OVER THE AIR PROVISIONING OF MOBILE DEVICE SETTINGS

• US 20110070877A1
• Filed: 11/30/2010
• Published: 03/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SITO Mobile R&D IP, LLC
• Original Assignee: Single Touch Interactive Incorporated (SITO Mobile, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Macaluso, Anthony G.
• Granted Patent: US 8,862,115 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/419
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/445 Program loading or initiating bootstrapping G06F9/4401; security arrangements for program loading or initiating G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72406 by software upgrading or downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/49 Connection to several service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/51 for resellers, retailers or service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/80 Rating or billing plans; Tariff determination aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42178 by downloading data to substation equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/205 Transfer to or from user equipment or user record carrier

Abstract

Techniques and systems for providing services to a mobile device allow settings on the mobile device to be provisioned over the air. In response to a request for mobile service subscription options received from the mobile device, data relating to mobile service subscription options, for selection by a user of the mobile device, may be sent to the mobile device over a wireless communication path. A selection of one or more subscription options may be received from the mobile device over the wireless communication path, and a service corresponding to the selected subscription options may be activated in response to the selection. Settings associated with the selected subscription options may be downloaded over the air to the mobile device, which may store the settings to enable the mobile device to access the subscription.

Claims

1. A mobile device comprising:

a memory comprising an application comprising executable instructions to configure the mobile device for use with a particular service provider; and

a processor to execute the instructions to;

send a first setup request to a remote computing device upon an initial activation of the mobile device;

receive a response to the first setup request at the mobile device, the response comprising a list of service providers;

display the list of service providers at the mobile device;

send a selected provider signal to the remote computing device in response to receiving a selection of the particular service provider from the list of service providers;

receive another response to the selected provider signal at the mobile device, the other response comprising settings data for the particular service provider; and

store the settings data in a storage medium of the mobile device, wherein the settings data is used to configure operation settings for the mobile device to enable the mobile device to be operable with the particular service provider.

2. The mobile device of claim 1 wherein the processor further executes the instructions to configure the operation settings for the mobile device based on the settings data.

3. The mobile device of claim 1 wherein the processor is further configured to:

display an update service provider option at the mobile device;

send a second setup request to the remote computing device in response to receiving an input selecting the update service provider option;

receive a second response to the second setup request at the mobile, the second response comprising a second list of service providers;

display the second list of service providers at the mobile device;

send a second selected provider signal to the remote computing device in response to receiving a second selection of a second particular service provider from the second list of service providers;

receive another second response to the second selected provider signal at the mobile device, the other second response comprising second settings data for the second particular service provider; and

store the second settings data in the storage medium of the mobile device, wherein the second settings data is used to reconfigure operation settings for the mobile device to enable the mobile device to be operable with the second particular service provider.

4. The mobile device of claim 3 wherein the processor is configured to display the update service provider option at the mobile device after the settings data has been stored in the storage medium for a predetermined time interval.

5. The mobile device of claim 3 wherein the processor uses the second settings data to reconfigure the operation settings for the mobile device.

6. The mobile device of claim 1 wherein the application is used with at least one mobile device platform selected from a group consisting of a Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless (BREW) platform and a Java platform on the mobile device.

7. The mobile device of claim 1 wherein the list of service providers comprises a plurality of mutually exclusive mobile communication services.

8. A mobile device comprising:

a memory comprising an application comprising executable instructions to configure the mobile device for use with a particular service provider;

a storage medium to store a list of service providers; and

a processor to execute the instructions to;

retrieve the list of service providers from the storage medium;

display the list of service providers at the mobile device;

send a selected provider signal to a remote computing device in response to receiving a selection of the particular service provider from the list of service providers;

receive a response to the selected provider signal at the mobile device, the response comprising settings data for the particular service provider; and

store the settings data in the storage medium of the mobile device, wherein the settings data is used to configure operation settings for the mobile device to enable the mobile device to be operable with the particular service provider.

9. The mobile device of claim 8 wherein the processor further executes the instructions to configure the operation settings for the mobile device based on the settings data.

