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Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
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30,135



The United States Patent and Trademark Office today published a new patent application (via AppleInsider) from Apple that describes a method of mood-based advertisement. This method infers the mood of the user by monitoring phone activities, and this mood sentiment information would provide advertisers with a powerful consumer intelligence metric they could use to deliver targeted content.

mood-patent-ad.jpg
Rather than ask for mood information directly, Apple's method of mood-based advertising relies on indirect means of inferring a user's feelings. This involves the creation of a baseline mood profile that's derived by monitoring app usage, music playback, social network activity and input from various biometric sensors. Once a profile is established, rules then can be applied to the data and used to gauge the relative mood of the user in relation to this baseline.
A way of improving targeted content delivery can be to select content based, at least in part, on a user's current mood. One way of accomplishing this could be to query the user regarding their current mood prior to selecting an item of invitational content. A targeted content delivery system can then select an item of invitational content based on the user's response. However, such an approach could quickly lead to user aggravation, and likely a majority of users reporting a similar mood. Instead, a targeted content delivery system can be configured to use an inferred or derived mood, which can be generated using the presently disclosed technology.
This mood information can then be used by Apple and other content providers to gauge a user's responsiveness to a product as well as their interest in that product before deciding which ad or offer to send to the user's handset. This mood information also can be used to adjust select settings on the user's handset.

Though Apple is not an advertising company, the company does have an iAd unit that sells advertising space in iOS Apps and iTunes Radio. Since its debut in 2010, iAd has undergone several leadership changes and is now under the control of Eddy Cue, Senior Vice President for Internet Software and Services.

Article Link: Apple Researching Automatic Mood Assessment for Targeted Ad Delivery
 

monkeybagel

macrumors 65816
Jul 24, 2011
1,139
61
United States
Not cool... Apple should distance themselves from stuff like this. This is one of the important distinctions between Apple and Google. Google invades privacy like no other. Apple should protect it.
 

0007776

Suspended
Jul 11, 2006
6,473
8,170
Somewhere
Hopefully it can detect that I'm not in the mood to see a bunch of ads and not show them to me, but I doubt it.
 

fr33 loader

macrumors regular
Jul 25, 2007
207
0
Cue in the :

"I don't mind it from Apple knowing everything about me as they are primarily in the hardware business as opposed to Google whose main revenue is ads"
 

ArtOfWarfare

macrumors G3
Nov 26, 2007
9,541
6,028
Your mood indicates that now is an optimal time to deploy large quantities of Trojan ads.

Or, our analysis has determined you're on your period: have our menstral cramp relief pill.

You're listening to a lot of angry death metal: here's an ad for guns.
 

CrickettGrrrl

macrumors 6502a
Feb 10, 2012
985
274
B'more or Less
If Apple were ever foolish enough to enact this, it darn well better be opt-in only.

I read months ago that Faceback uses algorithms to detect user mood too, continuing on its creeptastic way.
 

v0lume4

macrumors 68020
Jul 28, 2012
2,469
5,064
I just don't understand the loads of money that goes into advertising. Out of the thousands and thousands of ads I've seen on the internet throughout the entirety of my life, I've literally only ever bought one item based off of an ad. And even then, I bought it like months after seeing the ad. It was a wallet

I mean really. For example, no one watches the full 30-second YouTube ads. We all hit the "Skip ad" after the first five seconds as quickly as we can.
 

nagromme

macrumors G5
May 2, 2002
12,546
1,196
a) Apple (and others) patent everything they come up with, just in case they need to defend some future use of it, ever, from anyone. Most of these patents never get used and have nothing to do with actual plans.

b) Even if both Apple and Google used this tech, there's still a difference: Apple makes their money from happy users. Google makes their money from selling users to happy advertisers. Follow the money. The two companies will never treat ads the same.
 

KdParker

macrumors 601
Oct 1, 2010
4,793
998
Everywhere
I wonder what the response would be if Google was behind this.:eek:

It should be the same.

This is the start of the intuitive program/device to read emotions. This is going to happen anyway but like anything, it could help or go horribly wrong. Time will tell.
 

hortod1

macrumors 6502
Jan 26, 2009
461
1,265
Will require the user to wear the soon-to-be-released BT or NFC enabled iMoodRing
 

chiefsilverback

macrumors 6502
Jul 25, 2011
458
438
Maybe this is a chivalrous act on Apple's part? By patenting thisthey can then quash anybody trying to bring it to market and prevent us from being exposed to such a hideous technology!?!?
 

Laird Knox

macrumors 68000
Jun 18, 2010
1,956
1,343
I just don't understand the loads of money that goes into advertising. Out of the thousands and thousands of ads I've seen on the internet throughout the entirety of my life, I've literally only ever bought one item based off of an ad. And even then, I bought it like months after seeing the ad. It was a wallet

I mean really. For example, no one watches the full 30-second YouTube ads. We all hit the "Skip ad" after the first five seconds as quickly as we can.

Unfortunately they work, otherwise there wouldn't be so many.

The 30 second ones are bad enough. I've seen ones up to 4:50 long - the requested video was shorter! It was for some industrial equipment manufacturer that made things for a very niche market. That one I don't think was targeted so well. ;)
 

pubwvj

macrumors 68000
Oct 1, 2004
1,901
208
Mountains of Vermont
Ooo... That is creepy. So if I'm in a nasty mood is it going to offer me AK47 rifles and explosives? After all, they're trying to make a sale...

----------

Unfortunately they work, otherwise there wouldn't be so many.

Not true. The fact that there are lots of spammers and advertisers just means that the people selling the ads and spam services are good at selling ads and spam services. It does NOT mean that the ads and spam actually result in sales of products.
 

TsunamiTheClown

macrumors 6502a
Apr 28, 2011
571
12
Fiery+Cross+Reef
Good Luck buddy. Good Luck indeed.

If you make the program that can discovery moods then you will have to patent the algorithm that will explain why people still act unpredictably. Ask anyone who is married.
 

Laird Knox

macrumors 68000
Jun 18, 2010
1,956
1,343
Not true. The fact that there are lots of spammers and advertisers just means that the people selling the ads and spam services are good at selling ads and spam services. It does NOT mean that the ads and spam actually result in sales of products.

Apple must be the dumbest company of all - look at how much they throw away on advertising!
 

kdarling

macrumors P6
b) Even if both Apple and Google used this tech, there's still a difference: Apple makes their money from happy users. Google makes their money from selling users to happy advertisers. Follow the money. The two companies will never treat ads the same.

Oh, good grief.

Both companies are collecting info about us (actually, more like collecting info, then deciding which ad categories we fit in).

Both companies sell anonymous ad space based on that info.

Neither company sells any personal info.

The biggest difference is that Google gives services in return for those ads.
 
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