System and method of providing communications services

• US 20080080368A1
• Filed: 09/29/2006
• Published: 04/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sbc Knowledge Ventures, L.P.
• Original Assignee: Sbc Knowledge Ventures, L.P.
• Inventors: Fan, James, Pok, Chou Lan, Kuo, Richard T., Meng, Kevin Xiangkai
• Granted Patent: US 8,031,594 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/229
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/509 wherein the managed service relates to media content delivery, e.g. audio, video or TV
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles

Abstract

Disclosed are a system and method of providing communications services. In a particular embodiment, the method includes receiving data related to an attainable bandwidth of a communications loop coupled to a customer premise equipment (CPE) device, wherein at least one first communications service is provided by a private access network via the CPE device. The method also includes selecting at least one additional communications service to be offered, the at least one additional communications service selected based at least partially on the attainable bandwidth.

Claims

1. A method of providing communications services, the method comprising:

receiving data related to an attainable bandwidth of a communications loop coupled to a customer premise equipment (CPE) device, wherein at least one first communications service is provided by a private access network via the CPE device; and

selecting at least one additional communications service to be offered, the at least one additional communications service selected based at least partially on the attainable bandwidth.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving data related to an extent or an absence of a bandwidth limitation of the private access network, wherein the at least one additional communications service is selected based at least partially on the extent or the absence of the bandwidth limitation.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving data related to at least one promotional offer, at least one rule for selecting additional communications services, or any combination thereof, from a promotions data store, wherein the at least one additional communications service is selected based at least partially on the at least one promotional offer, the at least one rule, or any combination thereof.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one additional communications service is selected based at least partially on the at least one first communication service.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending data related to an offer of the at least one additional communications service to a communications device.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving a request for communications services from an ordering system; and

sending the data related to the offer to the ordering system, wherein the ordering system communicates the offer via the communications device.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the at least one additional communications service is selected based at least partially on at least one communications service ordered via the ordering system.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether the attainable bandwidth is greater than a theoretical bandwidth of the communications loop; and

selecting the at least one additional communications service when the attainable bandwidth is greater than the theoretical bandwidth.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

receiving data related to actual bandwidth usage when the attainable bandwidth is not greater than the theoretical bandwidth; and

selecting, when the actual bandwidth usage is lower than the theoretical bandwidth, at least one service enhancement to be offered.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the at least one service enhancement includes a high-definition stream of a television program.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first communications service and the at least one additional communications service include voice services, video services, data services, or any combination thereof.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the first communications service and the at least one additional communications service include at least two of voice services, video services, data services.

13. A method of providing communications services, the method comprising:

receiving an order at an ordering system for a first communications service to be provided to a user; and

receiving data related to at least one additional communications service to be offered to the user from a promotion system, wherein the promotion system selects the at least one additional communications service based at least partially on an attainable bandwidth of a communications loop coupled to a customer premise equipment (CPE) device.

14. The method of claims 13, further comprising sending a request to the promotion system for one or more additional communications services to be offered.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the order is received via a communications portal.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the communications portal is an Internet portal and the order is received from a field technician computing device.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the communications portal is an Internet portal and the order is received from a user computing device.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the communications portal is an interactive voice response (IVR) system and the order is received from a user POTS phone or a user Voice-over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the communications portal is a set-top box device communication portal and the order is received from a set-top box device coupled to the CPE device.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising offering the at least one additional communications service via the communications portal.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

receiving an acceptance of the at least one addition communications service from the user; and

sending data related to the acceptance to a billing system, at least one system adapted to activate the at least one additional communications service, the promotion system, or any combination thereof.

22. The method of claim 20, further comprising offering the at least one additional communications service via a plurality of communications devices of the user.

23. A method of providing communications services, the method comprising receiving data related to an offer of at least one communications service from a service provider system at a user communications device via a communications loop, wherein the service provider system selects the at least one communications service based at least partially on an attainable bandwidth of the communications loop.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the service provider system selects the at least one communications service based at least partially on a first service provided from a private network via the communications loop, at least one service previously offered to the user, a network bandwidth limitation associated with the private network, or any combination thereof.

25. A system to provide communications services, the system comprising:

a processor and a memory device accessible to the processor;

wherein the memory device includes instructions to communicate with a communications service ordering system to receive a request for data related to at least one selected communications service;

wherein the memory device includes instructions to retrieve an attainable bandwidth value associated with an identification of a user from a bandwidth management system and to compare the attainable bandwidth value with a theoretical bandwidth value; and

wherein the memory device includes instructions to select the at least one selected communications service based at least partially on the attainable bandwidth value, when the attainable bandwidth value exceeds the theoretical bandwidth value.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the memory device includes instructions to communicate with the communications service ordering system to receive an indication that the user has accepted the at least one selected communications service and to send data related to the indication to the bandwidth management system.

27. The system of claim 25, wherein the attainable bandwidth value is received from a network capacity validator that communicates with the bandwidth management system to receive data related to an attainable bandwidth of a communications loop associated with the user on a periodic basis, when a communication is received from the user, or any combination thereof.

28. A computer-readable medium having a group of instructions executable to:

communicate with an element management system to receive data related to an attainable bandwidth value related to a communications loop coupled to a customer premise equipment (CPE) device, wherein at least one first communications service is provided by a private access network via the CPE device; and

offer at least one selected additional communications service, the at least one additional communications service selected based at least partially on the attainable bandwidth.

29. The computer-readable medium of claim 28, wherein the instructions are included in a client application stored at a communications service field technician computing device.

30. The computer-readable medium of claim 29, further comprising instructions executable to determine whether the CPE device has been installed at a premise.