Mobile Number Portability service will be launched in January 2013, Azerbaijani Minister of Communications and Information Technologies Ali Abbasov told media today.

"This service in the mobile operators' networks enhances the competition," he said. "This will impact on improving the quality of services rendered by operators and gradual reducing the tariffs for mobile services."

Number portability means full migration of a subscriber phone number with the operator's prefix.
Operators have been instructed to use a 10-digit set of subscriber numbers. So, it is necessary to dial operator's prefix ("050", "051", "055", "070" and "077") and seven-digit phone number.

The introduction of the MNP service increases competition and forces operators to take extra efforts to retain former customers while providing more attractive services to attract new ones.

/Trend/