Patent ID: 8266664

Claim:
A method to provide messages to a television user, the method comprising: receiving, with a processor, an incoming message from a message provider, the incoming message being at least one of a voicemail message, a text message or an electronic mail message; accessing a datastore associating messaging accounts with television device identifiers to determine an identification of at least two television devices associated with the incoming message; transmitting, with the processor, a notification of the incoming message to the at least two television devices for display in response to receiving the incoming message; receiving a first request to access a voicemail account from the television user; determining a voicemail mailbox associated with the television user; sending at least one of a list of one or more voicemail messages or a voicemail message to one of the at least two television devices using a terminal session implemented in accordance with a remote desktop protocol; receiving a second request for a contact list from the television user; sending a third request to the message provider requesting the contact list; receiving a first contact list from the message provider; receiving a second contact list; compiling at least the first contact list and the second contact list into an aggregate contact list; and transmitting the aggregate contact list to the one of the at least two the television devices for presentation.