Abstract:
The present invention provides a system, method and computer program product for implementing application level policies in an operator network, while managing the exchange of data packets between users and service providers during the provisioning of premium data services. The present invention intermediates between a user and a service provider (who may be an enterprise, content provider, an application provider or a partner portal). The present invention enforces access control, prompting, redirection and inline context injection dynamically while the service is being delivered, and generates metering records for billing purposes. Prompting enables notifications and taking inputs from the user while the user accesses chargeable content or when the sharing of user data (profile or choice) occurs between the network and service provider. Inline context injection allows sharing of information regarding the users preference and profile, and capabilities of the devices between the users and the service provider.

Description:
BACKGROUND  
       [0001]     The present invention relates to telecommunication networks. In particular, the invention relates to an infrastructure element that intermediates between users and service providers.  
         [0002]     Most of the traditional wireless networks, which support the provision of various services (also called applications) to users, include three basic entities: a service provider, a network operator, and one or more users. The service provider provides several services to the user using the network operator&#39;s infrastructure. The service provider can be a content provider, an application provider, or a partner portal (who has a business relationship with the network operator). The network operator provides and maintains the basic network infrastructure over which the service provider provides various data and voice services. The user avails the services, which may either be free services, or paid/subscribed services, provided by the service provider.  
         [0003]     Provision of services is an important means of revenue generation for operators as well as for service providers. Indeed, for increasing this revenue generation, services that manifest both value and convenience to consumers need to be provided using the network operator&#39;s infrastructure. Examples of some of the conventional services being provided include caller-line identification, call waiting, and call forwarding.  
         [0004]     There have been several advancements in content creation of content-rich services and applications, as well in technologies of devices on which they can be used. For instance, in the wireless domain, there have been advancements in technology of mobile handsets. These devices are now enabled for handling “content-rich” services such as multi-media messaging (MMS). These advancements enable provision of “content-rich” services such as video streaming, downloadable music and online gaming. Provision of all these “content-rich” services lead to increased revenue generation, which is very much desirable for operators and for service providers.  
         [0005]     Besides provision of “content-rich” services, there is also a huge opportunity of direct revenue generation for the operator while providing content and services. The operator has the billing relation with subscriber, subscriber profiles, subscriber context and knowledge of device capabilities. The operator can use this information in several advantageous ways. First, the operator can share this information with the service providers to offer better services. Second, this information can also be used for managing payment and transactions for billing purposes.  
         [0006]     However, there are problems with the implementation of such services. To provide such services, the operator should be able to implement policies (primarily for enforcing service control) not only at the network level, but also at the application level. The service control needs to be enforced at various levels. Firstly, the operator needs to be able to exercise service awareness encompassing individual application and users. This means that the operator must be aware what services or applications a particular user is availing. Second, the operator needs to be able to deploy services without requiring significant changes in the network infrastructure. Third, the services need to be interoperable with leading service providers. Application interfaces need to be open so as to enable integration with third party applications for billing, provisioning of services, etc. In addition, the operator needs to be able to provide conditional access to users for example, for payment sites.  
         [0007]     There are granted patents and products in the market which address a few of the issues discussed above. U.S. Pat. No. 6,466,984 titled “Method And Apparatus For Policy Based Management Of Quality Of Service Treatments Of Network Data Traffic Flows By Integrating Policies With Application Program” discloses a method and apparatus for integrating policies with application program to provide policy-based management of quality of service (QoS) treatments of network data traffic flows. The QoS policies are defined in context of the application programs. The network traffic is mapped to the corresponding policy. The relevant policy is then enforced on the network traffic at the network device. The policies are stored in a directory schema. This patent only relates to implementation of QoS based on application programs.  
         [0008]     The “Application Switch” from Sylantro Systems, CA, USA is designed to support the infrastructure requirements of service providers by providing new service capabilities. The software architecture incorporates the data structures that support multi-tenant deployments. This platform acts as both the delivery mechanism and the development engine for a wide range of existing and new applications. The combination of the applications-enabled architecture and the complete suite of application modules allow a plurality of service providers to deliver a variety of telephony services over broadband networks.  
         [0009]     The iVANi iServer Application Switch from NexTone Communications, MD, USA provides policy-based call routing and signaling mediation to deploy applications in an on-net IP environment. It also interoperates with softswitch and media gateway platforms for off-net calls to and from the public network. It also provides support for enhanced services and applications such as presence management, voice-data VPNs, unified messaging and multimedia conferencing. New services and applications can be added with the addition of a new application server to the network.  
