Abstract:
Information, such as advertising, is presented to VoIP users ( 12 ) via a combination of telephone and data streams during session initiation via an IP phone or a personal computer ( 18 ). A proxy server ( 20 ) that receives the call request coordinates with a media server ( 30 ) to transmit targeted advertising to the caller during the post dial delay interval. After the advertisement concludes, the call continues normally.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This Application claims the benefit of Provisional Application No. 60/649,889, filed Feb. 3, 2005, which is herein incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    This invention relates to communications techniques over a data network. More particularly, this invention relates to telephonic communication in which information is transmitted by synchronization of voice and data streams. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
             
               
               
               
             
           
               
                 TABLE 1 
               
               
                   
               
               
                 Acronyms and Abbreviations 
               
               
                   
               
             
             
               
                   
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 IETF 
                 Internet Engineering Task Force 
               
               
                   
                 IP 
                 Internet Protocol 
               
               
                   
                 ITU 
                 International Telecommunication Union 
               
               
                   
                 ITU-T 
                 ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector 
               
               
                   
                 PDD 
                 Post-Dial Delay 
               
               
                   
                 PSTN 
                 Public Switched Telephone Network 
               
               
                   
                 QoS 
                 Quality of Service 
               
               
                   
                 RTSP 
                 Real Time Streaming Protocol 
               
               
                   
                 SIP 
                 Session Initiation Protocol 
               
               
                   
                 SS7 
                 Signaling System 7 
               
               
                   
