Mobile SERVICE: Why very few people will ever port...

So the P-day came and went, some people have ported. I personally know only one person who did.


For the avoidance of doubt. Number porting is when you move your number from one mobile network to another, so you get SERVICE (pun intended) from a new provider, but you keep the same number (and network code) as you did on the old provider's network. Imagine you are a certain Kofi Mensah, a citizen of the Republic of Ghana, with a passport that says so. Wherever you go, Finland, Egypt, Albania, Venezuela, you will be Kofi Mensah of Ghana. If you decide you want to change your nationality, because Ghana is a country where you get SERVED, and apply for Togolese citizenship, you will become a new Kofi Mensah, but of Togo. Make sense? [If it doesn't, go and read the technical books]


If you got yourself a different number on another network, you have NOT ported. If you get yourself a new number on the same network, you have NOT ported. If you are wondering about your friends and family who have ported (and not told you yet), there is some melody that plays before your call actually connects, so you can listen out for that.


So why are the numbers so low? Well, for starters, anyone who has considered another network in the past is likely to have registered for a second, third, or up to fifth, number. They've tried the other providers and are probably not greatly satisfied, otherwise they would have just stuck to that one network. For everyone who has multiple numbers, their contacts already have the other numbers. Whats the point of porting your Vodafone number to the Tigo network when you can just tell everyone to stick to contacting you on your current Tigo number.


For those that didn't want to carry around multiple phones, porting provides the convenience of not having to find a way to tell everyone you've changed your number. In fact, if not for the "port" tone at the beginning of a call, they'll probably be none the wiser, and you can hop about to other networks, providing you don't get SERVED on either of them. The question is, where to hop to? There is no real proof that network A is better than network B, or C, or D, or E, and the other ways around. The concept of value for money is quite subjective when it comes to the networks, simply because it depends on what call plan you are on, as well as who and how you contact people. And even if this was the case [that one network shines brighter than the others], while Ghanaians are not especially brand loyal, we are strangely very change-averse. Don't ask me why.


So what is my advice for the new [yet to launch] network provider? You should probably save your money, but if you are insistent: In an ideal world, you have the experiences of five (actually more than 5) providers to analyse and make sure you don't repeat their mistakes. In reality, you will make a lot of the same mistakes. Thankfully, number portability means that instead of getting an extra SIM card, people will decide to "trial" your network by porting there. If it doesn't suit them, they may return, or the lazier ones will stay. But how do you get them to stay? Short of offering free calls across networks, I don't see much hope... and that doesn't make much business sense does it?