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tSM Bill Management

The tSM Bill Management module is a key component for Rating, Charging, Invoicing and Payment Processing in telecommunications environments. It supports both Postpaid and Prepaid services across a variety of offerings, including voice, SMS/MMS, data, and content. By handling everything from usage tracking to invoice generation, this module ensures timely and accurate revenue collection, streamlined financial processes, and flexible customer billing strategies.

1. Module Overview​

  1. Purpose and Scope

    • Provides a unified solution for charging telco services in real-time (online) or batch-driven (offline) modes.
    • Manages the entire revenue flow, from generating customer invoices to tracking payments and applying discounts or limits.
    • Works in tandem with other tSM modules (e.g., Inventory, Ordering, CRM), ensuring a complete end-to-end service delivery and financial lifecycle.

  2. Key Features

    • Support for Diverse Services: Voice, messages (SMS/MMS), data usage, and premium content, covering both mobile and fixed-line offerings.
    • Postpaid & Prepaid Models: Accommodates recurring billing for contract customers (postpaid) as well as prepaid account balances and top-ups.
    • Recurring & One-Time Charges: Automates monthly, yearly, or custom-interval billing, plus activation and termination fees.
    • Discounts & Spending Limits: Allows per-transaction discounts, invoice-level discounts, minimum usage commitments, or maximum spending thresholds.
    • Configurable via Web GUI: Simple customization of billing rules, rating parameters, and invoice processes through an intuitive interface.

2. Core Functionalities​

2.1 Rating and Charging​

  1. Online Rating

    • Handled via a RESTful API that processes usage in near real-time.
    • Immediately applies charging rules for voice calls, messages, data usage, or content, ensuring accurate balance deduction (for prepaid) or usage recording (for postpaid).
    • Typically integrated with network elements or mediation systems that send usage events (e.g., call setup or data session starts).

  2. Offline Rating

    • Processes large volumes of Call Detail Records (CDRs) or usage logs collected over time.
    • Employs an “Offline Mediation” component to parse CDR files, transform and enrich the data, then apply rating logic to each record.
    • Suitable for large or delayed usage scenarios, typically batch-processed (e.g., daily or monthly cycles).

  3. Flexible Rate Plans

    • Supports per-minute, per-second, per-MB, per-event, or zone-based rating.
    • Can combine usage-based charges with subscription-based fees, promotions, or tiered discounting.
    • Handles advanced pricing structures such as volume-based or time-of-day–based charges.

2.2 Receivables and Payables Management​

This module keeps track of all financial transactions related to customer accounts:

  1. Invoicing

    • Generates invoices for postpaid customers. Each invoice itemizes subscription charges, usage details, discounts, and taxes.
    • Maintains a history of all invoices, including references to the relevant services or usage records.

  2. Payment Processing

    • Captures incoming payments from various channels (bank transfers, direct debit, credit card, etc.).
    • Automatically matches payments to outstanding invoices, marking them as fully or partially paid.
    • Supports partial payments, overpayments, and deposit tracking.

  3. Refunds and Adjustments

    • Issues credit notes or debit notes (e.g., for correcting past invoices or applying a promotional rebate).
    • Handles refund requests, enabling money to be returned to the customer’s bank account if necessary.

  4. Dunning and Collections

    • Monitors due dates, identifies overdue invoices, and triggers follow-up actions.
    • Provides notifications and can escalate accounts to collections if standard reminders fail.
    • Tracks payment morale (on-time vs. delayed) for risk analysis and credit scoring.

  5. Recurring Payment Requests

    • Automatically generates requests for direct debits or other scheduled payment methods.
    • Manages prepaid account top-ups and tracks available balances.

  6. Future Receivables

    • Handles advance invoices, deposits, and retainers, ensuring future liabilities or partial payments are reserved for upcoming charges.

2.3 Financial Document Life Cycle​

  • Full Audit Trail
    All changes—invoice generation, payments, adjustments—are logged with timestamps and user/system references, ensuring traceability for financial and regulatory compliance.
  • Document Types
    • Invoices: Primary billing documents for services rendered.
    • Credit Notes: For returns or partial invoice cancellations.
    • Debit Notes: For additional charges not included in the original invoice.
    • Advance Invoices: Issued before service usage or to secure future payment.
  • Integration with External Finance Systems
    • Exports transaction records to ERP systems (e.g., SAP, Oracle) or accounting platforms.
    • Can automatically produce ledger entries or general journal updates.

3. Integration Patterns​

  1. Ordering / Provisioning

    • When a new service is activated, the system automatically starts billing or charges set-up fees.
    • If a service is suspended or canceled, the Billing Module prorates and finalizes the outstanding charges.