         [0010]     Alteon Application Switch  2224  from Nortel Networks, Canada is a multi-application switching system that performs Layer 2/3 switching and high-performance Layer 4-7 intelligent traffic management for applications such as server and network device load balancing, application redirection, security, and bandwidth management. The Alteon Application Switch  2224  can be used in server farms, data centers, and networks, handling up to two million concurrent sessions.  
         [0011]     The prior art discussed above tries to implement policies at the application level. However, they are limited in their approach. The patent discusses policy implementation for QoS issues and not for other services that may be provided by an operator. The products also restrict themselves to being either a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) switch or a telephony service switch.  
         [0012]     Thus, there is a need for an invention that enables a service provider to deploy premium data services. Further, it should enable the service provider to implement policies at the application level for intermediation between the user and content provider, enterprise or a third-party application provider. Capability of billing and licensing for these enhanced services should also be provided to the operator.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0013]     The present invention is directed towards an infrastructure element that intermediates between the network operator&#39;s core packet data delivery network elements and the applications.  
         [0014]     An object of the invention is to provide a system, method and computer program product for an operator to implement application level policies on data packets in a network for intermediation between users and service providers.  
         [0015]     Another object of the invention is to prompt the user and redirect the user to a different destination address. The present invention also provides access control.  
         [0016]     Yet another object of the invention is to provide a system and method for provisioning data services over a network.  
         [0017]     In order to attain the above-mentioned objectives, a system kernel receives data packets and inspects them. The system kernel determines the type of application by inspecting data packets. The data packets are forwarded to an application handler specific to the application identified by the system kernel. The context is injected in the header of data packets. A data parser parses the data and the application handler implements the application level policies on data packets. Data packets are then forwarded to the service provider. The service provider responds with necessary data to the application handler. The application handler forwards the response to the user. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0018]     The preferred embodiments of the invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings provided to illustrate and not to limit the invention, wherein like designations denote like elements, and in which:  
         [0019]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram representing the general environment in which an embodiment of the present invention functions;  
         [0020]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram of application intermediation gateway along with a policy decision point and a context server, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and  
         [0021]      FIG. 3  is a flowchart illustrating the functioning of the present invention, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0022]     The present invention is a system, method and computer program product for implementing policies at application level on data packets in a network for intermediation between users and service providers. The service provider may be a content provider, an application provider or a partner portal (who has a business relationship with the operator).  
         [0023]     The network operator provides infrastructure for connecting users to content providers, application providers and partner portals. The network operator is the connecting link between the users and the service providers and enables the delivery of services to the user. The present invention allows application level policies to be implemented on data packets at the network operator level. The application level policies are set of rules that determine the actions to be carried out for a particular type of application. The present invention enforces access control, prompting, redirection and inline context injection. The present invention may also generate metering records for billing purposes while the service is being delivered.  
         [0024]     The access control mechanism controls the access rights. It defines what source-destinations and the port numbers are to be allowed access. Some users are allowed to access some addresses but may be restricted from accessing other addresses. The present invention enables rejection of data packets from the sources that are blocked. Also, it enables the data packets to be directly passed to the opposite Ethernet interface, which connects to the service provider, without any modification.  
         [0025]     Prompting facilitates notification to users about certain terms and conditions, such as paying some associated charges, for accessing content and applications. Prompting also enables taking an input from the user. For instance, when a user downloads an MP3 song from a content provider, the user is prompted with some terms and conditions, such as paying the associated charge. The download is permitted only after the user agrees to pay the associated charges. A charging record is then generated for billing the user.  
         [0026]     Redirection enables transferring a request from the user to another (appropriate) destination. This is done by routing the data packets from one destination to another (appropriate) destination. The redirection may be for a variety of reasons. The redirection may be for the purpose of payment of service charges to access an application, denial of service, signing up a license agreement before the application can be accessed, download of software required for the application and redirection of call.  
         [0027]     Context comprises information about device characteristics, network capabilities and user profile. Examples of device characteristics information include information about Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) version supported, image types supported, languages supported, destination host URL, browser make and version, and operating system make and version. Examples of network capabilities information include network type and network identifier. Examples of user profile information include personal data, the class of subscriber, the services subscribed to and the billing information. The context enables the content or application provider to realize the abilities of the user and provide better services. For instance, based on the device type used by the user, the content provider can adapt the content to the device screen.  
         [0028]     When the user is accessing the content or the application, the present invention passes the context to the application inline. The context that is required to be passed may be decided by the service provider providing the content or the application. This may be done by selecting policies that the service provider wants to enforce. A policy is set of rules that govern the flow of data packets when a user requests for a service from a service provider.  
