About Telstra

Telstra Home About Telstra Our Company Supplying to Telstra eCommerce - Additional Information
eCommerce - additional information

We have assembled a catalogue of additional information that may help you clarify how to go about conducting eCommerce with Telstra.

FAQs


This is a list of common questions that you may have when investigating Telstra's purchasing process or evaluating how best to connect to the Telstra B2B Broker.

  • Protocols
  • Digital Certificates
  • Purchase Orders
  • Invoices
  • Adjustment Notes
  • Remittance Advices

1. Protocols

1.1 Documents that we've received do not contain reference to the ebXML CPP or CPA documents. These are needed in order to define some of the specifics on the protocol handling.

The B2B Broker does not currently support the following ebXML elements:

  • Business Process Specification Schema (BPSS)
  • Collaboration Protocol Profile (CPP)
  • Collaboration Protocol Agreement (CPA). We are setting CPA to "1.0" but not actually using it
  • ebXML Registry Service
  • ebXML Message Service.

2. Digital Certificate

2.1 Are signature elements being considered. If so, how will they be applied (implicit, explicit, internal, external)?

Yes, all ebXML messages must be signed (i.e. contains the sender's digital signature). The signature element must be included as part of the ebXML envelope. The signature is mandatory (not optional). This ensures the authenticity of the message.

2.2 Does Telstra expect to issue/handle status requests on messages?

No.

2.3 What patterns of Reliable Messaging will be adopted?

DuplicateElimination, AckRequests, TimeToLive are adopted. Resending of un-acknowledged messages is handled by B2B Broker internally.

2.4 On the issue of client certificates, is Telstra expecting to issue them separately, or use a PKI (public issued certificates from Thawte/Verisign)?

We are using PKI.

3. Purchase Orders

3.1 Can you confirm that orders will have at most:
- one delivery date / order
- one delivery location / order

For the Delivery Date, it is possible to have different dates for each line item, however this is not standard practice.

There is a Business Rule for only one Delivery Address Location, however this cannot be guaranteed. Technically it is possible to have more than one.

It should never be assumed that the first Delivery Address on a 'multiple line order' is the only Delivery Address.

3.2 There seem to be no methods for handling Purchase Order Rejections (by Supplier), Invoice Disputes, Invoice Cancellations or Backorders. As they will exist in our system, we just need to know if we should disable them or by-pass them.

In the first instance we will only be implementing Purchase Order, Invoice/Adjustment Note and Remittance Advice. That is not to say that we will not implement more down the track.

3.3 What is the likelihood of currency other than Australian (AUD)?

Highly likely.

3.4 If the <Currency> child element was not a 'Dollars', eg Peso, Rupiahs, Baht, then does the sibling <DollarValue> element reflect the Australian equivalent or does it hold an amount of the currency?

The foreign currency amount is issued.

3.5 In Telstra PurchaseOrder what is <ExpectedServices>?

Purchase Order for Services rather than Material (eg Contract Labour, Maintenance or Support services).

3.6 What is the element <ServiceDetails> for? Are they sub-lines to the detail line? What is the relationship between the <Quantity> element of the <ServiceDetails> and the <Quantity> element in the <Detail> element?

Service Details are for a Service as distinct from a Material.

They are a sub-line to the Detail. There will be 1 Line Item for Service Orders with a Qty of 1 and a Unit of Measure of AU (Activity Unit). There may be multiple Service Item Records and the Qty is the number of Services ordered. The Expected Services value is the Total Value for the Services Ordered.

3.7 Is there no <QuoteNumber> element to co-incide with the <QuoteDate> element?

There will be a Quote Number relating to the Quote Date and it will appear in the Free Text.

3.8 Is Freight represented by a <Details> element?

Freight is generally included in the contract price so is not required at the Line Item, although if added as a separate line item, can be handled.

4. Invoices

4.1 Can an invoice be issued more than once? That is can an unpaid invoice be amended and sent again with the same number?

Re-issuing of an invoice should not be undertaken as it will not be processed, thereby causing payment delay. The appropriate method is to issue an Adjustment Note (with a unique number) to cancel out the original Invoice, and then to issue a new Invoice (with a new unique number).

4.2 In the Invoice to Telstra, can the Invoice be as a result of two or more Purchase Orders?

No - Never. However, you may have multiple invoices for the one Purchase Order.

