Enhanced telecommunications greeting system

• US 20080170672A1
• Filed: 01/16/2007
• Published: 07/17/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/16/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Cai, Yigang
• Application Number:
  US11/653,736
• Publication Number:
  US 20080170672A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/88.13
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2072 Schedules, e.g. personal calendars
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42059 Making use of the calling party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4211 where the identifier is used to access a profile
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53391 dependent on calling party

Abstract

This invention relates to a method and apparatus for returning custom greetings to callers of a station that is not answering a telecommunications call. The greeting can be a specific message for one caller, while other callers receive a standard greeting. Callers are identified by incoming calling line identification or by a uniform resource identifier. The message can be time sensitive so that it is activated only at specified times. The message can also be used to elicit a request from the caller to access data in the called party'"'"'s database. Advantageously, special messages can be left for individual callers without disturbing the normal answering process.

Claims

1. A method of responding to an incoming telecommunications call when a called party of said call does not answer the call, comprising the steps of:

receiving said telecommunications call;

obtaining an identification of a caller of said call;

determining whether the identified caller is to be given special greeting treatment on calls to the called party;

if it is determined that said caller is to be given special greeting treatment, obtaining data for providing said special greeting treatment to said caller; and

returning a greeting message to said caller based on said data for the identified caller.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said greeting message is used to request that said caller access data identified in said greeting message.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said greeting message provides an identification of a data file for said caller to access.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of returning a greeting message comprises the steps of:

sending a message to said caller to identify equipment and formats for receiving a greeting message;

receiving a response identifying equipment and formats usable by equipment of said caller; and

sending said greeting message in a format acceptable to said equipment of said caller.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein said greeting message is a multimedia message acceptable by equipment of said caller.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of obtaining an identification comprises the step of:

obtaining said identification by one of incoming calling line identification, internet protocol caller identification, or domain identification.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein different greetings are provided to said caller at different times.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

changing said data under the control of said called party.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein said greeting message comprises a file of data.

9. Apparatus for responding to an incoming telecommunications call when a called party of said call does not answer the call, comprising the steps of:

means for receiving said telecommunications call;

means for obtaining an identification of a caller of said call;

means for determining whether the identified caller is to be given special greeting treatment on calls to the called party;

responsive to a determination, means for that said caller is to be given special greeting treatment, obtaining data for providing said special greeting treatment to said caller; and

means for returning a greeting message to said caller based on said data for the identified caller.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said greeting message comprises data to request that said caller access data identified in said greeting message.

11. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said greeting message comprises data for identifying a data file for said caller to access.

12. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein means for returning a greeting message comprises:

means for sending a message to said caller to identify equipment and formats for receiving a greeting message;

means for receiving a response identifying equipment and formats usable by equipment of said caller; and

means for sending said greeting message in a format acceptable to said equipment of said caller.

13. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said greeting message comprises a multimedia message acceptable by equipment of said caller.

14. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said means for obtaining an identification comprises the step of:

means for obtaining said identification by one of incoming calling line identification, internet protocol caller identification, or domain identification.

15. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said means for returning a greeting message comprises means for returning different greeting messages to said caller at different times.

16. The apparatus of claim 9 further comprising means for changing said data under the control of said called party.

18. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said means for returning a greeting message comprises means for returning a file of data.