WO2011110689A1

WO2011110689A1 - System for interactive consumer participation in a media program

Info

Publication number: WO2011110689A1
Application number: PCT/EP2011/053755
Authority: WO
Inventors: Vincent Parisis
Original assignee: ETRI NV; Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute ETRI
Current assignee: ETRI NV; Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute ETRI
Priority date: 2010-03-12
Filing date: 2011-03-11
Publication date: 2011-09-15
Anticipated expiration: 2012-09-12
Also published as: BE1019032A5

Abstract

The invention relates to system for interactive consumer participation in a media program, comprising: a server system (6); an interface system (10) for electronic data communication with a plurality of external servers at media providers (11-14)who provide media programs;an interactive application web service (3) hosted on the server system and adapted for forwarding content received by means of the interface system to mobile terminals (1, 1') of consumers who participate in the media programs and for forwarding consumer interactions to the media providers (11-14); an interaction tracking mechanism (4) for tracking the interactions and generating a billing reference for each interaction; and a billing interface (5).

Description

SYSTEM FOR INTERACTIVE CONSUMER PARTICIPATION IN A

MEDIA PROGRAM

Technical field

The present invention relates to a system and method for interactive consumer participation in a media program organised by a media provider (e.g. television broadcasting companies, radio stations, printed press, but also "brands" in general).

Background art

From WO 0139506 A2 a system and method are known by which consumers are able to interactively participate in a media program, in particular a television broadcast, over the internet. The system allows large numbers of users to engage in on-line, multi-user shows that are synchronized to broadcasts of prerecorded or live shows and also simultaneously aggregates user input from such shows and feeds it back into the broadcast. First, a user launches a client application on an Internet-accessible platform. The client application connects to a multiuser server system. This multi-user server system allows all of the concurrent users to engage in a single multi-user, on-line activity that can run independently or in synchronization with a broadcast. The multi-user server system is also capable of running numerous on-line activities simultaneously, each of which can be synchronized to a separate broadcast. As the users interact with the on-line activities, the multi-user server system can aggregate data relating to the users or their actions, save this data in a database, and feed this back into the broadcast.

In the system of WO 0139506 A2, it is not foreseen to generate revenue from the user interactions.

Other technologies where it is foreseen to generate revenue is known in the form of Interactive Voice Response (IVR), Mobile Messaging Systems (SMS/MMS) or Interactive Digital Television (IDTV) Interactive technology allows a computer to detect voice and keypad inputs. IVR technology is used extensively in telecommunications. In telecommunications, IVR allows customers to access a company database via a telephone touchtone keypad or by speech recognition, after which they can make their own enquiries by following the instructions. IVR systems can respond with pre-recorded or dynamically generated audio to further direct users on how to proceed. IVR systems can be used to control almost any function where the interface can be broken down into a series of simple menu choices. In telecommunications applications, such as customer support lines, IVR systems generally scale well to handle large call volumes. The largest installed IVR platforms are used for applications such as tele-voting on TV shows such as Pop Idol and Big Brother which can generate enormous call peaks.

Mobile originated short messages may also be used in a premium- rated manner for services such as televoting. In this case the media provider providing the service obtains a short code from the telephone network operator, and subscribers send text messages to the number. The payouts to the media vary by carrier and the percentages paid are the highest on the lowest priced premium SMS services. Most information providers should expect to pay about 45% of the cost of the premium SMS up-front to the carrier. The submission of the text to the SMSC is identical to a standard MO Short Message submission, but once the text is at the SMSC, the Service Centre ('SC') identifies the Short Code as a premium service. The SC will then direct the content of the text message to the VASP, typically using an IP protocol such as SMPP or EMI. Subscribers are charged a premium for the sending of such messages, with the revenue typically shared between the network operator and the media provider. Short codes have various limitations: they are country specific (short codes have to be activated in each country where the campaign takes place) and they are very expensive. IDTV allows various access levels: low interactivity (TV on/off, volume, changing channels), moderate interactivity (simple movies on demand without player controls), high interactivity (in which, for example, an audience member affects the program being watched). The most obvious example of high interactivity would be any kind of real-time voting on the screen, in which the audience can send messages that can influence how the show continues.