         [0029]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram representing the general environment in which the present invention works. An Application Intermediation Gateway (AIG)  102  connects a plurality of core network elements  104  to a plurality of content providers  106 , third party application providers  108  and partner portals  110 . The Core network elements are the basic infrastructure elements of the network provided by a network operator. Exemplary core network elements  104  are Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN) and Packet Data Serving Node (PDSN). The data packets may originate from a user or a service provider. AIG  102  is deployed in the path between user and the service provider and transfers the data packets from one to another.  
         [0030]     Core network elements  104  receive a user request from the user and pass it on to AIG  102 . The user request is in form of data packets. AIG  102  implements the application level policies on the data packets. The decisions on application level policies are provided to AIG  102  by a Policy Decision Point (PDP)  112 . PDP  112  may act as a policy controller for both core network elements  104  and AIG  102 . AIG  102  also interacts with content providers  106 , third party application providers  108  and partner portal  110 . AIG  102  forwards the user request to the desired content provider  106 , third party application provider  108  or partner portal  110 , receives response to the request and forwards the response back to user.  
         [0031]     In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, AIG  102  is deployed in an operator&#39;s network. However, it would be evident to a person skilled in the art that AIG  102  can be deployed in an enterprise local network as well.  
         [0032]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram of application intermediation gateway along with a policy decision point and a context server. AIG  102  receives a user request from a user through a system kernel  202 . The user request is in form of data packets. System kernel  202  includes a kernel hook. The kernel hook is a stream driver that inspects the data packets to determine the source and type of data. Each data packet comprises a header portion and a body. The header portion has an IP header and a TCP header.  
         [0033]     The kernel hook unwraps the IP header of the data packets to determine the source and destination IP addresses and TCP header to determine the application type. The application type is determined by port number that is read from TCP header. The kernel hook also implements kernel rules. The kernel rules are rules that govern data packets at the network level. The kernel rules are controlled by the network operator through an administration interface.  
         [0034]     Depending on the application type determined from TCP header, system kernel  202  redirects the data packets to the corresponding application handler of application handlers  204  through an I/O control interface  206  or to the opposite Ethernet interface. Exemplary application handlers are HTTP application handler, Post Office Protocol (POP) application handler and streaming application handler. The application handler to which the data packets are redirected is decided by the kernel rules. For instance, if the application is an Hypertext Transfer Protocol over Secure Socket Layer (HTTPS) request, the data is passed directly to the opposite Ethernet interface, but if it is HTTP request, it is passed to HTTP application handler. The kernel rules also determine which source and destination IP addresses are allowed to be accessed. The system kernel provides access only to those addresses.  
         [0035]     Application handlers  204  receive the data from system kernel  202  through an I/O control interface  206 . Application handlers  204  comprise a set of application handlers for handling different types of applications. I/O control interface  206  also communicates the data from application handlers  208  to system kernel  202 .  
         [0036]     In accordance with one embodiment, the present invention is envisaged to be working on an HTTP request. However, it will be evident to a person skilled in the art that the present invention can work on any other application type as well.  
         [0037]     For an HTTP request, the data packets are passed to an HTTP application handler  208 . HTTP application handler  208  performs application level access control to the user&#39;s requests. HTTP application handler  208  provides functionalities for inline prompts and allows users to make decisions while accessing the applications. HTTP application handler  208  also allows redirection of users. The redirection of users help integrating the users with content download sites and payment gateways.  
         [0038]     Access control is performed by HTTP application handler  208  based on the context information. The access is controlled by policy defined by the network operator.  
         [0039]     The user can be redirected to a URL different from the requested destination IP address. By way of an example, a user can be redirected to a relevant section of the website based on user&#39;s context or preferences. By way of another example, a user request to download software can be allowed only after the user makes a payment. For such a payment, the user can be transferred to a payment gateway.  
         [0040]     Prompts are dialogue boxes providing one or more options. The options can be presented in form of buttons or clickable logos. Exemplary buttons can be ‘OK’ and ‘CANCEL’. Prompts enable the user to make choices while they are accessing the application. The user is provided with prompts before the access is granted or a redirection is done. The prompt message and the destination URL are generated based on policy decisions in a markup language supported by client device. Exemplary markup languages can be Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML), Wireless Markup Language (WML) and Compact HTML (cHTML). The prompts are template based. An appropriate template is chosen for the prompt depending on the markup capability of the device. The prompt is then forwarded to the user.  
