Vonage (News - Alert) is rapidly emerging as one of the biggest names in voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) service around, delivering easy to use, high quality communications for both business and residential users. But high quality service isn't born in isolation; it builds on the strength of patented technology that gives a company an edge. Vonage recently sharpened its technological edge, gaining seven new patents over 2015's third quarter and bringing its total in the U.S. to 93.

One such patent—reportedly number 9,112,747—offers a means to better connect business VoIP systems to various third-party software applications. It comes with a complete application programming interface (API) that allows the system to annotate call history data automatically with full information and even notes about the call.

Another three patents covered the call experience itself. One offers a remedy to a common problem, noting when two parties on a recently terminated phone call are trying to reconnect. Under normal circumstances, that would generate a busy signal, but the new patented algorithm allows the system to bypass that busy signal and instead reconnect the call.

A second covers those times when phone numbers have been reassigned, but are still receiving calls from those believing the old party still holds the number. Using points like caller ID and the like to figure out if that call should be connected, the system can play a message noting the change, or can even reroute the call to its likely intended point.

The third, meanwhile, can tell if it's a good time to play certain messages before a call is connected, like when rates have changed.

The final three patents cover the mobile experience itself, including a new patent to allow more efficient testing for developers, a new way for mobile VoIP users to put a VoIP call on hold when a call comes in over the cellular network, and a new means to securely transmit data by transferring it as part of a voice communication session, in a fashion almost reminiscent of Web-based real time communications' (WebRTC) data channel function.

That's a lot to take in, but the takeaway is that Vonage just got a lot of new firepower in its ongoing quest to preserve its customer base. If it puts all these patents to work, then it will be able to offer up a wide variety of new services in the short term. The busy signal bypass alone would be a winner for a lot of users out there.

But it might be that Vonage doesn't plan to put these patents to use at all; it could be holding the patents to force competitors in the field to find entirely new ways of delivering these services, and that delay could cost competitors in a big way.

Additionally, Vonage could just license these patents out and bring in some revenue that way, allowing the field to bring out the same options while paying Vonage for the privilege.

Seeing just what Vonage will ultimately do with these patents should be quite the experience. Either way, though, Vonage might have given itself an even better edge in the field than it already had, and that's good news for the company.