Methods, systems, devices, and products for providing alerts for communications

• US 8,375,119 B2
• Filed: 07/27/2004
• Issued: 02/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/27/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bellsouth Intellectual Property Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Sutcliffe, Geoff
• Primary Examiner(s): Ibrahim, Mohamed
• Application Number:
  US10/899,617
• Publication Number:
  US 20060026277A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,122 Days
• Field of Search: 709221-224, 455/406, 455/567, 379/207.16, 379/257
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/148 File search processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1895 for short real-time information, e.g. alarms, notifications, alerts, updates
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/57 Arrangements for indicating or recording the number of the calling subscriber at the called subscriber's set at the operator set in a manual exchange H04M5/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/576 associated with a pictorial or graphical representation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 19/04 the ringing-current being generated at the substations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/02 Calling substations, e.g. by ringing selective calling H04Q
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42051 where the notification is included in the ringing tone
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4872 Non-interactive information services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/18 Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals

Abstract

Methods, systems, and products are disclosed for providing an alert to a called party'"'"'s communications device. One method processes a communication initiated by a calling party and terminating at the called party'"'"'s communications device. An alert accompanying the communication is also processed. The alert is selected by the calling party for playing on the called party'"'"'s communications device, and the alert announces the incoming communication request. This method thus allows the calling party to specify the alert to be played on the called party'"'"'s communications device.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

processing a communication request sent from a calling number to a called number;

retrieving a stock price;

retrieving a profile associated with the calling number;

querying the profile for the stock price;

retrieving a file from the profile that is associated with the stock price; and

communicating the file from a calling party'"'"'s communications device to accompany the communication request that is played on a called party'"'"'s communications device during a wait time occurring after the communication request is received at the called party'"'"'s communications device and before the calling party'"'"'s communications device receives a resolution of the communication request,

wherein the file is selected by a calling party to be played on the called party'"'"'s communications device to alert of the communication request.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein communicating the file comprises routing an accompanying data file from the calling party'"'"'s communications device to the called party'"'"'s communications device.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising specifying the file to be the same as a ring-back selected by the calling party for the calling party'"'"'s communications device.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising associating the called party'"'"'s communications device to the file.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising associating an Internet Protocol address of the calling party'"'"'s communications device to the file.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising communicating the file to the called party'"'"'s communications device via a distributed computing network.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising communicating the file to the called party'"'"'s communications device via a telecommunications network.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising receiving the communication request from the calling party'"'"'s communications device.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising establishing at least part of a communication path between the calling party'"'"'s communications device and the called party'"'"'s communications device.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the file comprises an audio file.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the file comprises an image file.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein the file comprises a video file.

13. A method of communications service, comprising:

generating a communication request for a communication with a called party;

providing a selection of files to a calling party that are associated with the communication request from the calling party, each file for announcing the communication request to the called party during a wait time occurring after the communication request is received at a called party'"'"'s communications device and before a calling party'"'"'s communications device receives a resolution of the communication request;

accepting a selected file of the calling party from the selection of files;

associating the selected file in a database to a calling party'"'"'s Internet Protocol address, to a called party'"'"'s Internet Protocol address, and to a stock price associated with the calling party; and

forwarding the communication request and the selected file from the calling party'"'"'s communications device through a communication network to the called party'"'"'s communications device,

wherein the calling party specifies the selected file to be played on the called party'"'"'s communications device to alert of the communication.

14. The method according to claim 13, further comprising processing the selected file.

15. The method according to claim 13, further comprising querying for the selected file.

16. The method according to claim 13, further comprising forwarding an indication of the selected file from the calling party'"'"'s communications device.

17. A system, comprising:

a processor;

memory; and

code stored in the memory which when executed causes the processor at least to;

generate a communication request for a communication with a called party'"'"'s Internet Protocol address;

provide a selection of alerts for announcing the communication request to a called party;

receive a selection of an alert for when a stock price is increasing;

receive another selection of another alert for when the stock price is decreasing;

associate the selection and the another selection to a calling party'"'"'s Internet Protocol address and to the called party'"'"'s Internet Protocol address;

query for the stock price;

determine the stock price is increasing;

select the alert for when the stock price is increasing;

retrieve an indication of the alert;

forward the communication request and the indication of the alert from a calling party'"'"'s communications device to a called party'"'"'s communications device to be played during a wait time occurring after the communication request is received and before a resolution of the communication request;

censor the indication of the alert when the indication of the alert matches an entry in a database storing prohibited alerts specified by the called party; and

retrieve a default alert when censoring occurs,

wherein the calling party attempts to specify the alert to be played on the called party'"'"'s communications device.

18. The system according to claim 17, wherein the code further causes the processor to query for sports data associated with the calling party.

19. The system according to claim 18, wherein the code further causes the processor to retrieve the indication of the alert associated with the sports data and with the calling party.