Patent ID: 8411662

Claim:
A system comprising: a plurality of wireless devices configured for wireless communication in a wireless network, wherein the wireless network is compliant with an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard, wherein a beacon is respectively transmittable by each of the plurality of wireless devices, wherein the beacon contains a service set identifier (SSID) that i) identifies the wireless network, and ii) is encoded to include a capability or a preference of the wireless device transmitting the beacon, and wherein in response to a first wireless device of the plurality of wireless devices receiving a beacon containing the service set identifier (SSID) from a second wireless device of the plurality of wireless devices, the first wireless device transmits the service set identifier (SSID) to a central server, wherein, responsive to receiving the service set identifier (SSID), the central server is configured to i) decode the service set identifier (SSID) to retrieve the capability or the preference of the second wireless device as encoded into the service set identifier (SSID), and ii) transmit, to the first wireless device, the capability or the preference of the second wireless device.