Method and system for controlling access to presence information on a peer-to-peer basis

摘要

A presence information system allows access to presence information of a publisher to be controlled and enforced by the publisher on a peer-to-peer basis, rather than by a presence server. A subscriber sends to the publisher on a peer-to-peer basis a request to subscribe to the presence information of the publisher. When the publisher receives the request to subscribe to its presence information, the presence information system of the publisher can allow or deny the request based on access rights associated with the subscriber. If the request is allowed, then the publisher notifies the subscriber of its current presence state and its new presence state when it changes. The presence states may be defined at various levels of detail in a presence model.