Abstract: By the present invention are disclosed a method for providing and a method for obtaining voice call related information from a first party device (100) to a second party device (200), prior to establishing a voice call between the first party device (100) and the second party device (200). Portable communication devices (100, 200, 500) for providing and obtaining of voice call related information also disclosed. The methods comprises sending/obtaining in real time the voice call related information (steps 304, 402) from the first party device (100) to the second party device (200) over a packet switched network, and sending/obtaining a call setup message (steps 308, 410) over a circuit switched network, of the voice call from the first party device (100), so that the voice call related information can be presented to a user of the second party device (200) before responding to the call setup message.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatuses for caller identification messaging are disclosed. According to one embodiment, a calling party uses a Caller ID Messaging Device that supplants the incoming calling line identification (ICLID) signal with a Caller ID Messaging Signal and transmits the Caller ID Messaging Signal to a destination communications address. An alternate embodiment provides that the calling party may use a conventional telephone to access a communications network, activate Caller ID Messaging Services, compose or retrieve a stored Caller ID Message of the Caller ID Messaging Signal, and transmit the Caller ID Messaging Signal to the destination communications address. The Caller ID Message and Caller ID Messaging Signal may include text, video, voice, and/or digital data.

Abstract: According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method, in a telecommunication system, of establishing a connection between a calling terminal and a called terminal, the called terminal having an associated presence status, the connection establishment being initiated by a connection establishment request sent by the calling terminal, comprising: obtaining, in response to the connection establishment request, the presence status associated with the called terminal; and supplying the obtained presence status to the calling terminal.

Abstract: A method, system and apparatus for announcing caller information to users over a television link. The method comprises receiving signalling information associated with an incoming call destined for a destination party, the signalling information comprising a portion conveying information regarding an origin of the incoming call and information regarding an identity of the destination party. The method also comprises attempting to establish a telephony link with a device associated with the destination party over a communication network in response to said receiving. The method further comprises attempting to establish a second telephony link with a processing entity to convey said portion of the signalling information to the processing entity to cause delivery of an indication of the origin of the incoming call over a television link associated with the destination party, said indication based on said information regarding an origin of the incoming call.

Abstract: A method for the viral distribution of ringback media. A trigger is transmitted from a calling client station to a ringback server during the ringback period of call setup, whereby in response to receipt of the trigger by the ringback server, the subscriber associated with the calling client station is granted the right to the particular ringback media played out during the ringback period. Upon receiving the trigger, the ringback server may request that an indication that the right has been granted be stored in the subscriber's account record. Subsequent to the granting of the right to the particular ringback media to the subscriber, callers to the subscriber may be presented with the particular ringback. Further, these callers may also request to acquire the right to the particular media via the same trigger-initiated process.

Abstract: The present invention provides a system, method, and apparatus for managing the calling-party identification information offered to called parties. Accordingly, a caller can designate the Caller ID information to the called party based on the context of the call (e.g. the role of the caller) rather than the terminal used. Typically the calling party does this by selecting which of multiple values they wish to have sent with the call request. It is beneficial to implement such a mechanism in a secure manner—the ability to employ a different calling-number or calling-name ID should be restricted to properly-authorized and authenticated persons—in order to ensure the quality of this information. Accordingly, preferred embodiments include an authentication mechanism for verifying the calling party information is authentic.

Abstract: In the invention, an audiovisual call identifier including image and sound is formed for a mobile communication device. The call identifier is repeated on the display and in the loudspeaker of the communication device when a call comes in, i.e. it functions in the same way as an ordinary ring tone when it is used. The first step in the method is to take a shot including moving image and sound by a video camera. The shot taken is saved in the memory of the communication device as a video clip and set as a call identifier of the communication device. The video clip can be taken either by a video camera belonging to the communication device or by a separate device. The call identifier can be set as a general notification sign or it can be associated with a certain phone number or numbers in the phone memo of the communication device, in which case the video clip is repeated on the display and in the loud-speaker of the communication device when a call comes from the phone number(s) in question.

