Feature activation on device

• US 9,806,963 B2
• Filed: 10/18/2013
• Issued: 10/31/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Sanjeev, Kumar, Shah, Jignya, Lampron, Keith P., Liew, Seng Kin
• Primary Examiner(s): Khan, Aftab N.
• Application Number:
  US14/057,606
• Publication Number:
  US 20150113109A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,474 Days
• Field of Search: 4554143, 455551, 726 3
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5051 Service on demand, e.g. definition and deployment of services in real time
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/60 Subscription-based services using application servers or record carriers, e.g. SIM application toolkits

Abstract

A system is configured to receive account information associated with a subscriber and a set of user devices, and receive user input, from a device associated with the subscriber, indicating that a feature is to be activated for the set of user devices. The device is configured to determine an association between the set of user devices and a feature code associated with the feature. The device is configured to receive a request to activate the feature from a user device, of the set of user devices, and determine that the user device is eligible to receive the feature based on the association between the set of user devices and the feature code. The device is configured to activate the feature for the user device based on determining that the user device is eligible to receive the feature.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

one or more server devices to;

receive, using an account server device of the one or more server devices, account information associated with a subscriber and a plurality of user devices;

receive user input, from a device associated with the subscriber, indicating that a feature is to be activated for a subset of user devices,

the plurality of user devices including the subset of user devices,

the subset of user devices being associated with a plurality of mobile device numbers (MDNs), and

the feature being one of a plurality of features;

determine an association between the plurality of MDNs and a feature code,

the feature code uniquely identifying the feature;

receive, from a user device of the plurality of user devices, an MDN associated with the user device to activate the feature,

the plurality of MDNs comprising the MDN;

determine that the user device is among the subset of user devices;

determine that the user device is eligible to receive the feature based on the association between the plurality of MDNs and the feature code and based on the user device being among the subset of user devices; and

send a notification, to a provisioning device, to cause activation of the feature for the user device based on determining that the user device is eligible to receive the feature.

2. The system of claim 1, where the one or more server devices are further to:

provide notifications to the subset of user devices indicating that the subset of user devices are eligible to receive the feature.

3. The system of claim 1, where the one or more server devices, when determining the association between the plurality of MDNs and the feature code, are to:

determine an association between the plurality of MDNs and a plurality of feature codes,

each feature code, of the plurality of feature codes, being associated with a feature, of the plurality of features; and

where the one or more server devices, when determining that the user device is eligible to receive the feature, are to;

determine that the subset of user devices is eligible to receive the plurality of features based on the association between the plurality of MDNs and the plurality of feature codes.

4. The system of claim 1, where the feature includes access to a shared messaging service;

and

where the one or more server devices are further to;

provide information to a network device to permit the user device to access the shared messaging service.

5. The system of claim 1, where the feature includes access to media;

where the one or more server devices are further to;

provide information to a network device to permit the user device to access the media.

6. The system of claim 1, where the one or more server devices are further to:

receive an association between a plurality of features and a plurality of feature codes,

the plurality of features including the feature, and

the plurality of feature codes including the feature code; and

determine the feature code based on the association between the plurality of features and the plurality of feature codes.

7. The system of claim 1, where the feature includes service related to at least one of:

cellular service, voicemail, email, short message service (SMS) text message, call forwarding, conference calling, or call blocking.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions, the instructions comprising:

one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to;

receive, using an account server device, account information associated with a subscriber and a plurality of user devices,

the plurality of user devices being associated with a plurality of mobile device identifiers numbers (MDNs);

receive user input, from a device associated with the subscriber, indicating that a feature is to be activated for a subset of user devices,

the user input including a single interaction of the subscriber,

the feature being among a plurality of features, and

the plurality of user devices including the subset of user devices;

determine an association between the plurality of MDNs and a feature code,

the feature code uniquely identifying the feature;

receive, from a user device of the subset of user devices, an MDN associated with the user device to activate the feature;

determine that the user device is eligible to receive the feature based on the association between the plurality of MDNs and the feature code; and

send a notification, to a provisioning device, to cause activation of the feature for the user device based on determining that the user device is eligible to receive the feature.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to determine that the user device is eligible to receive the feature, cause the one or more processors to:

determine that the user device is eligible to receive the feature based on determining that the MDN is one of the plurality of MDNs.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the feature includes access to audio files;

where the one or more instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to;

provide information to a network device to permit the user device to access the audio files.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the feature includes access to a navigation system;

where the one or more instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to;

provide information to a network device to permit the user device to access the navigation system.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the one or more instructions, that cause the one or more processors to receive the MDN, cause the one or more processors to:

receive the MDN based on an attempt by the user device to access the feature.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the one or more instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to:

receive an indication that the feature is to be deactivated for the plurality of user devices;

remove the association between the plurality of MDNs and the feature code; and

provide information, that identifies that the association is removed, to a network device to cause the network device to prevent the subset of user devices from accessing the feature.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the one or more instructions, when executed by one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to:

determine an association between a subset of MDNs and a second feature code,

a second subset of user devices being associated with the subset of MDNs,

the plurality user devices including the second subset of user devices, and

a second feature code being associated with a second feature,

the plurality of features including the second feature;

receive a request to activate the second feature from a second user device, the second subset of user devices including the second user device; and

determine a second user device is eligible to receive the second feature based on the association between the subset of MDNs and the second feature code.

15. A method, comprising:

receiving, by one or more devices using an account server device, account information associated with a subscriber and a plurality of user devices;

receiving, by the one or more devices, user input, from a device associated with the subscriber, indicating that a feature is to be activated for a subset of user devices,

the feature being among a plurality of features, and

the plurality of user devices including the subset of user devices;

determining, by the one or more devices, an association between a plurality of mobile device numbers (MDNs) and a feature code,

the subset of user devices being associated with the plurality of MDNs, and

the feature code uniquely identifying the feature;

receiving, by the one or more devices and from a user device of the subset of user devices, an MDN associated with the user device to activate the feature;

determining, by the one or more devices, that the user device is eligible to receive the feature based on the association between the plurality of MDNs and the feature code; and

providing, by the one or more devices and to a provisioning device, a notification to cause a network device to activate the feature for the user device,

the notification being provided based on determining that the user device is eligible to receive the feature.

16. The method of claim 15, where providing the notification to cause the network device to activate the feature comprises:

providing the notification to a particular user device associated with the subscriber,

the notification indicating that the feature is activated for the user device.

17. The method of claim 15, where the feature includes a data limit;

where providing the notification to cause the network device to activate the feature comprises;

providing the notification to the network device to permit the user device to transmit or receive data in an amount based on the data limit.

18. The method of claim 15, where the user device is a first user device;

and

the method further comprising;

receiving a request to activate the feature for a second user device; and

determining that the second user device is not eligible to receive the feature based on the association between the plurality of MDNs and the feature code.

19. The method of claim 18,

where determining that the second user device is not eligible comprises:

determining that a device identifier associated with the second user device is not one of the plurality of MDNs.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

providing a notification to the second user device indicating that the second user device is not eligible to receive the feature.