Patent ID: 7822187
Filing Date: 2010-10-26
Classification: H04M

Abstract:
1. An apparatus for prioritizing incoming telephone calls for a subscriber to a carrier providing telephone service over a network including at least one router for routing packetized telephone calls to a phone of the subscriber over the network, said subscriber's phone including a call alert device, said apparatus comprising: a. a voice mail system communicating with said router (1) for storing incoming messages for the subscriber from callers calling the phone of the subscriber, and (2) for storing outgoing greetings from the subscriber to be played to callers to said subscriber, said outgoing greetings including a normal greeting instructing how to leave a message and a “priority call” greeting, and b. a controller communicating with said router and said voice mail system, said controller operable to direct said voice: mail system to operate in (i) call block mode to intercept incoming calls to the phone of the subscriber and record callers' messages, or (ii) call priority mode to allow callers, without qualifying said callers to receive said priority call message, to override said call block mode and activate the call alert device of the subscriber's phone, c. said controller operable in response to receiving a normal mode of operation signal from said subscriber to select said outgoing normal greeting for playback to said caller, and operable in response to receiving a priority call mode of operation signal from the subscriber to select said outgoing priority call greeting for playback to all callers who can then direct said controller to override said call block mode of operation, make the caller's call into a priority call and enable said priority call to be routed to the called phone of said subscriber.