Patent ID: 8121270

Claim:
A communication application embedded in a non-transitory computer readable medium and intended to run on a communication device configured to be connected to a network, the application comprising: (i) a transmission module configured to progressively transmit media of an outgoing message over the network as the media of the outgoing message is created using a transmission protocol that supports near real-time communication; (ii) a storage module configured to (a) progressively store the media of the outgoing message as the media of the outgoing message is created and (b) progressively store the media of an incoming message as the media of the incoming messages is progressively received over the network; and (iii) a render module configured to selectively render the media of the incoming message (a) progressively as the media of the incoming message is received over the network in a near real-time mode and (b) progressively in a time-shifted mode by retrieving and rendering the media of the incoming message from storage some time after the media of the incoming message was received and stored.