Apparatus, and associated method, for facilitating delivery and processing of push content

• US 20070197196A1
• Filed: 02/22/2006
• Published: 08/23/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Shenfield, Michael, Vitanov, Kamen, Bibr, Viera, Fritsch, Brindusa, Karmakar, Srimantee, Matovsky, Michael
• Application Number:
  US11/359,988
• Publication Number:
  US 20070197196A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/412.2
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5651 Reducing the amount or size of exchanged application data

Abstract

Apparatus, and an associated method, for facilitating delivery and processing of asynchronous push content communicated to a mobile station of a radio communication system. Replace outdated and background processing attributes are defined and operated upon the communicated content. Use of the replace outdated attribute avoids display of other than most-recent content, and use of the background processing attribute permits operations to be performed upon the push content, even when an application with which the push content is associated, is not active.

Claims

1. Apparatus for a communication device operable pursuant to a push content communication scheme, said apparatus comprising:

a notification processing attribute identifier configured to identify at least a first selected notification processing attribute; and

a push content operator adapted to receive indications of the first selected notification attribute and to receive push content, said push content operator configured to operate upon the push content in a manner corresponding to an appropriate notification attribute of the at least the first selected notification processing attribute.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first selected notification processing attribute identified by said notification processing attribute identifier comprises a replace outdated attribute and wherein said push content operator operates upon the push content to replace outdated parts of the push content according to a replacement rules set.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said push content operator time-orders the push content, and wherein the outdated parts of the push content are replaced according to the time-ordering of the push content.

4. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said push content operator further identifies each portion of the push content with a unique message identifier and wherein the outdated parts of the push content are replaced according to values of the unique message identifiers associated with the portions of the push content.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first selected notification processing attribute identified by said identification processing attribute identifier comprises a background processing attribute and wherein said push content operator operates upon the push content in a background mode.

6. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the communication device comprises a content client and updateable application internal data and wherein said push content operator operates upon the push content while the content client is closed.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the communication device further comprises an application message store configured to store content data messages and wherein said push content operator operates upon the push content messages stored at the application message store.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein push content delivered to the communication device is queued at the application message store when the content client is closed.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the communication device comprises a mobile station having a content client and wherein said notification processing identifier comprises content metadata stored at the mobile station.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said push content operator is embodied at the mobile station, configured to access the metadata stored at the mobile station and to receive the push content.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the communication device comprises a network server having the push content available thereat and wherein said notification processing identifier comprises content metadata stored at the network server.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein said push content operator is embodied at the network server, configured to access the metadata stored at the network server and to receive the push content.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the communication device comprises a proxy server to which the push content is routed and wherein said notification processing identifier comprises content metadata available at the proxy server.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein said push content operator is embodied at the proxy server, configured to access the metadata stored at the proxy server and to receive the push content.

15. A method for utilizing push content at a communication device operable pursuant to a push content communication scheme, said method comprising the operations of:

identifying at least a first selected notification processing attribute; and

operating upon the push content in a manner corresponding to an appropriate notification attribute of the at least the first selected notification processing attribute.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the first selected notification processing attribute identified during said operation of identifying comprises a replace outdated attribute.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein said operation of operating comprises replacing outdated parts of the push content.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the first selected notification processing attribute identified during said operation of identifying comprises a background processing attribute.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein said operation of operating comprises operating upon the push content in a background mode.

20. The method of claim 15 wherein the communication device comprises a mobile station, wherein said method further comprises the operation of pushing the push content to the mobile station, and wherein said operations of identifying and operating are performed at the mobile station.

21. Apparatus for a mobile station operable to receive push content communicated thereto, said apparatus comprising:

a notification processing attribute identifier configured to identify at least a first selected notification processing attribute; and

a push content operator adapted to receive indications of the first selected notification attribute and the push content received at the mobile station, said push content operator configured to operate upon the push content in a manner corresponding to an appropriate notification attribute of the at least the first selected notification processing attribute.

22. The apparatus of claim 21 wherein the mobile station further comprises a user display and wherein said push content operator is configured to operate upon the push content prior to display by the user display.

23. The apparatus of claim 21 wherein the first selected notification processing attribute identified by said notification processing attribute identifier comprises a replace outdated attribute and wherein said push content operator operates upon the push content to replace outdated parts of the push content according to a replacement rules set.

24. The apparatus of claim 23 wherein said push content operator time-orders the push content, and wherein the outdated parts of the push content are replaced according to the time-ordering of the push content.

25. The apparatus of claim 23 wherein said push content operator further identifies each portion of the push content with a unique message identifier and wherein the outdated parts of the push content are replaced according to values of the unique message identifiers associated with the portions of the push content.

26. The apparatus of claim 21 wherein the first selected notification processing attribute identified by said identification processing attribute identifier comprises a background processing attribute and wherein said push content operator operates upon the push content in a background mode.

27. The apparatus of claim 24 wherein the mobile station comprises a content client and updateable application internal data and wherein said push content operator operates upon the push content while the content client is closed.

28. The apparatus of claim 26 wherein the mobile station further comprises an application message store configured to store content data messages and wherein said push content operator operates upon the push content stored at the application message store.

29. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein push content delivered to the mobile station is queued at the application message store when the content client is closed.

30. Apparatus for a network device operable pursuant to a push content communication scheme in which push content is asynchronously pushed, said apparatus comprising:

a notification processing attribute identifier configured to identify at least a first selected notification processing attribute; and

a push content operator adapted to receive indications of the first selected notification attribute and to receive push content that is to be asynchronously pushed, said push content operator configured to operate upon the push content in a manner corresponding to an appropriate notification attribute of the at least the first selected notification processing attribute.

31. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein the first selected notification processing attribute identified by said notification processing attribute identifier comprises a replace outdated attribute and wherein said push content operator operates upon the push content to replace outdated parts of the push content according to a replacement rules set.

32. The apparatus of claim 31 wherein said push content operator time-orders the push content, and wherein the outdated parts of the push content are replaced according to the time-ordering of the push content.

33. The apparatus of claim 32 wherein said push content operator further identifies each portion of the push content with a unique message identifier and wherein the outdated parts of the push content are replaced according to values of the unique message identifiers associated with the portions of the push content.

34. The apparatus of claim 30 further comprising a push handler, said push handler configured to push the push content once operated upon by said push content operator.