                 VoIP 
                 Voice over Internet Protocol 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0005]    Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), also known as IP telephony, has become a preferred technique for routing of voice communications over the Internet and other data networks. Essentially, audio information flows primarily through a packet-switched data network, instead of traditional dedicated, circuit switched voice transmission lines. So long as the information remains in the data network, there is little marginal cost involved in processing the call. However, many such communications terminate in the public switched telephone network (PSTN), at which point charges may be incurred. 
         [0006]    The popularity of VoIP has resulted in the development of many protocols dealing with various aspects of data formatting and communications, including call models and controls. Examples include ITU-T H.323, and ITU-T H.225. During the last decade, the IETF Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) has become an increasingly important signaling protocol for VoIP communications. SIP is formally defined in RFC 3261, available at the URL “http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc3261.txt”. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    Merchants have lists and profiles of their customers and look for ways to target advertising toward the buying habits of these specific customers and give these customers incentives to buy more. One way they do this sort of targeted advertising now is by sending coupons in the mail. Offering free packet telephony service, e.g., VoIP service, is a faster and possibly cheaper way to reach these customers in a way that will build customer goodwill. According to disclosed embodiments of the invention, information content, typically effective advertising, is presented to users via telephone, or via a combination of telephone and data streams. One embodiment of the invention employs VoIP. A user initiates a VoIP call in a conventional manner, typically through an IP phone or a personal computer, i.e., by picking up an instrument and dialing. Such calls almost invariably require a time interval for session initiation, known as a “post dial delay” (PDD). During the call setup phase, an advertisement, typically originating from a merchant-operated media server, is played to the calling party. After the advertisement concludes, the call continues normally. 
         [0008]    In some embodiments multimedia communication techniques are employed to provide additional information and to enhance effectiveness of advertising or other types of communications. When the telephone instrument is connected to a computer, or the call is made using VoIP client software on a computer, visual information, typically a more detailed advertisement, may be displayed on the computer&#39;s monitor. The multimedia information is synchronized with the audio information received over the telephone instrument for increased effectiveness. 
         [0009]    One way of increasing the effectiveness of advertising while keeping it short is to refer the user or customer to a more detailed source of information. A multimedia approach can be used, where the voice advertisement refers the user to his computer screen where a more detailed advertisement or coupon is waiting. Alternatively, in embodiments in which the VoIP device is not connected to a computer, pressing a key on the telephone keypad may enable the user to hear more details. 
         [0010]    In any case, revenue from the advertising offsets PSTN termination charges and other costs of the VoIP provider, who can then reduce or even eliminate calling charges to the end user. The end user, who is a customer of the VoIP provider, is disposed to tolerate the advertisements in order to avoid such charges. 
         [0011]    In an aspect of the invention, the VoIP provider is able to obtain profiles of its customers. The profiles can be stored in a database and made available to advertisers, enabling them to target advertisements. The effectiveness of targeted advertising as compared with non-directed advertising is a factor that motivates advertisers to participate with the VoIP provider in offering VoIP service to these customers at reduced cost or at no cost to the customers. 
         [0012]    An example of an offering that takes all these factors into consideration is an offering by a retail chain of free domestic VoIP phone calls to its most valued customers. Typically, such customers have a store discount card, which tracks their purchases. When a customer reaches some predetermined level of purchases, he is given a device that connects to his computer and to a standard telephone, thereby enabling the customer to place VoIP calls. Conditioning continuation of the VoIP services to an amount spent on goods, provide a strong loyalty incentive to the retail chains. 
         [0013]    An embodiment of the invention provides a method for targeted advertising, which is carried out by maintaining respective profiles of a group of individuals who are affiliated with an organization, providing the individuals with access to a packet telephony service, and receiving a request from an individual in the group to establish a telephonic connection with a callee over a packet network using the packet telephony service. In response to the request, the method is further carried out by transmitting over the packet network to the individual a notification provided by the organization and targeted according to a respective profile of the individual, and completing the telephonic connection. 
         [0014]    According to an aspect of the method, the packet telephony service is provided without charge by the organization. 
         [0015]    In still another aspect of the method, the telephonic connection is completed subsequent to completion of the step of transmitting the notification over the packet network. 
         [0016]    In one aspect of the method, completing the telephonic connection includes establishing connectivity with a public switched telephone network. 
         [0017]    According to an additional aspect of the method, the notification includes multimedia data directed to a computer of the individual. 
         [0018]    According to aspect of the method, the organization is a commercial organization, and the individuals are customers of the organization. 
         [0019]    According to a further aspect of the method, the profiles reflect purchases made respectively by the individuals from the organization. 
         [0020]    According to yet another aspect of the method, the packet telephony service is provided by a VoIP service provider outside the organization, and the organization pays the VoIP service provider to provide the packet telephony service to the individuals. 
         [0021]    An embodiment of the invention provides a method of synchronized communications, which is carried out by receiving a request from a caller via a packet-switched communications network to establish a telephonic connection with a callee, thereafter instructing a content provider to transmit a notification to the caller via the network, and completing the telephonic connection. 
         [0022]    Another aspect of the method includes accessing a database having descriptive information relating to the caller, and composing the notification responsively to the descriptive information. 
         [0023]    Still another aspect of the method includes activating a search engine to obtain descriptive information relating to the caller, and composing the notification responsively to the descriptive information. 
         [0024]    An embodiment of the invention provides a computer software product for providing synchronized communications, including a computer-readable medium in which computer program instructions are stored, which instructions, when read by a computer, cause the computer to receive a request from a caller via a packet-switched communications network, to establish a telephonic connection with a callee, thereafter to instruct a content provider to transmit a notification to the caller via the network, and to complete the telephonic connection. 
