Method and apparatus for phone card billing

• US 6,192,113 B1
• Filed: 03/27/1995
• Issued: 02/20/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Lorsch, Robert H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shankar, Vijay
• Application Number:
  US08/410,857
• Time in Patent Office: 2,157 Days
• Field of Search: 379/91, 379/112, 379/113, 379/114, 379/115, 379/144, 379/145, 235/379, 235/380, 235/381, 235/382
• US Class Current: 379/114.2
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/342 Cards defining paid or billed services or quantities
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0014 for vending, access and use of specific services not covered anywhere else in G07F17/00 meter-controlled dispensing of liquid, gas or electricity G07F15/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/025 by means, e.g. cards, providing billing information at the time of purchase, e.g. identification of seller or purchaser, quantity of goods delivered or to be delivered
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/10 together with a coded signal , e.g. in the form of personal identification information, like personal identification number [PIN] or biometric data
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/00 Prepayment of wireline communication systems, wireless communication systems or telephone systems using a coded card to authorise calls from a telephone set H04M1/675

Abstract

A method and apparatus for phone card billing wherein phone cards comprising PINs associated with a specific account credited with a predetermined number of units are sold to phone card clients without any prepayment for the value of the phone card units. The phone card client is not required to pay for the phone card units unless and until a corresponding phone card PIN is activated for a first time by an end user, thereby reducing the phone card client'"'"'s initial financial burden of prepaying for phone card units, and eliminating payment by the phone card client for phone card units that are never used by an end user. When an end user uses a phone card by dialing a special number and entering a PIN, a call processing computer connected to a special exchange verifies the entered PIN prior to connecting the end user'"'"'s call. The call processing computer periodically and automatically downloads entered PINs to an invoicing computer system which automatically bills appropriate phone card clients for the value of the phone card units when a corresponding phone card PIN accessing these units is activated for the first time.

Claims

1. A method for prepaid phone card billing between a phone card company that manufactures prepaid phone cards and a phone card client that distributes the prepaid phone cards to end-users, comprising the following steps:

associating a prepaid phone card having a PIN with an account credited with a predetermined number of phone card units usable towards making phone calls;

providing the prepaid phone card to the phone card client without charging the client for the predetermined number of phone card units;

distributing the prepaid phone card to an end-user; and

billing the phone card client for said predetermined number of phone card units after the prepaid phone card is used for the first time by the end-user to access the predetermined number of phone card units.

2. A method for prepaid phone card billing between a phone card company and a phone card client comprising the following steps;

associating a prepaid phone card having a PIN with an account credited with a predetermined number of phone card units usable toward making phone calls;

providing said prepaid phone card from the phone card company to the phone card client without charging said client for said predetermined number of phone card units;

distributing the prepaid phone card from the phone card client to end-user;

receiving an entered PIN at a call processing computer; and

billing said phone card client for said predetermined number of phone card units after said prepaid phone card is used for the first time by the end-user to access said phone card units.

3. A method for phone card billing between a phone card company and a phone card client that distributes phone cards to end-users comprising the following steps:

(a) producing a distinct PIN associated with an account credited with a predetermined number of units usable toward making phone calls,

(b) the phone card company providing said units to a phone card client free of prepayment for said predetermined number of units, and the phone card client then distributing a phone card associated with the account to an end-user,

(c) receiving an entered PIN at a call processing computer, the receipt of the entered PIN indicating the end-user is attempting to access the account,

(d) verifying said entered PIN as a valid PIN by comparing said entered PIN with said distinct PIN at said call processing computer,

(e) downloading said entered PIN if it is a valid PIN to an invoicing computer,

(f) processing said valid PIN to determined whether said valid PIN is being activated for a first time by the end-user, and

(g) generating an invoice to be sent to said phone card client for said predetermined number of units after said valid PIN corresponding to said distinct PIN and to said predetermined number of units is activated for a first time to access said predetermined number of units.

4. The method of claim 3 for phone card billing, further comprising the following steps to be performed after step (b) and prior to step (c):

linking said distinct PIN with information relating to said phone card client and said account,

storing said PIN in said call processing computer, and

storing said PIN and said information in said invoicing computer.

5. An apparatus for phone card billing between a phone card company and a phone card client that distributes phone cards to end-users, comprising:

an invoicing computer operated by the phone card company capable of receiving an entered PIN from a call processing computer,

said invoicing computer comprising a storage device for storing a distinct PIN associated with an account credited with a predetermined number of units usable towards making phone calls,

said storage device further comprising information linking said distinct PIN with a corresponding phone card client that has received and distributed said predetermined number of units in the form of a phone card to an end-user,

said invoicing computer further comprising an invoice database for storing said entered PIN if said entered PIN is valid and has been activated for a first time by the end-user, and

said invoicing computer capable of generating an invoice to be sent to said corresponding phone card client for said predetermined number of units after said entered PIN corresponding to said distinct PIN and to said predetermined number of units is activated for a first time by the end-user to access said predetermined number of units.

6. An apparatus for phone card billing between a phone card company that manufactures phone cards and a phone card client that distributes the phone cards to end users comprising:

a telephone system comprising a special exchange and a call processing computer,

said special exchange capable of communicating with a telephone, a public exchange, and said call processing computer,

an invoicing computer operated by the phone card company capable of communicating with said call processing computer,

said call processing computer capable of receiving a PIN from an end user using said telephone and downloading said PIN to said invoicing computer, and

said invoicing computer capable of generating an invoice to be sent to the phone card client after a PIN corresponding to phone card units previously received by the phone card client is activated for a first time by the end user.

7. A method of pre-paid phone card billing, comprising:

distributing a plurality of pre-paid phone cards from a phone card company that manufactures the pre-paid phone cards to a plurality of phone card clients, without billing the phone card clients for the pre-paid phone cards at the time of distribution;

distributing the plurality of pre-paid phone cards from the plurality of phone card clients to a plurality of end-users; and

billing the phone card clients for the value of the pre-paid phone cards when the end-users activate the pre-paid phone cards for the first time.