Abstract: A method and a system for presenting customized caller options via a communication device (104) are disclosed. The method includes receiving (404) an incoming call from a calling party at the second communication device. The method further includes comparing (406) a caller Identification (ID) information associated with the incoming call to a pre-defined stored list of caller ID information. Further, the method includes presenting (408) the calling party with customized caller options. The customized caller options are presented as a function of the comparison between the incoming call caller ID information and the pre-defined stored list of caller ID information.

Abstract: Systems and methods for detecting call blocking devices or services. The devices monitor outbound call connections to determine if a connected call has been answered by a call blocking device or service rather than a person or answering machine. The verification is a comparison between the connection of an outbound call and a predefined parameter of data associated with that connection. For example, the predefined timing parameter may require detecting a connection before the first ring, or a connection occur within a predetermine period of time from when the outbound call is placed, or a connection occurring after a certain number of rings, etc. Which predefined parameter is associated with a particular outbound call may depend on the call blocking device or service the call center placing the outbound call expects to encounter on a particular connection attempt of a particular phone number.

Abstract: A method and system for providing computer-network related information about a calling party. First, the called party receives a telephone number of a calling party. The called party's customer premises equipment (CPE) or elements in a telephone network then use the telephone number to index a database, which contains combinations of telephone numbers and computer-network addresses. Once the calling party's computer-network address is retrieved, calling-party-customized information present at the computer-network location specified by the computer-network address can be sent to and displayed on the called party's CPE. Also, the calling party's telephone number can be sent to an application in the computer network, causing the calling-party-customized information to be automatically displayed on the called party's CPE.

Abstract: A remote call notification system for incoming calls to a wireline telecommunications device. The system includes a switch, a service control point, an intelligent server, and a monitoring module all in communication with each other. The remote call notification is transmitted to a remote communication device such as a PC, an interactive pager, and a mobile phone. The call notification includes a calling number, the name of a calling party, time and date identifiers, status identifiers that provides a real-time status of the incoming communication, a disposition identifier, and a priority identifier. A remote call notification method including detecting an incoming communication to a subscriber's wireline communication device, creating a remote call notification, assigning an access address associated with a remote communication device, and forwarding the remote call notification to the remote communication device.

Abstract: In one aspect of the invention, a computer-implemented method is disclosed for use in conjunction with a portable electronic device with a touch screen display. A list of items comprising missed telephone calls is displayed. Upon detecting user selection of an item in the list, contact information is displayed for a respective caller corresponding to the user selected item. The displayed contact information includes a plurality of contact objects that include a first contact object, comprising a telephone number object having a first telephone number associated with the missed telephone call, and a second contact object. Upon detecting user selection of the second contact object, a communication with the respective caller is initiated via a modality corresponding to the second contact object.

Abstract: A system for automatically verifying an incoming telephone number. In response to detecting an incoming communication, a determination is made as to whether a telephone number associated with the incoming communication matches one of a plurality of telephone numbers in a storage unit. In response to determining that the telephone number associated with the incoming communication does not match one of the plurality of telephone numbers in the storage unit, telephone number verification rules are applied to determine whether to continue with the incoming communication. In response to a determination not to continue with the incoming communication based on the telephone number verification rules, an alert is provided.

Abstract: The present invention provides an extensible phone application that uses extensions to interact with other applications executing in a mobile communication device. The extensible phone application is operable to handle wireless communication for the mobile communication device. Another application may interact with the extensible phone application by incorporating an extension. The extensible phone application enables the extension to register with the phone application for receiving a notification associated with an event. In response to the event, the extensible phone application sends the notification to the extension.

Abstract: A system for notifying an Internet-accessible device of a communication placed from a first telecommunications device to a second telecommunications device by a calling party is disclosed. The system includes a switch and a node in communication with the switch. The switch is for detecting the communication. The node is configured for communication with the Internet-accessible device and includes a first module and a second module. The first module is for determining information about the calling party. The second module is for determining information about the Internet-accessible device.

Abstract: An intelligent telephone set is disclosed that includes a caller-ID circuit that extracts a call identifier from an incoming call. A call processing circuit in communication with the caller-ID circuit assigns the incoming call to a caller category associated with the call identifier. Subsequently, it selects a call processing action corresponding to the caller category and processes the incoming call using the selected call processing action. The intelligent telephone set allows users to set criteria for receiving and processing calls based on CID data. One such call processing action is to use CID data to forward an incoming call to a predetermined location.

