WASHINGTON (CBS DC) ââ¬â Verizon has filed a patent for targeting ads that collect information from infrared cameras and microphones that can detect the amount of people and types of conversations happening in customersââ¬â¢ living rooms.
The set-top box technology is not the first of its kind ââ¬â Comcast patented similar monitoring technology in 2008 that recommended content to users based on people it recognized in the room. Google TV also proposed a patent that would use video and audio recorders to figure out exactly how many people in a room were watching its broadcast.
http://washington.cbslocal.com/2012...u-now-verizon-patent-listens-in-on-customers/