Voicemail with data content

• US 8,477,913 B2
• Filed: 05/01/2009
• Issued: 07/02/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/01/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: T-Mobile USA, Inc. (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: T-Mobile USA, Inc. (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Wang, Winston, Holt, Adam
• Primary Examiner(s): Anwah, Olisa
• Application Number:
  US12/434,603
• Publication Number:
  US 20100278319A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,523 Days
• Field of Search: 379/67.1, 379/68, 379/88.11, 379/88.13, 379/88.22, 379/88.23, 379/88.27, 379/88.25
• US Class Current: 379/88.11
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/64 Automatic arrangements for answering calls; Automatic arrangements for recording messages for absent subscribers; Arrangements for recording conversations centralised dictation systems H04M11/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/4518 Attachments to voicemail
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53366 Message disposing or creating aspects

Abstract

Techniques for attaching content to a voicemail are described. Content may be attached to a voicemail by storing the content and the voicemail in a common container or envelope, embedding the content at a location within the voicemail, tagging the content with an identifier identifying the voicemail, tagging the voicemail with a tag identifying the content and a location of the content on a network, or otherwise associating the content with the voicemail. A representation of the content to be attached to the voicemail may be visually displayed on a user interface of an originating telecommunications device before attaching the content to the voicemail.

Claims

1. One or more tangible computer-readable media stored with instructions that, when executed by a processor of a recipient device, perform acts comprising:

receiving a voicemail greeting associated with a voice mailbox of a user of a called device;

presenting, on a display of the recipient device, a user interface usable to access the voice mailbox;

presenting the voicemail greeting on the recipient device; and

visually displaying content attached to the voicemail greeting on the user interface.

2. The one or more tangible computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein the content attached to the voicemail greeting comprises an audible message.

3. The one or more tangible computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein the content attached to the voicemail greeting comprises a text message.

4. The one or more tangible computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein the visually displaying comprises automatically displaying the content in response to presenting the voicemail greeting.

5. The one or more tangible computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein the visually displaying comprises displaying the content in response to receipt of user input to the user interface of the recipient device.

6. A method comprising:

receiving, by a recipient device, a voicemail greeting associated with a voice mailbox of a user of a called device;

presenting, by the recipient device, on a display of the recipient device, a user interface usable to access the voice mailbox;

presenting, by the recipient device, the voicemail greeting on the recipient device; and

visually displaying, by the recipient device, content attached to the voicemail greeting on the user interface.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the content attached to the voicemail greeting comprises an audible message.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the content attached to the voicemail greeting comprises a text message.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the visually displaying comprises automatically displaying the content in response to presenting the voicemail greeting.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein the visually displaying comprises displaying the content in response to receipt of user input to the user interface of the recipient device.

11. A recipient device comprising:

a processor; and

a plurality of computing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the recipient device to perform operations including;

receiving a voicemail greeting associated with a voice mailbox of a user of a called device,

presenting, on a display of the recipient device, a user interface usable to access the voice mailbox,

presenting the voicemail greeting on the recipient device, and

visually displaying, by the recipient device, content attached to the voicemail greeting on the user interface.

12. The recipient device of claim 11, wherein the content attached to the voicemail greeting comprises an audible message.

13. The recipient device of claim 11, wherein the content attached to the voicemail greeting comprises a text message.

14. The recipient device of claim 11, wherein the visually displaying comprises automatically displaying the content in response to presenting the voicemail greeting.

15. The recipient device of claim 11, wherein the visually displaying comprises displaying the content in response to receipt of user input to the user interface of the recipient device.