Methods and apparatus for cross platform monitoring and customer targeting
Methods and apparatus for detecting and correlating content consumption, e.g., viewing of programs and/or accessing websites, across platforms of different types are described. Content consumption, e.g., requests and/or streaming is monitored and recorded on a per subscriber basis for a wide variety of platforms, e.g., set boxes, IP content playback devices such as cell phones or pad devices with IP streaming support, and/or other devices. Web site access and corresponding content consumption is determined based on DNS requests thereby avoiding the need for monitoring at web site servers and allowing centralized monitoring of web site access operations in the form of DNS requests to be detected by a Web service provider who, at least in some embodiments, is also a content provider.
1. A communications method comprising:
storing in a plurality of customer records in a customer database, each customer record of the plurality of customer records including device identification information indicating devices corresponding to the customer to which the customer record corresponds;
detecting, at a DNS server, a first DNS request from a first device corresponding to a first customer;
communicating, from the DNS server, information about the first DNS request to an audience measurement device, said information including information corresponding to the first customer and information indicating a URL included in said first DNS request;
detecting, at a video control device, a first video request from a second device corresponding to a second customer, said second customer being the same or different from said first customer;
communicating, from the video control device, first video information to the audience measurement device, said first video information including information corresponding to the second customer; and
operating the audience measurement device to use information in the customer records to correlate video requests with URL resolution requests.
2. The method of claim 1 ,
wherein the audience measurement device uses the information corresponding to the first customer and the information corresponding to the second customer and the device information in the customer record corresponding to the first customer to determine that the first and second requests correspond to the same customer; and
operating the audience measurement device to generate a per customer content consumption report including content consumption information relating to both web page accessed content and video on demand accessed content.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein said device identification information includes a MAC address as a device identifier.
4. The method of claim 1 ,
wherein said information corresponding to the first customer includes both an IP address allocated to a first content playback device used by the first customer and a MAC address associated with the first customer; and
wherein said first video information includes information indicating at least one program supplied to the second device.
5. The method of claim 3 ,
wherein the first DNS request and the first video request correspond to a first customer;
wherein said information about the first DNS request includes a time, said time being a time the first DNS request was detected at the DNS server; and
wherein said video information includes information indicating a period of time during which the program is provided to the first customer;
the method further comprising:
operating the audience management device to use the time the first DNS request was detected and the period of time during which the program is provided to the subscriber to determine the order of content consumption events corresponding to the first customer; and
operating the audience measurement device to generate a per customer content consumption report corresponding to the first customer including content consumption information relating to both accessed web page content and accessed video on demand content.
6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the first video information indicates a program, said program being a program provided in accordance with a broadcast schedule and includes predetermined advertising content.
7. The method of claim 6 , wherein said program is a switched digital video (SDV) program.
8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
operating the audience measurement device to generate an overall consumption report indicating at least a total number of customers reached across multiple content delivery platforms during a time period to which the report corresponds and information indicating the number of customers reached via each content delivery platform for which the overall consumption report provides information.
9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the overall consumption report includes information indicating the overlap between customers being reached by at least two different content delivery platforms or communications channels.
10. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
communicating the overall consumption report to a management device; and
operating the management device to automatically reallocate resources between different content delivery platforms based on information included in the overall consumption report to increase the number of unique customers being reached by a campaign.
11. The method of claim 10 , wherein reallocating resources includes shifting resources from a first communication channel to a second communications channel, said first communication channel having been indicated to have customers being reached by said second communications channel as well as said first communications channel.
12. A communications system comprising:
a storage device including in a plurality of customer records, each customer record of the plurality of customer records including device identification information indicating devices corresponding to the customer to which the customer record corresponds;
a DNS server including a DNS request tracking module configured to detect a first DNS request from a first device corresponding to a first customer;
an audience measurement device configured to receive DNS request information from the DNS request tracking module, said information including information about the first DNS request, said information including an identifier corresponding to the first customer and information indicating a URL included in said first DNS request;
a video control device configured to detect a first video request from a second device corresponding to a second customer, said second customer being the same or different from said first customer; and
wherein the audience measurement device is further configured to receive first video information about the detected first video request which is from the second device corresponding to the second customer and to use information in the customer records to correlate video requests with URL resolution requests.
13. The system of claim 12 ,
wherein the audience measurement device is further configured to use the information corresponding to the first customer and the information corresponding to the second customer and the device information in the customer record corresponding to the first customer to determine that the first and second requests correspond to the same customer; and to generate a per customer content consumption report including content consumption information relating to both web page accessed content and video on demand accessed content.
14. The system of claim 12 , wherein said information corresponding to the first customer includes at least one of an IP address allocated to a first content playback device used by the first customer and a MAC address associated with the first customer.
15. The system of claim 12 , wherein said first video information includes information indicating at least one program supplied to the second device.
16. The system of claim 15 ,
wherein the first DNS request and the first video request correspond to a first customer;
wherein said information about the first DNS request includes a time, said time being a time the first DNS request was detected at the DNS server;
wherein said video information includes information indicating a period of time during which the program is provided to the first customer; and
wherein the audience management device is further configured to use the time the first DNS request was detected and the period of time during which the program is provided to the subscriber to determine the order of content consumption events corresponding to the first customer and to generate a per customer content consumption report corresponding to the first customer including content consumption information relating to both accessed web page content and accessed video on demand content.
17. The system of claim 16 , wherein said program is a program provided in accordance with a broadcast schedule and includes predetermined advertising content.
18. The system of claim 12 , further comprising:
an audience measurement device configured to generate an overall consumption report corresponding to a campaign indicating at least a total number of customers reached across multiple content delivery platforms via the campaign during a time period to which the report corresponds and information indicating the number of customers reached via each content delivery platform for which the overall consumption report provides information.
19. The system of claim 18 , further comprising;
a management device;
wherein the audience measurement device is further configured to communicate the overall consumption report to the management device; and
wherein the management device is configured to automatically change allocation of resources between different content delivery channels based on information included in the overall consumption report to increase the number of unique customers being reached by the campaign.