Patent ID: 7571210

Claim:
A method for communicating real time data streams between a plurality of virtual meeting attendees over a digital data network comprising the steps of: receiving a plurality of real time data streams that include a first and a second real time data stream communicated from at least one attendee computer at each of a plurality of virtual meeting attendees, each of said plurality of real time data streams encoded in a packet based protocol that includes a discrete control portion and a discrete data portion; linking said first real time data stream from each of the plurality of virtual attendees to a first network interface that is separate from said at least one attendee computers, said first network interface includes a first port linked to said first real time data stream data portion to and a second port linked to said first real time data stream control portion; linking said second real time data stream from each of said plurality of virtual meeting attendees to a second network interface that is separate from said at least one attendee computers, said second interface including a first port linked to said second real time data stream data portion and a second port linked to said second real time data stream control portion wherein said data and control portions are communicated through different ports; and, allowing a requestor to selectively link to one but not the other of said first and said network interfaces.