TRAI fixes Rs 19 as fee for mobile users to switch operators

Saturday 21 November, 2009.

TRAI fixes Rs 19 as fee for mobile users to switch operators

Telecom regulator TRAI on Friday said mobile operators can charge not more than Rs 19 from customers for switching to another operator under the proposed Mobile Number Portability scheme.

The per port transaction charge will be Rs 19 and the subscriber will not be charged more than that.

However, operators are free to levy any amount less than or equal to this charge, TRAI said in a statement on Friday.

The government has asked operators to ready their networks for porting of numbers in metros by 31st December, this year.

The regulator has left the dipping charge -- payable by an operator to the MNP service provider to mutual negotiation between telcos and the respective MNP service providers.

To port his number, the subscriber will have to request the new operator for acceptance of his connection.

The process will have to be completed in four days and the subscriber will have to give porting charges to the new operator.

The MNP will open a host of opportunities for the new operators to lure the customers of existing operators by marketing their brands and USP.

Syniverse Technologies (Zone 1) and MNP Interconnection (Zone 2) are the two companies who have been licenced by the DoT to carry out the MNP exercise.