IP Library Granted Patent US 12,423,723
Granted Patent B2
US 12,423,723 · App. 17/962,702 · Granted Sep 23, 2025

Methods and apparatus to monitor media presentations

Inventors: Robert Peter Borland (Palm Harbor, FL); Jonathon Brett Rubin (Tampa, FL); Anthony B. Stringer (St. Petersburg, FL); Adam Schenker (Tampa, FL); Shailendra Paranjape (Lutz, FL)
Assignee: The Nielsen Company (US), LLC
G06Q30/0204G06Q30/0201H04L67/02H04L67/306
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,423,723
App. No.
17/962,702
Granted
Sep 23, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture to monitor media presentations are disclosed. An example tangible computer readable storage medium includes instructions that, when executed, cause a machine to at least instrument media with monitoring instructions; provide the instrumented media to a media device via a hypertext transport secure protocol, the monitoring instructions to cause the media device to request a panelist identifier associated with the media device; detect a media event based on an action of the media device; determine media-identifying information based on the media event; and generate a record including the media-identifying information and the panelist identifier.

Claims (52)

1. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored thereon computer readable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause one or more machines to be configured to at least:

embed monitoring instructions into media to generate instrumented media; and

provide the instrumented media to a media device via a hypertext transport secure protocol for presentation on the media device via a media browser application of the media device, wherein the embedded monitoring instructions, when executed by the media device, cause the media device to perform a set of operations, wherein the media device comprises a panelist meter that is unable to collect media-identifying information from the instrumented media when (i) the instrumented media is provided to the media device via the hypertext transport secure protocol and (ii) the media browser application does not include a browser extension configured to collect media-identifying information associated with encrypted media, wherein encryption of the media prevents the panelist meter from accessing a payload of packets of the encrypted media, the set of operations comprising:

determining whether the media browser application includes a browser extension configured to collect media-identifying information associated with encrypted media, and

in response to the determination being that the media browser application does not include the browser extension configured to collect media-identifying information associated with encrypted media:

requesting a panelist identifier associated with the media device;

detecting a media event based on at least one of the media browser application initializing playout of a video corresponding to the instrumented media, the media device receiving user input corresponding to a selection in the instrumented media, or the media browser application displaying an image corresponding to the instrumented media;

in response to detecting the media event, collecting media-identifying information from the instrumented media;

generating a record including the media-identifying information and the panelist identifier; and

transmitting the record to a remote computing system of an audience measurement entity, wherein transmitting the record to the remote computing system reduces the use of storage space on the media device.

2. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 1 , wherein requesting the panelist identifier comprises requesting the panelist identifier from a web server using a web protocol request via a local network of the media device.

3. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 1 , the set of operations further comprising adding a client identifier associated with the instrumented media to the record.

4. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 1 , wherein the selection is a checkout on a webpage, the set of operations further comprising adding a product identifier and a product price associated with the checkout to the record.

5. A method of monitoring a media device, the method comprising:

embedding monitoring instructions into media to generate instrumented media; and

providing the instrumented media to a media device via a hypertext transport secure protocol for presentation on the media device via a media browser application of the media device, wherein the embedded monitoring instructions, when executed by the media device, cause the media device to perform a set of operations, wherein the media device comprises a panelist meter that is unable to collect media-identifying information from the instrumented media when (i) the instrumented media is provided to the media device via the hypertext transport secure protocol and (ii) the media browser application does not include a browser extension configured to collect media-identifying information associated with encrypted media, wherein encryption of the media prevents the panelist meter from accessing a payload of packets of the encrypted media, the set of operations comprising:

determining whether the media browser application includes a browser extension configured to collect media-identifying information associated with encrypted media, and

in response to the determination being that the media browser application does not include the browser extension configured to collect media-identifying information associated with encrypted media:

requesting a panelist identifier associated with the media device;

detecting a media event based on at least one of the media browser application initializing playout of a video corresponding to the instrumented media, the media device receiving user input corresponding to a selection in the instrumented media, or the media browser application displaying an image corresponding to the instrumented media;

in response to detecting the media event, collecting media-identifying information from the instrumented media;

generating a record including the media-identifying information and the panelist identifier; and

transmitting the record to a remote computing system of an audience measurement entity, wherein transmitting the record to the remote computing system reduces the use of storage space on the media device.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein requesting the panelist identifier comprises requesting the panelist identifier from a web server using a web protocol request via a local network of the media device.

