System and Method of Helping Subscribers in case of Message Blocking service.

System and Method of Helping Subscribers in case of Message Blocking service

By Ranjit Avasarala

Motorola, Inc.

VoIP Technology Group, Home & Networks Mobility

ranjit@motorola.com

 

ABSTRACT

   Subscribers set various communication blocking rules like ACR or ICB [1] for blocking unwanted callers from further calling. Similarly they also set rules to block unwanted senders from sending unwanted messages.

   These rules reside on the server and are executed on behalf of the subscribers. Though there exist ways to communicate to subscribers that their blocking rule has been executed by the network on their behalf, the means is not a standard one and does not give the exact information. So there is a need to effectively notify the subscriber when a particular blocking rule – be it for a call or a message is executed so that the subscriber can rectify it if required by unblocking the caller or the sender.

    For example: a particular rule like “Block the caller Alice from further calling because she is annoying me”. But after some days Bob realizes that he should unblock

Alice

”. So looking at the received notification, Bob issues a command to the network to unblock

Alice

so that he can receive calls from her.  Similarly if Bob wants to resume receiving messages from George whom he blocked sometime back, then he could do so only after receiving the notification and indicating to network to unblock George.

PROBLEM

  Consider a call blocking rule set by a subscriber as

Subscriber:  Bob

Caller        :

Alice

Block type: temporary

Time:  between 11 and 12 PM

The above rule indicates that Bob wants to block all calls from

Alice

between 11 and 12 PM everyday.

Similarly consider a message blocking rule set by a subscriber as

Subscriber:  Bob

Sender       :

Alice

Message type: All

Block type:  Permanent

Time:            0

The above rule indicates that Bob wants to block all messages from

Alice

on a permanent basis.

Now when these rules get executed in the network on behalf of the subscriber, the subscriber would not get any notification.

So there is no way that the subscribers can monitor their rules execution and to rectify if required.

So there is a need for the network to notify the subscribers when their communication blocking rules get executed so that the subscribers can understand what exactly is happening and if there is a need correct them.

Also there needs to be an option for the subscribers to specify a filter criteria to control both the rate and content of the notification information received.

.

 

SOLUTION

   In order for the subscribers to receive notifications whenever a particular communication – call or message gets blocked from a particular caller or sender, a set of services called call blocking notification service and message blocking notification service are proposed.

The subscribers need to subscribe to these services in addition to the r...