System, method and computer program product for configuring a communication application for a mobile device

The invention is directed to configuring a mobile device. An exemplary method comprises: connecting, using the mobile device, to a first network; requesting, using the mobile device, a list of subscription options from the first network, wherein the list of subscription options comprises a subscription option associated with a second network different from the first network; selecting, using the mobile device, the subscription option associated with the second network; downloading, using the mobile device, a communication application associated with the selected subscription option; terminating, using the mobile device, the connection to the first network; and connecting, using the mobile device, to the second network using the communication application.

BACKGROUND ART

The Universal Integrated Circuit Card (“UICC”) is a smart card used in mobile devices in Global System for Mobile Communications (“GSM”) and Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (“UMTS”) networks. In a GSM network, the UICC comprises a Subscriber Identity Module (“SIM”) application, and in a UMTS network, the UICC comprises a Universal Subscriber Identity Module (“USIM”) application. In some embodiments, the UICC comprises more than one application (e.g., a communication application), thereby enabling a mobile device comprising a UICC to access both GSM and UMTS networks. Additionally, the UICC provides for storage of a phone book (e.g., contact information such as phone numbers, email addresses, etc.). The UICC also enables access to a GSM network via a USIM application and enables access to a UMTS network using a SIM application. In some embodiments, the UICC also comprises an Internet Protocol Multimedia Services Identity Module (“ISIM”) that is required for services in the Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem (“IMS”). The current environment with removable UICCs in devices does not scale to a situation where there will be billions of connected devices. It is not possible to put physical UICCs in all these devices or individually configure electronic UICCs for these devices. Therefore, what is needed is an alternative to removable UICCs in devices such as mobile phones and embedded, but preconfigured UICCs in machine-to-machine (“M2M”) devices.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the invention are directed to a system, method, and computer program product for configuring a mobile device. An exemplary method comprises: connecting, using the mobile device, to a first network; requesting, using the mobile device, a list of subscription options from the first network, wherein the list of subscription options comprises a subscription option associated with a second network different from the first network; selecting, using the mobile device, the subscription option associated with the second network; downloading, using the mobile device, a communication application associated with the selected subscription option; terminating, using the mobile device, the connection to the first network; and connecting, using the mobile device, to the second network using the communication application.

In some embodiments, the method further comprises scanning for available networks.

In some embodiments, the mobile device comprises a Universal Integrated Circuit Card (“UICC”).

In some embodiments, the first network is associated with a first mobile network operator (“MNO”), and wherein the second network is associated with a second MNO.

In some embodiments, the first network advertises a bootstrap communication application.

In some embodiments, the communication application comprises a Subscriber Identity Module (“SIM”) application.

In some embodiments, the first network comprises a wireless local area network.

In some embodiments, the mobile device comprises a mobile phone.

In some embodiments, the mobile device enables a user to modify a setting of the application either before or after terminating the connection to the first network.

In some embodiments, the communication application is associated with at least one of a primary communication subscription, a secondary communication subscription, or a foreign communication subscription.

In some embodiments, at the time of connecting to the first network, the mobile device does not have a preexisting communication subscription to the first network, an MNO associated with the first network, the second network, or an MNO associated with the second network.

In some embodiments, a mobile device is provided for connecting to a network. The mobile device comprises: a memory; a processor; a module stored in the memory, executable by the processor, and configured to: connect, using the mobile device, to a first network; request, using the mobile device, a list of subscription options from the first network, wherein the list of subscription options comprises a subscription option associated with a second network different from the first network; select, using the mobile device, the subscription option associated with the second network; download, using the mobile device, a communication application associated with the selected subscription option; terminate, using the mobile device, the connection to the first network; and connect, using the mobile device, to the second network using the communication application.

