
The method of claim 1, the apparatus of claim 29, the non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 39, and the system of claim 49 wherein the first message is selected by the first entity.
Anderson - This may be implemented by having the asset provider, a network operator or another party Such as a regulatory entity “adult only” or similar constraint in connection with the asset metadata. An appropriate field may be provided in connection with a GUI of platform 1370. In this manner, offensive asset delivery can be reduced or avoided for sensitive users. Asset providers or networks (to the extent that laws or regulations allow) may also define exclusions. Thus, an asset provider may indicate that an asset should or should not be run in connection with certain types of programs (e.g., that it should not be run in connection with a 'G' rated program). As a further example, a political candidate may enter an exclusion to avoid airing assets on a news network or other network perceived to have a conflicting political base or agenda (or the network may exclude assets from that candidate). Commodity codes may also be used in this regard. Thus, assets may be associated with commodity codes relating to the subject matter of the asset. These codes may be used by asset providers, network operators or others to avoid undesired association (e.g., Successive ads for competitive products). Similarly, networks having a religious affiliation may exclude assets deemed repugnant. Many more examples may be envisioned in this regard. Moreover, negative preferences or exclusions may be specific to users or households and may be implemented at the CPE. For example, parental control or idiosyncratic concerns may be addressed in this manner. It will thus be appreciated that exclusions or negative preferences may be entered by a variety of entities via a variety of interfaces and may be reflected in asset metadata, Voting metadata, selection algorithms or other places (Column 38, lines 7-37).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Singh (US8595760B1) - A data structure, method and computer program product are provided. In one embodiment, an advertising slot located within content is identified. In addition, an advertisement is presented utilizing the advertising slot based on at least one identifier associated with the content. In another embodiment, an advertising slot is inserted into content. Further, at least one identifier associated with the content is generated for being used in presenting an advertisement utilizing the advertising slot. In yet another embodiment, an advertising slot associated with content is identified. Moreover, an advertisement is correlated with the advertising slot utilizing at least one identifier associated with the content.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/C.C.S./Examiner, Art Unit 3698
/PATRICK MCATEE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3698