Telephone pre-paid calling card system and method

A pre-paid calling card system to enable customers to purchase calling cards at retail establishments and to use such calling card to access a telephone network having at least one telephone, comprising:

• a plurality of calling cards, each of said calling cards having a security number associated therewith that must be entered by a customer at the telephone to obtain access to the telephone network;
• a host computer connectable to the telephone network and including at least on input port and a database for storing security numbers;
• a plurality of data terminals located at the retail establishments remote from the host computer and each connectable to the input port for associating, at the host computer, an amount of call authorization to a security number of a calling card using data transmitted between the data terminal and the host computer during one or more charging transactions, the means for associating of each data terminal including:
• means for reading a calling card to determine the security number;
• means, operative during any initial transaction and any recharge transaction, for entering a monetary amount corresponding to the amount of call authorization;
• means for transferring to the host computer the security number and the call authorization amount;
• and
• means responsive to the transfer for receiving a verification message from the host computer authorizing receipt by the retail establishment of the monetary amount to thereby associate at the host computer the call authorization amount to the security number, wherein the calling card does not store the call authorization amount;
• wherein the database includes a record for each calling card security number, the record including the initial call authorization amount and any recharge call authorization amount, a balance, and data terminal identification codes identifying the data terminals of the plurality of data terminals at which the initial and any recharge call authorization amounts were issued:
• a call processor running on the host computer end responsive to entry of the security number by a customer for enabling the customer to access the telephone network using the telephone, the cell processor using the balance in the record associated with the security number for monitoring call progress and terminating the customer's access to the telephone network when the balance is exhausted.

A calling card system, comprising:

• a host computer having a database;
• a plurality of data terminals connectable to the host computer, each data terminal identified by a data terminal identification code and including means for authorizing calling card security numbers in selectable call authorization amounts;
• and
• a record stored in the database for each calling card security number authorized by a data terminal, at least one record including an initial call authorization amount and any recharge call authorization amount, and the data terminal identification codes identifying the data terminals at which the initial and any recharge call authorization amounts were issued such that call authorization amounts for the calling card which are generated by multiple data terminals can be reconciled.