Method for providing a collect call service in a mobile communication system

1. A method of processing a communication in a communications system, the method comprising:

receiving a communication initiation from subscriber A, said communication initiation indicating that subscriber A wants to communicate with subscriber B such that subscriber B pays for the communication,

transmitting, in response to the communication initiation, an enquiry about whether subscriber B is willing to pay fro a communication from said subscriber A by means of network elements of the communications system, said enquiry being transmitted to the B subscriber by using a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) Push message,

transmitting a response to said enquiry from the B subscriber to an network element of the communication system, and

if subscriber B is willing to pay for the communication according to the enquiry, connecting a communication between subscriber A and subscriber B automatically by the network elements of the communications system so that subscriber B is defined at the payer of the communication.

2. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the method also comprises:

defining a group of subscribers who have been selected in advance by subscriber B and the communications from whom subscriber B is willing to pay for,

storing the identifiers describing said subscribers in a database, and

transmitting, in response to subscriber A's communication initiation, an enquiry to the database about whether subscriber A from whom the communication initiation was received belongs to the group of subscribers stored in the database.

3. A communications system comprising at least:

subscriber terminal A and subscriber terminal B, between which a communication can be set up,

a mobile services switching centre for transmitting communications between the subscribers,

means for receiving a communication initiation from subscriber terminal A, said communication initiation indicating that subscriber A wants to communicate with subscriber B such that subscriber B pays for the communication,

means for informing subscriber terminal B that subscriber A wants to communicate with subscriber B such that subscriber B pays for the communication,

a Wireless Telephony Application (WTA) server, and a WAP gateway for communicating with subscriber terminal B which is provided with WAP properties,

a network element which subscriber B can inform of whether he wants to pay for a communication from certain subscriber A,

means for transmitting an enquiry to said network element about whether subscriber B is willing to pay for a communication from said subscriber A, said network element being responsive to said enquiry for transmitting a charging enquiry to subscriber terminal B by using a WAP Push message about whether subscriber B is willing to pay for a communication from said subscriber A, and being arranged to receive subscriber B's response, and

means for setting up a call so that subscriber B is defined as the payer of the communication if the result of the enquiry indicates that subscriber B is willing to pay the communication.

4. A system according to claim 3 , wherein the network element also comprises:

a database,

means for storing identifiers describing a group of subscribers defined by subscriber B in the database, the group consisting of subscribers the communications from whom subscriber B is willing to pay for, and

means for checking whether subscriber A from whom the communication initiation was received belongs to the group of subscribers defined in the database.

5. A system according to claim 3 , wherein the system also comprises:

means for defining said group of subscribers for the database by subscriber terminal B using the WAP technology.

6. A system according to claim 3 , wherein the system comprises a www server, and means for defining said group of subscribers by a www server.

7. A system according to claim 3 , wherein the system comprises means for informing subscriber A with another WAP Push message of whether subscriber B is willing to pay for a communication to be set up.

8. A system according to claim 3 , wherein the system comprises means for transmitting information to subscriber A as a voice announcement on whether subscriber B is willing to pay for a communication to be set up.