Patent ID: 8781081

Claim:
A method of providing a unified messaging platform in a communication network, the method comprising: receiving a message, comprising message text, for a recipient from a sender; retrieving contact information and schedule information from a calendar schedule stored on a personal computer of the recipient, wherein the personal computer provides a web access point for the recipient; determining a single, schedule-dependent contact address, comprising a cellular phone number for a recipient cellular phone, from the contact information and the schedule information; verifying availability of a mode of communication associated with the schedule-dependent contact address; generating a voice message indicative of the message text; initiating a call session and calling the recipient cellular phone based on the cellular phone number; responsive to the recipient answering the call, delivering the voice message via the communication line; maintaining the call session after delivering the voice message to receive a recipient response; responsive to detecting a voice response from the recipient: converting the voice response to response text; and delivering the response text to the sender; and responsive to detecting a tone indicative of the recipient pushing a button on the recipient cellular phone: generating a recipient acknowledgement; and delivering the recipient acknowledgement to the sender.