IVR, SMS/MMS and IDTV have the disadvantage of being operator- dependent, which leads to a high cost for the consumer and geographic constraints for the media providers, as network operators only operate locally.

Disclosure of the invention

It is an aim of this invention to provide a system and method for interactive consumer participation in a media program which can function independently from network providers but still enables the creation of revenue from the interactions.

According to the invention, the aforementioned aim is achieved with the system showing the technical characteristics of the first claim.

In particular, the invention provides a system for interactive consumer participation in a media program, comprising the following components: a server system, an interface system, an interactive application webservice, a plurality of mobile terminal applications, a database storing user profiles, an interaction tracking mechanism and a billing interface.

The interface system (e.g. CMS backend) is communicatively connected to the server system and is provided for electronic data communication with a plurality of external servers at media providers (e.g. television broadcasting companies, radio stations, newspapers, but also "brands" in general such as Coca-Cola®, McDonalds®), i.e. anyone who provides media programs in which first content is provided to consumers on a large scale to ask the consumers to participate in the media program, and second content is provided to the consumers on a personal scale to trigger interactions from the consumers, using their mobile terminals (e.g. smartphones, PDAs, tablet computers or any other mobile communication- enabled electronic device).

The interactive application webservice is hosted on the server system and is adapted for forwarding the second content, received by means of the interface system, to a plurality of mobile terminals of the consumers who participate in the media programs and for forwarding the interactions, received from the mobile terminals of the participating consumers, via the interface system to the external servers at the media providers.

The plurality of mobile terminal applications running on the mobile terminals of the participating consumers are for example a widget, a mobile web interface or a smart phone app (depending on the mobile terminal used by the consumer). These mobile terminal applications are adapted for substantially continuously exchanging data with the interactive application webservice to display the second content to the consumers, enable the consumers to input their interactions to the second content and to communicate the interactions back to the interactive application webservice.

The database is communicatively connected to the server system, and is provided for storing a plurality of user profiles containing personal details and billing details of the participating consumers.

The interaction tracking mechanism (e.g. a shopping cart) runs on the server system and is adapted for tracking the interactions of each participating consumer, for generating a billing reference for each interaction and accumulating the billing references per participating consumer.

The billing interface is provided for retrieving the accumulated billing references per participating consumer and the billing details in the user profile of the respective consumer from the system. The billing interface comprises for example a server running software applications for dealing with transactions via credit card, debit card, bank accounts, mobile wallets, internet wallets, app stores billing, etc. In this way, each participating consumer can be billed for the interactions they performed, for example periodically or as soon as the cost exceeds a given threshold, according to a pre-paid system or otherwise.

Brief description of the drawings

The invention will be further elucidated by means of the following description and the appended drawings.

Figure 1 shows a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 2 shows a flowchart of a user registration/login procedure of a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 3 shows a basic screen layout of a mobile terminal application of a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 4 shows a 'home screen' of a mobile terminal application of a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 5 shows an example of the screens for a chatting application on a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 6 shows an example of the screens for a polling application on a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 7 shows an example of the screens for a voting application on a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 8 shows an example of the screens for a competition application on a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 9 shows an example of the screens for a live commenting application on a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 10 shows an example of the screens for a purchasing application on a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention. Figure 1 1 shows a 'friends screen' of a mobile terminal application of a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 12 shows a 'brands screen' of a mobile terminal application of a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 13 shows a 'search screen' of a mobile terminal application of a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention.

Figure 14 shows a 'more screen' of a mobile terminal application of a preferred embodiment of the system of the invention. Modes for carrying out the invention

The present invention will be described with respect to particular embodiments and with reference to certain drawings but the invention is not limited thereto but only by the claims. The drawings described are only schematic and are non-limiting. In the drawings, the size of some of the elements may be exaggerated and not drawn on scale for illustrative purposes. The dimensions and the relative dimensions do not necessarily correspond to actual reductions to practice of the invention.

