Cellphone users who wish to change service providers while retaining existing phone numbers will not be able to do so in July, as provided for by the mobile number portability (MNP) regulations.
Mike Falconer, senior business analyst at Cell C and its representative in the inter-operator MNP group, confirms the group has asked the Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) for a postponement until September. The issue is still under consideration with ICASA, he adds.
Falconer says the tender process to appoint a solution provider that will develop porting facilities took longer than expected, causing a delay.
"There is no official appointment yet, but we are in negotiations with Grintek as the potential service provider," he says.
Ray Webber, spokesman for the Communications Users Association of SA, says the delay is annoying, as cellphone users expected porting to be available in July.
However, he acknowledges that putting systems in place to facilitate porting is a complex process.
"I will not urge ICASA to decline the request for a postponement, because if mobile providers are put under too much pressure and the job is not done properly, porting will not work effectively for users anyway."
Webber says MNP will encourage mobile providers to offer incentives for postpaid contract customers to renew their contracts.
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