You can retain your same mobile number

As per report of Economic Times in today dated 13-11-2007, Govt of India will introduce Number Portability in Four Metros Soon. The details of report are as follows:

NEW DELHI: Come 2008, you will be able to retain your number even if you were to change your mobile operator. Communications minister A Raja on Monday announced that the government had approved the introduction of mobile number portability (MNP), which gives cellphone users the freedom to choose their service provider while retaining their numbers. “We will first introduce number portability in the four metros — Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. In the next phase, it will be extended to more parts of the country. The modalities will be announced after due consultations with Trai,” Mr Raja said. Market surveys have shown that up to 50% of all mobile users in India are unhappy with their operator, and are willing to switch to another service provider if allowed to retain their number. Number portability has so far been introduced in Australia, Korea, Japan, Canada, the US, the UK, most of Europe and Pakistan, among other countries. According to reports, its introduction has been followed by up to 50% subscribers switching operators in some of these countries. Though Trai has been pushing for number portability since March 2006, the recent tariff hikes by some service providers despite stiff opposition from the regulator and telecom minister A Raja acted as the final trigger for DoT to approve the introduction of MNP and set the process in motion, sources said. Immediately after the recent round of tariff hikes, ET had first reported that the government was set to introduce number portability. Even as CDMA-based operators welcomed DoT’s move and said the introduction of MNP was an important tool for ensuring competition and improved quality of services, the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the body representing GSM players said the “industry felt MNP was being introduced to benefit a select operator desirous of entering the GSM segment and thereafter poaching on the subscribers of existing GSM players.” While COAI’s director general TV Ramachandran refused to name this “select operator”, it is understood that he was referring to Reliance Communications, which had recently obtained the government’s approval to offer GSM services. He also demanded that this facility be extended to all fixed line customers. The DoT’s move is in line with the recommendations of telecom regulator Trai. DoT, in a statement, said all mobile operators, through a neutral third party, shall establish a “logically centralised database, the cost of which would be borne proportionately by the telcos.” This implies, a telecom company that has 20% market share in the circle, will bear 20% of the cost of creating the centralised data base. All that the customer has to do is approach the recipient operator for porting the number, the DoT said. The DoT also clarified that cost of upgrading the mobile networks to allow number portability would be borne by the operators. Issues related to tariffs will be decided by Trai after “consultations and also considering the cost aspects of different solutions,” DoT added. The introduction of MNP will result in a significant churn in the telecom market and is likely to impact incumbents and well-entrenched bigger players the most. MNP is likely to hit the bottomlines of all operators as its implementation will increase the costs of retaining one’s subscribers. Service providers may be forced to introduce a series of incentivised schemes to tie down their subscribers.