Phone portability comes on time

WESTEL subsidiary Concentrix has completed the construction of its telephone number portability platform on schedule.

Phone number portability allows phone users to change carriers without needing to change their phone number.

The former WA-based company was forced to move east late last year to be closer to telecommunication carrier head offices.

Westel CEO Scott Frayne said the company had delivered on a promise made nine months ago.

“Australia-wide services are now available,” Mr Frayne said.

“We are now able to move forward with live trials with customers and move the business to the next logical level.

“We have made progress with potential carrier customers and this sequence of events is critical to gain the confidence of these carriers who, understandably, are concerned about the security and robustness of any devices attached to their networks.”

Concentrix is now able to offer carriers full commercial services in relation to local telephone number portability.

“Freephone and local-rate service offerings will follow in November, with mobile number portability coming online as per the recently announced Australian Communications Authority preliminary timeframe of March 2001,” Mr Frayne said.

“Our recently announced transit switching services will be available around June or July this year to complete the full suite of services,” he said.