Patent ID: 8619636

Claim:
A softswitch for processing voice over internet protocol conference calls, the softswitch comprising: a processor; and a computer readable memory having stored thereon instructions, wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform: storing active call information in the memory, the active call information including a connection table identifying various call nodes, a domain corresponding to each call node, any parties connected to each node, and nodes that are connected to each of the nodes, wherein the connection table includes a plurality of connection trees, each connection tree corresponding to one of a plurality of calls, wherein each connection tree includes an identifier for a corresponding call, a domain name for the call, information indicating users within the same domain that are connected to the call, and a domain name for at least one interexchange carrier softswitch associated with the call; responsive to a conferencing request for an additional party to join an existing call, reading the connection table, including the connection trees; determining whether the an additional party is located within a domain of the existing call, served by the softswitch, based on a connection tree associated with the existing call; responsive to determining that the additional party is located within the domain of the existing call, served by the softswitch, sending an invitation to join the existing call to the additional party from the softswitch and broadcasting an updated connection tree to another softswitch involved in the existing call; and responsive to determining that that the additional party is not located in the domain of the existing call, served by the softswitch, forwarding the conferencing request to a nearest interexchange carrier softswitch identified in the connection tree associated with the existing call, wherein responsive to receiving the conferencing request, the nearest interexchange carrier softswitch determines whether the additional party is located in another domain that is involved in the existing call; wherein upon determining that the additional party is located in another domain that is currently involved in the call, the nearest interexchange carrier softswitch determines whether the domain in which the additional party is located is adjacent to the domain served by the softswitch based on the connection tree associated with the existing call; and wherein upon determining that the additional party is not located within another domain involved in the existing call, the interexchange carrier softswitch forwards the conferencing request and the connection tree associated with the existing call to another softswitch serving the domain in which the additional party is located.