System and method for real time self-provisioning for a mobile communication device

• US 20040242209A1
• Filed: 03/09/2004
• Published: 12/02/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/10/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Kruis, David P., Gilhuly, Barry J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,817,988 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/414.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring

Abstract

A system and method of provisioning services for a mobile communication device are disclosed. A provisioning request including provisioning information and specifying a provisioning operation and a first communication service is prepared on the mobile communication device and sent to a provisioning system. Processing of the provisioning request is dependent upon whether or not a second communication service has been activated for the mobile communication device. If the mobile communication device is outside a coverage area of a wireless communication network when a provisioning request is prepared, the request is stored at the mobile communication device and sent to the provisioning system when the mobile communication device enters the coverage area. The provisioning system preferably manages service provisioning for multiple services, any of which may be hosted by different service providers.

Claims

1. A method of provisioning services for a mobile communication device, comprising the steps of:

receiving a provisioning request, the provisioning request including provisioning information and specifying a provisioning operation and a first communication service;

determining whether a second communication service has been activated for the mobile communication device; and

where the second communication service has been activated for the mobile communication device, then;

processing the provisioning information to determine whether the provisioning operation may be performed;

performing the provisioning operation for the first communication service where the provisioning operation may be performed;

preparing a provisioning response indicating the result of the processing; and

sending the provisioning response to the mobile communication device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

where the second communication service has not been activated for the mobile communication device, then;

aborting the provisioning operation;

preparing a provisioning response indicating that the provisioning operation was unsuccessful; and

sending the provisioning response to the mobile communication device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the provisioning operation is a service activation.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising the steps of:

where the second communication service has not been activated for the mobile communication device, then;

processing the provisioning information to determine whether the provisioning operation may be performed for the second communication service; and

performing the provisioning operation for the second communication service where the provisioning operation may be performed for the second communication service.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising the steps of:

where the provisioning operation may not be performed for the second communication service, then;

aborting the provisioning operation;

preparing a provisioning response indicating that the provisioning operation was unsuccessful; and

sending the provisioning response to the mobile communication device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the second communication service is an electronic messaging service.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the first communication service is an electronic message redirection service which redirects electronic messages received at an electronic messaging service system to the mobile communication device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the method steps are performed at a provisioning authority system.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the steps of receiving, preparing and sending are performed at a provisioning authority system.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of determining is performed at the provisioning authority system.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the steps of processing and performing are executed by the provisioning authority system.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the steps of processing and performing are executed by a first service provider of the first communication service.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of determining is performed by a first service provider of the first communication service.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of determining is performed by a second service provider of the second communication service.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of processing comprises the steps of:

determining whether additional provisioning information is required for the provisioning operation; and

requesting the additional provisioning information from the mobile communication device where additional provisioning information is required for the provisioning operation.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the provisioning information includes mobile communication device information and user information.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the mobile communication device information is retrieved from a memory in the mobile communication device.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of receiving a provisioning request comprises the step of receiving the provisioning request from the mobile communication device.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of receiving a provisioning request comprises the step of receiving the provisioning request from a computer system interface.

20. A method of provisioning multiple services for a mobile communication device, comprising the steps of:

receiving a provisioning request, the provisioning request including provisioning information and specifying a provisioning operation, a first communication service and a second communication service;

processing the provisioning information to determine whether the provisioning operation may be performed for the second communication service; and

where the provisioning operation may be performed for the second communication service, then;

performing the provisioning operation for the second communication service;

processing the provisioning information to determine whether the provisioning operation may be performed for the first communication service;

performing the provisioning operation for the first communication service where the provisioning operation may be performed for the first communication service;

preparing a provisioning response indicating that the provisioning operation was successful; and

sending the provisioning response to the mobile communication device.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the step of receiving a provisioning request comprises the step of receiving the provisioning request from the mobile communication device.

22. The method of claim 20, further comprising the steps of:

where the provisioning operation may not be performed for the second communication service, then;

processing the provisioning information to determine whether the provisioning operation may be performed for the first communication service;

performing the provisioning operation for the first communication service where the provisioning operation may be performed for the first communication service;

preparing a provisioning response indicating that the provisioning operation was unsuccessful for the second communication service but successful for the first communication service; and

sending the provisioning response to the mobile communication device.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising the step of receiving a further provisioning request including further provisioning information and specifying the provisioning operation for the second communication service.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the provisioning operation is a service activation.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the second communication service is provided by a first service provider.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising the step of:

determining whether the second communication service is available from a second service provider where the provisioning operation may not be performed for the second communication service;

wherein the provisioning response indicating that the provisioning operation was unsuccessful for the second communication service but successful for the first communication service further indicates whether the second communication service is available from the second service provider.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprising the step of receiving a further provisioning request including further provisioning information and specifying the provisioning operation for the second communication service.

