At&t Intellectual Property I, LP

Bellsouth Corporation

Bellsouth Intellectual Property Corporation

David A Saitta

Daniel P Norman

Richard Allen Guidotti

Gregory Clyde Griffith

An apparatus for activating a cellular telephone within a cellular telecommunications network. A PCMCIA card interacts with a controller to display required programming information and questions. A user of the cellular telephone inputs responses to questions on a display. The user responses are transmitted to a system administrator at a customer activation center via a mobile telephone switching office in the cellular telecommunications network. The system administrator provides any necessary information for activating the cellular telephone. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, a personal computer is connected to cellular telephone and the PCMCIA card is connected to the personal computer. Information for the user may be shown on either the display of the cellular telephone or on a display of the personal computer. The user may input information and responses to questions via a user input device provided as part of the display or as part of the personal computer. User input is provided to the cellular telephone to activate and program the cellular telephone for operation on the cellular telecommunications network.

Memory device for a cellular telephone

A memory device for use with a cellular telephone capable of communicating with a customer activation center (CAC) via a cellular telephone network. The memory device includes a dummy mobile identification number (MIN). An instruction can cause the cellular telephone to use the dummy MIN to gain access to the cellular telephone network and to use a radio frequency (RF) transmitter of the cellular telephone to send the dummy MIN to the CAC. Another instruction can cause the cellular telephone to use an RF receiver of the cellular telephone to receive a valid MIN from the CAC over the cellular telephone network. A further instruction can cause the cellular telephone to store the valid MIN in the cellular telephone. The memory device can be implemented as a personal computer memory card international association (PCMCIA) card.

An apparatus for activating a cellular telephone (10) within a cellular telecommunications network. A PCMCIA card (62) interacts with a controller (50) to display required programming information and questions. A user of the cellular telephone (10) inputs responses to questions on a display (90). The user responses are transmitted to a system administrator at a customer activation center via a mobile telephone switching office in the cellular telecommunications network. The system administrator provides any necessary information for activating the cellular telephone (10). In an alternative embodiment of the invention, a personal computer is connected to cellular telephone (10) and the PCMCIA card (62) is connected to the personal computer. Information for the user may be shown on either the display (90) of the cellular telephone (10) or on a display of the personal computer. The user may input information and responses to questions via a user input device provided as part of the display (90) or as part of the personal computer. User input is provided to the cellular telephone (10) to activate and program the cellular telephone for operation on the cellular telecommunications network.

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Atlanta, GA, United States of America

David A Saitta