Abstract:
A plurality of private branch exchanges (PBXs  110, 120 ) for placing outbound solicitation calls share use of a “no-call list” database ( 160 ) to which they are connected by a private telephone network ( 130 ) and a call-admitter server ( 150 ). When a call is initiated ( 200 ) at a PBX to a telephone number, the PBX queries ( 202 ) the server regarding whether the call is allowed. In response, the server accesses ( 302 ) the database to determine if the telephone number is in the database. If so, the server returns ( 308 ) a response blocking the call; if not, the server returns ( 306 ) a response allowing the call to proceed. The PBX responds ( 208, 210 ) accordingly. If the caller overrides ( 218 ) blocking of the call, the PBX notifies ( 222 ) the server and allows ( 126 ) the call to proceed, and the server logs ( 312 ) the override.

Description:
Cross Reference to Related Applications  
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/423, 948, filed Nov. 4, 2002. 
     
    
     
       TECHNICAL FIELD  
         [0002]    This invention relates to call centers, outbound dialing systems, and other outbound-communication-generating entities.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0003]    Enterprises need to block outgoing telecommunications—usually phone calls—to people who have had their electronic addresses—usually telephone numbers—entered on a “no-call list” to indicate their desire to not be contacted. Software vendors who specialize in outbound dialing applications for call centers usually add these no-call lists as parameters to their applications such that their applications will not select telephone numbers on the no-call lists in generating outbound calls. But some enterprises do not use these applications; they rely on paper or electronic databases or other closed data stores for sources of telephone numbers that their agents call to solicit business, and therefore find it difficult to comply with not calling people listed on the no-call lists.  
           [0004]    Most private branch exchanges (PBXs) have the capability to block calls to specific kinds of telephone numbers—such as “900”—prefix telephone numbers, for example—or to specific-ranges of numbers. But telephone numbers on no-call lists do not fit neatly into such categories. And even PBXs that have the capability to block calls to individual selected numbers do not have the capacity to store and block calls to millions or even tens of millions of phone numbers, as is needed by no-call lists, and they typically have no easy way of updating their stores of these blocked numbers on a constant basis. Local storage of the no-call lists, their huge size, the proprietary and/or complicated ways of updating them on PBXs, the number of PBXs that they must be maintained on, and the difficulties of keeping all of the copies synchronized all make compliance with no-call lists unwieldy and often prohibitively expensive for enterprises.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0005]    This invention is-directed to solving these and other problems and disadvantages of the prior art. According to the invention, at least one system for effecting outbound solicitation communications to endpoints having addresses is connected to a database of addresses of endpoints that are not to be solicited, by a communications network and a server for accessing the database which server is physically distinct from the at least one system. In response to initiation on a system of a communication to an address, the system queries the server via the network regarding whether the communication is allowed, responds to a first type of response to the query received from the server via the network by blocking the communication from proceeding, and responds to a second type of response to the query received from the server via the network by allowing the communication to proceed. In response to receipt of the query from the system via the network, the server accesses the database and determines whether the address is in the database. If so, the server sends the first type of response to the querying system via the network; if not, the server sends the second type of response to the querying system via the network. Preferably, in response to an override of the blocking of the communication, the system informs the server thereof and allows the communication to proceed. The server responds to the informing by logging the override.  
           [0006]    While the invention has been characterized in terms of method, it also encompasses apparatus that performs the method. The apparatus preferably includes an effector—any entity that effects the corresponding step, unlike a means—for each step. The invention further encompasses any computer-readable medium containing instructions which, when executed in a computer, cause the computer to perform the method steps. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION  
       [0007]    These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of an illustrative embodiment of the invention considered with the drawing wherein:  
         [0008]    [0008]FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a communications system that includes an illustrative embodiment of the invention;  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 2 is a functional flow diagram of actions performed by PBXs of the communications system of FIG. 1; and  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 3 is a functional flow diagram of actions performed by a call-admittance server of the communications system of FIG. 1. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0011]    [0011]FIG. 1 shows an illustrative communications system. It comprises the public telephone network  140  and an enterprise&#39;s private telephone network  130  connected thereto. Public telephone subscriber&#39;s terminals  142 - 144  are served by network  140 . Private telephone network  130  includes a call center that comprises one or more auto-dialer-equipped PBXs  100 ,  120  each serving its own plurality of call center agents&#39; terminals  102 - 104 ,  122 - 124 . Users of terminals  102 - 104 ,  122 - 124  and/or the dialers of PBXs  100 ,  120  generate outbound calls to terminals  142 - 144  and PBXs  100 ,  120  connect answered calls to agents&#39; terminals  102 - 104 ,  122 - 124  for servicing, as is conventional. PBXs  100 ,  120  are illustratively stored-program-controlled machines comprising storage for storing data and programs and a processor for using the data and executing the programs from the storage, such as the Avaya Definity® PBXs.  
