Prepaid bundled services
You can now offer your customers prepaid bundles that combine different services all for one fixed fee, such as “1000 minutes of domestic voice calls, 10 GB of wireless data, and 100 SMS for $19.” The allocated minutes, GB, and SMS are available for a defined period (bundle lifecycle), e.g., 30 days. After that period, any unused units will be lost, and no new units will be allocated unless the bundle is renewed. Renewal is possible only if a customer has sufficient balance. If a particular service (e.g., data) is used up before the bundle is renewed, a customer can “top-up” that service for the separate fee.
What’s improved?
Maximize overall profitability
You can combine popular services, such as mobile voice calls or data, with less popular ones, such as SMS, in a single bundle, improving overall profitability.
Improve cash flow
Enable automatic bundle renewal for better cash flow.
Find more details here.
Ability to track “Reserved” and “Disposed” SIM cards
Two new SIM card statuses, “Reserved” and “Disposed,” have been introduced in the SIM card inventory. Previously, all SIM cards that were not assigned to any account were labeled as “Available.” Now, you can explicitly distinguish SIM cards that are reserved for a specific customer and only assignable to accounts of that customer, or deactivated, indicating that they are no longer usable. This allows you to track such SIM cards and manage them accordingly, e.g., clean up unusable SIM cards.
What’s improved?
Easier administration
This feature simplifies SIM card management and allows admins to prevent human error.
Find more details here.
Integration with MTN (Ericsson) for fixed LTE service
PortaBilling is now integrated with MTN (Ericsson) to enable charging for fixed LTE service. This integration empowers service providers that are partnering with Africa’s largest mobile network operator MTN to deliver wireless Internet service to their customers within the LTE network.
This integration also enables the automatic disconnection of sessions when a user’s balance or allocated quota is depleted.
What’s improved?
Increase sales
Expand your market reach by launching fixed LTE service on MTN’s network to offer stable Internet connections for homes and businesses.
Find more details here.
Separate notifications for failed auto-payments of different types
Previously, customers received the same notification for a failed automatic credit card charge, regardless of whether it was for settling an invoice or topping up the balance upon reaching a specific threshold.
Now, you can configure a separate notification template specifically for failed auto-payment of invoices. Meanwhile, notifications regarding failed automatic balance top-ups will continue to use the existing template.
What’s improved?
Better customer service
Provide more informative notifications to reduce customer confusion.
Find more details here.
Display caller extension name instead of company name in calls within PBX
Previously, if an admin set up an identity for a PBX customer, the company name, designated as the caller ID for outgoing calls, such as “ABC Enterprise,” would be used for all calls, including internal calls within the PBX. This meant that if an employee called a colleague, the colleague would see “ABC Enterprise” instead of the caller’s name.
With MR111, when a PBX admin sets specific names for each phone line (e.g., on the Cloud PBX Self-Care Portal), those names will be displayed by default in calls within PBX. This ensures that employees always see the name of the colleague who is calling them, e.g., “John Smith.”
What’s improved?
Better service for enterprise customers
More convenience and clarity for PBX users.
Find more details here.
SMS routing simulation with real-time MCC/MNC lookup
Mobile operators use Mobile Country Codes (MCC) and Mobile Network Codes (MNC) for routing SMS messages and determining the rates per SMS. In PortaSwitch, the MCC and MNC codes of phone numbers are identified through real-time lookup in the Home Location Registry (HLR). This enables the creation of a tailored list of routes for SMS delivery based on this specific data.
Now, the SMS routing simulation incorporates this lookup feature, ensuring more accuracy for test results after performing a simulation to determine the priority of routes. For instance, during a simulation, PortaSwitch will accurately identify the operator to which a number belongs, along with the carrier’s cost for sending SMS to this operator, even if the number was ported. Without the MCC/MNC lookup, it will not be possible to identify the number’s association with a different mobile operator solely by the E.164 number, and the incorrect cost will affect the priority of routes.
Easier administration
Receive accurate results from SMS routing simulations.
Find more details here.
Batch operations with a large DID number inventory
Admins can now select all DID numbers across all search result pages in just two clicks, enabling them to update DID numbers on all pages simultaneously. For example, if an admin needs to make a large batch of UK DID numbers available for customers by releasing them to the DID pool, and those numbers are spread across multiple pages in the DID inventory, the admin can now select all of the numbers for a batch operation. This can be done by selecting any DID number in the list and clicking “Select on all pages.”
Once the DID numbers are selected, the batch operations panel will open automatically, allowing the admin to quickly apply the desired operation, such as releasing numbers to the pool. Additionally, the “delete” operation has been moved from the toolbar to this panel, making all operations conveniently available in one place.
Easier administration
Admins can save time when managing a large DID inventory.
Find more details here.
A more transparent way to edit and delete entities in the list
Pages that display entity lists, such as the “Subscription list,” “DID number list,” and “Bundle items list,” now feature a dedicated column with “Edit” and “Delete” buttons for each record. This enhancement allows admins to easily identify and execute these actions.
For example, if an admin needs to edit a subscription assigned to a customer (e.g., to apply a discount), they can now simply click the “Edit” button next to the specific subscription in the list. Previously, admins needed to click on the subscription name, which could potentially be mistaken for a link to the subscription plan itself rather than a way to edit the subscription configuration for a specific account.
In future releases, the addition of “Edit” and “Delete” buttons will be extended to each record in other entity lists.
Easier administration
Admins can clearly see how to edit or delete a specific entity in the list.
Find more details here.
