Consolidated voicemail platform

Abstract

A voicemail system for providing voicemail services to a secure facility. An embodiment of the voicemail system includes an internet router provided at a facility for communicating with a call processing center that is located outside the facility. A database at the call processing center stores voicemail messages, a call interface receives and stores voicemail messages for residents of the facility, a resident interface provides a plurality of residents of the facility with access to the stored voicemail messages via a telephone located at the facility, and a web server provides a plurality of authorized users access to the stored voicemail messages via a website.

1 . A system for providing voicemail services to a secure facility, the system comprising:
 a call processing center that is located outside the facility and is configured to receive communications from a router located at the facility;   a database at the call processing center that stores voicemail messages for a plurality of residents at the facility;   a call interface at the call processing center configured to receive and store voicemail messages for the residents at the facility;   a resident interface at the call processing center configured to provide the residents of the facility with access to the stored voicemail messages via a telephone located at the facility; and   a web server configured to provide a plurality of authorized users access to the stored voicemail messages via a website.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the call processing center comprises a plurality of clusters of computers at different geographic locations. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 2 , where the database comprises a plurality of cluster databases stored at the plurality of clusters, and wherein the clusters communicate with one another to share information on the plurality of cluster databases. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the call processing center is configured to receive internet protocol (IP) communications from the router via the Internet. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the router is configured to connect to a first cluster of the plurality of clusters, and is further configured to connect to a second cluster of the plurality of clusters when the first cluster is unavailable. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1  wherein the call interface and the resident interface are interactive voice response interfaces. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the call interface is configured to check whether an outside caller has permission to leave a voicemail message for a particular resident. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the call interface is configured to deduct funds from an account stored on the database after a voicemail message is left by the caller. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the resident interface is configured to receive and store Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) messages on the database. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the website is configured to notify authorized users of stored PREA messages. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the resident interface is configured to receive and store Kite messages on the database. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the website is configured to notify authorized users of stored Kite messages. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the resident interface is configured to receive and store customer service messages on the database. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein the website is configured to notify the authorized users of stored customer service messages. 
     
     
         15 . A system for providing voicemail services to a plurality of secure facilities, the system comprising:
 a call processing center that is located outside the plurality of secure facilities and is configured to receive communications from routers located at the facilities;   a database at the call processing center that stores voicemail messages for a plurality of residents at the plurality of secure facilities;   a call interface at the call processing center configured to receive and store voicemail messages for the plurality of residents;   a resident interface at the call processing center configured to provide the plurality of residents with access to the stored voicemail messages via a plurality of telephones located at the plurality of secure facilities; and   a web server configured to provide a plurality of authorized users access to the stored voicemail messages via a website.   
     
     
         16 . A method of providing voicemail services to a resident of a secure facility, the system comprising:
 receiving a telephone call from a caller outside the secure facility;   associating the caller with the resident;   receiving a voicemail message from the caller;   storing the voicemail message on a database at a central call center that is outside the facility;   receiving at the central call center, a request from the resident to retrieve the voicemail message;   retrieving the voicemail message from the database;   playing the voicemail message to the resident; and   providing an administrator with access to the voicemail message   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein the step of retrieving the voicemail message from the database includes retrieving the voicemail message from a database that is stored at a different geographic location than a computer that receives the request from the resident. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 16  further comprising:
 determining whether the resident has permission to receive voicemail from the caller; and 
 blocking the receiving the voicemail and the storing the voicemail steps if the resident does not have permission. 
 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 16  further comprising receiving a PIN number associated with the resident from the caller. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein the step of associating the caller with a resident includes checking a database to determine if the caller has previously left a voicemail for the resident.