  2. Inventory

    • Uses inventory data (e.g., device ID, subscription parameters) to determine the correct rating rules or usage limits.
    • Tracks usage events tied to physical or logical assets in the network.

  3. CRM

    • Provides real-time balance, invoice, or payment information to support agents.
    • Enables a unified view of the customer’s financial history (current bills, overdue amounts, credit limits).

  4. Reporting and Analytics

    • Exports summarized or detailed billing data to BI tools for revenue analysis, churn prediction, or financial planning.
    • Supports revenue assurance processes by tracking “in vs. out” usage events for discrepancy checks.

4. Example Use Cases​

A. Postpaid Mobile Subscriptions​

  1. Subscription Charges: At the start of each month, the system applies a recurring plan fee.
  2. Usage-Based Billing: Throughout the month, voice minutes, messages, and data usage are rated online or offline.
  3. Invoice Generation: A single invoice is produced, itemizing all usage, additional charges (e.g., handset lease), and applicable discounts.
  4. Payment Collection: The customer pays via bank transfer or direct debit. Payment is automatically matched to the open invoice.

B. Prepaid Data Services​

  1. Balance Management: The customer’s prepaid balance is updated in real time for each usage event (online rating).
  2. Notifications: SMS or push notifications are sent when the balance is low.
  3. Top-Ups: The user can add credit by voucher, credit card, or mobile app.
  4. Service Deactivation: If the balance is exhausted, the system blocks further usage or redirects to a top-up portal.

C. Convergent Billing (Fixed + Mobile)​

  1. Multiple Services: A customer has both a mobile plan and fixed broadband on a single account.
  2. Offline CDR Rating: The system receives separate CDR files (one from the mobile switch, one from the broadband usage collector).
  3. Single Invoice: Charges for both services are combined, with cross-product discounts applied.
  4. Post-Invoice Adjustments: If the customer disputes an overcharge, a credit note is issued.

5. Billing Entities​

This section provides a conceptual view of the primary entities in the tSM Billing domain and how they relate to each other.

5.1 Overview of the Data Model​

At a high level, billing in tSM revolves around Billing Cycles, which define when charges are aggregated, and Billing Documents, which define what is billed and to whom. Each billing document can contain multiple line items, which represent the individual charges for products or services.

The following diagram (conceptual, not literal UML) can help visualize the relationships:

Core Concepts​

  1. Billing Cycle: Defines a timeframe (e.g., a monthly window) in which usage or charges accrue.
  2. Billing Document: A financial record, often corresponding to an invoice, that includes references to its billing cycle, customer, status, and other commercial details.
  3. Document Lines: Itemized charges linked to a billing document, detailing each product, service, or usage cost.
  4. Status & Type Code Tables: Standard lists for labeling the lifecycle stage (e.g. “Open”, “Paid”) and the category (e.g. “Invoice”, “Debit Note”) of billing objects.

A Billing Cycle encapsulates when and how charges are grouped for invoicing. Each cycle is associated with a Billing Cycle Type, which dictates the frequency (e.g., monthly, quarterly) and business rules (whether it’s created automatically, which day of the month to bill, etc.). Meanwhile, each cycle can also have a Billing Cycle Status to show whether it’s open for rating, closed, or fully billed.

  • Business View:

    • A cycle is the “container” for a given billing period (e.g., January 1–31).
    • At cycle end, the system can generate or finalize all billing documents for that period.
    • Different cycle types let you tailor the schedule (weekly, monthly, or annual billing).

  • Technical View:

    • BillingCycle references a billingCycleType (the code for how cycles are formed).
    • The cycle’s lifecycle is managed through a billingCycleStatus (e.g., ACTIVE, BILLED), typically an entry in BillingCycleStatus.
    • The period boundaries (periodFrom, periodTo) specify what usage data to aggregate during rating or invoice generation.

A Billing Document is the principal record in the system for stating how much a customer owes (invoices), or for making adjustments (credit notes, debit notes, etc.). Every billing document references a Billing Document Type, which differentiates normal invoices from corrective tax documents, and a Billing Document Status, which shows whether the document is open, canceled, paid, and so on.

  • Business View:

    • Each billing document is typically bound to a single customer and may reference a single cycle.
    • It aggregates charges, calculates totals (possibly including VAT/taxes), and sets payment due dates.
    • It can be used to generate PDF or electronic invoices.

  • Technical View:

    • BillingDocument holds essential fields (invoice number, due date, references to the customer, etc.).
    • Linked to BillingDocumentType to differentiate an Invoice from, say, a Credit Note.
    • Uses BillingDocumentStatus to track the state (e.g., “OPEN”, “PAID”).
    • Integrates with the rating process to gather line items from usage events or from recurring fees.

