ABSTRACT: SR-5285, PacketCable Event Messages Mapping to BAF Records, describes how Cable Labs PacketCable Event Messages can be used to create call detail records in the Billing Automatic Message Accounting (AMA) Format.

The Billing AMA Format (BAF) is the call detail record format currently used by most United States wireline local exchange carriers. One characteristic of BAF is that it is assumed that a single call detail record will be generated for each potentially billable call or service transaction. Typically, a single call record is generated at the conclusion of each originating or incoming call that has completed to an end user or another network. This single record contains information about all aspects of a call that could affect how the call is rated for billing. The BAF records capture a relevant subset of signaling information but do not record every signaling event that occurs during the call. In contrast, the PacketCable EM specification is designed to report each signaling event that progresses the state of a call. As a result, the PacketCable specification creates a "call state awareness" that supports the highly distributed call processing defined for the NGN architecture. In order to utilize the EM information for billing purposes, telecommunications service providers must implement procedures for aggregating the EM information into complete call-related records.

This document describes how Cable Labs PacketCable Event Messages can be used to create call detail records in the Billing Automatic Message Accounting (AMA) Format. A key trend in the evolution of Next Generation Network (NGN) solutions has been industry reliance on the Cable Labs PacketCable Event Messages Specification for guidance in procedures for generating usage data to support billing and other applications. SR-5285 attempts to bridge the vendor system approach of Event Message (EM) generation with the creation of Automatic Message Accounting (AMA) records that can be processed by legacy billing systems.