Substituting URL for attachment in forwarding electronic content

• US 20020059384A1
• Filed: 07/05/2001
• Published: 05/16/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Pace Micro Technology PLC (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Kaars, Peter Bernhard
• Application Number:
  US09/900,335
• Publication Number:
  US 20020059384A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/08 Annexed information, e.g. attachments
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/42 Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes

Abstract

A service on a data network verifies if an attachment to a sender'"'"'s e-mail has a copy of an electronic document available from a source on the data network If the document is available from this source, the service strips the attachment from the e-mail body and replaces it with a URL to save bandwidth and storage space.

Claims

1. A method of controlling communication of content information from a sender to a receiver via a data network, the method comprising:

verifying if the content information is available from a source other than the sender; and

if the content information is available from the other source, substituting for the content information a pointer to the other source.

2. The method of claim 1, being carried out on request of at least the sender or the receiver.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the verifying comprises identifying the content based on a watermark embedded in the content.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the verifying comprises identifying the content based on a fingerprint of the content.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the communication is conditionally being carried out depending on the sender being authorized to communicate the content information.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the communication is conditionally being carried out depending on the receiver being authorized to receive the content information.

7. Software for cooperation with an email application, the software verifying if an attachment to a specific email to be sent is available from the Web.

8. Software for cooperation with an Instant Messaging application, the software verifying if a file to be sent by a user via a data network is available from a source on the data network independent of the user.