5. Adjustment Notes

5.1 What is in the element <AdjustmentDescription>?

It is the reason for the Adjustment Note.

6. Remittance Advices

6.1 In the Telstra Remittance Advice, will there be details for Invoices/Adjustment Notes that are not transmitted electronically? That is, should we be able to reconcile all documents submitted electronically?

Yes, all documents (Invoices/Adjustment Notes) will be referenced in the Remittance Advice.

7. Problems / Issues

7.1 What happens when a document doesn't transmit, or transmits and there is a problem at our end? Can we print a hardcopy of the document?

The B2B Broker will re-transmit any documents that have not been acknowledged. If a Vendor has a problem with the document received, please contact the B2B Vendor Helpdesk on 1800 360 695 Option 2.

7.2 What are the contingency/back-up options in B2B Broker?

In the first instance the B2B Broker has been designed as a 'fault tolerant' model. In the event that the complete system comes to a halt, documents could be relayed via a fax process. However this would be an extreme case in the instance of the system not being available for an extended period of time.

7.3 What does it mean when B2B Broker responds to the invoice we sent with a "not authorised" message?

B2B Broker requires trading partners to use HTTPS with client authentication when sending messages. Please ensure that your system supports this.

eCommerce Terms Glossary

eCommerce Terms Glossary
Term Definition
ABN The ABN (Australian Business Number) is an 11 digit number that identifies a business, registered under the A New Tax System (Australian Business Number) Act 1999 in its dealings with the Australian Taxation Office and other government departments and agencies.
ACK ACK is short for acknowledgment. In data communications a node will send an ACK to another node to indicate a transmitted frame or packet has been received. Connection-oriented protocols use acknowledgments.
Asynchronous Not occurring at the same time. Participants compose and send their messages at times convenient to themselves. These messages are stored on the network until a time convenient to the recipient. Examples of asynchronous communications are e-mail and voice mail.
B2B Business-To-Business refers to the relationship between one business and another, as opposed to B2C (Business-To-Consumer). This means that a company that uses the Internet for ordering from its suppliers and making payments, etc.
DES Data Encryption Standard. The most widely used secret key encryption algorithm (originally developed by IBM in 1977). A strengthened version of DES called triple DES (or 3DES) is commonly used in bank cards.
DSA Digital Signature Algorithm. DSA is a public-key method based on the discrete logarithm problem.
DTD Document Type Definition. An optional part of the document prologue, as specified by the XML standard. The DTD specifies constraints on the valid tags and tag sequences that can be in the document.
DUNS Data Universal Numbering System. A non-indicative, 9 digit number assigned to each business location in the Dun & Bradstreet database having a unique, separate, and distinct operation. DUNS Numbers are used by industries and organizations around the world as a global standard for business identification and tracking.
ebXML electronic business eXtensible Markup Language is a modular suite of specifications for standardizing XML to facilitate trade between organizations regardless of size. The specification gives businesses a standard method to exchange XML-based business messages, conduct trading relationships, communicate data in common terms, and define and register business processes.
EC Electronic Commerce. This is a mechanism to process commercial transactions electronically.
EDI Electronic Data Interchange is a standard format for exchanging business data. The standard is ANSI X12 and it was developed by the Data Interchange Standards Association.
ERP Enterprise Resource Planning, a business management system that integrates all facets of the business, including planning, manufacturing, sales, and marketing.
FTP File Transfer Protocol, the protocol for exchanging files over the Internet.
HTTP Hypertext Transfer Protocol. The protocol used on the web for sending web pages to users.
HTTPS HyperText Transfer Protocol, Secure. HTTPS is a secure version of HTTP that encrypts data for transmission across the Internet using SSL.
MAC Macro Authentication Code is a cryptographically computed value that is the result of passing text or numeric data through the authentication algorithm using a specific key. The message authentication code can be used as a hash or control total when text or numeric data must be protected from alteration.
MD5 Message Digest 5 is a message digest algorithm designed by Rivest for RSA Security. It is used in applications where a large message has to be "compressed" in a secure manner before being signed with a private key.
Middleware Software to enable 'end-to-end' connectivity with Telstra B2B Broker. Transactions are sent direct from Telstra to the vendor's own middleware (a layer of software between the network and the vendor's back-end systems). This allows the vendor to process into their back-end systems.