         [0041]     The data is parsed by a data parser  210 . Data parser  210  is a generic parser that parses all text based protocol data. Exemplary protocols can be HTTP, SIP and POP. Data parser  210  examines the header portion of the data packet and enables HTTP application handler  208  to decide the actions to be taken on the data packet. The parsing of data can be done by any known method in the art and would be evident to a person skilled in the art.  
         [0042]     To provide content providers  106 , third party application providers  108  and partner portals  110  with more information about the user and network capabilities to enable provision of better services, inline context injection is done in the HTTP header by HTTP application handler  208 . This eliminates the need for content providers  106 , third party service provider  108  and partner portals  110  to initiate a separate query to get relevant context information. Exemplary context information in such a case can be location of a user, device capability, the network characteristics, presence and availability and current credit status of the user.  
         [0043]     In a preferred embodiment of the system, the context goes as a header field in the user request. By way of an example, HTTP header along with a context for a handheld device to AIG  102  is: 
        GET http://www.julysystems.com HTTP/1.1     Accept: */*     UA-OS: Windows CE (POCKET PC)—Version 3.0     UA-color: color16     UA-pixels: 240×320     UA-CPU: ARM PXA250     UA-Voice: FALSE     UA-Language: JavaScript     Accept-Encoding: gzip, deflate     User-Agent: Mozilla/2.0 (compatible; MSIE 3.02; Windows CE; PPC; 240×320)     Host: 192.168.100.58     Connection: Keep-Alive     Location: Bangalore        
 
         [0057]     In the above example, “Location: Bangalore” is the context that is injected in the header of the data packet.  
         [0058]     In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, the context can also be sent as World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Composite Capabilities/Preference Profiles (CC/PP) exchange protocol. By way of an example, a CC/PP device profile is:  
                                                                   &lt;?xml version=“1.0”?&gt;           &lt;RDF xmlns=“http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#”           xmlns:rdf=“http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#”           xmlns:prf=“http://www.wapforum.org/           profiles/UAPROF/ccppschema-            20010430#”&gt;                &lt;rdf:Description ID=“MyDeviceProfile”&gt;           &lt;prf:component&gt;           &lt;rdf:Description ID=“HardwarePlatform”&gt;           &lt;rdf:type resource=“http://www.wapforum.org/profiles/UAPROF/           ccppschema20010430#HardwarePlatform”/&gt;           &lt;prf:ScreenSize&gt;121×87&lt;/prf:ScreenSize&gt;           &lt;prf:Model&gt;PocketPC &lt;/prf:Model&gt;           &lt;prf:InputCharSet&gt;           &lt;rdf:Bag&gt;           &lt;prf:ColorCapable&gt;Yes&lt;/prf:ColorCapable&gt;           &lt;prf:TextInputCapable&gt;Yes&lt;/prf:TextInputCapable&gt;           &lt;prf:ImageCapable&gt;Yes&lt;/prf:ImageCapable&gt;           &lt;prf:SoundOutputCapable&gt;Yes&lt;/prf:SoundOutputCapable&gt;           &lt;/rdf:Description&gt;           &lt;/prf:component&gt;           &lt;prf:component&gt;           &lt;rdf:Description ID=“SoftwarePlatform”&gt;           &lt;rdf:type resource=“http://www.wapforum.org/profiles/UAPROF/           ccppschema20010430#SoftwarePlatform”/&gt;           &lt;prf:AcceptDownloadableSoftware&gt;Yes&lt;/           prf:AcceptDownloadableSoftware&gt;           &lt;prf:MemoryFree&gt;155870&lt;/prf:MemoryFree&gt;           &lt;/rdf:Description&gt;           &lt;/prf:component&gt;                      
 
         [0059]     A context engine  212  collects the context details for the user. Context engine  212  interacts with a context server  214  to update or query the relevant context. Context engine  212  extracts the context from HTTP header of data packets. The context that is queried from context server  214  comprises details about the network and user profile. Exemplary context that is collected from context server  214  is network type, network identifier, location information and user identification. Context engine  212  also provides the context to HTTP application handler  208  for inline context injection and updates context on context server  214 . Context that is collected from the HTTP header contain the device profile and capabilities. Exemplary context that is collected from the device profile is the HTTP version supported, image capabilities, language supported, destination host URL, browser make and version and operating system make and version. Context engine  212  comprises a local context store  216 . Local context store  216  caches the context details locally on AIG  102  so that the context need not be obtained from context server  214  each time.  