In some embodiments, a computer program product for configuring a mobile device is provided. The computer program product comprises a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising code configured to: connect, using the mobile device, to a first network; request, using the mobile device, a list of subscription options from the first network, wherein the list of subscription options comprises a subscription option associated with a second network different from the first network; select, using the mobile device, the subscription option associated with the second network; download, using the mobile device, a communication application associated with the selected subscription option; terminate, using the mobile device, the connection to the first network; and connect, using the mobile device, to the second network using the communication application.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

A mobile device may comprise a UICC as described herein. When a mobile device is booted up for the first time after purchasing the mobile device or after a mobile device reset, the mobile device, using a bootstrap SIM mechanism, makes a first connection to a network and downloads a list of subscription alternatives or options from the network. The network is associated with a mobile network operator or a wireless services provider. If the only available network at the time making the first connection to the network is a particular network, a dependency on the MNO associated with that particular network may be created. Therefore, the mobile device has to rely on that particular MNO for support. Therefore, there is a need to enable a mobile device to connect to a network associated with a particular mobile network operator and enable the mobile device to choose among subscription options offered by both the particular MNO and other MNOs not affiliated with the particular MNO. As used herein, the network may comprise a mobile radio network. In some embodiments, the network comprises a wireless local area network (“WLAN”), however, the invention is equally applicable to any other wireless area network (e.g., wireless rural area network, wireless wide-area network, etc.). If the initial connection is made using a Wireless Fidelity (“WiFi”) network, there is no need for a communication application as described herein.

The present invention is directed to enabling a mobile device with a UICC to connect to any network in order to configure the mobile device with a bootstrap SIM mechanism. The bootstrap mechanism is preconfigured in the mobile device, and enables the mobile device to download the communication application described herein. The present invention requires modifications to standards associated with present mobile network standards such as the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (“3GPP”) standard, the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (“ETSI”) standard, etc. Therefore, the present invention enables an over the air (“OTA”) configuration of a communication application for a mobile device.

The present invention enables a device (e.g., a mobile device) with a UICC to establish a connection to any available network. The UICC may be embedded at the time of purchase of the device, or may be inserted into the mobile device at a later point in time. While the device is preconfigured with a bootstrap mechanism, the device does not comprise a communication application until it is downloaded from an external source. The UICC is an example of hardware capable of running a communication application, but the communication application may also be run in other types of hardware such as an embedded secure element, a trusted execution environment, a general purpose application processor, etc. The connection to the network enables the device to download a list of available MNOs and subscription alternatives or options associated with each MNO. Therefore, a user of the device may select a particular subscription option associated with a particular MNO. The device can then download an application (e.g., a SIM application or other communication application) associated with the particular subscription option. Once the application is downloaded, the connection to the network is closed, and new connection is established based on the downloaded application. The new connection is a connection to a network associated with the selected subscription option which is associated with a particular MNO. If the application enables the user to personalize the application, the user may select one or more personalization (or modification) options associated with the application. The personalization or modification may be executed either before or after the original connection to the network is closed, and either before or after a new connection to a new network is established using the downloaded application.

The present invention may be used when a device wants to establish an initial communication subscription after purchase or after a device reset (e.g., where information associated with previous communication subscriptions has been lost), after a communication subscription has ended, when a user wants to switch primary communication subscriptions (e.g., from a first MNO to a second MNO), add secondary communication subscriptions (e.g., add a communication subscription to a second MNO while retaining a communication subscription to a first MNO), or add additional subscriptions for particular uses that may be associated with a particular period of time (e.g., a foreign communication subscription (comprising a start date and an end date) for using the mobile device for communication purposes outside the country associated with any existing communication subscription). As used herein, a communication subscription enables a mobile device to make or receive a phone call, send or receive a text or multimedia message, use mobile applications, browse the Internet, etc.

Referring now toFIG. 1,FIG. 1describes an exemplary block diagram for configuring a mobile device. When mobile device110needs to be configured, the mobile device110scans for a network and connects randomly to a network that advertises a bootstrap function. For example, mobile device110connects to network120. Each of the networks120,130, and140has access to a database150of available subscription options associated with multiple networks or multiple MNOs. Therefore, the mobile device110requests a list of subscription options from the network120. A user of the mobile device110chooses one of the subscription options presented on the display of the mobile device110. For example, the selected option is an MNO associated with network130and a particular type of communication subscription (e.g., associated with a particular price, duration, etc.). The network downloads a communication application (e.g., a SIM application) associated with the selected option from the database150and transmits it to the mobile device110. The mobile device110subsequently disconnects its connection to the network120, and connects to the network130using the application that was previously transmitted to or downloaded to the mobile device110. The communication application can be used to configure an embedded communication card or module (e.g., a SIM card, a UICC card, etc.) located in the mobile device110.

