Intelligent roaming system with over the air programming

An apparatus for providing preferred wireless carrier information for use by a mobile station when the mobile station is roaming outside of a home market area of the mobile station, the apparatus comprising:

• a database that includes preferred wireless carriers for a plurality of market areas based upon predetermined classes of service;
• means for generating a list of preferred wireless carrier identities from the database based upon a selected class of service of the mobile station;
• and
• means for providing the generated list to the mobile station designated with the selected class of service.

An system for selecting preferred wireless carriers from a plurality of wireless carriers for use by mobile stations when roaming outside of a home market area of the mobile station, the system comprising:

• a database of preferred wireless carriers for a plurality of market areas based upon predetermined classes of service;
• a generator that generates a list of the preferred wireless carrier identities from the database based upon a selected class of service of each mobile station;
• a data-providing device that provides the generated list to each mobile station designated with the selected class of service;
• a memory, provided within each mobile station, which stores the generated list of preferred wireless carriers;
• and
• a selector that selects a preferred wireless carrier from the list stored in the memory when each mobile station enters one of the market areas of the plurality of market areas,
• wherein each mobile station switches to the preferred wireless carrier, selected from the list of preferred wireless carrier identities, for communication in response to the mobile station roaming to a predetermined market area.

A method for selecting a preferred wireless carrier for a mobile station to enable wireless communication when the mobile station is roaming outside of a home market area of the mobile station, a database of preferred wireless carriers for a plurality of market areas based upon predetermined classes of service being provided at a predetermined location remote from the mobile station, a list of preferred wireless carriers being generated based upon a selected class of service and the home market area of the mobile station, the list being stored in a storage device associated with the mobile station designated with the selected class of service to enable a selection of a preferred wireless carrier band, the method comprising:

• receiving, at the mobile station, a signal transmitted by a wireless carrier;
• determining whether the received signal is transmitted by a wireless carrier in the home market area of the mobile station;
• and
• switching, based on the list in the storage device of the mobile station, a communications band of the mobile station to a preferred wireless carrier band related to the roaming market area when it is determined that the received signal is not transmitted by a wireless carrier in the home market area of the mobile station.

An apparatus for selecting a preferred wireless carrier from a plurality of wireless carriers for use by a mobile station when the mobile station is roaming outside of a home market area of the mobile station, comprising:

• a database of preferred wireless carriers for a plurality of market areas based upon predetermined classes of service, predetermined national accounts and predetermined home market areas;
• a generator that generates a list of the preferred wireless carriers from the database based upon a selected class of service, a selected national account, a selected home market area of the mobile station;
• a data providing device that provides the generated list to the mobile station designated with the selected class of service, the selected national account and the selected home market area;
• a memory, associated with the mobile station, that stores the generated list of preferred wireless carriers;
• and
• a selector, provided in the mobile station, that automatically selects a preferred wireless carrier from the list stored in the memory when the mobile station is roaming and enters a market area of the plurality of market areas.

A method for downloading a list of preferred wireless communication bands stored in a database to a memory device of a plurality of mobile stations, the database containing the list of preferred wireless communication bands from which each mobile station may select a preferred wireless communication band when the mobile station is roaming outside of a home market area of the mobile station, the database having a plurality of national account fields, a plurality of home market area fields, and a plurality of class of service fields, each mobile station being assigned to a national account, a home market area and a class of service, the method comprising:

• determining when the list of preferred wireless communication band stored in the memory of each mobile stations is outdated;
• determining, when the list is outdated, if each mobile station is registered with a home location register;
• locating each mobile station and downloading an updated list to each mobile station when it is determined the mobile station is registered with the home location register;
• and
• notifying a message center when the mobile station is not registered with the home location register and, thereafter, downloading a new preferred wireless communication band list to each mobile station when it is determined the mobile station later registers with the home location register.