Delivering messages to destination devices

• US 9,398,424 B1
• Filed: 12/31/2008
• Issued: 07/19/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sprint Communications Company LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Communications Company LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Reeves, Raymond Emilio, Wick, Ryan Alan, Jones, John Marvin III
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Jae Y
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran, Thinh
• Application Number:
  US12/347,707
• Time in Patent Office: 2,757 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]

Abstract

Systems, methods, and computer-readable media for delivering messages to destination devices are provided. In embodiments, a message is associated with a destination identifier that identifies a destination to deliver the message. The message might be communicated to one or more destination devices via various paths depending on the destination identifier. In one embodiment, a message associated with a device destination identifier is delivered to a destination device via a direct component while a message associated with a geographical or categorical destination identifier is delivered to a destination device via a broadcast component. Upon delivery to a destination device, in instances where the message is associated with a categorical destination identifier, the device might discern whether to present the message based on whether the message is of interest to the device or a user associated therewith. The message can be presented via a short-message-service-based user interface.

Claims

1. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media having computer-useable instructions embodied thereon for performing a method for delivering messages to destination devices, the method comprising:

receiving, at a messaging component, a message comprising an indication of a destination identifier, where the messaging component directly communicates messages to a direct component and a broadcast component based on the destination identifier of the message;

identifying the destination identifier associated with the message, wherein the destination identifier identifies the destination to which the message is to be directly delivered to a component; and

based on the destination identifier, directly communicating from the messaging component, the message, or a variation thereof,

the broadcast component that communicates messages as broadcast messages to a set of destination devices such that a broadcast message is presented on a destination device of the set of destination devices as a direct message via a short-message-service-based interface based on a preference tag indicates a preference of broadcast messages to be displayed on the destination device;

wherein presenting the broadcast message via the short-message-service-based interface comprises;

receiving the message at the destination device;

determining that the message, received as a broadcast message, is received from the broadcast component;

determining that the destination identifier associated with the message matches the preference tag stored in association with the destination device; and

presenting the message, received as a broadcast message, via an SMS-based message based on the preference tag.

2. The media of claim 1, wherein the message is received from a source device.

3. The media of claim 1, wherein the indication of a destination comprises a destination code or a destination identifier.

4. The media of claim 3, wherein the destination code is mapped to a destination identifier.

5. The media of claim 3, wherein the destination code is identified by a code indicator that provides an indication of a destination code.

6. The media of claim 1, wherein the destination identifier comprises the device identifier when the message is intended for a direct component, a categorical identifier, or a geographical identifier when the message is intended for the broadcast component.

7. The media of claim 6, wherein the message is communicated to the broadcast component upon identifying the geographical identifier or the categorical identifier.

8. The media of claim 7, wherein without the broadcast component receiving corresponding device identifiers for each destination device of the second set of destination devices, the broadcast component communicates the broadcast messages based on an association of the second set of devices with a cell tower.

9. The media of claim 7, wherein without the broadcast component receiving the corresponding device identifiers for each of the second set of destination devices, the broadcast messages are communicated as broadcast messages and presented as point-to-point direct messages on the short-message-service-based user interface based on a determination at each of the second set of destination devices to present the broadcast messages as point-to-point direct messages.

10. The media of claim 1, wherein when a determination is made that the preference tag does not match the destination identifier associated with the message, the message is not presented via the corresponding destination device SMS-based interface.

11. The media of claim 1, the device identifier is a mobile device number (MDN).

12. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media having computer-useable instructions embodied thereon for performing a method for delivering messages to destination devices, the method comprising:

receiving a broadcast message associated with a categorical identifier;

using the categorical identifier to determine whether the broadcast message is of interest to a destination device or a user associated therewith;

based on a determination that the categorical identifier is of interest to the destination device or user, presenting the broadcast message from a broadcast component via a short-message-service-based user interface, and

based on a determination that the categorical identifier is not of interest to the destination device, the broadcast message is not presented via the short-message-serviced-based interface.

13. The media of claim 12, wherein the broadcast message is communicated to a set of destination devices for presentation based on the broadcast message having the categorical identifier.

14. The media of claim 12, wherein the broadcast message is of interest to the destination device or the user associated therewith upon a determination that the categorical identifier corresponds to at least one preference tag stored on the destination device.

15. The media of claim 12, wherein the destination device receives the message from the broadcast component without the broadcast component receiving a device identifier for the destination device.

16. The media of claim 12, wherein based on the categorical identifier the presentation of the broadcast message is altered, wherein altering the presentation of the broadcast message is based on a specific application or viewer associated with the categorical identifier.

17. A system for delivering messages to destination devices, the system comprising:

a message component that receives a message from a source device, wherein the message is associated with a destination identifier that comprises a device identifier, a categorical identifier, or a geographical identifier and communicates the message in accordance with the destination identifier;

a direct component that receives the message associated with the destination identifier directly from the message component if the destination identifier comprises the device identifier and communicates the message to a first one or more destination devices corresponding with the device identifier via a first one or more cell towers;

a broadcast component that receives the message associated with the destination identifier directly from the message component if the destination identifier comprises the categorical identifier or the geographical identifier and communicates the message to a second one or more destination devices via a second one or more cell towers without corresponding device identifiers for the one or more destination devices, and

a destination device that receives the message associated with the destination identifier such that a broadcast message is presented on the destination device of the set of destination devices via a short-message-service-based interface based on a preference tag indicates a preference of broadcast messages to be displayed on the destination device;

wherein presenting the broadcast message via the short-message-service-based interface comprises;

receiving the message at the destination device;

determining that the message, received as a broadcast message, is received from the broadcast component;

determining that the destination identifier associated with the message matches the preference tag stored in association with the destination device; and

presenting the message, received as a broadcast message, as a direct message based on the preference tag.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the second one or more cell towers are selected in accordance with the categorical identifier or the geographical identifier.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the second one or more cell towers correspond with the destination identifier.

20. The system of claim 17, wherein based on the categorical identifier the presentation of the broadcast message is altered, wherein altering the presentation of the broadcast message is based on a specific application or viewer associated with the categorical identifier.