CAT, AIS Gain From Number Portability

[webfact]

CAT, AIS gain from number portability

USANEE MONGKOLPORN

THE NATION

CAT Telecom and Advanced Info Service (AIS) have emerged as the biggest winners from mobile-phone number portability after the service was launched in December 2010.

The requests from all cellular networks for number transfers as of January 16 had reached 401,053, of which 304,779 were completed.

The service, which was introduced by the forerunner of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), allows subscribers to switch networks and continue using the same mobile-phone number.

Clearinghouse Co was launched by five telecom operators to handle the service.

According to the NBTC, CAT benefited from the highest net gain during the period with 78,000 new subscribers, who had moved to either CAT's My brand third-generation service or TrueMove's H brand 3G service operated by Real Move. CAT is providing 3G capacity to Real Move to provide the service.

AIS scored a net 54,000 subscribers from mobile-number transfers.

Suffering net subscriber losses were Total Access Communication (DTAC) with 5,000, Digital Phone Co (DPC) with 12,000 and TrueMove with 110,000. A net loss suggests that the number of acquired subscribers is lower than the number of exiting customers.

Takorn Tantasit, secretary-general of the NBTC, said yesterday that the NBTC could not disclose the net number of acquired customers and existing customers of each cellular network via number transfers, as the information is confidential. The watchdog can only reveal the net gains and losses.

An NBTC source said the concessions of both DPC and TrueMove would end next year. DPC, which is an AIS subsidiary, and TrueMove, which is in the same True Corp cellular business as Real Move, are believed to have encouraged their subscribers to migrate to AIS and Real Move before their concessions end.

AIS also boasts large network coverage.

It is hard to say whether DTAC customers switched to other networks because DTAC's network experienced problems three times during the past several weeks, the source added.

The NBTC is expected to complete the report at the end of this month on the number of DTAC customers who left for other networks since its network incurred its first problem on December 21.

-- The Nation 2012-01-20

[tragickingdom]

The Nation shows it utmost stupidity again. Not CAT, DTAC, AIS or True gain: Consumers gain. The fact is that the local newsletter "The Nation" is still fighting the ghosts of Thaksin and AIS, therefore becoming even more biased. It is probably so that DTAC gains the most as a company and not AIS. AIS has after all the most customers and those can keep their number switching to another company. No comments however on royalist sponsors CP (True), it is not done to criticize them even though they screwed half Thailand out of 3G with their cozy deal with CAT and their crooked directors.

[innerspace]

110,000 leave true move and 78,000 move to true move H or CAT.

Since I have never known anyone to use CAT for mobile I would guess most of that is true move H.

So does moving from one package to another with the same company really count as a transfer?

Even if they happen to be different subsidiaries of True they are not really changing provider.

I imagine this reporter got excited at school when his/her grades increased from an E to an F.

[Stevenredd]

And, of course, all of this is mute if you *had* DTAC prepaid, got talked into True H postpaid because it supposedly has better coverage, but doesn't, and want to switch back DTAC (now postpaid). Some ridiculous government regulation about not being able to move again for 90 days....to protect whom? True H because their service sucks? Or because they flat out lied about coverage areas (I work in Hua Hin, but live in a rural area).

Careful--you guys are starting to look like AT&T and T-Mobile really quickly.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Not hard to figure...

True Move has been trying hard to move its legacy customers over to True Move H and its newish 3G service, while True Move H also launched as a new brand and began attracted new customers as well.

DTAC is lagging in 3G deployment, faced or faces the investigation over allegations of illegal foreign ownership (I still haven't figured out whether there ever was a formal resolution of that case), and has been having periodic network outages.

AIS during the same time began launching its 3G services and has otherwise been relatively stable amid everything else going on... not raising prices so much like True Move H did, and not suffering all the problems that DTAC did.

Meanwhile, it's kind of strange how/why The Nation's mobile phone coverage almost NEVER mentions TOT and I-Mobile for their mobile network services... I switched away from I-Mobile during that period using MNP because, for unknown reasons, what formerly had been a good, strong 3G signal on their (TOT's) network at my home suddenly died away to almost nothing.

Not a lot of choices as far as I was concerned.... Going with DTAC looked to be an uncertain, unstable bet. And I wasn't going to pay True Move H a bunch more money to get less 3G service than I previously had with regular True Move... So AIS seemed like the only reasonable alternative.

[skippybangkok]

And I wasn't going to pay True Move H a bunch more money to get less 3G service than I previously had with regular True Move... So AIS seemed like the only reasonable alternative.

Lol.... Say it 10 times quickly and u might just be able to convince yourself

It's public knowledge that the True Move trial 3g network had 600+ sites, and the True Move H has many thousands already. Would be interesting to see your calculaations how this is possible.

I had old 3 g on my iPhone and True Move H on iPad in Phuket in December for holiday, and the difference in coverage is very substantial.

Edited January 21, 2012 by skippybangkok

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

You're correct about the expansion of True's 3G footprint, as far as I know..

But that expansion is meaningless to me..since I had good and very inexpensive 3G service before with regular TrueMove everywhere I went (and live) in Bangkok. So everything else is pretty much irrelevant to me...and certainly not anything I'm particularly interested in paying True a premium for.

My original comment stands... By less service, specifically, I meant that in comparison with their prior 3G plans with regular True Move, the new True Move H offerings tend to be higher priced and/or have lower data useage caps. I don't find any great value in that.

Edited January 21, 2012 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[skippybangkok]

You're correct about the expansion of True's 3G footprint, as far as I know..

But that expansion is meaningless to me..since I had good and very inexpensive 3G service before with regular TrueMove everywhere I went (and live) in Bangkok. So everything else is pretty much irrelevant to me...and certainly not anything I'm particularly interested in paying True a premium for.

My original comment stands... By less service, specifically, I meant that in comparison with their prior 3G plans with regular True Move, the new True Move H offerings tend to be higher priced and/or have lower data useage caps. I don't find any great value in that.

If price related...... That's different. Each unto his own . I don't care too much about paying a few hundred baht more... Happy have 3 G in alot off places now

[tai4de2]

And, of course, all of this is mute

"moot"