Methods and apparatus to correct misattributions of media impressions

Abstract

An example method involves determining an impressions adjustment factor for a first demographic group based on first impressions reported by a client device to a first internet domain and second impressions reported by the client device to a second internet domain. The first and second impressions correspond to same media accessed on the client device. The example also involves determining a misattribution-corrected impressions count for the first demographic group based on the impressions adjustment factor and based on a second impressions count determined at the second internet domain for the first demographic group. The second impressions count has an error based on some of the second impressions being misattributed at the second internet domain to the first demographic group when the some of the second impressions correspond to a second demographic group.

The status of the claims: 
     
         1 . A method, comprising:
 receiving, at a first internet domain, a first request from a client device, the first request indicative of access to media at the client device;   sending, from the first internet domain, a response to the client device, the response to instruct the client device to send a second request to a second internet domain, the second request to be indicative of the access to the media at the client device;   determining an impressions adjustment factor for a first demographic group based on first impressions reported by the client device to the first internet domain and second impressions reported by the client device to the second internet domain, the first and second impressions corresponding to the same media accessed on the client device; and   determining a misattribution-corrected impressions count for the first demographic group based on the impressions adjustment factor and based on a second impressions count determined at the second internet domain for the first demographic group, the second impressions count having an error based on some of the second impressions being misattributed at the second internet domain to the first demographic group when the some of the second impressions correspond to a second demographic group.   
     
     
         2 . A method as defined in  claim 1 , wherein determining the misattribution-corrected impression count comprises shifting an impression from the second impressions count corresponding to the first demographic group to a third impressions count corresponding to the second demographic group based on the impressions adjustment factor. 
     
     
         3 . A method as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the first impressions are reported by the client device to an audience measurement entity at the first internet domain that does not provide the media to the client device, and a user of the client device is a panel member of the audience measurement entity. 
     
     
         4 . A method as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the second impressions are reported by the client device to a social network service at the second internet domain to which a user of the client device is subscribed. 
     
     
         5 . A method as defined in  claim 1 , wherein determining the impressions adjustment factor comprises:
 subtracting a first unique audience size determined by an audience measurement entity at the first internet domain based on the first impressions from a second unique audience size determined by a database proprietor at the second internet domain based on the second impressions to generate a difference; and   dividing the difference by a total impressions count of the first impressions.   
     
     
         6 . A method as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the impressions adjustment factor is to correct impression quantities having inaccuracies due to impressions incorrectly attributed to demographic data not corresponding to persons corresponding to the impressions. 
     
     
         7 . A method as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the error in the second impressions count is based on an entity at the second internet domain incorrectly identifying a user of the client device as belonging to the first demographic group when the user belongs to the second demographic group, the misattribution-corrected impressions count comprising fewer impressions than the second impression count based on shifting an impression corresponding to the user from the second impressions count corresponding to the first demographic group to a third impressions count corresponding to the second demographic group based on the impressions adjustment factor. 
     
     
         8 . A method as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the misattribution-corrected impressions count is determined based on the impressions adjustment factor without communicating with individual online users about their online media access activities and without using survey responses from the online users to determine the error. 
     
     
         9 . A method as defined in  claim 8 , further comprising conserving network communication bandwidth by not communicating with individual online users about their online media access activities and by not requesting survey responses from the online users to determine the error. 
     
     
         10 . A method as defined in  claim 8 , further comprising conserving computer processing resources by not communicating with individual online users about their online media access activities and by not requesting survey responses from the online users to determine the error. 
     
     
         11 . An apparatus, comprising:
 an impression collector to:
 receive, at a first internet domain, a first request from a client device, the first request indicative of access to media at the client device; and 
 send, from the first internet domain, a response to the client device, the response to instruct the client device to send a second request to a second internet domain, the second request to be indicative of the access to the media at the client device; 
   an impressions adjustment factor determiner to determine an impressions adjustment factor for a first demographic group based on first impressions reported by the client device to the first internet domain and second impressions reported by the client device to the second internet domain, the first and second impressions corresponding to the same media accessed on the client device; and   an impressions corrector to determine, via a processor, a misattribution-corrected impressions count for the first demographic group based on the impressions adjustment factor and based on a second impressions count determined at the second internet domain for the first demographic group, the second impressions count having an error based on some of the second impressions being misattributed at the second internet domain to the first demographic group when the some of the second impressions correspond to a second demographic group.   
     
     
         12 . An apparatus as defined in  claim 11 , wherein the impressions corrector is to determine the misattribution-corrected impressions count by shifting an impression from the second impressions count corresponding to the first demographic group to a third impressions count corresponding to the second demographic group based on the impressions adjustment factor. 
     
     
         13 . An apparatus as defined in  claim 11 , wherein the first impressions are reported by the client device to an audience measurement entity at the first internet domain that does not provide the media to the client device, and a user of the client device is a panel member of the audience measurement entity. 
     
