JT customers who want to move to the Coop’s new mobile service, and take their number with them, will be able to do so this month – more than six weeks earlier than initially stated.
The supermarket cried foul last month when, after their new service had launched, JT said that it would not be able to transfer – or ‘port’ – its customers’ numbers over to the Coop until May.
This was due to several factors, the taxpayer-owner operator said, including a higher priority programme to strip out Chinese-made technology from its network.
The new entrant made a complaint to the competition regulator, which has resulted in the date when number porting to the Coop’s network can begin being brought forward.
While welcoming JT’s new schedule, the regulator said it was “disappointed” that its involvement had been required for the operator to expedite its plans.
In a statement, the Jersey Competition Regulatory Authority and its Guernsey equivalent said: “[We] have secured a significantly accelerated delivery timetable from JT for the technical changes needed to enable Mobile Number Portability to the Coop’s mobile service.
“Under JT’s original proposal, the required system changes would not have been completed before May. Following constructive regulatory involvement and detailed engagement between JT, Sure, and the Channel Islands Co-operative Society, JT has now committed to delivering full MNP functionality by 17 March, more than six weeks earlier than first indicated.”
It added: “JT has provided regulators with a strengthened implementation plan, including a condensed testing phase and adjusted internal resourcing to accelerate delivery.
“JT has also given ‘firm commitment’ that all necessary work will be completed as quickly as possible. Continued coordination between operators will remain essential to ensure the new deadline is met.
“The JCRA and GCRA have welcomed the revised schedule and JT’s commitment to expedite progress but remain disappointed that regulatory involvement was required to accelerate JT’s delivery of MNP to the Coop Mobile.”
In response to the news that JT customers would soon be able to port their existing number over to Coop Mobile, the society’s chief executive officer Mark Cox said: “With a confirmed delivery date now in place, we look forward to welcoming new customers to Coop Mobile, enabling more members and customers to benefit from our flexible, contract-free plans.”
