Nearly three and half years after its launch, the MNP facility has been successfully utilized over 100 million times by mobile subscribers. This information comes directly through TRAI, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, as an official announcement showing how important the facility has proven to be.
The MNP facility was rolled out across India back in January of 2011. It basically allows subscribers to switch between service providers freely and as many times required without losing their current mobile number, irrespective of the technology being used by either operator. To successfully port a number to another carrier, all that’s needed to be done is fill out a simple form and provide required documents along with a charge of just Rs 19.
The presser issued highlights that rejections on requests are now down to 11% from 40% back in 2011. In other news, 4G connectivity is slowly making its way into India. Airtel already has high-speed LTE services set up in multiple locations across the country. Currently, it’s offering services in Bangalore with the iPhone 5S and 5C smartphones and there are dongles as well as Wi-Fi routers on sale as well. Also, Reliance Jio is expected to roll out its own 4G network in the coming month. We’re even starting to see more LTE-enabled handset go on sale like the LG G2 and the HTC One M8.
Additionally, the TRAI also highlights that corporate porting has been commenced from this year onwards. This means that companies that have mobile numbers registered under their names will be able to switch between service providers after gaining authorization via their representatives.