System and method for initiating a telephone call utilizing internet initiation

• US 6,185,194 B1
• Filed: 12/12/1997
• Issued: 02/06/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: ZIP2
• Original Assignee: ZIP2
• Inventors: Musk, Elon, Dukic, Aleksandar
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Ajit
• Application Number:
  US08/989,844
• Time in Patent Office: 1,152 Days
• Field of Search: 370/259, 370/260-263, 370/351, 370/352-356, 379/201, 379/202-206, 455/414, 455/415, 455/416, 455/417
• US Class Current: 370/260
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/103 in the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/104 in the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• 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 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/003 Click to dial services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0054 where the data service is an electronic mail service
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/128 Details of addressing, directories or routing tables
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13072 Sequence circuits for call signaling, ACD systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13093 Personal computer, PC
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/1313 Metering, billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13138 Least cost routing, LCR
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/1324 Conference call
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13353 Routing table, map memory
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13389 LAN, internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/64 Distributing or queueing

Abstract

A system and method for uniquely combining the best aspects of the Internet and the Public Switched Telephone Network for calling an entity displayed on a monitor. A user provides an input to the computer to initiate a call. The call request data is received at a Web site providing the display, and is relayed over the Internet to a call center. The call center establishes the desired phone connection over the Public Switched Telephone Network.

Claims

1. A method of generating a telephone call, comprising:

receiving, from a Web site, call request data requesting a telephone call between a user and a destination;

selecting, from a plurality of geographically separate call centers, a call center having a lowest phone rate for the call request data by;

providing a map database;

determining latitude and longitude coordinates of the destination of said telephone call from the map database;

comparing the latitude and longitude coordinates to locations of the plurality of geographically separate call centers; and

comparing a call time for the plurality of geographically separate call centers to a call time charge database;

transmitting the call request data to the call center; and

initiating the telephone call from the call center using a Public Switched Telephone Network.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein selecting the call center having the lowest phone rate further comprises:

calculating distance from the plurality of geographically separate call centers to the destination of the telephone call; and

calculating distance from the plurality of geographically separate call centers to the user.

3. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein selecting the call center having the lowest phone rate further comprises:

calculating the time zone of the plurality of geographically separate call centers;

calculating the time zone of the destination of the telephone call; and

calculating the time zone of the user.

4. A method of establishing a telephone call, comprising:

establishing a connection from a Web browser to a Web server through the Internet;

accessing a Web site from said Web browser;

transmitting data in the form of a Web page from said Web server to said Web browser;

selecting a phone icon on said Web page with a user input device;

sending a call request data identifying a user phone number and a party to be called from said Web browser to said Web server;

determining an appropriate call center from said call request data wherein said appropriate call center has a lowest calling rate for said call request;

sending a call center call request from said Web server to said appropriate call center;

initiating a call over a public switched telephone network to said user phone number from said appropriate call center;

playing a recorded message to said user; and

initiating a call over said public switched telephone network to said party to be called from said appropriate call center.

5. The method as recited in claim 4 further comprising:

determining user and party to be called locations from a map database; and

calculating distances and times for a plurality of call centers for determining a call center with the lowest calling rate.

6. The method as recited in claim 4 wherein initiating a call to said user is repeated after a selected period of time if a connection is not established.

7. The method as recited in claim 4 wherein initiating a call to said party to be called is repeated after a selected period of time if a connection is not established.

8. A system comprising:

a computer network;

a service provider server configured to connect to said computer network;

a user access device configured to connect to said computer network; and

a plurality of call centers configured to connect to said computer network and to a public switched telephone network;

said service provider server being configured to accept call request data from said user access device over said computer network, select an appropriate call center from said plurality of call centers based on said call request data, and transmit a call request to said appropriate call center over said computer network;

said appropriate call center being configured to accept call requested data over said computer network from said service provider server and initiate conference calls to said user access device and a designated party to be called over said public switched telephone network.

