Importance

Loading Importance Indicators...

Abstract

A system and method for processing telephone calls to a personal telephone number, such calls being of the type in which a call to a called party's personal telephone number results in a page to a pager of a called party and the caller's call is held in the network to be bridged to a return telephone call of the called party, employs type-ahead for faster perceived system response while not permitting free paging. In particular, although type-ahead is permitted, the page is not immediately initiated upon receipt of the last character of a valid command string prior to the end of the announcement that is played to the caller upon his call reaching a bridging and signaling unit. Instead, the bridging and signaling unit is arranged to respond so that it appears to have accepted and executed the command, and moves into the next phase of operation, e.g., music on hold. However, the page is not initiated until it is determined that both 1) the entire time for the announcement has elapsed from the receipt of the caller's call, i.e., the time of commencement of billing has arrived, and 2) the caller remains on the call at that time.

Loading the Abstract Image...

First Claim