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Microsoft Pockets Patent for Encouraging TV Viewing
theodp writes "Through its WebTV unit, Microsoft was awarded a patent Tuesday for a system and method for encouraging viewers to watch television programs, such as offering viewers frequent-flier miles for identifying the name of a sponsor or the color of an announcer's shirt. In other news, Microsoft took a District Court to task for failing to recognize the existence of prior art for the Eolas web plug-in patent, resulting in a $521 million judgment against the software giant."
One more reality show like "Wife Swapping" and I'm going to kill my TV...
Sigs cause cancer.
to watch TV???? Or is watching subscriber based?
"This is you left and that's your left. This is your right and that's your right. You're gonna die!
Tits and ass have been encouraging viewing for years.
We actually need to encourage people to sit around and watch television? Come on....
Sedentary life is its own reward.
This space for rent.
ITs getting to a point that Microsoft is going to have a patent on everything. THis isnt a groundbreaking idea or concept, there needs to be reforms in how patents are given out. What next we going to see someone patent the idea of having an input device onto a computer?
30% Troll, 50% Underrated, 10% Interesting
Score:5, Troll
OMG!
What the hell next...?
-- Your mother uses Emacs.
We don't need no stinking incentives!
----
Average Bored Teenager
Best Windows Freeware
They are trying to play both sides of the field. To me, Microsoft is like watching the homeless guy down the street have an argument with himself. Very entertaining, but it's advisable to keep your distance.
I remember when good tv shows used to be the incentive to watch tv.
He he, it's about time they try and patent 'Dodgy Business Practices' and 'Being a Monopoly'...
At least they'll be part of the prior art on those points. Plus, If they did ever patent those, then they could sue any other company that misbehaves (almost like an immoral moral guardian).
Are you local? There's nothing for you here!
B-E S-U-R-E T-O D-R-I-N-K Y-O-U-R O-V-A-L-T-I-N-E
(please tell me someone get the reference.)
Come on, this kind of encouragement has been going on for DECADES.
taken! (by Davidleeroth) Thanks Bingo Foo!
Looking at the claims they use the word "broadcast", could it be argued that if a signal over a cable system or satellite isn't a broadcast signal? If so that would definitly limit it to I think ABC,NBC,CBS,FOX,PBS.
Anyone remember "Dialing for Dollars"?
If you disagree with me on social issues, then it's pretty clear that you are a narrow-minded bigot.
When was TV anything else besides a barren wasteland of corporate-enforced mediocrity?
... for a while now? Sign up, listen for "passwords", turn in for points, redeem for prizes, yadda yadda yadda? Or does that not count because its not the television?
Clones are people two.
From the bedroom Iran's voice came. "I can't stand TV before breakfast."
"Dial 888," Rick said as the set warmed. "The desire to watch TV, no matter what's on it."
"I don't feel like dialing anything at all now," Iran said.
"Then dial 3," he said.
"I can't dial a setting that stimulates my cerebral cortex into wanting to dial! If I don't want to dial, I don't want to dial that most of all, because then I will want to dial, and wanting to dial is right now the most alien drive I can imagine; I just want to sit here on the bed and stare at the floor."
Her voice had become sharp with overtones of bleakness as her soul congealed and she ceased to move, as the instinctive, omnipresent film of great weight, of an almost absolute inertia, settled over her."
Philip K. Dick - Do androids dream of electric sheep ?
There are places where the networks are not touching,and there are places where they are-Boeing's Lori Gunter
I killed mine a couple of years ago. I have noticed effects on my social life. People will say something that is just slightly out-of-place, such as "can you hear me now?" and everyone else will start laughing for no apparent reason.
After it is explained to me, I still don't find it funny, however. More sheeplike than anything.
Anyway, just be prepared for the social ramifications....
Wasn't that originally done by Dave Chapelle as a SPOOF on reality TV? Ugh...
Sort of. Dave did a skit about a show called "Trading Spouses" and now Fox has created an actual show with the same title.
I hope Dave Chappelle is getting some money out of it.