28. The method of claim 27 wherein, the further provisioning request specifies the provisioning operation for the second service provider where the second communication service is available from the second service provider.

29. The method of claim 20, further comprising the steps of:

where the provisioning operation may not be performed for the second communication service, then;

aborting the provisioning operation;

preparing a provisioning response indicating that the provisioning operation was unsuccessful; and

sending the provisioning response to the mobile communication device.

30. The method of claim 20, further comprising the steps of:

where the provisioning operation may not be performed for the second communication service, then;

aborting the provisioning operation;

preparing a provisioning response indicating that the provisioning operation was unsuccessful for the first communication service; and

sending the provisioning response to the mobile communication device.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein:

the step of aborting the provisioning operation comprises the step of reversing the provisioning operation for the second communication service.

32. The method of claim 20, wherein the second communication service is an electronic messaging service.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the electronic messaging service is email service.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the first communication service is an email redirection service which redirects email received at an email system to the mobile communication device.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein the step of performing the provisioning operation for the first communication service comprises the step of establishing a forwarding rule at the email system.

36. The method of claim 20, wherein the second communication service is provided by a first service provider.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein the first service is provided by the first service provider.

38. The method of claim 36, wherein the first service is provided by a second service provider.

39. A method for provisioning communication services using a mobile communication device configured to operate within a wireless communication network, comprising the steps of:

preparing a provisioning request at the mobile communication device;

transmitting the provisioning request to a provisioning authority where the mobile communication device is within a coverage area of the wireless communication network; and

where the mobile communication device is outside the coverage area of the wireless communication network,

storing the provisioning request at the mobile communication device;

transmitting the provisioning request to the provisioning authority when the mobile communication device enters the coverage area;

receiving the provisioning request at the provisioning authority;

extracting provisioning information from the provisioning request; and

processing the provisioning information to determine whether the provisioning request may be granted;

wherein the provisioning request is associated with a first communication service; and

wherein the step of processing the provisioning information comprises the step of determining whether granting the provisioning request affects a second communication service on the mobile communication device.

41. The method of claim 39, further comprising the steps of:

where the provisioning request may be granted, then;

performing a provisioning operation specified in the provisioning request;

preparing a provisioning response indicating that the provisioning operation was successful; and

sending the provisioning response to the mobile communication device.

42. The method of claim 39, further comprising the step of distributing the provisioning information to a service provider associated with the provisioning operation.

43. The method of claim 39, further comprising the step of distributing the provisioning information to a billing system.

44. The method of claim 39, further comprising the step of distributing the provisioning information to a mobile communication device warranty tracking system.

45. The method of claim 42, wherein the step of processing is performed by the service provider and comprises the steps of:

determining whether additional provisioning information is required to grant the provisioning request; and

requesting any required additional provisioning information from the mobile communication device where additional provisioning information is required to grant the provisioning request.

46. The method of claim 39, wherein the step of preparing a provisioning request at the mobile communication device comprises the steps of:

retrieving mobile communication device information from a memory in the mobile communication device;

prompting a user for user information; and

incorporating the mobile communication device information and the user information into the provisioning request.

47. The method of claim 39, wherein the provisioning request is a service activation request.

48. The method of claim 39, wherein the provisioning request is a delete service provisioning request.

49. The method of claim 39, wherein the provisioning request is a modify service provisioning request.

51. The method of claim 39, further comprising the steps of:

where granting the provisioning request affects the second communication service, then;

aborting the processing of the provisioning information;

preparing a provisioning response indicating that the provisioning request could not be granted; and

sending the provisioning response to the mobile communication device.

52. The method of claim 39, further comprising the steps of:

where granting the provisioning request affects the second communication service, then;

sending an alert to the mobile communication device;

receiving a response to the alert from the mobile communication device, the response to the alert specifying that the processing of the provisioning information should either be aborted or proceed.

53. The method of claim 52, wherein the response to the alert specifies that the processing of the provisioning information should proceed based on the provisioning request.

54. The method of claim 52, wherein the response to the alert specifies new provisioning information to be processed.

55. The method of claim 39, wherein the step of preparing the provisioning request at the mobile communication device comprises the steps of:

identifying a first communication service with which the provisioning request is associated;

determining whether the first communication service is related to any other mobile communication device communication services; and

completing the provisioning request where first communication service is not related to any other mobile communication device communication services.

56. The method of claim 55, further comprising the steps of:

where the first communication service is related to any other mobile communication device communication services, then;

alerting a user of the mobile communication device; and

receiving a response to the alert from the user, the response to the alert specifying that the processing of the provisioning information should either proceed or not proceed.

