Patent ID: 8260334

Claim:
A method for transmitting a message from a value added service provider to a platform based application program resident on a target mobile station, wherein the target mobile station executes a software platform program for providing a standard interface for third party application programs with hardware and a resident operating system of the target mobile station, and wherein the platform based application program is a third party application program written to the standard of the software platform program, the method comprising steps of: a) receiving a message from the value added service provider, for multimedia message service (MMS) delivery, at a multimedia message service center (MMSC) of a mobile communication network, the received message comprising: content for processing by the platform based application program, target information identifying the target mobile station, and an application identification of the platform based application program; b) using the application identification to lookup a notification prefix in a table in a converter associated or integral with the MMSC so as to convert the application identification of the platform based application program into the notification prefix; c) sending a notification message through the mobile communication network to the target mobile station, the notification message containing the notification prefix and MMS message retrieval information; and d) responsive to a request from the mobile station containing at least some of the MMS message retrieval information, sending a MMS message including the content for processing by the platform based application, through the mobile communication network to the target mobile station using an MMS protocol.