Patent Publication Number: US-6990353-B2

Title: Communication to one mobile station of update of call participation availability status of another mobile station

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
   The invention relates generally to communications and more particularly to availability status of mobile stations. 
   BACKGROUND 
   It is desirable for a user of a mobile station to know the availability of other users of mobile stations before attempting to communicate with the other users. If the user knows the availability statuses of the other users, then the user may avoid wasting time and resources by foregoing attempts to communicate with the other users during times that the other users are unavailable. 
   Some personal computers employ a software application, for example, a real-time availability status presentation application, for example, AOL® Instant Messenger™ service offered by America Online, Inc. (New York, N.Y. 10019, http://www.aol.com), to notify a user of the personal computer of the status of other users in a network. If the user subscribes to the Instant Messenger™ service, then the user may establish a list, for example, a buddy list, of the other users who have also subscribed to the Instant Messenger™ service. The Instant Messenger™ service monitors the availability status of the other users on the user&#39;s buddy list and provides to the user real-time availability status updates about the other users. When one of the other users signs onto the Instant Messenger™ service, for example, the Instant Messenger™ service communicates an update of the status of that other user, for example, from “not logged on” to “logged on.” The update notifies the original user that the other user is available for communication. 
   One shortcoming of the arrangement is that the real-time availability status presentation application is not available for the user of the mobile station to monitor the status of the other users. For example, a first user must attempt communication with a second user to determine an availability of the second user. If the first user attempts communication with the second user and the second user is unavailable, then the first user has wasted time and resources by attempting communication with the second user. Without knowledge of the availability of the second user, the first user is unable to distinguish between different causes for the unavailability of the second user. For example, the second user may be currently engaged in a call, powered off, unavailable, or not accepting calls. Without being able to distinguish between the different causes of the unavailability of the second user, the first user may make subsequent calls to the second user and continue to waste time and resources. 
   Thus, a need exists for enhanced information about the call status availability of mobile stations. 
   SUMMARY 
   The invention in one embodiment encompasses an apparatus. The apparatus comprises an application server component that communicates to one or more mobile stations, of a plurality of mobile stations, one or more updates of one or more statuses of respective one or more mobile stations of the plurality of mobile stations. The plurality of mobile stations comprise a first mobile station and a second mobile station, wherein the one or more updates of the one or more statuses of the respective one or more mobile stations comprise an update of a status of the first mobile station. The application server component communicates the update of the status of the first mobile station to the second mobile station to indicate to the second mobile station whether the first mobile station is available for participation in a call with the second mobile station. 
   Another embodiment of the invention encompasses a method. One or more statuses of respective one or more mobile telephones of a plurality of mobile telephones are monitored. The plurality of mobile telephones comprise a first mobile telephone and a second mobile telephone. An update of a status, of the one or more statuses, of the second mobile telephone is communicated to the first mobile telephone. 
   Yet another embodiment of the invention encompasses an article. The article comprises one or more computer-readable signal-bearing media. The article comprises means in the one or more media for monitoring one or more statuses of respective one or more mobile telephones of a plurality of mobile telephones. The plurality of mobile telephones comprise a first mobile telephone and a second mobile telephone. The article comprises means in the one or more media for communicating to the first mobile telephone an update of a status, of the one or more statuses, of the second mobile telephone. 

   
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Features of exemplary implementations of the invention will become apparent from the description, the claims, and the accompanying drawings in which: 
       FIG. 1  is a representation of an exemplary implementation of an apparatus that comprises one or more application server components, one or more networks, one or more databases, one or more session control components, one or more data nodes, one or more media resource function components, and a plurality of mobile stations. 
       FIG. 2  is a representation of one exemplary message flow between two of the mobile stations for a registration of one of the mobile stations and notification of a change in a status of one of the mobile stations of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 3  is a representation of one exemplary message flow for a buddy list conference between two of the mobile stations of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 4  is a representation of another exemplary message flow between two of the mobile stations for a registration of one of the mobile stations and notification of a change in a status of one of the mobile stations of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 5  is a representation of another exemplary message flow for a buddy list conference between two of the mobile stations of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
   Turning to  FIG. 1 , an apparatus  100  in one example comprises a plurality of components such as computer software and/or hardware components. A number of such components can be combined or divided in the apparatus  100 . 
