Configuration of telephony services for phone based on user location

• US 8,948,787 B2
• Filed: 12/23/2008
• Issued: 02/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Cheung, Eric, Hanson, Karrie
• Primary Examiner(s): Elhag, Magdi
• Application Number:
  US12/343,206
• Publication Number:
  US 20100159946A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,233 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.1, 455/404.1, 455/441, 455/574, 455/456.2, 455/456.3, 455/404.2, 455/418, 455/419, 455/440
• US Class Current: 455/456.3
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72457 according to geographic location
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/651 Text message transmission triggered by call automatic reactions in messaging within packet-switching networks H04L51/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/14 with services dependent on location where the service is an information service H04M2242/15; services independent of location H04M3/42229
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42102 Making use of the called party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42348 Location-based services which utilize the location information of a target
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4878 Advertisement messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring

Abstract

Telephony features for a phone are configured based on the location of a user of the phone. A system receives location data corresponding to a location of the phone. An operational mode is selected from stored operational modes based on the location data. The operational mode of the user phone is set to the selected mode. In one mode, a reply message is provided to the caller that is associated with the location of the phone.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, via a computing device, location data identifying a physical location of a user phone;

receiving, from a remote data processing system associated with the physical location of the user phone, a message comprising content relating to the user phone;

determining, via the computing device, an identity of a caller to the user phone;

incorporating, via the computing device, customized content into the message, the customized content based on the physical location of the user phone and the identity of the caller; and

providing, via the computing device, the message comprising the customized content to the caller in response to a call by the caller to the user phone.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing the message in a memory.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the memory is located on a network associated with the user phone.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the memory is located at the remote data processing system associated with the physical location of the user phone.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

specifying a time period, wherein providing the message to the caller comprises providing the message to the caller during the time period.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving, from the remote data processing system associated with the physical location of the user phone, an update to the message during the time period, wherein providing the message comprises providing the update to the caller during the time period.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending a command to the user phone to set the user phone to a vibrate mode.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the location data comprises receiving data manually input by the user.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the location data comprises:

detecting, using a sensor at the physical location, a physical presence of the user phone; and

receiving data automatically from the sensor at the physical location.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting a physical presence of the user phone at the physical location, wherein receiving the location data occurs after detecting the physical presence.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein detecting the physical presence comprises detecting the physical presence using one of:

a Bluetooth sensor,

a proximity sensor,

radio frequency identification, or

a signature for a wireless network.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the location data comprises receiving data from a global positioning system sensor in the user phone.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the location data comprises receiving the location data from the user phone.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the user phone comprises a sensor to determine the physical location.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a privacy setting from the user phone, wherein providing the message is subject to the privacy setting.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the content comprises a video of the user.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the content comprises an advertisement sponsored by a merchant associated with the physical location.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining if the caller is on a friends list of the user phone, wherein providing the message comprises selecting the message from a plurality of messages.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the location data is conditional on receiving approval to send the location data.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing, on a memory, a plurality of phone numbers, each of the plurality of phone numbers associated with a different location, wherein receiving the location data comprises

determining a phone number from caller identification data of a call by the user phone to one of the plurality of phone numbers, and

associating the phone number with the one of the plurality of phone numbers.

21. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sending another message to the user phone, the another message comprising an inquiry regarding message activation, wherein providing the message is subject to an affirmative response to the inquiry regarding the message activation.

22. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising:

receiving location data identifying a physical to a location of a user phone;

receiving, from a remote data processing system associated with the physical location of the user phone, a message comprising content relating to the user phone;

determining an identity of a caller to the user phone;

incorporating customized content into the message, the customized content based on the physical location of the user phone and the identity of the caller; and

providing the message comprising the customized content to the caller in response to a call by the caller to the user phone.

23. A system comprising:

a processor; and

a memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising

receiving location data identifying a physical location of a user phone,

receiving, from a remote data processing system associated with the physical location of the user phone, a message comprising content relating to the user phone,

determining an identity of a caller to the user phone,

incorporating customized content into the message, the customized content based on the physical location of the user phone and the identity of the caller, and

providing the message comprising the customized content to the caller in response to a call by the caller to the user phone.