System and method for inbound call billing

• US 20090110163A1
• Filed: 10/31/2007
• Published: 04/30/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Embarq Holdings Company LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Gupta, Shekhar
• Granted Patent: US 8,355,486 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/114.10
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/08 Metering calls to called party , i.e. B-party charged for the communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/41 Billing record details, i.e. parameters, identifiers, structure of call data record [CDR]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/62 based on trigger specification
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/68 Payment of value-added services
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0196 Payment of value-added services, mainly when their charges are added on the telephone bill, e.g. payment of non-telecom services, e-commerce, on-line banking
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/62 Called party billing, e.g. reverse billing, freephone, collect call, 0800 or 0900

Abstract

A system and method for billing an incoming communication. A code is received from a calling party during the incoming communication. Expenses of the incoming communication are allocated to an account of the calling party in response to receiving the code. An invoice is generated for the calling party and a receiving party specifying the expenses.

Claims

1. A method for billing an incoming communication, the method comprising:

receiving a code from a calling party during the incoming communication;

allocating expenses of the incoming communication to an account of the calling party in response to receiving the code; and

generating an invoice for the calling party and a receiving party specifying the expenses.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the code is an account identifier.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the incoming communication is for any of a voice over Internet Protocol telephone, a wireless telephone, a digital telephone, and an analog telephone.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the receiving is performed after the calling party dials a phone number.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the receiving, allocating and generating is performed by a billing system of the receiving party.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the expenses include communications fees and an hourly rate of the receiving party.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

managing the billing of the expenses using an interface available to the receiving party.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the invoice is updated based on each of a number of communications, and wherein the invoice maybe reviewed through a website or interactive voice recording or sent in an email message or short message service message.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the code is an emergency dialing code configured to allow the dialing party to communicate with the received party even though a do-not-disturb feature is activated by the receiving party.

10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising:

communicating the incoming communication as if the do-not-disturb feature is not activated in response to receiving the emergency dialing code.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein the emergency dialing code is set by the calling party and approved for activation by the receiving party.

12. The method according to claim 6, wherein the expenses are calculated based on the duration of the call.

13. The method according to claim 7, wherein the wherein the receiving party manages the expenses through the interface by reducing or canceling the expenses.

14. A billing system for separating billable expenses, said system comprising:

a server configured to track the billable expenses associated with an incoming communication based on a code received from the calling party and allocate the billable expenses related to the communication to an account of the calling party at the end of the incoming communication; and

a communications network in communication with the server, the communications network configured to receive the incoming communication from the calling party.

15. The billing system according to claim 14, further comprising:

an interface that maybe displayed by the server, wherein the interface displays the billable expenses associated with the account to the calling party and a receiving party.

16. The billing system according to claim 14, wherein the code is an emergency dialing code configured to allow the dialing party to communicate with the received party even though a do-not-disturb feature is activated by the receiving party.

17. The billing system of claim 14, wherein the billable expenses include a communication cost and a hourly or flat fee cost for speaking with the receiving party for a duration of the incoming communication.

18. A billing system for billable expenses comprising:

a processor for executing a set of instructions;

a memory for storing the set of instructions, wherein the set of instructions receive a code from a calling party during the incoming communication, allocate the billable expenses of the incoming communication to an account of the calling party in response to receiving the code, and generate an invoice for the calling party and a receiving party specifying the billable expenses.

19. The billing system according to claim 18, wherein the code is received before or a call, and wherein the code is an account identifier.

20. The billing system according to claim 18, wherein the code is an emergency dialing code configured to allow the dialing party to communicate with the received party even though a do-not-disturb feature is activated by the receiving party.