   The apparatus  100  in one example comprises one or more application server (“AS”) components  102 , one or more networks  104 , one or more databases (“DBs”)  106 , one or more session control components (“SCC”)  108 , one or more data nodes (“DNs”)  110 , one or more media resource function (“MRF”) components  111 , and a plurality of mobile stations (“MSs”)  112 ,  114 , and  116 . The mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  in one example are operable by one or more users. The users of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  in one example comprise human operators. The application server component  102 , the session control component  108 , the database  106 , the data node  110 , and the media resource function component  111  in one example comprise computer components, for example, computer software and/or hardware components. The network  104 , the database  106 , the session control component  108 , the data node  110 , and the media resource function component  111  in one example comprise telecommunications network components. 
   For example, the apparatus  100  comprises a buddy list service that monitors a status (e.g., online, offline, busy, on a call) of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  to determine whether the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  are available for participation in a call. A buddy list in one example comprises a user administered list of colleagues, workgroup members, and/or friends (e.g., the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 ) that one of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  wishes to monitor via the buddy list service. The call for which availability of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , or  116  is determined in one example comprises one or more of voice communication, data communication, and messaging. 
   In one example, the application server component  102  serves to control a notification of the status of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  to one or more other of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . For example, the user of the mobile stations  112  is a subscriber to the buddy list service and administers a buddy list that comprises indications of the mobile stations  114  and  116 . Upon registration of the mobile station  112  with the network  104 , the application server component  102  returns the status of each member (e.g., the status of the mobile stations  114  and  116 ) of the buddy list to the mobile station  112 . 
   In a further example, the application server component  102  serves to control a notification of a change in status of one of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  to the one or more other of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . For example, upon a change in the status of the mobile station  114 , the application server component  102  sends a notification message to the mobile station  112 . The application server component  102  sends analogous notification messages to other mobile stations (e.g., the mobile station  116 ) that have a buddy list that comprises an indication of the mobile station  114 . 
   The network  104  and/or the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  send one or more status update messages to the application server component  102  upon a change in the status of the one of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . The application server component  102  processes the one or more status update messages and determines which of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  should be notified of the change in the status of the one of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . 
   During a connection of a call from an originating mobile station of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  to a receiving mobile station of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  the originating mobile station sends a call request to the session control component  108 . The call in one example comprises one or more of voice communication, data communication, and messaging. The session control component  108  passes the call request to the application sever component  102 . The call request comprises an indication of one or more buddies of the buddy list of the originating mobile station. The application sever component  102  in one example may perform name-to-number resolution. For example, application sever component  102  performs a translation from an indication of the one or more buddies to an E.164 number. The E.164 number may comprise one or more of a phone number (e.g., 1-312-346-2800) and a Universal Resource Locator (“URL”) (e.g., http://www.pattibrill.com). In one example, referring to  FIG. 1 , the application sever component  102  resides within the network  104 . In another example, the application sever component  102  is external to the network  104  and communicates with the network  104  through an external communication path (not shown), as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. 
   The network  104  in one example serves to provide a medium to transmit messages between the application server component  102 , the database  106 , the session control component  108 , the data node  110 , the media resource function component  111 , and the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . The network  104  in one example comprises a plurality of network devices such as routers, switches, and servers. 
   The database  106  in one example serves to store subscriber profiles of the one or more users of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . The database  106  comprises a home location register (“HLR”). The database  106  processes one or more user profile query messages from the session control component  108 . Upon receipt of one of the user profile query messages from the session control component  108 , the database  106  returns the user profile that corresponds to the user requested by the session control component  108 . The user profile comprises information regarding services available to the user (e.g., permissions, buddy list service subscription information, conference call services, voice mail, data and voice communications) and information regarding routing of messages to the application server component  102 . 
   The database  106  in one example comprises a first list  120  and a second list  122 . In another example, the mobile station  112  stores the first list  120  and the second list  122 . In one example, the first list  120  comprises a subscription list (e.g., the buddy list) for the user of the mobile station  112 . The first list  120  identifies one or more of the mobile stations  114  and  116  from/about which the user of the mobile station  112  requests to receive status updates. The first list  120  comprises one or more groups. For example, the groups of the first list  120  may comprise one or more of a work group, a social group, and family group. In one example, the second list  122  comprises a reverse-subscription list (e.g., a reverse-buddy list) for the user of the mobile station  112 . The second list  122  comprises a list of the users of the mobile stations  114  and  116  which list as a buddy the user of the mobile stations  112 . The second list  122  identifies one or more of the mobile stations  114  and  116  that request to receive status updates from/about the mobile station  112 . 
