"Allow Port-Out SMS Facility Irrespective Of Tariff Offer, Plan": TRAI To Telecom Firms

Sector regulator TRAI on Tuesday directed telecom operators to "immediately" allow port out SMS facility for all cellular customers requiring it, regardless of worth of their tariff provide, vouchers, or plans. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) took a powerful notice of telecom service corporations not offering outgoing SMS facility in sure pay as you go vouchers.TRAI mentioned within the current previous it has acquired complaints from subscribers over their incapacity to ship SMS on brief code 1900 specified for UPC (Unique Porting Code) era, for availing cellular quantity portablity facility regardless of having enough steadiness of their pay as you go accounts."Now therefore the authority...directs all access service providers to enable, with immediate effect, for all mobile subscribers, both prepaid and postpaid, requesting for a unique porting code, the facility to send SMS on short code 1900, in order to exercise their right to avail porting facility in accordance with the Telecommunication Mobile Number Portability Regulations, 2009...irrespective of the value of the tariff offer/vouchers," TRAI mentioned in its course.The regulator mentioned that the observe of non-provision of the power of sending MNP associated SMS in sure pre paid vouchers/plans is a "contravention" of the provisions of rules "as it takes away the consumers'' right, provided for in the regulations to avail mobile number portability (MNP) facility".