Methods and systems for providing on-line bills for use in communications services

• US 20040170261A1
• Filed: 04/29/2003
• Published: 09/02/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Grape Technology Group Incorporated (KGB)
• Original Assignee: Grape Technology Group Incorporated (KGB)
• Inventors: Baker, Nathan B.
• Granted Patent: US 7,734,025 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/114.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/06 Recording class or number of calling , i.e. A-party or called party , i.e. B-party
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/41 Billing record details, i.e. parameters, identifiers, structure of call data record [CDR]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/43 Billing software details
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/44 Augmented, consolidated or itemized billing statement or bill presentation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/49 Connection to several service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/50 for cross-charging network operators
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/41 using speaker recognition
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0104 Augmented, consolidated or itemised billing statement, e.g. additional billing information, bill presentation, layout, format, e-mail, fax, printout, itemised bill per service or per account, cumulative billing, consolidated billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0164 Billing record, e.g. Call Data Record [CDR], Toll Ticket[TT], Automatic Message Accounting [AMA], Call Line Identifier [CLI], details, i.e. parameters, identifiers, structure
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/46 Connection to several service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/52 Interconnection, inter-exchange, reseller billing, billing agreements between different operators, e.g. billing identifier added on the CDR in order to cross charge the other operator, inter-operator accounting, reconciliation, bill directly resellers customers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/2218 Call detail recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42068 where the identifier is used to access a profile
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4878 Advertisement messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4931 Directory assistance systems

Abstract

A communications system provides a bill for services provided to a user of the system, to a display device via a network. The display device may be a personal computer and the network may be the Internet, for example. A plurality of users may be parties to an account with the system and an indicator of the one of the plurality of users requesting a service may be associated with an entry in the bill for the requested service. A bill for communications services requested by a first party with respect to a second party may include an indicator, such as a name and/or location information, of the second party. The user may also have an option of receiving a bill without indicators. Information about a second party associated with a requested service may be transferred to a contacts folder maintained by the communications system. Methods and systems are disclosed.

Claims

1. A method of operating a communications system for providing a service, wherein a plurality of parties may be associated with an account with the system to receive the service, the method comprising:

providing a bill for a service requested by one of a plurality of parties associated with an account and provided by the system, to a communications device via a network; and

providing an indicator of the one party requesting the service, in association with a respective entry for the service.

2. The method of claim 1, comprising:

identifying the one party based, at least in part, on a voiceprint of the one party received when the request was made and a voiceprint sample of the party stored by the system.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the system is an information assistance service system, the method comprising:

receiving a request for information assistance from the one party, with respect to a second party.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the service is establishing a communications connection between a first communications device of the one party and a second communications device of a second party, the method comprising:

receiving signals to establish a communications connection between the first communications device and the second communications device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the communications system provides the service with respect to a second party, the method further comprising:

providing a second indicator of the second party in association with an entry in the bill for the requested service.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

providing an option to either elect or suppress provision of the second indicator.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the communications device comprises a display for displaying the bill, the method further comprising:

displaying the bill on the display device; and

providing a party with an option of paying the bill, via an activation point on the displayed bill.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the communications system provides service with respect to a second party, the method further comprising:

storing information related to the second party in a database.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the information related to the second party is contact information and the system stores contact information related to contacts of the account in a contacts folder, the method further comprising:

storing the contact information related to the second party in the contacts folder.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the system stores contact information related to the contacts of the one party in a respective contacts folder, the method comprising:

inserting contact information related to the second party in the respective contacts folder.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the communications device comprises a display for displaying the bill and the network is the Internet, the method comprising:

providing the bill to the display via the Internet.

12. A communications system for providing a service, wherein a plurality of parties may be associated with an account with the system to receive the service, the system comprising:

an interface to a network; and

a processor coupled to the interface, the processor being programmed to;

provide a bill for a service requested by one of a plurality of parties associated with an account and provided by the system, to a communications device via the network; and

provide an indicator of the one party requesting the service, in association with a respective entry for the service in the bill.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the processor is programmed to:

identify a party based, at least in part, on a voiceprint of the party received when the request was made and a voiceprint sample of the party stored by the system.

