Patent ID: 8590023
Filing Date: 2013-11-19
Classification: H04L,H04W

Abstract:
1. A method of automatically connecting a mobile device to a Wi-Fi hotspot, the method comprising: storing subscription information for one or more service providers (SP) that operate Wi-Fi networks in a subscription data object of the mobile device, the subscription information including home service provider information, policy information, and pre-provisioned credentials, wherein the policy information includes a service provider blacklist that indicates hotspot providers with which the home service provider does not have a roaming agreement wherein the service provider blacklist identifies a fully-qualified domain name (FQDN) for each blacklisted hotspot service provider; determining, without user interaction, if the subscription information is applicable to an available Wi-Fi network; when the subscription information is applicable to an available Wi-Fi network, the method includes performing, without user interaction, an extensible authentication protocol (EAP) based authentication using the pre-provisioned credentials with the available Wi-Fi network to establish a Wi-Fi connection with the available Wi-Fi network; and refraining from establishing a Wi-Fi connection with hotspot service providers identified in the service provider blacklist.