Telecommunications round-robin message delivery

• US 6,201,814 B1
• Filed: 12/12/1996
• Issued: 03/13/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: ShoreTel Incorporated (Mitel Networks Corporation)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Greenspan, Steven Lloyd
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, HUY DUY
• Application Number:
  US08/764,799
• Time in Patent Office: 1,552 Days
• Field of Search: 370/270, 370/312, 370/349, 370/351, 370/400, 370/428, 370/474, 370/475, 370/260, 370/261, 370/262, 370/263, 370/264, 395/200.68, 395/200.75, 379/93.03, 379/93.24, 709/238, 709/243
• US Class Current: 370/428
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/48 Message addressing, e.g. address format or anonymous messages, aliases

Abstract

An improved messaging system for transmitting message information to a plurality of recipients comprises the steps of: sending a first message including the predetermined message information to a first recipient address of a first recipient on a list of recipients; updating, after the completion of the step of sending, the list of recipients to create an updated recipient list, the updating being implemented independently of the first recipient at the first recipient address; and sending a second message, including the predetermined message information to an address corresponding to a next recipient selected from the updated recipient list. The method can iteratively repeat the steps of updating and sending the message to thereby transmit messages to a plurality of recipients with the list of recipients being dynamically updated after each message is sent. The recipients may have an opportunity to modify or add to the message before the message is sent on to the next recipient.

Claims

1. A method for operating an electronic messaging system to transmit message information to a plurality of recipients comprising the steps of:

(a) sending a first message including said message information to a first recipient address of a first recipient on a list of recipients;

(b) providing said first recipient with an opportunity to modify said message information;

(c) modifying said message information;

(d) determining an address corresponding to a second recipient selected from said recipient list;

(e) sending a second message, including said message information with modifications made by said first recipient in step (c), to said address corresponding to said second recipient; and

prior to steps (a)-(e) monitoring a database to determine whether a predetermined criteria independent of the electronic messaging system has been satisfied and performing steps (a)-(e) only in the event that said predetermined criteria has been satisfied.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said determining is implemented independently of said first recipient at said first recipient address.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

(f) providing said second recipient with an opportunity to modify said message information;

(g) determining an address corresponding to a third recipient selected from said recipient list; and

(h) sending a third message, including said message information with any modifications made by said first recipient in step (c) and said second recipient in step (f), to said address corresponding to said third recipient.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein steps (a)-(e) are iteratively repeated to thereby transmit messages to a plurality of recipients with each of said recipients being provided with an opportunity to modify said message information.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein after said messages have been transmitted to said plurality of recipients, said message information, as modified by said recipients, is transmitted to an originator of said first message.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising the step of updating said list of recipients after each implementation of step (a).

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of updating said list of recipients after the implementation of step (a).

8. The method of claim 1 wherein step (a) further comprises sending said list of recipients to said first recipient address and implementing steps (b), (c), (d) and (e) using a system local to said first recipient.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein steps (b), (c), (d) and (e) are iteratively repeated to thereby transmit messages to a plurality of recipients with said list of recipients being updated after each implementation of step (d) (e) by each of a plurality of respective systems local to each recipient.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of accessing a database and selecting recipients that satisfy a predetermined criteria to thereby generate said list of recipients.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of providing said first recipient with an opportunity to modify said recipient list.

12. A method for operating an electronic messaging system to transmit message information to a plurality of recipients comprising the steps of:

(a) sending said predetermined message information to a first recipient address of a first recipient on a list of recipients;

(b) providing an opportunity for a current recipient of said message information to modify said message information;

(c) automatically updating said list of recipients to create an updated recipient list, said updating being implemented independently of said plurality of recipients;

(d) sending said message information to an address corresponding to a next recipient selected from said updated recipient list created in step (c); and

(e) iteratively repeating steps (b)-(d) to thereby transmit said message information to a plurality of recipients with said list of recipients being automatically updated after each implementation of step (d).

13. The method of claim 12 wherein step (a) further comprises sending said list of recipients to said first recipient address and implementing steps (b)-(e) using a plurality of respective systems local to said recipients.

14. The method of claim 12 further comprising the step of accessing a database and selecting recipients that satisfy a predetermined criteria to thereby generate said list of recipients.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein after said message information has been transmitted to said plurality of recipients, said message information, as modified by said recipients, is transmitted to an originator of said first message.

16. The method of claim 12 further comprising the following additional steps carried out prior to steps (a)-(e):

monitoring a database to determine whether a predetermined criteria has been satisfied; and

performing steps (a)-(e) only in the event that said predetermined criteria has been satisfied.

17. A method for operating an electronic messaging system to transmit message information to a plurality of recipients comprising the steps of:

(a) sending a first message including said message information to a first recipient address of a first recipient on a list of recipients, the list of recipients maintained independently of said plurality of recipients;

(b) automatically updating, after the completion of step (a), said list of recipients to create an updated recipient list, said updating being implemented independently of said first recipient at said first recipient address; and

(c) sending a message, including said predetermined message information, to an address corresponding to a next recipient selected from said updated recipient list created in step (b).

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising, after the completion of step (a), the additional step (a2) of generating said message sent in step (c).