Furthermore, the terms first, second, third and the like in the description and in the claims, are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a sequential or chronological order. The terms are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances and the embodiments of the invention can operate in other sequences than described or illustrated herein.

Moreover, the terms top, bottom, over, under and the like in the description and the claims are used for descriptive purposes and not necessarily for describing relative positions. The terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances and the embodiments of the invention described herein can operate in other orientations than described or illustrated herein.

The term "comprising", used in the claims, should not be interpreted as being restricted to the means listed thereafter; it does not exclude other elements or steps. It needs to be interpreted as specifying the presence of the stated features, integers, steps or components as referred to, but does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps or components, or groups thereof. Thus, the scope of the expression "a device comprising means A and B" should not be limited to devices consisting only of components A and B. It means that with respect to the present invention, the only relevant components of the device are A and B.

The present invention provides a system that allows a large numbers of consumers to participate in media programs and for facilitating billing of the consumer interactions in the media programs to the respective consumers. Consumer activities such as voting in conjunction with a television broadcast can be easily integrated and synchronized with the broadcast, while simultaneously accumulating the consumer inputs for billing purposes later on and feeding real-time information on the consumer inputs back to the media provider performing the broadcast. The invention is applied as a client/server system where the clients are mobile terminal applications running on smart phones, tablets or the like.

FIG. 1 provides an overview of the preferred embodiment, illustrating how all the components work together to synchronize multiple consumer participations to a broadcast. The communications between the components are illustrated by means of the block arrows.

Media providers 1 1 -14 provide media programs in which multiple consumers can participate using mobile terminals 1 , 1 ' (e.g. smartphones, PDAs, tablet computers or any other mobile communication-enabled electronic device). This is to be interpreted broadly: the media providers can be television broadcasting companies 1 1 , radio stations 12, newspapers or other printed press 13, but also other media providers 14, i.e. "brands" in general such as Coca-Cola®, McDonalds®; the media programs can comprise any type of television/radio broadcast, internet broadcasts but also spreading information by means of printed media or associated with commercial products, i.e. content (herein called first content) which is provided to multiple consumers on a large scale and whereby consumers are incited to participate in the media program. The media programs comprise, on top of the first content, second content which is provided to the consumer on a more personal scale to trigger interactions from the consumers using their mobile terminals 1 , 1 '. More particularly, the second content is provided to the consumers in the form of data supplied to mobile terminal applications 2, 2' (for example a widget, a mobile web interface or a smart phone app depending on the mobile terminal used by the consumer).

The interface system 10 is communicatively connected to the server system 6 and is provided for electronic data communication with a plurality of external servers 1 1 -14 at media providers. The interface system 10 comprises for example a CMS backend which contains a specific, dedicated gateway software component, made to measure, that can interpret the playout lists from different "automation broadcast servers" at the media providers 1 1 -14. This makes it possible to synchronise the frontend (the mobile terminal applications 2, 2') this playout list coming from the media providers. The synchronisation allows a real time update of the frontend to change the content displayed in the frontend and also to change the look & feel of the frontend. Based on the profile of the user of the frontend, the content can be adapted not just based on the playout list but also linked with the profile of the user. As a result, a powerful direct communication tool is created.

The mobile terminal applications 2, 2' preferably send back time- stamped data detailing which and when specific consumer interactions take place. The data reported to the server system 6 comprises user- initiated data coming from interactions such as voting, text entries, chat responses, instant messaging, etc. Preferably, this information is encrypted to prevent alteration by users or other parties. The time stamping of the data can accommodate variations in latency and bandwidth across the consumer base.

In addition to transmission of such above deliberate interactions of the consumers, the mobile terminal application may also send back statistic data, such as for example connection time to the server system, media programs in which the consumer participates, etc.

The server system 6 is provided with an interaction tracking mechanism 4 which tracks the interactions of the participating consumers and generates billing references for each interaction. The billing references are accumulated and stored per consumer on a database 7 of the server system 6.