LK
"Hi. This is my friend, Jack Shit, and you don't know him." - Lord Kano
doesn't mass media do this with programs to encourage vewing? it would be interesting to find out how well they would be willing to pay microsoft a royalty for having a contest to watch a certain program for the hidden clue and then call the 900 number with the answer to the secret question. The 99th caler will wind a bycicle. I remeber stuff like this from way back in the 70's (due to my age) I also remeber getting forms and having to fill with stuff like this in order to enter a contest through the mail.
Maybe the inclusion of the internet is the big difference? Sometime you just have to wonder w ho was smoking what and why they won't share.
I thought local shows have been doing this for years with contests?
"Just write down the the name of the visitor in today's show and send a postcard to Win a CAR P.O. blah blah..."
I seem to remember these as far back as the 80's.
That and local news pulling similar tricks to get you to watch.
if the consumer pushes the right buttons it gets a piece of cheese! Squeak!
try { do() || do_not(); } catch (JediException err) { yoda(err); }
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Rich.
libguestfs - tools for accessing and modifying virtual machine disk images
Patents encouraging people to:
Surf the internet
Go to school
Raise children
Listen to the radio
and to leave the toilet seat down when finished!
There are 10 kinds of people in the world; those that understand binary and those that do not.
For those of you not yet getting this, that's:
Because They Can.
My Photography - http://ian-x.com
The Deathlings (comic) - http://thedeathlings.com
I'm wondering, did I oversleep and it's really April 1? Nope, Firefox clock says its July 22, 2004.
How much more stupid of a patent can the USPTO grant? Surely they were laughing down there when they issued this one. I hope so at least.
"Insanity is doing the same thing over again expecting a different result."
No time to watch TV. Must configure Linux box! Must configure Linux box!! Must configure Linux box!!!
StarTrek.org Free Webmail
This has been going on for years. Local television channels have you watch one program for a secret password and then later watch another program with the number to call and try and win some silly prize. It has been used on radio for many more years, as another poster pointer out the Christmas Story's Orphan Annie Secret Decoder Ring.
Whether you love or hate Windows, whenever you read an article like this about more Microsoft stupidity, rather than venting your anger on your monitor or even on Slashdot, turn it into something positive & deny Microsoft just a little bit of the power they have over you.
No, I'm not talking about fdisk-ing your hard drive and diving manically for the nearest Linux distro - instead, have a scout round all your Windows applications and spend an hour or two downloading and playing with an Open Source or free equivalent application, just to see what that little bit of your life will be without Microsoft.
Take something simple, like the Notepad text editor. If you're feeling really brave, you could go try out Vim if you want to do vi-type editing in Windows, otherwise, go try Textpad++ for a more traditonal-style editor. (I won't put links here, just Google for them, you'll find them.) Spend a couple of hours just trying to wean yourself off that little piece of Microsoft dependency, you will feel better for it, believe me!
Others you could try are Thunderbird for email, Ethereal for network sniffing, Firefox as a web browser, Filezilla as an FTP client, ExactAudioCopy (with Lameenc) for ripping MP3s... the list is endless.
Just make sure you do something positive with your anger. It may well be that the day you ditch Windows is a long way off (perhaps never) but at least you'll feel a little more confident that if and when that day comes, you'll be just that one step closer to an easy transition.
Gentoo Linux - another day, another USE flag.
the way teachers make kids watch the videoes at school: "encouraging viewers to pay attention to television programs,.....To verify that the viewer paid attention to the commercial, the answer to the question may be based on the content of the commercial. A sponsor might ask, for example, that the viewer identify the name of the sponsor or the color of an announcer's shirt"
the reward being not having to copy a transcript of the program at breaktime/lunch
If you have nothing useful to say post as AC.
Would call http://watchfarscape.com/ prior arts =P
GAAH! MY PRINTER IS ON FIRE!!! PUT IT OUT! PUT IT OUT!
Can I get frequent flyer miles if I trade in my TV? There's nothing good on, and I think it would be nice to go somewhere else.
It's good to use your head, but not as a battering ram.
I have no incentive to continue my Hit-remote-button-get-a-piece-of-cheese machine.
To the patent office, the only prior art is prior patents. They do not look at anything else. Therefore, your example of 1970 TV cartoon competitions is not a concern to them, since it wasn't patented...
Funny, I could have sworn it was because they enjoyed the sensation of that contact, not just for the hell of it.
"We're breaking out the ramen noodles. . . "
"Really? Is it someone's birthday?"
