Patent ID: 7747568

Claim:
A method for collecting contextual information relating to a service provided over a digital communication channel, comprising: receiving, from a user of a packet-switched network, a request for a desired service; obtaining from the user of the packet-switched network contextual data packets having a predetermined arrangement for providing a set of user contextual information relating to the request for the desired service; wherein the contextual data packets identify at least one structural hierarchy that is defined for the transmission of contextual information between voice-over-IP clients; wherein the contextual data packets and conversation data packets are transmitted over a same conversation channel during a voice-over IP call; wherein a payload identifier distinguishes the conversation data packets from the contextual data packets; based on the obtained set of user contextual information relating to the request for the desired service, identifying an additional set of user contextual information needed to provide the desired service; and selecting an information providing party where the additional set of user contextual information relating to the request for the desired service is to be obtained and obtaining the additional set of user contextual information relating to the request for the desired service from the selected information providing party over the packet-switched network.