Advertisements detection in an end-user controlled playback environment

摘要

A method for detecting a broadcast commercial in a digital broadcast stream is disclosed. The digital broadcast stream comprises programs, a set of commercials to be displayed during breaks in the programs, and metadata associated with each of the programs and each commercial in the set of commercials. The method comprises: receiving (320) the digital broadcast stream at a user unit (20); and for each commercial in the set of commercials, detecting a commercial (360) by detecting indicia in the metadata received in the digital broadcast stream that indicate at least one of the following: a start point of the commercial; an end point of the commercial; and a presence point in the commercial.