Patent ID: 7912206

Claim:
A method for providing information assistance at an information assistance system, said method comprising the steps of: storing data at said information assistance system concerning accessing an email service for retrieving a user's emails from one or more email accounts associated with a user; receiving a communication at said information assistance system for accessing said email service from the user through a first communications connection; retrieving a first time stamp stored at said information assistance system representing a date and time corresponding to the previous time said user accessed said email service of said information assistance system; retrieving the data corresponding to said first time stamp; accessing the one or more email accounts over a second communications connection; performing one or more operations with respect to one or more email messages received in the one or more email accounts on behalf of the user; providing, to the user, information concerning at least one email message in the one or more email accounts; obtaining a second time stamp associated with a selected email message received in one of the email accounts; comparing said second time stamp with said retrieved first time stamp, associated with a previous access of said email service by the user; and providing information concerning the selected email message to the user if said second time stamp is subsequent to said first time stamp.