According to Wikpedia...
So where does Trey Davis get off talking about public domain (a MUCH stronger burdern than necessary)???Oops I am an employee of the University of California, I retract this post =)
My patent is free to use by all as long as I can hold them down while you do the thumping.
The only exceptions are Gates, Ballmer, McBride & Fiorina where I get to poke them each in the eye once halfway during the thumping session.
Gentoo Linux - another day, another USE flag.
Prior Art:
Radio Stations that have contests for remembering the last X songs.
Radio Stations that have give-aways for those who register, and have to listen to hear their name called.
TV Shows that allow you to play along at home and win prizes.
This is hardly new or even novel.
Really, I'm not trying to be clever with my signature.
That some of those dumb Yeropeons think that patnets on business methods are a bad idea.
I wonder why they think this. Must be socialist anti-corporatism, if you ask me.
Trading Spouses, a which is a FOX ripoff of Wife Swapping. The mind boggles that someone would want to do that, but then again the entire reality TV phenomenon (which, if you notice, is getting further and further away from "reality"). But that should count as your reality show.
The enemies of Democracy are
I know everyone is saying they are amassing patents in a defensive move.. but I cant see them passing up the opportunity to go on the offensive when they have large enough portfolio.
Between that, and their bank account, they could pretty much eliminate everything that stands in their way.
---- Booth was a patriot ----
Microsoft is clearly gearing up for the coming patent war. Perhaps it is using SCO as a test pawn. MS's "trail blazing" engineers have proudly filed over 3000 patents last year. I bet you didn't know MS innovates over 10 times per day. Now that MS can't grow much more in the software space, it will use the litigation space to satisfy shareholders.
It sounds like it would never appeal to the mainstream (it started on bbc2 wich should tell you enough) but it does. Other stuff has come and gone but that show is still there with only the host now changed.
So why oh why is the bbc showing more and more reality shows and wondering why the viewers are dropping off left right and center? (where as no-one has attempted to duplicate the success of hignfy despite the fact that it only runs a few weeks per year and there is news year round)
Are tv-makers so dumb that they just can't see that while their programs may score high with focus groups there is one tiny little problem with focus groups? That people with real jobs and lifes just don't have the time to sit on a focus group.
Here is a single golden rule for tv. DO NOT AIR 2 OF THE SAME TYPE OF PROGRAMS AFTER EACH OTHER OR ON TWO CHANNELS. Just look at the bbc schedule. Multiple cooking, home improvement, reality crap, soaps, gardening. Nothing to get me watching. Not that I mind cooking shows. BUT NOT 2 behind each other. Jeez.
This patent seems silly to the extreem. If ever implemented it will be the final proof that tv-makers have lost all touch with reality. JUST make programs people want to watch. Do not try to appeal to all people at the same time as noone will like that. But also make sure that the people not attracted the current 30 minute program have something to watch afterwards.
What is really killing tv is that if there is only 1 watchable program at say 9:30 then the risk is that person remembers to late and never turns the tv on at all.
Instead you want to say get a person to watch at 8:00 to something that sorta interests them, then sit through the program at 8:30 that doesn't totally repulse them, then be slightly interested by something they didn't expect at 9:00 and finally at 9:30 ready for their program and hopefully to stay for the rest of the evening.
That is at least how tv worked for me, I had it on in the background and if something came along that intrested me I watch, if something didn't I might switch channels and watch something else while doing other stuff. But nowadays I get repulsed even having the current crap on mute. So I don't watch at all, not even the hot stuff, not the mildly intresting stuff (and for dutch tv) certainly not the commercials.
As a side not isn't there plenty of prior art, I seen plenty of "quizes" that asked you about something you seen on the program or read in an article. Hardly new.
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
The local fox affiliate has been doing this for a couple of years. Find the code, enter at the site, win cool prizes... Hmmm, a fight between the Evil Empire and Fair and Balanced Reporting... I think I need some popcorn
I disagree with what you say, but I'll defend your right to say it to the death - Voltaire
eIncentives!
It's the e that makes it patentable.
If I had a patent on a guaranteed way to persuade Bill Gates to drop his drawers and let you fuck him up the ass with a pipe wrench, I'd be a millionaire.
---Technology will liberate us if it doesn't enslave us first.