         [0012]    According to the invention, a server  150 , called a call-admitter server, and a no-call database  160  are connected to private telephone network  130  and made accessible to PBXs  100 ,  120 . No-call database  160  is either a public or a private database that contains the no-call list of telephone numbers of people who do not wish to be solicited. Server  150  provides electronic access to no-call database  160 . Server  150  is a stored-program-controlled machine having a suitable storage for storing data and programs and a processor for using the data and executing the programs from the storage. No-call database  160  centrally serves all PBXs  110 ,  120 , thereby providing only one place in the enterprise where the no-call list has to be kept, maintained, and updated, and eliminates the problem of keeping multiple copies of the no-call lists synchronized. Of course, duplicate no-call list databases may be kept for reliability purposes. Likewise, a plurality of servers  150  may exist in private network  130 , either for use by different sets of PBXs  100 ,  120 , or for purposes of reliability, so that if one server  150  fails or cannot be reached, another may be used instead. Before a PBX  100 ,  120  places an outbound call to a telephone number in the public telephone network  140 , it places a query data call—an H.323 call, for example—through private telephone network  130  to server  150  to determine whether the public-network call may be placed, and comports itself according to the response that it receives from server  150 . This is shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. FIG. 2 shows actions performed by a PBX  100 ,  120 , while FIG. 3 shows actions performed by server  150 .  
         [0013]    When an outbound call is initiated at a PBX  100 ,  120 —whether by the auto-dialer of the PBX or by a user of a terminal  102 - 104  or  122 - 124 —, at step  200  of FIG. 2, the originating PBX  100 ,  120  sends a query containing the called number to server  150 , at step  202 . Illustratively, the query is sent as a data call, such as an H.323 call, by the originating PBX  100 ,  120  through private telephone network  130  to server  150 . PBXs  100 ,  120  may be administered to place all outgoing calls over trunks of network  130  that lead to server  150 , in which case conventional software of PBXs  100 ,  120  need not be modified to cause them to contact server  150 . Alternatively, PBXs  100 ,  120  may contact server  150  over a computer telephony integration (CTI) link, either directly or through an adjunct processor (not shown), and either through network  130  or through a data network such as a local area network, (also not shown).  
         [0014]    Upon receiving the query from a PBX  100 ,  120 , at step  300  of FIG. 3, server  150  queries no-call database  160  with the called number, at step  302 , to determine if the called number is or is not contained in database  160 , at step  304 . If the called number is not in database  160 , the call may proceed, and so server  150  sends a “call allowed” response to the originating PBX  100 ,  120 , at step  306 . This response may take the form of a call-redirection request to cause the originating PBX  100 ,  120  to redirect the originating call from a trunk of network  130  that is connected to server  150  to a trunk of network  130  that is connected to public telephone network  140 . If the called number is in database  160 , as determined at step  304 , the call may not proceed, and so server  150  sends a “call blocked” response to the originating PBX  100 ,  120 , at step  308 . Following step  306  or  308 , server  150  is normally done with the call, at step  310 .  
         [0015]    Returning to FIG. 2, when the originating PBX  100 ,  120  receives the response from server  150 , at step  204 , it checks if the response is “call blocked”, at step  206 . If not, the originating PBX  100 ,  120  completes the call to the called number x in a conventional manner at step  208 . For example, if the received response was to redirect the call to a trunk leading to public network  140 , the originating PBX  100 ,  120  does so at step  208 . If the response received from server  150  is “call blocked”, as determined at step  206 , originating PBX  100 ,  120  blocks the call, at step  210 , in a conventional manner. If the call had been originated by the auto-dialer of PBX  100 ,  120 , as indicated at step  212 , PBX  100 ,  120  is done with the call, at step  214 . But if the call had been originated at one of the terminals  102 - 104 ,  122 - 124 , originating PBX  100 ,  120  connects the originating terminal to an announcement that advises the agent user of the originating terminal that the call has been blocked, at step  216 . At this point, the agent may override the call blocking. For example, the call may be a personal call of the agent, or the called party may be a customer of the enterprise, in which case the no-call requirement does not apply. Illustratively, the agent may override the call-blocking by dialing the call again, but this time with a prefix that serves as a call-block override feature activation code (FAC). If the agent does not override the blocking, as determined at step  218 , originating PBX  100 ,  120  is done with the call, at step  220 . But if originating PBX  100 ,  120  determines, at step  218 , that the agent is overriding the blocking, it notifies server  150  thereof, at step  222 . Notification of server  150  may take the same form as the query at step  202 —for example, sending an H.323 call to server  150  or placing the outgoing call to number x preceded by the blocking override FAC over a trunk leading to server  150 .  
         [0016]    If and when server  150  receives the blocking override notification, at step  312  of FIG. 3, it makes a record thereof in an override log, at step  314 , recording, inter alia, the calling and called numbers and the time of the call. If the override notification took the form of connecting the originated call with the override FAC to server  150 , server responds to originating PBX  100 ,  120  with a redirection request to redirect the call to public network  140 , at step  316 . Otherwise, server  150  merely returns an acknowledgement of receipt of the override to originating PBX  100 ,  120 , at step  316 . Server  150  is then done with the call, at step  318 .  
         [0017]    Upon receiving the response from server  150 , at step  124  of FIG. 2, originating PBX  100 ,  120  conventionally completes the call to the called number, at step  126 , for example by redirecting the call from server  150  to public network  140 . The call then proceeds conventionally.  
         [0018]    Of course, various changes and modifications to the described illustrative embodiment of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, use of the invention is not limited to telephony networks, but may be used in any communications network including, for example, a virtual private network (VPN), a local, metropolitan, or wide area network (LAN, MAN, WAN), the Internet, or another data network. Hence, the no-call list may be a list of addresses other than telephone numbers, such as Internet or data-network addresses. Correspondingly, the soliciting communication need not be a voice telephone call but may be a fax call, a voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) call, a data call, a multimedia call, or a message in any medium. The PBXs may be administered to block outgoing calls if they cannot reach a call admitter server to screen the calls; alternatively only “normal” calls should be blocked but “override” calls should be allowed to proceed, with a warning being given to the caller in both cases, and an optional capability to administratively (locally) block the “override” calls may be provided. Such changes and modifications maybe made without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention. It is therefore intended that such changes and modifications be covered by the accompanying claims except insofar as limited by the prior art.