Unified messaging leveraging contacts across existing identities without compromising privacy
In one embodiment, a method of establishing a universal intercommunication connection between two users includes, executing on one or more processors the step of receiving a request from a first user to establish a universal intercommunication connection with a second user. The method includes providing an instance of a universal communication application to a first user's computing device. The method includes providing another instance of the universal communication application to a second user's computing device. The method includes verifying that the first user and the second user have at least one connection. The method includes establishing an intercommunication connection between the first user's computing device and the second user's computing device. The universal communication applications enable the first user and the second user to communicate via instant message, text message and cellular call with an established intercommunication connection.
1. A method useful for implementing unified electronic messaging service by leveraging contacts across existing electronic messaging identities without compromising privacy comprising executing on one or more processors the steps of:
receiving a request from a first user to establish a universal communication server-based intercommunication connection with a second user, and wherein the second user is a business contact of the first user;
installing an instance of a universal communication application to a first user's computing device, wherein the first user's computing device comprises a first mobile device that includes the instance of the universal communication application;
installing another instance of the universal communication application to a second user's computing device, wherein the second user's computing device comprises a second mobile device that includes the other instance of the universal communication application;
verifying, with the communications server, that the identity of first user and the second user have an a priori connection by:
requesting, via the instance of the universal communication application operating in the first user's mobile device, to verify a unique identifier, wherein the unique identifier comprises a telephone number of the first user's mobile device and a corporate unique identifier, wherein the corporate unique identifier comprises a corporate email account of the first user that has been used by the first user to verify the first user's identity to establish the communication protocol between the first and the second user, and wherein the unique identifier comprises a phone number of the first user's mobile device;
querying an entity that manages the connection for a list of a first user's online social networking connections and the second user's online social networking connections; and
verifying the a priori connection with the unique identifier and the corporate unique identifier, wherein the a priori connection comprises a priori electronic communication connection between the first user and the second user that was formed before the request was initiated using another electronic communication platform, and an established online social networking connection between the first user and second user that was formed before the request was initiated, and an employment-related connection that was formed before the request was initiated; and
establishing, in the communications server, an intercommunication connection between the first user's computing device and the second user's computing device, wherein the universal communication applications enable the first user and the second user to communicate via instant message, text message and cellular call with an established intercommunication connection.