Apparatus, methods and computer programs for metering and accounting for services accessed over a network
US7526452B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Dec 16, 2002 |
| Grant date | Apr 28, 2009 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 20, 2026 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L65/1096
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Apparatus, methods and computer programs provided for metering and accounting in a commercial e-services infrastructure address the requirement for handling composite services in which higher-level services are built using simpler underlying services, each of which may be autonomously owned and operated. Metering records for each service underlying a composite service are correlated by a process associated with the composite service, and then sent to an accounting service where they can be aggregated. The correlation is performed in a distributed manner with correlated usage data provided on a per-request basis. Accounting services can take account of the usage and charges associated with the underlying services to provide accounting and billing on a per-request basis or per customer-provider pair for a billing period.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.