Patent ID: 7840222
Filing Date: 2010-11-23
Classification: G06Q,H04L,H04W

Abstract:
1. A method of providing location-based services, the method comprising the steps of: receiving requests to initiate location-based services for respective ones of a plurality of mobile user devices associated with a wireless network wherein each of said requests would ordinarily require delivery of at least one location query to a corresponding one of the plurality of mobile user devices; prior to delivering the location queries to the plurality of mobile user devices, identifying a subset of the plurality of mobile user devices, the subset containing particular ones of the plurality of mobile user devices for which sufficient location-indicative information is available from which a general location of said particular devices can be inferred without delivering the corresponding location queries to said particular devices; and preventing delivery of the location queries to said particular mobile user devices in the identified subset; wherein a number of location queries required for provision of the requested location-based services is reduced relative to a number of location queries which would otherwise be required without the identifying and preventing steps; and wherein the step of preventing delivery of location queries comprises preventing delivery of forward lookup location requests.