Consultation Paper NNP 2009_Ref

Number Portability in Nigeria

Implementation of

Mobile Number Portability

in Nigeria

Initial Consultation Paper

2nd February 2009

Office of the Executive Vice -Chairman/CEO Nigerian Communications Commission Plot 423, Aguinyi Ironsi Way, Maitama, Abuja-FCT Telephone: +234-9-4617000 Fax: +234-9-4617514 Web: www.ncc.gov.ng

Number Portability in Nigeria 2

CONTENT PAGE 1. Introduction 3

2. Background

The Nigerian Telecommunications Act 4 Objectives 4

3. Number Portability: Nature, Types and Routing/Query Responsibilities 5

Nature of Portability 5 Conditions for successful Service Provider Portability 6 Routing/query Responsibilities 6

4. Technical and Operational Aspects of MNP Implementation 7 5. Summary of Issues for Comments 17 6. Consultation 22 APPENDIX: Appendix 1: Definitions and Abbreviations 23 Appendix 2: Definitions and Abbreviations 28 Appendix 3: Definitions and Abbreviations 29 Appendix 4: Definitions and Abbreviations 32 Appendix 5: Definitions and Abbreviations 33


1. INTRODUCTION

Number Portability (NP) allows subscribers to change their service provider without changing their telephone number. Number Portability offers immense benefits to subscribers because they can more easily change service providers without having to notify all of their friends and colleagues of a number change. This is particularly important to business subscribers. NP is another tool to further increase in the level of open competition, amongst Telecoms service providers, on issues of concern to the subscribers viz quality of service, customer care, value added services etc.

Usually NP is shunned by service providers who fear their subscribers will churn due to their poor quality of service or customer care. Thus NP tends to act as stimulus/incentive for service providers to improve their quality of service and customer care options and entering into more roaming agreements by reinvesting some of their profits. Typically, NP rewards those service providers having better customer services, network coverage, service quality and/or pricing.

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) sees NP as one of the important tools it has at its disposal to foster open competition, stimulate improvements in Quality of Service and expand coverage in the Nigerian Telecommunications market.

NP will be implemented by all operators in Nigeria including fixed exchange operators, VoIP, Next Generation Networks operators and mobile operators. Transit or interconnection operators will also implement NP as it relates to direct routing of calls to the proper serving or terminating network as calls t raverse their network avoiding unnecessary rerouting of calls.

NP will be deployed between mobile operators (MNP) and between fixed line operators (FNP). Bimodal NP (mobile to fixed or fixed to mobile) will not be implemented at this time. NCC is also considering including the porting of Toll-Free/Free Phone as well as Premium Rate Numbers and seeks comments from the industry regarding its implementation and timing.

Mobile NP will be implemented first in Nigeria allowing mobile customers to port their TN between mobile operators however, fixed and interconnect operators will implement within their networks the ability to perform direct routing of calls originating in or transiting through their networks to the proper terminating mobile network.


2. Background

2.1 The Nigerian Telecommunications Act

The Nigerian Communications Commission is vested with exclusive powers to regulate number and number portability in Nigeria, among other things. By virtue of the provisions of section 128 of the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003:

2.2 Objectives

The objectives for implementing MNP include to:

• Remove barrier to the free choice of mobile network, by a subscriber • Ensure further increase (boast) in the level of open competition among

network operators • Act as stimulus (incentive) for service providers to improve on quality of

Service and consumer satisfaction • Make it easier for the last mobile entrant to gain market share


3. NUMBER PORTABILITY: NATURE, TYPES AND ROUTING/QUERY RESPONSIBILITIES 3.1 Nature of Number Portability

• Location Portability:

This is the ability of a subscriber to retain his number when changing from a physical location to another within the same calling area. This type of portability may not be required in the existing mobile services which are offered nationwide.

• Service Portability: This is the ability of a subscriber to retain his number as he changes from one service to another, example from mobile to fixed services or from PSTN to ISDN services. This type of portability will not be implemented immediately in Nigeria because of the cost implication of upgrading the embedded fixed switches that still exist in the network.

• Service Provider Portability This is the ability of a subscriber to retain when changing from one service provider to another. Service Provider portability can be introduced in three ways: geographic, mobile and non-geographic. They relate to the numbers in the National Number Plan thus • Geographic Number portability or fixed Number portability refer to

portability involving fixed geographic numbers • Mobile Number Portability refers to portability involving mobile numbers • Non-geographic Portability refers to the portability involving special

services such as:

- Toll free services - Premium rate services (shared revenue) - Etc.

