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GSM lobby opposes internal number portability

Fears that such policy could be a tool for service providers to manipulate their own subscribers spectrum

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Fears that such policy could be a tool for service providers to manipulate their own subscribers spectrum

NEW DELHI: The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), representing global systems for mobile communications (GSM) telecom service providers such as Bharti, Vodafone and Idea Cellular, has asked the government to reject the proposal for ‘internal mobile number portability’.

A telecom operator, which is offering both GSM and code division multiple access (CDMA) services, recently approached the government for permission to offer number portability for its own subscribers from one technology platform to another.

CDMA major Reliance Communications is planning a pan-India GSM foray soon. Another CDMA player, Tata Teleservices, would also get into GSM within few months.

TV Ramachandran, director general, COAI, in a presentation to the department of telecommunications (DoT), said that allowing internal mobile number portability amongst a telco’s own subscribers (as requested by one player) and ahead of schedule, would be “violative of the mobile number portability policy and implementation framework”.

According to COAI, “internal number portability could be a tool for service providers to manipulate their own subscribers.” Internal portability could also lead to dual presence of a subscriber in CDMA and GSM, it has pointed out. In case of such scenarios, an operator could misrepresent subscriber data in both networks for retaining spectrum or gaining additional spectrum.

Among other problems cited by the COAI in case of internal number portability include ambiguity in applicability of tariff plans an payment for spectrum usage. There could be manipulation in the payment of spectrum usage charge resulting in heavy loss of revenue to the government, COAI said.

Through mobile number portability, a wireless phone user would be able to retain his phone number, even if, he switches his service provider. This is expected to increase competition in the industry, and motivate telcos to offer better service and lower tariff to its subscribers.

According to DoT, mobile number portability should be in place by the “summer of next year” in the metros, to be followed by other circles in phases.

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) had earlier recommended that number portability be rolled out by June 2009. Experts say that this is a much needed measure taken by the government as India is one of the largest telecom markets in the world now, but the teledensity is still lower than 30%. At the end of August, there were over 300 million mobile phone subscribers in India.
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