Centralized mobile network account management function for shared mobile network consumption tracking of converged charging systems

A network device, comprising:

• at least one communication interface connected to a mobile network;
• and
• at least one processor configured to execute an Account Balance Management Function (ABMF) to:
• send a first pre-authorization, via the at least one communication interface to a first Converged Charging System (CCS) located in the mobile network, to pre-authorize network service unit consumption by a first subscriber of a plurality of subscribers that are members of a same, shared network service account;
• send a second pre-authorization, via the at least one communication interface to a second CCS located in the mobile network, to pre-authorize network service unit consumption by a second subscriber of the plurality of subscribers, wherein the first CCS and the second CCS are located at physically distributed locations in the mobile network relative to the ABMF;
• receive, via the at least one communication interface from the first CCS, first network unit consumption charges associated with the first subscriber of the plurality of subscribers;
• receive, via the at least one communication interface from the second CCS, second network unit consumption charges associated with the second subscriber of the plurality of subscribers;
• and
• update a consumption counter for the same, shared network service account based on the first and second network unit consumption charges, associated with the first and second subscribers, received from the first CCS and the second CCS.

A non-transitory storage medium storing instructions executable by a network device in a mobile network, wherein the instructions comprise instructions to cause the network device to execute an Account Balance Management Function (ABMF) to:

• send a first pre-authorization, to a first Converged Charging System (CCS) located in the Next Generation mobile network, to pre-authorize network service unit consumption by a first subscriber of a plurality of subscribers that are members of a same, shared network service account;
• send a second pre-authorization, to a second CCS located in the mobile network, to pre-authorize network service unit consumption by a second subscriber of the plurality of subscribers, wherein the first CCS and the second CCS are located at physically distributed locations in the mobile network relative to the ABMF;
• receive, from the first CCS, first network unit consumption charges associated with the first subscriber of the plurality of subscribers;
• receive, from the second CCS, second network unit consumption charges associated with the second subscriber of the plurality of subscribers;
• and
• update a consumption counter for the same, shared network service account based on the first and second network unit consumption charges, associated with the first and second subscribers, received from the first CCS and the second CCS.