How to Set up and Manage Addons in BE
Addons are optional service extensions that enhance a main service offering. They allow operators to offer customers additional value — such as TV packages, static IPs, or premium features — on top of a base service like internet or broadband.
Business Engine supports a rich addon system with the following capabilities:
- Addon Options — selectable items within an addon (e.g., individual TV channels within a TV package)
- Included Quotas — a set number of options included in the addon price
- Bundled Addons — addons that are automatically added when a parent addon is selected
- Addon Dependencies — requiring one addon before another can be selected
- Related Services — addons that create a separate child order for a different service
Key Concepts
Addon Types
Addon Types categorize your addons (e.g., "TV Packages", "Equipment", "Premium Features"). Each type has a name, a display order, and an optional Unique flag — when enabled, the customer can only select one addon of this type per order.
To manage Addon Types, navigate to Services → Addon Types.
Addon Options and Option Types
An addon can have selectable options. For example, a "TV Package" addon might have individual TV channels as options.
Option Types group related options together (e.g., "TV Channels", "Streaming Services") and define how options are billed (one-time, monthly, etc.). Options are the individual selectable items within an Option Type, each with a name, a unique identifier, a priority, and a price charged when selected beyond the included quota.
Included Quota
When configuring an addon, you can specify how many options are included in the addon price. For example, a TV package priced at $29.99/month might include 5 channels — the customer can add more beyond those 5, each at an additional cost. When an addon is added to an order, the system automatically selects options up to the included quota based on priority (lowest number first).
Creating an Addon with Options
Step 1 — Create an Option Type
Navigate to Services → Addon Option Types, click Create, enter a name (e.g., "TV Channels"), select a Price Type for how extra options will be billed, and save.
Step 2 — Add Options to the Option Type
Open the Option Type, click Add in the Options section, and fill in name, identifier, priority, and price for each option. Repeat for all available options.
Step 3 — Create the Addon on a Service Version
Navigate to Services → Services, open the relevant service, and open the Service Version you want to add the addon to (the version must not be published yet). In the Addons section, click Add and fill in:
- Name — e.g., "TV Entertainment Package"
- Addon Type — select the appropriate type
- Description — describe what the addon includes
- Option Type — select the Option Type created above
- Options Included — the number of options included in the addon price
- Terms — optional terms and conditions text (if filled in, customers must accept before checkout)
Set the price in the pricing section and save.
Setting Up Bundled Addons
Bundled addons are automatically added to an order when a parent addon is selected. This is useful when a package should always include certain sub-components — for example, selecting "Premium TV Bundle" automatically adds "HD Channels Pack" and "Sports Channels Pack".
To configure, open the parent addon on your Service Version, select the addons to bundle in the Bundled Addons section, and save.
How bundled addons behave:
- When the parent addon is added to an order, all bundled addons are automatically added
- Bundled addons cannot be removed independently — they are removed automatically when the parent is removed or terminated
- If a bundled addon has its own options and an included quota, the system will auto-fill those options based on priority
- Bundled addons can themselves reference a Related Service, which will create an additional child order
Setting Up Addon Dependencies
Addon dependencies require that a specific addon must be selected before another becomes available. To configure, open the dependent addon on your Service Version, select the required addon in the Required Addon field, and save. When the required addon is not present on an order, the dependent addon will not be available for selection.
Addons with Related Services
An addon can reference another service, causing a child order to be automatically created when the addon is added to an order. To configure, open the addon on your Service Version, select the service in the Related Service field, and save.
The child order is linked back to the parent via ParentAddonOrderId, follows its own service type workflow and provisioning, and is automatically cancelled or rejected if the addon is removed or terminated.
Managing Addons on Orders
Adding an addon: Open the order in Admin UI, navigate to the Addons tab, click Add, select the addon, configure any options, and save. This triggers contract creation, billing invoice rows (if the order is already active), bundled addon creation, and related service child order creation where applicable.
Removing/terminating an addon: Open the addon on the order, set a To Date, and save. This terminates addon contracts, all bundled addons, and any related service child orders, and adjusts billing accordingly. Note that bundled addons cannot be terminated independently — you must terminate the parent addon.
Adding addons via the Partner API: Use the ServiceAddons field in the create order request. Each addon entry accepts an ID and an optional list of option IDs. Available options can be queried via the ListAvailableAddonOptions endpoint. If no options are specified, the system auto-fills based on priority.
Tips
- Use Priority on options to control which options are auto-selected when filling the included quota — lower numbers are selected first.
- When setting up complex addon hierarchies, plan your dependency chain before creating the addons.
- Use the Unique flag on Addon Types when a customer should only select one addon from a category (e.g., only one router model).
- Test your addon configuration by creating a test order before publishing the service version.