Functionality of MNP
Mobile Number Portability
(MNP) is the ability of a mobile
subscriber to retain his/her
number when changing network
operators within a country.
Mobile Number portability is
a key aspect of deregulation
to ensure competition in the
telecom industry.
MNP is not a subscriber service.
It is a network feature that
allows the subscriber to keep
a unique mobile phone number.
The absence of MNP may give the
existing cellular mobile operators
a significant competitive advantage
over new entrants in the market.
MNP is the important mechanism
to enhance fair competition among
different operators.
With number portability, a subscriber
can decide to take his or her
number and request service from
another provider. The network
provider that originally owned
this number as part of a numbering
block assignment is referred
to as the donor network. The
network provider that the subscriber
approaches to host its number
is called the recipient network.
Note that the subscriber might
want to switch service provider
again after some time. Thus,
the recipient network can change
over time, as often as a subscriber
changes the provider; however,
the donor network is always considered
to be the original network that
owned the address block from
which this subscriber number
came. |
