Patent ID: 8023942
Filing Date: 2011-09-20
Classification: H04W

Abstract:
1. A method of permitting roaming across mobile networks, comprising the steps of: receiving, at a central computer system, an authentication message from one of a plurality of roaming networks in which a subscriber of a home network is roaming; authenticating, at the central computer system using the authentication message, that said one of the plurality of roaming networks has a roaming relationship with the central computer system; responsive to the authentication of said one of the plurality of roaming networks, forwarding, by the central computer system, the authentication message to the home network via an alliance network with which the central computer system has a roaming relationship, thereby permitting verification that a roaming transaction involving the subscriber is a permissible roaming transaction; receiving, at the central computer system from the home network via the alliance network, an indication that the authentication message was received by the home network; forwarding, by the central computer system to said one of the plurality of roaming networks, the indication that the authentication message was received by the home network, whereby, responsive to receipt of the indication that the authentication message was received by the home network at said one of the plurality of roaming networks, roaming calls are enabled for the subscriber within said one of the plurality of roaming networks; receiving, at the central computer system, an update location request from said one of the plurality of roaming networks; replacing, by the central computer system, an address in the update location request with a visitor locator register (VLR) address of the central computer system to produce a modified update location request; forwarding, by the central computer system via the alliance network, the modified update location request to a roaming gateway associated with the alliance network; replacing, by the roaming gateway, the VLR address of the central computer system contained in the modified update location request with a VLR address of the roaming gateway to produce a twice modified update location request; forwarding, by the roaming gateway, the twice modified update location request to the home network; receiving, at the central computer system, an update location response from the home network, the update location response being sent, by the home network, to the central computer system via the roaming gateway and the alliance network in response to receipt of the twice modified update location request at the home network; forwarding, by the central computer system, the update location response to said one of the plurality of roaming networks; receiving, at the central computer system, a provide roaming number request from the home network, wherein the provide roaming number request is sent by the home network to the central computer system via the roaming gateway, acting as a home locator register (HLR), and the alliance network in response to receipt of an incoming call for the subscriber at the home network; sending the provide roaming number request from the central computer system, acting as the HLR, to said one of the plurality of roaming networks; receiving, at the central computer system, a provide number response to the provide roaming number request from said one of the plurality of roaming networks, the provide number response being sent by said one of the plurality of roaming networks to the central computer system via the roaming gateway and the alliance network; and sending, by the central computer system, the provide number response to the provide roaming number request to the home network, whereby the subscriber is enabled to connect to the incoming call.