Billing overview

How the discount multiplier works

The discount multiplier is the preferential discount applied to paid feature usage relative to list pricing after you purchase a subscription service.

Take the Enterprise Standard Edition as an example: after you subscribe, you get a 0.6 discount multiplier (that is, you pay 60% of the list pricing). If a feature incurs charges of 100 CNY, the amount deducted is 100 CNY × 0.6 = 60 CNY.

Choose a billing option

The following table helps you choose a billing option based on your scenario. Each option is described in the sections that follow.

How to purchase

To purchase a subscription, visit Intelligent Media Service Subscription Mode.

Before you purchase or renew, you can check your current subscription status in the IMS console. The console displays the subscription edition you purchased, its authorization validity period, and your remaining quota. If the authorization validity period has not expired and the remaining quota is greater than zero, your subscription is active.

Subscription editions and pricing

The Enterprise Subscription Service offers three subscription editions: Basic Edition, Standard Edition, and Flagship Edition. Each edition differs in purchase price, discount multiplier, and available features.

The Enterprise Subscription Service supports only monthly or annual subscriptions. Custom subscription durations are not supported. For long-term use, choose an annual subscription to obtain a more favorable discount multiplier.

Feature comparison of subscription editions

The following table compares the features available in each Enterprise Subscription Service edition.

Monthly feature trial package

The Monthly Feature Trial Package lets new users and users on lower-tier Enterprise Subscription Service plans try newly released IMS features on demand. Each account can purchase one package per month.

• Applicable scope

  The Monthly Feature Trial Package applies to all Intelligent Media Service (IMS) features, excluding dedicated customer support and the advanced video editing effects package. In addition, intelligent search is billed separately.

• Quota consumption

  The package amount is fixed at 20 CNY, and each account can purchase the package once per month. The quota is consumed based on your actual usage.

• Checking remaining quota

  Log on to the IMS console and click the Manage button to view your remaining trial package quota.

• Action upon quota depletion

  The Monthly Feature Trial Package does not offer a discount multiplier. When the quota is depleted or the package expires, access to the associated services is suspended. To continue using IMS features, purchase the corresponding Enterprise Subscription Service.

• Renewing the Monthly Feature Trial Package

  When your current Monthly Feature Trial Package expires, you can purchase a new one without changing any of your business code. Your API calls continue to work without interruption.

• Common error

  If your API call returns the Forbidden.SubscriptionRequired error, first verify that the calling account has purchased the Monthly Feature Trial Package and that the package has not expired. The error can also occur when the AccessKey belongs to a different account. Make sure the AccessKey used to call the API belongs to the same account that purchased the Monthly Feature Trial Package. You can verify your current AccessKey details on the RAM Access Keys page.

Subscription top-up package

After you purchase an Enterprise Subscription Service, if you deplete the included quota during the subscription validity period, you can purchase a Subscription Top-up Package to add more capacity. Note the following rules:

• The Subscription Top-up Package cannot be used independently. It must be paired with a valid Enterprise Subscription Service (Basic Edition, Standard Edition, or Flagship Edition) within its validity period to take effect.

• If you have only purchased a Monthly Feature Trial Package or have not activated a corresponding Enterprise Subscription Service, the Subscription Top-up Package does not work.

• The purchase amount must be between 200 and 100,000 CNY. Different purchase tiers offer different discount multipliers.

• The package can be used to cover all IMS features.

  The following table lists the discount multiplier of each purchase tier.

Replenishment and renewal

After your subscription capacity is exhausted, you can choose from three options to continue using the service during the subscription validity period:

1. Pay-as-you-go (default): Usage is billed at the official website price.

2. Renew the corresponding edition to refresh your capacity and validity period. For example, if your Enterprise Standard Edition expires on May 14, 2025:

   • If you renew with a monthly plan for the Enterprise Standard Edition at 17:00 on April 27, 2025, your subscription is valid until 17:00 on May 27, 2025.

   • If you renew with an annual plan for the Enterprise Standard Edition at 17:00 on April 27, 2025, your subscription is valid until 17:00 on April 27, 2026.

