Interfacing the music, NEC seeks patent for VoIP multipacket communications

A couple of weeks ago, I updated you on some newly published U.S. Patent and Trademark applications.

I've just noticed a new one. NEC has applied for a multicast packet communications method for VoIP systems.

"In response to a request from the client," NEC notes in its patent application abstract, "the VoIP server transmits multicast packets of MOH (Music On Hold) data to the other clients. At this time, whether the other clients can receive multicast packets is determined. To the clients that are determined to be capable of receiving multicast packets, transmission data is sent in the form of multicast packets."

But what about when multicast packets are a big prob? No biggie. Unicast steps in and does its job, but does not get in the way of some limited - and welcome - multicast capabilities.

As NEC further puts it:

"To the client which belongs to a router and is determined to be incapable of receiving multicast packets, the transmission data is sent as unicast packets. It is thus possible for the VoIP system to support paging and MOH in the form of multicast packets, with respect to clients incapable of receiving multicast."