If you’ve been thinking about switching to another service provider but are reluctant to change your phone number, there’s some good news.
As Tuoi Tre reports, users in Vietnam will be able to switch to other mobile carriers while keeping their old contact number starting this December.
On Thursday, military-owned telecommunication company Viettel began testing the new technology making the switch possible, called mobile number portability (MNP). Vinaphone and Mobifone also participated in the exercise in preparation for the service launch on December 31 this year.
MNP will be available to both prepaid and postpaid customers. At the moment, this isn’t possible and users who wish to capitalize on promotional campaigns from other service providers must purchase a whole new SIM card with a brand-new phone number.
“We’ve basically finished developing the technical infrastructure to interconnect our system with other providers,” a Viettel representative told the news source on Wednesday.
However, the Ministry of Information and Communications – the government agency overseeing the technological upgrade – is also working on a set of regulations to prevent users from abusing MNP to benefit from different promotions from different phone companies.
A draft circular is reportedly in the works requiring users to clock in at least 90 days with their current phone plan before switching to another. Moreover, customers with overdue payments are obliged to settle their bills before making the switch.
