Virtual foreign exchange service

Abstract

In a virtual implementation, intelligent processing permits use of selectively switched connections and selective billing procedures to emulate a foreign exchange service. On outgoing foreign exchange calls, a local switching system detects a predetermined event, such as dialing of an access code, as a trigger. In response to this trigger, the local switching system queries a central database, and the central database instructs that switching system to route the call through a foreign exchange central office switching system using the customer's own foreign exchange number. The foreign exchange office queries the database in response to all calls using the foreign exchange number, i.e. both for incoming and outgoing calls. For an outgoing call, the database instructs the foreign exchange central office switching system to route the call to the dialed number destination and to record the foreign exchange number as the point of call origin for billing purposes. For incoming calls, the database instructs the foreign exchange to route calls to the customer's communication link, i.e. through the local exchange central office switching system. For both incoming and outgoing calls, the central database instructs at least one of the switching systems not to record billing or charge data for the portion of the communication link running between the switching systems.