• by Joe Mandese , January 13, 2010

Xerox, the name most associated with copies, has a plan that could help advertisers deliver the right copy - TV commercial copy, that is - to the right consumer, at the right time. In a patent filed late last week with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, Xerox registered a claim for a new "apparatus" that would enable discrete forms of audio or video content, including advertising, to be addressed to specific TV viewers.

The filing, which was first reported by technology rumor blog GoRumors, claims it can be used via cable or satellite TV systems, and can store and insert addressable content based on information about viewers, including their viewing preferences.

While the application claims the Xerox method could alter all forms of television content, including creating personalized preferences for entertainment, news, sports or informational programming, it emphasizes the ability to deliver relevant advertising to viewers.

"Embedding commercials into broadcasted programming provides marketers another method to get their message out to the public without program interruption and on a customized basis," the patent claims. "Aspects illustrated herein allow marketers to target specific homes that would be interested in their products without having to go through the rigors of conventional product placement. By embedding commercials into the programs, marketers can ensure that their message is not skipped due to channel changing or the use of DVRs."

In one of the patent claim's illustrations, Xerox shows how an ad showing a retailer's "storefront" could be altered based on the viewer and the nature of the programming they are watching. If the viewer is watching sports programming, for example, the storefront would display the Modell's sporting goods retail brand. If it was more general content, it might display the Macy's brand.

The concept of addressable TV advertising is not new, but has been slow to emerge due to technological and marketplace issues, especially the ability to deploy standardized methods across a disparate array of TV platforms and carriers. But major advertisers and agencies remain intrigued by its potential to deliver more relevant advertising to viewers, which they see as a way to reduce commercial avoidance and to increase the effectiveness of TV advertising.

Over the past couple of years, agencies have even begun investing in various technologies and methods that could help facilitate an addressable TV advertising marketplace. Most notably, WPP's GorupM unit has taken a significant stake in addressable TV advertising developer Invidi Technologies, and GroupM Global CEO has become a member of its board.