Mobile phone users in China will be allowed to change telecom operators without needing to change their numbers. The spokesperson for the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Zhang Feng announced that four provinces will implement the new plan later in 2014.
Feng added, “Subscribers in South China’s Hainan province will be able to freely change carriers while retain their phone numbers beginning Saturday”. It has been reported that earlier trials in the province have enabled mobile phone users to leave China Mobile Corp’s network and then join services which are provided by smaller carriers. Zhang also said that Jiangxi and Hubei in Central China, in addition to Yunnan in the Southeast will unveil the new program during the third quarter of 2014.
However, it is still not clear at what time the number portability policy will be expanded to other parts of China. Regulators of the industry are slowly lifting the tight controls over the country’s commercial telecom services in order to increase competition. A week ago, the old service fee regulation was abolished in an attempt to increase sector marketability.
Lower service charges, as well as increasing competition from the three carriers in China are to be continued, as the Chinese government is working on easing control.
Photo Credits: Telecomlead