Abstract: A communication apparatus according to the present invention includes a presence information setting unit that sets presence information including a user display name and its apparatus state, and a presence information notification unit that that notifies an opposing apparatus of the presence information. The communication apparatus further include an action information acquisition unit that detects an opposing user action of the opposing apparatus. The communication apparatus determines that the user is “Away” or “Not Available” when the action information detector detects no user reaction after a predetermined time has passed since the opposing apparatus user's action was detected.

Abstract: A system for collecting data from a communications network includes customer premises equipment (“CPE”) for monitoring and storing response data. A CPE data collection module uses a Web-based service to collect information from the CPE and process the information to determine line quality and any errors that may exist on either the WAN side or the LAN side of the communications network, and further determine the root cause based on built-in business rules for trouble shooting customer service. The CPE conducts per-tone diagnostics on the WAN side of the communications network and obtains WAN side data. The CPE obtains response data from devices on the LAN side. Both WAN side data and LAN data may be transmitted substantially in real-time or stored and transmitted periodically to the CPE data collection module upon requests originated from the CPE data collection module.

Abstract: In a telecommunication system having at least two communicants (i.e., a caller and a callee), a system and method are presented for collecting information associated with the geographical location of either of the communicants. In one embodiment, the approach entails receiving a geographical location corresponding to a public switched telephone network (PSTN) telephone number, and collecting geographical location information associated with the received geographical location.

Abstract: A method is provided for operating a directory assistance system having a plurality of different network elements operating on different protocols. The method includes receiving, at a first network element, operating on a first operating protocol, an incoming directory assistance call from a caller. A universal call identifier data is then assigned to the call. The call is then transmitted to a second network element, operating on a second operating protocol, wherein the same universal call identifier is accepted by the second network element. A record is generated of the exchange of the call between the first and second network elements based on the assigned universal call identifier data.

Abstract: A caller number notification synchronized with an incoming signal is disclosed. An analog circuit interface section outputs incoming call signal presence information that shows whether to receive the incoming call signal that has the information indicated at a predetermined position on a highway and outputs the received caller ID to a speech signal path. An analog extension interface section detects the incoming call signal presence information on the highway, detects the caller ID on the speech signal path, generates an incoming call signal based on the detected incoming signal presence information and sends out the generated incoming call signal and the detected caller ID to the analog extension. A system control section connects the analog circuit interface section to the analog extension interface section.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention provide systems and methods for using a presence-based network to provide call notification information. According to one embodiment, a method of providing information related to a communication can comprise receiving a publication of one or more presence attributes. The one or more presence attributes can comprise at least one attribute indicating call notification information. A presence profile can be associated with an entity. For example, the entity can comprises a recipient of the communication. The presence profile can be updated based on the received presence attributes. The attribute indicating call notification information can be provided to one or more subscribers to the presence information such as the entity associated with the presence profile, another party to the communication, another authorized principal, etc.

Abstract: Upon detecting an incoming call, a call screening system determines the CALLER ID information associated with the call and compares it to a database of allowable calling parties. If the calling party is to be allowed to ring through, the call screening system routes the incoming call to one or more communication devices associated with the calling party information in the allowable calling party database. Incoming call screening may be selectively different during different times of the day, for different calling parties, or for different communications devices connected to the call screening device. The call screening device may thus switch between allowing all incoming calls to ring through except those specifically designated to be blocked and screening all incoming calls except those specifically designated to be permitted to ring through. One or more override codes entered in a touch-tone keypad by the calling party may permit an incoming call to ring through despite an active screening mode.

Abstract: A customer premises equipment (CPE) device, such as a telephone, connected to a local communications line existing on the premises is capable of receiving incoming telephone or like communication calls. The device has an interface which connects the device to the local communications line on the premises and enables the device to receive an alternating voltage analog ring signal corresponding to a notification of an incoming telephone call. The device also includes a demodulator for decoding and processing the ring signal including additional media data which is of low amplitude relative to that of the alternating voltage analog ring signal and which is modulated on the alternating voltage analog ring signal. Further, the device includes an input/output (I/O) component providing a means for audible and/or visual output of media from the device. The media output from the device directly corresponds to the media data modulated on the ring signal. CPE telephone systems and methods are also provided.

