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TCI sees subscribers transferring by October

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TELECOMMUNICATIONS Connectivity Inc. (TCI), the joint venture among the three telecommunication companies for mobile number portability, will start its commercial operations on September 30, when subscribers may start transferring from one provider to another.

Melanie Manuel, the general manager of TCI, said her group is “trying hard to meet the September 30 deadline.”

TCI deployed the necessary infrastructure for mobile number portability (MNP) within 22 months through a combined investment program of P120 million.

Telcos, under the Republic Act 11202 or the Mobile Number Portability Act, are now required to allow subscribers to shift from one provider to another without changing their mobile numbers.

“There might be fortuitous events, barring those events we should be able to implement by September 30,” Manuel said during a press briefing on July 22.

New entrant Dito Telecommunity Corp. believes that the MNP will foster competition in the telco market, as consumers now have more power in choosing their service providers.

“The entire telco industry and the Philippine government are pushing forward with the same goal of providing Filipinos with better telco services. Aside from encouraging healthier competition amongst the players, MNP also grants Filipinos the freedom to switch to their preferred mobile service provider seamlessly and conveniently without hesitations,” he said.

For his part, Globe Telecom Inc. General Counsel Froilan Castelo said that as MNP is a “complex process,” telcos needed to study global best practices in order to create a seamless system to the benefit of consumers.

“We also studied how other countries implemented mobile number portability, and how we can adopt that in the Philippines. We also need to consider the pandemic situation and how we will adapt under such circumstances. We have involved the best people in our organizations in this project. A lot of brainstorming happened, testing and developing all possible scenarios that can happen in MNP and finally after 22 months we can say we are now ready to provide mobile number portability in the Philippines,” he said.

Mario Tamayo, the SVP of Technology for PLDT Inc. and Smart Communications Inc., noted that MNP essential provides consumers “the power of choice.”

“We want to make sure that we can give the best solutions and services to the Filipino people. We want to simplify the process for every telco subscriber by giving them the power of choice. Through mobile number portability, we are empowering our customers to pursue their passions and purpose,” he said.

Subscribers may port out of their original providers and port into another by simply applying for a service transfer for free and meet the requirements of having an active SIM card with no remaining balance. They also must have no pending transfer of ownership and no existing court prohibitions.

Porting out and in will take about 48 hours, which according to Manuel, “is quite quick for a complex process.”

She also appealed to the public for understanding should there be any “birth pains” during the initial phase of implementation.

“MNP will encourage competitors to expand their network, improve customer experience, and products and services,” Manuel said.

Read full article on BusinessMirror

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