System and method of providing communications services

• US 8,031,594 B2
• Filed: 09/29/2006
• Issued: 10/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: SBC Knowledge Ventures LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Pok, Chou Lan, Kuo, Richard T., Meng, Kevin Xiangkai, Fan, James
• Primary Examiner(s): Hsu; Alpus H
• Assistant Examiner(s): COSTIN, JEREMY M
• Application Number:
  US11/541,468
• Publication Number:
  US 20080080368A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,831 Days
• Field of Search: 725/9, 725/113, 725/141, 370/230, 370/395, 370/468
• US Class Current: 370/230
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/509 wherein the managed service relates to media content delivery, e.g. audio, video or TV
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles

Abstract

Disclosed are a system and method of providing communications services. In a particular embodiment, the method includes receiving data related to an attainable bandwidth of a communications loop coupled to a customer premise equipment (CPE) device, wherein at least one first communications service is provided by a private access network via the CPE device. The method also includes selecting at least one additional communications service to be offered, the at least one additional communications service selected based at least partially on the attainable bandwidth.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving first data, the first data associated with an attainable bandwidth value of a communications loop, the communications loop coupled to a customer premises equipment device, wherein the attainable bandwidth value indicates a first amount of bandwidth that the communications loop is capable of providing to the customer premises equipment device, wherein a first communications service is provided to the customer premises equipment device via the communications loop;

receiving second data, the second data associated with a theoretical bandwidth value of the communications loop, wherein the theoretical bandwidth value indicates a second amount of bandwidth that is allotted to the customer premises equipment device by a communications service provider;

determining whether the attainable bandwidth value is greater than the theoretical bandwidth value;

in response to determining that the attainable bandwidth value is greater than the theoretical bandwidth value, selecting an additional communications service to be offered; and

in response to determining that the attainable bandwidth value is not greater than the theoretical bandwidth value, receiving third data associated with a measured amount of bandwidth that is used by the customer premises equipment device, wherein a service enhancement to be offered is selected based at least in part on the measured amount of bandwidth of the customer premises equipment device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising, in response to determining that the attainable bandwidth value is greater than the theoretical bandwidth value, receiving fourth data associated with an extent of a bandwidth limitation of a private access network, the private access network providing the first communications service to the customer premises equipment device, wherein the additional communications service to be offered is selected based at least in part on the extent of the bandwidth limitation.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving promotions data from a promotions data store, the promotions data associated with a promotional offer, wherein the additional communications service is selected based at least in part on the promotions data.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the additional communications service is selected based at least in part on the first communications service.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending offer data associated with an offer of the additional communications service to the customer premises equipment device in response to selecting the additional communications service to be offered.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a request for the additional communications service from the customer premises equipment device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the additional communications service is selected based at least in part on a previously ordered communications service.

8. The method of claim 2, further comprising receiving fifth data associated with a previously canceled communications service, wherein the additional communications service selected to be offered excludes the previously canceled communications service.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the service enhancement to be offered is an enhancement of the first communications service.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the measured amount of bandwidth is associated with an average bandwidth that is used by the customer premises equipment device during a particular time period.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the communications loop is intermediate to the customer premises equipment device and a serving area interface of a private access network.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the attainable bandwidth value of the communications loop is based on a length of the communications loop.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the service enhancement to be offered is selected conditioned on the measured amount of bandwidth that is used by the customer premises equipment device being less than the theoretical bandwidth value.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the service enhancement includes a high-definition stream of a television program.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the additional communications service includes voice services, video services, or data services.

9. The method of 8, further comprising receiving sixth data associated with a previously refused offer for a second communications service, wherein the additional communications service selected to be offered excludes the second communications service based on the previously refused offer.

17. A method comprising:

receiving an order at an ordering system for a first communications service to be provided to a user;

receiving offer data associated with an additional communications service to be offered to the user from a promotion system;

receiving first data associated with an attainable bandwidth value of a communications loop coupled to a customer premises equipment device, wherein the attainable bandwidth value indicates a first amount of bandwidth that the communications loop is capable of providing to the customer premises equipment device;

receiving second data associated with a theoretical bandwidth value of the communications loop coupled to the customer premises equipment device, wherein the theoretical bandwidth value indicates a second amount of bandwidth that is allotted to the customer premises equipment device by a communications service provider;

determining whether the attainable bandwidth value is greater than the theoretical bandwidth value;

in response to determining that the attainable bandwidth value is greater than the theoretical bandwidth value, selecting the additional communications service to be offered to the user; and

in response to determining that the attainable bandwidth value is not greater than the theoretical bandwidth value, receiving third data associated with a measured amount of bandwidth that is used by the customer premises equipment device, wherein a service enhancement to be offered is selected based at least in part on the measured amount of bandwidth of the customer premises equipment device.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising sending a request to the promotion system for the additional communications service to be offered to the user.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the order is received via a communications portal.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the communications portal is an internet portal.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the communications portal is an interactive voice response system.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein the communications portal is a set-top box device communication portal.

23. The method of claim 19, further comprising offering the additional communications service via the communications portal.

24. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

sending an offer for the additional communications service to the user in response to selecting the additional communications service to be offered;

receiving an acceptance of the offer for the additional communications service at the ordering system, the acceptance initiated from the user;

activating the additional communications service accepted by the user; and

sending acceptance data indicating the acceptance to a billing system in response to receiving the acceptance.

25. A system comprising:

a processor; and

a memory device accessible to the processor, wherein the memory device includes instructions to;

determine whether an attainable bandwidth value is greater than a theoretical bandwidth value, wherein the attainable bandwidth value indicates a first amount of bandwidth that a communications loop is capable of providing to a customer premises equipment device and wherein the theoretical bandwidth value indicates a second amount of bandwidth that is allotted to the customer premises equipment device by a communications service provider;

in response to determining that the attainable bandwidth value is greater than the theoretical bandwidth value, select an additional communications service to be offered; and

in response to determining that the attainable bandwidth value is not greater than the theoretical bandwidth value, receive a measured bandwidth value associated with a third amount of bandwidth that is used by the customer premises equipment device, wherein a service enhancement to be offered is selected based at least in part on the measured amount of bandwidth of the customer premises equipment device.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the memory device further includes instructions to send acceptance data associated with an indication that a user has accepted the additional communications service to a bandwidth management system.

27. The system of claim 25, wherein the attainable bandwidth value is retrieved from a bandwidth management system and wherein the bandwidth management system updates the attainable bandwidth value on a periodic basis.

28. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing processor-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

determine whether an attainable bandwidth value is greater than a theoretical bandwidth value, wherein the attainable bandwidth value indicates a first amount of bandwidth that a communications loop coupled to a customer premises equipment device is capable of providing to the customer premises equipment device and wherein the theoretical bandwidth value indicates a second amount of bandwidth that is allotted to the customer premises equipment device by a communications service provider, wherein a first communications service is provided to the customer premises equipment device via the communications loop;

in response to determining that the attainable bandwidth value is greater than the theoretical bandwidth value, offer an additional communications service; and

in response to determining that the attainable bandwidth value is not greater than the theoretical bandwidth value, receive a measured bandwidth value associated with a third amount of bandwidth that is used by the customer premises equipment device, wherein a service enhancement to be offered is selected based at least in part on the measured amount of bandwidth of the customer premises equipment device.

29. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 28, wherein the processor-executable instructions are included in a client application stored at a communications service field technician computing device.

30. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 29, further comprising processor-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to determine whether the customer premises equipment device has been installed at a particular premises.