10. The mobile device of claim 8 wherein the processor is further configured to:

display an update service provider option at the mobile device;

retrieve the list of service providers from the storage medium in response to input selecting the service provider option;

display the list of service providers at the mobile device;

send a second selected provider signal to the remote computing device in response to receiving a second selection of a different particular service provider from the list of service providers;

receive a second response to the second selected provider signal at the mobile device, the second response comprising second settings data for the second particular service provider; and

store the second settings data in the storage medium of the mobile device, wherein the second settings data is used to reconfigure operation settings for the mobile device to enable the mobile device to be operable with the second particular service provider.

11. The mobile device of claim 10 wherein the processor is configured to display the update service provider option at the mobile device after the settings data has been stored in the storage medium for a predetermined time interval.

12. The mobile device of claim 10 wherein the processor further uses the second settings data to reconfigure the operation settings for the mobile device.

13. The mobile device of claim 8 wherein the application is used with at least one mobile device platform selected from a group consisting of a Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless (BREW) platform and a Java platform.

14. The mobile device of claim 8 wherein the list of service providers comprises a plurality of mutually exclusive mobile communication services.

15. A method for configuring a mobile device for use with a particular service provider, the method comprising:

storing a list of service providers in a storage medium of the mobile device;

retrieving the list of service providers from the storage medium;

displaying the list of service providers at the mobile device;

sending a selected provider signal to a remote computing device in response to receiving a selection of the particular service provider from the list of service providers;

receiving a response to the selected provider signal at the mobile device, the response comprising settings data for the particular service provider; and

storing the settings data in the storage medium of the mobile device, wherein the settings data is used to configure operation settings for the mobile device to enable the mobile device to be operable with the particular service provider.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising configuring the operation settings for the mobile device at a processor of the mobile device based on the settings data.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein further comprising:

displaying an update service provider option at the mobile device;

receiving input at the mobile device selecting the service provider option;

retrieving the list of service providers from the storage medium in response to the input;

displaying the list of service providers at the mobile device;

receiving a second selection of a different particular service provider from the list of service providers

sending a second selected provider signal to the remote computing device in response to the second selection;

receiving a second response to the second selected provider signal at the mobile device, the second response comprising second settings data for the second particular service provider; and

storing the second settings data in the storage medium of the mobile device, wherein the second settings data is used to reconfigure operation settings for the mobile device to enable the mobile device to be operable with the second particular service provider.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein displaying the update service provider option comprises displaying the update service provider option at the mobile device after the settings data has been stored in the storage medium for a predetermined time interval.

19. The method of claim 17 further comprising reconfiguring the operation settings for the mobile device at the processor based on the second settings data.

20. The method of claim 15 wherein the list of service providers comprises a plurality of mutually exclusive mobile communication services.

21. A method for configuring a mobile device for use with a particular service provider, the method comprising:

sending a first setup request to a remote computing device upon an initial activation of the mobile device;

receiving a response to the first setup request at the mobile device, the response comprising a list of service providers;

displaying the list of service providers at the mobile device;

sending a selected provider signal to the remote computing device in response to receiving a selection of the particular service provider from the list of service providers;

receiving another response to the selected provider signal at the mobile device, the other response comprising settings data for the particular service provider; and

storing the settings data in a storage medium of the mobile device, wherein the settings data is used to configure operation settings for the mobile device to enable the mobile device to be operable with the particular service provider.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein further comprising configuring the operation settings for the mobile device at a processor of the mobile device based on the settings data.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein further comprising:

displaying an update service provider option at the mobile device;

sending a second setup request to the remote computing device in response to receiving an input selecting the update service provider option;

receiving a second response to the second setup request at the mobile, the second response comprising a second list of service providers;

displaying the second list of service providers at the mobile device;

sending a second selected provider signal to the remote computing device in response to receiving a second selection of a second particular service provider from the second list of service providers;

receiving another second response to the second selected provider signal at the mobile device, the other second response comprising second settings data for the second particular service provider; and

storing the second settings data in the storage medium of the mobile device, wherein the second settings data is used to reconfigure operation settings for the mobile device to enable the mobile device to be operable with the second particular service provider.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein the processor is configured to display the update service provider option at the mobile device after the settings data has been stored in the storage medium for a predetermined time interval.

25. The method of claim 23 further comprising reconfiguring the operation settings for the mobile device at the processor based on the second settings data.

26. The method of claim 21 wherein the list of service providers comprises a plurality of mutually exclusive mobile communication services.