This paper focuses on mobile service provider portability; NCC may consider introducing the special services provider portability.


3.2 Conditions for successful Service Provider Portability

The conditions that will facilitate effective service provider portability include:

• Stakeholder are adequately informed of the benefits of MNP

• Porting period is short and the process is painless to consumers

• Subscribers are not charged for porting their numbers to network of their choice or any fee that may be charged to the subscriber is minimal so not to impact their decision making process.

• The process of porting is simplified e.g. one stop point of contact for the subscriber wishing to port his number etc.

3.3 Routing/query Responsibilities The responsibilities of the originating and the donor networks are summarized

below.

Implementation Verification of number for portability or porting

Database query to find the recipient network

Termination of call on the recipient network

ACQ Originating network Originating network

Originating network

QOR Donor network Originating network

Originating network

Call Dropback Donor network Donor network Originating network

Onward Routing

Donor network Donor network Donor network


4. TECHNICAL AND OPERATIONAL ASPECTS OF MNP IMPLEMENTATION

The technical and operational aspect of implementing MNP can be quite challenging. If not properly designed from the onset can act as bottlenecks and may impair successful implementation of MNP. Constant clear communication and coordination between all affected parties prior to, during, and after implementation is crucial to the success of the MNP platform.

Port Request Intervals:

Port durations vary from country to country and range from minutes to 30 days. Over the past years, the tendency has been to move to shorter port durations.

According to a study conducted by Analysis in 2006, the majority of consumers would prefer port durations of no more than 5 days.

A study conducted in the UK in the same year even suggests a consumer preference of no more than 2 days.

Source: Ofcom (2006) Review of General Condition 18 – Number portability

From the above International best practices, NCC wishes to accommodate these general consumer desires for NP in Nigeria as follows:

Mobile Number Portability - Two (2) working days from the initial customer request


Fixed Line Number Portability – five (5) working days from the initial customer request if or when FNP is implemented by NCC.

Number Management:

The number portability system/process shall:

Ø Store the entry of reference data for the Numbering Plan, specifically the number blocks assigned to each service provider. The system shall support configurable number block sizes.

Ø Support entry of reference data for new routing information so that calls to ported numbers can be routed successfully.

Ø Support the uploading of new number ranges and modification to existing number range allocations.

Ø Only have a single service provider (the Recipient) associated with each ported number at any given point in time.

Ø Not affect the assignment of number ranges based on the National Numbering Plan. If a number is ported to another service provider, that number shall remain assigned to that service provider until the customer’s service is disconnected. Once the customer’s service is disconnected, the number will be returned to the original owner based on the National Numbering Plan.

Tariff Transparency

Generally, telephone consumers are interested to predict the price of calls they place, for this singular reason it is important that NP should not undermine this capability.

In some countries this is accomplished by the originating network providing a beep or voice alert through the use of recorded announcements before routing or completion of the call or commencement of billing for all calls to a number which has been ported “off net” to another operator or if the call is going to incur a different cost than it would have been charged before it was ported. Another option for maintaining this capability is for service providers to implement a web page on their public web site which will display the tariff or service information for relevant ported calls. A third option would be to implement a public web site associated with the NPC which would allow users using the public internet to query whether a particular number has been ported or not and if ported, which operator now serves the number. The way in which these websites are usually implemented in the industry is that they only provide enough information to tell the user whether the number in


question is an on-net or off-net call. They generally do not provide tariff information because tariff information is often dynamic, depends upon non-NP related public policy issues and is made available to consumers with other mechanisms.

Call Routing (Refer to Appendix 4 & 5)

One of the most important decision to make before MNP implementation is the method to be used in routing calls from originating network to the mobile network associated with the mobile number.

The system must provide information necessary to allow for the routing of calls to ported numbers in a manner that has a minimal impact on call performance compared to that offered to non-ported numbers.

Indirect Routing is not failsafe and is associated with increased traffic congestion and extra conveyance costs, which, in the end may be passed down to the consumers.

Direct Routing as described in ETSI 123.066 is based on All Call Query or the Signal Relay Function that avoids these extra conveyance costs and in addition is failsafe.

