Number portability for Indians soon

Number portability for Indians soon
TNN[ WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 22, 2007 12:43:39 PM]
NEW DELHI: Soon, you will no longer have to be tied to your mobile operator just so you can retain your number. The communication ministry is set to offer all mobile users the freedom of choosing their service providers while retaining their numbers through the introduction of mobile number MNP

According to sources, the Department of Telecom (DoT) is working towards laying the rules for number portability in a bid “to protect the interests of customers and keep tariffs in check.”

Though telecom regulator TRAI has been demanding the introduction of number portability since March 2006, the trigger for DoT to set the process in motion appears to be the recent hike in tariffs by some telecom companies despite stiff opposition from both the regulator and telecom minister A Raja.

Indian telecom companies are bitterly opposed to the introduction of number portability and say it will cost them several thousand crores to upgrade their networks.

Up to 50 per cent of all mobile users in India are unhappy with their operator, say market surveys. Companies argue it will cost thousands of crores to upgrade their networks to implement this Portability may hit telco bottomlines.

They have also said the market was not mature enough to support number portability, and this must be introduced only when the country has a high telecom penetration (India’s teledensity is less than 20 per cent).

Mobile Number Portability (MNP) allows mobile subscribers to change their service provider while retaining their number. TRAI has pointed out that portability benefits subscribers and increases the level of competition among service providers, rewarding those with better customer service, network coverage and service quality.

MNP will also result in a significant churn and may hit operators’ bottomlines as the cost of retaining subscribers will go up. Service providers will also be forced to introduce schemes to tie down subscribers.

Sources said the DoT is of the view that implementation of number portability will further heighten competition in what is already the world’s most competitive telecom market, preventing operators from hiking tariffs further.

They added that DoT was likely to mandate that MNP is introduced in a phased manner, starting from the metros to A category telecom circles such as Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, followed by B circles like Kerala and Haryana and then C category service areas like the North East, within a sixto-12-month interval.

Additionally, DoT may also set up a steering committee consisting of operators, industry associations and Telecom Engineering Centre under the aegis of the regulator to workout the fine print of implementation issues.

One of the factors that has forced DoT to act on this issue has been TRAI’s repeated requests to the government to mandate its implementation by the year-end.