IP Library Granted Patent US 11,816,698
Granted Patent B2
US 11,816,698 · App. 17/961,381 · Granted Nov 14, 2023

Methods and apparatus for audience and impression deduplication

Inventors: Michael R. Sheppard (Holland, MI); DongBo Cui (New York, NY); Diane Morovati Lopez (West Hills, CA); Molly Poppie (Arlington Heights, IL)
Assignee: The Nielsen Company (US), LLC
G06Q30/0246
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,816,698
App. No.
17/961,381
Granted
Nov 14, 2023
Kind
B2
Abstract

Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture to estimate and deduplicate audiences are disclosed herein. An example apparatus includes a controller to determine a subunion of at least first and second marginal audiences of media based on of panel data and census data, the panel data including a panel impression count and a panel audience size, and the census data including a census impression count, an audience size calculator to determine a census audience size of the at least the first and second marginal audiences based on the panel impression count and the panel audience size and determine a subunion census audience size, the subunion census audience size corresponding to an overlap between the at least the first and second marginal audiences; and a report generator to generate a report including the census audience size and the subunion census audience size.

Claims (47)

1. A system comprising:

memory;

programmable circuitry; and

instructions stored in memory, the instructions to cause the programmable circuitry to:

determine a union of at least first and second marginal audiences of media based on panel data and census data, the panel data including a panel impression count and a panel audience size, and the census data including a census impression count, wherein the first marginal audience includes a first audience member and a second audience member, the second marginal audience includes the first audience member and does not include the second audience member, the union of the at least the first and second marginal audiences includes a first non-duplicate count of the first audience member and a second non-duplicate count of the second audience member, the panel impression count based on cookies;

determine a census audience size of the at least the first and second marginal audiences based on the panel impression count and the panel audience size;

determine a union census audience size based on the census audience size, the union census audience size corresponding to an overlap between the at least the first and second marginal audiences; and

generate a report including the census audience size and the union census audience size, the census audience size indicative of audience members that are represented in the census data and that accessed the media, and the union census audience size indicative of audience members that are represented in the census data and represented in the overlap between the at least the first and second marginal audiences that accessed the media.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the union census audience size is not greater than a universal estimate value.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the universal estimate value represents a total number of unique persons that accessed media in a geographic scope of interest.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the geographic scope of interest is at least one of a city, a metropolitan area, a state, or a country.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the programmable circuitry is to log a census impression as an anonymous access to first media, the census impression represented in the census impression count.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the programmable circuitry is to determine the census audience size of the at least the first and second marginal audiences based on the panel impression count and the panel audience size by:

dividing the panel impression count by the panel audience size to determine a frequency factor; and

applying the frequency factor to the census impression count to determine the census audience size.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the programmable circuitry is to:

cause retrieving of the panel data from a panel database via first network communications; and

cause retrieving of the census data from a census database via second network communications.

8. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising instructions to cause programmable circuitry to at least:

determine a union of at least first and second marginal audiences of media based on panel data and census data, the panel data including a panel impression count and a panel audience size, and the census data including a census impression count, wherein the first marginal audience includes a first audience member and a second audience member, the second marginal audience includes the first audience member and does not include the second audience member, the union of the at least the first and second marginal audiences includes a first non-duplicate count of the first audience member and a second non-duplicate count of the second audience member, the panel impression count based on cookies;

determine a census audience size of the at least the first and second marginal audiences based on the panel impression count and the panel audience size;

determine a union census audience size based on the census audience size, the union census audience size corresponding to an overlap between the at least the first and second marginal audiences; and

generate a report including the census audience size and the union census audience size, the census audience size indicative of audience members that are represented in the census data and that accessed the media, the union census audience size indicative of audience members that are represented in the census data and represented in the overlap between the at least the first and second marginal audiences that accessed the media.

9. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 8 , wherein the union census audience size is not greater than a universal estimate value.

10. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 9 , wherein the universal estimate value represents a total number of unique persons that accessed media in a geographic scope of interest.

11. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 10 , wherein the geographic scope of interest is at least one of a city, a metropolitan area, a state, or a country.

12. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 8 , wherein the instructions are to cause the programmable circuitry to log a census impression as an anonymous access to first media, the census impression represented in the census impression count.

13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 8 , wherein the instructions are to cause the programmable circuitry to determine the census audience size of the at least the first and second marginal audiences based on the panel impression count and the panel audience size by:

dividing the panel impression count by the panel audience size to determine a frequency factor; and

applying the frequency factor to the census impression count to determine the census audience size.

14. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 8 , wherein the instructions are to cause the programmable circuitry to:

cause retrieving of the panel data from a panel database via first network communications; and

cause retrieving of the census data from a census database via second network communications.

15. A method comprising:

determining, by executing an instruction with programmable circuitry, a union of at least first and second marginal audiences of media based on panel data and census data, the panel data including a panel impression count and a panel audience size, and the census data including a census impression count, wherein the first marginal audience includes a first audience member and a second audience member, the second marginal audience includes the first audience member and does not include the second audience member, the union of the at least the first and second marginal audiences includes a first non-duplicate count of the first audience member and a second non-duplicate count of the second audience member, the panel impression count based on cookies;

determining, by executing an instruction with the programmable circuitry, a census audience size of the at least the first and second marginal audiences based on the panel impression count and the panel audience size;

determining, by executing an instruction with the programmable circuitry, a union census audience size based on the census audience size, the union census audience size corresponding to an overlap between the at least the first and second marginal audiences; and

generating, by executing an instruction with the programmable circuitry, a report including the census audience size and the union census audience size, the census audience size indicative of audience members that are represented in the census data and that accessed the media, and the union census audience size indicative of audience members that are represented in the census data and represented in the overlap between the at least the first and second marginal audiences that accessed the media.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the union census audience size is not greater than a universal estimate value.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the universal estimate value represents a total number of unique persons that accessed media in a geographic scope of interest.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the geographic scope of interest is at least one of a city, a metropolitan area, a state, or a country.

19. The method of claim 15 , further including determining the census audience size of the at least the first and second marginal audiences based on the panel impression count and the panel audience size by:

dividing the panel impression count by the panel audience size to determine a frequency factor by; and

applying the frequency factor to the census impression count to determine the census audience size.

20. The method of claim 15 , further including:

retrieving the panel data from a panel database via first network communications; and

retrieving the census data from a census database via second network communications.

Assignments (4)
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded May 8, 2023
From: GRACENOTE DIGITAL VENTURES, LLC; GRACENOTE MEDIA SERVICES, LLC; GRACENOTE, INC.; TNC (US) HOLDINGS, INC.; THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC
To: ARES CAPITAL CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 063574/0632 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Apr 28, 2023
From: GRACENOTE DIGITAL VENTURES, LLC; GRACENOTE MEDIA SERVICES, LLC; GRACENOTE, INC.; TNC (US) HOLDINGS, INC.; THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC
To: CITIBANK, N.A.
Reel/Frame 063561/0381 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Feb 4, 2023
From: SHEPPARD, MICHAEL; CUI, DONGBO; LOPEZ, DIANE MOROVATI; POPPIE, MOLLY
To: THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC
Reel/Frame 062665/0098 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Jan 31, 2023
From: GRACENOTE DIGITAL VENTURES, LLC; GRACENOTE MEDIA SERVICES, LLC; GRACENOTE, INC.; TNC (US) HOLDINGS, INC.; THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC
To: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.
Reel/Frame 063560/0547 →
Continuity (2)
Continuation 17008263 · Aug 31, 2020
Related Publication 20230105467A1 · Apr 6, 2023