Verifiable service billing for intermediate networking devices

What is this patent about?

’425 is related to the field of network service management and policy enforcement, specifically focusing on end point devices that act as intermediate gateways. It addresses the technical challenges of managing data traffic when a primary device, such as a smartphone or laptop, shares its wide area network connection with other secondary devices through local interfaces like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or USB.

The underlying idea behind ’425 is to transform a standard end point device into a verifiable service intermediary that can enforce complex network access policies usually reserved for core network infrastructure. By integrating a service processor and a forwarding agent directly into the device's communications stack, the system can monitor, notify, and control tethering or hotspot activities based on specific service profiles provided by a remote activation server.

The claims of ’425 focus on an end point device equipped with both an access network modem and a local area network modem, utilizing a forwarding agent to bridge data between them. This agent includes a policy implementation component and a firewall that can pass or redirect traffic to specific routing paths based on restriction settings. The system is designed to detect service-related events, trigger user notifications for service activation, and dynamically update forwarding policies received from a network-side service controller.

In practice, the invention works by detecting when a user attempts to use a device as a hotspot and responding with a notification that offers a specific service plan. Once the user accepts, the device communicates with an activation server to receive a service profile that dictates how traffic from secondary devices should be handled. This allows the service provider to implement granular controls, such as throttling specific types of traffic or redirecting data to authorized gateways, ensuring that the intermediate device adheres to the provider's business and technical rules.

This approach differs from prior solutions by moving the enforcement point from the carrier's core network to the device itself, allowing for granular tethering control even when traffic might otherwise be obscured. By using a dedicated forwarding agent and firewall within the device stack, the system can verify that the service policy is being implemented correctly, preventing unauthorized data usage and enabling flexible, on-demand activation of hotspot services without requiring manual configuration by the network operator.