Number Portability Database The use of databases is very vital in MNP, to store information on the networks associated with ported numbers. This information is in a form of a routing number which makes it possible to route a ported number to the correct mobile terminating network.


The number databases are either managed in a centralized or distributed manner. The centralized model consists of a single reference database containing data for all mobile numbers especially the ported numbers. While the distributed model involves multiple databases containing subsets of the total mobile ported data. In either case, most Operators are expected to maintain their own local copies of the data base for ACQ by downloading MNP data periodically from the master or centralized database. The centralized model is considered more efficient and cost effective for the industry overall and it acts as a single database of record (or point of truth) and thus is the approach NCC is recommending for MNP implementation in Nigeria. Privacy and Use of Information Information relating to port requests will be kept confidential at all times by the service providers. Information provided in port requests can only be used for porting, the routing of calls or the delivery of other telecommunications services, for fault management and complaint handling. Good Faith

All parties will act co-operatively and in good faith to facilitate porting requests. Generally operators recognize the benefits of industry cooperation, however in some hyper-competitive markets regulators have implemented more direct problem dispute resolution procedures and some regulators have even implemented punitive measures if operators are found to be engaging in anti-competitive behavior or habitually violating industry NP guidelines or processes which generate non-trivial consumer complaints. NCC is still considering alternatives at its disposal and seeks comments from the industry and consumers.

Consumer Awareness NCC in concert with the operators will establish plans to provide consumers with an adequate awareness of number portability including:

Bad Debt Policy - The fact that a customer has a bad debt or unpaid invoice with another service provider is not in itself sufficient grounds to reject the porting of that customer’s number.


Contract Lock-in Period - The fact that a customer has an existing contract with another service provider is not in itself sufficient grounds to reject the porting of that customer’s number. A customer ending a contract with an operator before its lock-in period is ended shall be handled the same way with NP as it is without NP.

Service & Porting Availability

Availability of number portability has several aspects and varies from country to country where portability has been implemented. NCC endeavours to strike balance between availability and costs.

For one, availability refers to the hours and days in a week when a subscriber can request the port of a number from a service provider or its point of sale. Typically, these are the standard or extended working hours.

Secondly, availability refers to the availability of the central NP solution, meaning the time frames within which a recipient operator can enter a port request into the system. From a technical perspective, 99.99% uptime measured on a monthly based on 24x7x365 excluding scheduled maintenance hours is possible. However, such high availability adds costs and does not provide more convenience to consumers or operational expense to the operators.

NCC will allow porting during normal and extended business hours and weekends and some holidays when operator retail outlets are open for customer business. NCC requires that the NPC be available to process port requests within the required time frames during these times of business. Specific guidelines, requirements and porting process procedures will be announced after agreement is reached by further the interaction with the operators in focused working groups.

Finally, availability refers to help desk support hours. Even if the central NP solution was to be available 24x7x365, the supporting helpdesk will be staffed only during standard business hours. Outside these hours, helpdesk personnel will be on call and will only address major problems (e.g. system outages).

Subscriber Verification

Prior to submitting a Port Request for each Number, the RECIPIENT must verify that the customer has the authorization to request the port.

Service providers shall only initiate a Port Request for a Number where the person requesting the port has made a representation to the Recipient Operator that they


are the Customer for that Number and that they have the authority to request the port.

Minimum Port Request Data:- • System generated Port Request ID: a transaction ID to identify all messages

related to this port request.

• Telephone Number: the telephone number being ported

• Port Date: date the port is requested for

• Recipient ID: the ID of the participant who initiated the port request

• Donor ID: the ID of the participant who currently owns the number being ported

• Route: the routing prefix that will be associated with the numbers as a result of the port

• Subscriber Data: additional information regarding the subscriber (e.g. Name, ID

Number) shall be provided for verification purposes. Maintenance of Records

The service providers are responsible for maintaining appropriate records to satisfy the routing, billing and audit requirements.

Maintenance of Interface to NPC The service provider is responsible for maintaining an interface with the NPC for the NPC porting process through which they can request ports, respond to port requests, and receive broadcast data including call routing information. Right to Refuse a Port Request

Donor service providers will have the obligation to accept a request from a Recipient Operator for any customer wishing to port their numbers from that service provider expect as specifically stated by NCC. NCC reserves the right to change this list of valid reject reasons with consultation with the industry. Bad debt and/or an existing contract with another service provider ARE NOT valid reason to refuse a port request.


