CONTROLLING DELIVERY OF NOTIFICATIONS IN REAL-TIME COMMUNICATIONS BASED ON COMMUNICATION CHANNEL STATE

• US 20140187214A1
• Filed: 02/17/2014
• Published: 07/03/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Travis, Amy D., Scherpa, Josef
• Granted Patent: US 9,451,582 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/414.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/258 Service state indications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42221 Conversation recording systems at the subscriber's set H04M1/656
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 68/00 User notification, e.g. alerting and paging, for incoming communication, change of service or the like

Abstract

A critical notification is reliably delivered to at least one participant in a real-time communication session. A candidate delivery channel is selected, and a set of one or more communication state variables associated with the candidate delivery channel are identified. Current values associated with the communication state variables and determined, and a determination is made as to whether the current values associated with the communication state variables indicate that the notification can currently be reliably delivered using the candidate delivery channel. If the notification cannot currently be reliably delivered using the candidate delivery channel, an alternative delivery option is selected that may include using an alternative delivery channel and/or delaying delivery of the notification.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method, comprising:

determining that a notification is to be provided to a user;

determining whether a notification delivery channel can currently be reliably used to provide said notification to said user;

responsive to a determination that said notification delivery channel cannot currently be reliably used to provide a notification to said user, waiting a delay period;

re-checking, following said delay period, whether said notification delivery channel can be reliably user to provide said notification to said user; and

responsive to said re-checking indicating that said notification delivery channel can be reliably user to provide said notification to said user, providing said notification to said user through said notification delivery channel.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

wherein said user is a participant in a real time communication session; and

determining that at least one participant in said real time communication session, including said user, are to be provided with said notification, responsive to configuration settings indicating that participants in certain geographic locations must be provided with said notification.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

wherein said at least one participant in said real time communication session comprises a plurality of participants in said real time communication session; and

selecting different notification delivery channels for each one of said plurality of participants in said real time communication session based on individual user preference settings of each one of said plurality of participants.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

indentifying relevant communication state variables for said notification delivery channel; and

wherein said determining whether said notification delivery channel can currently be reliably used to provide said notification to said user is responsive to said relevant communication state variables.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein said relevant communication state variables include client device state variables and participant state variables.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

wherein said notification delivery channel comprises an audio channel; and

wherein said communication state variables indicate whether an audio output on a client system associated with said user is currently muted.

7. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

wherein said notification delivery channel comprises an audio channel; and

wherein said communication state variables indicate whether a phone call over said audio channel is currently on hold.

8. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

wherein said notification delivery channel comprises a visual channel; and

wherein said communication state variables indicate a graphical user interface window associated with the visual channel is currently obscured by another graphical user interface window.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising repeating said re-checking until said notification delivery channel can be reliably used.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

wherein said user is a participant in a Web conference;

wherein said notification comprises a notification that said Web conference is being recorded; and

wherein said notification delivery channel comprises an instant messaging user interface.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising initiating an instant messaging session with the user.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said notification further comprises information identifying said Web conference.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein said notification further comprises a name of a moderator of said Web conference.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein said notification further comprises a topic of said Web conference.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

wherein said user is a participant in a real-time communication session with one or more other participants; and

after repeatedly re-checking whether said notification delivery channel can be reliably used to provide said notification to said user without determining that said notification channel can be reliably used to provide said notification to said user, providing a message to at least one other participants indicating that the notification could not be provided to the user.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

wherein said notification delivery channel comprises a visual channel; and

automatically generating, in response to determining that said notification channel cannot be reliably used to provide said notification to said user, an audio version of said notification by generating audio speech through an audio communication channel.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

wherein said notification delivery channel comprises an audio channel; and

automatically generating, in response to determining that said notification channel cannot be reliably used to provide said notification to said user, a text version of said notification by converting speech to text through a visual communication channel.

18. A system comprising:

at least one processor and at least one computer readable memory, said computer readable memory having stored thereon program code, said program code including

program code for determining that a notification is to be provided to a user,

program code for determining whether a notification delivery channel can currently be reliably used to provide said notification to said user,

program code for, responsive to a determination that said notification delivery channel cannot currently be reliably used to provide a notification to said user, waiting a delay period,

program code for re-checking, following said delay period, whether said notification delivery channel can be reliably user to provide said notification to said user, and

program code for, responsive to said re-checking indicating that said notification delivery channel can be reliably user to provide said notification to said user, providing said notification to said user through said notification delivery channel.

19. A computer program product, comprising:

at least one non-transitory computer readable storage medium, said computer readable storage medium having stored thereon program code, said program code including

program code for determining that a notification is to be provided to a user,

program code for determining whether a notification delivery channel can currently be reliably used to provide said notification to said user,

program code for, responsive to a determination that said notification delivery channel cannot currently be reliably used to provide a notification to said user, waiting a delay period,

program code for re-checking, following said delay period, whether said notification delivery channel can be reliably user to provide said notification to said user, and

program code for, responsive to said re-checking indicating that said notification delivery channel can be reliably user to provide said notification to said user, providing said notification to said user through said notification delivery channel.