         [0025]    An embodiment of the invention provides a communications system of synchronized communications, including a proxy server operative for receiving a request from a caller via a packet-switched communications network to establish a telephonic connection with a callee, and a media server connected to the network, wherein the proxy server is operative for instructing the media server to transmit a notification to the caller via the network, and for completing the telephonic connection. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0026]    For a better understanding of the present invention, reference is made to the detailed description of the invention, by way of example, which is to be read in conjunction with the following drawings, wherein like elements are given like reference numerals, and wherein: 
           [0027]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a system for communication via synchronized telephone and data streams, in accordance with a disclosed embodiment of the invention; 
           [0028]      FIG. 2  is a flow chart illustrating a method of communication via synchronized telephone and data streams, in accordance with a disclosed embodiment of the invention; 
           [0029]      FIG. 3  is a block diagram of a system for communication via synchronized telephone and data streams, in accordance with an alternate embodiment of the invention; and 
           [0030]      FIG. 4  is a block diagram of a system for communication via synchronized telephone and data streams, in accordance with an alternate embodiment of the invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0031]    In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art, however, that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known circuits, control logic, and the details of computer program instructions for conventional algorithms and processes have not been shown in detail in order not to obscure the present invention unnecessarily. 
         [0032]    Software programming code, which embodies aspects of the present invention, is typically maintained in permanent storage, such as a computer readable medium. In a client-server environment, such software programming code may be stored on a client or a server. The software programming code may be embodied on any of a variety of known media for use with a data processing system. This includes, but is not limited to, magnetic and optical storage devices such as disk drives, magnetic tape, compact discs (CD&#39;s), digital video discs (DVD&#39;s), and computer instruction signals embodied in a transmission medium with or without a carrier wave upon which the signals are modulated. For example, the transmission medium may include a communications network, such as the Internet. In addition, while the invention may be embodied in computer software, the functions necessary to implement the invention may alternatively be embodied in part or in whole using hardware components such as application-specific integrated circuits or other hardware, or some combination of hardware components and software. 
       System Architecture. 
       [0033]    Turning now to the drawings, reference is initially made to  FIG. 1 , which is a block diagram of a system  10  for communication via synchronized telephone and data streams, in accordance with a disclosed embodiment of the invention. The system  10  and its operation are often explained with reference to the SIP protocol. However, this is exemplary, and those skilled in the art will be able to practice the invention mutatis mutandis using other communications protocols, such as the above-noted ITU-T H.323 protocol or peer-to-peer protocols, such as Skype™. The invention is sometimes disclosed with reference to advertising. However, its principles are applicable to many forms of communication where information directed to a client can be personalized or targeted, e.g., a community of church members or a school group. In such groups, a common denominator of mutual interest provides sufficient incentive to focus the content presented to the group. 
         [0034]    The system  10  supports any number of customers concurrently, represented by a customer  12 , who has a telephone instrument  14 . The telephone instrument  14 , which is typically an analog telephone, is connected to an adapter  16 , shown as a USB dongle that plugs into a computer  18 . The adapter  16  is integrated with software running on the computer  18 , which is capable of placing telephone calls using an appropriate protocol that supports a packet telephony service. The protocol may be the above-noted Session Initiation Protocol. The computer  18  is connected to a data network, which is typically a packet-switched network, e.g., the Internet. When the customer  12  places a call by dialing a number on the telephone instrument  14 , the computer  18  is triggered, such that signaling flows from the computer  18  to a SIP proxy server  20  located somewhere on the data network. Often, when the customer  12  has dialed a number that could be reached via the PSTN, the call flows through a signaling gateway  22  that establishes connectivity between VoIP and a standard telephone protocol, e.g., the well-known ITU Signaling System 7 (SS7) protocol. The call then continues onward to terminate on a PSTN  24 , ultimately reaching a callee or recipient  26 , which is connected to the PSTN  24 . The recipient  26  typically has a conventional analog telephone instrument, but could employ other known telephone technologies connectable to the PSTN  24 , for example the recipient&#39;s telephone could be digital device, such as a cellular telephone. Alternatively, the call could be directed to a VoIP recipient  28  configured to communicate using the SIP protocol, in which case the gateway  22  and the PSTN  24  are not included in the call&#39;s path. In the case of conference calls, in which there are a plurality of recipients, many combinations of PSTN and VoIP recipients may be reached by appropriate directives from the proxy server  20 . 
         [0035]    As is explained in further detail hereinbelow, during an interval that includes at least a portion of the post-dial delay, insertion of a notification, e.g., an advertisement from a content provider, shown as a media server  30 , occurs. The media server  30  is connected in the data network. Indeed, the media server  30  may be a logical division of the proxy server  20 , both being integrated in a common physical unit. The media server  30  may insert a voice stream or a multimedia stream that contains the notification or advertisement. 
         [0036]    Typically, the packet telephony service provided by the system  10  is supported by a sponsor, such as a merchant, who maintains profiles of its customers. The packet telephony service is normally provided by a VoIP service provider outside said organization, which is paid by the merchant for providing the packet telephony service to the customers. The media server  30  is controlled by the sponsoring merchant. Preferred customers, e.g., the customer  12 , are then provided with suitable equipment by the merchant, such as the adapter  16 , to access the proxy server  20  and exploit the packet telephony service at reduced cost or at no cost. The advertising messages produced by the media server  30  are then tailored to the profile of the particular customer using the packet telephony service. 
         [0037]    In some embodiments, the call flow is interrupted until completion of the notification from the media server  30  before being allowed to proceed to the gateway  22  (or to the recipient  28 ). In other embodiments, the proxy server  20  simply monitors the progress of session initiation, and need not delay call setup. For example, when the customer  12  has contracted for a particular QoS, the notification from the media server  30  may be required to terminate on completion of call setup, or alternatively after a predetermined time interval has expired, in order not to violate the agreement. 
       Operation. 
       [0038]    Reference is now made to  FIG. 2 , which is a flow chart illustrating a method of communication via synchronized telephone and data streams, in accordance with a disclosed embodiment of the invention. In conventional SIP notation, a message comprises a human readable descriptor known as a “reason-phrase” and an identification number, the latter being readily decodable by a machine. 
         [0039]    The following types of possible responses are used in SIP and generated by participants in the transactions shown in  FIG. 2 , where “xx” represents a numerical identifier that is assigned in the above-noted RFC 3261:
         1 xx-Informational Responses;     2 xx-Successful Responses;     3 xx-Redirection Responses;     4 xx-Client Failure Responses;     5 xx-Server Failure Responses; and     6 xx-Global Failure Responses.       
 
