OREANDA-NEWS. March 27, 2014. These figures are given in the report on the phone number portability services in Moldova by the National Regulatory Agency for Electronic Communications and Information Technologies. They include the costs on modernization of some components of the network and IT systems and on creation of a centralized data-base and data bases of all the providers.

The investments have been made by the providers and by the administrator of the centralized data base. To adjust their network to the new service the providers invested MDL 10,000 to EUR 1,5 million, depending on capacities of their networks. The general investment to launch the new service amounted to MDL 51 million or EUR 3.2 million.

The administrator of the centralized data base invested EUR 920,000 to purchase the equipment, carry out the tests, etc. According to ANRE, the key goals of the number portability program, namely developing competition, rendering new services at affordable prices, bridging the gap between the tariffs for calls within the network and between the networks, encouraging investment in the infrastructure, have been achieved.

As a result, the market of electronic communications has become more competitive, which was profitable for users. On the one hand, they have been given more opportunities to choose a provider and to negotiate a contract; on the other hand, the providers have had to exert more efforts to hold their old clients and to attract new ones by making them more advantageous offers at more affordable prices.

Phone number portability allows final users to keep their numbers when changing the provider. In Moldova it was launched on July 1 within mobile networks and on July 31 2013 within fixed ones. Since then, any subscriber may change his or her provider in 5 days since his or her application without loosing the phone number.