Within a year of the Nov. 24 implementation of wireless local number portability, 30 million consumers will switch providers, according to new research from The Management Network Group (TMNG) Inc.
Of those, 18 million will switch because of WLNP, while 12 million who planned to switch anyway will now take advantage of the convenience of the service that allows customers in the top 100 U.S. markets to keep their phone numbers. TMNG believes each wireless provider should be able to handle 800,000 to 2.3 million porting requests per month, depending on the carrier, through June 2004 when the service becomes available nationwide.
The study found that 42 percent of wireless subscribers are now aware of the Nov. 24 WLNP mandate. In addition, 16 percent are aware they can transfer their home telephone numbers to wireless phones. TMNG believes this could mean an additional 19 million porting requests, 6 million from people currently without cell phones and 13 million cell-phone users.
Recent research from Intelliseek on the same subject is just as daunting to industry-more than 40 percent of wireless consumers are ready to switch carriers following the Nov. 24 deadline, and only 15 percent of consumers are likely to stay with their current providers.
The group said 30 percent of consumers surveyed cited price or value as the top reason for switching, 19 percent cited coverage areas, 15 percent noted billing issues, 13 percent cited plans or contracts, 12 percent blamed customer service and 6 percent blamed intrusive or misleading advertising.
SunCom, a wireless carrier in the southeastern United States is showing customers statistics on network performance to assist in purchasing decisions. The carrier is posting network performance results, including percentages of calls connected, blocked and dropped, in its retail stores. For September 2003 the company said it had 99.7-percent connected calls, 1.85-percent blocked calls and 0.4-percent dropped calls. “Results like these demonstrate our long-standing commitment to network quality, which our research shows is extremely important to customers in their choice of a wireless service provider,” said Glen Mella of SunCom. The carrier encouraged customers to seek similar information from other wireless service providers.
Intelliseek’s research also showed customers in the 19-to-25-year-old age group are most likely to switch, and T-Mobile USA Inc. and AT&T Wireless Inc. are most vulnerable to switching-not good news for AT&T which today included higher-than expected churn numbers in its third-quarter results. Interestingly, 65 percent of consumers say word-of-mouth recommendations are most influential in their choice of service providers, while only 15 percent said television ads influence their choices.
The Consumers Union said it expects cell-phone carriers to offer deals in this final month leading up to the Nov. 24 deadline, but warned customers to shop carefully. Signing up for new service just before LNP service is implemented could mean a long contract and expensive termination fees, the group said. The Consumers Union advised customers to wait until Nov. 24 has passed to make decisions regarding cell-phone service. The group also said its EscapeCellHell.org> Web site, which urges consumers to contact Congress to uphold the Nov. 24 deadline, has generated nearly 25,000 letters.
