Nextiva, Inc. has secured a major milestone in telecommunications with a newly patented system for generating teleconference spaces. This innovation focuses on a recently awarded patent, titled ‘Mixing and transmitting multiplex audiovisual information’. The patent describes a system and method designed to efficiently route, store, and generate multiplexed outbound teleconference streams from multiple communication devices.
Outstanding Invention: Patent of the Month
We are thrilled to announce that this innovation has won Swanson Reed’s Patent of the Month in the Film, Media and Telecommunications industry for January 2026. This patent was selected because it is an outstanding invention that significantly advances the capability, stability, and efficiency of modern virtual communication.
Patent Abstract
A system and method are disclosed for generating a teleconference space for two or more communication devices using a computer coupled with a database and comprising a processor and memory. The computer generates a teleconference space and transmits requests to join the teleconference space to the two or more communication devices. The computer stores in memory identification information for each of the two or more communication devices. Each of the two or more communication devices transmits a communication system stream, comprising audiovisual information recorded by each communication device, to the computer. The computer stores each of the communication system streams in memory, and generates an outbound teleconference stream comprising at least one of the two or more communication system streams. The computer transmits the outbound teleconference stream to each of the two or more communication devices.
Meeting U.S. R&D Tax Credit Rules
To qualify for the Research and Development (R&D) Tax Credit in the USA, an invention’s development must satisfy the IRS Four-Part Test. Nextiva’s work on this patent aligns perfectly with these rules:
- Permitted Purpose: The development was undertaken to create a new or improved business component—specifically, an improved, high-functioning teleconferencing architecture.
- Technological in Nature: The project relies on hard sciences, specifically computer science, telecommunications engineering, and software engineering.
- Elimination of Uncertainty: At the beginning of the project, there was technological uncertainty regarding how to optimally store multiple incoming streams, minimize latency, and generate a multiplexed outbound stream without overwhelming system memory.
- Process of Experimentation: The software engineers had to undergo a systematic process of evaluating alternatives, testing different code structures, routing algorithms, and memory management protocols to finalize the system.
3 Practical Applications Qualifying for R&D Tax Credits
- Developing Advanced Stream Selection Algorithms: Designing and testing logic that dictates which user streams (e.g., the active speaker vs. background listeners) are merged into the final outbound teleconference stream. Iterative testing to minimize processing time and audio/video lag directly qualifies as experimental R&D.
- Optimizing Real-Time Database Architecture: Engineering the backend database and memory storage processes to handle thousands of concurrent read/write operations as multiple devices upload streams simultaneously. Developing new methods to prevent server crashes under high loads eliminates technical uncertainty.
- Cross-Platform Compatibility Engineering: Iteratively developing and testing the teleconference space to ensure the outbound multiplexed stream functions seamlessly across various communication devices (e.g., older smartphones vs. high-end desktop computers) with fluctuating bandwidth constraints.
