System for monitoring audio content available over a network

A computer-readable medium encoded with a program for monitoring audio content available over a network, said program containing instructions for performing the steps of:

• searching the network for audio files;
• generating audio identifying information for each audio file that is found based on detected events in audio content from each audio file;
• and
• determining whether the audio identifying information generated for each audio file matches audio identifying information in an audio content database,
• wherein the generating step includes, for each audio file, the sub-step of:
• detecting a plurality of events in the audio content from that audio file, each of the events being a crossing of the value of a first running average and the value of a second running average,
• wherein the first running average is an average over a first averaging period of a plurality of time dependent frequency components of the audio content from that audio file, and
• the second running average is an average over a second averaging period, which is different than the first averaging period, of the time dependent frequency components of the audio content that audio file.

A method for obtaining royalty payments for usage of copyrighted audio content, said method comprising the steps of:

• searching a network for audio files;
• generating audio identifying information for each audio file that is found based on detected events in audio content from each audio file;
• determining whether the audio identifying information generated for each audio file matches audio identifying information in a copyrighted audio content database;
• and
• if the audio identifying information generated for an audio file matches audio identifying information in the copyrighted audio content database, receiving payment from a site on the network where the audio file was found,
• wherein the generating step includes, for each audio file, the sub-step of:
• detecting a plurality of events in the audio content from that audio file, each of the events being a crossing of the value of a first running average and the value of a second running average,
• wherein the first running average is an average over a first averaging period of a plurality of time dependent frequency components of the audio content from that audio file, and
• the second running average is an average over a second averaging period, which is different than the first averaging period, of the time dependent frequency components of the audio content that audio file.

A system for monitoring audio content available over a network, said system comprising:

• a spider for searching the network for audio files;
• an identifying information generator for generating audio identifying information for each audio file that is found based on detected events in audio content from each audio file;
• and
• a match detector for determining whether the audio identifying information generated for each audio file matches audio identifying information in an audio content database,
• wherein, for each audio file, the identifying information generator detects a plurality of events in the audio content from that audio file, each of the events being a crossing of the value of a first running average and the value of a second running average, the first running average being an average over a first averaging period of a plurality of time dependent frequency components of the audio content from that audio file, and the second running average being an average over a second averaging period, which is different than the first averaging period, of the time dependent frequency components of the audio content that audio file.