Patent ID: 8717409

Claim:
A non-transitory computer accessible memory medium storing program instructions for conducting a private videoconference within a first videoconference, wherein the program instructions are executable to: perform the first videoconference between a plurality of endpoints; receive input requesting the private videoconference for a plural subset of the plurality of endpoints, wherein the plural subset consists of a first endpoint and one or more second endpoints, wherein the plural subset is not the entirety of the plurality of endpoints, and wherein the input is received during the first videoconference; initiate the private videoconference between the plural subset of the plurality of endpoints, wherein said initiating the private videoconference does not end the first videoconference; transmit first videoconference information directly to the second one or more endpoints of the plural subset during the private videoconference, wherein during the private videoconference, a remaining subset of the plurality of endpoints continue transmitting videoconference data in the first videoconference, wherein the videoconference data of the plural subset is not transmitted to the remaining subset; and wherein a multipoint control unit (MCU) performs decoding and encoding operations on video information transmitted in the first videoconference, wherein said transmitting does not involve the MCU, and wherein the MCU does not encode and decode the first videoconference information.