PRESENCE AND GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION NOTIFICATION BASED ON A DELEGATION MODEL

摘要

A user of an instant messaging system may store names of other users of the instant messaging system on a participant list (which may be referred to as a “buddy list”), and the names may be categorized into one or more groups. Similarly, a user of a mobile device, such as a mobile telephone, may store contact information about people on the mobile device. Information describing the on-line presence of the user within the instant messaging system or geographic location of a mobile device, such as a mobile telephone associated with the user system, may be disseminated to users on the participant list or people on the contact list based on notification information that is associated with groups of users or contacts. A delegation model is used to control whether a user is permitted to make modifications to the notification information.

主权项

1. A method of using delegation information associated with a communications identity to manage modifying notification setting information to control dissemination of notification information relating to the communications identity, the method comprising:
accessing delegation information associated with a communications identity, the delegation information including multiple categories of communications identities and, for at least one of the multiple categories, identifying notification information modifications to be controlled; receiving, from a communications identity associated with a category of the multiple categories, a modification of notification information regarding the notification setting information; accessing delegation information associated with the category; determining whether the communications identity is permitted to perform the modification based on the delegation information associated with the category; and only permitting the modification to the notification setting information when the communications identity is permitted to perform the modification.