MNP procrastination?

South Africa’s cellular operators are calling for yet another delay in the introduction of mobile number portability (MNP). Business Day reports that technical problems have caused the testing of the new MNP systems to run behind schedule. Cell C is suggesting that the date for the implementation of MNP be changed from 18 September to late October, while MTN and Vodacom want the deadline pushed back to the end of November, giving them more time to ensure that the system will work smoothly. There has been some criticism, however, from the likes of newly launched MVNO Virgin Mobile which says that market leaders MTN and Vodacom are purposefully trying to set back the introduction of MNP, as they fear they will lose market share as subscribers switch to alternative networks.