With effect from January 1st 2002 it will be possible to change to a different mobile telephone operator and maintain the same telephone number. This facility, already in use in the fixed telephone network, is called operator portability and represents an element of stimulus amongst competition in the mobile services market.
The loss of the telephone number and the consequent updating of contacts will no longer be a conditioning factor when changing to a different operator, thus facilitating the option based on another criteria. The complete telephone number is maintained, including the prefixes 91, 93 and 96.
During recent months the Instituto das Comunicações de Portugal (ICP) and the mobile telephone operators have been preparing the facility for mobile telephone number portability, safeguarding user information requirements whenever calls made to transported numbers are more expensive than they were before migration to other networks.
Thus, whenever a user establishes a call to a transported number, i.e., a number that has migrated to another network, and the tariff applicable is possibly higher that the pre-migration tariff, the user will hear an informative message.
As it is technically very complex to give exact information regarding cost during the phase of establishing a call to a transported number, the message may indicate a help telephone number where the elements regarding the cost of this call can be obtained.
This message will always be audible, regardless of whether the call is being made from a mobile or a fixed network.
The message heard at the beginning of calls made to transported telephone numbers will constitute a first phase of providing the public with information, the duration of which will be decided at a later date. Clarification of the price of calls to transported numbers via the operator help number will be maintained.
For communications to non-transported numbers, i.e., numbers that have not migrated to other networks, connections will continue to be made as usual - without hearing any kind of message at the beginning.
Voice Mail and short message services will be maintained with no restrictions.
