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Demarcation between service provider and user in multi-services gateway device at user premises

  • US 8,280,978 B2
  • Filed: 09/07/2007
  • Issued: 10/02/2012
  • Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2006
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A gateway device for operation at a user premises to provide a managed service to one or more endpoint devices associated with the gateway device, the gateway device comprising:

  • a first interface for enabling bi-directional communications within the user premises, with an associated endpoint device within the user premises;

    a second interface for enabling bi-directional communications with the associated endpoint device via a wide area network, and for enabling at least some bi-directional communications with a service management center and an application service provider external to the user premises via the wide area network;

    an application service enforcement manager controlled by the application service provider through the service management center and configured to provide policy and usage rules associated with an application service provided by the application service provider, wherein the application service provider through the service management center provides the policy and usage rules associated with the application service to the gateway device;

    an application service logic manager controlled by the application service provider through the service management center and configured to execute the application service from the application service provider, wherein the application service logic executes the application service at the user premises independent of an application service logic associated with the application service that is executing on the application service provider'"'"'s network, wherein upon receiving a request to execute the application service the application service logic manager communicates with the application service enforcement manager to verify that the request conforms with the policy and usage rules associated with the application service in order to provide access to the application service, wherein the application service logic manager in communication with the application service enforcement manager establishes a logical application service provider demarcation point that extends into the user premises past a wide area network demarcation point at the user premises thereby allowing the application service provider to provide the application service that is executed at the user premises instead of the application service provider'"'"'s network;

    a processor device coupled to the interfaces;

    storage coupled to the processor; and

    programming in the storage for execution by the processor, wherein;

    (a) the programming comprises the application service received from the application service provider, the programming logically positioned on a user premises side of a logical network demarcation forming an edge of the wide area network at the user premises,(b) the programming in the storage resides on an application service provider side of the logical application service provider demarcation point and only provides a logical application service interface across the logical application service provider demarcation point to deliver the application service of the application service provider to the associated endpoint device via the first or second interface, and(c) the logical application service provider demarcation point provides a demarcation in accessibility to hardware resources of the gateway device, whereby at least some hardware resources of the gateway device are logically positioned on the application service provider side of the logical application service provider demarcation point and are inaccessible to the associated endpoint device from a user side of the logical application service provider demarcation point.

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