Telecommunications – Radiotelephone system – Usage measurement
Reexamination Certificate
1998-09-24
2001-03-13
To, Doris H. (Department: 2745)
Telecommunications
Radiotelephone system
Usage measurement
C455S413000, C379S114030, C379S126000, C379S134000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06201956
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to billing systems and more specifically, it relates to a billing system for wireless telecommunication services using voice mail systems.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The tremendous growth of wireless telecommunication services has led to an increasingly competitive environment that has prompted operators to intensify the search for areas in which to cut costs. One area that may be suitable for cost reduction is in the conventional procedure for billing subscribers for wireless telecommunication services. In the typical conventional billing method, network providers generally must collect billing information containing the detailed calling data of subscribers to generate a bill which is then printed on paper, packaged and sorted in order to be sent to the subscriber through the postal system. For a network provider that must provide billing to hundreds of thousands of subscribers or more on a periodic basis, the billing process may represent a significant portion of its operating expenses.
Billing by conventional means have other drawbacks. For example, it relies on a third party for delivery thus the sender is generally not absolutely certain that the subscriber has received his/her bill. Furthermore, a delay of several days is typically incurred when using the postal system thus subscribers are not able to access to their bill unit it has arrived by mail. This can be inconvenient when subscribers are away for extended periods of time, for example, and therefore they typically do not have access to their bills until they return. Another consideration with the paper billing format is that it is cumbersome and requires subscribers manually sort through their bills not to mention the high cost of using enormous amounts of paper for printing bills on a regular basis.
In view of the foregoing, it is an objective of the present invention to provide a method and system for delivering bills in a cost effective and timely manner without having to rely on a third party for delivery.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Briefly described, and in accordance with embodiments thereof, the invention discloses a method and system for delivering bills to subscribers of wireless telecommunication services using a voice mail system. In a first aspect of the invention, a billing center for collecting and maintaining billing information that contains detailed information on calls made by the subscriber is linked to the voice mail system operating together with a wireless telecommunication network. A computer recalls the billing information from the billing center for a selected subscriber and generates a bill in a format compatible for storage in the voice mail system. The format of the bill may be a synthesized voice message verbally describing the bill specifics or it can be a computer readable file containing comprehensive billing information. The generated bill is then stored in the subscriber's voice mailbox. Notification indicating that the bill has been delivered to the subscriber's voice mailbox sent, for example, by flashing an indicator on the subscriber's phone or by sending an short message service (SMS) message. The bill can then be retrieved by accessing the subscriber's voice mailbox with a phone to listen to the voice bill or it can be downloaded by a computer if it is a computer readable file.
In another aspect of the invention, a bill is generated from billing information acquired from the billing center on a selected subscriber which is then transmitted for storage to a remote voice mail system that may be operating together with a private branch exchange (PBX), for example. The technique is especially suitable for delivering bills to selected subscribers without disturbing the subscriber's current activity. This allows bills to be delivered in the “background” during low traffic and tariff periods for improved convenience and resource efficiency.
The invention permits an automated method of delivery of bills incurred by wireless subscribers in a cost effective and timely manner. The reliance on a third party for bill delivery is eliminated thereby saving the expense and time associated with traditional postal delivery. Furthermore, subscribers are able to gain access to their bills from any location and can optionally download computer readable files for analysis at their convenience. These and other advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and studying the various figures of the drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5195126 (1993-03-01), Carrier et al.
patent: 5329573 (1994-07-01), Chang et al.
patent: 606041 (1994-07-01), None
patent: 63/020948 (1988-01-01), None
patent: 1/125055 (1989-05-01), None
patent: 9/321880 (1997-12-01), None
European Search Report re RS 101986 Date of mailing of search: Mar. 18, 1999.
Burns Doane Swecker & Mathis L.L.P.
Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)
To Doris H.
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