Call origination control
First Claim
1. A method for selectively blocking outgoing calls comprising:
- receiving blocking indicia from a subscriber or representative thereof who is associated with a telephony terminal;
establishing blocking criteria based on the blocking indicia;
receiving a first message indicative of a call being initiated from the telephony terminal; and
determining whether to block the call or allow the call to continue based on the blocking criteria, wherein the blocking criteria are configured to block calls based on financial authorization and further comprising accessing and using financial records to help determine whether to block the call or allow the call to continue.
9 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention provides for selectively blocking outgoing calls based on blocking criteria configured by a telephony subscriber or representative thereof. When a call is initiated, blocking criteria associated with the telephony terminal from which the call is being initiated are used to determine whether the call should be blocked or allowed to continue. Once a determination is made, a telephony switch or telephony server supporting the telephony terminal either blocks the call or allows the call to continue as dictated by the blocking criteria. The blocking criteria may be applied to one or more telephony terminals. Further, the blocking criteria may be based on the party being called, time of day, day of week, financial authorization, type of call, or any combination thereof. The subscribers or representatives thereof can easily and efficiently configure the blocking criteria to control whether or not outgoing calls are blocked or allowed to continue.
31 Citations
38 Claims
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1. A method for selectively blocking outgoing calls comprising:
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receiving blocking indicia from a subscriber or representative thereof who is associated with a telephony terminal; establishing blocking criteria based on the blocking indicia; receiving a first message indicative of a call being initiated from the telephony terminal; and determining whether to block the call or allow the call to continue based on the blocking criteria, wherein the blocking criteria are configured to block calls based on financial authorization and further comprising accessing and using financial records to help determine whether to block the call or allow the call to continue. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A system for selectively blocking outgoing calls comprising:
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at least one communication interface; and a control system associated with the at least one communication interface and adapted to; receive blocking indicia from a subscriber or representative thereof who is associated with a telephony terminal; establish blocking criteria based on the blocking indicia; receive a first message indicative of a call being initiated from the telephony terminal; and determine whether to block the call or allow the call to continue based on the blocking criteria, wherein the blocking criteria are configured to block calls based on financial authorization and further comprising accessing and using financial records to help determine whether to block the call or allow the call to continue. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
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Specification