Customer has really become the king in telecom sector as the prime
minister Manmohan Singh launched mobile number portability (MNP)
throughout India. Within a few minutes of the launch of MNP, the
government-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) set the trend by
announcing freebies for subscribers from other networks moving to its
network.

BSNL has said that no port charges (charges that a customer has to pay to
shift to another network and is Rs 19) shall be levied to customers moving
to its network. It will also provide SIM card free of cost, along with an
additional talk value of Rs 100 for prepaid customers.

However, strong brands including Airtel and Vodafone have not yet offered
any freebies.

“First of all the world over MNP has not been a game changer. In a
competitive market bigger brands get identified,” said Sanjay Kapoor, CEO
of Airtel.

“Tata Teleservices’ MNP strategy will ride strongly on a simple tariff
structure and strong customer care and service levels,” said Deepak
Gulati, executive president, mobility business division, Tata Teleservices
Limited.

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) worked proactively in
bringing in MNP in India. It first recommended MNP in 2006. However, DoT took two years to take a decision. Then TRAI set up customer friendly
charges and procedures. DoT took another one and a half years to implement it.

While launching services, the prime minister said that MNP will increase
competition and hence the quality of services will improve.

“Though India has introduced MNP relatively late vis-a-vis other developed
countries but at the same time it has been done by adopting the latest
technologies and methodologies,” said Kapil Sibal, communications and IT
minister.

“It will give choice to consumers. They will get be able to shift to a
network with better quality,” said Sri Ram Khanna, chairman of Consumer
Voice.