         [0060]     The context is used for enforcement of policy decisions on the data packets. The policy decisions are enforced by an enforcement engine  218 . The policy decisions are enforced on both the application request and the application response. Exemplary policy decisions on an application request can be to allow a particular access, deny the access, redirect to another web site, provide a payment prompt, an alert and passing context information to the content provider, third party application provider or partner portal. Exemplary policy decisions on application response can be compressing the data and removing all image content from the data packets.  
         [0061]     The policy decisions are provided for enforcement by a policy component  220 . Policy component  220  interacts with PDP  112 . The decisions for all the policies to be implemented are taken at PDP  112 . Policy component interacts with PDP  112  using Common Open Policy Service Protocol (COPS) and Policy Communication Protocol (PCOMP) for policy decisions. COPS and PCOMP are protocols for policy exchange.  
         [0062]     The policy decision can be made in two ways. When AIG  102  needs a policy decision, it requests PDP  112  for the decision on the policy. PDP  112  may provide the policy decision to policy component  220  of AIG  102  for implementation when AIG  102  requests. Also, some policy decisions of AIG  102  may be provisioned beforehand by PDP  112 . The provisioned policy decisions are stored in a local policy decision store  222  and are used for implementation when required. Each policy decision is locally cached in local policy decision store  222  to avoid requesting for policy decision every time from PDP  112 .  
         [0063]     Also as the service is being delivered to the user, a metering record is generated by a metering record generator  224 . Metering record contains information about the user request, policies applied and the response to the user request. The metering record is sent to an accounting server for billing purpose. Also, the metering record can be used in future for analysis. Exemplary details that a metering record contains are user information such as MSISDN and IP Address, URL requested, time of connection, response size, context provided such as location, age and gender, device id such as IMEI and Mac Address and policy result such as prompt and redirection.  
         [0064]      FIG. 3  is a flowchart illustrating the functioning of a preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0065]     At step  302 , the system kernel  202  receives a user request. The request is in form of data packets. At step  304 , the kernel hook unwraps the headers of the data packets and checks the source and destination IP addresses and the type of application request as described earlier. At step  306 , the kernel hook implements the kernel rules on the data packets. An exemplary kernel rule can be to deny access of a particular source IP address. At step  308 , the user request is transferred to an application handler that handles the type of application detected from the header of data packets.  
         [0066]     At step  310 , the context relating to the data packets is checked by context engine  212 . The context is used for taking policy decisions on the user request. At step  312 , it is determined which policy decisions are to be applied on the data packets. The policy decisions are taken by PDP  112 . Also, PDP  112  may provision AIG  102  for the policy decisions. In case PDP  112  provisions AIG  102  for policy decisions, the decision is provided by local policy decision store  222 .  
         [0067]     At step  314 , the policy decisions are implemented on the user request by enforcement engine  218 . Depending on the policy decisions the user may be sent a payment prompt and the user response is waited or the user may be redirected to another address.  
         [0068]     At step  316 , the user request is forwarded to content provider  106 , third party application provider  108  or partner portal  110 . At step  318 , the response from content provider  106 , third party application provider  108  or partner portal  110  is received. At step  320 , the policy decisions on the received response are applied. These decisions are also based on context. Exemplary policy decisions can be compressing the data to be sent and removing the images from the data. At step  322 , the response is forwarded back to the user.  
         [0069]     The application intermediation gateway, as described in the present invention or any of its components may be embodied in the form of a processing machine. Typical examples of a processing machine include a general purpose computer, a programmed microprocessor, a micro-controller, a peripheral integrated circuit element, and other devices or arrangements of devices, which are capable of implementing the steps that constitute the method of the present invention. The application intermediation gateway can also be embodied on network elements like routers or gateways.  
         [0070]     The processing machine executes a set of instructions that are stored in one or more storage elements, in order to process input data. The storage elements may also hold data or other information as desired. The storage element may be in the form of a database or a physical memory element present in the processing machine.  
         [0071]     The set of instructions may include various instructions that instruct the processing machine to perform specific tasks such as the steps that constitute the method of the present invention. The set of instructions may be in the form of a program or software. The software may be in various forms such as system software or application software. Further, the software might be in the form of a collection of separate programs, a program module with a larger program or a portion of a program module. The software might also include modular programming in the form of object-oriented programming. The processing of input data by the processing machine may be in response to user commands, or in response to results of previous processing or in response to a request made by another processing machine.  
         [0072]     While the preferred embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, it will be clear that the invention is not limited to these embodiments only. Numerous modifications, changes, variations, substitutions and equivalents will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as described in the claims.