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US 8,620,264 B2Granted
Apparatus and method for sharing and assigning multiple numbers to a communication device
AssigneeAT&T Intellectual Property I, L.P.
InventorMary Anne Hicks
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a communication device having a controller to associate two or more phone numbers with two or more phone bills, where the controller is adapted to send outgoing phone calls and receive incoming phone calls on multiple telephone numbers assigned to the mobile communication device in accordance with at least one user profile. Other embodiments are disclosed.
Claims12
A media server, comprising a memory coupled to a controller, the controller operable to:
- store at least two user profiles associated with a shared communication device, each of the at least two user profiles including at least one of a phone number and an instant message identifier;
- activate an account associated with one user profile responsive to a selection of the one user profile from the at least two user profiles;
- provide services to the shared communication device in accordance with the one user profile;
- identify from an outgoing call from the shared communication device a caller placing the outgoing call and a corresponding user profile of the caller;
- determine a call type for the outgoing call based at least in part on the corresponding user profile;
- bill an account of the corresponding user profile associated with the call type;
- compare the outgoing call to a list of business contacts and personal contacts in the corresponding user profile;
- and
- determine whether the outgoing call is a business call or a personal call based on the comparing.
6 more elements
A method, comprising:
- storing at least two user profiles associated with a communication device, each of the at least two user profiles including at least one of a phone number and an instant message identifier;
- activating an account associated with one user profile responsive to a selection of the one user profile from the at least two user profiles;
- providing services to the communication device in accordance with the one user profile;
- identifying from an outgoing call from the communication device a user placing the outgoing call and a corresponding user profile of the user;
- determining a call type for the outgoing call based at least in part on the corresponding user profile;
- billing an account of the corresponding user profile associated with the call type;
- comparing the outgoing call to a list of business contacts and personal contacts in the corresponding user profile;
- and
- determining whether the outgoing call is a business call or a personal call based on the comparing.
6 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.