Patent ID: 8412846

Claim:
A wireless network system that enables direct wireless delivery of a multimedia message from a first multimedia messaging service (MMS) user agent to a second MMS user agent, the system comprising: an originator MMS relay/server that comprises a relay and a server configured to receive, from the first MMS user agent, a request to send a multimedia message to the second MMS user agent, the request including a mobile station international ISDN number (MSISDN) of the second MMS user agent; the server of the originator MMS relay/server configured to obtain an Internet address of the second MMS user agent directly from a core network based on the MSISDN of the second MMS user agent, if the MSISDN is not an Internet address of the second MMS user agent; and the relay of the originator MMS relay/server configured to forward the obtained Internet address to the first MMS user agent, wherein responsive to receipt of the obtained Internet address, the first MMS user agent is configured to use peer-to-peer delivery of multimedia messages enable via an Internet Protocol based packet switched wireless network system to directly wirelessly deliver message content of the multimedia message to the second MMS user agent using the obtained Internet address, while (i) involving the originator MMS relay/server only in (i)(a) the second MMS user agent Internet address resolution, (i)(b) collecting billing information for sending the multimedia message at a time of contacting a home location register (HLR) or other network nodes for Internet address information of the second MMS user agent, and (i)(c) authentication and (ii) wirelessly delivering the message content of the multimedia message to the second MMS user agent without involving the originator MMS relay/server in the delivering of the message content of the multimedia message; wherein the server of the originator MMS relay/server is further configured to (i) send the MSISDN of the second MMS user agent directly to the HLR in the core network, (ii) obtain an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) address corresponding to the MSISDN of the second MMS user agent directly from the HLR in the core network, (iii) send the obtained IMSI address directly to a user database internal table in the core network, and (iv) obtain the Internet address corresponding to the IMSI directly from the user database internal table in the core network.