Using the general principle of pattern correlation, CTS is capable of identifying any unknown piece of content longer than a few seconds (so-called: “samples”) within a virtually unlimited set of known clips or streams (so-called: “references”) to provide a wide range of TAM services. The samples are usually generated by a peoplemeter connected to a TV set. The references may be of a variety of types. The type of service provided depends on the kind of content used to generate both the samples and the references. Following are some examples:

Broadcast Identification

Broadcast Identification is the most commonly provided CTS service. It is used to identify the channel being watched on a TV set (conventional audience measurement).

In this service mode the references are signatures generated around the clock for a predefined group of TV broadcasts (to be measured). The search for correlation is limited to a configurable window (typically 30 seconds wide).

Time Shifted Broadcast Identification

When measuring viewing of pre-recorded broadcasts through a VCR or Digital Video Recorder (i.e. “DVR”), the scanning window becomes a full week. The significant increase of scanning load is handled within CTS by very sophisticated algorithms that keep the computing power requirements within feasible levels.

Film Tracking

It is used to measure exposure to “canned” content (e.g. films, musical videos, etc.) and the advertising included in it. CTS does this by scanning sample signatures to a ‘film database” that is updated periodically.

Broadcasting Auditing

This service is designed to audit broadcasting license agreements verifying that the contents aired by a cable or local channel match exactly the provisions made in the agreement. For example: A regional media outlet contracts from a national channel the news service that is broadcasted from 12:00 - 13:00 and from 20:00 - 21:00. The broadcast auditing service can verify that the agreement is correctly honored by comparing the broadcasts of the regional channel with that of the national channel.

Other Services

The CTS technology at the core of UNITAM enables it to provide advanced measurement services whenever audio uniquely identifies content. The generality of the method plus its centralized architecture makes it relatively easy to implement new services on demand. Additionally, UNITAM meters include serial ports embedded in each input to easily interface to set top boxes (“Service Information”) or to specific devices for other purposes, guaranteeing immediate expandability.

Other UNITAM solutions already available include CTS enabled portable devices for “in-home" and “out-of-home" measurement for both radio and TV audiences.