System and method of providing voice communication

• US 20080104630A1
• Filed: 10/25/2006
• Published: 05/01/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: SBC Knowledge Ventures LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bruce, Les, Sullivan, Marc A., Brandt, Jeffrey L., Hubscher, Mark B.
• Granted Patent: US 8,045,700 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1059 End-user terminal functionalities specially adapted for real-time communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1093 by adding participants; by removing participants
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1094 Inter-user-equipment sessions transfer or sharing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1096 Supplementary features, e.g. call forwarding or call holding systems providing special services or facilities to telephony subscribers H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4122 additional display device, e.g. video projector digital output for controlling a plurality of local displays G06F3/1423
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6175 involving transmission via Internet broadcast-related systems characterised by the transmission system being the Internet H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6187 involving transmission via a telephone network, e.g. POTS
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only

Abstract

A method is presented of providing voice communication, including receiving at a set-top box device a selection of a first contact, receiving data indicating that a first call has been placed to a phone associated with the first contact, and sending data to a display device coupled to the set-top box device indicating that the first call has been placed to the phone associated with first contact. The method may further include sending data identifying the first contact and the user phone to a communication server of an Internet Protocol Television system, wherein the communication server places the first call to the phone associated with first contact and routes the first call to the user phone.

Claims

1. A method of providing voice communication, the method comprising:

receiving, at a set-top box device, a selection of a first contact;

receiving data at the set-top box device indicating that a first call has been placed to a phone associated with the first contact; and

sending data to a display device coupled to the set-top box device, the data indicating that the first call has been placed to the phone associated with the first contact.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a selection of a user phone at the set-top box device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the data sent to the display device indicates that the first call can be joined via the user phone.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising sending data identifying the first contact and the user phone to a communication server of an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) system, wherein the communication server places the first call to the first contact and routes the first call to the user phone.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising receiving a selection of a call placement indicator before sending data identifying the first contact and the user phone to the communication server.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the call placement indicator is a click-to-call graphic indicator displayed at the display device.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at the set-top box device, a second selection of a second contact;

receiving data indicting that a second call has been placed to a second phone associated with the second contact; and

sending data to the display device, the data indicating that the second call has been placed to the second phone associated with the second contact.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising sending data identifying the second contact and the user phone to a communication server of an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) system, wherein the communication server places the second call to the second contact and routes the second call to the user phone to be conferenced with the first call.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first contact is selected at the set-top box device via a network address book, a call log, a voice mail indicator, a manual entry, or any combination thereof.

10. A method of providing voice communication, the method comprising:

receiving contact selection data from a set-top box device at a communication server of an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) system, the contact selection data indicating a selection of a contact;

placing a call to a phone associated with the contact and routing the call to a user phone; and

sending call placement data to the set-top box device indicating that the call has been placed to the phone.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising receiving user phone selection data indicating a selection of the user phone.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the contact is selected from a contact source comprising a network address book, a call log, a voice mail indicator, or any combination thereof, stored at the IPTV system.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising receiving edited information related to the contact from the set-top box device and storing the edited information in at least one field of the contact source.

14. A set-top box-device comprising:

a processor; and

a memory accessible to the processor, wherein the memory device includes instructions executable by the processor to receive a selection of a contact, determine whether a call has been placed to a phone associated with the contact, and send data to a display device coupled to the set-top box device, the data indicating that the call has been placed to the phone associated with contact.

15. The set-top box device of claim 14, wherein the selection of the contact includes a selection of a field comprising a name, a phone number, an email address, a street address, a photograph, or any combination thereof, the field displayed at a display device coupled to the set-top box device.

16. The set-top box device of claim 15, wherein the memory device includes instructions to receive edited information related to the field.

17. A computer-readable medium tangibly embodying instructions to manipulate a computing platform to:

receive, at a set-top box device, a selection of a contact;

receive, at the set-top box device, a selection of a user phone;

determine whether a call has been placed to a phone associated with the contact;

send data to a display device coupled to the set-top box device, the data indicating that the call has been placed to the phone associated with the contact, the data further indicating that the call can be joined via the user phone.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the phone associated with the contact is a Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) phone.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the phone associated with the contact is a wireless phone.