As reference, INTUG points out in a Position Paper (INTUG 2001/05):

“A telephone number signifies an individual or an organisation and is therefore their property, under the custodianship of an independent national authority.

Numbers do not belong to operators. Numbers are regarded as scarce resource and must be used appropriately, including the promotion of competition through an adequate and non-discriminatory supply of numbers and codes.

The most common Port Request refusal reasons include:

1. Data required for subscriber verification/validation wrong or missing (e.g. name, ID number, phone number)

2. Port data does not conform with regulation 3. Subscriber suspended of service 4. Wrong type of connection (e.g. mobile instead of fixed) 5. SIM card number does not match MSISDN (for mobile) 6. Number has been deactivated 7. Number does not belong to the donor service provider 8. Number is a secondary number (e.g. fax) and no primary number was

included in the request for a mobile port

NCC will define allowable port refusal reasons after receiving comments from all stakeholders. It is NCC’s desire to limit refusal reasons to the minimum needed to operate a valid and efficient NP process and minimize potential abuse.

Porting Facilitating

The Donor service provider will not initiate any activity associated with the numbers in the port, including customer or service provider initiated changes that adversely impact the port process once the donor service provider has accepted the port request.

The donor service provider will use all reasonable efforts to minimize the amount of time for the porting process and to facilitate the porting of the number. Porting Single and Multiple Numbers

The NPC shall support porting of a single number, a single continuous number range and a list of single numbers and/or ranges within a single port request.


Porting a Single Number - The Recipient shall be able to create a number porting request identifying:

• The single number

Porting a Single Continuous Number Range - The Recipient shall be able to create a number porting request by identifying:

• The first number in the range

• The last number in the range

Porting a List - The Recipient shall be able to create a number porting request by identifying:

• A list of numbers and/or number ranges

Port Processing Phases

Porting of numbers must be performed via a set of processes where each process is done via a predefined set of transactions between the donor service provider and the recipient service provider. The NPC shall enable the porting of numbers through an automated exchange of messages using the following processes:

Port Initiation

Initiation is the exchange of messages between the donor service provider and recipient service provider to initiate the porting process. The Port Initiation Process starts when the recipient receives a request from a subscriber to port their number. The recipient, NPC and donor operator then exchange messages to validate the porting. Port Validation

Validation is the process of validating the message as well as the subscriber identity. The Port Validation Process starts when the donor receives a request to port a number. The NPC validates the request for required information. The donor then validates the subscriber data. If the data is valid, the donor may accept the request. If the data is not valid, the donor may reject the request.

Port Activation

Activation consists of the messages that are required among all key parties to provide the service to the subscriber. The Port Activation Process starts after a Port


Request Accept is received by the recipient. In this process, the recipient, NPC and donor exchange messages communicating the ability to activate the port.

Port Cancellation

Cancellation allows the recipient service provider to cancel the porting request. The Port Cancellation Process starts after a Port Request is sent by the recipient. In this process, the recipient, NPC and donor exchange messages communicating the request to cancel the port.

Port Disconnection

Disconnection consists of the messages required when the subscriber requests to terminate service for a ported number. The Port Disconnection Process starts after a Port Request Activation is sent by the recipient. In this process, the recipient, NPC and original number range holder exchange messages communicating the request to disconnect a ported number.

Port Synchronization

Synchronization is the process of synchronizing a service provider’s local database of ported number routing information with the centralized NPC database. The Port Synchronization process may be requested by a service provider who feels the data in their local database of ported number routing information is not synchronized with the centralized NPC database.

Porting Numbers Multiple Times:

NCC will not implement restrictions on the number of times a customer may port their numbers to other service providers or how soon after porting their number customers may port again.

This ability to port numbers multiple times and port without lock-in periods is not meant to dictate, circumvent or supersede relationships or service contracts between services providers and their customers. Customers will still be bound by the legal and contractual requirements with their service providers including early termination fees if applicable. (For reference purposes, this is also an EU policy which is credited as one of several contributing factors which helped focus service providers and regulators on consumer oriented public policy issues.) A Customer must be able to port their number more than once to different service providers. That is, an initial port from the donor service provider to a new service provider (recipient) may be followed at later dates by subsequent ports from that new service provider to other service providers.


Subsequent portability should be handled as if it was a first port. It is possible that eventually a subscriber number could be ported back to the original number range holder however the porting history must be retained.

