IP Library Granted Patent US 10,154,392
Granted Patent B2
US 10,154,392 · App. 16/031,398 · Granted Dec 11, 2018

Method and system for family plan sharing of wireless services

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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,154,392
App. No.
16/031,398
Granted
Dec 11, 2018
Kind
B2
Abstract

A system and process of sharing a wireless surface allotment in a third party wireless network includes implementing a metering system to meter wireless service usage by users of the third party wireless network and tracking wireless usage by a plurality of wireless devices associated with the metering system. The system and process further includes receiving a share request to reallocate the respective wireless service allotment for at least two of the plurality of wireless devices, forwarding modification instructions to the metering system, requesting confirmation from the metering system that the modification instructions have been received, and modifying the respective wireless service allotments for the at least two wireless devices in response to receiving confirmation from the metering system.

Claims (31)

1. A process of sharing a wireless service allotment shared by a plurality of wireless users, the wireless service being provided by a third party wireless network, the process comprising the steps of:

implementing a metering system to meter wireless service usage by users of the third party wireless network;

tracking wireless usage by a plurality of wireless devices associated with the metering system;

receiving a share request to the metering system from a user device to reallocate the wireless service allotment for at least two of the plurality of wireless devices, the share request being generated by one of the following: a web portal or a wireless application;

determining with the metering system whether the share request from the user device to reallocate the wireless service allotment for at least two of the plurality of wireless devices is in compliance by comparing the share request to the wireless service allotment remaining for the plurality of wireless devices;

forwarding modification instructions to the metering system when the share request is in compliance;

requesting confirmation from the metering system that the modification instructions have been received; and

modifying the wireless service allotments with the metering system for the at least two of the plurality of wireless devices in response to receiving confirmation from the metering system,

wherein the metering system is implemented at least in part in a network.

2. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the modifying the wireless service allotments comprises modification instructions sent as data.

3. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the modifying the respective wireless service allotments comprises modification instructions sent as non-data.

4. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the metering system is further implemented in at least one of the plurality of wireless devices.

5. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the metering system is further implemented at least in part in the third party wireless network.

6. The process according to claim 1 wherein the metering system is implemented in at least one of the plurality of wireless devices, the third party wireless network, and a network.

7. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the receiving a share request comprises receiving a share request from a one of the plurality of wireless devices.

8. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the receiving a share request comprises receiving a share request from an Internet-based account of one of the plurality of wireless devices via the web portal.

9. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the receiving a share request comprises receiving a share request from the wireless application associated with one of the plurality of wireless devices.

10. A wireless system configured to share a wireless service allotment of a plurality of wireless devices, the wireless service allotment being provided by a third party wireless network comprising:

a metering system configured to measure usage of wireless services of the third party wireless network by the plurality of wireless devices;

the metering system being further configured to receive a share request from a user device to reallocate the usage allotment for at least two of the plurality of wireless devices, the share request being generated by one of the following: a web portal or a wireless application;

the metering system further configured to determine whether the share request from the user device to reallocate the wireless service allotment for at least two of the plurality of wireless devices is in compliance by comparing the share request to the wireless service allotment remaining for the plurality of wireless devices; and

the metering system being further configured to modify the usage allotments for the at least two of the plurality of wireless devices when the share request is in compliance and in response to receiving confirmation from the at least two of the plurality of wireless devices,

wherein the metering system is implemented at least in part in a network.

11. The system according to claim 10 , wherein the metering system is configured to modify the respective wireless service allotments in response to modification instructions sent as data.

12. The system according to claim 10 , wherein the metering system is configured to modify the respective wireless service allotments in response to modification instructions sent as non-data.

13. The system according to claim 10 , wherein the metering system is further implemented in at least one of the plurality of wireless devices.

14. The system according to claim 10 , wherein the metering system is further implemented at least in part in the third party wireless network.

15. The system according to claim 10 wherein the metering system is implemented in at least one of the plurality of wireless devices, the third party wireless network, and a network.

16. The system according to claim 10 , wherein the metering system is configured to receive a share request that comprises receiving a share request from a one of the plurality of wireless devices.

17. The system according to claim 10 , wherein the metering system is configured to receive a share request that comprises receiving a share request from an Internet-based account of one of the plurality of wireless devices via the web portal.

18. The system according to claim 10 , wherein the metering system is configured to receive a share request that comprises receiving a share request from the wireless application associated with one of the plurality of wireless devices.

Assignments (3)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Oct 15, 2025
From: VERIZON VALUE, INC.
To: VERIZON PATENT AND LICENSING INC.
Reel/Frame 073109/0190 →
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Aug 5, 2025
From: TRACFONE WIRELESS, INC.
To: VERIZON VALUE, INC.
Reel/Frame 072348/0937 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jul 10, 2018
From: COLLIER, JOHN
To: TRACFONE WIRELESS, INC.
Reel/Frame 046307/0160 →