14. A method of operating a communications system, wherein the system provides a service for a first party with respect to a second party, the first party being associated with an account with the system, the method comprising:

providing a bill for the account for a service provided to the account, to a communications device via a network;

providing an indicator of the second party in association with an entry in the bill for the requested service; and

providing an option to either elect or suppress provision of the indicator.

15. The method of claim 14, comprising:

providing the option during registration with the system.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the communications device comprises a display for displaying bill, the method comprising:

displaying the bill on the display device; and

providing the option via an activation point provided on the displayed bill.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

providing a party to the account with an option of paying the bill via an activation point in the bill.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the communications system provides information assistance and an entry in the bill relates to a request by a first party for information assistance relating to the second party, the method comprising:

providing an indicator of the second party in association with the entry for the request for information assistance, in the bill.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the service is establishing a communication between a first communications device of the first party and a second communications device of the second party, the method comprising:

receiving signals to establish the communication between the first communications device and the second communications device; and

providing an indicator of the second party in association with the entry for the communication, in the bill.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the indicator is at least one of a name and location information of the respective second party, the method comprising:

providing at least one of the name and location information of the second party in association with the entry.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

providing an option to select which one of a name and location information of the respective party is used as the indicator.

22. The method of claim 14, wherein the communications device comprises a display for displaying the bill and the network is the Internet, the method comprising:

providing the bill to the display via the Internet.

23. The method of claim 14, comprising:

providing a plurality of indicators of second parties associated with a plurality of entries in the bill; and

providing an option to suppress provision of a selected indicator of a respective second party.

24. A method of operating a communications system, wherein the system provides a service for a first party with respect to a second party, the first party being associated with an account with the system, and the system stores contact information of the account in a contacts folder in a database, the method comprising:

preparing a bill for the account for a service provided to the account with respect to a second party; and

storing information related to the second party in the folder.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein a plurality of first parties are associated with the account and the information relates to contacts of a respective first party, the information being stored in a respective folder, the method comprising:

identifying a respective first party requesting the service with respect to a second party; and

inserting information related to the second party in the respective folder.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising:

identifying the respective first party based, at least in part, on a voiceprint of the first party received when the request was made and a voiceprint sample of the party stored by the system.

27. The method of claim 24, wherein the second party is a concierge provider of at least one of goods and services, the method comprising:

providing an indicator of the concierge provider in the bill.

28. The method of claim 24, comprising:

providing an indicator of the second party in association with an entry in the bill for the requested service.

29. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

providing the bill to a communications device via a network.

30. A communications system for providing a service for a first party with respect to a second party, the first party being associated with an account with the system, the system comprising:

a database to store contacts information of accounts with the system in a folder associated with a respective account; and

a processor coupled to the interface and to the database, the processor being programmed to;

prepare a bill for services provided to the account with respect to a second party; and

store contact information related to the second party in the folder.

31. The system of claim 30, wherein a plurality of first parties are associated with the account, contacts information related to a respective first party is stored in a respective folder and the processor is programmed to:

identify the respective first party requesting the service with respect to the second party based, at least in part, on a voiceprint of the first party received when the request was made and a voiceprint sample of the respective first party stored by the system; and

insert contact information related to the second party in the folder for the respective first party.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein the processor is further programmed to:

provide a respective indicator of the second party in association with a respective entry for the requested service in the bill for the service.

33. The system of claim 30, further comprising:

an interface to a network;

wherein the processor is further programmed to provide the bill to a communications device via the network.

34. A method of operating a communications system, comprising:

establishing a communication with a first party requesting a communications number of a second party;

processing the request for the communications number of the second party;

generating an event record related to the request during processing of the request, the event record including an indicator of the second party; and

providing a bill for the communication to a communications device via a network, the bill being based, at least in part, on the event record and including the indicator of the second party associated with an entry for the communication.

35. The method of claim 34, comprising:

generating an original event record during processing of the request, the original event record including the indicator; and

sending the original event record to a billing platform.

36. The method of claim 34, further comprising:

receiving a name of the second party from the first party;

storing the name in a memory location; and

copying the name stored in the memory location into the event record as the indicator.

37. The method of claim 34, further comprising:

connecting the first party to the second party; and

creating a second event record related to connecting the first party to the second party, the second event record including the indicator of the second party.

38. The method of claim 37, further comprising:

establishing a second communication between the first party and the communications system;

receiving a name of a third party from the first party; and

generating a third event record including an indicator of the third party.

