System and method for the creation and automatic deployment of personalized, dynamic and interactive voice services, with telephone-based service utilization and control

• US 20050141679A1
• Filed: 12/07/2004
• Published: 06/30/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microstrategy Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Microstrategy Incorporated
• Inventors: Zirngibl, Michael, Patnaik, Anurag, Maass, Bodo, Eberle, Hannes
• Granted Patent: US 7,486,780 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/88.180
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/40 using speech recognition speech recognition per se G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/60 Medium conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/105 Financial transactions and auctions, e.g. bidding auctioneering devices in packet switching networks H04L12/1804
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/1058 Shopping and product ordering
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/1066 Game playing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2016 Call initiation by network rather than by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2072 Schedules, e.g. personal calendars
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/355 Interactive dialogue design tools, features or methods
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/6045 Identity confirmation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/22 Automatic class or number identification arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/38 Graded-service arrangements, i.e. some subscribers prevented from establishing certain connections queuing arrangements H04Q3/64
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/382 using authorisation codes or passwords
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42059 Making use of the calling party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42068 where the identifier is used to access a profile
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42093 Notifying the calling party of information on the called or connected party
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42102 Making use of the called party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42136 Administration or customisation of services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42153 by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42161 : via computer interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/487 : Arrangements for providing information services, e.g. recorded voice services or time announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4872 : Non-interactive information services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4878 : Advertisement messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/493 : Interactive information services, e.g. directory enquiries ; Arrangements therefor, e.g. interactive voice response [IVR] systems or voice portals
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4938 : comprising a voice browser which renders and interprets, e.g. VoiceXML
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5158 : in combination with automated outdialling systems devices for signalling identity of wanted subscriber H04M1/26
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5183 : Call or contact centers with computer-telephony arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/533 : Voice mail systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53325 : Interconnection arrangements between voice mail systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53375 : Message broadcasting
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/12 : for working between exchanges having different types of switching equipment, e.g. power-driven and step by step or decimal and non-decimal

Abstract

A method and system for telephone-based service utilization and control in conjunction with interactive, real-time, voice transmission of information to a user is disclosed. A voice service system provides creation and automatic deployment of personalized, dynamic and interactive voice services, including information derived from on-line analytical processing (OLAP) systems and other data repositories. In conjunction with such services, a user may use a telephone to control such services. For example, the user may subscribe and unsubscribe to a service using the telephone, be notified of new services via the telephone, and retrieve sound files via the telephone.

Claims

1-36. -36. (canceled)

37. A method for controlling voice service subscriptions, comprising:

initiating an interactive voice broadcast with a user that has subscribed to at least one voice service; and

dynamically interacting with the user in real-time during the interactive voice broadcast, using at least one active voice page generated for the user, to control the user'"'"'s subscription, wherein the at least one active voice page comprises one or more input elements that enable the user to perform at least one of un-subscribing to the at least one voice service, changing one or more subscription criteria, or subscribing to one or more additional voice services.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein initiating an interactive voice broadcast with the user comprises initiating an outbound call to the user.

39. The method of claim 37, wherein initiating an interactive voice broadcast with the user comprises:

receiving an inbound call from the user;

authenticating the inbound call; and

enabling the user to access the at least one active voice page to control the user'"'"'s subscription.

40. The method of claim 37, wherein execution of the at least one voice service includes generating content for the user, the content including information derived from an on-line analytical processing (OLAP) system.

41. The method of claim 37, further comprising:

enabling the user to respond to the one or more input elements verbally.

42. The method of claim 37, further comprising initiating an interactive voice broadcast with a user upon satisfaction of a predetermined condition.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein the predetermined condition comprises a predetermined schedule.