Abstract: A method and system for transmitting caller identification information during a conference call is disclosed. When a caller enters into a phone conference, the endpoint device he is using can subscribe to a notification service provided by the conference server. Thereafter, the conference server sends out a message with the phone number (or other indication) of the active endpoint device. Each time another endpoint device in conference call becomes the active device (e.g., someone using that endpoint device begins speaking), the conference server senses this and sends a new message to the endpoint devices indicating this change.

Abstract: A method for transmitting enhanced originator information over a communications network includes retrieving a service profile for a recipient terminal from a service profile database in response to initiation of a communication by an originator terminal to the recipient terminal. The service profile specifies a service plan and a terminal capability of the recipient terminal to retrieve the enhanced originator information from the originator terminal. The method also includes retrieving multiple information elements associated with the originator terminal from a network database based upon the service plan and the terminal capability of the recipient terminal, and transmitting a communication including the multiple information elements to the recipient terminal prior to establishing a communications session with the recipient terminal.

Abstract: Systems and methods for identifying a name associated with a calling party's telephone number are disclosed. Generally, a first network element determines whether there are any restrictions on the disclosure of a name associated with a calling party's telephone number; obtain the name associated with the calling party's telephone number when it is determined that the calling party's telephone number is present in a database; and transmit the name associated with the calling party's telephone to a second network element.

Abstract: An anti-CLI spoofing procedure controls access of a mobile communication device to a service on a communication network via a connection from outside the network. The device issues a unique identifier for identifying the device to the service. If the identifier is received from outside the network and over a secure signaling channel, a first time stamp is stored in a memory, representative of a first time of receipt of the identifier. The connection is set up and then a second time stamp is generated representative of a second time at which the connection is established to a node on the network. A first instruction is issued to establish unconditional access to the service if a time difference between the time stamps falls within a predetermined time window. A second instruction is issued to grant conditional access to the service if the time difference falls outside the predetermined window.

Abstract: The computer implemented method and system disclosed herein enables online networking based on exchange of virtual electronic cards between a plurality of users. An online networking environment is provided to a user. The user creates a personal profile in the online networking environment. Further, the user may create a company profile or link with an existing company profile. A virtual electronic card of the user is automatically created in the online networking environment. The virtual electronic card is one of a personal electronic card and a company electronic card. A personal contact network of the user is established in the online networking environment by exchanging personal electronic cards between the user and the plurality of users. Further, a company contact network of the company of the user is established by exchanging company electronic cards between the company of the user and a plurality of companies.

Abstract: A system and method for providing caller ID in a multi-region cable network. Caller identifying (CID) information of an incoming VoIP call is provided to a digital telephone subscriber through a video termination device (VTD) using a path that is different from the path by which the VoIP call packets are delivered to the digital telephone subscriber. The telephone number of a digital telephone subscriber is associated with the IP address and/or MAC address of the subscriber's VTD. The called number of the incoming VoIP call is used to select the VTD to which the CID information is delivered. A message is then sent through an out-of-band channel to the digital telephone subscriber's VTD comprising the CID information for display on video display equipment. Alternatively, the VTD is DOCSIS-compliant and a message is addressed to the VTD using the IP address of the VTD DOCSIS modem.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a computer network, a computing device coupled to the computer network, and a telephone coupled to the computer network and to a telephone line. The telephone may receive telephone call signals from the telephone line and transmit information associated with the telephone call signals to the computing device over the network.

Abstract: Aspects are directed toward managing, including reorganizing, inbound communications, a communications log, or presentation of a communication to a user, based on one or more of the identity, role and urgency of calling or communicating party, including, for example, forwarding or hybrid priority routing. For example, in an e-mail type of environment, received communications could be re-organized based on one or more of the above, such that higher priority communications are escalated to “the-top-of-the-stack.” This similar type of operation can be done in a communications modality independent manner, and extended to, for example, voicemails, caller ID, SMS messages, or in general any communication in any communications modality, where one or more communications are capable of being managed and re-organized. As an optional embodiment, an attribute or characteristic associated with the communication can be modified, such that the user is aware of the ranking associated with that communication.

