Message sender status monitor
First Claim
1. In a communication network for providing electronic messages to be transmitted from a sender to a recipient, a messaging arrangement includinga status registry for storing current communication status information associated with each user of electronic messaging, where each electronic message includes an embedded program that is activated when the message is retrieved, the program for querying the status registry and obtaining current communication status information of the message sender and providing the query results to the electronic message recipient.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A message sender status monitor is used to determine the communication status of the sender of an electronic message. In the case of email, upon the recipient opening an email, a query is launched to a “status registry” to determine if the sender of the email is currently logged in to the communication network, or if the sender is currently on the telephone, or currently using a cell phone, etc. This status information is then used by the recipient of the email to determine the communication medium used to send a reply to the email sender. For example, if the status information indicates that the message sender is currently logged in to the data network, the recipient can respond using “instant messaging” (considered, therefore, to be a more efficient type of response that merely responding with an email message).
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Citations
15 Claims
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1. In a communication network for providing electronic messages to be transmitted from a sender to a recipient, a messaging arrangement including
a status registry for storing current communication status information associated with each user of electronic messaging, where each electronic message includes an embedded program that is activated when the message is retrieved, the program for querying the status registry and obtaining current communication status information of the message sender and providing the query results to the electronic message recipient.
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9. A method of obtaining real-time communication status information related to a sender of an electronic message, the method comprising the steps of:
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providing a status registry in a communication network, the status registry including current communication status information associated with each user of electronic messaging;
upon a recipient opening an electronic message, said electronic message activating a program to query said status registry and return to said recipient current communication status information related to the sender of the electronic message; and
responding to said electronic message through a medium as determined by the received communication status information. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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Specification