All the computer companies, anyway (lousy restricted length subject!)
My patent:
A METHOD for receiving a patent that
a) is obvious
b) has prior art
c) no one in their right mind would think is patentable
I am the maverick of Slashdot
Reading the abstract, it struck me as odd that this didn't seem to involve computers in any way. Computers are Microsoft's business, after all.
You have to read way down to figure out that the part they're really patenting isn't the incentive system itself but the automated response gathering systems, over the web and over email.
There are even some bits I'd I'd consider non-obvious, like localizing the prize by inserting the "there's a quiz coming up" signal further downstream.
It's all got in mind the idea of a Web+TV terminal like (for example) Microsoft's WebTV. Claim 1 is definitely overbroad, but I'm not aware of prior art for many of the other ideas.
Analogously, if MS actually tried to implement such a watch-to-get-the-goodie scheme, wouldn't they be discriminating against people who don't own a TV? Sure they can try to convince you that you have to watch for the goodie, but they can't actually force you to do so to get it.
Hmmm.. sounds to me like there might somehow be a patent in there somewhere to box them in and prevent them from being able to use this patent.. if only I could figure out what it was so I could patent it...
Welcome to the net of 1000 lies. Upgrades are scheduled soon that should bring us to the 10,000 lies mark.
In 1998, I bought a WebTv for my Aunt, then in her 70s, Our Tv usage plummeted to almost zero. After a short time, I bought a PC, and my Aunt who is now 84, is still addicted to WebTv. I have a phone line just for her WebTv use. My Aunt is a true technophobe, but loves her IM and Chat Rooms, so the WebTv unit is perfect for her. She will sign up for anything and everything. She will open every piece of spam and click anything contained therein. WebTv protects her from a lot of unplesantness and allows an elderly shut in to access to a much wider world.
Within a month I had cancelled our cable service. I watch the local news for the weather in the morning and thats it. Many of the friends I made on WebTv said they had a similar experience. WebTv can become an addiction and quickly change a Tv's status to that of an inefficient monitor.
Whenever I use Windows for more than 10 minutes I would rather watch TV than continue using Windows.
Of course MS Messenger, Media Player and Hotmail makes you want to watch TV because there are fewer ads on television.
... that Microsoft now holds the patent on T & A ?? That certainly encourages a large viewer audience.
chown -R us
A better method of increasing TV watching has been known since TV was first introduced. it is called Tits and Ass (TA). The more TA in a show or in commercials the more young males watch. I do not think it is patentable because of prior art.
Radio stations in the seventies (maybe earlier) in my hometown (San Diego) would do things like call numbers they picked out of the phone book at random, and if whoever answered would win something if they could name the song they just finished playing. Typically the prize was N dollars, where N was the radio station's frequency in MHz.
Ever watch one of those take home defensive driving videos? They ask you questions like "what color shirt was blahblah wearing?" to encourage you to actually watch it. Prior art up the wazoo.
Stupid people make stupid things profitable.
because they have many lawyers ... there may be prior art to encouraging tv viewing in the form of cereal prizes et.
Laywers cause crime
This could be the end of television. Still, I shouldn't get prematurely excited about over this.
There might be a downside.
Patents are like nuclear weapons. There are a few countries in the world already that can destroy the planet Earth as we know and love it. They don't do this. Why? Because they know it's a stupid thing to do, and other countries will retaliate.
If they start enforcing software patents en masse, I bet the next day there will be five dozen Eolas-like companies who have patented something primitive and stupid. Not to mention IBM with their GIANT portfolio who may decide to give Microsoft a hard time, big time.
Just FYI, but the abstract means (almost) nothing. Scroll down the page and read the text of claim 1. In order to infringe on this patent, somebody would have to do everything the relevant claim says, not just some of it.
My reading says this is actually very specific, and certainly doesn't cover any generic method for "encouraging people to watch tv" - it's only the specific method described in the claims. But read for yourself - and be sure to read the claims, not just the abstract.
...is that noone has been stupid enough to even try and patent much of what might be seen as prior art- mostly because it's so damned obvious, and patenting it would involve taking ownership of something completely devoid of anything even remotely innovative. Back when poeple actually had both common sense, and a sense of appreciation for real accomplishment, they'd have been embarrassed to submit some of the patents we're seeing today.
