Patent ID: 7058714

Claim:
A communications network comprising: an originating Real Time Data over IP host; a terminating Real Time Data over IP host; communication control means for at least receiving information relating to a communication; a first communication forwarding means that replaces a fixed IP address in a data packet sent from the terminating Real Time Data over IP host to the originating Real Time Data over IP host with a first dynamic IP address to conceal the fixed IP address of the terminating Real Time Data over IP host, wherein the fixed IP address of the originating Real Time Data over IP host is unknown to the first communication forwarding means; and a second communication forwarding means that replaces a fixed IP address in a data packet from the originating Real Time Data over IP host to the terminating Real Time Data over IP host with a second dynamic IP address to conceal the fixed IP address of the originating Real Time Data over IP host, wherein the fixed IP address of the terminating Real Time Data over IP host is unknown to the second communication forwarding means, wherein, during the setup of a communication session between the originating Real Time Data over IP host and the terminating Real Time Data over IP host, the communication control means exchanges only the dynamic IP addresses between the first and second communications forwarding means.