| 摘要 |
Embodiments of the invention are concerned with providing an improved enquiry system for retrieving information relating to the usage status of network usage schemes that have been taken up by users. As is known, communications networks are configured so as to enable users to select several so-called optional usage schemes, each such scheme typically being associated with usage of a particular communications service. The network stores details of those optional usage schemes to which individual users have taken up access, together with associated usage criteria, which define characteristics of a communications service to which a respective usage scheme may be applied. In one aspect, embodiments of the invention provide a method of identifying an available amount of network resources, said network resources being accessible via a plurality of the afore-mentioned optional usage schemes taken up by a user. The method involves retrieving first and second data, from the network, indicative of actual usage of a first and second communications service for which the user has taken up a first and second usage scheme respectively. These retrieved data are then processed by a usage algorithm on the basis of respective usage criteria so as to evaluate an amount of usage remaining for the corresponding taken up usage scheme. Examples of amounts of usage that can be evaluated include quantity of resources and/or duration of resources available; the evaluated amounts can be output in the form of audio segments via a Voice Response System. |
