2. COST ACCOUNTING CONCEPTS FOR IS ORGANIZATIONS › 2.6 Additional Accounting Options › 2.6.2 Billing Options

2.6.2 Billing Options

An installation accounting system should support a number of
options to increase user flexibility.  These options are
described below.

    Fixed charges

    In some installations, certain cost centers may be
    charged a fixed monthly fee for computer services
    regardless of their resource utilization.

    Minimum charges

    Some installations may wish to implement a minimum
    charge for a job or a session.

    Discounts

    In addition to service and zone discounts, an
    installation may give a global discount for a given
    cost center.  For example, the Applications Development
    Department may be given a 30% discount on all of its
    work.

    Surcharges

    Surcharges are the opposite of discounts, giving an
    installation the option of adding a fixed percentage
    to the calculated charges either globally or for a
    given cost center.  Surcharges may apply to the cost
    center's total charge or only to a specified class of
    charges (an invoice category).

    Non-billable accounts

    In some environments certain cost centers may be
    non-billable.  That is, the cost of their usage is
    tracked but no invoices are generated for them, nor
    does their usage appear on the data center's profit
    and loss statement.  A common example of a
    non-billable account is the data center's own
    technical support personnel.