ESTABLISHING A COMMUNICATION EVENT

• US 20180253692A1
• Filed: 05/04/2018
• Published: 09/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Oberle, Vincent Marc, Roberts, Lindsay Simon, Wells, Tyler, Rosenberg, Jonathan David
• Granted Patent: US 10,846,658 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/48 Message addressing, e.g. address format or anonymous messages, aliases
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/655 Combination of telephone service and social networking messaging within social networks H04L51/52
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0024 Services and arrangements where telephone services are combined with data services arrangements which combine a telephonic equipment and a computer H04M7/0012

Abstract

Methods and computer program products for establishing communication events between an initiator user and a recipient user over a first communication system. The initiator and recipient users are contacts within a second communication system but are not contacts within the first communication system. For the initiator and recipient users, an association between a first user identity in the first communication system and a second user identity in the second communication system is determined. The initiator user device uses the association for the recipient user to determine the first user identity of the recipient user. A setup request to establish the communication event is sent over the first communication system from a first initiator client to a first recipient client. A communication event is authorized to proceed over the first communication system on the basis that the initiator user and the recipient user are contacts within the second communication system.

Claims

1. A method of establishing a connection between an initiator device and a recipient device via a first communication application using a second initiator identity for a second communication application and a second recipient identity for the second communication application, the method comprising:

at the recipient device, receive an indication that the second initiator identity and second recipient identity are in a contacts list of the second communication application;

determining, at the recipient device, based on the obtained second recipient identity, a first recipient identity for the first communication application;

sending the first recipient identity to the initiator device;

receiving a setup request via the first application to establish the connection between the initiator device and the recipient device; and

establishing the connection between the initiator device and the recipient device via the first communication application, the established connection using a privacy policy of the second communication application.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein sending the first recipient identity to the initiator device comprises:

using the privacy policy of the second communication application to determine whether the initiator device is allowed to communicate with the recipient device via the second communication application;

wherein sending the first recipient identity to the initiator is responsive to determining that the initiator device is allowed to communicate with the recipient device via the second communication application.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising establishing the connection via the first communication application responsive to receiving the second initiator identity and the second recipient identity in the setup request.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising linking, by the recipient, respective accounts with the first and second communication applications by providing respective passwords for the accounts to at least one of the first and second communication applications.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the indication that the second initiator identity and second recipient identity are in the contacts list of the second communication application includes receiving, from the second communication application, a certificate including the second initiator identity.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the indication that the second initiator identity and second recipient identity are in the contacts list of the second communication application includes receiving via the first communication application a presence document including the second initiator identity.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising storing an association of the second initiator identity and the second recipient identity on at least one of a server associated with the first communication application and a server associated with the second communication application.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the first recipient identity for the first communication application includes retrieving, by the recipient device, the association of the second initiator identity and the second recipient identity from the at least one of the server associated with the first communication application or the server associated with the second communication application.

9. The method claim 7, wherein the association of the second initiator identity and the second recipient identity is stored while the initiator device is active.

10. The method claim 7, wherein the association of the second initiator identity and the second recipient identity is stored while the connection is active between the initiator device and the recipient device via the first communication application.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein:

sending the first recipient identity to the initiator device includes sending a token authorizing the connection via the first communication application; and

receiving the setup request via the first application includes receiving the token.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the connection includes at least one of an audio call, a video call, an instant messaging session, or a file transfer.

13. An apparatus for use in a recipient including a processor and memory, the memory including instructions that configure the processor to establish a connection between an initiator device and the recipient device via a first communication application using a second initiator identity for a second communication application and a second recipient identity for the second communication application, the instructions configuring the processor to:

receive an indication that the second initiator identity and second recipient identity are in a contacts list of the second communication application;

determine, based on the obtained second recipient identity, a first recipient identity for the first communication application;

use a privacy policy of the second communication application to determine whether the initiator device is allowed to communicate with the recipient device via the second communication application;

send the first recipient identity to the initiator responsive to determining that the initiator device is allowed to communicate with the recipient device via the second communication application;

receive a setup request via the first application to establish the connection between the initiator device and the recipient device; and

establish the connection between the initiator device and the recipient device via the first communication application, the established connection using a privacy policy of the second communication application.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the instructions further configure the processor to establish the connection via the first communication application responsive to receiving the second initiator identity and the second recipient identity in the setup request.

15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the instructions further configure the processor to link respective accounts with the first and second communication applications by providing respective passwords for the accounts to at least one of the first and second communication applications.

16. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the instructions that configure the processor to receive the indication that the second initiator identity and second recipient identity are in the contacts list of the second communication application include instructions that condition the processor to receive, from the second communication application, a certificate including the second initiator identity.

17. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the instructions that configure the processor to receive the indication that the second initiator identity and second recipient identity are in the contacts list of the second communication application includes receiving via the first communication application a presence document including the second initiator identity.

18. The apparatus of claim 13 further comprising instructions that cause the processor to store an association of the second initiator identity and the second recipient on at least one of a server associated with the first communication application and a server associated with the second communication application.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the instructions that condition the processor to determine the first recipient identity for the first communication application include instructions that condition the processor to retrieve the association of the second initiator identity and the second recipient identity from the at least one of the server associated with the first communication application or the server associated with the second communication application.

20. The apparatus of claim 18 wherein the instructions that cause the processor to store the association of the second initiator identity and the second recipient identity condition the processor to store the association while the initiator device is active.