Others aspects to be considered:

These will not be limited to the following:

• Change of SIM cads or phones (MNP is technology neutral)

• The role of trader or retailers

• Roaming issues (for futuristic)


5. SUMMARY OF ISSUES FOR COMMENTS

1. MNP is targeted for introduction in last quarter of 2009 and will allow

subscribers to port their numbers from one Mobile Network to another Mobile Network. NCC believes that the Nigeria’s Mobile market has the newest generation of networks, that competition is already introduced; and that MNP will indirectly improve QoS as the market competition matures.

2. FNP is targeted for introduction thereafter will allow subscribers to port

their numbers from a fixed network to another fixed network provider (regardless of whether the telephony service is provided by TDM or VoIP technologies)

NCC believes that the FNP will facilitate the fixed market to grow quickly

and leapfrog technologies. FNP will stimulate competition and indirectly stimulate growth of service offerings.

Bi-modal porting (porting between fixed and mobile networks) is not planned at this time.

3. The implementation of a National Number Portability Clearinghouse

(NPC) which will contain a national NP database (repository) that will host all ported telephone numbers in Nigeria is considered as a global best-practice, least expensive in the long term; fastest to implement in the short term. It avoids operators’ bi-lateral problems and delays and also minimizes costs.

4. The NPC will include all inter-operator NP processes needed to initiate,

reject, accept, complete and terminate a ported number between Operators.

5. Both MNP and FNP will be implemented on the same NPC infrastructure

to cut down on cost and confusion.

6. All service providers will have access to and use the data in the NPC database as the official Nigerian ported number “database of record”. Operators must maintain their own local copy of this database, which will be periodically updated and used for call set -up, and routing queries in their networks. International, transit and content service providers which are not assigned Nigerian numbering resources will have controlled access to the ported number data by the NPC administrator who will vet requests for validity and security purposes. Service providers


must maintain NP and related routing data in a secure manner and must not re-distribute this data.

7. NCC will have read-only access capabilities to the NPC to allow

monitoring and generating reports to assess processes and industry trends. This is because in extremely dynamic and competitive markets, it is important for the regulator to monitor and control the NP processes for the good of the general consumers

8. The NPC and related Systems will be owned and operated by a neutral

third party either under the license of NCC or in contractual agreement with NCC for a 5-year duration and be under NCC’s direct oversight. No licensed operator shall have an interest in the NPC, its vendor/provider, etc. to forestall any industry anti-competitive problems.

9. NCC will make the NPC vendor/provider selection based upon its current

policies and procurement guidelines. This will offer a faster approach as opposed to delays caused by forming an industry consortium for selection and contraction of such to meet all accepted goals

10. NCC will form an industry NP Steering Committee to solicit input and

assist in the development and refinement of Inter-Operator NP Business Rules and processes as a way of securing better industry buy-in and support; better understanding of Operator needs and concerns, and better process engineering to reveal more realistic issues and capabilities.

11. The direct routing with All Call Query is considered as the most efficient

mid and long-term solution for Nigeria. The reason is that all calls are routed directly to their final destination without involving the original donor network. Thus, avoiding further network congestion and QoS degradation, it is also least expensive in the mid and long term by eliminating unnecessary transmission costs. Call forwarding or other routing methods will not be used as interim solutions due to the added costs of migration at a later time.

12. MNP will be completed in 2 days maximum following a bona-fide

subscriber request. It is well known that both current and future Mobile network capabilities can accommodate this otherwise enhancements are readily available from manufacturers. Ideally, porting process can happen as fast as a SIM card can be provided to the customer.

13. FNP will be completed in five days maximum following a bona-fide

subscriber request. This is because some Fixed networks generally have


an older infrastructure requiring more time and labor; physical connections must be scheduled manually by technicians instead of through logical/software work.

14. MNP & FNP will be Recipient Operator led, i.e. subscribers will first contact

their new (the Recipient) operator, not the donor network/operator. This global best practice avoids anti-competitive behavior and simplifies the consumers’ procedures. NCC will not implement restrictions to customer win-back by service providers during or after the porting request process. Again, this policy is not meant to dictate, circumvent or supersede relationships or service contracts between services providers and their customers which may have been signed at the time of initiating a porting request. Customers will still be bound by the legal and contractual requirements with their service providers including early termination fees if applicable and bound by relevant Nigerian consumer laws.

