Multiple usage rates
An example communications system for providing communication services between communications devices may employ multiple usage rates for metered communication services. A method for adjusting usage amounts to account for multiple usage rates may include determining a usage adjustment factor for a communications event; determining a metered usage amount for the communications event; and determining an adjusted usage amount based on the usage adjustment factor and the metered usage amount for the communications amount. Thus, a billing system in the communications system may determine an invoice amount based on the adjusted usage amount and a predetermined bill rate.
1. A communications system for providing metered communications services, the communications system comprising:
a mobile network to provide mobile network communications services for a plurality of mobile communications devices over a wide-area IP network;
a wireless local-area network (WLAN) to provide wireless network communications services for a plurality of communications devices over the wide-area IP network;
a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service coupled to the mobile network and the WLAN via the wide-are IP network to provide VoIP communications services for the plurality of communications devices;
a public switched telephone network (PSTN) coupled to the VoIP service;
a communications routing system coupled to the plurality of communications devices via the wide-area IP network; and
a billing system coupled to the communications routing system, the billing system configured to determine an invoice amount based on an adjusted usage amount and a predetermined bill rate, wherein the adjusted usage amount is determined based on a usage adjustment factor and a metered usage amount for each communications event.
2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the adjusted usage amount is determined by the communications routing system prior to processing by the billing system.
3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the adjusted usage amount is determined by the billing system during processing for invoicing.
4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the usage adjustment factor is determined based on one or more of: a geographic location, a day of week, a time of day, a promotional event, a special sales rate, terms of a carrier plan, and a network rate.
5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the usage adjustment factor is displayed on the communications device.
6. The system of claim 5 , wherein the usage adjustment factor is displayed on the communications device with a roaming indicator.
7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the metered usage amount is based on one or more of: bandwidth used for the communications event, a duration of the communications event, and cost per unit of time for the communications event.
8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the usage adjustment factor is a multiple of a fixed cost.
9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the usage adjustment factor is a multiple of a home network cost.