METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR CLIENT CONTEXT DISSEMINATION FOR WEB-BASED APPLICATIONS

• US 20090327401A1
• Filed: 05/20/2008
• Published: 12/31/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: RPX Clearinghouse LLC (RPX Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Inventors: GAGE, William A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,554,718 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/16 Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs coordinating program control therefor G06F9/52; in regulating and control system G05B
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/22 Parsing or analysis of headers

Abstract

A method advertises the existence of a subscriber profile service on a communication network. A first data request sent from a client device to an application server is intercepted. The first data request is modified by inserting an advertisement of contextual information relating to the existence of the subscriber profile service into the first data request prior to transmission to the application server. The modified data request is transmitted to the application server.

Claims

1. A method for advertising the existence of a subscriber profile service on a communication network, the method comprising:

intercepting a first data request sent from a client device to an application server;

modifying the data request by inserting an advertisement of contextual information relating to the existence of the subscriber profile service into the first data request prior to transmission to the application server; and

transmitting the modified data request to the application server.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the advertisement of contextual information is inserted using an extension header for the first data request.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the extension header includes a Uniform Resource Locator (“

URL”

) for the subscriber profile server, a client field identifying a subscriber, a profile field identifying a type of profile maintained by the subscriber profile server, and an aspect field listing a type of information for a specific profile.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the extension header further includes at least one of a URL identifying an electronic payment service, a URL identifying an end point reference, and a random number generated for encryption purposes.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the extension header further includes the contextual information, the contextual information being expressed according to the aspect field.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the type of profile is at least one of a profile identifier, a location profile, a device profile, a demography profile, a personal profile, a contact profile, a professional profile, a presence profile, a preferences profile, a network resource usage profile, and an identity profile.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a second data request from the application server identifying the advertised contextual information that the application server wishes to access;

retrieving the identified contextual information from the subscriber profile service; and

transmitting the contextual information to the application server.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

prior to retrieving the contextual information, verifying that the application server is authorized to receive the contextual information.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

prior to transmitting the contextual information, encrypting the contextual information.

10. A network access service device comprising:

a subscriber profile service including contextual information relating to at least one of a client and a subscriber; and

a client proxy communicatively coupled to the subscriber profile service, the client proxy;

intercepting a first data request sent from the client device to an application server on a communication network;

modifying the data request by inserting an advertisement of contextual information relating to the existence of the subscriber profile service into the first data request prior to transmission to the application server; and

transmitting the modified data request to the application server.

11. The network access service device of claim 10, wherein the advertisement of contextual information is inserted using an extension header for the first data request.

12. The network access service device of claim 11, wherein the extension header includes a Uniform Resource Locator (“

URL”

) for the subscriber profile server, a client field identifying a subscriber, a profile field identifying a type of profile maintained by the subscriber profile server, and an aspect field listing a type of information for a specific profile.

13. The network access service device of claim 12, wherein the extension header further includes at least one of a URL identifying an electronic payment service, a URL identifying an end point reference, and a random number generated for encryption purposes.

14. The network access service device of claim 13, wherein the extension header further includes the contextual information, the contextual information being expressed according to the aspect field.

15. The network access service device of claim 12, wherein the type of profile is at least one of a profile identifier, a location profile, a device profile, a demography profile, a personal profile, a contact profile, a professional profile, a presence profile, a preferences profile, a network resource usage profile, and an identity profile.

16. The network access service device of claim 10, wherein the subscriber profile service:

receives a second data request from the application server identifying the advertised contextual information that the application server wishes to access;

retrieves the identified contextual information; and

transmits the contextual information to the application server.

17. The network access service device of claim 16, wherein prior to retrieving the contextual information, the subscriber profile service further verifies that the application server is authorized to receive the contextual information.

18. The network access service device of claim 17, wherein prior to transmitting the contextual information, the subscriber profile service further encrypts the contextual information.

19. A method for announcing contextual information maintained at a subscriber profile server on a communication network, the contextual information relating to at least one of a client device and a subscriber to a network access service provider, the method comprising:

intercepting a first data request sent from the client device to an application server;

modifying the data request by inserting the contextual information into the first data request as an extension header prior to transmission to the application server; and

transmitting the modified data request to the application server.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

prior to transmitting the modified data request, encrypting the contextual information.