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Published on November 14, 2007

The scheme will allow users of mobile and fixed-line telephones to switch networks without giving up their old numbers.

"The board will consider the final draft and launch the regulations in December, and then it will take about 8-10 months for telecom operators to prepare their networks and services," said National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) member Prasit Prapinmongkolkarn.

The NTC expects number-portability services to be launched in Thailand by the end of next year, he said.

The mobile-phone industry is expected to be the first to adopt the measure, followed by fixed-line services. Thailand has about 45 million mobile-phone subscribers and nearly 6 million fixed telephone lines.

Prasit said mobile-phone users would be charged a switching fee of about Bt150 to Bt300 for changing to another mobile-phone operator.

Meanwhile, the NTC is in the process of drafting the terms of reference for a clearing-house licence, under which a centre would be set up for registering and receiving networks of mobile operators. One of the centre's main tasks would be handling number shifts from one network to another.

Prasit said several companies were interested in conducting the clearing-house service, including two US companies: Telecordia Technologies and Synverse Technologies. However, NTC regulations stipulate that Thais must own 51 per cent of a company for it to be awarded a licence.

Prasit said the commission might not ask fixed-line operators to implement number-portability services, because that could interfere with geographical area codes, which indicate a caller's location.

"We may launch number portability for fixed-line services only within a region, such as within the North or the South. But portability for fixed-line services should not cover the whole country," he said.

Usanee Mongkolporn, The Nation