IP telephony has changed the telecommunication industry. Today, conventional calls are the Stone Age. People use VoIP technologies and internet chats, like Skype or gTalk. Internet telephony has ousted conventional phones. Yes, folks still use landlines. However, even conventional landlines are now managed through computers. Old fashioned communication units were huge devices. Today, one application or a platform can do the trick. Such apps are called softswitches which are used by VoIP providers, mobile carriers, call centers etc.
Every mobile or VoIP carrier needs to collect statistics, of course, unless the company offers free services. Thus, subscribers need to be aware of balance status, number of available minutes for calls (for prepaid tariffs), bonus minutes, SMS info etc. Retail billing solutions collect this info and summarize it, so every subscriber can send a request for such information. Also, every mobile carrier should have customer support phone numbers that are also provided by the retail billing platforms. When looking for an effective retail billing solution for VoIP, managers should focus on the following features:
· Stats collection from all RADIUS compatible gadgets
· Calculation of call tariffs according to company policy and official tariffs
· Recalculation of tariffs in case any changed have been introduced
· Login details for partner companies
· Monitoring of traffic and ASR
· Multi lingual support of the IVR
· Support of numerous calling card types
For sure, the company providing such VoIP solutions should have efficient customer support, since problems and downtime issues are still possible. Besides, testing a trial will be a good idea.
Bear in mind that choosing the softswitch that suits needs of your company is incredibly important. The good news is that modern online markets are crammed with interesting and inexpensive offers which makes it a difficult choice at the same time.
Perhaps, the best option is to buy a platform that will serve as a billing system and a softswitch. However, prepaid system may require specialized solutions. Anyway, the best way to make sure you get the right softswitch platform is to discuss your requirements with representatives of the software developer or a service provider.
By the way, if you still think that hardware is better than softswitch, do not forget that modern telecom apps are extremely fault tolerant. Any hardware has tech issues. Sure, when left unattained, softswitch may have glitches as well. However, problems with web based call gateway are usually solved in an efficient manner. On top of that, maintenance of softswitches does not require any specialized telecom knowledge, unlike conventional hardware systems.
