Patent ID: 8654956

Claim:
A method for selectively establishing and maintaining a communications path through a network for a call from a calling party to a called party, said communications path having a plurality of links and having a plurality of measurable signal conditions, said communications path being subject to restrictions on allowed calling and called parties, the method comprising establishing a first of said links from said calling party to a bridging node in said network, establishing a second of said links from said bridging node to said called party, establishing of said second link being conditioned on acceptance of said call from said calling party, at said bridging node, establishing a bridge between said first link and said second link, monitoring at least one of said links for the presence of predefined anomalous signal conditions on said links, when anomalous signal conditions that exceed a predetermined threshold are detected, removing said first link from said bridge and delivering a message that an anomaly has occurred and that measures are being undertaken to avoid such anomaly, when such measures undertaken to avoid such anomaly are not successful, requesting said called party to terminate present participation in the call and to receive a continuation of the call over a new second link bridged at the bridging node to said calling party and connecting the continuation of the call, wherein a single per call service charge is charged for the call such that there is no additional per call service charge for the continuation of the call.