         [0046]    A typical session is initiated by the customer  12 , who is referred to in the context of  FIG. 2  as a SIP client  32 , which transmits an Invite message to the proxy server  20  at a step  34  of an event-driven timeline  36 . The proxy server  20 , which is provided with suitable software for executing the functions described herein, responds with a  183  progress message at step  38 . This is an informational response used to convey information about the progress of the call. Various components (not shown)) of the message, e.g., the reason-phrase, header fields, and message body could communicate additional details about the call progress. The message causes the SIP client  32  to listen for a notification or advertisement. 
         [0047]    Next, at step  40 , the proxy server  20  communicates an INVITE message to the media server  30 . The purpose of this message is to instruct the media server  30  to transmit a notification or advertisement to the SIP client  32  during pendency of the call setup, as described above. Information regarding the profile of the client may be communicated in the invitation, for example a link to a database  42  of customer profiles that are accessible to the media server  30 . Typically, the media server  30  and the database  42  are both maintained by the merchant who provides or sponsors VoIP services to the SIP client  32 . Additionally or alternatively, the profile of the client may be communicated to the proxy server  20 . 
         [0048]    Next, at step  44 , the media server  30  begins transmitting the notification or content to the SIP client  32  using a voice stream, or using known multimedia transmission techniques, depending on the configuration of the SIP client  32 . The transmitted content may be composed according to the information about the SIP client  32  obtained from the database  42  or otherwise. This transmission may continue during the remainder of the session initiation process. In one embodiment of step  44 , content is streamed to the SIP client  32  using Real Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP) in place of the conventional ringtone or network announcement. RTSP is described in IETF RFC 2326, and is similar to ITU Standard H.225.0, noted above. It provides a data delivery format that can be employed by other communications protocols. 
         [0049]    Next, at step  46 , the proxy server  20  continues with the call setup by sending an INVITE message to the gateway  22 . This step may be delayed until completion of the transmission begun in step  44 . Alternatively, it may be performed concurrently with the transmission. 
         [0050]    Next, at step  48 , the gateway  22  alerts the PSTN  24  using SS7 to set up the call. Then, at step  50 , the gateway  22  notifies the proxy server  20  of the session progress by communicating a message  183  Session Progress, or a message  180  RINGING. 
         [0051]    When the telephone connected to the PSTN  24  is picked up, at step  52 , the gateway  22  communicates a success message  200  OK to the proxy server  20 . 
         [0052]    Next, at step  54 , the proxy server  20  forwards the message  200  OK, along with any requested media addresses and information that may have developed from client interaction during the transmission begun in step  44 , to the SIP client  32 . 
         [0053]    Next, at step  56 , the SIP client  32  transmits an ACK message to the proxy server  20 , acknowledging the call setup. The proxy server  20  forwards the ACK message to the gateway  22  at step  58 . 
         [0054]    At final step  60  the call has been set up, and information flows between the SIP client  32  and the gateway  22  directly, and out to the PSTN  24 . The information can be communicated using RTSP, or other protocols, or can be simple voice communication. 
         [0055]    It will be understood that when the recipient of the call is another SIP client or another type of VoIP client, the PSTN  24  is not accessed by the gateway  22 . In some cases, even the gateway  22  may be bypassed, and the recipient contacted directly by the proxy server  20 . 
       ALTERNATE EMBODIMENT 1 
       [0056]    Reference is now made to  FIG. 3 , which is a block diagram of a system  62  for communication via synchronized telephone and data streams, in accordance with an alternate embodiment of the invention. In addition to the call flow, another parallel channel may be implemented to push detailed advertising information, coupons, or other relevant information in coordination with the advertisement or other content played over the voice channel. The system  62  is similar to the system  10  ( FIG. 1 ). However, it includes a web server  64 , which is connected to the media server  30 . The media server  30  and the web server  64  may be remote from one another, or co-located in the same machine. During step  44  ( FIG. 2 ), the web server  64  feeds an advertising page to a browser  66  executing in the computer  18  of the customer  12 . Thus, for example, if the customer  12  is a regular purchaser of quality wines, the advertisement voice stream might say, “Look at your computer screen now to see our special offer on premium wines,” while a screen  68  displays the bottles that are available and their prices. The screen  68  could even include a “Click here to purchase” link. By synchronizing the voice advertisement with a more detailed advertisement pushed to the computer  18 , the duration of the advertisement can be decreased while maintaining or even increasing the total effectiveness of the customer&#39;s interaction with the advertisement information. 
       ALTERNATE EMBODIMENT 2 
       [0057]    Reference is now made to  FIG. 4 , which is a block diagram of a system  70  for communication via synchronized telephone and data streams, in accordance with an alternate embodiment of the invention. In the system  70 , an integrated unit  72  employs a search engine  74  that is linked to the proxy server  20 , the media server  30 , optionally to the web server  64 , and to the Internet in general. The search engine  74 , which is capable of searching the Internet, a private network, or data contained in an enterprise, enhances the ability of the unit  72  to gather information about the customer  12 , in order to more effectively compose a targeted advertisement or notification. The unit  72  thus constitutes an effective advertising engine. 
         [0058]    It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to what has been particularly shown and described hereinabove. Rather, the scope of the present invention includes both combinations and sub-combinations of the various features described hereinabove, as well as variations and modifications thereof that are not in the prior art, which would occur to persons skilled in the art upon reading the foregoing description.