Sonos Wins Patent for Embedding Ads as ‘Structured Metadata’ in Playback System

Sonos landed a U.S. patent Tuesday for techniques of embedding ads as “structured metadata” in a “digital media playback system” for distribution to “multimedia players” installed in a home's “zones” and giving users the interactive capability to respond through a dedicated “input interface” on a controller. “Traditional” ad channels “can only provide static content and cannot engage potential customers interactively,” said the patent (10,061,742) based on a January 2010 application and naming Jonathan Lang and Ron Kuper as inventors. Lang is Sonos director-innovation and Kuper director of the company's Advanced Concepts Lab. The internet’s rapid growth offers advertisers “a unique opportunity to make interactive advertisement campaigns possible by allowing end users to close the loop, namely inducing users to click on an advertisement being served or linking the users to the actual product or service,” said the patent. Music publishers “supplement their revenue with advertising and connecting the audience with other products or services,” it said. Placing ads “between two musical pieces may not get a close attention from a listener as the listener may switch to another piece of music when a previous one is over,” it said. “There is a need for solutions that allow advertising to happen anytime an advertiser may deem appropriate.” Sonos didn’t comment.