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Calculation of Internet traffic and accounting of data transfer services

Today operators of broadband wire data transfer networks can offer to their subscribers truly convergent services and complex solutions for corporate subscribers at minimum costs. At the same time, there arises demand for convenient traffic accounting programs, which can ensure effective operation. Inline Telecom Solutions, which specializes in the sphere of billing, can offer such solution.

Accounting of Internet traffic: a modern solution for your business

Inline Telecom Solutions offers to telecoms operators a solution, which allows to automate all critical business processes – the program for Internet traffic accounting (billing system). With the help of this product operators of broadband wire networks get a wealth of opportunities for optimization of core business processes. Accounting of Internet-services traffic happens through application of modern technologies and allows to minimize resources, which are required for data processing.

Realization of the solution

This billing solution for traffic accounting is designed for telecoms operators, that provide services of broadband access to the network on the basis of xDSL and Ethernet technologies, including with the use of tunneling protocols (PPPoE, PPTP).

Provision of access services can be performed:

according to the advance scheme (prepaid) with authorization and accounting (calculation) of subscribers’ traffic over the RADIUS-protocol;
according to the credit scheme (post-paid) with tariffication of subscribers over protocols for gathering of information inside the network (Netflow, SNMP, Remote Shell (RSH), NetSream, etc.) or according to records of provided services (CDR, UDR, etc.) with the possibility to get detailed information on each customer.

Main components of the program for traffic accounting (calculation):

Cisco ISG/SSG support module;
Leased lines module;
Tunneling protocols authorization module.

Calculation of traffic according to the advance scheme (prepaid) with authorization and tariffication of subscribers over the RADIUS-protocol is performed with the help of Cisco ISG/SSG support module, which allows to set profiles of SSG/ISG services. In profiles there are specified technological service parameters, transferred to the ISG/SSG gateway, for example, the IP-address of a remote server, addresses of DNS-servers, access rate, etc.

ISG/SSG tariff plans, according to which this traffic calculation program works, have the following possibilities:

calculation of time cost of sessions and cost of incoming/outgoing traffic, taking into account tariffication schedules;
one-time payments for use of ISG/SSG services;
charging of subscription fee;
one-time charges.

The leased line module is designed for accounting of Internet services in case of permanent connection via the leased line. In order to obtain the information about traffic there are used external collector programs. They interact with network appliances via protocols, which are intended for collection of information about IP-traffic inside the network (Netflow, SNMP, Remote Shell (RSH), NetSream, etc.) and record the information about the volume of provided services into files, which are then processed and tariffed.

The offered program for traffic accounting includes collectors for gathering of information about traffic over SNMP and Remote Shell (RSH) protocols. The first collector reads the information from the management information base (MIB) of network appliances, the second – gets Cisco IP-Accounting statistics. For interaction via the NetFlow protocol there are used collectors of third-party manufacturers, for example FlowCapture collector, which is included in the popular package Flow-Tools.

Tunneling protocols authorization module expands possibilities of the leased lines module, allowing to organize and account Internet-services with establishment of VPN-tunnels. Application of VPN has the following peculiarities:

customers receive services only after authorization;
dynamic allocation of IP-addresses is used;
for each VPN-session there is created an object session in Billmaster, which allows to control activity of customers, and set the maximum possible duration of sessions;
usage of logins and passwords increases network security.

During establishment of VPN-tunnels there is performed RADIUS-authorization of customers. Then customers can transfer traffic to an external network and receive traffic from it. Collection of data about traffic is performed in the same way, as in the leased lines module – with the help of collector-programs. Upon receipt of CDR-packages the cost of traffic is calculated with a glance to traffic zones and schedules. The module supports the typical set of tariffication possibilities:

charging of subscription fee;
one-time charges;
volume price coefficients;
partner fees.

Advantages of the solution

The product of Inline Telecom Solutions for broadband wire data transfer networks is designed to help operators to realize different tariffication schemes (pre-paid and postpaid) for Internet access services provision most effectively and easily and ensure "seamless" integration with different systems of third-party developers.

This program of Internet traffic accounting allows telecoms operators to use a wide range of services at appealing tariffs, including data transfer services, voice services and multimedia content. This fact gives the possibility to implement marketing initiatives and promotional campaigns, aimed at attraction and retention of customers.

There can be distinguished the following advantages of this solution:

unified subscriber’s interface ("Personal profile") for different tariffication schemes (prepaid and post-paid);
provision of a wide range of services at appealing tariffs, including data transfer services, voice services and multimedia content;
convergent solution for provision of different services based on different technologies (xDSL and Ethernet, with authorization and without it);
increase of the average revenue per user (ARPU) due to use of different tariffication schemes (prepaid and post-paid);
possibility to control provision and tariffication of services in real time, including personal account balance;
quick startup of new services;
wide possibilities of integration with network equipment of different manufacturers and software solutions of third-party developers.

Brief description of B&CC Billmaster