Method and apparatus for providing pre-connection messaging and output
First Claim
1. A method for processing a communication request from a first party comprising:
- receiving an identifier associated with a party to be contacted;
using said identifier to determine a level of service to be provided on behalf of the party associated with said identifier;
in response to determining a level of service, retrieving an announcement;
initiating a sending of the selected announcement to the first party;
detecting availability of the party to be contacted;
in response to said detecting availability establishing a connection for a communication path between the first party and the party to be contacted.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A method and apparatus for providing pre-connection messaging and output are provided. In an intelligent network (IN), a party initiating a communication link is presented with a message, an announcement, or other output, which can include audio, visual, or audio/visual output. While a communication link (e.g., a telephone call) an initiating party is attempting to establish via the IN is in the setup stage (e.g., the IN is attempting to connect the call), output is provided to the initiating party, such as in the form of a personalized “ringback” tone (PRBT) or other suitable output in addition to or in place of a standard ringing tone (RBT). The output is provided based on a subscriber'"'"'s preferences and according to one or more parameters or rules set by the subscriber, which is the receiving party to the communication link
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method for processing a communication request from a first party comprising:
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receiving an identifier associated with a party to be contacted;
using said identifier to determine a level of service to be provided on behalf of the party associated with said identifier;
in response to determining a level of service, retrieving an announcement;
initiating a sending of the selected announcement to the first party;
detecting availability of the party to be contacted;
in response to said detecting availability establishing a connection for a communication path between the first party and the party to be contacted. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A method for processing a telephone call from a calling party to a called party, comprising:
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receiving a called party identifier;
recognizing the called party identifier as being associated with an intelligent network service;
receiving a calling party identifier;
selecting a pre-connection announcement for transmission to the calling party depending on the calling party identifier and the associated intelligent network;
sending the selected pre-connection announcement to the calling party;
receiving a connection ready notice from the called party;
establishing a connection between the calling and called party upon receiving said connection ready notice. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8)
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9. A method for personalizing feedback to a calling party in an intelligent network, the method comprising:
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recognizing a party as a subscriber to the intelligent network;
presenting feedback announcement selection options to the subscriber;
receiving a first feedback announcement selection from the subscriber;
receiving information identifying a first caller to receive the selected first feedback announcement; and
associating said first feedback announcement and the information identifying the caller with the subscriber. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. In a system for processing telephone calls from a first party to a second party, apparatus comprising:
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an announcement storage system storing a plurality of feedback announcements;
a subscriber database storing information regarding a plurality of subscribers including a subscriber identifier, a calling party identifier and a feedback announcement identifier;
a controller coupled to said announcement storage system and said subscriber database and adapted to receive a calling party identifier during setup of a call from the first party to the second party; and
an announcement playback device coupled to said controller and adapted to direct a selected feedback announcement to a calling party during setup of a call from a first party to a second party based on a calling party identifier. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18)
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19. In a communication system for setting up calls between a calling party and a called party, an apparatus comprising
a service control point adapted to receive a call setup request for setting up a call between a calling party and a called party; - and
a specialized resource point coupled to said service control point and containing information identifying resource allocations on behalf of a called party in response to information regarding the calling party;
wherein resources for allocation include audio messages for selected playback to a calling party during call setup. - View Dependent Claims (20)
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Specification