CONTACT SERVER FOR CALL CENTER

• US 20090161858A1
• Filed: 12/19/2008
• Published: 06/25/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/1997
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: MCI Communications Corporation (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Goss, Raymond G., Ravenscroft, Donald
• Granted Patent: US 8,559,615 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/265.90
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1106 Call signalling protocols; H.323 and related
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/401 wherein the services involve a main real-time session and one or more additional parallel real-time or time sensitive sessions, e.g. white board sharing or spawning of a subconference
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5191 interacting with the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5231 with call back arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5233 Operator skill based call distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5237 Interconnection arrangements between ACD systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0027 Collaboration services where a computer is used for data transfer and the telephone is used for telephonic communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/003 Click to dial services

Abstract

The present invention is a Contact server that enables customers to submit call-back requests to a call center via the Internet, or virtually any other communications technology available. A call-back to the customer can be placed via any communications technology available. In its preferred embodiment, the Contact Server enables a call-back request to be submitted by a customer directly from an HTML page on a Web site, and have that same HTML page be presented to the agent that receives the call-back request. The agent can then place a telephone call to the number provided by the customer who submitted the call-back request, and at the same time, establish a TCP/IP communications session with the customer. This TCP/IP session can proceed between the agent'"'"'s Web browser and the customer'"'"'s Web browser, and the visible actions performed by the agent are transferred to the customer and displayed on the customer'"'"'s browser. The TCP/IP session proceeds simultaneous with the telephone call between the agent and the customer.

Claims

1-71. -71. (canceled)

72. An automated method comprising:

providing, via a server device, a plurality of user support services categories;

receiving, via the server device, a support request from the user, where the support request selects one of said plurality of the user support services categories;

in response to the received support request, identifying, via the server device, a user support party associated with said selected one of said plurality of user support services categories, and

forwarding, via the server device, the received support request is forwarded to said identified user support party.

73. The method of claim 72, where the forwarding comprises sending a uniform resource locator to the to the user support party, where the uniform resource locator is associated with a web page with which the support request was made.

74. The method of claim 72,

where the forwarding comprises sending, to the user support party, a user identifier to identify the user,

where the user identifier includes at least one of:

a name of the user,

a telephone number of the user, or

a network address associated with the user.

75. The method of claim 72, where the plurality of user support services categories includes at least two of:

new orders,

billing services,

product shipments or returns,

technical support, or

trouble ticketing.

76. The method of claim 72, further comprising:

determining, via the server device, an identifier associated with the user,

where the identifying of the user support party is further in response to the determined identifier associated with the user.

77. A system comprising:

a web server to;

provide, to a user, a plurality of user support services categories,

receive a support request from the user, where the support request selects one of said plurality of user support services categories, and

identify, in response to the received support request, a user support party associated with said selected one of said plurality of user support services categories; and

a contact server to;

forward the support request to said identified user support party.

78. The system of claim 77, where the contact server is further to:

send, to the user support party, a uniform resource locator, where the uniform resource locator is associated with a web page via which the user made the support request.

79. The system of claim 77, where the contact server is further to:

send, to the user support party, at least one of;

a name of the user,

a telephone number of the user, or

a network address associated with the user.

80. The system of claim 77, where the plurality of user support services categories comprises at least two of:

new orders,

billing services,

product shipments or returns,

technical support, or

trouble ticketing.

81. The system of claim 77, where the web server is further to:

determine an identifier associated with the user, and

when identifying the user support party, identify the user support party in response to the determined identifier associated with the user.

82. An automated method comprising:

receiving, via a server device, data associated with a request, from a user, for support services, where data associated with the request for the support services includes at least one of;

a user identifier that identifies the user, or

a uniform resource locator associated with a first web page, where the user uses the first web page to make the request for the support services;

accessing, via the server, a second web page, where the accessing is based on the received data; and

in response to the receiving of the data associated with the request for the support services and the accessing of the second web page, establishing, via the server device, a communications link with the user.

83. The method of claim 82,

where the data associated with the request for the support services includes the uniform resource locator associated with the first web page that the user used to make the request for the support services, and

where the accessed second web page includes the first web page.

84. The method of claim 82, further comprising:

sending, via the server and through the communications link, user support information to the user, where the sending is in response to the receiving of the data associated with the request for the support services and the accessing of the second web page.

85. The method of claim 82, where the communications link comprises a transmission control protocol/internet protocol link.

86. The method of claim 82, further comprising:

receiving, by the server and from the communications link, information associated with events performed by the user, where the events are related to the request for the support services.

87. A system comprising:

a web server to;

receive, from a user, data associated with a request for support services, where data associated with the request for the support services includes at least one of;

a user identifier, or

a uniform resource locator associated with a first web page that the user used to make the request for the support services; and

access, based on the received data, a second web page; and

a contact server to;

establish, in response to the receiving of the data associated with the for support services and the accessing of the second web page, a communications link with the user.

88. The system of claim 87, where

the received data includes the uniform resource locator associated with the first web page that the user used to make the request for the support services, and

the accessed second web page includes the first web page.

89. The system of claim 87, where the processing device is further to send, in response to the receiving of the data associated with the request for the support services and the accessing of the second web page, user support information to the user via the communications link.

90. The system of claim 87, where the communications link comprises a transmission control protocol/internet protocol link.

91. The system of claim 87, where the system is further to:

receive, via the established communications link, data related to a plurality of events performed by the user, where the plurality of the events are related to the request for the support services, and

display information associated with the plurality of the events.