Referring now toFIG. 2,FIG. 2illustrates an exemplary process flow for configuring a mobile device (e.g., a mobile phone) comprising a UICC, in accordance with embodiments, of the invention. At step210, the process flow comprises connecting, using the mobile device, to a first network (e.g., a WLAN) that advertises a bootstrap communication application (e.g., after scanning for available networks that advertise bootstrap communication applications), and requesting, using the mobile device, a list of subscription options from the first network, wherein the list of subscription options comprises a subscription option associated with a second network. In some embodiments, the second network is different from the first network. In other embodiments, the second network is the same as the first network. At step220, the process flow comprises selecting, using the mobile device, the subscription option associated with the second network, and downloading, using the mobile device, a communication application (e.g., a SIM application, a UICC application, etc.) associated with the selected subscription option. At step230, the process flow comprises terminating, using the mobile device, the connection to the first network, and connecting, using the mobile device, to the second network using the communication application.

The first network is associated with a first MNO, and the second network is associated with a second MNO different from the first MNO. In some embodiments, the mobile device enables a user to modify a setting of the communication application either before or after terminating the connection to the first network, and either before or after connecting to the second network. In some embodiments, the communication application is associated with at least one of a primary communication subscription, a secondary communication subscription, or a foreign communication subscription. At the time of connecting to the first network, the mobile device does not have a preexisting communication subscription to the first network, an MNO associated with the first network, the second network, or an MNO associated with the second network.

The invention is not limited to any particular types of mobile devices. As used herein, a mobile device may also be referred to as a device, a system, or apparatus. Examples of devices include mobile phones or other mobile computing devices, mobile televisions, laptop computers, smart screens, tablet computers or tablets, portable desktop computers, e-readers, scanners, portable media devices, gaming devices, cameras or other image-capturing devices, headgear, eyewear, watches, bands (e.g., wristbands) or other wearable devices, or other portable or non-portable computing or non-computing devices. In some embodiments, the mobile device may not be portable (e.g., a water meter reader, a smart grid device, etc.).

Referring now toFIG. 3,FIG. 3presents an exemplary block diagram of the network environment for configuring a mobile device, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. As illustrated, the network environment includes a network310and a mobile device110. As shown inFIG. 3, the mobile device110is operatively and selectively connected (e.g., via one or more wired or wireless mechanisms) to the network310, which may include one or more separate networks.

The mobile device110is a computing device that comprises a communication interface, a processor, a memory, and a module stored in the memory, executable by the processor, and configured to perform the various processes described herein. Each communication interface described herein enables communication with other systems via the network310.

Each processor described herein generally includes circuitry for implementing audio, visual, and/or logic functions. For example, the processor may include a digital signal processor device, a microprocessor device, and various analog-to-digital converters, digital-to-analog converters, and other support circuits. Control and signal processing functions of the system in which the processor resides may be allocated between these devices according to their respective capabilities. The processor may also include functionality to operate one or more software programs based at least partially on computer-executable program code portions thereof, which may be stored, for example, in a memory.

Each memory may include any computer-readable medium. For example, memory may include volatile memory, such as volatile random access memory (RAM) having a cache area for the temporary storage of information. Memory may also include non-volatile memory, which may be embedded and/or may be removable. The non-volatile memory may additionally or alternatively include an EEPROM, flash memory, and/or the like. The memory may store any one or more of pieces of information and data used by the system in which it resides to implement the functions of that system.

In accordance with embodiments of the invention, the term “module” with respect to a system (or a device) may refer to a hardware component of the system, a software component of the system, or a component of the system that includes both hardware and software. As used herein, a module may include one or more modules, where each module may reside in separate pieces of hardware or software.