Mobile Number Portability (MNP), a service that allows a user to swith operators while retaining the number, is likely to be delayed as state-run Mahanagar Telephone Nigam (MTNL) today expressed inability to implement it before next year due to technical constraints.
"We will not be able to implement MNP before December 31, 2009, due to technical problem. We are looking at implementing it by March 31, 2010," MTNL Chairman and Managing Director R S P Sinha said.
The government had earlier said MNP will be introduced on December 31 in the metros and by March 2010 in other telecom circles.
The government has set a maximum fee of Rs 19 that telecom companies can charge from users for a switch to another operator.
MNP is expected to help in increasing competition between service providers.
Talking about the affect of MNP, Sinha said, "MNP is likely to benefit us."