Ofcom today announced plans to improve number portability processes which allow consumers to keep their telephone number when they switch provider. In the absence of number portability consumers may be reluctant to switch provider as they would suffer the inconvenience and possible expense of having to change their telephone number.
The UK regulator is proposing that the port lead time - the period it takes to transfer a customer's number from one network to another - should be reduced from five working days to one working day following the switch.
Ofcom also announced today planned improvements to the method used to route calls to ported numbers.