15. NP will be one-stop shopping for the subscriber, to make it painless to

achieve a smooth experience for the subscribers, the recipient service provider will initiate all porting requests, and manage all aspects of the process through to successful activation of the service on the new network.

16. The subscribers may not be charged any fee for successfully porting their

numbers. This will ensure that both physical and psychological barriers are removed for subscribers thus making it more convenient for them.

17. NP will include pre-paid and post -paid subscribers both following

substantially equivalent processes, which will encompass tariff transparency.

18. Tariff transparency shall be provided in real time by a beep, a display of

the tariff or service information on the subscriber’s terminal screen or voice recorded announcement before ported number is going to incur a different cost than it would have been charged before the number was ported.

19. Customers will not be denied the right to port, for billing or non-payment

reasons since these are normal business reasons not created because of NP.

20. As a starting point, the following reasons for denying a port will apply:


§ Data required for subscriber verification/validation wrong or missing (e.g. name, ID number, phone number)

§ Port data does not conform with regulation § Subscriber suspended of service § Wrong type of connection (e.g. mobile instead of fixed) § SIM card number does not match MSISDN (for mobile) § Number has been deactivated previously (e.g. normal

disconnect) § Number is a secondary number (e.g. fax) and no primary number

was included in the request for a mobile port 21. Identification of customers for authenticating a porting request may be

limited to: Pre-paid – TN/SIM card ID, not in Stolen-Handset database or reported to authorities while Post -paid will be on validation of account ownership, TN, address validation and/or the same as required with non-porting service change requests.

All operators, including Interconnection and international Operators,

content providers and other telecom service providers will pay a fee to access the NPC for database downloads for their use within their networks even if they are not initiating port request transactions. Per port fees for successful ports may be charged to Mobile and Fixed Operators because they benefit from the acquisition of new customers. This hybrid model is considered the most ‘fair and equitable’ approach to spread cost recovery fees across the various industry users based on value or use. NCC in collaboration with the NPC vendor / financial consultant will determine proper NP transaction fees paid by the Operators that are both fair and equitable.

22. Ported numbers shall revert to the original donor for proper aging and

subsequent use by the donor operator, only after such number has been disconnected by the ported subscriber.

23. Operators will bear the cost of upgrading their networks in preparation

for NP implementation. This upgrade will include maintaining relevant interfaces with the NPC.

24. Operators and regulator will collaborate in creating adequate consumer

awareness of NP. The telecoms industry must be educated on the benefits of MNP to the mobile subscribers. Means of raising awareness shall include press campaigns, road shows, and advertising through TV, web and the radio.


25. NCC is interested in the implementation of an effective NP system and processes that will ensure appropriate routing of both voice calls and non-voice services after subscribers have ported their numbers. The non-voice services include:

a. Video-telephony b. SMS, MMS and other mobile messaging c. Logo, game downloads, ring tones etc. d. Other 3G enabled services


6. CONSULTATION

The purpose of this document is to solicit comments from industry stakeholders; other interested groups and individuals regarding the MNP consultation paper to enable NCC finalize the document for implementation purposes. The summary of the issues for comment is given in Chapter 5. The closing date for submission of comments on the Mobile Number Portability (MNP) will be 4 weeks from the date NCC published the consultation. NCC will review all responses received carefully and after one month publish an amended document with the views expressed and reasons for decisions taken. NCC requests parties with strong views relevant to this MNP consultation paper, either supportive or contrary to provide relevant information to substantiate their views and assert ions. This information may be in the form of primary research, published reports, benchmarking, or business cases. If any of the supporting information is proprietary or confidential to the submitting party, the party should clearly label the information as proprietary to enable NCC treat the information as such. A final consultation on the Mobile Number Portability will be carried out in April – May 2009 as an open stakeholders’ forum after which the recommendation on Mobile Number Portability will be published for MNP implementation. Comments should be made in writing (both in hard and soft copy) and forwarded to: The Executive Vice Chairman/CEO Nigerian Communications Commission Plot 423, Aguiyi Ironsi Way Maitama, Abuja (Attention: Josephine Amuwa) Tel: +234-9-4617000 Fax: +234-9-4617514 E-mail: [email protected]


APPENDIX 1

Definitions and Abbreviations

The definitions and abbreviations used in this Consultation have the following

meanings:

Additional Conveyance Cost: Additional cost incurred to the number block holder

due to the additional switching required along with the transmission capacity and

other related systems for the calls toward ported numbers compared to the call

toward non ported number.

