Convergent Charging
Benefits
- Enables smooth integration to any network equipment through configuration
- Return on investment in current intelligent networks and billing systems
- Reduced implementation time and risk providing a competitive advantage
Charging for service usage in the communication industry is evolving from the traditional separation between pre- and post-paid to a convergent charging architecture, where all charge authorizations are managed in real-time. In this environment, ISVs are confronted with a myriad of different integration points, which involve different network elements and protocols. In addition, they need to manage the cardinality difference between the service delivery infrastructure and the charging architecture. The end-to-end charging solution requires flexibility to adapt to this environment, which is different for every service provider.
The key functions for convergent charging – rating and balance management are often provided by different vendors. By using mediation to integrate these functions with the network, a flexible charging solution can be implemented.
Solution
MediationZone is an active mediation platform used to integrate the service delivery network with real-time charging and billing solutions. It provides off-the-shelf support for all leading offline and online protocols, for low-latency and high-throughput integration with any external rating and account balance management function. MediationZone does not itself provide rating and account balance management functions, but includes key functionality to integrate charging solutions with the network, such as:
- Session management
- Load-balancing and event routing
- Protocol conversion
MediationZone is compliant with IMS charging standards related to online and offline mediation functions. It provides full support for any Diameter Application through configuration. In addition, it also supports a wide range of additional protocols (Radius, HTTP, JMS, TCP/IP, and SOA / WebServices / SOAP).
Support for IMS charging standards includes:
- Online Charging Function – OCF (Diameter Ro)
- Charging Data Function – CDF (Diameter Rf)
- Charging Gateway Function – CGF (GTP’)
- Policy Control Rules Function – PCRF (Rx, Gx).
MediationZone is currently being used by leading ISVs and equipment providers in the areas of pre- and post-paid convergence and real-time charging.