The database 7 further stores user profiles containing personal details and billing details of the consumers. These user profiles are preferably stored off-line for security reasons.

The interaction data is accumulated and stored in the database 7 residing on the multi-user server system 6. This database can further be used for archiving and tracking information associated with the on-line activities, including user profiles, interaction, scoring results, ad views and other data types. Every user has a unique user profile, and every session in which a user logs on has a unique ID code; thus, data collected during a particular session can be stored according to a unique user ID and session

ID.

The system is further provided with a billing interface 5, which is provided for retrieving from the database 7 the accumulated billing references per participating consumer and the billing details in the user profile of the respective consumer. The billing interface 5 comprises for example a server running software applications for dealing with transactions via credit card, debit card, bank accounts, mobile wallets, internet wallets, app stores billing, or any other such billing applications known to the person skilled in the art. In this way, each participating consumer can be billed for the interactions they performed, for example periodically or as soon as the cost exceeds a given threshold, according to a pre-paid system or otherwise.

The server system 6 further comprises a system management module 8 and a client management module 9.

The system of Fig. 1 operates as follows. The media providers 1 1 -

14 distribute the first content to multiple consumers. This can take the form of a television broadcast, printed press, an advert on commercial products, etc. In the first content, the consumers are informed about the media program to which they can participate by use of the appropriate mobile terminal application on their mobile terminal. First time participation requires a registration (see Fig. 2), to create the user profile in the database 7, and download and setup of the appropriate mobile terminal application on the consumer's mobile terminal. Once these steps have been performed, the consumer can select from a list the media program to which he wants to participate and upon selection, he is presented with the second content of the selected media program. The second information can for example be provided to the mobile terminals of the participating consumers in the form of scripts, or in any other way known to the person skilled in the art. In the case of a television broadcast, the second content can for example be voting information, a questionnaire to be filled in, or any other information by which the consumer can interactively participate to the television broadcast. In the case of printed press or adverts, the second content can for example be a questionnaire to be filled in, a purchase which the consumer can make at a discount price, or other information.

The webservice 3 on the server system 6 coordinates interaction with all the mobile terminal applications, distributes the second content and directs the received interactions back to the media providers. For each interaction, a billing reference is created as described above.

As shown in Fig. 1 , the application webservice 3 running on the server system 6 manages and coordinates the entire process, such as interaction between users and with the media providers, creation and storage of user profiles, etc.

Fig. 2 shows the registration and download procedure, by which consumers can create a user profile and download the appropriate mobile terminal application (mobile terminal dependent). The 'screens' are for example mobile terminal web pages which the user can access by means of an onboard web browser of the mobile terminals. The procedure comprises the following steps:

- tapping the icon 21 to display the 'sign in screen' 22 to sign in or sign up;

- previously registered users can enter email address and password and tap the 'sign in button' 23 to sign in, following which a login check is performed and if successful, the user is shown the 'home screen' 25 of the mobile terminal application;

- not yet registered users can tap 'sign up button' 24 to create their user profile comprising country, language and user data (such as name, address, billing preference, login data etc.), an option to connect with a social network (e.g. Facebook), following which they are also shown the 'home screen' 25 of the mobile terminal application.

Figure 3 shows the screen layout of the mobile terminal application, comprising a header area 31 , a content area 32, an optional ad area 33 and a button area 34 with different buttons 35-39.

Figure 4 shows the 'home screen' of the mobile terminal application while in use. Underneath the header 31 is a text search bar 41 , by means of which users can e.g. look up media programs to which he wants to participate. The content area comprises an 'updates' tab 42, wherein the user is shown the most recent interactions of friends (other users to which one has linked his profile) and the most recent media programs of the media providers, and a 'popular' items tab 43, wherein the user is shown the most popular media programs. By selecting one of the media programs shown in the 'home screen', the user can access e.g. a chat, a poll, a vote, perform live comments or a purchase, etc.

