Minister Paulwell affirms MNP, LNP Coming May 31st 2015 - Why NPA TPPR, IXP Deadline and VoIP Registration herald MNP, LNP for NANP Number Ranges and Competition

“We have now gazetted all the rules dealing with number portability and I have mandated the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR) and all the providers that come May 31, 2015, we will have full portability

Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, Hon. Phillip Paulwell on Tuesday December 2nd 2014 at an ICT (Information and Communications Technology) Seminar held at the UTECH (University of Technology) in Kingston

Folks look alive for Sunday May 31^st 2015 as MNP (Mobile Number Portability) and LNP (Landline Number Portability) is a go!

So says Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, Hon. Phillip Paulwell on Tuesday December 2^nd 2014 at an ICT (Information and Communications Technology) Seminar helld at the UTECH (University of Technology) in Kingston.

This as reported by the Horse's Mouth, the JIS (Jamaica Information Service) in the article “Minister reaffirms Commitment to Implement Number Portability By May 31, 2015”, published December 2, 2014 By Athaliah Reynolds­Baker, The Jamaica Information Service.

Number Portability makes it possible for subscribers to switch Telecom Providers and still keep their phone numbers.

By March 2014, Minister of State in the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining Julian Robinson declared that the facility had been promised by May 2014 was delayed until December 2014. This was because Telecom Provider LIME wasn't ready to port its landlines due to technical difficulties as outlined in my blog article entitled “State Minister Julian Robinson has announced that MNP is delayed until December 2014 - ICT Roadmap in shambles as Fourth Delay Suggest Telecom Provider's Stalling the Process”.

By June 2014 Minister of State in the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining Julian Robinson set a new date of Sunday May 31^st, 2015 for MNP and LNP to be fully implemented as I'd reported in my blog article entitled “MNP and LNP coming in May 2015 - MNP and LNP in Jamaica delayed as Sheriff Julian Robinson caught in a Telecom Providers Standoff”.

It was this promise that Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, Hon. Phillip Paulwell reiterated, with penalties for the Telecom Providers who refused to co-operate, quote: “Those companies that are not ready, they are going to feel the full brunt of the law and the authority that I have, because this has been outstanding for too long and people should have been ready by now”.

Ok, so these are strong words by Minister Phillip Paulwell. Why MNP and LNP are so important and what can he actually do against the Telecom Providers?

MNP and LNP - Necessary for NANP Number Ranges and Third Telecom Provider

As the title suggests, that's exactly why MNP and LNP are important.

Once in place, it demonstrates that Jamaica is using our allocated number ranges efficiently and thus makes it easier for us to get a new Exchange Code from the NANP (North American Numbering Plan) as stated in my blog article entitled “OUR applies for new Area Code for Jamaica - Competition in Telecoms in the coming Hunger Games Catching Fire of Mobile Computing”.

Once we receive the new area code, it would effectively double our number ranges and make it easy for customers who want to retain their old phone numbers when the switch from one Telecom Provider to another. Already signs are sprouting that suggest that the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining is serious this time.

Evidence of MNP Coming – Chronology of the OUR prepping for MNP and LNP

First, there is the hiring of a Consultant to the OUR (Office of Utilities Regulation) which was to be filed by Thursday June 26^th, 2014 as per schedule as reported in my blog article entitled “OUR to hire Consultant for LRIC Study on Landline - JA$1.49 per minute for Fixed Line and Landline Flat Rate as MNP, LNP Approaches”.

This Consultant was to recommend the pricing for Cross-Network calling for Landline to Mobile Calling using a LRIC (Long Run Incremental Cost) to determine the true cost of Landline Calling and what price could be fairly set by a telecom Regulator that would ensure the loser price for Fixed Line Operators without the Telecom Providers operating at a loss.

Seems pretty coincidental and just before a LNP in 2015 right? There’s more!

OUR seeking NPA Applicants – IXP Deadline as MNP and LNP is coming on short notice

Then the OUR (Office of Utilities Regulation) in October 2014 issues a Press Release stating that they’re looking for applicants for the post of NPA (Numbering Portability Administrator) with a TPPR (Technical & Price Proposal Requirements Request) document listed on their website.

The details of what a NPA entails were thoroughly explored on my blog in my blog article entitled “OUR issues TPPR for a Number Portability Administrator in Jamaica - How Number Portability will get us NANP's NPA and Third 4G Competitor”.

Since then, five (5) applicants have come forward as reported in the article “Five apply for portability admin services”, Published Sunday December 21, 2014, by Avia Collinder, Business Reporter, The Jamaica Gleaner, about which I plan to do a blog article soon.

Then there is the implementation of the IXP (Internet Exchange Point) in November 2014 as reported my blog article entitled “Jamaica's Local Internet Exchange Point - IXP Lower Routings, Web Hosting and Websites Loading on smartphones as Jamaican Domain Name Registration and MNP, LNP Approaches”.

This will make the routing of Internet Traffic to international Websites more localized by encouraging them to mirror their website by getting its own physical Server for our Jamaican Domain “.com.jm, .org.jm, .edu.jm”, making it possible to have Local Domain name Hosting for Online Services.

It'll reduce the website fetch times and the international termination costs involved in contacting their servers in another country. The most noticeable change to customers is that it'll make Internet, at least on smartphones, appear to move much faster. More interestingly, it's being provisioned by Thursday January 1^st 2014, after which time Telecom Providers may be fined and probably have their Telecom Licenses revoked for not connecting to the IXP.

That means any Third Competitor coming to Jamaica or any service that has to route Data Traffic to a server abroad has to mirror their services on the IXP.

VoIP Providers have to Register – Telecom Triumph opens Market for VoIP Competition

Which leads to my final piece of evidence that indicates that MNP is coming, that being Minister Paulwell's declaration that VoIP Providers will have to registered to terminate calls as stated in in my blog article entitled “Minister Paulwell says VoIP Providers must Register to Terminate - Why WhatsApp may no longer be Free as IXP by January 2015, MNP by May 2015”.

This means that the Telecom Providers standoff that began on July 2014 with Telecom Provider Digicel as reported in my blog article entitled “Digicel blocks VoIP Services Viber and Nimbuzz in Haiti - Digicel losing International Calling Revenue but will be worse when WhatsApp comes” has finally panned out in their favour.

They too, would technically be treated as Telecom Providers, which suggests that they'd have to have to be subject to the rules of MNP. So expect by Sunday May 31^st 2015, that not only will MNP and LNP be implemented, but a whole new set of VoIP Operators will be revealed as Telecom Providers in Jamaica.

Truly, MNP is coming. And with all the chips falling in place, expect a third competitor by December 2015.