Posted by meb at April 30th, 2008

Turkey’s Telecommunications Board announced it will implement “number portability,” which will allow customers to change their mobile phone operators without changing their numbers, in November.

Starting the infrastructure works for number portability, the system is expected to be operational as soon as next month, said Tayfun Acarer, chief of the Board, during a conference in the Mediterranean city of Mersin Monday.

According to the regulation; Turkcell, Avea and Vodafone, Turkey’s three cell phone operators, will prepare for the system for the next six months. Thus, as of November, customers will be able to choose the most suitable operator for their personal needs.

Türk Telekom, the country’s fixed-line phone company, which is offering 15 percent of its shares in a crucial initial public offering, also plans to implement number portability as of April 2009.

Turkcell, Turkey’s biggest cell phone operator, had applied to court to stop the implementation of the regulation concerning number portability, but the Supreme Court of Appeals had rejected the request. Turkey’s lagging behind in number portability was shown as one of the reasons behind the cancellation of the 3G tender. Meanwhile, the authorities are waging a struggle against unregistered cell phones for the last two-and-a-half years, Acarer said. The number of registered mobile phones stands at 92 million, he added. Measuring with a price of $150 per phone, an economy worth $13.5 billion has been registered now, he said.
source: Turkish Daily News