Abstract: A system and related techniques enhance the generation and delivery of dialed number identification service (DNIS) data to automatic call distributors and other destinations. Unlike conventional DNIS-based (800) or other call centers or other resources whose available DNIS-based identifications can become overtaxed during comparatively high call volumes, according to embodiments of the invention DNIS numbers are dynamically generated from an available pool on a per-call basis under call router supervision. According to embodiments of the invention in one regard, the dynamic DNIS may be associated with that call to the call's particular destination, such as an automatic call distributor, interactive voice response unit or other resource, during the duration of the call for the operative destination, with other calls being locked out from using that DNIS assignment while the call is in progress.

Abstract: A system may receive a telephone call request for a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) user. The telephone call request omits a name of a calling party. The system may further determine if the VoIP user has a calling party name feature enabled and obtaining, when the VoIP user has a calling party name feature enabled, the name of the calling party from a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) based repository of calling party names.

Abstract: Methods and systems for personalized content delivery to telecommunications devices are disclosed. One system includes a signal intercept application configured to receive a signal relating to an incoming phone call to a telecommunications device. The system further includes a content server configured to receive a message from the signal intercept application on a data network, the message including identification information relating to the incoming phone call, the content server further configured to select content based on the identification information and transmit that information to the telecommunications device.

Abstract: A system and method of providing multimedia communication services is disclosed. In a particular embodiment, the method includes receiving contextual information including a subscriber identification associated with a wireline communication device at an intelligent service switch (ISS) of an integrated wireline-wireless (IWW) network from a network edge device, where the network edge device has detected a service request at the wireline communication device. The method also includes determining at least one multimedia communication service based on the contextual information and at least one service filter associated with the subscriber identification.

Abstract: A call processing system comprises an interface and a processing system. The interface is configured to receive call signaling for a call from a call system and receive user information during the call from a user using the call system wherein the call signaling includes an identifier for the call system. The processing system is configured to generate a key for the call, modify the identifier to generate a modified identifier indicating the key, transfer the key and the user information to a database system, and transfer new call signaling for the call to a destination wherein the new call signaling indicates the modified identifier.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for caching caller-specific information to reduce query costs and to provide faster access when providing caller-specific information to called parties within communication networks.

Abstract: A mobile station has a plurality of modes for processing incoming push-to-talk (PTT) audio communications. A first PTT mode is a “forced audio” mode, in which the mobile station plays PTT audio communications automatically. A second PTT mode is a “polite” mode, in which the mobile station plays PTT audio communications only after acceptance by the user. A “white list” identifies any parties that are allowed to communicate with the mobile station using the first PTT mode. A PTT audio communication from an initiator that is not identified in the white list is processed using the second PTT mode, even if the first PTT mode is requested. In addition, a PTT audio communication may be processed using the second PTT mode if the mobile station's speaker volume level is below a threshold value.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus for a User Equipment (UE) to process calling party information are disclosed. The method includes: obtaining capability information of a called UE; and sending calling party information compliant with the capability information to the called UE so that the called UE can process the calling party information. Through the embodiments of the present invention, the calling party information compliant with the capability information of the called UE is sent according to the capability information, and therefore, the called UE can process the calling party information normally and avoid sending futile information, thus reducing waste of information resources and improving the user experience.

Abstract: A URL adapter for a Web browser that enables the integration of telephone numbers into a web browser's address line for parsing as a URI. The URL adapter bypasses traditional search hook functions to identify potential telephone numbers. The URL adapter has access to a name server for translating names entered into the browser into telephone numbers. The URL adapter can also parse Web pages to self-identify telephone numbers.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention include a caller identification system and method for identifying a caller with a partial phone number look-up table. The caller identification system comprises a database that stores received calls and can be personalized to include information specific to partial phone numbers. In one embodiment, the caller identification system disclosed can be integrated into a cellular phone. In this embodiment, an incoming call initiates a search in a database to retrieve information about the caller. If a match is found, the identity of the caller is displayed. When an exact match is not found, a search for a partial match is executed with wild card values and information about the partial match is displayed. Information for a partial match can be personalized or pre-programmed into the caller ID system such as the city associated with a particular area code or prefix.

