SERVICE ACCESS AND CONFERENCING SYSTEM AND METHOD IN A TELECOMMUNICATIONS NETWORK

摘要

A system and method of providing a subscriber service to service users in a telecommunications network. In an Internet Protocol (IP) telecommunications network, a conference call may be established between a conference owner and a plurality of other conference participants. In networks utilizing Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) control signaling for call setup and control, the SIP REGISTER message is modified to indicate service capability information and optionally a traffic load indication for service providers. The REGISTER message is sent to a modified Presence and Instant Messaging (PIM) server that stores presence information and the service capability information for registered service providers such as a conference server. The PIM server then notifies subscribing service users, such as conference participants, of the identity of the service provider that is registered on the network. The PIM server may utilize the traffic load information to balance the traffic load between service providers by providing users with the identity of the service provider that is the most lightly loaded. For a conference call, after a conference owner identifies the conference participants and provides criteria for initiating the conference, the conference server identifies each participant's serving CSCF, and sends a request to each CSCF to notify the conference server when served participants are present and available. When the predefined number of participants are present and available, the conference server initiates the conference call.