Extend your usage billing

DigitalRoute vs. subscription billing software

If you want to implement usage-based billing, and you are only processing a few thousand records a month, then please stop reading here. Your billing system is most likely capable of collecting and processing that level of usage data.

However, if your needs are more complex, keep reading to learn why DigitalRoute Usage Engine is your best choice.

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DigitalRoute vs. subscription billing software

Usage billing challenges

3 reasons to use DigitalRoute with subscription billing software

Reason #1

Billing vendors offer entry-level data processing capabilities

There is a reason why so many billing vendors partner with DigitalRoute: They know that processing usage at scale is not something they can (nor want to) do.

Their expertise is in billing. What we do at DigitalRoute is usage data processing, to generate the "golden record" of usage data that billing systems can ingest to work on their task.

Most billing platforms offer basic features, designed to process low volumes of data.
DigitalRoute aggregates data over time, correlates and enriches it, and removes duplicate data to create a "golden record".
All transactions are fully auditable and transparent, preventing disputes and proving that regulations have been followed.

Reason #2

Billing system data collection strategies don’t scale

With the typical billing system, the ingestion API expects individual records, that are then all inserted one by one in the billing system. Even for simple services, such a strategy cannot handle today’s massive volumes of usage data.

DigitalRoute Usage Engine pre-aggregates usage data and only delivers to the billing system the data it needs, in the format it needs.

Billing platforms don’t usually offer the flexibility or robustness needed for usage-based billing.
DigitalRoute aggregates data over time, correlates and enriches it, and removes duplicate data to create a "golden record".
All transactions are fully auditable and transparent, preventing disputes and proving that regulations have been followed.

Reason #3

Billing systems don’t support the full value chain of usage data

By sending usage data straight into your billing system, you are closing the door on many of the benefits that you can derive from usage data, today and in the future.

Since billing systems only care about what is needed to generate the final invoice, a lot of the high-fidelity and fine-grained data will be discarded in the name of efficiency.

In addition, this data will not be reachable by other systems that might need it. This means that you will be missing on some very precious insight that you could share with your analytics tools, to understand how your services are being consumed and elaborate better products.

Billing platforms can lock your usage data up in a silo that isn’t accessible to other systems.
DigitalRoute allows you to extract the full value of usage data for purposes other than billing, such as analytics and product development.
With clean data, business systems work together better, enabling teams across an organization to be truly data driven.

Here’s the bottom line

DigitalRoute vs. subscription billing software

Subscription billing software can offer an all-in-one solution for quote-to-cash processes. But if your business model involves usage, you may need to extend your billing software with DigitalRoute Usage Engine.

Key features		Subscription billing software
CPQ and catalog
Billing and payments
Rating and charging
Usage metering
Data validation
Usage metering at scale
Built-in error correction
Real-time data processing
Built-in data aggregation
Built-in audit functionality
Billing connectors
Built-in data deduplication
Data throttling
Prepare and forward usage data to data warehouses for analytics
Anomaly detection and revenue leakage prevention

Competitor comparison

How does DigitalRoute compare to the competition?

There are many ways to manage service usage data, but DigitalRoute provides the only battle-proven solution on the market today. Take a closer look at how we stack up to other solutions.

DigitalRoute vs. iPaaS integration tools

When you charge customers based on usage, you must aggregate metering data over time. That requires state management, something most iPaaS solutions cannot do.

DigitalRoute vs. ETL integration tools

ETLs are designed for bulk data transfer scenarios, such as disaster recovery, database backups and data warehousing. But adapting them for usage billing can come at a high cost.

DigitalRoute vs. homegrown solution

A homegrown solution for usage billing may seem fast and low-cost at first, but over time, it can take a lot of work to maintain and can hinder your potential to scale.

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The results of switching to DigitalRoute Usage Engine

Our customers have sped up invoicing by 80%, reduced IT maintenance activities by 65%, and detected revenue leakage amounting to 10% of operating income. Want to see what we can do for you?

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