Once you have the points, as the Microsoft Patent suggests, you can use them at special auctions, to buy gift certificates to places like Amazon, and to enter contests.
As far as I know, they aren't owned by Microsoft (yet).So, Microsoft has the power to prevent other companies from giving you something for answering a quiz about their advertising. So what? It's not like it's a particularly nice technique, just a crutch for advertisers that don't have a way to be interesting.
-- Support a free market in the field of government
What's next? McDonald's pays people to eat their food?
I love C++
Italian tv stations used to do that too, I'm sure.
Most definitely in the 80's and 90's.
And I remember italian quiz king Mike Bongiorno doing competitions based upon sponsors, so that's quite a bit of prior art...
SCIREV.NET - fanfics,reviews & more
This has been done, but what's more important for USPTO is that it's been done using a computer
On digital TV in the UK, they're always asking viwers to 'press the red button' and be up for a chance to win 'something crap'.
What's more competitions also run, like on Discovery Home & Leisure, where viewers watch the channel for an entire week and when they see a fish float across the screen then they press the red button to be up for a chance to win prizes.
If this isn't exactly what the MS patent is going on about, I don't know what is.
May the Maths Be with you!
Never mind Spamassassin. When's Spammerassassin coming out?
"For example, viewers who watch the commercial may be entered in a prize drawing..."
;-)
Maybe they mean an automated method. This means MS has patented an idea no one has come up with yet because it is stupid. Its stupid because you don't know whether people are really watching. Applying the technology is similar to the dot com bubble, where people were told they could earn money by surfing.
Thus, I'll have a whole rack of webTVs in my basement running continously so that I'll get entered into all these profitable prize drawings
Well, you can easily fix my objections if you make people click buttons in reaction to the commercial. Might even be entertaining for a while.
You can't patent stupidity, only an implementation of it.
I'm still trying to figure out what people mean by 'social skills' here.
Justin.
You're only jealous cos the little penguins are talking to me.
It's their way of getting people to log off and watch more TV?
Well, it's 2004 now, so let's say...
20 years.
In Corporate Britain, YOU watch BIG BROTHER!
More seriously, though: I read recently that in North Korea the houses have radios built in to the kitchens which have can be turned up and down, but not off. They broadcast patriotic songs and speeches 24 hours a day.
I imagine you'd be grateful for the power blackouts after a while...
Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
Well, at least the AC's figured out it is topical and funny.
Topical, relavent to the topic at hand. In this case the fact that it was discussion of a variation of the patent in question, which was how to increase viewers, by rewarding someone who noticed a side effect.
Funny, it takes a dig at AC's who are almost recognizable by the way they begin their posts.
But then, I'm not a moderator today, nor was I yesterday. Perhaps the general IQ level of the Moderators yesterday is so high that the topic, or humor just escaped them.
Now this post on the other hand is not on topic, but may be recognized by today's moderators as humorous. (I should be so lucky...)
-Rusty
You never know...
You know something funny? One of the longer running programs on the bbc and copied to dutch tv is "Have I got news for you" a program that has 1 host (now rotating on the bbc with celebs after the original hosts had a scandal) and two two man teams with a regular on each time and a celeb as guest.
Actually "Have I Got News for You" is a TV version of an even longer running programme on BBC Radio 4 called "The News Quiz". Since BBC radio and televison is available in the Netherlands the Dutch TV version could be taken from either.
To the extent that this development discourages other parties from encouraging people to watch TV, for fear of violating the Microsoft patent, this could become an unintended benefit to society in general. But wait, quick, somebody charitable had better patent the process of flushing the toilet, or we're all in deep doo-doo, figuratively speaking ;-)
"Sic Semper Path of Least Resistance"
I bet if you break the volume wheel, it'll break the circuit, and it'll turn off.
I would think that beer, remote controls and la-z-boy could claim prior art pretty easily.
You don't want to see BBC Amerca then - Ground Force Ground Force Ground Force Changing Rooms Changing Rooms Changing Rooms
I think this will only distract the viewer from the main content. If one is looking for the colour of the announcer's shirt, then the psychological process of remembering to look for it--> identifying the colour--> and getting the (unknown) satisfaction of doing it would distract many viewers from the content.