Enhanced communication platform and related communication method using the platform

A method of providing pre-authorized communication services and transactions using plurality of external networks, comprising:

• accepting a request from a corresponding one of the plurality of external networks of different types, the request being from a user requesting at least one of a communication service and a transaction;
• verifying that the user is authorized to receive the at least one of the communication service and the transaction, and that an account associated with the user has a sufficient value available for payment;
• and
• charging at a platform, using rating engines that dynamically calculate charges, an account associated with the user while the platform controls a corresponding one of the external networks from the platform to provide the at least one of the communication service and authorizing the transaction if the accepting and verifying is successful,
• wherein:
• the platform is outside of the plurality of external networks of different types, and
• the at least one of a communication service and transaction is provided by any one of a plurality of different service and transaction providers.

A telephony platform providing communication services to users, the telephony platform comprising:

• an interface that receives, from a plurality of external networks of different types, a personal identification number from a user, an enhanced communication service selection that the user selected from a plurality of enhanced communication service, a transaction, and a request for user account information;
• a storage device that stores an account value linked to the personal identification number;
• a verification module that authenticates the personal identification number sent by the interface and verifies that the stored account value has sufficient value to pay for the user-selected one of the enhanced communication service and the transaction;
• and
• a processor that controls for each user-selected one of the enhanced commnunication service, the transaction, and/or the user-requested account information, a corresponding one of the plurality of external networks to provides the user-selected one of the enhanced communication service, the transaction, and/or the user-requested account information to the user,
• wherein:
• the platform is outside of the plurality of external networks of different types, and
• the at least one of a communication service and the transaction is provided by any one of a plurality of different service and transaction providers.

A platform providing communication services to users requested over external networks of different types, the platform comprising:

• an interface through which user identifiers are received from the external networks of different types, each of the user identifiers having a conesponding request for an enhanced communication service which is selected by the user from a plurality of the enhanced communication services, the interface being outside of the external networks from which the user identifiers and the requested enhanced communication services are received;
• a storage device that stores account values linked to the user identifiers;
• a verification module that receives the user identifiers from the interface, authenticates each received user identifier sent by the interface, and provides a verification indicator for each user identifier if the verification module verifies that the corresponding one of the stored account values has a sufficient value to pay for the corresponding requested enhanced communication service;
• and
• a processor that receives the verification indicators from the verification module and, for each verification indicator corresponding to one of the user identifiers, controls, through the interface, an element of a corresponding one of the external networks to provide the requested enhanced communication service.