Figure 5 shows an example of the screens for a chat. The user enters the chat from the brand homepage. On a second screen 52, the user can select different chatrooms 53, access help and rules screens 54, set a nickname 55, etc. The chatroom page 53 shows the price per message, the last chat messages and a text field where the user can enter a chat message to post, etc. The chatroom page can be operated substantially synchronously with the chatroom shown on a television broadcast. Each chat message posted is an interaction which is forwarded to the media provider and for which a billing reference is stored in the database 7 for the correct user.

Figure 6 shows an example of the procedure for a poll. The user accesses the poll from the brand homepage 61 . A check 62 is performed if the user has already done the poll. If so, he is immediately shown the results screen 65. If not, the user is shown a screen 63 with the price and the options. Once the user has selected an option, he is shown the results screen 64. The poll selection is an interaction which is forwarded to the media provider via the server system. A billing reference for the poll is stored in the database 7 for the correct user.

Figure 7 shows an example of the procedure for a vote. The user accesses the vote from the brand homepage 71 . Optionally, depending on whether multiple voting is allowed, a check 72 can first be performed if the user has already voted and if not allowed, an error message 75 can be displayed that the user already voted. On a voting screen 73, the user is shown the price for voting and the voting options. Upon voting, the user is shown a confirmation screen 74. The vote is an interaction which is forwarded via the server system to the media provider. A billing reference of the vote is stored in the database 7 for the correct user. Figure 8 shows an example of the screens for a competition. The user accesses the competition from the brand homepage 81 . Optionally, depending on whether multiple playing is allowed, a check can first be performed if the user has already played in the competition and if not allowed, an error message 87 can be displayed that the user already played. The competition screen 83, 84, 85 can comprise open questions, multiple choice questions, a tiebraker, etc. Each time, the user is shown the price for his participation. A final screen is a confirmation screen 86.

Figure 9 shows an example of the screens for live commenting. The user enters the live comment from the brand homepage 91 . On a live commenting screen 92, the user is shown the price for commenting, a comments text, a confirmation of sent text which has been received, a text field where the user can enter a live comment to post, etc. Each live comment posted is an interaction which is forwarded to the media provider and for which a billing reference is stored in the database for the correct user.

Figure 10 shows an example of the screens for online purchasing via the mobile terminal application and system of the invention. The user accesses a store via the brand homepage 101 . On a second screen 102, the user gets product information, product price, etc. By selecting a purchase button, the purchase is effected and a confirmation 103 is shown. The purchase is an interaction which is forwarded to the media provider. A billing reference of the purchase is generated for the correct user and stored in the database 7 for later billing.

By selecting the 'friends' button 36 on the home screen, the user gets a 'friends screen' (fig. 1 1 ) with a 'friends updates' tab 1 1 1 showing the updates of one's friends, i.e. the interactions they performed, and a 'my friends' tab 1 12 showing an overview of all the friends and a possibility to invite more friends.

By selecting the 'brands' button 37 on the home screen, the user gets a 'brands screen' (figure 12) with a 'brands I like' tab 121 showing the liked brands and a 'all brands' tab 122 showing a complete list of accessible brands.

A 'search' button 38 gives access to a search engine 131 for searching brands and/or media programs (figure 13). The search results 132 can be direct links to brand homepages or a vote, a poll, a purchase, etc.

A 'more' button 39 gives access to a screen 141 where one can e.g. access account settings, perform a payment, access help, etc (figure 14).

Claims

1 . A system for interactive consumer participation in a media program, comprising

- a server system (6),

- an interface system (10), communicatively connected to the server system, for electronic data communication with a plurality of external servers at media providers (1 1 -14) who provide media programs in which first content is provided to consumers on a large scale to ask the consumers to participate in the media program, and second content is provided to the consumers on a personal scale to trigger interactions from the consumers;

- an interactive application webservice (3) hosted on the server system, and adapted for forwarding the second content, received by means of the interface system, to a plurality of mobile terminals (1 , 1 ') of the consumers who participate in the media programs and for forwarding the interactions, received from the mobile terminals of the participating consumers, via the interface system (10) to the external servers at the media providers (1 1 -14);