Administrative Cost Per Ported Number: Administrative expenses of the donor and

receiving operators per ported number and expenses of the relevant operators in

connection with the changes of the routing information within the context of the

stated number,

Announcement Period for Number Porting: The period between the donor operator’s

positive reply to the receiving operator concerning the request for number porting

and the time of porting, in which the receiving network information, date and hour of

porting announced to all operators in order to assure the necessary arrangements in

connection with the stated number in their network,

Central Reference Database: Common Reference Database in which the information

on ported numbers and respective routing numbers and other relevant information of

operators are kept and used also for the exchange of information during porting

numbers, together with other relevant information,

Checking Period of Porting Demand: The period in which the receiving operator send

the porting request to donor operator for checking and donor operator’s reply to


receiving operator upon his check for the information of subscriber requesting for

port,

Donor Operator: The operator from whom the number is ported or who is in a porting

period.

Geographic Number Portability: Operator number portability realized in geographic

numbers,

Geographic Number: Number, the digits of which having geographic meaning in

the National Numbering Plan and the number constructed to ensure the routing of a

call to the network termination point,

Location Portability: Changing of location without changing of subscriber number,

Mobile Number Portability: Operator number portability conducted in mobile

numbers,

National Numbering Plan: Numbering plan that defines the structures of the numbers

which can be divided into parts for providing information on routing, addressing,

pricing or service type,

NCC: The Nigerian Communications Commission, the authorized regulator

Non-geographic Number Portability: Operator number portability realized in non-

geographic number,

Non-geographic Number: Numbers, the digits of which having no geographic

meaning in the National Numbering Plan,


Number Fee: The fee determined within the scope of authorization and charging in

primary allocations in accordance with the type of number,

Number Portability Routing Information: The routing code which is allocated to the

operators by the Authority and indicates the receiving network information for the

ported number,

Number Portability: A facility that enables the subscriber in the public telephone

network to change its operator, geographical position and/or service type without

changing subscriber number,

Number Range Holder: The operator to whom the number, which is subject to

porting, is allocated by NCC

Number: A string or combination of letters or/and digits or symbols that defines the

network termination point and routes the call to the respective point that includes

the information which may refer to subscriber, application, operator,

telecommunication network and/or telecommunication service where relevant,

Operator Number Portability: Changing of operator without changing subscriber

number,

Operator: A capital company, which operates the telecommunication services

and/or operates the related infrastructures in accordance with the authorization

agreement, concession agreement signed with NCC and/or in accordance with the

telecommunication license or general authorization issued by NCC,

Porting Period: Period between when a porting process is initiated to the time it ends


Porting Time: The period between the announcement of number porting and actual

porting,

Receiving Operator: The operator to whom the number is ported in or is in a porting

stage,

Service Portability: Changing of service type without changing of subscriber number,

Submission Period of Porting Request: The period between the application of the

subscriber to the receiving operator in order to port his number and submission of

such demand to the donor operator together with the required information and

documents submitted by the receiving operator,

Subscriber: Real or legal person having agreement with the operator performing the

telecommunication service in regard to benefiting from the respective service,

System Set-up Cost: The expenses of an operator derived from the renovation,

amendment, software and hardware updates of his network and systems in order to

provide number portability service and/or make a call to the ported numbers and

other similar expenses together with the expenses derived from the test processing

between the operators,

Tariff Transparency: Informing the user about the tariff and/or the operator for the

calls made to ported number,

The Act: The Nigerian Communications Act 2003

User: Real or legal person benefiting from the telecommunication services regardless

of being a subscriber or not,


Moreover, for the terms and abbreviations not defined herein above but used in this

Regulation, the definitions and abbreviations stated in the relevant legislation shall be

applied.