Abstract: A method is described of providing validation data associated with a subscriber line of a telecommunication network using a validation system. The method includes obtaining line data of the subscriber line wherein the line data is suitable for interrogating a line identification database (LIDB). The method interrogates the LIDB with the line data to obtain reference subscriber data associated with the line data, and processes the reference subscriber data to obtain validation data associated with the subscriber line. The method includes identifying a local exchange carrier (LEC) associated with the subscriber line to determine if a billing arrangement exists between the validation system and the LEC. The invention extends to a subscriber line validation system to validate a subscriber line of a communication network.

Abstract: The present invention is related to telecommunications, and in particular, to methods and systems for processing call signaling data. In an embodiment, a call processing system receives a first message from a switch while the switch is processing a call for a calling party, wherein the first message is initiated at least partly in response to a firing of a call event trigger configured within a switch. The first message includes call signaling information, including the calling party's phone number. The calling party's phone number is stored in the call processing system. A communication channel is established over a network between the call processing system and a computer associated with the called party. A message is transmitted to the networked computer, the message including the calling party's phone number, wherein the calling party's phone number is intended to be displayed on the networked computer associated with the called party.

Abstract: A process that can be used to process the calling line presentation supplied to a called user following a call made by a calling user in a fixed and/or mobile communications network (for example, GSM, GPRS or UMTS in the latter case). A corresponding code for identifying an operator, such as a long-distance operator, which can be used by the called user for calling back the calling user, is identified, for example, during the registration of the user who is intended to act as the called user with a corresponding operator. This corresponding identification code is inserted automatically into the calling line presentation supplied to the called customer following the call made by the calling user. The call can be a voice call, a data call or a message, such as an SMS or MMS message. The called user is thus able to call back the calling user without having to insert the user's identification code to be used for calling back.

Abstract: A method, user interface module, application program interface, computer program product and system that provides access to context information in a display window that remains persistent as the user navigates the application and views application data. The persistent dashboard can be populated from a communications event, such as an inbound telephone call; from data entered by the customer service agent via the user interface, such as a response to one of a series of scripted questions; from search results of a user-initiated search; or from application data displayed in a display window of the user interface. Various types of information from enterprise databases can be captured in the persistent dashboard to address the enterprise's business processes and needs. Information displayed in the persistent dashboard is configurable.

Abstract: A method for utilizing the caller identification information stored in call logs to retrieve address book entries stored in a database, enabling a reply to each call in the call log using the communication medium and contact address of choice. Using this method, a customer can access the call logs for various phone numbers using a computer and can link to additional contact information associated with each entry. This additional contact information is stored in an address book database, either locally or on a network. Caller identification information in the call log can be used to search the address book and retrieve alternate addresses spanning a range of possible reply media, such as cell phones, E-mail, PDA, and telefacsimile.

Abstract: A telecommunication network comprises a switching system configured to route a call to a service platform, the service platform configured to transfer a prompt message over the call, collect caller-entered information from a caller over the call in response to the prompt message, and transfer the caller-entered information to a call processing system in the telecommunication network, the call processing system configured to transfer the caller-entered information to a destination processor at a call center, process a destination routing code from the destination processor to determine a destination routing instruction, and transfer the destination routing instruction to the switching system, and the switching system further configured to route the call to a destination in response to the destination routing instruction.

Abstract: A system and method for providing customized announcements to callers based on the called party telephone number and the calling party telephone number. The system comprises a server system and a messaging system. The server system detects that a customized announcement is to be delivered and the messaging system delivers the announcement to the caller. The customized announcements may be provided in conjunction with voicemail systems or other services for processing calls when a called party is not available. In a preferred embodiment the customized announcements are provided via a service node in an advanced intelligent network.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for implementing a service in a digital multiple-service network comprising an exchange, a first telecommunication terminal connected to the multiple-service network via a first interface and a second telecommunication terminal connected to the multiple-service network via a second interface. In the method, the service is implemented using a server connected to the multiple-service network via a third interface, and the service information is transmitted to the second telecommunication terminal using channels reserved for signalling and a signalling protocol between the terminals and the exchange and between exchanges that comprises a limited amount of information not belonging to the call.