Patent ID: 7958357

Claim:
An invitation server for enabling communications between a network entity with which a first user is communicating via a communications network and a second user, the invitation server comprising: a processing system arranged to: detect a first message from a communications device associated with the first user to the network entity informing the network entity of identification information of the second user; direct, to the communications device associated with the first user, a key to enable the second user to communicate with the network entity, the key then being sent from the communications device associated with the first user directly to a communications device associated with the second user; thereafter detect a second message comprising the key from the telecommunications device associated with the second user to the network entity; thereafter determine, using the identification information of the second user, whether the key sent from the communications device associated with the second user corresponds to the key provided by the network entity to the communications device associated with the first user; and if so enable communications between the communications device associated with the second user and the network entity.