[kictanet] CCK cuts number portability fee for mobile user

[alice at apc.org]

 By Okuttah MarkPosted Tuesday, May 18 2010 at 00:00

Mobile phone subscribers intending to switch their current operators but still retain their number will only pay a one off fee of Sh200 and not Sh1,000 as had earlier been proposed, the industry regulator has said.The Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) had earlier, when seeking comments from the telecommunication operators, proposed Sh1,000 and an extra two shillings on top of the current tariffs, a fee that industry experts and telecommunication operators warned could inhibit the uptake of the service.CCK said number portability would make it easier for subscribers to retain their numCCK cuts number portability fee for mobile usersbers whenever they decide to change service providers and also enhance competition in the sector.On Friday, CCK said it had settled for a one off fee of Sh199.80, the winning bidder (Porting Access BV Netherlands) had quoted and that no other extra fee will be incurred by the subscribers apart from the prevailing tariffs charged by the operator at the time of switching over.Mobile subscribers are expected to start utilising the service before the end of the year."A one-time porting fee of Sh199.80 will be charged by porting subscriber. If there are services a subscriber still wishes to enjoy then that's enough reason why he should not port out. But a subscriber can port back to his former network if attractive services are introduced ," said Mr Mutua Muthusi, assistant director, public relations and communication."Porting service will only enable you to retain the number you were assigned by Network X while in Network Y. You will retain no relationship with your former provider if you decide to port out."Zain Kenya says other than the porting fees, there may still be other costs arising from interfacing the equipment of various operators with the data base manager, as it is not clear who will bear such costs or that of upgrades for interfacing with the database.Mr Rene Meza, the managing director of Zain Kenya, says the company has started positioning ahead of the implementation of the number portability service because it believes that customers will move to the operator that offers best value and that there are still issues to be sorted out such as interoperability of the money transfer systems."At present, the money systems of various operators are not fully integrated or interoperable. We believe it is just a matter of time before regulators, especially the Central Bank, begin to push for full integration and interoperability," said Mr Rene.Last Thursday, the operator reduced its calls to other networks to six shillings from Sh12 from 6pm to 6am and three shillings for calls made on its network.A subscriber switching or migrating from operator X to Y can only switch back to his previous operator after paying another similar porting amount.Once a subscriber has crossed over to another network, he cannot enjoy any of the services provided by the former operator.This means that if a subscriber switches from operator X to Y and is travelling abroad, the subscriber will be charged roaming charges by the operator he has migrated to and not what the former operator was charging.This also touches on customer care services or any complaint that the subscriber may want to raise about network quality or pricing.Porting Access BV Netherlands clinched the deal, beating Seven Seas Technologies (Kenya, Infozillion (K) Ltd, Pluton ICT Ltd (Kenya), Teletech from Slovenia, Saab Grintek Technologies (South Africa) and Systor Group of Companies.The implementation of mobile number portability is part of measures that the regulator has come up with to enhance competition in the sector.The sector has four mobile operators and close to 20 million subscribers, but 78 per cent is controlled by the leading mobile provider Safaricom.Analysts say attachment by many subscribers to their user numbers has prevented millions from changing service providers despite the marked differences in pricing and quality of service offered by the different players.Retain numberCCK says number portability should enhance competition and consumer convenience in the telecommunication sector by "enabling consumers to retain their user numbers whenever they decide to change service providers."That means subscribers do not have to invest in new SIM cards or carry a number of handsets to enjoy the services of other operators.It also enables consumers to make use of alternative networks in an area where one provider has no footprint or is experiencing a network problem.

Source:  http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Company%20Industry/CCK%20cuts%20number%20portability%20fee%20for%20mobile%20users/-/539550/920330/-/item/1/-/chb9i8z/-/index.html
Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone from Zain Kenya