APPENDIX 2

The Nigerian Telecom Sector Scorecard Dec

1999 Dec 2000 Dec 2001 Dec 2002 Dec 2003 Dec 2004 Dec 2005 Dec 2006 Dec 2007 Nov 2008

Number of Connected Fixed Lines

450,000 553,374 600,321 702,000 850,000 1,120,000 1,223,258 1,563,028 *1,579,664 *1,235,673

Number of Connected Digital Mobile Lines (GSM)

None 35,000 266,461 1,594,179 3,100,000 9,200,000 18,587,000 32,184,861 *40,011,296 *54,604,314

Number of Connected Digital Mobile Lines (CDMA)

None None None None None None None 138,924 *384,315 *5,278,160

National Carriers 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

3G License None None None None None None None None 4 4

Unified License None None None None None None None None 13 13

Number of Operating ISPs

18 30 30 35 35 36 69 117 117 117

PNL Domestic N/A 11 14 24 9 N/A 3 N/A N/A N/A

PNL VSAT (International)

20 N/A N/A N/A 1 N/A N/A 1 3 N/A

Number of Active Licensed Fixed Line Operators

9 16 16 17 20 22 26 26 29 9

Number of Licensed Mobile Operators

1 1 3 4 4 4 4 4 5 5

Private Investment $50m USD

$150m USD

$1,200m USD

$2.100B USD

$4.000B USD (est.)

$6.080B USD (est.)

$7.500B USD (est.)

$8.500B USD (est.)

$11.500B USD (est.)

$12.000B USD (est.)


APPENDIX 3

PORTING EXPERIENCE FROM OTHER COUNTRIES

EU – 15 Comparison Maximum port time Typical port time Fees Direct/Indirect

routing Austria 3 days 2 hours €19 customer both

Belgium 3 days 1 day €3.86 - €23.40 inter-op. direct

Denmark 10 working days 1 day €9.60 inter-op direct

Finland 5 working days None direct

France 10 days 7 days direct

Germany 30 days 12 working days Maximum €29.95 inter-op. direct

Greece 15 working days 20 minutes €19.60 inter-op. direct

Ireland 1 day 20 minutes €20 customer direct

Italy 5 working days 3.5 hours €10.02 inter-op. and €10 customer

direct

Luxembourg 3 working days direct

Netherlands 10 working days €9 customer direct

Portugal At least 5 working days! €40 customer direct

Spain 5 working days None indirect

Sweden 5 working days 4 days 16 SEK (€1.60) inter-op. both

UK 2 working + 7 calendar days

5 days None for port. 1.2€cent per minute routing fee.

indirect


EU – 12

Maximum port time Typical port time Fees Direct/Indirect routing

Bulgaria

Cyprus 14 days none direct

Czech Republic

Estonia 7 working days none direct

Hungary 14 working days none direct

Latvia

Lithuania 28 days none direct

Malta 4 hours

Poland

Romania - -

Slovakia

Slovenia 5 working days €10 direct


Outside EU

Maximum port time Typical port time Fees Direct/Indirect

routing

Australia 2 days 2 hours

Hong Kong 2.5 days 2 hours indirect

USA 14 days 2 hours direct

Canada 2 hours

Switzerland 5 working days none indirect

S. Korea 30 minutes direct

Singapore 7 working days indirect


APPENDIX 4

Country How calls are routed from a mobile network to another mobile network

Austria All call query Belgium All call query & query on release

Croatia All call query

Cyprus All call query Denmark All call query

Estonia All call query

Finland All call query France Phase 1: onward routing

Phase 2: all call query

Germany All call query

Hungary Phase 1: all call query & query on release

Iceland All call query

Ireland All call query Italy All call query

Lithuania All call query

Luxembourg All call query Malta All call query

Netherlands All call query

Norway All call query Poland All call query

Portugal All call query & query on release

Slovenia All call query Spain Onward routing

Sweden Onward routing & all call query

Switzerland Onward routing United Kingdom Onward routing Methods of routing calls to ported mobile numbers in CEPT Countries

1. The minimum legal requirement is for onward routing. 2. Queries could be outsourced to other operator. 3. Queries are outsourced by one operator to the incumbent operator.


APPENDIX 5

Country Type of ported mobile number database

Austria Distributed

Belgium Centralised

Croatia Centralised

Cyprus Distributed

Denmark Centralised

Estonia Centralised

Finland Centralised

France Centralised

Germany Centralised

Hungary Centralised

Iceland Centralised

Ireland Centralised

Italy Centralised

Lithuania Centralised

Luxembourg Centralised

Malta Distributed

Netherlands Hybrid distributed & centralized

Norway Centralised

Portugal Centralised

Poland Centralised

Slovenia Centralised

Sweden Centralised

Switzerland Centralised Types of ported mobile number database

Operators are responsible to maintain their own database concerning all ported numbers or use another operator’s database (incumbent’s obligation) for routing their calls.

Documents

Consultation Paper NNP 2009_Ref