System and method of real-time call processing and billing

Abstract

The prepay telecommunications system (60) includes a prepay call management platform (50) which is directly coupled to a telecommunications carrier switch (24). A customer database (116) is coupled to the prepay call management platform (50) for storing prepay customer data, and a plurality of customer interface facilities (62, 64, 66, 68, 80) are provided for accepting customer prepayment and immediately updating the customer database (116). An unregistered roaming call is recognized by the mobile identification number and is routed to the prepay call management platform (50) coupled to and co-located with the telecommunications carrier switch (24) for processing. The caller is prompted for a payment option which may include payment by credit card or a collect call. The caller is then prompted for a credit card number if the credit card option is selected. The credit card number may be validated and verified by a credit card verification processor (128) coupled to prepay call management platform (50). The prepay call is then released to the telecommunications carrier switch (24) for line termination.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.