Mobile phone customers in the UAE will be able to migrate between Etisalat and Du networks from next month, a senior official has revealed.
The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRAis set to launch mobile phone number portability in the UAE in November, Mohammed Gheyath, executive director, Technology Development Affairs said.
The move will allow customers to migrate to any network operator using their existing number and will help boost competition between the country’s two operators, bringing price and service benefits to consumers, he added in comments published in Emirates Business on Wednesday.
“We have contracted a vendor and are working towards meeting our obligations and deadlines to launch this year. We will launch mobile phone number portability (MNP) in November,” he told the paper.
Reports earlier this month had said the TRA would launch the service early next year but Gheyath said that was inaccurate.
He added: “We are targeting November for launch. This is an information technology-based project and the application testing, verification… everything is in place.”
Contrary to market speculation, both operators were open to the idea of number portability, he told the paper.
“There was absolutely no opposition to number portability from both operators. The competition it brings is in favour of everyone, especially for the consumer,” he added.