7. The method of claim 5 , the set of operations further comprising adding a client identifier associated with the instrumented media to the record.

8. The method of claim 5 , wherein the selection is a checkout on a webpage, the set of operations further comprising adding a product identifier and a product price associated with the checkout to the record.

9. An apparatus to implement monitoring instructions embedded in instrumented media, the apparatus comprising:

a memory; and

one or more processors communicatively coupled to the memory, the memory including instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform operations comprising:

embedding the monitoring instructions into media to generate the instrumented media; and

providing the instrumented media to a media device via a hypertext transport secure protocol for presentation on the media device via a media browser application of the media device, wherein the embedded monitoring instructions, when executed by the media device, cause the media device to perform a set of operations, wherein the media device comprises a panelist meter that is unable to collect media-identifying information from the instrumented media when (i) the instrumented media is provided to the media device via the hypertext transport secure protocol and (ii) the media browser application does not include a browser extension configured to collect media-identifying information associated with encrypted media, wherein encryption of the media prevents the panelist meter from accessing a payload of packets of the encrypted media, the set of operations comprising:

determining whether the media browser application includes a browser extension configured to collect media-identifying information associated with encrypted media, and

in response to the determination being that the media browser application does not include the browser extension configured to collect media-identifying information associated with encrypted media:

requesting a panelist identifier associated with the media device;

detecting a media event based on at least one of the media browser application initializing playout of a video corresponding to the instrumented media, the media device receiving user input corresponding to a selection in the instrumented media, or the media browser application displaying an image corresponding to the instrumented media;

in response to detecting the media event, collecting media-identifying information from the instrumented media;

generating a record including the media-identifying information and the panelist identifier, and

transmitting the record to a remote computing system of an audience measurement entity, wherein transmitting the record to the remote computing system reduces the use of storage space on the media device.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein requesting the panelist identifier comprises requesting the panelist identifier from a web server using a web protocol request via a local network of the media device.

11. The apparatus of claim 9 , the set of operations further comprising adding a client identifier associated with the instrumented media to the record.

12. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 1 , wherein collecting the media-identifying information from the instrumented media comprises processing the instrumented media to extract the media-identifying information from the instrumented media as metadata.

13. The method of claim 5 , wherein collecting the media-identifying information from the instrumented media comprises processing the instrumented media to extract the media-identifying information from the instrumented media as metadata.

14. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein collecting the media-identifying information from the instrumented media comprises processing the instrumented media to extract the media-identifying information from the instrumented media as metadata.

15. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 1 , the set of operations further comprising:

determining that the instrumented media was provided to the media device via the hypertext transport secure protocol,

wherein at least the requesting, the detecting, the collecting, and the generating of the set of operations are performed in response to the determination that the instrumented media was provided to the media device via the hypertext transport secure protocol.

16. The method of claim 5 , the set of operations further comprising:

determining that the instrumented media was provided to the media device via the hypertext transport secure protocol,

wherein at least the requesting, the detecting, the collecting, and the generating of the set of operations are performed in response to the determination that the instrumented media was provided to the media device via the hypertext transport secure protocol.

17. The apparatus of claim 9 , the set of operations further comprising:

determining that the instrumented media was provided to the media device via the hypertext transport secure protocol,

wherein at least the requesting, the detecting, the collecting, and the generating of the set of operations are performed in response to the determination that the instrumented media was provided to the media device via the hypertext transport secure protocol.

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 →
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 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Nov 20, 2022
From: BORLAND, ROBERT PETER; RUBIN, JONATHON BRETT; STRINGER, ANTHONY B.; SCHENKER, ADAM; PARANJAPE, SHAILENDRA
To: THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC
Reel/Frame 061970/0446 →
Continuity (3)
Continuation 17073098 · Oct 16, 2020
Continuation 14489390 · Sep 17, 2014
Related Publication 20230051984A1 · Feb 16, 2023
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