Patent ID: 8170189

Claim:
A method of providing cross-platform message notification, the method comprising: receiving a request to initiate a communication comprising a first communication type from an initiating end device, the request identifying a single intended recipient device; determining, from a plurality of end devices, a plurality of possible recipient devices for the request to initiate a communication based on user profile information from a user of the initiating end; identifying a format of the communication; determining whether the format of the communication is in a common language format; notifying each of the plurality of possible recipient devices at substantially the same time of the request to initiate a communication; connecting the initiating end device to one of the plurality of possible recipient devices based on a response from at least one of the possible recipient devices; translating the communication from the common language format to a format that is compatible with the one of the plurality of possible recipient devices connected to the initiating end device; delivering the communication to the one of the plurality of possible recipient devices connected to the initiating end device, the communication delivered to the one of the plurality of possible recipient devices comprising a second communication type; and monitoring one or more periodic heartbeat messages sent from each of the plurality of end devices, indicating the normal status of that end device, each of the one or more heartbeat messages having the common language format.