IDA to introduce enhanced MNP in Q4 2007

Singapore’s telecoms regulator the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) plans to introduce enhanced mobile number portability (MNP) from the fourth quarter of 2007. The advent of full MNP is expected to stimulate competition and provide new business opportunities in the domestic market. Under the current system, subscribers can switch service provider and keep their existing number, but in essence all they are receiving is a call-forwarding service whereby calls to the old number are routed to the new one, meaning that some recipients could see an unrecognisable new number and choose to ignore the call. Under a true MNP scheme, such problems are removed. Subscribers will only use one number, no matter how many times they change their service provider.