Service providers of all sizes have this problem in common: what do you do about the customer who hasn't paid? One company offers a carrier class solution.

by Alex Goldman ISP-Planet Associate Editor [February 5, 2004]

Every service provider at some point faces the question of what to do with a customer who hasn't paid for services they're using (see, for example, Nonpaying Customers). With carriers paying hundreds of dollars to acquire each customer, few want to resort to cutting off service. One company presents hotlining as an alternative.

Kanata, Ontario-based Bridgewater Systems released an update to the company's hotlining software solution on Monday. Hotlining is the practice of directing a customer to a specific page or portal that reminds them they need to pay to use the service.

"If customers don't pay their bill, on the voice side, carriers can already redirect or cut off their customers," explains Mark Denton, Bridgewater's product manager for wireless. "Many don't have that ability on the data side. In some cases, customers lose voice services but keep taking data services for as long as they can."

The company's customers are ILECs. Its customers provide cellular, Wi-Fi, DSL, and dialup. A few cable companies also use Bridgewater's software.

Nonpaying customers are even a problem in cellular networks. "With most users, this is not a big issue for the carrier," admits Denton. "Think of a device with a WAP browser. The user can still get information such as news, weather, and sports, but they cannot rack up lots of charges. The problem for the carrier occurs when the user has a data card in a laptop. Then it's like getting a free ISP. On some networks, it's as good as a dialup connection, and it's free and mobile, so why not keep using it?"

Many ISPs already use hotlining. Dialup ISPs can redirect a user's access to a Web page that asks for payment, and webhosts can also put up a page asking for payment (although this can be counterproductive as Even Deliquent Customers Have Rights).

Denton points out, however, that such systems cannot automate accepting payment, and cannot turn on the service immediately when payment is received.

The system can also track unusual usage, and hotline a user to a portal or a customer service representative who can request additional security information. "If a CDMA user leaves the U.S. and appears in a country where fraud is prevalent, such as Nigeria or Poland, that's a red flag," explains Denton.

Pricing and availability
The product is available now. Specific pricing is not available, but depends on the size of the network. "The expected ROI is less than one year," says Denton. "Some recent deployments have seen an ROI as fast as six months."

Denton is quick to point out that serving customers better provides a return that cannot be measured. "It's about offering customer service instead of cutting the customer off. If you suspect fraud, you tell them. In broadband, you tell them they're exceeding their bandwidth allotment. In prepaid services, you tell them they're running out before they get cut off. In nonpayment situations, you offer them the ability to pay instead of just terminating them. Providing customer service in these situations turns into revenue and financial savings for the carrier."

—End