METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PERFORMING RESOURCE TRACKING AND ACCOUNTING AT END NODE

摘要

PPROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method and apparatus for generating charge information from cost information with providing system resources for services. PSOLUTION: Utilization of resources used to provide a service and/or costs associated with providing system resources for a service are tracked in a system. The methods are well suited for systems such as mobile communications systems, where the amount of resources and/or costs to a system of providing a service are dynamic and change on a relatively rapid time scale. Resource utilization is tracked on a per subscriber basis. Service charges is determined as a function of both the amount of resources consumed and the amount of data delivered, but the amount of resources being used to deliver a fixed amount of data units varies as a function of environmental and/or other conditions. Service charges are sometimes determined as a function of the impact of providing the service to a first user on the other users. PCOPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT