3 UK welcomed today the publication of Ofcom's proposals and further consultation on mobile number portability (MNP), the process by which a customer can keep their mobile number when they move from one mobile operator to another.

Currently

• UK mobile customers have to wait at least five working days to move their number to another network, whereas it takes less than 20 minutes in Ireland.
• UK consumers also have to request permission from the network they are leaving. The number porting process is managed by the network that is losing, rather than gaining, the customer, which naturally slows down the process and increases costs. The UK is now the only EU market where this is still the case.
• Once a customer has moved their number to a different network in the UK their calls are still routed through their old network in perpetuity. This system is highly inefficient and adds both costs and risks to the consumer.

About 3: 3 UK is a mobile media company delivering a convergence of communications, entertainment and information to customers on the move.

The three areas which form the core of its business are:

• Communications - including all forms of personal communications, voice and video calling; text, picture and video messaging; and mobile blogging
• Entertainment - including television, music audio and video, computer games, and media publishing
• Information services - including wireless web, access to the best of the internet and a range of news services

3 UK is a member of the HWL group of 3G companies, which include 3G operations in Australia, Austria, Denmark, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Sweden and soon Norway.

For more information on 3 UK, visit here

Source: 3 UK press release

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