Apparatus and method for providing message service

• US 20070180038A1
• Filed: 01/08/2007
• Published: 08/02/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/01/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Rhee, Young-ho, Woo, Joo-kyung, Jin, Young-kyu, Lee, Eun-jung
• Granted Patent: US 8,984,066 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/189 in combination with wireless systems selective distribution or broadcast in wireless communication networks H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication

Abstract

An apparatus and method for providing a message service are provided. The apparatus includes an input unit through which a user inputs a message and a list of recipients who will receive the message; a transmitter multicasting the message input by the user and identification information of the user to the recipient in the list; a receiver receiving answer messages from the recipients in the list; and a packet generating unit generating a combined message by combining the received answer messages with the message input by the user.

Claims

1. A message service providing apparatus comprising:

an input unit through which a user inputs a message and a list of recipients who will receive the message;

a transmission unit which multicasts the message input by the user and identification information of the user to the recipient in the list;

a reception unit which receives answer messages from the recipients in the list; and

a packet generating unit which generates a combined message by combining the received answer messages with the message input by the user.

2. The message service providing apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the message input by the user and the answer messages comprises content, and the content comprises at least one of a voice file, a music file, a still image file, and a video file.

3. The message service providing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the transmission unit transmits the combined message to the recipients in the list.

4. A message service providing apparatus comprising:

a reception unit which receives a first message packet comprising a first message and a list of recipients who will receive the message, wherein the first message is input by a first user;

an input unit through which a second user inputs a second message;

a packet generating unit which generates a second message packet by adding the second message to the first message; and

a transmission unit which transmits the second message packet to a recipient selected from the list of recipients.

5. The message service providing apparatus of claim 4, wherein the second message packet comprises the list of recipients.

6. The message service providing apparatus of claim 4, wherein at least one of the first and second messages comprises content.

7. The message service providing apparatus of claim 6, wherein the content comprises at least one of a voice file, a music file, a still image file and a video file.

8. The message service providing apparatus of claim 7 further comprising a storage unit storing the content.

9. The message service providing apparatus of claim 4, further comprising a control unit which inactivates a first region where identification information of the first user is recorded and a second region where identification information of the second user is recorded in the list of recipients.

10. The message service providing apparatus of claim 4, further comprising a graphic user interface providing unit which generates a plurality of graphic objects that correspond to the recipients in the list of recipients.

11. The message service providing apparatus of claim 10, wherein each graphic object of the plurality of graphic objects provides at least one of an identification information item corresponding to a respective one of the graphic objects, a message information item indicating whether there is a recipient-written message written by the corresponding recipient and a content information item corresponding to content attached by the corresponding recipient.

12. The message service providing apparatus of claim 11, wherein the message information item is provided through attributes of the graphic object.

13. The message service providing apparatus of claim 4, further comprising a control unit controlling access to the message input by the first user.

14. A method of providing a message service, the method comprising:

if a user inputs a message and a list of recipients comprising at least one recipient who will receive the message, multicasting the message input by the user and identification information of the user to the at least one recipient in the list of recipients;

receiving answer messages from the at least one recipient in the list of recipients; and

generating a combined message by combining the received answer messages with the message input by the user.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein at least one of the message input by the user and the answer messages comprises content, and the content comprises at least one of a voice file, a music file, a still image file and a video file.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the generating of the combined message comprises transmitting the generated combined message to the at least one recipient in the list of recipients.

17. A method of providing a message service, the method comprising:

receiving a first message packet comprising a first message and a list of recipients who will receive the first message, wherein a first user inputs the first message;

if a second user inputs a second message, generating a second message packet by adding the second message to the first message; and

transmitting the second message packet to a recipient selected from the list of recipients.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the second message packet comprises the list of recipients.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein at least one of the first and second messages comprises content.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the content comprises at least one of a voice file, a music file, a still image file and a video file.

21. The method of claim 17, wherein the receiving of the first message packet comprises:

generating a plurality of graphic objects that correspond to recipients in the list of recipients; and

providing through a graphic object of the plurality of graphic objects at least one of an identification information item corresponding to the graphic object, a message information item indicating whether there is a recipient-written message written by the corresponding recipient, and a content information item corresponding to content attached by the corresponding recipient.

22. The method of claim 17, wherein the inputting of the second message comprises inactivating a first region where identification information on the first user is recorded and a second region where identification information on the second user is recorded in the list of recipients.

23. The method claim 17, further comprising controlling access to the first message.

24. A computer-readable recording medium storing a program for performing a method of providing a message service, the method comprising:

receiving a first message packet comprising a first message and a list of recipients who will receive the first message, wherein the first message is input by a first user;

if a second user inputs a second message, generating a second message packet by adding the second message to the first message; and

transmitting the second message packet to a recipient selected from the list of recipients.