57. The method of claim 56, further comprising the step of aborting the step of preparing the provisioning response where the response to the alert indicates that the provisioning request should not proceed.

58. The method of claim 56 further comprising the step of completing the provisioning request where the response to the alert indicates that the provisioning request should proceed.

40. (Cancelled)

50. (Cancelled)

63. A service provisioning system for a mobile communication device, comprising:

means for receiving a provisioning request, the provisioning request including provisioning information and specifying a provisioning operation and a first communication service;

means for determining whether a second communication service has been activated for the mobile communication device;

means for processing the provisioning information to determine whether the provisioning operation may be performed, where the second communication service has been activated for the mobile communication device; and

means for performing the provisioning operation for the first communication service where the provisioning operation may be performed;

wherein the provisioning operation for the first communication service is dependent upon activation of the second communication service.

59. The method of claim 68, wherein

the response to the alert includes new provisioning information;

and

the step of completing the provisioning request comprises adding the new provisioning information to the provisioning request.

60. The method of claim 59, wherein

the provisioning request is a modify service request;

and

the new provisioning information specifies how any related mobile communication device communication services should be modified.

61. The method of claim 59, wherein

the provisioning request is a delete service request;

and

the new provisioning information specifies a new communication service to replace the first communication service.

62. The method of claim 61, wherein the new provisioning information indicates that the new communication service should be activated.

64. The system of claim 63, further comprising:

means for preparing a provisioning response; and

means for sending the provisioning response.

65. The system of claim 64, wherein the means for preparing a provisioning response is operatively associated with the means for determining, the means for processing and the means for performing.

66. The system of claim 65, wherein the means for preparing a provisioning response is configured to incorporate an indication of a determination by the means for determining in the provisioning response.

67. The system of claim 65, wherein the means for preparing a provisioning response is configured to incorporate an indication of a result of the processing of the provisioning information by the means for processing in the provisioning response.

68. The system of claim 65, wherein the means for preparing a provisioning response is configured to incorporate an indication of a result of the provisioning operation in the provisioning response.

69. The system of claim 63, wherein the provisioning operation is a service activation.

70. The system of claim 69, further comprising:

second means for processing the provisioning information, to determine whether the provisioning operation may be performed for the second communication service, where the second communication service has been activated for the mobile communication device; and

second means for performing the provisioning operation for the second communication service where the provisioning operation may be performed for the second communication service.

71. The system of claim 63, wherein the first communication service is provided by a first service provider associated with a first service provider system.

72. The system of claim 71, wherein the means for receiving, the means for determining, the means for processing and the means for performing are implemented in the first service provider system.

73. The system of claim 71, wherein the means for receiving and the means for determining are implemented in a provisioning authority system.

74. The system of claim 73, wherein the means for processing and the means for performing are implemented in the first service provider system.

75. The system of claim 70, wherein the first communication service is provided by a first service provider associated with a first service provider system and the second communication service is provided by a second service provider associated with a second service provider system.

76. The system of claim 75, wherein

the means for receiving, the means for determining, the means for processing and the means for performing are implemented in the first service provider system;

and

the second means for processing and the second means for performing are implemented in the second service provider system.

77. The system of claim 75, wherein

the means for receiving and the means for determining are implemented in a provisioning authority system;

the means for processing and the means for performing are implemented in the first service provider system; and

the second means for processing and the second means for performing are implemented in the second service provider system.

78. The system of claim 63, wherein the second communication service is an electronic messaging service.

79. The system of claim 63, wherein the first communication service is an electronic message redirection service which redirects electronic messages received at an electronic messaging service system to the mobile communication device.

80. The system of claim 64, wherein the provisioning information includes mobile communication device information associated with the mobile communication device and mobile device user information associated with a user of the mobile communication device.

81. The system of claim 80, further comprising at least one interface system, each interface system operatively associated with the means for receiving and the means for sending the provisioning response.

82. The system of claim 81, wherein the at least one interface system includes an interface to the mobile communication device.

83. The system of claim 81, wherein the at least one interface system includes a publicly accessible internet page and a computer system operatively associated with the mobile communication device.

84. The system of claim 83, wherein the computer system comprises:

means for retrieving the mobile communication device information from the mobile communication device; and

means for prompting the user for the user information.

85. The system of claim 75, further comprising means for determining whether the second communication service is available from a third service provider, where the second communication service has not been activated for the mobile communication device.

86. A mobile communication device configured to operate within a wireless communication network, comprising:

means for preparing a provisioning request;

means for storing the provisioning request; and

means for transmitting the provisioning request to a provisioning authority when the mobile communication device enters a coverage area of the wireless communication network;

wherein the provisioning request includes a provisioning operation and specifies a first communication service and a second communication service for which the provisioning operation is requested, and wherein the provisioning authority determines whether the second communication service is active before provisioning the first communication service.

