Importance

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Abstract

The present invention allows an automated telephone attendant and a voice mail system to be shared among a plurality of users and tenants without duplicating tables stored at the switch in the voice mail system. In an automated attendant embodiment, the invention can include a port to receive an incoming call, the call having a called number associated with one of a plurality of users, an input to receive a user identification for the incoming call and a greeting storage to contain stored greetings retrievable based on the received identification. The invention further includes a telephone circuit interface of the port to answer the incoming call, and a playback device to play a retrieved greeting for the answered call based on a received user identification. In a switch embodiment, the invention can include an external telephone line interface to receive an incoming call having a called number, a user identification look up table to identify one of a plurality of users for the incoming call based on the called number, a switching circuit to route the incoming call to a port of an automated attendant system that is shared by the plurality of users, and a digital interface to send the user identification to the automated attendant system in association with the routed call.

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First Claim