Recharging prepaid accounts based on charging detail records within a telecommunications network
AssigneeT-Mobile USA, Inc.
InventorKarthik Chandrasekaran
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Systems and methods are described herein for recharging prepaid accounts within a telecommunications provider, such as a network carrier, using information provided by postpaid account subscribers. For example, the systems and methods facilitate the receipt of instructions from mobile devices associated with postpaid accounts. Upon receipt of the messages, the systems and methods (such as systems within a charging system of the network carrier or provider) identify intended or recipient mobile devices associated with prepaid accounts. Once identified, the systems and methods recharge the prepaid accounts, based on the instructions received from the postpaid account mobile devices.
Claims20
A charging system for crediting prepaid accounts managed by a telecommunications service provider, the system comprising:
- at least one computer;
- and
- at least one data storage device, coupled to the at least one computer, and storing instructions to be executed by the at least one computer, wherein the instructions comprise:
- receiving a message from a mobile device associated with a subscriber of a postpaid account for telecommunications services provided by the telecommunications service provider over a telecommunications network,
- wherein the message includes a charging code that identifies a mobile device associated with a subscriber of a prepaid account for telecommunications services provided by the telecommunications network;
- identifying the mobile device associated with the subscriber of the prepaid account based on the charging code;
- sending, from the charging system to a billing system of the telecommunications network, one or more charging detail records that indicates the recharging of the prepaid account for the prepaid subscriber of the telecommunications network, the billing system configured to debit a postpaid account for the postpaid subscriber of the telecommunications network in response to the recharging of the prepaid account for the prepaid subscriber of the telecommunications network;
- and
- recharging or crediting the prepaid account using the postpaid account associated with the mobile device from which the message was received by the charging system.
A method, comprising:
- receiving, at a charging system of a telecommunications service provider, a message from a mobile device associated with a subscriber of a postpaid account for telecommunications services provided by the telecommunications service provider over a telecommunications network,
- wherein the message includes a charging code that identifies a mobile device associated with a subscriber of a prepaid account for telecommunications services provided by the telecommunications network;
- identifying, within the charging system of the telecommunications service provider, the mobile device associated with the subscriber of the prepaid account based on the charging code;
- sending, from the charging system to a billing system of the telecommunications network, one or more charging detail records that indicates the recharging of the prepaid account for the prepaid subscriber of the telecommunications network, the billing system configured to debit a postpaid account for the postpaid subscriber of the telecommunications network in response to the recharging of the prepaid account for the prepaid subscriber of the telecommunications network;
- and
- recharging or crediting, via the charging system of the telecommunications service provider, the prepaid account using the postpaid account associated with the mobile device from which the message was received by the charging system.
At least one computer readable medium, excluding transitory signals, and carrying computer-executable instructions that when executed by a computing device perform operations, comprising:
- receiving, at a charging system of a telecommunications service provider, a message from a mobile device associated with a subscriber of a postpaid account for telecommunications services provided by the telecommunications service provider over a telecommunications network,
- wherein the message includes a charging code that identifies a mobile device associated with a subscriber of a prepaid account for telecommunications services provided by the telecommunications network;
- identifying, within the charging system of the telecommunications service provider, the mobile device associated with the subscriber of the prepaid account based on the charging code;
- sending, from the charging system to a billing system of the telecommunications network, one or more charging detail records that indicates the recharging of the prepaid account for the prepaid subscriber of the telecommunications network the billing system configured to debit a postpaid account for the postpaid subscriber of the telecommunications network in response to the recharging of the prepaid account for the prepaid subscriber of the telecommunications network;
- and
- recharging or crediting, via the charging system of the telecommunications service provider, the prepaid account using the postpaid account associated with the mobile device from which the message was received by the charging system.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.