19. The method of claim 18 wherein steps (a2), (b) and (c) are iteratively repeated to thereby transmit messages to a plurality of recipients with said list of recipients being updated after each implementation of step (c).

20. The method of claim 17 wherein steps (b) and (c) are iteratively repeated to thereby transmit messages to a plurality of recipients with said list of recipients being updated after each implementation of step (c).

21. The method of claim 20 wherein messages are generated by providing a current recipient with an opportunity to modify said message information before each iteration of step (c).

22. The method of claim 21 wherein after said messages have been transmitted to said plurality of recipients, said message information, as modified by said recipients, is transmitted to an originator of said first message.

23. The method of claim 17 wherein step (a) further comprises sending said list of recipients to said first recipient address and implementing steps (b) and (c) using a system local to said first recipient.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein steps (b) and (c) are iteratively repeated to thereby transmit messages to a plurality of recipients with said list of recipients being updated after each implementation of step (c) by each of a plurality of respective systems.

25. The method of claim 17 further comprising the step of accessing a database and selecting recipients that satisfy a predetermined criteria to thereby generate said list of recipients.

26. The method of claim 17 further comprising the following additional steps carried out prior to steps (a)-(c):

monitoring a database to determine whether a predetermined criteria has been satisfied; and

performing steps (a)-(c) only in the event that said predetermined criteria has been satisfied.

27. The method of claim 17 further comprising the step of providing said first recipient with an opportunity to modify said recipient list.

28. The method of claim 17 wherein said message sent in step (c) is identical to said first message.

29. A method for operating an electronic messaging system to transmit message information to a plurality of recipients comprising the steps of:

(a) sending a message including said message information to a first recipient address of a first recipient on a list of recipients, the list of recipients maintained independently of said plurality of recipients;

(b) providing an opportunity for a current recipient of said message to modify said message;

(c) automatically updating said list of recipients to create an updated recipient list, said updating being implemented independently of said current recipient;

(d) sending said message to an address corresponding to a next recipient selected from said updated recipient list created in step (b); and

(e) iteratively repeating steps (b)-(d) to thereby transmit said message to a plurality of recipients with said list of recipients being automatically updated after each implementation of step (d).

30. An apparatus for transmitting message information to a plurality of recipients comprising:

a list of recipients to which predetermined message information will be sent;

a transmission medium for sending a first message including said message information to a first recipient address of a first recipient on said list of recipients;

an input device for modifying said message information;

a first recipient processor for selecting a second recipient from said recipient list having a second address and sending a second message, including said message information with modifications made by said first recipient to said address corresponding to said second recipient; and

wherein said list of recipients is automatically updated independent of the plurality of recipients before said second message is sent.

31. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein said processor selects said second recipient independently of said first recipient at said first recipient address.

32. The apparatus of claim 30 further comprising:

a second input device for providing said second recipient with an opportunity to modify said message information;

a second recipient processor for selecting a third recipient from said recipient list and sending a third message, including said predetermined message information with any modifications made by said first recipient and said second recipient to said address corresponding to said third recipient.

33. The apparatus of claim 32 wherein said first recipient processor and said second recipient processor are the same processor.

34. The apparatus of claim 32 wherein after said messages have been transmitted to said first and second recipients, said message information, as modified by said recipients, is transmitted to an originator of said first message.

35. The apparatus of claim 32 further comprising means for updating said list of recipients after said second message is sent and after said third message is sent.

36. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein said list of recipients is also sent to said first recipient address.

37. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein said list of recipients is created by accessing a database and selecting recipients that satisfy a predetermined criteria.

38. The apparatus of claim 30 further comprising means for monitoring a database to determine whether a predetermined criteria has been satisfied and wherein said first message is sent only in the event that said predetermined criteria has been satisfied.

39. The apparatus of claim 32 further comprising means for providing said first recipient with an opportunity to modify said recipient list.

40. A method for operating an electronic messaging system to transmit message information to a plurality of recipients comprising the steps of:

(a) sending a first voice mail message including said message information to a first recipient address of a first recipient on a list of recipients, the list of recipients maintained independently of said plurality of recipients;

(b) providing said first recipient with an opportunity to modify said message information;

(c) automatically updating said list of recipients to create an updated recipient list, said updating being implemented independently of said first recipient;

(d) determining an address corresponding to a second recipient selected from said recipient list; and

(e) sending a second voice mail message, including said message information with any modifications made by said first recipient in step (b), to said address corresponding to said second recipient.

41. The method of claim 40 wherein said first recipient does not modify said message information such that said second message is identical to said first message.

42. An apparatus for transmitting message information to a plurality of recipients comprising:

a list of recipients to which predetermined message information will be sent;

a transmission medium for sending a first voice mail message including said message information to a first recipient address of a first recipient on said list of recipients;

an input device for providing said first recipient with an opportunity to modify said message information;

a first recipient processor for selecting a second recipient from said recipient list having a second address and sending a second voice mail message, including said message information with any modifications made by said first recipient to said address corresponding to said second recipient; and

wherein said list of recipients is automatically updated independent of the plurality of recipients before said second message is sent.

43. The apparatus of claim 42 wherein said first recipient does not modify said message information such that said second message is identical to said first message.