- a plurality of mobile terminal applications (2, 2') running on the mobile terminals of the participating consumers, the mobile terminal applications being adapted for substantially continuously exchanging data with the interactive application webservice (3) to display the second content to the consumers, to enable the consumers to input their interactions to the second content and to communicate the interactions back to the interactive application webservice;

- a database (7), communicatively connected to the server system, for storing a plurality of user profiles containing personal details and billing details of the participating consumers;

- an interaction tracking mechanism (4) running on the server system and adapted for tracking the interactions of each participating consumer, for generating a billing reference for each interaction and accumulating the billing references per participating consumer;

- a billing interface (5) for retrieving the accumulated billing references per participating consumer and the billing details in the user profile of the respective consumer from the system.

2. A system according to claim 1 , characterised in that the plurality of mobile terminal applications comprise one or more of the following: a widget, a mobile web interface, a smart phone app.

3. A system according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the database is provided for storing the user profiles off-line.

4. A system according to claim 1 , 2 or 3, characterised in that the interactive application webservice (3) comprises at least one of the following services: a chatting application, a polling application, a voting application, a live commenting application, a purchasing application.

5. A system according to any one of the previous claims, characterised in that the system is provided with a capability of connecting the user profile of the respective consumer with the media providers and/or other consumers, and in that the interactive application webservice (3) is provided for sending updates of the media providers and/or other consumers to the mobile terminal applications of the consumers who have connected their user profiles thereto.

6. A system according to any one of the previous claims, characterised in that the system is provided with a capability of connecting the user profile to at least one social network and that the interactive application webservice is provided for forwarding to each social network the interactions perfornned by the consumers who have connected their user profiles to that social network.

7. A method for interactive consumer participation in a media program, comprising the steps of:

- providing a server system (6)

- providing an interface system (10), communicatively connected to the server system, for electronic data communication with a plurality of external servers at media providers (1 1 -14) who provide media programs in which first content is provided to consumers on a large scale to ask the consumers to participate in the media program, and second content is provided to the consumers on a personal scale to trigger interactions from the consumers;

- hosting an interactive application webservice (3) on the server system which forwards the second content, received by means of the interface system, to a plurality of mobile terminals (1 , 1 ') of the consumers who participate in the media programs and which forwards the interactions, received from the mobile terminals of the participating consumers, via the interface system (10) to the external servers at the media providers (1 1 - 14);

- providing a plurality of mobile terminal applications (2, 2') for running on the mobile terminals of the participating consumers, the mobile terminal applications being adapted for substantially continuously exchanging data with the interactive application webservice (3) to display the second content to the consumers, to enable the consumers to input their interactions to the second content and to communicate the interactions back to the interactive application webservice;

- providing a database (7) communicatively connected to the server system and storing therein a plurality of user profiles containing personal details and billing details of the participating consumers;

- running an interaction tracking mechanism (4) on the server system and tracking therewith the interactions of each participating consumer, generating a billing reference for each interaction and accumulating the billing references per participating consumer;

- providing a billing interface (5) for retrieving the accumulated billing references per participating consumer and the billing details in the user profile of the respective consumer from the system.

8. A method according to claim 7, characterised in that the plurality of mobile terminal applications comprise one or more of the following: a widget, a mobile web interface, a smart phone app.

9. A method according to claim 7 or 8, characterised in that the user profiles are stored off-line in the database.

10. A method according to claim 7, 8 or 9, characterised in that the interactive application webservice (3) comprises at least one of the following services: a chatting application, a polling application, a voting application, a live commenting application, a purchasing application.

1 1 . A method according to any one of the claims 7-10, characterised in that the method comprises the steps of providing the capability of connecting the user profiles of the respective consumers with the media providers and/or other consumers and sending, by means of the interactive application webservice (3), updates of the media providers and/or other consumers to the mobile terminal applications of the consumers who have connected their user profiles thereto.

12. A method according to any one of the previous claims, characterised in that the method comprises the steps of providing the capability of connecting the user profiles to at least one social network and forwarding, by means of the interactive application webservice, to each social network the interactions perfornned by the consumers who have connected their user profiles to that social network.