9. A computer-implemented method of establishing a communication connection between a first party and a second party using a public switched telephone network (PSTN) and a communication network, the method comprising:

receiving a call request from the first party via the communication network to establish a communication connection between the first party and the second party;

determining geographical locations of the first party and the second party;

determining a call center, from a plurality of call centers, based on the geographical locations of the first party and the second party;

forwarding the call request to the call center; and

initiating a conference call from the call center between the call center, the first party, and the second party using a PSTN such that the communication connection between the first party and the second party is established.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein determining the geographical locations of the first party and the second party comprises:

providing a first database storing latitude and longitude information; and

determining latitude and longitude information from the first database for the first party and the second party.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein determining the call center based on the geographical locations of the first party and the second party comprises:

determining call rates for the plurality of call centers for establishing the communication connection between the first party and the second party; and

selecting the call center which provides a lowest call rate for establishing the communication connection between the first party and the second party.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein determining the call rates for the plurality of call centers comprises:

receiving a time when the communication connection between the first party and the second party is to be established;

determining the call rates for the plurality of call centers based on the locations of the first party and the second party and the time when the communication connection between the first party and the second party is to be established.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein determining the call rates for the plurality of call centers comprises:

providing a second database storing call rates information;

determining the call rates for the plurality of call centers based on the locations of the first party and the second party and the call rates information stored in the second database.

14. The method of claim 9:

wherein receiving the call request from the first party comprises;

receiving a time when the communication connection between the first party and the second party is to be established; and

wherein initiating the conference call comprises;

initiating the conference call at the time indicated in the call request.

15. The method of claim 9 wherein initiating the conference call comprises:

establishing a communication connection between the call center and the first party via the PSTN; and

conferencing the second party in the communication connection.

16. The method of claim 9 wherein the call center is a silent party in the conference call established between the call center, the first party, and the second party.

17. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

faxing a document from the first party to the second party via the communication connection established between the first party and the second party.

18. The method of claim 9 wherein receiving the call request from the first party comprises:

providing a directory listing of a plurality of parties including the second party, the directory listing storing information for establishing communication connections with the plurality of parties; and

receiving a signal from the first party indicating selection of the second party from the directory listing.

19. A computer program product embodied on a computer-readable storage medium for establishing a communication connection between a first party and a second party using a PSTN and a communication network, the computer program product comprising:

code for receiving a call request from the first party via the communication network to establish a communication connection between the first party and the second party;

code for determining geographical locations of the first party and the second party;

code for determining a call center, from a plurality of call centers, based on the geographical locations of the first party and the second party;

code for forwarding the call request to the call center; and

code for initiating a conference call from the call center between the call center, the first party, and the second party using a PSTN such that a communication connection between the first party and the second party is established.

20. A communication system comprising:

a communication network;

a public switched telephone network (PSTN);

a first server coupled to the communication network; and

a plurality of call centers coupled to the communication network and to the PSTN;

wherein the first server is configured to receive a call request from a first party via the communication network to establish a communication connection between the first party and a second party;

wherein the first server is further configured to determine geographical locations of the first party and the second party, to determine a call center from the plurality of call centers based on the geographical locations of the first party and the second party, and to forward the call request to the call center; and

wherein the call center is configured to initiate a conference call from the call center between the call center, the first party, and the second party using the PSTN such that the communication connection between the first party and the second party is established.

21. The system of claim 20 wherein to determine the geographical locations of the first party and the second party, the first server is configured to access a first database storing latitude and longitude information, and to determine latitude and longitude information from the first database for the first party and the second party.

22. The system of claim 20 wherein to determine the call center based on the geographical locations of the first party and the second party, the first server is configured to determine call rates for the plurality of call centers for establishing the communication connection between the first party and the second party, and to select the call center which provides a lowest call rate for establishing the communication connection between the first party and the second party.

23. The system of claim 22 wherein to determine the call rates for the plurality of call centers, the first server is configured to receive a time when the communication connection between the first party and the second party is to be established, and to determine the call rates for the plurality of call centers based on the locations of the first party and the second party and the time when the communication connection between the first party and the second party is to be established.

24. The system of claim 22 wherein to determine the call rates for the plurality of call centers, the first server is configured to access a second database storing call rates information, and to determine the call rates for the plurality of call centers based on the locations of the first party and the second party and the call rates information stored in the second database.

25. The system of claim 20:

wherein to receive the call request from the first party, the first server is configured to receive a time when the communication connection between the first party and the second party is to be established; and

wherein to initiate the conference call, the call center is configured to initiate the conference call at the time indicated in the call request.

26. The system of claim 20 wherein to initiate the conference call, the call center is configured to establish a communication connection between the call center and the first party via the PSTN, and to conference the second party in the communication connection.

27. The system of claim 20 wherein the call center is a silent party in the conference call established between the call center, the first party, and the second party.

28. The system of claim 20 wherein the call center is further configured to communicate a fax document from the first party to the second party via the communication connection established between the first party and the second party.

29. The system of claim 20 wherein to receive the call request from the first party, the first server is configured to provide a directory listing of a plurality of parties including the second party, the directory listing storing information for establishing communication connections with the plurality of parties, and to receive a signal from the first party indicating selection of the second party from the directory listing.