US 10,542,396 B1Granted

Synthetic communication network method and system

AssigneeWhatsapp Inc.

InventorsJan Koum, Brian Acton

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Abstract

Methods and systems for registering a phone device on a synthetic communication network are described. One implementation receives a request to connect the phone device to a synthetic communication network that transmits messages over a data network using one or more phone numbers from a voice network. A phone number and a country code associated with the phone device to be used for communications over the synthetic network are obtained. The phone number is normalized to a standard format distinguishing the resulting normalized phone number from international phone numbers using the synthetic network. Before the phone device is registered, an association between the normalized phone number and the phone device is verified by sending a verification message addressed to the phone device that loops back to the phone device. If the phone device confirms the verification as authentic, an authorization allows the phone device to communicate over the synthetic network.

Claims14

Dependent claims

A method, comprising:

receiving, in a multimedia client on a transmitting mobile device, a user selection of multimedia data, formatted in accordance with a first format, to be sent to a receiving mobile device;
uploading the selected multimedia data from the transmitting mobile device to a multimedia communication server;
receiving at the transmitting mobile device from the multimedia communication server a multimedia identifier associated with the multimedia data uploaded to the multimedia communication server;
and
transmitting the multimedia identifier, over a synthetic communications network, from the transmitting mobile device to the receiving mobile device, the multimedia identifier usable by the receiving mobile device to request a download to the receiving mobile device of the multimedia data in a transcoded secondary format that the receiving mobile device can process, wherein the receiving mobile device is identified on the synthetic communications network by a phone number which, before transmission of the multimedia identifier, had been confirmed to be associated with the receiving mobile device and provisioned on a voice network as a result of receipt at the receiving mobile device of a verification message transmitted by the receiving mobile device and addressed to the phone number.

2 more elements

A method, comprising:

receiving, at a multimedia communication server from a transmitting mobile device on a synthetic communications network, multimedia data formatted in accordance with a first format;
storing, by the multimedia communications server, the multimedia data in the first format;
transmitting, from the multimedia communication server to the transmitting mobile device, a multimedia identifier associated with the multimedia data stored in the first format;
receiving from a receiving mobile device a request for the multimedia data, the request including the multimedia identifier;
and
responsive to the received request, transmitting the multimedia data in a secondary format, transcoded from the first format, to the receiving mobile device, wherein the receiving mobile device is identified on the synthetic communications network by a phone number which, before transmission of the transcoded multimedia data, had been confirmed to be associated with the receiving mobile device and provisioned on a voice network as a result of receipt at the receiving mobile device of a verification message transmitted by the receiving mobile device and addressed to the phone number.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 16/532,395Filed 5 Aug 2019 · continuation
Priority: 25 Mar 2010
Granted: 21 Jan 2020
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification11 codes

H04W 4/18
Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor: information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by…
H04N 21/234309
Involving reformatting operations of video signals for distribution or compliance with end-user requests or end-user device requirements: by…
H04N 21/25833
Management of client data: involving client hardware characteristics, e.g. manufacturer, processing or storage capabilities
H04N 21/25858
Management of client data: involving client software characteristics, e.g. OS identifier

Family

Application12/732,182Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 25 Mar 2010
Application13/559,558Parent of this continuation · filed 26 Jul 2012
US 8,995,965 B1Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 31 Mar 2015
Application15/482,984Parent of this continuation · filed 10 Apr 2017
US 9,628,831 B2Parent of this continuation · filed 18 Apr 2017
Application16/195,817Parent of this continuation · filed 19 Nov 2018
US 10,136,272 B2Parent of this continuation · filed 20 Nov 2018
US 10,375,538 B1Parent of this continuation
Application13/559,558Parent of this continuation-in-part
US 2012/0294352 A1Published application
US 2017/0215052 A1Published application
US 10,542,396 B1This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.