Landlines Could Work on Mobiles in the USA

The US landline network, Verizon Communications and the CDMA mobile operator, Verizon Wireless have announced that they will permit number portability between landline numbers and mobile numbers, from this November. The agreement means Verizon customers will be able to switch their home phone numbers to a mobile phone with service from Verizon Wireless, and vice versa. The agreement paves the way for similar landline-to-wireless and wireless-to-landline porting agreements between the nation's wireless and landline phone companies. According to this agreement Verizon and Verizon Wireless will not deny or delay a customer's request to port from one carrier to the other simply because the customer owes a fee for terminating service earlier than an existing service contract might permit, or because there is a balance due on an account. Switching carriers will not forgive a customer's financial obligations, but the changeover in service providers will not be delayed because of them.

Verizon and Verizon Wireless have agreed to port under the terms of the multi-state stand-alone agreement rather than through negotiation of interconnection agreement amendments. Verizon and Verizon Wireless say that they believe no such agreements are necessary for any similar agreements between wireless and wireless service providers, and are instead impediments to portability.

Verizon and Verizon Wireless are facilitating barrier-free non-geographic porting by allowing customers to port their wireline numbers to a wireless service, even if Verizon Wireless does not already have phone numbers located in the same landline rating area ("rate center"). The Verizon/Verizon Wireless agreement shows that, while significant policy and procedural issues remain for both wireline and wireless companies as they turn to implementing number portability, the work can - and should - be completed quickly to ensure that the nation's phone users can benefit from this new freedom. The companies urged the FCC to quickly spell out what companies must now do as they complete plans for number portability."

Posted to the site on 23rd September 2003