The FINANCIAL — The number of people who used number portability service in Georgia decreased in the first quarter of 2012 in comparison with the same period of last year.
The FINANCIAL — The number of people who used number portability service in Georgia decreased in the first quarter of 2012 in comparison with the same period of last year.
During the first three months of 2011 the number of ported numbers was 19,085, this year it was 13,253. “The introduction of portability services forced mobile operators to offer significant discounts on their services. The final result of this campaign was positive for the market and especially for subscribers, the Georgian National Communications Commission (GNCC) told The FINANCIAL.
“The reduction of MNP was expected. The Western practice showed the same results. In the first year of implementing portability the number of subscribers is higher than the next years,” Khatia Kurashvili, of the Georgian National Communications Commission (GNCC), told The FINANCIAL.
“The introduction of portability is focused on increasing competition among mobile operators. They start offering more realistic fees, qualified and diversified service. Whereas previously operators were focused on gaining new subscribers, after portability they started caring about existing customers, to maintain them. Portability caused various offers of discount packages by mobile operators. The final result of this campaign was a positive effect on subscribers and reduced balance,” Kurashvili said.
During the first three months of 2011 Geocell was the dominant recipient of ported subscribers, in 2012 Magticom regained the throne.
In the first quarter of 2012 Magticom became the leading recipient of ported users with 4,958. Geocell drew in 4,532 users and Mobitel – 3,759. At the same time Magticom became the leading donor of mobile number portability; the number reached 5,455 users. 4,791 were donated by Geocell and 3,007 – by Mobitel.
During the first five months of 2012 Magticom gained 5,145 customers of Geocell and 3,102 subscribers of Mobitel. Geocell received 5,080 subscribers of Magticom and 1,812 users of Mobitel. As for Mobitel, the company attracted 3,346 users of Magticom and 3,027 subscribers of Geocell.
From February till December 2011 Geocell received 27,984 subscribers of Magticom and 6,590 from Mobitel. Magticom attracted 15,405 subscribers of Geocell and 6,761 subscribers of Mobitel. Mobitel received 9,699 subscribers of Magticom and 7,089 subscribers of Geocell.
Geocell has been the largest recipient of ported mobile telephone users. The company attracted 16,043 users in the first quarter of 2011. Magticom added 6,279 users and Mobitel – 6,221. During the same period Magticom was the main donor of portability. 17,167 users switched to other operators. 6,902 consumers left Geocell and 4,474 – Mobitel.
According to GNCC the number of mobile phone subscribers in Georgia reached 4,487,877 in the first quarter of 2012. The figure was 4,048,388 in 2011 and 3,654,490 in 2010.
Kurashvili said that it is hard to predict whether the reduction of MNP will continue in 2012. “The final decision of subscribers will depend on the offers of the mobile operators,” she said.
The main complaints of Georgian subscribers are regarding inappropriate information of services, questionable arrears and legislation of service interruption. In total GNCC received 48 paper complaints, 45 verbal complaints and 845 persons were consulted.
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