Web-enabled conferencing and meeting implementations with a subscription-based model

• US 8,914,734 B2
• Filed: 12/23/2009
• Issued: 12/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: 8X8, Inc.
• Original Assignee: 8X8, Inc.
• Inventors: Narayanaswamy, Ramprakash
• Primary Examiner(s): TITCOMB, WILLIAM D
• Application Number:
  US12/646,604
• Publication Number:
  US 20110154204A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,819 Days
• Field of Search: 715/781
• US Class Current: 715/751
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1095 Meeting or appointment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1818 Conference organisation arrangements, e.g. handling schedules, setting up parameters needed by nodes to attend a conference, booking network resources, notifying involved parties
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/20 hybrid systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/56 Arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities video conference systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/15 Conference systems

Abstract

Meeting and conferencing systems and methods are implemented in a variety of manners. Consistent with an embodiment of the present disclosure, a meeting system is implemented that includes a computer server arrangement with at least one processor. The computer server arrangement is configured to provide a web-based meeting-group subscription option to potential meeting participants. A meeting scheduling data is received over a web-accessible virtual meeting interface. The meeting scheduling data includes group identification information and meeting time information. In response to the group identification information, participant identification information is retrieved for participants that subscribe to a meeting group identified by the group identification information. In response to the meeting time information and the participant identifying information, audio connections are established for participants of the meeting. Merged audio from the established audio connections is provided to the participants over the established audio connections.

Claims

1. A meeting system comprising:

an internet protocol (IP) connections circuit configured and arranged to communicate data including voice over internet protocol (VoIP) data with remote users over an internet protocol network;

a computer server arrangement including at least one computer processor connected to the IP connections circuit, the computer server arrangement configured to;

provide a web-based meeting-group subscription option to potential meeting participants via the IP connections circuit;

provide a web-accessible virtual meeting interface via the IP connections circuit;

receive meeting scheduling data from the virtual meeting interface via the IP connections circuit, the meeting scheduling data including group identification information and meeting time information, the meeting time information specifying a time in the future;

retrieve, in response to the group identification information, participant identification information for participants that subscribe to a meeting group identified by the group identification information;

establish, in response to the meeting time information, to a current time and to the participant identification information, audio connections for participants of the meeting via the IP connections circuit, as identified by the participant identification information;

merge audio from the established audio connections;

provide the merged audio to the participants over the established audio connections; and

after providing the merged audio to the participants, establishing a common shared web-accessible interface and providing the participants with access to shared content via the common shared web-accessible interface.

2. The meeting system of claim 1, wherein the computer server arrangement is further configured to provide the web-based meeting-group subscription option as a website that participants can access via the IP connections circuit in order to view and subscribe to meeting groups and, in response to further meeting time information included in further meeting scheduling data and for a particular meeting group, to establish further audio connections to participants subscribed to the particular meeting group using the web-based meeting-group subscription option.

3. The meeting system of claim 1, wherein the computer server arrangement is further configured to receive the group identification information from a social website via the IP connections circuit.

4. The meeting system of claim 1, wherein the computer server arrangement is further configured to allow a group organizer to add meetings that each include multiple participants for the added meetings, the allowing being responsive to receiving group identification information identifying the multiple participants for the added meetings.

5. The meeting system of claim 1, wherein the computer server arrangement is further configured to provide, via the IP connections circuit, a website that allows creation of meeting groups and subscription thereto by potential meeting participants.

6. The meeting system of claim 1, wherein the web-based meeting-group subscription option includes one or more groups that are educational classes.

7. The meeting system of claim 1, wherein the web-based meeting-group subscription option includes one or more groups that are for students of an educational class and wherein the computer server arrangement is further configured to provide, via the IP connections circuit, a teacher of the educational class with options for adding meetings for the educational class.

8. The meeting system of claim 1, wherein the computer server arrangement is configured and arranged to:

communicate with at least one of the meeting participants via VoIP using the IP connections circuit, and at least another one of the meeting participants via one of a Public-Switched-Telephone Network (PSTN) connection and cellular connection, and

for one of the meeting participants, initiate a telephonic communication with the participant and establish an audio connection between a device used by the participant and the computer server arrangement in response to the participant accepting the initiated telephonic communication, and merge audio received from the participant with audio from the established audio connections.

9. The meeting system of claim 1, wherein the computer server arrangement is configured and arranged to identify and to announce the participants, prior to any of the participants accessing the common shared web-accessible interface.

10. The meeting system of claim 9, wherein the computer server arrangement is configured and arranged to generate and provide the participants with access to shared content via a web-accessible interface, after identifying the participants and establishing the audio connections.

11. The meeting system of claim 1, wherein the at least one computer processor is configured and arranged with the IP connections circuit to establish the common shared web-accessible interface based upon the participant identification information and the group identification information as received prior to the audio connections being established.

12. A meeting system comprising:

an internet protocol (IP) connections circuit configured and arranged to communicate data including voice over internet protocol (VoIP) data with remote users over an internet protocol network;

a computer server arrangement including at least one computer processor, the computer server arrangement configured to communicate via the IP connections circuit to;

receive, from a social website, meeting scheduling data, the meeting scheduling data including participant identification information and meeting time information identifying a time in the future;

provide a web-accessible virtual meeting interface;

retrieve participant identification information for participants identified by the participant identification information;

establish, in response to the meeting time information, a current time and the participant identification information, audio connections for participants of the meeting;

merge audio from the established audio connections; and

provide the merged audio to the participants over the established audio connections,

wherein the at least one computer processor is configured and arranged with the IP connections circuit to;

prior to the participants accessing a common shared web-accessible interface, retrieve the participant identification information and establish the audio connections, and

after establishing the audio connections, provide the participants with access to shared content via the common shared web-accessible interface.

13. The meeting system of claim 12, wherein the at least one computer processor is configured and arranged with the IP connections circuit to provide the participants with access to shared content via the common shared web-accessible interface by identifying the participants based upon the retrieved participant identification information.

14. The meeting system of claim 12, wherein the computer server arrangement is further configured to present a survey to meeting participants via the IP connections circuit after the meeting is concluded and to provide results of the survey to a meeting organizer.

15. The meeting system of claim 12, wherein the computer server arrangement is further configured to receive a verification of a participant'"'"'s identity from the social website via the IP connections circuit, and to restrict access to a calendar of the participant in response to the verification.

16. The meeting system of claim 12, wherein the web-accessible virtual meeting interface runs native to a web browser.

17. The meeting system of claim 12, wherein the computer server arrangement is further configured to initiate a telephone call to participants of the meeting from which audio connections are established.

18. The meeting system of claim 12, wherein the computer server arrangement is further configured to provide a whiteboard, via the IP connections circuit, that allows users to dynamically draw, highlight, and underline shared content.

19. The meeting system of claim 12, wherein at least some of the established audio connections are Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) connections.