| Table of Contents |
|---|
Currency
This setting is mandatory when creating new account and cannot be changed for existing accounts. All further payments and cost records in the database will be represented as amounts in this currency. Currency also determines the set of available tariffs which can be assigned to the account. The currencies supported by the platform are configurable through the Settings/Currencies menu.
Billing method
There are two methods of billing:
...
In the VSM the credit balance is simply referred to as the balance.
Postpaid
In postpaid a client is allowed to debit his account to a certain value – credit limit. He is billed after the fact according to their use of mobile services at the end of a certain period, usually each month.
...
Let’s say the amount paid is $40, more than the due amount on the invoice. You should enter this amount in the Amount field, leave the Type default value which is Payment, set a date if different than the current time and write a note in the Description area or leave it blank. When you confirm the payment by clicking the Add payment button the account’s balance will be recalculated and now will show $10 (as $-30 + $40 gives $10). The credit limit will remain unchanged.
Extending/reducing credit
If the client’s usage is higher than expected and nearing the limit you may want not to interrupt the service and instead extend the credit. To increase the limit click on Set limit button (next to the Credit field), enter the amount of which the credit should be extended, leave Credit as the Type and confirm the operation. The amount will be added to the current value of the Credit, if set for the first time the newly added amount will set the limit.
...
In the opposite case, when for some reasons you want to reduce the existing credit limit, follow the same steps as before, enter the amount of which you want to decrease the limit and then change the Type to Return Credit. The amount will be deducted from the current value of the Credit.
Prepaid
This billing method is also commonly referred to as pay-as-you-go or prepay. Clients have to pay in advance of service use. The purchased credit is used to pay for calls, SMSs and other services at the point the service is accessed or consumed. If there is no available credit balance then access to the requested service is denied by the platform. Clients are able to top up their credit balance at any time using a variety of payment mechanisms.
You can also add a payment manually by clicking on the Add payment button in the General tab.
Return payment
If the paid amount was too high or a client resigns from the service or its part, he can ask for refund. In order to return some amount click Add payment button and in the form enter the returned amount, e.g. $10, and change the Type to Return. In our example above, the operation will cause that the $10 will be deducted from the balance which is now $10, leaving 0 in the account.
Tariff
A tariff, also called a rate plan, defines charges for calls and SMSs for particular destinations. It also contain set of additional parameters which determine the actual cost of chargeable events. There is a separate section in the Billing chapter dedicated to tariffs management.
...
An account’s tariff can be changed at any moment to any other tariff that rates are represented in the same currency. Changing the tariff does not affect the made calls saved in the database. The system will use the new tariff only for new calls or SMSs.
Dialed number manipulation – Tariff prefix matching
The charging function of the billing is based on the destination number of a call or an SMS. The dialed number can be in fact any string sent in the SIP TO header from a client to voipswitch. Next, the number is modified by the rules from the Tariff rules. The transformed number is then rated according to the tariff.
...
The details of the modifying rules are explained in the Header strings modifications chapter.
Conditional tariffs
Note: This feature is available only for the basic types i.e. retail and wholesale clients.
...
The last option is specific to US based services and is related to inter/intrastate calling. The tariff used will depend on combination of the CLI and dialed number.
Plans
Note: Plans are available for all type of clients except for wholesale.
...
In this popup window you can choose one of the available plans. Its main parameters will be displayed in non-editable mode. The only parameters that can be set are the initial charge and the Unlimited option which determines whether the minutes included in the plan will be shown or not. If the Unlimited option is selected the minutes will not be displayed in the VUP and the softphones as the plan is offered as unlimited.
Products
Note: Products are available only for the retail clients.
...