Accounting management for global broadband connectivity services

Due to the deregulation of the telecommunications market there is a big pressure to cut cost and to quickly introduce new services for global broadband connectivity. Therefore an integrated management solution is called for. It allows to completely automate the customer to service provider as well as the service provider to service provider interactions. There are already solutions for these interfaces but they still lack accounting functionality. The paper describes the accounting part of a customer care interface in detail. It highlights the benefits of using a Web-based solution, that allows to serve also small customers, which usually do not operate any management platform in their domain. The accounting process covers all steps from selecting a tariff during the subscription and service configuration phase, via usage metering, charging, and billing to invoicing. First a short introduction to the integrated management system as it is currently under development within several European projects is presented. Then a motivation for an automated accounting process is given and the requirements are summarized. In the next step the process of accounting is outlined. Thereafter the architecture of the system is discussed as it is currently prototyped. Finally a summary will conclude the presentation