     
         14 . An apparatus as defined in  claim 11 , wherein the second impressions are reported by the client device to a social network service at the second internet domain to which a user of the client device is subscribed. 
     
     
         15 . An apparatus as defined in  claim 11 , wherein the impressions adjustment factor determiner is to:
 determine the impressions adjustment factor by subtracting a first unique audience size determined by an audience measurement entity at the first internet domain based on the first impressions from a second unique audience size determined by a database proprietor at the second internet domain based on the second impressions to generate a difference; and   divide the difference by a total impressions count of the first impressions.   
     
     
         16 . An apparatus as defined in  claim 11 , wherein the impressions adjustment factor is to correct impression quantities having inaccuracies due to impressions incorrectly attributed to demographic data not corresponding to persons corresponding to the impressions. 
     
     
         17 . An apparatus as defined in  claim 11 , wherein the error in the second impressions count is based on an entity at the second internet domain incorrectly identifying a user of the client device as belonging to the first demographic group when the user belongs to the second demographic group, the misattribution-corrected impressions count comprising fewer impressions than the second impression count based on shifting an impression corresponding to the user from the second impressions count corresponding to the first demographic group to a third impressions count corresponding to the second demographic group based on the impressions adjustment factor. 
     
     
         18 . An apparatus as defined in  claim 11 , wherein the impressions corrector determines the misattribution-corrected impressions based on the impressions adjustment factor without communicating with individual online users about their online media access activities and without using survey responses from the online users to determine the error. 
     
     
         19 . An apparatus as defined in  claim 18 , wherein the impressions corrector determining the misattribution-corrected impressions conserves network communication bandwidth by not communicating with individual online users about their online media access activities and by not requesting survey responses from the online users to determine the error. 
     
     
         20 . An apparatus as defined in  claim 18 , wherein the impressions corrector determining the misattribution-corrected impressions conserves computer processing resources by not communicating with individual online users about their online media access activities and by not requesting survey responses from the online users to determine the error. 
     
     
         21 - 30 . (canceled) 
     
     
         31 . A method, comprising:
 receiving, at a first internet domain, a first request from a client device, the first request indicative of access to media at the client device;   sending, from the first internet domain, a response to the client device, the response to instruct the client device to send a second request to a second internet domain, the second request to be indicative of the access to the media at the client device;   determining an audience adjustment factor for a demographic group based on first impressions reported by the client device to the first internet domain and second impressions reported by the client device to the second internet domain, the first and second impressions corresponding to the same media accessed on the client device; and   determining a misattribution-corrected unique audience size for the demographic group based on the audience adjustment factor and based on a second unique audience size determined at the second internet domain for the demographic group, the second unique audience size having an error based on third impressions misattributed at the second internet domain to the demographic group when the third impressions correspond to another demographic group.   
     
     
         32 . A method as defined in  claim 31 , wherein determining the audience adjustment factor comprises dividing a third unique audience size corresponding to the first impressions by a fourth unique audience size corresponding to the second impressions. 
     
     
         33 . A method as defined in  claim 31 , wherein determining the misattribution-corrected unique audience size for the demographic group comprises dividing the second unique audience size by the audience adjustment factor. 
     
     
         34 . A method as defined in  claim 31 , wherein the first impressions are reported by the client device to an audience measurement entity at the first internet domain that does not provide the media to the client device, and a user of the client device is a panel member of the audience measurement entity. 
     
     
         35 . A method as defined in  claim 31 , wherein the second impressions are reported by the client device to a social network service at the second internet domain to which a user of the client device is subscribed. 
     
     
         36 . A method as defined in  claim 31 , wherein the audience adjustment factor is to correct unique audience size values having inaccuracies due to impressions incorrectly attributed to demographic data not corresponding to persons corresponding to the impressions. 
     
     
         37 . A method as defined in  claim 31 , wherein the error in the second unique audience size is based on an entity at the second internet domain incorrectly identifying a user of the client device as belonging to the demographic group when the user belongs to the another demographic group, the misattribution-corrected unique audience size being different than the second unique audience size based on dividing the second unique audience size by the audience adjustment factor. 
     
     
         38 . A method as defined in  claim 31 , wherein the misattribution-corrected unique audience size is determined based on the audience adjustment factor without communicating with individual online users about their online media access habits and without using survey responses from the online users to determine the error. 
     
     
         39 . A method as defined in  claim 38 , further comprising conserving network communication bandwidth by not communicating with individual online users about their online media access habits and by not requesting survey responses from the online users to determine the error. 
     
     
         40 . A method as defined in  claim 38 , further comprising conserving computer processing resources by not communicating with individual online users about their online media access habits and by not requesting survey responses from the online users to determine the error. 
     
     
         41 - 60 . (canceled)