87. The mobile communication device of claim 86, wherein the means for preparing a provisioning request comprises a provisioning software application.

88. The mobile communication device of claim 86, wherein the means for preparing a provisioning request comprises:

means for retrieving mobile communication device information from a memory in the mobile communication device;

means for prompting a user of the mobile communication device for user information; and

means for incorporating the mobile communication device information and the user information into the provisioning request.

89. The mobile communication device of claim 88, wherein the mobile communication device information includes a mobile communication device identifier.

90. The mobile communication device of claim 88, wherein the user information includes a user name.

91. The mobile communication device of claim 88, wherein the user information includes billing information.

92. The mobile communication device of claim 86, wherein the provisioning request is a request selected from the group consisting of:

a service activation request, a delete service request and a modify service request.

94. The mobile communication device of claim 86, wherein:

the provisioning request is associated with a first communication service; and

the means for preparing a provisioning request further comprises;

means for determining whether the first service is related to any other mobile communication device communication services; and

means for completing the provisioning request where the first communication service is not related to any other mobile communication device communication services.

95. The mobile communication device of claim 94, further comprising:

means for alerting a user of the mobile communication device where the first communication service is related to any other mobile communication device communication services; and

means for receiving a response to the alert from the user.

96. The mobile communication device of claim 95, wherein the alert from the user indicates that the provisioning operation should either be aborted or proceed.

97. The mobile communication device of claim 96, wherein the means for completing the provisioning response proceeds to complete the provisioning response where the alert from the user indicates that the provisioning operation should proceed.

98. The mobile communication device of claim 97, wherein:

the response to the alert includes new provisioning information; and

the means for completing the provisioning request adds the new provisioning information to the provisioning request.

99. The mobile communication device of claim 97, wherein:

the provisioning request is a modify service request; and

the new provisioning information specifies how any other related mobile communication device communication services should be modified.

100. The mobile communication device of claim 97, wherein:

the provisioning request is a delete service request; and

the new provisioning information specifies a new communication service to replace the first communication service.

101. The mobile communication device of claim 86, further comprising means for receiving a response to the provisioning request from a provisioning authority, the provisioning response indicating whether the provisioning request was successful.

102. The mobile communication device of claim 101, further comprising means for configuring mobile communication device communication services in accordance with the provisioning response.

103. The mobile communication device of claim 86, further comprising second means for transmitting the provisioning request to a second communication device when the mobile communication device is in the vicinity of the second communication device, wherein the provisioning request is transmitted to the provisioning authority by the second communication device.

93. (Cancelled)

104. A provisioning authority system for managing service provisioning for mobile communication devices in a wireless communication system, comprising:

at least one provisioning interface;

means for receiving a provisioning request, operatively associated with each of the at least one interface systems, wherein the provisioning request is associated with a first communication service;

means for extracting provisioning information from the provisioning request;

means for distributing the provisioning information, wherein the means for distributing distributes the provisioning information to one of a plurality of means for processing provisioning information; and

means for determining whether granting the provisioning request affects a second communication service on the mobile communication device.

105. The system of claim 104, wherein the plurality of means for processing provisioning information comprises means for processing associated with services provided by the provisioning authority system.

106. The system of claim 104, wherein the plurality of means for processing provisioning information comprises a plurality of service provider systems associated with service providers external to the provisioning authority system.

107. The system of claim 105, wherein the plurality of means for processing provisioning information further comprises a plurality of service provider systems associated with service providers external to the provisioning authority system.

108. The system of claim 104, wherein the one of the plurality means for processing provisioning information processes the provisioning information to determine whether the provisioning request should be granted.

109. The system of claim 108, further comprising:

means for preparing a provisioning response indicating the result of the provisioning request; and

means for sending the provisioning response to the provisioning interface from which the request was received.

110. The system of claim 104, wherein the means for distributing further distributes the provisioning information to a billing system.

111. The system of claim 104, wherein the means for distributing further distributes the provisioning information to a mobile communication device warranty tracking system.

112. The system of claim 104, further comprising:

means for storing profile information for each of the plurality of means for processing provisioning information;

means for determining whether additional provisioning information is required to grant the provisioning requests based on the profile information; and

means for requesting any required additional provisioning information from the interface system from which the provisioning request was received, where additional provisioning information is required to grant the provisioning request.

114. The system of claim 104, further comprising:

means for sending an alert to the provisioning interface from which the provisioning request was received, where granting the provisioning request affects a second communication service; and

means for receiving a response to the alert from the mobile communication device, the response specifying that the processing of the provisioning information should either be aborted or proceed.

113. (Cancelled)