Patent ID: 8238356

Claim:
A communication system comprising: a home server which connects a terminal and a service network; an access gateway which connects the terminal and the home server; and a policy server which controls the access gateway, wherein the access gateway includes at least a first access gateway; wherein a first communication path is set between a first terminal and the first access gateway, a second communication path is set between the first access gateway and the home server, a third communication path is set between a second terminal and the first access gateway, and a fourth communication path is set between the first access gateway and the home server; wherein the first terminal communicates with the second terminal via the first communication path, the second communication path, the fourth communication path and the third communication path; wherein the first access gateway manages communication path management information including information on the communication paths of each terminal; wherein the policy server transmits, to the first access gateway, a link creation request for associating a communication path of the first terminal and a communication path of the second terminal; and wherein the first access gateway sets a fifth communication path which connects the first communication path and the third communication path upon receiving the link creation request, records information on the set fifth communication path in the communication path management information, and transmits data from the first terminal via the first communication path to the second terminal via the fifth communication path and the third communication path based on the communication path management information; wherein the policy server increases the priority of the first communication path, the second communication path, the fourth communication path and the third communication path in the case where the first terminal communicates with the second terminal via the first communication path, the second communication path, the fourth communication path and the third communication path, and decreases the priority of the first communication path, the fifth communication path and the third communication path in the case where the first terminal communicates with the second terminal via the first communication path, the fifth communication path and the third communication path; and wherein quality of communication between the first terminal and the second terminal is controlled based on the priority of the first communication path, the second communication path, the fourth communication path and the third communication path and the priority of the first communication path, the fifth communication path and the third communication path.