Parallel data transfer and synchronization

A telephone call-routing system, comprising:

• A service control point (SCP) of an initial call-processing system in a public-switched telephone network (PSTN) having a first telephone line adapted for receiving calls from customers, a trunk line for forwarding calls, and a processor system of the initial call-processing system having a communication link separate from the trunk line;
• a remote call-in center comprising a computerized telephony switch connected to the trunk line for receiving calls from the SCP of the initial call-processing center and to a plurality of telephones at operator workstations, the computerized telephony switch adapted to switch calls to individual ones of the telephones, and connected by a telephony line to the initial call processing system;
• and
• a Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) service connected to the computerized telephony switch by a first high-speed data link, to the processor system over the communication link separate from the trunk line, and to a local area network connected to a display terminal proximate each of the plurality of telephones, and to a customer information database;
• wherein the CTI server receives an identifier associated with the caller via the communication link, uses the identifier as a key to access data about the caller from the data repository, and causes the data accessed to be displayed at the display terminal proximate the telephone to which the incoming call is switched.

An initial call processing system adapted for routing incoming calls to selected destinations, comprising:

• a service control point (SCP) having a first telephony line for receiving an incoming call from a customer and a second telephony line for forwarding the incoming call;
• and
• a processor system in a public-switched telephone network (PSTN) coupled to the first call-switching apparatus and to a digital communication link separate from the second telephony line and adapted to conduct initial processing of the incoming call, the initial processing determining an identifier for the caller;
• wherein the SCP forwards incoming calls to a second call switching apparatus at a selected call-in center, and the processor system forwards the identifier over the digital communication link separate from the second telephony line to a Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) server connected to the second call-switching apparatus.

A method for routing an incoming call from a caller to a selected destination, comprising steps of:

• (a) receiving the incoming call at a public-switched telephone network (PSTN) call-processing center;
• (b) selecting a patch at a call center for the incoming call;
• (c) determining an identifier for the caller at a processor system;
• (d) forwarding the incoming call over a first telephone line from the PSTN call-processing center to a telephony switch at the selected call center, while sending the identifier for the caller from the processor system to a Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) server at the selected call center over a digital communication link separate from the first telephone line;
• and
• (e) using the identifier at the call center as a key to retrieve data from a local data repository about the caller.