   The session control component  108  in one example serves as a call control function, for example, a call state control function (“CSCF”), component. The session control component  108  may establish a call between the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . For example, the session control component  108  monitors the status of one or more of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  and notifies the application server component  102  upon a change in the status of at least one of the monitored mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and/or  116 . 
   In one example, the data node  110  serves to receive and process messages from the application server component  102 . In a further example, the data node  110  serves to notify one of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  of a change in the status of another of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . The data node  110  comprises one or more of a Serving General Packet Radio Service (“GPRS”) Support Node (“SGSN”), a Gateway GPRS Support Node (“GGSN”), a Packet Data Serving Node (“PDSN”), a short message service center (“SMSC”), and the call state control function component. For example, the data node  110  comprises a subpart of the session control component  108 . The media resource function component  111  serves to generate announcements, play tones, and manage conference services. 
   The mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  in one example serve to initiate a change in the status of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . One of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  in one example serves to initiate a call to another of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . The mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  communicate via the network  104 . For example, the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  engage in mobile telephone communication (e.g., calls, voice mail, and short messaging services, “SMS,” via the network  104 . The mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  in one example comprise one or more of handheld devices, mobile telephones, cellular phones, mobile computers, and personal digital assistants (“PDAs”). 
   In one example, the user of the mobile station  112  employs a menu to initiate a call to one or more of the mobile stations  114  and  116 . In another example, the user of the mobile station  112  employs the menu to indicate a change in status of the mobile station  112 . For example, the user of the mobile station  112  changes the status of the mobile station  112  from an available status to a busy status. To initiate the change in status, the user of the mobile station  112  selects a set-busy status function from the menu. In one example, the mobile station  112  notifies the session control component  108  of the change in status (e.g., when the first list  120  and the second list  122  reside in the database  106 ). In another example, the mobile station  112  notifies the application server component  102  of the change in status (e.g., when the first list  120  and the second list  122  reside in the mobile station  112 ). 
   Turning to  FIG. 2 , one illustrative description of exemplary operation of the apparatus  100  is presented, for explanatory purposes. A message flow  201  represents exemplary registration of the mobile station  112  and notification of a change in a status of the mobile station  112  based on the registration. The message flow  201  illustrates one example where the user administered buddy lists of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  are stored in the network  104 . 
   In one example, the user of the mobile station  112  employs an automatic mobile-based update functionality to register the mobile station  112  with the network  104 . The mobile station  112  sends a registration message  202  to the session control component  108 . “REGISTRATION” in one example serves to represent the registration message  202 . The message flow  201  illustrates the registration of the mobile station but is easily extendable to handle call origination or page answering by substituting an originate call or a answer page message for the registration message  202 . 
   In another example, the user of the mobile station  112  employs a manual mobile-based update functionality to provide the status of the mobile station  112  to the network  104 . The user initiates the manual mobile-based update functionality by interacting with the mobile station  112 , for example, by pressing a button  140  ( FIG. 1 ) on the mobile station  112 . The button  140  in one example comprises a status-change component. The mobile station  112  sends a change in status message  204  to the session control component  108 . “UE CHANGE” in one example serves to represent the change in status message  204 . 
   Upon receipt of either of the registration message  202  or the change in status message  204 , the session control component  108  sends a query message  206  to the database  106 . “QUERY (USER)” in one example serves to represent the query message  206 . “USER” in one example serves to represent an indication of the mobile station  112 . The query message  206  initiates a download of a profile of the user of the mobile station  112  from the database  106 . Upon receipt of the query message  206 , the database  106  in one example sends a response message  208  to the session control component  108 . “RESP (PROFILE)” in one example serves to represent the response message  208 . “PROFILE” in one example serves to represent an indication of the profile of the user of the mobile station  112 . The profile of the user of the mobile station  112  in one example comprises buddy list service information of the mobile station  112 . 
   Upon receipt of the response message  208 , the session control component  108  in one example determines whether the user of the mobile station  112  is subscribed to the buddy list service. If the user of the mobile station  112  is subscribed to the buddy list service, then the session control component  108  in one example sends a notification message  210  to the application server component  102 . “REG-NOTIFY (USER, STATUS)” in one example serves to represent the notification message  210 . “USER” in one example serves to represent an indication of the mobile station  112 . “STATUS” in one example serves to represent an indication of the status of the mobile station  112 . The notification message  210  informs the application server component  102  of the status of the mobile station  112 . Upon receipt of the notification message  210 , the application server component  102  in one example sends an acknowledgement  212  to the session control component  108 . 
