Mobile Number Portability (MNP) is a test case for operators

The Mobile Number Portability (MNP) service, which was launched in Haryana on Thursday, is being seen as a test case by mobile operators, who have planned various campaigns including ad campaigns based on the MNP in the next few weeks in the backdrop of the government announcing pan- India MNP rollout on January 20 next year.

Idea Cellular is the first off the block launch its MNP- based ad campaign. It is called ‘ Switch to Idea’. The telecom industry feels that after the full roll- out of MNP, the sector would see reduction in prices for premium services like SMS, data services and roaming charges. Currently, around 10 per cent of the overall revenue in the telecom industry is generated from these services. However, not much change is immediately expected in voice services (calling charges).

Service providers also say that midtier consumers in both pre- paid and post- paid segments will most likely switch their operators with the onset of MNP, considering that the churn in the low- end of the market is very high.

Industry estimates say there is a monthly churn of two per cent among the post- paid customers while the prepaid segment sees a churn of five to six per cent, the highest in the world.

A lot will also depend on 3G also. Operators who don’t have 3G may be the most hit as high- end subscribers would like to switch to 3G- ready operators while rural subscribers will look for those operators with better coverage.

One in four Reliance Communications (RCom) and Tata Indicom subscribers will be keen to change their operator when MNP is introduced, followed by about one in five (19 per cent) of BSNL subscribers. RCom risks losing 25 per cent of its subscribers, that is, about 21 million users, who intend to move to another operator.