39. The method of claim 34, wherein the first party is one of multiple parties associated with an account with the system, the method further comprising:

providing a second indicator indicative of a respective one of the plurality of first parties requesting the communications number of the second party, in association with the entry for the communication in the bill.

40. The method of claim 34, further comprising:

determining the identity of the first party based, at least in part, on a voiceprint of the respective first party received when the request was made and a voiceprint sample of the respective first party stored by the system.

41. The method of claim 34, wherein the second party is a concierge provider of at least one of goods and services, the method comprising:

providing an indicator of the concierge provider in the bill.

42. A method of operating a communications system, comprising:

processing a communication between a first communications device of a first party initiating a communication with a second communications device of a second party;

generating an event record related to the communication, including an indicator of the second party, during processing of the communications connection; and

providing a bill for the communication to a communications device via a network, the bill being based, at least in part, on the event record and including the indicator of the second party.

43. The method of claim 42, comprising:

identifying the indicator of the second party by searching a database for at least one indicator associated with a communications number of the second communications device.

44. The method of claim 43, comprising:

storing the indicator retrieved from the database; and

copying the stored indicator into the event record.

45. The method of claim 43, wherein the indicator is at least one of a name and location information of the second party, the method comprising:

generating the event record related to the communication, including at least one of the name and location information of the second party.

46. A communications system for establishing a communication, the system comprising:

an interface to;

receive signals from a first communications device of a first party to process a communication with a second communications device of a second party; and

access a network; and

a processor programmed to;

generate an event record including an indicator of the second party, during processing of the communication; and

provide a bill for the communication to a third communications device via a network, the bill being based, at least in part, on the event record and including the at least one indicator of the second party.

47. The communications system of claim 46, wherein the processor is programmed to:

generate the event record;

access a database correlating identifiers of communications devices with respective indicators of parties; and

insert a retrieved indicator correlated with an identifier of the communications device of the second party into the event record, during processing of the communication.

48. The system of claim 47, wherein the processor is further programmed to:

store the retrieved indicator in memory; and

copy the stored indicator into the event record.

49. The method of claim 46, comprising:

inserting the indicator of the second party into an original event record generated by the communications system for the communication during processing of the communication.

50. A method of operating a communications system, comprising:

receiving signals from a first communications device of a first party seeking a communications number of a second communications device of a second party;

connecting the first communications device to an information assistance service to identify the communications number of the second communications device;

establishing a communication between the first communications device and the second communications device after the communications number of the second communications device is identified;

inserting an indicator of the second party into an event record generated by the communications system associated with connecting the first party to the second party, while establishing the communication between the first party and the second party; and

providing a bill for the communication to a third communications device via a network, the bill being based, at least in part, on the event record and including the indicator of the second party.

51. The method of claim 50, further comprising:

identifying the indicator of the second party by searching a database.

52. The method of claim 50, comprising:

receiving from the information assistance service system the at least one indicator of the second party.

53. The method of claim 50, wherein the indicator is at least one of the name and location information of the second party, the method comprising:

inserting at least one of the name and location information of the second party into the event record.

54. A communications system, comprising:

an interface to;

receive signals from a first communications device of a first party calling an information assistance service system to obtain a communications number of a second communications device of a second party; and

access a network; and

a control device coupled to the interface, wherein the control device is programmed to;

connect the first communications device to the information assistance service;

process a communication between the first communications device and the second communications device;

generate an event record of the communication between the first communications device and the second communications device, during processing of the communication between the first communications device and the second communications device, the event record including an indicator of the second party; and

provide a bill for the communication to a third communications device via a network, the bill being based, at least in part, on the event record and including the indicator of the second party.

55. A method of operating a communications system, the system identifying a concierge provider of at least one of goods and services, the method comprising:

receiving a request for identification of a concierge provider from a user, the request including identification of at least one of goods and services;

identifying an appropriate concierge provider based on the identification of the at least one goods and services; and

providing a bill for identifying the concierge provider, the bill including the identification of the at least one goods and services associated with an entry for the request for identification of the concierge provider.

56. The method of claim 55, comprising:

providing the bill to a communications device via a network.

57. The method of claim 55, further comprising;

connecting the user to the concierge provider.