Senate OK’s lifetime cell numbers bill

WITH 20 affirmative votes, the Senate on Monday approved on third and final reading a bill which would allow consumers to keep their mobile numbers for life, even if they change service providers or subscription plans.

Senate Bill No. 1636, or the “The Lifetime Cellphone Number Act” if passed, would require telecommunications entities to provide consumers with a “mobile number portability (MNP)” that enables an existing mobile number to be retained even if the consumer transfers to another network or changes from postpaid to prepaid or vice-versa.

“The bill would give consumers the freedom to choose the provider that would give the best value for their money without having to lose or change their mobile numbers,” said Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian, sponsor and author of the bill, deemed a priority measure.

The proposed measure would also penalize telecommunications networks with fines of up to P1 million or with total revocation of operating franchises if they failed to deliver the benefits of mobile number portability to a mobile subscriber within “24 hours from the time such subscriber completed his or her porting application.”

The entities are also required to provide consumers with information on how to avail themselves of the MNP, such as application requirements and the porting process.

The bill would also remove the added fee imposed by mobile networks for calls and messages across different networks.

Mr. Gatchalian said cellphone numbers should become an extension of the consumer’s digital identity, “so that consumer loyalty will not be determined by the fear of losing their numbers but through the dynamism of competition among players.”

The proposed measure also noted that the nationwide MNP system would promote competition among telecommunications entities and urge them to provide consumers with better quality services.

“It will also foster technological innovation that will lead to an even greater demand for telecommunications products and services, and lead to a virtuous cycle of economic growth,” the bill stated. —