Computer and mobile device application maker CounterPath Corp. was granted a United States patent for a mobile network-based authentication that would enable operators to offer customers seamless voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) calls.
Most mobile phones today use a subscriber identity module (SIM) for mobile authentication to verify that a mobile device can access the mobile network in order to send and receive calls and text messages. However, many third party applications that are installed on a device are not able to use SIM authentication and instead perform authentication via usernames or passwords or complex two factor authentication.
The VoIP solution developed by CounterPath and now holding the U.S. patent number 8,769,081 and titled Network Based Authentication, authenticates a VoIP software application on a device via global system mobile (GSM)-based telephone network rather than using traditional username and password methods. The solution is based on the SIM and enables original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and service providers to include a third party unified communication app as a built-in application on the mobile device which will only work when the user turns on the device.
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A configuration and provisioning server solution will provide users with a profile while SIM authentication will enable it to work only on the provider’s network, eliminating the need for other non-mobile based authentication technologies.
Following the announcement of the patent award, share of Vancouver-based CounterPath went up 27.1 per cent on the TSX index and closed at $1.50 on Monday.
“CounterPath’s latest patent for network based authentication builds nicely on other recent advances we have made in client configuration and provisioning, Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) and Mobile Device Management (MDM) with the goal of making it easier for people to use softphone client applications on any device, any platform and over any network,” said Donovan Jones, president and CEO of CounterPath, said in a statement. “With this technology, our Bria application can be embedded into a device leveraging SIM authentication, offering an unprecedented level of ease of use to the customer.”
Bria is a carrier grade softphone application that enables companies to manage their communications from a computer. It allows users to make VoIp and video calls over the Internet, see when contacts are available and send Instant Messages and transfer files. CounterPath’s recently patented software will enable OEMs to include UC software like Bria as built-in apps in their mobile devices.
Operators will also benefit from the technology, said Jones because it will allow them to launch an easy to use operator OTT (over-the-top) application with seamless authentication.