Billing by ANI (CLI)

While calls are normally rated based on the destination number, in some situations (e.g., charging the owner of a toll-free number for incoming calls), the caller’s number needs to be used to calculate the billing charges (e.g., toll-free number costs are higher if the call originates from Alaska rather than from the 48 contiguous states). This method is now fully supported, thus allowing service providers to offer a full set of incoming DID services, including toll-free DIDs.

When a call arrives to PortaSwitch from a DID vendor it is identified as coming through one of the “Calls from Vendor via SIP” connections in the system. In cases when billing by ANI (CLI) is required, an additional dedicated connection will be created. Among the “technical” parameters (such as the remote IP address) and the indication that a call should actually be charged based on ANI (CLI), this connection will also contain the access code that is used to select the applicable tariff in the product when the customer is billed. This allows for the use of one product that will contain “normal” tariffs (applied to outgoing calls when the call is billed by CLD) and “ANI-based” tariffs (applied to incoming DID calls).

1. Enter origination rates (e.g., 1778, 1800, 1866) with specific prices into separate vendor and customer tariffs. The most commonly used price can be set for a rate with the special destination: | (pipe). The latter will be used if there is no other, better match by the actual phone prefix.
2. For an incoming toll-free line provider, create the “From vendor” connection with the following distinctive features:
   • If the same vendor (same remote IP address or authorization username) sends you both normal (billed based on CLD (DNIS)) calls and toll-free calls (billed by CLI (ANI)), then you can create a separate connection to handle toll-free calls. Specify the prefix for toll-free numbers (e.g., 1800) sent via this connection in the Tech prefix field.
     Prefix must be specified in the same format as that in which the vendor sends you the number, since connection matching is performed before the number translation rules are applied. If the vendor sends you 10-digit format (e.g., 8005551234) US toll-free numbers, you need to specify the prefix as 800 and then define the translation rule, which will add “1” to the number for any further rating-specific format (e.g., 800). In this case, PortaBilling will use this connection for calls that come from a particular IP address/username where CLD matches the specified prefix.
   • From the Tariff drop-down list, select the previously created tariff with origination rates.
   • Input an access code (e.g., INCOMING-TOLL-FREE) in the Service and rating access code field. The choice for the actual name of the access code is yours. Make sure that you define a rating entry that contains rates based on ANI (CLI) on the Usage charges panel in the product with the same access code and tariff.
3. Click Save.

   

4. Go to Service configuration panel and specify Calling number in the Rate match mode field.

   

5. Go to the Usage charges panel on the product’s page and create a rating entry using the node selected for the connection with the access code INCOMING-TOLL-FREE.
6. In the Overdraft protection section, select Based on the Caller Number option from the Rate match mode list.
7. Click Save.