Method, system and program product for transmitting electronic communications using implicitly formed contact groups

• US 20040122838A1
• Filed: 12/18/2002
• Published: 06/24/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Gruen, Daniel M.
• Granted Patent: US 8,825,681 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/101
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/214 using selective forwarding
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/48 Message addressing, e.g. address format or anonymous messages, aliases

Abstract

Under the present invention, one or more groups of contacts are implicitly formed based on a history of electronic communications that involve the contacts. When one or more contacts in a particular group is identified as an intended recipient of a (current) electronic communication, the entire group will be identified to the sender. If the sender then selects group, the contacts therein will be made additional recipients of the current electronic communication

Claims

1. A method for transmitting electronic communications using implicitly formed contact groups, comprising:

identifying a set of recipients for a current electronic communication;

providing at least one group of contacts that includes the identified set of recipients, wherein the at least one group of contacts is implicitly formed based on a history of electronic communications that involve the contacts; and

selecting the group to add the contacts to the set of recipients of the current electronic communication.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting the current electronic communication to the set of recipients after adding the contacts.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing information pertaining to the at least one group of contacts, prior to the selecting step.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one group of contacts are further formed based on a history of communications that involve the contacts and the identified set of recipients of the current electronic communication.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one group of contacts is formed by:

examining the history of electronic communications that involve the contacts for a pattern that defines the at least one group of contacts;

forming the at least one group of contacts if the pattern meets a predefined standard.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the predefined standard is based on a quantity of the electronic communications that involve the contacts.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the predefined standard is based on a percentage of electronic communications that involve the contacts.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the predefined standard is based on a temporal proximity of electronic communications that involve the contacts.

9. A method for implicitly forming a group of contacts based on a history of electronic communications that involve the contacts, comprising:

examining the history of electronic communications between the contacts for a pattern that defines the group of contacts; and

forming the group of contacts if the pattern meets a predefined standard.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the predefined standard is based on a quantity of electronic communications that involve the contacts.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the predefined standard is based on a percentage of electronic communications that involve the contacts.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the predefined standard is based on a temporal proximity of electronic communications that involve the contacts.

13. A system for transmitting electronic communications using implicitly formed contact groups, comprising:

a grouping system for implicitly forming a group of contacts based on a history of electronic communications that involve the contacts;

a reference system for identifying the group when one of the contacts is identified as an intended recipient of a current electronic communication; and

a selection system for selecting the group, wherein upon selection of the group, the contacts are made additional recipients of the current electronic message.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising a transmission system for transmitting the current electronic communication to the intended recipient and the additional recipients.

15. The system of claim 13, further comprising an information system for providing information pertaining to the group of contacts.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the at least one group of contacts are further formed based on a history of communications that involve the contacts and the intended recipient of the current electronic communication.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the grouping system examines the history of electronic communications that involve the contacts for a pattern that defines the group of contacts, and forms the group of contacts if the pattern meets a predefined standard.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the predefined standard is based on a quantity of electronic communications that involve the contacts.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the predefined standard is based on a percentage of electronic communications that involve the contacts.

20. The system of claim 17, wherein the predefined standard is based on a temporal proximity of electronic communications that involve the contacts

21. A program product stored on a recordable medium for transmitting electronic communications using implicitly formed contact groups, which when executed, comprises:

program code for implicitly forming a group of contacts based on a history of electronic communications that involve the contacts;

program code for identifying the group when one of the contacts is identified as an intended recipient of a current electronic communication; and

program code for selecting the group, wherein upon selection of the group, the contacts are made additional recipients of the current electronic message.

22. The program product of claim 21, further comprising program code for transmitting the current electronic communication to the intended recipient and the additional recipients.

23. The program product of claim 21, further comprising program code for providing information pertaining to the group of contacts.

24. The program product of claim 21, wherein the at least one group of contacts are further formed based on a history of communications that involve the contacts and the intended recipient of the current electronic communication.

25. The program product of claim 21, wherein program code for forming examines the history of electronic communications that involve the contacts for a pattern that defines the group of contacts, and forms the group of contacts if the pattern meets a predefined standard.

26. The program product of claim 25, wherein the predefined standard is based on a quantity of electronic communications that involve the contacts.

27. The program product of claim 25, wherein the predefined standard is based on a percentage of electronic communications that involve the contacts.

28. The program product of claim 25, wherein the predefined standard is based on a temporal proximity of electronic communications that involve the contacts.