     The new validity period starts from the renewal date, not from the previous expiration date.

3. Purchase a Subscription Top-up Package. This package can be used during your subscription's validity period.

Expiration reminder:IMS subscription packages exist in the form of savings plan instances. Setting usage exhaustion notification is not supported under the savings plan uniform rules. In order to avoid the synchronization failure of pay-as-you-go when the subscription expires and cause business interruption, it is recommended to configure automatic re-purchase. For details, see Are usage exhaustion notifications supported.

Auto-renewal for IMS subscription plans is handled through Savings Plans in the Expenses and Costs console, not through the IMS console. For instructions, see Auto-renew IMS subscription plans by using auto-renewal purchase.

Specification changes and deduction order

Enterprise Subscription Service customers cannot currently upgrade or downgrade configurations. To change your available features, subscribe to a different edition.

When you renew, or when multiple capacity sources coexist, deductions are applied as follows:

• The complimentary capacity of the new subscription takes effect immediately. Complimentary capacity from previous subscriptions remains available for deductions and is used first.

• When both the [Enterprise Subscription Service] and a personally purchased [Subscription Top-Up Package] are active, the [Subscription Top-Up Package] will be applied first; once it has been fully used, the capacity of the [Enterprise Subscription Service] will then be deducted.

• When the [Enterprise Subscription Service], self-purchased [Subscription Fuel Package] and historically purchased [Resource Package] coexist, the [Resource Package] is deducted first, and then the [Subscription Fuel Package] is deducted first. After the deduction, the capacity of the [Enterprise Subscription Service] is deducted.

Gift with purchase

If you purchase a specified amount of Intelligent Media Service (IMS) resources within one year, you receive a complimentary Player SDK of a specific edition, as described in Free Gift with Purchase.

Cost control

IMS pay-as-you-go billing does not currently support setting a spending cap that automatically stops the service. Charges continue to accrue on your account based on actual usage. Assess your expected call volume in advance to avoid unexpected charges. If you are in a testing phase or want to control costs first, purchase the 20 CNY Monthly Feature Trial Package, validate the features within the trial package quota, and then decide whether to upgrade to the Enterprise Subscription Service based on your actual needs.

You cannot directly revert a subscription edition to a pay-as-you-go-only billing method. Unsubscribing does not restore pay-as-you-go or switch the billing method for subscription features. For features requiring a valid Enterprise Subscription Service, pay-as-you-go (postpaid) billing is only the fallback after included capacity is exhausted during the subscription validity period. If the subscription expires without renewal, the related subscription features become unavailable instead of automatically switching to pay-as-you-go billing.

If other billing methods, resource plans, or pay-as-you-go services are also enabled for your account, the related calls may still incur additional charges. The charges displayed in the console are final.

Billing

Q: Why are my voice calls shown as video calls in the AI Real-time Interaction (RTC) usage query and charged at video rates?

By default, the intelligent agent has latency statistics enabled. Voice calls are charged as real-time audio and video fees at the 480P video resolution standard, so they appear as video-related usage in the RTC usage query. If you need to disable this billing method, contact your sales representative.

Renewal and refunds

Q: How do I renew my subscription using my account balance after it expires?

After your subscription expires, you can top up your account and then repurchase the same plan. The account balance can be used directly to pay for the new subscription.

Q: Can I get a refund for an unused lower-tier subscription and repurchase a higher-tier plan?

Yes. You can request a refund for an unused order (for example, if you purchased the Basic Edition and want to upgrade to the Standard Edition or Flagship Edition, which includes Video Translation). For specific refund options, go to the Alibaba Cloud console User Center > Order Management.

Q: Can unused Savings Plans or subscription services be extended?

No. Unused portions of Savings Plans or subscription services cannot be extended. They automatically expire upon expiration. Use them in a timely manner.

Permissions

Q: How long are temporarily added permissions valid, and what should I do for continued use?

Temporarily added permissions can be used indefinitely. In the future, this capability will be integrated into the Basic Edition. You only need to purchase the Basic Edition to continue using it.