System and method for providing managed point to point services

• US 8,161,178 B2
• Filed: 04/27/2010
• Issued: 04/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/23/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Gonsalves, Brian, Jones, Kenneth Roger, Chen, Zesen
• Primary Examiner(s): Follansbee, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mejia, Anthony
• Application Number:
  US12/767,949
• Publication Number:
  US 20100211476A1
• Time in Patent Office: 721 Days
• Field of Search: 709/200, 709/231, 709/227
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1106 Call signalling protocols; H.323 and related
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/55 for hybrid networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/2046 Hybrid network

Abstract

Network services systems and methods are provided. A particular system includes an information store including connection information to initiate connections to content sources. The connection information includes an address and a connection rule associated with a video content source. The system includes an access engine to receive a request for an information stream output by the video content source from a user device. The system also includes a services engine to retrieve the connection rule from the information store and to initiate establishment of at least a portion of a point to point protocol communication link between the user device and the video content source in accordance with the connection rule. The system includes a metrics engine to track a metric associated with the point to point protocol communication link and to generate a billing record at least partially based upon the metric.

Claims

1. A network services system, comprising:

a processor;

an information store comprising connection information to initiate connections to content sources, wherein the connection information includes an address and a connection rule associated with a video content source;

an access engine executed by the processor to receive a request for an information stream output by the video content source from a user device, the request including an alias mapable to the address;

a services engine communicatively coupled to the access engine and to the information store, the services engine executed by the processor to;

send information to the user device that indicates a first option to access the video content source via an internet connection and a second option to access the video content source via a point-to-point communication link;

receive a selection of one of the first option and the second option from the user device; and

when the selection indicates a selection of the second option and the video content source is not reachable via a point-to-point communication link, initiate an internet connection between the user device and the video content source; and

a metrics engine executed by the processor to track a metric associated with the point to point communication link and to generate a billing record at least partially based upon the metric.

2. The network services system of claim 1, wherein the user device includes a first device of a first plurality of network devices associated with a local managed network and the information store includes a first collection of connection information for connecting to the first plurality of network devices, and wherein the video content source includes a second device of a second plurality of network devices associated with a remote managed network and the information store further includes a second collection of connection information for connecting to the second plurality of network devices.

3. The network services system of claim 2, further comprising:

an authentication engine communicatively coupled to the access engine and executed by the processor to consider credentials received from an administrator of the remote managed network, wherein the administrator has authority to access the second collection of connection information; and

an authorization engine executed by the processor, in response to authentication of the credentials, to enable access to the second collection of connection information and to not enable access to the first collection of connection information.

4. The network services system of claim 2, wherein the services engine is further executed by the processor to reject the request when a number of simultaneous connections to the video content source satisfies a threshold associated with the local managed network.

5. The network services system of claim 1, wherein the services engine is further executed by the processor to:

when the selection indicates a selection of the first option, initiate the Internet connection between the user device and the video content source;

when the selection indicates a selection of the second option and the video content source is reachable via the point-to-point communication link, initiate at least a portion of the point-to-point communication link between the user device and the video content source.

6. The network services system of claim 1, wherein the connection rule includes a real time transport protocol/real time control protocol rule.

7. The network services system of claim 1, wherein the connection rule indicates a protocol supported by a remote network associated with the video content source.

8. The network services system of claim 1, wherein the metric includes at least one of a connection duration, a quality of service, and a peak bandwidth.

9. The network services system of claim 1, wherein the metric is tracked during communication of the information stream from the video content source to the user device.

10. The network services system of claim 1, wherein the services engine is further executed by the processor to send a delivery request to initiate output of the information stream from the video content source and to send a discontinue request to cease output of the information stream from the video content source.

11. The network services system of claim 1, further comprising:

a device engine executed by the processor to determine an access device type of the user device; and

a format converter executed by the processor to translate at least a portion of the information stream into a signal compatible with the access device type.

12. A method, comprising:

receiving, at a processor from a user device of a first network, a request for connection to a video content source of a second network, the video content source configured to output an information stream;

facilitating a connection between the user device and the video content source based on a selection of one of a first option to access the video content source via an internet connection and a second option to access the video content via a point-to-point communication link received from the user device, wherein when the selection indicates a selection of the second option and the video content source is not reachable via a point-to-point communication link, an internet connection between the user device and the video content source is initiated;

tracking a metric associated with communication of the information stream from the video content source to the user device; and

generating a billing record at least partially based upon the metric.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising, before facilitating the connection:

sending information regarding a cost associated with the connection to the user device; and

accepting a payment input from the user device indicating a method of paying the cost.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising determining a unique address of the video content source based on information received via the request.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

receiving a spoken directive from a calling party via the user device; and

converting the spoken directive into the request for connection.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein, when the information stream comprises a variable bit rate stream, the method further comprises converting the variable bit rate stream into a constant bit rate stream.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising sending an output request to the video content source, wherein, in response to the output request, the video content source initiates output of the information stream.

18. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing commands executed by a computing device to cause the computing device to:

facilitate a connection between a user device of a first network and a video content source based on a selection of one of a first option to access the video content source via an internet connection and a second option to access the video content via a point-to-point communication link received from the user device, wherein the video content source is configured to output an information stream of a second network in response to receiving a request from the user device for connection to the video content source, wherein when the selection indicates a selection of the second option and the video content source is not reachable via a point-to-point communication link, an internet connection between the user device and the video content source is initiated;

track a metric associated with communication of the information stream from the video content source to the user device; and

generate a billing record at least partially based upon the metric.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 18, wherein tracking the metric comprises tracking information throughput, tracking quality of service, tracking peak bandwidth, or any combination thereof.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 18, wherein the request is received from the user device via a dual tone multi-frequency signal.