Adding Service Plan Resource Rates
Using service plan resource rates you may redefine the resources included amounts and fees for each service plan individually. A service template itself remains unchanged. By default, for included amount it is implied that all the resources costs are included into the service plan cost. If you specify prices for a resource in the resource rates of a service plan, the respective resource's fees will be added to the service plan fees in case customer purchases an additional amount of these resources. For example, if a service plan's setup fee is $10 and a resource's setup fee set in the resource rates is $2, a customer will pay $12 as the resulting setup fee (in case additional resource amount is purchased). Furthermore, resource rates may also be used for defining a list of resources that customer is able to purchase in addition to those included in the service plan. If the resource rates are not defined, the customer is able to purchase the service plan with included resources in amounts defined by the service template and is not allowed to purchase additional ones.
Buying additional resources is yet another way for a customer to upgrade his subscription. When upgrading their subscription in such a way, the customer is offered to select which resources and in what amounts they intend to purchase.
To add rates for a resource in a service plan:
- Go to Products > Service Plans. The list of service plans available appears on the screen.
- Select a service plan you want to add resource rates to by clicking on the respective link in the Name column. Selected service plan properties appear on the screen.
- Switch to the Resource Rates tab. The list of resource rates set (if any) appears on the screen.
- Click Add New Resource Rate. The respective wizard starts; several resource rates can be added simultaneously.
- Mark resources you want to set prices for by selecting respective check boxes.
Note: in CloudBlue Commerce, a resource maximum limit should not exceed 2147483648.
- Specify the resource category for each resource rate you are going to add, and then click Next.
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Define the limits and the prices:
Note: Setting "-1" in any of these fields is equal to allowing unlimited resources usage. If zero values are entered into Included Units, Max Units and Min Units fields for a resource, such a resource is not shown in the online store.
- Included Units – the amount of the resource that is already included in the service plan price.
- Max Units – the maximum amount of the resource that can be purchased.
- Recurring Fee - the resource usage fee. It is defined per billing period, charged for the resource usage over the included limit, and collected depending on selected billing model.
- Overuse Fee - the resource overuse fee, available for measurable resources only. It is charged every billing period for the resources usage over the purchased amount.
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To allow your customers to change resource quantities in trial subscriptions to the service plan, select Allow modifications in trial (disabled by default). For configuration of resource quantity change options, please see Configuring Resource Upgrades.
Note: The Allow modifications in trial setting applies only to trial subscriptions. For paid subscriptions, customers can always change resource quantities within the limits configured for the service plan.
Also, when a customer upgrades from one trial subscription to another trial subscription, the system behaves in the following way depending on the Allow modifications in trial setting:
Allow modifications in trial Target service plan Yes No System behavior Customers can change resource quantities (within the limits configured for the target service plan). Customers cannot change resource quantities. Note: Customers can change one trial subscription to another one only if the source subscription is automatically renewable (the Autorenewal setting is enabled for the service plan). For configuration, please see Configuring Auto-Renewal for Service Plan Subscriptions.
After upgrading a trial subscription to another trial subscription, the start date of the target subscription always equals the start date of the source subscription, not the upgrade date. This is to ensure that customers cannot prolong the original trial period for free by upgrading to other trial subscriptions. For this reason, the New Subscription Period Start Date setting is not effective for upgrades of a trial subscription to another trial subscription.For customers to be able to switch this Service Plan to another one, you must configure the allowed upgrade options as described in Configuring Allowed Upgrades/Downgrades for a Service Plan.
- To get more resource rate parameters displayed, click on the Select Columns link. Check the necessary fields, click Save and then continue with configuring a resource rate.
- Optionally, select the Show in Store check box to make resource visible in online store purchase wizard. Such resources cannot be purchased as additional in online store.
- Optionally, select the Show in CP check box to make the resource visible in UX1 for Customers. Such resources cannot be purchased as additional from UX1 for Customers.
Note: For a resource to be displayed in UX1 for Customers and the Online Store, it must be added to an appropriate resource category. For configuration instructions please see Adding Resource.
- Select the Available for Sale checkbox to make the resource available for sale.
- Accordingly, set the setup, recurring and overuse fees. To do this, input appropriate parameters in the Setup fee, Recurring fee and Overuse fee fields respectively.
- Define how the setup fee is to be charged. Select the Charge per unit check box in order for resulting setup fee to be calculated as follows: (resulting setup fee) = (included units) * (setup fee). Leave the Charge per unit check box cleared in order for resulting setup fee to be equal to setup fee set. Overused resources are always charged per unit.
- Select the Measurable check box to make resource overuse allowed. If the check box is cleared, resource overuse is not allowed and setting overuse fee does not take effect. For physical resources, it is recommended selecting the check box.
Note: please make sure that a resource you are configuring rates for is not composite before you re-set the Measurable option. Resources included in a composite resource as well as a composite resource itself, can be used only within allowed pre-paid limits. In other words, actual resource consumption is not counted for a composite resource and thus, only non-measurable resources can be included in a composite resource and a composite resource itself can be only non-measurable. The Measurable property is set per resource. In service plan settings this property can be overridden.
- Finish configuring rates for the selected resources by clicking the same-name button.
Warning: Do not set resource rates for components of composite resource as this will lead to double billing of the components usage.