Fair Use Policies are common among Interconnected VoIP Providers as a means to offer the simplified aggregate and/or flat rate billing plans desired by end users while protecting the pricing model of those plans from opportunistic consumers who intend to use the service outside the normal calling patterns for which the aggregate pricing was designed. Because our UltraPBX connects to these Providers, we must pass these policies through to customers who use access to traditional telephone networks through QoStar’s UltraPBX.

QoStar’s calling plans which  have unlimited or limited package access to calling through Interconnected VoIP Providers (calls to and from the traditional phone network) are designed to allow the consumer to comfortably fit within a broad group of similar callers such as residential, business, trunk, etc. The fit includes patterns of call duration, call frequency, total calls per month, total minutes per month, ratios of inbound to outbound calling, and expected calling areas. The calling areas included in each group are designed to include as many locations as possible without creating an unwanted (and perhaps unfair) cost burden on all users in the group.

“Fair Use” is simply using these services for their stated purpose as reasonably expected by other members of the group. Variations for high volume users are incorporated into the cost model and offset by lower volume users. Violation of the FUP is simply using QoStar’s services for a purpose that does not fit the group for which the plan was designed such as using residential services for business purposes. The term “fair” refers to the necessity to distribute the costs of such activities to those who receive no benefit.

Specific examples of FUP violations include:

• Use of residential services for business purposes.
• Use of business services for dedicated use applications such as call-center seats.
• Use in least cost routing plans.
• Resale for over-subscription (or any other type of line sharing between entities).
• Any other use seeking to off-load the cost of large volumes of calls to high-cost areas.

Fair Use Examinations and Remedies

In general, if an end user is seen falling outside the pattern for their group, their call history is examined and a determination made about the intentions of the end user. If the end user is too far outside the pattern of their group, they may be moved to an appropriate calling plan or non-aggregated plan without penalty for continued service to protect the group rates.

If the end user has clearly signed up for a plan in the wrong group to avoid higher charges, ie a business trying to use a residential service plan, an administrative processing charge may by applied.

All determinations of FUP violations are at QoStar’s sole discretion. In general, most violations are handled by simply notifying the customer of the violation and re-rating the affected billing in the correct group.