Network Working Group                                          T. Hansen
Request for Comments: 3938                             AT&T Laboratories
Updates: 3458                                               October 2004
Category: Standards Track

                     Video-Message Message-Context

Status of this Memo

   This document specifies an Internet standards track protocol for the
   Internet community, and requests discussion and suggestions for
   improvements.  Please refer to the current edition of the "Internet
   Official Protocol Standards" (STD 1) for the standardization state
   and status of this protocol.  Distribution of this memo is unlimited.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2004).

Abstract

   The Message-Context header defined in RFC 3458 describes the context
   of a message (for example: fax-message or voice-message).  This
   specification extends the Message-Context header with one additional
   context value: "video-message".

   A receiving user agent (UA) may use this information as a hint to
   optimally present the message.

1.  Introduction

   Email messages can be used to convey many different forms of
   messages, and the user will interact with different types in
   different ways.  As explained in RFC 3458 [1], the "message context"
   of the message conveys information about the way the user expects to
   interact with the message, such as which icon to display.  RFC 3458
   then registers the message contexts for a "voice-message", "fax-
   message", "pager-message", "multimedia-message", "text-message", and
   "none".

Hansen                      Standards Track                     [Page 1]

RFC 3938             Video-Message Message-Context          October 2004

2.  Video Message

   One form of email is a message that consists mostly of a video
   stream.  Examples of services that send video email are those
   connected to cell phones that capture video streams, and video email
   services that use webcams attached to a PC.  These email messages
   currently consist of two flavors, both of which can be properly
   considered a video message:

   1. those that embed the video stream internally within the message as
      a body part, and

   2. those whose video stream is stored on a third party's video
      server.

   However, none of the existing message contexts properly identify such
   video messages.  This specification extends the Message-Context
   header with one additional context value: video-message.

3.  IANA Considerations

3.1.  Message-Context

   As specified in RFC 3458 [1], this document registers "video-message"
   in the "Internet Message Context Types" repository.

   Message-Context class name:
      video-message

   Summary of the message class:
      Indicates a message whose primary content is a video mail message.
      The primary content is video data.  The context is usually a
      message recorded on a video camera, or a message whose primary
      purpose is to contain an external reference to a message recorded
      on a video camera.

   Person & email address to contact for further information:
      Tony Hansen, tony+msgctxt@maillennium.att.com.

4.  Security Considerations

   This header is intended to be an indicator of message context only.
   As such, it is only a hint and requires no behavior on the part of a
   message user agent.

Hansen                      Standards Track                     [Page 2]

RFC 3938             Video-Message Message-Context          October 2004

5.  Normative References

   [1]  Burger, E., Candell, E., Eliot, C., and G. Klyne, "Message
        Context for Internet Mail", RFC 3458, January 2003.

6.  Author's Address

   Tony Hansen
   AT&T Laboratories
   200 Laurel Ave.
   Middletown, NJ  07748
   USA

   EMail: tony+msgctxt@maillennium.att.com

Hansen                      Standards Track                     [Page 3]

RFC 3938             Video-Message Message-Context          October 2004

7.  Full Copyright Statement

   Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2004).

   This document is subject to the rights, licenses and restrictions
   contained in BCP 78, and except as set forth therein, the authors
   retain all their rights.

   This document and the information contained herein are provided on an
   "AS IS" basis and THE CONTRIBUTOR, THE ORGANIZATION HE/SHE REPRESENTS
   OR IS SPONSORED BY (IF ANY), THE INTERNET SOCIETY AND THE INTERNET
   ENGINEERING TASK FORCE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED,
   INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTY THAT THE USE OF THE
   INFORMATION HEREIN WILL NOT INFRINGE ANY RIGHTS OR ANY IMPLIED
   WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

Intellectual Property

   The IETF takes no position regarding the validity or scope of any
   Intellectual Property Rights or other rights that might be claimed to
   pertain to the implementation or use of the technology described in
   this document or the extent to which any license under such rights
   might or might not be available; nor does it represent that it has
   made any independent effort to identify any such rights.  Information
   on the IETF's procedures with respect to rights in IETF Documents can
   be found in BCP 78 and BCP 79.

   Copies of IPR disclosures made to the IETF Secretariat and any
   assurances of licenses to be made available, or the result of an
   attempt made to obtain a general license or permission for the use of
   such proprietary rights by implementers or users of this
   specification can be obtained from the IETF on-line IPR repository at
   http://www.ietf.org/ipr.

   The IETF invites any interested party to bring to its attention any
   copyrights, patents or patent applications, or other proprietary
   rights that may cover technology that may be required to implement
   this standard.  Please address the information to the IETF at ietf-
   ipr@ietf.org.

Acknowledgement

   Funding for the RFC Editor function is currently provided by the
   Internet Society.

Hansen                      Standards Track                     [Page 4]