Importance

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Abstract

A method and system is provided for inserting national, regional, and/or demographically targeted information content, such as commercial advertisements, into streaming IP multicast program content delivery streams, such as streaming audio, video or other multimedia content, provided to Internet users via a wide area multicast distribution network. One or more IP datagram/packet replication devices accept packets of streaming digital data content from a multicast content distribution network or other streaming digital content generation source to produce a plurality of multicast content streams. Content streams are provided to an advertisement insertion (AI) device that is capable of implementing per-stream insertion of predetermined advertisement content. Multicast content streams containing the inserted advertisement content are distributed to multicast recipients by one or more regional IP service provider networks. Specific demographic targeting of inserted advertisement content is accomplished on a per-stream basis at the regional network level by modifying IP header and UDP header information per data packet during the packet replication process.

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First Claim