Patent ID: 8571524

Claim:
A method for providing an accurate delivery confirmation of a message, comprising: receiving in a short message to instant messaging interface gateway a message in a short message service protocol addressed to a recipient communication device; relaying the message to the recipient communication device in an instant messaging protocol via an instant messaging server; determining at the instant messaging server whether the recipient communication device has returned an instant messaging delivery notification (IMDN) before indicating delivery success of the message or delivery failure of the message from the instant messaging server to the short message service to instant messaging interface gateway; indicating delivery success of the message from the instant messaging server to the short message service to instant messaging interface gateway upon determining the instant messaging delivery notification has been returned; indicating delivery failure of the message from the instant messaging server to the short message service to instant messaging interface gateway upon determining the instant messaging delivery notification has not been returned; delaying sending any indication of delivery of the message to the recipient communication device from the short message service to instant messaging interface gateway until after the indication of the delivery success of the message or the indication of the delivery failure of the message is received from the instant messaging server at the short message service to instant messaging interface gateway; storing the message in the instant messaging server; subscribing the short message service to instant messaging interface gateway to the instant messaging server so that short message service to instant messaging interface gateway can receive notification of the instant messaging delivery notification; and wherein subscribing the short message service to instant messaging interface gateway to the instant messaging server is part of an IMS procedure.