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Top 10 Questions About Wireless Local Number Portability
Cell phone users will have something else to be thankful for just
before this year's Thanksgiving holiday. Prior to November 24, 2003,
if you owned a cell phone, you were stuck. Switching wireless phone
carriers not only meant buying a new phone, but also meant giving up
your phone number. But now, under a new federal regulation effective
November 24th, wireless phone customers who live in the 100 most
populated areas are able to take their phone number with them,
subject to some limitations, when changing carriers. The rest of the
country will be eligible by May 24, 2004.
We support number portability through our online wireless store
since November 24. Customers in an eligible service area can simply
go to the online wireless store to place a number portability order
or to access a Number Portability Tool that enables users to
evaluate personal savings while comparing plans from seven major
carriers along with network quality ratings provided from JD Power
and Associates.
Below are answers to the
most frequently asked questions about what the telecommunications
industry and government regulators call "Wireless Local Number
Portability," or WLNP.
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What is Wireless Local Number Portability (WLNP)?
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When will WLNP become available?
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Will all cell phone users be affected?
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Can I use my current phone with my new wireless carrier?
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Can I port my home telephone number to my cell phone?
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Can I keep my number if I move to another city?
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What if I am still under contract with my current wireless
carrier?
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When should I cancel my current service?
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How long will the porting process take?
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Will I get charged for porting my number?
1.
What is
Wireless Local Number Portability (WLNP)?
Today, when
customers of one wireless phone company -- also known as a "carrier"
-- switch service providers, they have to change their cell phone
number as well. Under a new federal mandate known as Wireless Local
Number Portability (WLNP), customers will now be allowed to "port"
their current cell phone number when changing wireless carriers.
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2.
When will WLNP become
available?
The Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) has mandated that WLNP go into
effect on November 24, 2003.
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3.
Will all cell phone
users be affected?
Number
portability will be available in the 100 largest metropolitan areas
of the United States and Puerto Rico initially. Based on the U.S.
Census Bureau's 1990 and 2000 census reports, the markets affected
cover almost 70% of the United States population. The remaining 30%
of the country will be eligible for WLNP by May 24, 2004.
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4.
Can I use my current phone with my new wireless carrier?
A: Probably
not, since different wireless carriers operate incompatible service
technologies. Additionally, most cell phones are programmed to only
work with the carrier whose service plan it was purchased with.
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5.
Can I port my home phone telephone number to my cell phone?
You may
eventually be able to "cut the cord" and transfer your home phone
number to your cell phone, but the details of who will be eligible
and when such transfers will be offered remains unclear. The
wireless carriers are lobbying to include conventional phone lines
-- also called landline or wireline -- under the number portability
rules, which the FCC has agreed to in principle. But the manner in
which telephone numbers are organized into "local" areas, known as
local exchanges, is different for wireless and wireline phones.
Because of this, only a small percentage of people who will want to
port their landline number to their cell phone will be able to.
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6.
Can I keep
my number if I move to another city?
No, not
unless you are moving within the same local geographic area where
the phone number is currently assigned. Even within the same
telephone area code, you may be outside the boundaries of the local
calling area that determines if your cell phone number is portable.
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7.
What if I am still under contract with my current wireless carrier?
You are
required to honor the full term of your current contract or you will
be charged a termination fee that is specified in your subscriber
agreement.
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8.
When should I
cancel my current service?
You should
sign up with your new wireless carrier and complete the number
porting process before canceling your current service. Canceling
your current service before the porting process is complete will
cause you to lose the ability to port your current phone number.
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9.
How long will the
porting process take?
The FCC has
provided the telecommunications industry with guidelines stating
that the porting process can be completed in 2 ½ hours. That being
said, wireless carriers expect up to 80% of the WLNP requests will
not be processed automatically, requiring some manual intervention
on their part. Because of potential glitches, the number porting
process may take up to 4 days to complete.
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10.
Will I get
charged for porting my number?
It may depend
on the carrier you're leaving, since several have not finalized or
disclosed the specific policies and procedures they will implement
to comply with the WLNP requirement. Verizon Wireless and others
have announced their intention not to impose a specific fee for
transferring a number to another carrier. But under FCC rules,
carriers are permitted to "recover" from subscribers costs directly
associated with offering number portability. The extent of those
costs is still being debated within the industry.
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