Patent ID: 8150025

Claim:
A communications apparatus comprising: an input for receiving input from one of a plurality of users, the input including configuration information associating ring-tones with caller information; a transmitter for sending the configuration information to a ring-tone server; and a receiver for receiving a ring-tone from the ring-tone server in response to a call from a caller to a communications device, the communications device not currently engaged in a previously initiated call with another party, the ring-tone server selecting a user ring-tone from a plurality of stored ring-tones based on the configuration information and caller information associated with the call, at least a portion of the selected ring-tone being streamed to the receiver, wherein the configuration information includes an association of which of a plurality of media formats are compatible with a plurality of communications devices of the plurality of users, wherein each of the plurality of ring-tones is classified into one of a plurality of categories and the configuration information includes category information, and wherein the selected ring-tone is selected in sequential order by the ring-tone server from a group of stored ring-tones of one of the categories.