Methods and apparatus for enhanced advertising and promotional delivery in a network

1. A method of providing advertising content to a plurality of users associated to a respective plurality of user devices in a content delivery network, said method comprising:

receiving a plurality of requests to view primary content from said respective plurality of user devices, a triggering event being associated with said primary content;

presenting to each of said plurality of users a list of a plurality of available advertisements for selection;

providing to each of said plurality of users one or more selectable options for viewing and/or delivering said plurality of available advertisements;

enabling each of said of plurality of users to select one or more of said plurality of available advertisements for viewing and/or delivering according to said one or more selectable options;

when none of said one or more of said plurality of available advertisements is selected by said plurality of users within given time period, automatically adding one or more other ones of said plurality of available advertisements for viewing and/or delivering so as to fit within a duration of time before said primary content is set to begin, via evaluating metadata associated with at least one of said plurality of available advertisements with respect to information descriptive of said primary content;

providing a multicast of said requested primary content to said plurality of user devices, said multicast comprising only said primary content without any secondary content inserted therein; and

providing to individual ones of said plurality of user devices respective individual ones of said automatically added one or more other ones of said plurality of available advertisements according to said viewing and/or delivering options.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein said triggering event comprises a discontinuity or marker disposed within a real-time broadcast.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein said triggering event comprises beginning a period of prescribed duration within a real-time broadcast program.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein said triggering event comprises beginning or recommencing playback of a recorded program.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein said triggering event comprises fast-forwarding a recorded program at a certain point in said program.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein said plurality of available advertisements are identified by a computer program.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein said one or more of said plurality of available advertisements are selected for said presentation based at least in part on a determination of a length of at least one of said available advertisements.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein said information descriptive of said primary content comprises metadata associated with said primary content with which said one or more other ones of said plurality of available advertisements will be provided.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein said act of automatically adding one or more other ones of said plurality of available advertisements further comprises

evaluating said metadata with respect to user descriptive information.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein said act of automatically adding one or more other ones of said plurality of available advertisements further comprises:

enabling a user to enter one or more advertisement selection criteria;

comparing said metadata associated with said at least one of said plurality of available advertisements to said criteria; and

selecting a subset of said plurality of available advertisements based at least in part on said act of comparing.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein said act of providing comprises displaying said automatically added one or more other ones of said plurality of available advertisements temporally proximate with non-advertising program content at one or more prescribed insertion points within said content.

12. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

obtaining a user response to said automatically added advertisements;

accessing said metadata associated with said at least one of said plurality of available advertisements;

evaluating a correlation of said metadata with said user response; and

providing a selectable listing of available and correlated advertisements.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein said viewing and/or delivering options comprises sending said one or more selected advertisements or said automatically added one or more other ones of said plurality of available advertisements to an electronic mail account for viewing at a later time.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein said viewing and/or delivering options comprises saving said automatically added one or more other ones of said plurality of available advertisements to a storage device of a recording apparatus for viewing at a later time.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein said storage device comprises at least one of a hard disk drive (HDD) or NAND flash memory, and said recording apparatus comprises a digital video recorder (DVR).

16. A system for delivery of advertisements in a communications network, said system comprising:

a processing apparatus, said processing apparatus being adapted to process a real-time broadcast primary content stream to identify one or more markers disposed therein, said markers configured to indicate that one or more advertisements must be selected, and generate a list of available advertisements;

a user interface adapted to enable a viewer to select from two or more options, said two or more options being configured to allow said viewer to: (i) select one or more of said list of available advertisements and identify when during playback of said real-time broadcast primary content said selected one or more advertisements will be viewed, and (ii) select that one or more of said list of available advertisements be delivered to said viewer at a time after said playback of said real-time broadcast primary content;

a mechanism adapted to allocate a carrier to deliver advertisement content for said selected one or more advertisements; and

a receiving apparatus, said receiving apparatus adapted to receive said advertisement content.

17. The system of claim 16 , wherein said processing apparatus comprises a cable television network headend or switching hub server.

18. The system of claim 16 , wherein said processing apparatus is located on a consumer premises device, and said receiving apparatus comprises a hard disk drive of said consumer premises device.

19. The system of claim 16 , wherein said receiving apparatus comprises a display apparatus.

20. The system of claim 16 , wherein said receiving apparatus comprises an e-mail server.

21. A method of providing primary and secondary content to a plurality of users in a content delivery network, said method comprising:

receiving a request to view primary content from a user device;

in response to said request, identifying a plurality of secondary content, said secondary content being identified based at least in part on a relationship of a context thereof to one or more attributes of a user associated with said user device;

causing at least information relating to said identified plurality of secondary content to be stored at a storage entity associated with said user device;

upon a user's instantiation of a trick mode functionality at said user device, prompting said user with a plurality of options, said plurality of options comprising: (i) selecting one or more items of said identified plurality of secondary content and selecting one or more display and/or delivery options, and (ii) selecting none of said one or more items of said identified plurality of secondary content; and

causing display and/or delivery of said selected ones of said one or more items of said identified plurality of secondary content according to said selected one or more display and/or delivery options.

22. The method of claim 21 , wherein said causing at least information relating to said one or more items of said identified plurality of secondary content to be stored comprises storing said one or more items of said identified plurality of secondary content at said storage entity.

23. The method of claim 21 , wherein said enabling said user to select one or more items of said identified plurality of secondary content comprises enabling said user to make said selection via said stored information.

24. The method of claim 21 , wherein said act of causing display and/or delivery of said selected ones of said one or more items of said identified plurality of secondary content comprises retrieving said secondary content from said storage device.

25. The method of claim 21 , wherein said act of causing display and/or delivery of said selected ones of said one or more items of said identified plurality of secondary content comprises retrieving said secondary content from a remote network storage entity.

26. The method of claim 25 , wherein said retrieving said selected ones of said one or more of said identified plurality of secondary content from a remote network storage entity comprises providing at least a portion of said stored information to said network storage entity.

27. The method of claim 21 , wherein said user device is configured to upon said user's instantiation of said trick mode functionality, halt display and/or delivery of said primary content and cause display and/or delivery of said selected one or more items of said identified plurality of secondary content.

28. The method of claim 21 , further comprising receiving one or more requests to view said primary content from one or more second user devices, and creating a multicast of said primary content without any secondary content inserted therein for delivery to said user device and said one or more second user devices.

29. Computerized apparatus for providing advertising content to a user device associated with a content delivery network, said apparatus comprising:

a processor;

a data interface in data communication with said processor; and

a storage device in data communication with said processor and comprising at least one computer program, said at least one computer program comprising logic configured to, when executed:

receive via said data interface a request to view primary content initiated from said user device;

cause presentation via said user device of a list of a plurality of available advertisements for selection;

cause provision via said user device a selectable option for delivery of said plurality of available advertisements other than presentation with said primary content, thereby enabling selection of one or more of said plurality of available advertisements for delivery according to said selectable option;

when one or more of said plurality of available advertisements is selected via said user device within a given time period, cause delivery of said one or more selected advertisements via said selectable option; or

when none of said plurality of available advertisements is selected via said user device within said given time period, automatically add one or more other advertisements for delivery, said automatically added one or more other advertisements selected so as to fit within a duration of time before said primary content is set to begin, said selection based at least on an evaluation of metadata associated with said one or more other advertisements with respect to information descriptive of said primary content;

cause provision to said user device of said automatically added one or more other advertisements during said duration of time; and

cause provision of a multicast of said primary content to said user device, said multicast comprising only said primary content;

wherein said selectable option comprises delivery via e-mail.