Systems, methods, and articles for assigning content, such as advertisements, to similar content breaks, such as advertisement placement opportunities, across multiple content providers. The systems disclosed herein automatically identify similar advertisement placement opportunities, such as advertisement placement opportunities occurring at the same time, across a plurality of media content providers, and assign an indicated advertisement spot to as many of the identified advertisement placement opportunities as possible. This is achieved by re-assigning advertisement spots which are already assigned to a slot in one of the advertisement placement opportunities to another slot in order to allow the indicated advertisement spot to be assigned to the slot.

Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture are disclosed for identification of local commercial insertion opportunities. Example apparatus for identification of local commercial insertion opportunities include a media comparator to compare respective instances of media conveyed in respective ones of a plurality of broadcast signals associated with affiliates of a national broadcaster to identify a broadcast interval having different media conveyed among at least some of the broadcast signals. The example apparatus also include an insertion opportunity identifier to determine whether the broadcast interval is associated with a local advertisement insertion opportunity based on a characteristic of the broadcast interval.

A scientific system and methods are disclosed for optimizing television (e.g., “CTV” and “OTT”) advertising and related expenditure to maximize efficiency and return on investment (“ROI’) for advertisers. The scientific system comprises an initial-feedback engine that develops and refines creatives or outcomes by creating and using an artificial intelligence (“AI”) engine that creates an initial feedback loop from social media platforms and subsequently uses an intelligent advertisement-selection engine that takes the highest performing advertising on the social media platforms and directs or imports them for connected television or over-the-top advertising. The system includes a performance engine that optimizes performance of the connected television and over-the-top advertising and then moves the winning combination of a creative or outcome resulting from the application inventory, the audience segment, the part of day, the frequency or the like to linear television purchase actions.

A method is disclosed for monitoring the audience of an advertisement over a content distribution system, the advertisement comprising an advertising message associated with an audio content. The method comprises: inserting, within the message, an advertising identifier associated with the advertisement and distributing the audio content with the advertising message to a user of the content distribution system; at a first user device configured to receive the audio content, playing the audio content with the advertising message; at a second user device connected to the first user device and configured to communicate with a data collection server over a data communication network, retrieving a customer identifier uniquely associated with the user; and, during or after playing, sending by the second user device the customer identifier and the advertising identifier extracted from the advertising message to the server to monitor the audience of the advertising message.

Systems, devices and automated process allow automatic replacement of advertisements or other content in previously-broadcast television programs. A content management system or the like operating on a digital network receives indicia from playback devices that have encountered identified advertisements that are stored in digital video recorders or that are otherwise contained within previously-broadcast television programs. The encounters are recorded in a database for subsequent analysis. If desired, the previously-broadcast advertisements may be replaced with more relevant or engaging advertisements prior to playback to the viewer, thereby allowing a fresher, more relevant and more engaging experience for the viewer.

In one aspect, an example method to be performed by a vehicle-based media system includes (a) receiving audio content; (b) causing one or more speakers to output the received audio content; (c) using a microphone of the vehicle-based media system to capture the output audio content; (d) identifying reference audio content that has at least a threshold extent of similarity with the captured audio content; (e) identifying visual content based at least on the identified reference audio content; and (f) outputting, via a user interface of the vehicle-based media system, the identified visual content.

In one aspect, an example method to be performed by a vehicle-based media system includes (a) receiving audio content; (b) causing one or more speakers to output the received audio content; (c) using a microphone of the vehicle-based media system to capture the output audio content; (d) identifying reference audio content that has at least a threshold extent of similarity with the captured audio content; (e) identifying a geographic location associated with the identified reference audio content; and (f) based at least on the identified geographic location associated with the identified reference audio content, outputting, via the user interface of the vehicle-based media system, a prompt to navigate to the identified geographic location.

A media playout system receives a broadcast log transmitted from a media scheduling system. The broadcast log includes a restricted show, and the media playout system makes a first determination a blackout period assigned to the restricted show. The blackout period indicates a period of time associated with the restricted show during which at least one media item is prohibited from being scheduled. The media player also determines that the broadcast log indicates that the at least one media item has been improperly scheduled during the blackout period. In response to determining that the at least one media item has been improperly scheduled during the blackout period, the media playout system transmits, to the media scheduling system, a message requesting a replacement media item to replace the at least one media item that has been improperly scheduled during the blackout period.

Disclosed is an electronic device including a communication module, a processor and a memory that stores instructions. The instructions, when executed, cause the processor to receive a first signal from a first external electronic device through the communication module while a communication connection to at least one second external electronic device is being established, select a specified number of third external electronic devices or less from among the first external electronic device and the at least one second external electronic device based on the first signal, and transmit data to or receive data from the selected third external electronic devices through established communication connections to the selected third external electronic devices. The third external electronic devices are selected in order of having a weak signal intensity or a greater distance from the electronic device from among the first external electronic device and the at least one second external electronic device.

A utility sensor module includes one or more sensors, a communication link, and an electronic processor. The electronic processor is configured to broadcast an advertisement signal associated with a communication protocol for a first transmission time. The advertisement signal is configured to cause an external device to transmit a response message. The electronic processor is further configured to determine whether the response message is received within a predetermined time period, and in response to determining that the response message was not received within the predetermined time period, operating in a modified sleep mode. Operating in the modified sleep mode includes modifying the operation of the communication interface to broadcast the advertisement signal at a periodic interval, such that the advertisement signal is only broadcast at the periodic interval for a second transmission time.