A survey conducted by m3ter in collaboration with PwC UK reveals that U.K. business leaders’ focus on AI is outpacing their companies’ ability to accurately charge for those services, with almost half reporting challenges in capturing and measuring customer usage in increasingly popular pay-per-use models.
44% of U.K. software executives report challenges in capturing and measuring customer usage in pay-per-use models.
Nearly two-thirds (63%) lack full confidence in their finance and business systems to capture customer usage data and invoice correctly.
87% report a lack of integration between billing platforms and ERP or general ledger systems, while 48% report no integration between billing and CRM.
Revenue leakage is estimated at 4-7% of annual recurring revenue.
62% lack confidence in their exposure to revenue leakage, rising to 72% with the introduction of usage-based pricing.
Half of respondents have changed pricing at least twice in the past year as they introduce AI through premium products or embedded within standard offerings.
AI is transforming what companies sell, but outdated billing and finance systems mean organizations are not getting paid properly. According to the research, almost two-thirds of U.K. software executives lack full confidence in their finance and business systems to capture customer usage data and invoice correctly, creating a risk that revenue will be lost.
“AI is transforming what companies sell but outdated billing and finance means they aren’t getting paid properly. For businesses to capitalise on AI, they need the operational infrastructure to accurately measure, track and recoup income. Companies that lack such infrastructure won’t realise the full value of the products and services they sell,” said Griffin Parry, m3ter CEO and Co-Founder.
Companies are turning to usage-based pricing to adapt to the way customers consume AI features and think about value. The survey found just over a third had introduced pay-per-use alongside traditional pricing for AI. Half have changed pricing at least twice in the past year. The most common approach to introduce AI has been through premium products or embedded within standard offerings with accompanying price increases.
Yet the research, which surveyed 350 software executives across the U.K., shows core financial systems and operations have not kept pace with complex pricing structures and billing metrics. Many organizations rely on manual workarounds including spreadsheet calculations to set prices, track usage, and reconcile revenue—all of which makes it difficult for both the software provider and the customer to reap the benefits of pay-per-use models.
U.K. executives report a number of consequences where billing and finance have failed to keep pace: eroded customer trust through increased billing disputes, limited scope to experiment on pricing, and lingering concern over the firm’s ability to withstand audit and regulatory attention. Revenue leakage is the most tangible issue, running at 4-7% of annual recurring revenue.
Revenue leakage is defined as unrealized value in products and services. It can take many forms, including usage that exceeds contracted limits not captured or monetized, pricing clauses that are not properly reflected in billing workflows, and discounts or credits applied incorrectly or missed. The survey found nearly two-thirds (62%) lack confidence in their exposure to revenue leakage—a figure that hit 72% with the introduction of usage-based pricing.
Almost 9 in 10 (87%) reported a lack of integration between billing platforms and ERP or general ledger systems, while 48% report no integration between billing and CRM. These integration gaps force manual workarounds that introduce error and inefficiency.
“Packaging and pricing are changing faster than ever with AI, making it harder to ensure every penny is captured,” said Jonny Donnelly at PwC UK. “Modern pricing depends on accurate billing but fragmented systems are widening the gap between pricing strategy and realised revenue. Without stronger foundations, software companies risk amplifying existing revenue leakage as they move toward more complex AI-driven pricing models.”
PwC’s 29th Global CEO Survey from January 2026 illustrates the challenge of converting AI’s revenue potential into income, finding that just 30% experienced an increase in revenue from AI in the last year.
m3ter and PwC UK announced a strategic collaboration in 2025 to help organizations reduce commercial risk, modernize billing operations, and strengthen revenue integrity. The collaboration combines m3ter’s advanced technology with PwC UK’s expertise in commercial controls, contract governance, and managed services, delivering a risk-informed, tech-enabled approach to revenue integrity at scale.
About m3ter
The m3ter platform processes usage data (metering), performs complex bill calculations (rating), and automates data flows relating to usage and billing around the quote-to-cash stack. It is principally used by enterprise software and technology customers to complement and modernize existing quote-to-cash stacks, as business models incorporate usage, or consumption-based, pricing. m3ter was founded in 2020.
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