Integrated message desk and intelligent networks-based approach for multimedia mail

An ISDN-"ISO-application layer" interface for interactions, via services called input/output services, between desktop applications and voice terminals is presented in this paper. Input/output services allow computer applications to provide users with enhanced services by exploitation of the characteristics of a variety of telephony device types; this is by interacting with a switch-based software object, called Information-Path, associated with the device that allows input to be received from the device and output to be sent to the device. A standard specification for such an interface may be developed, towards the end of this decade, by ANSI (American National Standards Institute) T1 Committee, ECMA (European Computer Manufacturers Association) TC32-TG11, or ITU/TSS (formerly CCITT) IN (Intelligent Networks) group.