Interactive call identification

A telecommunications system, comprising:

• means for receiving a telephone call over a first telephone connection from a calling party, said telephone call directed to a telephone number of said called party dialed by said calling party;
• means for determining whether said telephone number is a subscriber's telephone number or whether the calling party has entered an activation code with the dialed telephone number;
• means for prompting said calling party to enter a message in both of the following situations:
• a) when the telephone number is a subscriber's telephone number;
• and
• b) when the calling party has entered an activation code with the dialed telephone number;
• means for receiving a message from said calling party over said first telephone connection, said message containing user-user information, said user-user information including an identification of the calling party;
• means for establishing a second telephone connection to a called party in response to receiving said message;
• means for sending said message over said second telephone connection to said called party;
• means for receiving a call processing input over said second telephone connection from said called party;
• and
• means for bridging said first telephone connection to said second telephone connection based on said call processing input, thereby establishing an end-to-end connection from said calling party to said called party.

A system for interactive identification of a telephone call on a telecommunications network, comprising:

• an originating switch receiving a telephone call directed to a telephone number of a called party;
• and
• a server function element receiving said telephone call forwarded from said originating switch over a first telephone connection, said server function element:
• 1) determining whether said telephone number is a subscriber's telephone number or whether the calling party has entered an activation code with the dialed telephone number;
• 2) prompting said calling party to enter a message in both of the following situations:
• a) when the telephone number is a subscriber's telephone number;
• and
• b) when the calling party has entered an activation code with the dialed telephone number;
• 3) establishing a second telephone connection to said called party,
• 4) sending said message to said called party over said second telephone connection,
• 5) receiving a call processing input over said second telephone connection from said called party in response to said message, and
• 6) bridging said first telephone connection to said second telephone connection based on said call processing input, thereby establishing an end-to-end connection from said calling party to said called party.