FCC To Shorten Landline Port Window [Broadband Reports]
Yesterday, the Federal Communications Commission backed consumers wanting to switch their telephone service from a telephone company to cable telephone service. Telephone customers looking to save on their monthly bill are turning to cable operators for their telephone service. So many, in fact, that AT&T recently announced that it lost 18,000 land line telephone customers every day during the first three months of 2009. But customers switching telephone providers often run into a run-around from phone companies when they attempt to move their telephone number, called "number porting," from one provider to another. Currently, the telephone company has four days to switch the number, when in reality the action of switching the number takes much less time.
The FCC yesterday decided that customers choosing to switch telephone providers deserve to have a convenient process that's not dragged out over a series of days. Under a ruling, the FCC has now set the number portability window to one business day. Customers who opt to drop phone service from Ma Bell can now have their current number up and ringing on their new provider in 24 hours.
I'm glad to see that the FCC has taken this pro-consumer action that will serve to aid the millions of phone customers nationally that will switch to less expensive cable telephone service this year.
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