Systems and methods of terminating telephony communications to mobile telephony devices
View Patent ↗Systems and methods for terminating telephony communications to a mobile telephony device that is roaming outside of its native service area make use of a forwarding termination service. The forwarding termination service causes the native mobile telephony service provider that provides service to the mobile telephony device to forward incoming telephony communications directed the native telephone number of the mobile telephony device to a forwarding access number. The forwarding termination service receives telephony communications directed to the forwarding access number, and then terminates the telephony communication to the mobile telephony device via any one of multiple different methods. The mobile telephony service provider can be instructed to implement and cancel call forwarding instructions by dialing a special character string on the mobile telephony device.
1. A method of handling an incoming telephony communication at a telephony device, comprising:
receiving an incoming telephony communication that was originally directed to a native identifier of the telephony device, that was forwarded by a telephony system that provides native telephony service to the telephony device to a forwarding identifier associated with the telephony device, and that was thereafter received by an IP telephony system which attempts to terminate the telephony communication to the telephony device via a data network;
presenting a user of the telephony device with information;
receiving input from the user; and
handling the received telephony communication based on the received input.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein presenting a user of the telephony device with information comprises presenting the user with options about how the received telephony communication could be handled.
3. The method of claim 2 , wherein receiving input from the user comprises receiving an indication from the user about how the user would like the received telephony communication to be handled.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein presenting a user of the telephony device with information comprises presenting the user with information about a quality or strength of a data connection that the telephony device has with the IP telephony system.
5. The method of claim 4 , further comprising obtaining information about the quality or strength of a data connection that the telephony device has with the IP telephony system.
6. The method of claim 4 , wherein presenting a user of the telephony device with information further comprises presenting the user with information about a quality or strength of a cellular connection that the telephony device has with a mobile telephony service provider.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein presenting a user of the telephony device with information comprises presenting the user with information about a quality or strength of a cellular connection that the telephony device has with a mobile telephony service provider.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein presenting a user of the telephony device with information comprises presenting the user with information about an estimated quality of an IP telephone call that could be established between the telephony device and the IP telephony system.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein presenting a user of the telephony device with information comprises presenting the user with information about a rate at which battery power will be consumed by the telephony device if an IP telephone call is established between the telephony device and the IP telephony system.
10. The method of claim 9 , wherein presenting a user of the telephony device with information further comprises presenting the user with information about a rate at which battery power will be consumed by the telephony device if a cellular telephone call is established between the telephony device and a mobile telephony service provider.
11. The method of claim 1 , wherein presenting a user of the telephony device with information comprises presenting the user with information about a cost of conducting an IP telephone call between the telephony device and the IP telephony system.
12. The method of claim 11 , wherein presenting a user of the telephony device with information further comprises presenting the user with information about a cost of conducting a cellular telephone call between the telephony device and a mobile telephony service provider.
13. A system for handling an incoming telephony communication at a telephony device, comprising:
means for receiving an incoming telephony communication that was originally directed to a native identifier of the telephony device, that was forwarded by a telephony system that provides native telephony service to the telephony device to a forwarding identifier associated with the telephony device, and that was thereafter received by an IP telephony system which attempts to terminate the telephony communication to the telephony device via a data network;
means for presenting a user of the telephony device with information;
means for receiving input from the user; and
means for handling the received telephony communication based on the received input.
14. A system for handling an incoming telephony communication at a telephony device, comprising:
a receiving and handling unit that receives an incoming telephony communication that was originally directed to a native identifier of the telephony device, that was forwarded by a telephony system that provides native telephony service to the telephony device to a forwarding identifier associated with the telephony device, and that was thereafter received by an IP telephony system which attempts to terminate the telephony communication to the telephony device via a data network;
an information display unit that causes a user of the telephony device to be presented with information; and
a user input receiving unit that receives input from the user, wherein the receiving and handling unit handles the received telephony communication based on the received input.
15. The system of claim 14 , wherein the information display unit causes the user to be presented with information regarding options for how the received telephony communication could be handled.
16. The system of claim 15 , wherein the user input receiving unit receives an indication from the user about how the user would like the received telephony communication to be handled.
17. The system of claim 14 , wherein the information display unit causes the user to be presented with information about a quality or strength of a data connection that the telephony device has with the IP telephony system.
18. The system of claim 17 , further comprising an information acquisition unit that obtains information about the quality or strength of a data connection that the telephony device has with the IP telephony system.
19. The system of claim 17 , wherein the information display unit causes the user to be presented with information about a quality or strength of a cellular connection that the telephony device has with a mobile telephony service provider.
20. The system of claim 14 , wherein the information display unit causes the user to be presented with information about a quality or strength of a cellular connection that the telephony device has with a mobile telephony service provider.
21. The system of claim 14 , wherein the information display unit causes the user to be presented with information about an estimated quality of an IP telephone call that could be established between the telephony device and the IP telephony system.
22. The system of claim 14 , wherein the information display unit causes the user to be presented with information about a rate at which battery power will be consumed by the telephony device if an IP telephone call is established between the telephony device and the IP telephony system.
23. The system of claim 22 , wherein the information display unit also causes the user to be presented with information about a rate at which battery power will be consumed by the telephony device if a cellular telephone call is established between the telephony device and a mobile telephony service provider.
24. The system of claim 14 , wherein the information display unit causes the user to be presented with information about a cost of conducting an IP telephone call between the telephony device and the IP telephony system.
25. The system of claim 24 , wherein the information display unit also causes the user to be presented with information about a cost of conducting a cellular telephone call between the telephony device and a mobile telephony service provider.