Beginning in the fourth quarter of 2021, when the three major telecommunications players in the country launch their mobile number portability services, mobile phone users will be able to switch networks while keeping their numbers and change their subscription from postpaid to postpaid prepaid and vice versa.
On September 30, 2021, Telecommunications Connectivity Inc. (TCI), the firm founded by Globe Telecom, Smart Communications, and Dito Telecommunity to execute the Mobile Number Portability (MNP) Act, will begin providing services.
TCI general manager Melanie Manuel stated in a webinar on Thursday, July 22, that they expect an initial one million users to port out of their networks and into other networks.
TCI, on the other hand, is preparing for a higher volume of MNP transactions, as Manuel claims that 30% of users in other countries transfer networks or subscriptions regularly.
It takes about 48 hours to port into another network, and a subscriber can only port back to their original network after 60 days.
When a mobile phone user has a current SIM or mobile number, no unpaid debt from his network provider, no porting transaction in the last 60 days, and no history of fraudulent conduct, he is entitled to move networks.
“Aside from boosting healthier competition among participants, the MNP gives Filipinos a choice to transfer to their favorite mobile service provider seamlessly and conveniently,” said Atty. Adel Tamano, TCI’s treasurer and Dito Telecommunity’s chief administrative officer.
On July 14, 2021, TCI completed the initial technical capabilities and compatibility tests between the three networks. The demos proved that the technology was ready.
MNP, according to Bryan Patrick Lim, a member of TCI’s board of directors and Globe Telecom’s vice president for product innovation and capabilities, “hopes to usher in a new era of innovation and competition for the benefit of the Filipino people.”
MNP’s services are entirely free.
In February 2019, President Rodrigo Duterte signed the MNP Act, also known as Republic Act 11202.
After selecting Syniverse as its MNP solution supplier and putting up P120 million to undertake the MNP project, the three telcos created TCI in 2020.