Ad Viewability Detection Using Test Feature Frame Rates
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current pay-per-impression models for online advertising lack accuracy in determining whether an advertisement is viewed by a user, especially when advertisements are served within iframes, as client-side code cannot access host web page dimensions or viewport information, leading to uncertainty in ad value and suppressed demand.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method using test features within the advertisement region to monitor behavioral characteristics, such as frame progression rate, to determine if the region is in view without requiring knowledge of the host web page, utilizing browser APIs and plugins to infer visibility even in restricted environments like iframes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If pay-per-impression model is used, then advertising revenue can be generated, but accuracy in determining whether advertisement is viewed is poor
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces test features as intermediary elements within the advertisement region that indirectly reveal viewability information. These test features (such as invisible images or DOM elements) act as mediators between the advertisement system and the browser's rendering behavior, allowing the system to infer whether the ad is visible without directly accessing restricted viewport information.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms by monitoring behavioral characteristics of test features (such as frame progression rates, rendering timing, or interaction patterns) and using this feedback to determine advertisement viewability. The feedback loop continuously observes browser behavior in response to test features and adjusts the viewability assessment accordingly.
2Loss of information
If client-side code is used to monitor viewport, then viewability data can be collected, but access to host web page dimensions is blocked when ads are in iframes
Solution Approach 1:
Test features serve as intermediaries that work within the restricted iframe environment to indirectly obtain viewability information. Instead of directly accessing blocked host page dimensions, the system uses test features whose behavioral characteristics can be observed even within the sandboxed iframe context, thereby bridging the information gap.
Solution Approach 2:
The advertisement system performs self-service by using its own test features to gather viewability data without requiring external access to host page information. The test features are self-contained within the advertisement region and their behavioral characteristics provide the necessary information independently of the host page's protected dimensions.
3Measurement precision
If advertisement space is sold on pay-per-click basis, then engagement can be measured, but passive brand awareness advertisements cannot be properly valued
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the advertising measurement problem into two distinct components: viewability detection (using test features and behavioral monitoring) and engagement measurement (using click data). This segmentation allows different advertising models to be supported - pay-per-view can use viewability data while pay-per-click can use engagement data, providing flexibility for different advertisement types.
Data Source
AI summary
A technique is provided to determine whether a region within a web page is viewable to a user through a browser window. Often, browsers will only show part of a web page at given time, creating a difficulty in establishing whether a region of the web page, which may be an advertisement for example, is in view. This is addressed by providing one or more test features within the region, rendering the web page, monitoring a behavioral characteristic of the test features and determining whether the region is in view based on the monitored behavioral characteristic, wherein the behavioral characteristic varies according to whether the test feature is currently being displayed. One example of a behavioral characteristic is a frame progression rate. Browsers will typically redraw elements of a web page at a higher rate if they are currently in view through the browser window, and this characteristic can therefore be used to determine whether the test feature, and thus the region, is in view. The present invention finds particular utility where the region contains an advertisement, as it allows an advertiser to discover whether the advertisement has been seen by users.