44. The method of claim 42, wherein the predetermined condition comprises a triggering event.

45. A system for controlling voice service subscriptions, comprising:

a first system for generating at least one markup document personalized for at least one subscriber of at least one voice service;

a call server comprising;

a storage device for storing the at least one markup document;

a call builder operative to initiate an outbound voice-enabled communication to the at least one subscriber using the at least one markup document; and

,

a call receiver operative to accept an inbound voice-enabled communication from the at least one subscriber;

wherein the call server accesses the at least one markup document for dynamically interacting with the at least one subscriber during either outbound or inbound voice-enabled communications, to control the at least one subscriber'"'"'s subscription, wherein the at least one markup document comprises one or more input elements that enable the user to perform at least one of un-subscribing to the at least one voice service, changing one or more subscription criteria, or subscribing to one or more additional voice services.

46. The system of claim 45, wherein the call server further comprises an authentication module operative to authenticate an inbound voice-enabled communication.

47. The system of claim 45, wherein the call server further comprises:

a parser operative to extract text from the at least one markup document; and

,

a text-to-speech engine for converting the extracted text into speech.

48. The system of claim 45, wherein the call server further comprises a search module operative to search markup documents stored in the storage device.

49. The system of claim 48, wherein the search module comprises an SQL engine operative to query the storage device.

50. The system of claim 45, wherein the storage device comprises a relational database.

51. The system of claim 45, wherein the at least one markup document comprises at least one extensible markup language (XML) document.

52. The system of claim 45, wherein the at least one markup document comprises at least one active voice page.

53. The system of claim 45, wherein the at least one markup document comprises information accessed from an on-line analytical processing (OLAP) system.

54. A method for controlling voice service subscriptions, comprising:

enabling a user to subscribe to at least one voice service that can output personalized information to the user during an interactive voice broadcast;

generating an active voice page personalized for the user;

initiating an outbound call to the user to commence an interactive voice broadcast with the user; and

dynamically interacting with the user in real-time during the interactive voice broadcast using the active voice page generated for the user, to control the user'"'"'s subscription, wherein the active voice page comprises one or more input elements that enable the user to perform at least one of un-subscribing to the at least one voice service, changing one or more subscription criteria, or subscribing to one or more additional voice services.

55. A system for controlling voice service subscriptions, comprising:

means for enabling a user to subscribe to at least one voice service that can output personalized information to the user during an interactive voice broadcast;

means for generating an active voice page personalized for the user;

means for initiating an outbound call to the user to commence an interactive voice broadcast with the user; and

means for dynamically interacting with the user in real-time during the interactive voice broadcast using the active voice page generated for the user, to control the user'"'"'s subscription, wherein the active voice page comprises one or more input elements that enable the user to perform at least one of un-subscribing to the at least one voice service, changing one or more subscription criteria, or subscribing to one or more additional voice services.

56. A method for controlling voice service subscriptions, comprising:

providing a plurality of voice services to which one or more users can subscribe, wherein each of the plurality of voice services can output personalized information to each of its'"'"' subscribers during interactive voice broadcasts with each of its'"'"' subscribers;

enabling a user to subscribe to at least one voice service, selected from the plurality of voice services, and specify personal preferences for the content and presentation of output from the at least one voice service;

generating an active voice page personalized for the user;

initiating an outbound call to the user to commence an interactive voice broadcast with the user when one or more new voice services are added to the plurality of voice services; and

dynamically interacting with the user in real-time during the interactive voice broadcast using the active voice page, wherein the active voice page comprises one or more input elements that enable the user to perform at least one of un-subscribing to the at least one voice service, changing one or more subscription criteria, or subscribing to one or more additional voice services.

57. A system for controlling voice service subscriptions, comprising:

means for providing a plurality of voice services to which one or more users can subscribe, wherein each of the plurality of voice services can output personalized information to each of its'"'"' subscribers during interactive voice broadcasts with each of its'"'"' subscribers;

means for enabling a user to subscribe to at least one voice service, selected from the plurality of voice services, and specify personal preferences for the content and presentation of output from the at least one voice service;

means for generating an active voice page personalized for the user;

means for initiating an outbound call to the user to commence an interactive voice broadcast with the user when one or more new voice services are added to the plurality of voice services; and

means for dynamically interacting with the user in real-time during the interactive voice broadcast using the active voice page, wherein the active voice page comprises one or more input elements that enable the user to perform at least one of un-subscribing to the at least one voice service, changing one or more subscription criteria, or subscribing to one or more additional voice services.