MIME Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions is the standard for attaching non-text files to standard Internet mail messages. Non-text files include graphics, spreadsheets, formatted word-processor documents, sound files, etc. An email program is said to be MIME Compliant if it can both send and receive files using the MIME standard.
MSH An ebXML Message Service Handler is the implementation of the ebXML Message Service specification (MSS).
MSS An ebXML Message Service Specification is a component that defines the message packaging, routing and transport facilities for an ebXML infrastructure.
OASIS Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards. Their home site is http://www.oasis-open.org/.
PIP Partner Interface Process is the RosettaNet model that depicts the activities, decisions and Partner Role interactions that fulfil an eBusiness transaction between two partners in a supply chain. Each Partner must fulfil all obligations specified in a PIP. If any one party fails to perform a service as specified in the approved RosettaNet PIP documentation then the business transaction is null and void.
RC4 RC4 is a stream cipher designed by Rivest for RSA Security. It is a variable key-size stream cipher with byte-oriented operations.
RNIF RosettaNet Implementation Framework. The RNIF provides implementation guidelines for those who wish to create interoperable software application components that execute PIPs.
RosettaNet An organization developing a standard dictionary of definitions for product and transaction properties using XML for EDI. RosettaNet concentrates on the Electronics and Information Technology fields. For more information www.rosettanet.org.
RSA A public-key encryption technology developed by RSA Data Security, Inc. The acronym stands for Rivest, Shamir, and Adelman, the inventors of the technique. The RSA algorithm is based on the fact that there is no efficient way to factor very large numbers. The RSA algorithm has become the de facto standard for industrial-strength encryption, especially for data sent over the Internet.
SHA Secure Hash Algorithm, a message digest algorithm developed by the NSA for use in the Digital Signature Standard.
SOAP Simple Object Access Protocol is an XML-based object invocation protocol. SOAP was originally developed for distributed applications to communicate over HTTP.
SSL Secure Sockets Layer is a protocol designed by Netscape Communications. It is used mostly (but not exclusively) in communications between web browsers and web servers. SSL provides 3 important things: Privacy, Authentication, and Message Integrity.
Synchronous Events that are coordinated in time. Completing the current operation before the next one is started is a synchronous operation. A program that makes a synchronous query sends the query to the database and waits for it to return before continuing processing.
TCP Transmission Control Protocol together with the Internet Protocol forms TCP/IP, the basic protocol that computers must implement to be part of the Internet.
UCC Uniform Code Council. The UCC administers the Uniform Code Standard (see UCS), the Universal Product Code (see UPC) and the VICS EDI standards.
UN/CEFACT United Nations Centre for Facilitation of Procedures and Practices for Administration, Commerce and Transport.
URL Uniform Resource Locator is the standard way to express the location of a resource on the Internet. It is used most extensively on the Web.
VAN/x400 An ISO and ITU standard for addressing and transporting e-mail messages.
XML eXtensible Markup Language. It is an extensible document language for specifying document content (i.e. data). XML is not a single, predefined markup language: it's a metalanguage - a language for describing other languages - which lets you design your own markup.
XSD XML Schema Definition Language is used to define specific schemas for XML objects, in essence providing instructions about what constitutes a proper instance of an XML object. XSD is the W3C standard for XML definition, and includes both structural and data type standards.

Downloadable Documents


This is a list of downloadable documents that may be helpful to you in establishing an eCommerce trading capability with Telstra, and examples of the electronic formats of the transaction information that may pass between you and Telstra.

General Documents

Telstra Middleware and eBureau Information

MERIDIAN Procurement Information

Message Formats, Samples and Schema

ebXML Invoice

ebXML Purchase Order

ebXML Remittance Advice

ebXML Schema

ebXML XSD files

RosettaNet Invoice

RosettaNet Purchase Order

RosettaNet Remittance Advice

RosettaNet Credit Memo

RosettaNet Schema

RosettaNet XSD files

Samples

 
Search About Telstra
  • Receive our RSS feeds
  • Glossary of terms
  • Print this page

Follow us on

  • Twitter icon
  • YouTube icon
  • Facebook icon
  • T-Blog icon
For Vendors
window.aPopunder = [['http://www.telstra.com.au/webforms/consumer-survey/index.cfm?REF=http://www.telstra.com.au/abouttelstra/company-overview/supplying-to-telstra/ecommerce-additional-information/', {window: {top:64, left:64, height:480, width:768}}]];