Brazilian wireless operators Telemig Celular and Amazônia Celular have introduced a next-generation content charging solution for pre-paid and post-paid mobile data services, based on a new software platform developed by Accenture and Intec Billing, the companies announced today.

The new platform, known as a charging gateway and based on Intec’s DCP dynamic charging platform and Cisco’s Cisco Mobile Exchange, enables accurate billing for next-generation mobile data services regardless of whether those services are coming from multiple sources.

The solution allows Telemig and Amazônia to identify users and deliver content to them independently of the form of access — cellular phones, notebooks or PDAs. It analyses network traffic and rates for different types of mobile data services to determine charges for a transaction.

Telemig and Amazônia, sister companies in Brazil controlled by the same shareholders, will use the new platform to manage charges for a variety of new mobile commerce services scheduled for roll-out to customers.

“We needed an active mediation and real-time rating system that could also leverage flexibility in rating rules and service plans to both prepaid and post-paid customers,” said Telemig and Amazônia chief information officer (CIO) Evandro Canabrava. “This new solution gives us the flexibility and accuracy we need to bill for our content-based services in real-time, allowing us to offer more services, and therefore increase customer satisfaction and revenue. Telemig and Amazônia offer a wide array of content based services, with approximately 160 service offerings and more than 5000 content items or channels.”

“One of the main challenges facing mobile operators today is ensuring accuracy and flexibility when rolling out and charging for new services,” said Henrique Washington, a senior executive in Accenture’s Communications & High Tech group in Brazil. “By rolling out this new platform, Telemig and Amazônia are opening up their networks to a whole new world of innovative services that can be offered on increasingly robust wireless networks.”

“Given that 80% of the mobile market in Brazil is pre-paid, it was essential for Telemig and Amazônia to find a platform that could support real-time rating and charging of content-based services in order to roll-out its data services to prepaid customers,” said Per Martell, Intec regional director for the Caribbean and Latin America. “Intec DCP’s functionality enables Telemig and Amazônia to bill for all of their content-based services in real-time regardless of the customer’s account type. The platform’s customizable pricing and flexible business rules provide Telemig and Amazônia with the tools needed to manage a broad portfolio of services.”

The project is the first of its kind to be deployed in Latin America and was selected as the Best IT Case in the Telecom/Utility category by Info Corporate, a Brazilian IT-focused publication.