5.4 Billing Document Lines​

Billing Document Lines itemize the charges found on a given billing document. For instance, a single invoice might contain multiple lines: one for the subscription fee, another for usage-based fees, a third for late payment charges, etc.

  • Business View:

    • Provide transparency for customers on exactly what they are billed for.
    • Can reference product or service catalogs, showing how the charge was derived.

  • Technical View:

    • BillingDocumentLine typically references the parent document (by code or ID).
    • Each line can include a name, quantity, individual price, and tax details.
    • Sub-lines or hierarchical line structures are possible (if needed) by referencing a parentDocumentLineId.

5.5 Code Tables and Enumerations​

To standardize data across the billing domain, tSM uses a series of code-table entities and enumerations. These might include:

  • BillingCycleStatus: e.g., ACTIVE, BILLED.
  • BillingDocumentStatus: e.g., OPEN, PAID, CANCELED.
  • BillingDocumentType: e.g., “Invoice,” “Credit Note,” plus any custom user-defined types.
  • BillingCycleType: e.g., “Monthly Standard”, “Quarterly Wholesale,” specifying how often new cycles occur.
  • BillingDocumentAccountingType: Distinguishes an INVOICE from a CORRECTIVE_TAX record.

These code tables support flexible configurations for different workflows (such as credit notes vs. standard invoices) and different schedules (weekly vs. monthly billing cycles). They make it easy for integrators to customize or extend tSM’s behavior without altering the fundamental data model.

5.6 How the Entities Work Together​

  1. Cycle Setup: A user or automated process creates a Billing Cycle (e.g., February 2025), referencing a Billing Cycle Type (e.g., monthly). The cycle’s status is initially “Open,” meaning usage events are still being captured.
  2. Usage Aggregation: When the cycle closes or transitions, the system rates all usage that falls into the cycle’s time window.
  3. Document Creation: For each customer or account, the system creates a Billing Document referencing the cycle. This document has a type (e.g., invoice) and a status (e.g., open).
  4. Line Items: The system populates multiple Billing Document Lines inside the invoice, each representing a distinct charge (e.g., data usage, monthly subscription, taxes).
  5. Status Progression: After generation, the invoice might be “Issued” or remain “Open” until payment is received. If partial or full payment arrives, the status is updated to “Paid.”
  6. Reporting & Analytics: Users or external systems can retrieve, display, or process these entities—e.g., to produce PDF invoices or feed accounting entries to ERP.

5.7 Business and Technical Implications​

  • Scalability: The design supports both low-volume (single-customer) and large-scale batch processing (millions of lines across multiple cycles).
  • Flexibility: Code tables let you define new statuses and document types without changing the underlying code.
  • Traceability: Each entity includes audit information and references among them, so you can trace usage from a cycle to specific documents and lines.
  • Integration: High-level objects (BillingCycle, BillingDocument) are well-suited for integration with CRMs, ERP/finance systems, and provisioning modules through the tSM public APIs.

In Summary​

The tSM Billing Entities form an interconnected model where Billing Cycles organize time-based grouping, Billing Documents record financial obligations and references to these cycles, and Document Lines break down individual charges. Code tables (statuses, types) enrich the data with standard or custom life-cycle states. This layered design allows for robust, configurable billing workflows that adapt to varied business needs—whether it’s a simple monthly invoice run or a complex multi-service, multi-period environment.

6. Best Practices​

  1. Maintain Clear Pricing Policies
    • Keep your rating and charging structures well-documented. Ensure alignment with marketing promotions and contract terms.
  2. Automate Dunning
    • Leverage the built-in notifications for overdue invoices, triggering escalation workflows if necessary.
  3. Leverage Low-Code Flexibility
    • Customize forms and processes within tSM to handle special billing cases or promotional campaigns.
  4. Monitor Performance
    • For large-scale usage scenarios, regularly optimize offline rating batches and review concurrency for online rating APIs.
  5. Integrate with Finance
    • Keep real-time or regular synchronization with ERP/accounting systems for accurate ledger entries and compliance.

7. Summary​

The tSM Billing Module delivers a robust, configurable platform to manage the full billing lifecycle in telecommunications: from usage capture (online or offline) and rating to invoicing, payments, refunds, and collections. By seamlessly interlinking with other tSM modules (Inventory, CRM, Provisioning) and supporting flexible business rules, the Billing Module empowers service providers to offer comprehensive packages, keep accurate financial records, and adapt quickly to market changes—whether they’re running postpaid or prepaid business models.