   The application server component  102  in one example sends a buddy list update message  214  to the data node  110 . “UPDATE MS (BUDDIES, STATUS)” in one example serves to represent the buddy list update message  214 . “BUDDIES” in one example serves to represent an indication of one or more of the mobile stations  114  and  116  on the buddy list of the user of the mobile station  112 . “STATUS” in one example serves to represent an indication of the status of the one or more of the mobile stations  114  and  116  on the buddy list of the user of the mobile station  112 . The buddy list update message  214  in one example provides the mobile station  112  with the status of the one or more of the mobile stations  114  and  116  on the buddy list of the user of the mobile station  112 . The data node  110  forwards the buddy list update message  214  to the mobile station  112 . Upon receipt of the response message  214 , the mobile station  112  in one example sends an acknowledgement  216  to the data node  110 . The data node  110  in one example forwards the acknowledgement  216  to the application server component  102 . 
   Upon receipt of the acknowledgement  216 , the application server component  102  in one example sends a notification message  218  to the data node  110 . “NOTIFY (BUDDIES, USER, STATUS)” in one example serves to represent the notification message  218 . “BUDDIES” in one example serves to represent an indication of one or more of the mobile stations  114  and  116  that comprise buddy lists that contain an indication of the mobile station  112 . “USER” in one example serves to represent the indication of the mobile station  112 . “STATUS” in one example serves to represent an indication of the status of the mobile station  112  (e.g., online, offline, busy, on a call). The notification message  218  provides the one or more of the mobile stations  114  and  116  with the status of the mobile station  112 . The mobile station  114  in one example comprises a buddy list that contains an indication of the mobile station  112 . Therefore, the data node  110  in one example forwards the notification message  218  to the mobile station  114 . Upon receipt of the notification message  218 , the mobile station  114  in one example sends an acknowledgement  220  to the data node  110 . The data node  110  in one example forwards the acknowledgement  220  to the application server component  102 . The application server component  102  in one example replicates and sends the notification message  218  to other mobile stations that comprise a buddy list that contains the indication of the mobile station  112 . 
   Turning to  FIG. 3 , another illustrative description of exemplary operation of the apparatus  100  is presented, for explanatory purposes. A message flow  301  represents an exemplary buddy list conference between the mobile station  112  and one or more members of the buddy list (e.g., the mobile station  114 ). The message flow  301  also represents a notification of a change in the status of the mobile station  112  and the one or more members of the buddy list based on the buddy list conference. The message flow  301  illustrates one example where the user administered buddy lists of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  are stored in the network  104 . 
   The user of the mobile station  112  in one example sends buddy list conference request message  302  to the session control component  108 . “VOICE CALL (BUDDY LIST)” in one example serves to represent the buddy list conference request message  302 . “BUDDY LIST” in one example serves to represent an indication of one or more members of the buddy list that the user of the mobile station  112  includes in the buddy list conference. 
   Upon receipt of the buddy list conference request message  302 , the session control component  108  in one example sends a query message  206  to the database  106 . “QUERY (USER)” in one example serves to represent the query message  206 . “USER” in one example serves to represent an indication of the mobile station  112 . The query message  206  in one example initiates a download of the profile of the user of the mobile station  112  from the database  106 . Upon receipt of the query message  206 , the database  106  in one example sends a response message  208  to the session control component  108 . “RESP (PROFILE)” in one example serves to represent the response message  208 . “PROFILE” in one example serves to represent an indication of the profile of the user of the mobile station  112 . 
   Upon receipt of the response message  208 , the session control component  108  in one example determines whether the user of the mobile station  112  is subscribed to the buddy list service. If the user of the mobile station  112  is subscribed to the buddy list service, then the session control component  108  in one example sends a buddy list conference setup message  304  to the application server component  102 . “CALL BUDDY (USER, BUDDY LIST)” in one example serves to represent the buddy list conference setup message  304 . “USER” in one example serves to represent an indication of the mobile station  112 . “BUDDY LIST” in one example serves to represent an indication of one or more members of the buddy list that the user of the mobile station  112  includes in the buddy list conference. 
   Upon receipt of the buddy list conference setup message  304 , the application server component  102  in one example performs the name-to-number resolution and sends a response message  306  to the session control component  108 . “CALL BUDDY (TERMINATION LIST)” in one example serves to represent the response message  306 . “TERMINATION LIST” in one example serves to represent an indication of connection information (e.g., a telephone number or an internet protocol, “IP,” address) of the one or more members of the buddy list that the user of the mobile station  112  includes in the buddy list conference. 
