The talks about implementing Mobile Number Portability (MNP) have been in the air for quite some time. We have already told you about the lack of execution on the Service Providers’ part and extended deadlines for implementing MNP. Both BSNL & MTNL are ready to implement the mobile number portability (MNP) service by the new deadline of March 31 and customers can expect to have the MNP service from April 1, 2010 i.e., the April Fool’s Day (We will come back to this April Fool correlation later).
BSNL is ready with its network on both services GSM & CDMA and was waiting for clearance of equipment for setting up gateways from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) which has eventually come through. MNP will finally help mobile users to change their service providers, while retaining their current mobile numbers. Customers need to pay a MNP service activation charge of Rs. 19 as fixed by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. MNP is already available in various countries such as the US, Australia and even Pakistan.
Now coming back to the correlation of April Fool’s Day with the launch of MNP, Google has a tradition to announce launches of innovative yet unrealistic products on the April Fool’s day as a part of their April Fool Hoaxes. Some of the product ideas and launches are so innovative that they lure users into thinking that the product actually exists. Well, in the current scenario of MNP being available from April 1, if the dates are postponed further… we can only think of the announcement of BSNL & MTNL making MNP available by 1st April only to be an April Fool’s Hoax!
