The event-based charging function is used for services such as
content delivery and transactions with application servers. The session-based charging
function is used for services such as voice calls and data transfers.
It is probably safe to describe event-based charging as the charging for sessions
where duration or bandwidth cannot be calculated, while session-based charging does
calculate duration and bandwidth consumption. User sessions such as voice calls and
GPRS PDP contexts are examples of session-based charging.
Since this is prepaid charging, the real-time function is critical. The OCF must determine
if there is enough money in the subscriber account prior to service delivery. This
means that the CTF must be able to cancel any service delivery request if the account
balance is depleted, or terminate service delivery in the event the account balance is
depleted while the session is in progress.
The service must first be rated through the rating function (RF) so that the correct
charges can be calculated, and then the account balance must be verified through the
account balance management function (ABMF). All of this is controlled and managed
through the OCF prior to service delivery.
The rating function will rate according to the volume of data being sent (bandwidth
consumption), the duration of the session (length of the call), or content delivery (which
includes any downloads or messaging).
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