   Upon receipt of the response message  306 , the session control component  108  in one example sends a setup message  308  to the media resource function component  111 . “ESTABLISH CALL TO BUDDIES” in one example serves to represent the setup message  308 . Upon receipt of the setup message  308 , the media resource function component  111  in one example sends a connect message  310  to the mobile station  112  and the one or more members of the buddy list that the user of the mobile station  112  included in the buddy list conference. The media resource function component  111  in one example sends the connect message  310  to the mobile station  112  and the mobile station  114  to initiate communication between the mobile station  112  and the mobile station  114 . 
   Once communication begins between the mobile station  112  and the mobile station  114 , the application server component  102  in one example sends a notification message  312  to the data node  110 . “NOTIFY (USER, BUDDY LIST, STATUS)” in one example serves to represent the notification message  312 . “BUDDIES” in one example serves to represent an indication of one or more of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  that have buddy lists that contain an indication of the mobile station  112  or the mobile station  114 . “USER” in one example serves to represent the indication of the mobile station  112  and the mobile station  114 . “STATUS” in one example serves to represent an indication of the status of the mobile station  112  and the mobile station  114 . Upon receipt of the notification message  312 , the data node  110  in one example forwards the notification message  312  to the one or more of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  that comprise buddy lists that contain an indication of the mobile station  112  or the mobile station  114 . The notification message  312  in one example alerts the one or more of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 , which comprise buddy lists that contain an indication of the mobile station  112  or the mobile station  114 , that the mobile station  112  and the mobile station  114  are on a call. 
   The communication between the mobile station  112  and the mobile station  114  in one example continues until the mobile station  112  or the mobile station  114  ends the communication. To end the communication with the mobile station  114 , the mobile station  112  in one example sends an end communication message  314  to the session control component  108 . “END CALL (MS)” in one example serves to represent the end communication message  314 . Upon receipt of the end communication message  314 , the session control component  108  in one example forwards the end communication message  314  to the application server component  102 . 
   Upon receipt of the end communication message  314 , the application server component  102  in one example sends a response message  316  to the session control component  108 . “END CALL (TERMINATION LIST)” in one example serves to represent the response message  316 . “TERMINATION LIST” in one example serves to represent an indication of connection information of the one or more members of the buddy list that the user of the mobile station  112  includes in the buddy list conference. 
   Upon receipt of the response message  316 , the session control component  108  in one example sends an end buddy list conference message  318  to the media resource function component  111 . “REMOVE CONF (MS)” in one example serves to represent the end buddy list conference message  318 . The session control component  108  in one example also sends an end call message  320  to the one or more members of the buddy list that are involved in the buddy list conference. 
   Once communication ends between the mobile station  112  and the mobile station  114 , the application server component  102  in one example sends a notification message  322  to the data node  110 . “NOTIFY (USER, BUDDY LIST, STATUS)” in one example serves to represent the notification message  322 . “USER” in one example serves to represent the indication of the mobile station  112  and the mobile station  114 . “BUDDY LIST” in one example serves to represent an indication of one or more of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  that comprise buddy lists that contain an indication of the mobile station  112  and/or the mobile station  114 . “STATUS” in one example serves to represent an indication of the status of the mobile station  112  and the mobile station  114 . Upon receipt of the notification message  322 , the data node  110  in one example forwards the notification message  322  to the one or more of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  that comprise buddy lists that contain the indication of the mobile station  112  and/or the mobile station  114 . The notification message  322  in one example alerts the one or more of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 , which have buddy lists that contain the indication of the mobile station  112  and/or the mobile station  114 , that the mobile station  112  and the mobile station  114  are available for a call. 
   Turning to  FIG. 4 , a further illustrative description of exemplary operation of the apparatus  100  is presented, for explanatory purposes. A message flow  401  represents an exemplary registration of the mobile station  112  and notification of a change in the status of the mobile station  112  based on the registration. The message flow  401  illustrates one example where the user administered buddy lists of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  are stored in the respective mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . 
   The user of the mobile station  112  in one example employs one of the automatic mobile-based update functionality (e.g., the registration message  202 ) or the manual mobile-based update functionality (e.g., status message  204 ) to provide the status of the mobile station  112  to the network  104 , where the message flow  401  is at least in part analogous to the message flow  201 . The user administered buddy list of the mobile station  112  is stored in the mobile station  112 , therefore the session control component  108  in one example does not check the profile of the mobile station  112  for buddy list service subscriptions, where the message flow  401  at least in part differs from the message flows  201  and  301 . The mobile station  112  in one example sends a notification message  402  to the application server component  102 . “REG-NOTIFY (USER, STATUS)” in one example serves to represent the notification message  402 . The notification message  402  in one example informs the application server component  102  of the status of the mobile station  112 . 
   Upon receipt of the notification message  402 , the application server component  102  in one example sends an acknowledgement  404  to the mobile station  112 . The application server component  102  in one example also sends a buddy list update message  406  to the data node  110 . “UPDATE MS (BUDDIES, STATUS)” in one example serves to represent the buddy list update message  406 . The buddy list update message  406  in one example provides the mobile station  112  with the status of the one or more of the mobile stations  114  and  116  on the buddy list of the user of the mobile station  112 . The data node  110  in one example forwards the buddy list update message  406  to the mobile station  112 . Upon receipt of the response message  406 , the mobile station  112  in one example sends an acknowledgement  408  to the data node  110 . The data node  110  in one example forwards the acknowledgement  408  to the application server component  102 . 
   Upon receipt of the acknowledgement  408 , the application server component  102  in one example sends a notification message  410  to the data node  110 . “NOTIFY (BUDDIES, USER, STATUS)” in one example serves to represent the notification message  410 . The notification message  218  in one example provides the one or more of the mobile stations  114  and  116  with the status (e.g., online, offline, busy, on a call, etc.) of the mobile station  112 . The mobile station  114  in one example comprises a buddy list that contains an indication of the mobile station  112 . Therefore, the data node  110  in one example forwards the notification message  410  to the mobile station  114 . Upon receipt of the notification message  410 , the mobile station  114  in one example sends an acknowledgement  412  to the data node  110 . The data node  110  in one example forwards the acknowledgement  412  to the application server component  102 . The application server component  102  in one example replicates and sends the notification message  410  to any other mobile station that comprises a buddy list that contains the indication of the mobile station  112 . 
   Turning to  FIG. 5 , a still further illustrative description of exemplary operation of the apparatus  100  is presented, for explanatory purposes. A message flow  501  represents an exemplary buddy list conference between the mobile station  112  and one or more members of the buddy list (e.g., the mobile station  114 ). The message flow  501  also represents a notification of a change in the status of the mobile station  112  and the one or more members of the buddy list based on the buddy list conference. The message flow  501  illustrates one example where the user administered buddy lists of the mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116  reside in the respective mobile stations  112 ,  114 , and  116 . 
   The message flow  501  in one example is substantially analogous to the message flow  301 . One difference between the message flow  501  and the message flow  301  is the user administered buddy lists of the mobile stations  112  reside within the mobile stations  112 . Therefore, rather than checking the database  106  and the session control component  108  for the user administered buddy lists of the mobile stations  112 , the user of the mobile station  112  in one example sends a buddy list conference setup message  502  to the application server component  102 . “CALL BUDDY (USER, BUDDY LIST)” in one example serves to represent the buddy list conference setup message  502 . “USER” in one example serves to represent an indication of the mobile station  112 . “BUDDY LIST” in one example serves to represent an indication of one or more members of the buddy list that the user of the mobile station  112  includes in the buddy list conference. Beginning sequentially with the response message  306  and ending with the notification message  322 , the remainder of the message flow  501  in one example is analogous to the message flow  301 . 
   The apparatus  100  in one example employs one or more computer-readable signal-bearing media. One example of a computer-readable signal-bearing medium for the apparatus  100  comprises an instance of a recordable data storage medium  101  such as one or more of a magnetic, electrical, optical, biological, and atomic data storage medium. In another example, a computer-readable signal-bearing medium for the apparatus  100  comprises a modulated carrier signal transmitted over a network comprising or coupled with the apparatus  100 , for instance, one or more of a telephone network, a local area network (“LAN”), the internet, and a wireless network. An exemplary component of the apparatus  100  employs and/or comprises a set and/or series of computer instructions written in or implemented with any of a number of programming languages, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. 
   The steps or operations described herein are just exemplary. There may be many variations to these steps or operations without departing from the spirit of the invention. For instance, the steps may be performed in a differing order, or steps may be added, deleted, or modified. 
   Although exemplary implementations of the invention have been depicted and described in detail herein, it will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art that various modifications, additions, substitutions, and the like can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and these are therefore considered to be within the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.