Telecommunication

Telecommunications Policy 36 (2012) 187–196

Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect

Telecommunications Policy
URL: www.elsevier.com/locate/telpol

Regulation and competition in the European mobile communications industry: An examination of the implementation of mobile number portability
Bele´n Usero Sa´nchez n, Grigorios Asimakopoulos 1
Business Management Division, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, C/Madrid, 126 (28903) Getafe, Madrid, Spain

a r t i c l e i n f o

abstract

Available online 21 December 2011

Over the past two decades, the mobile communications industry has seen a considerable drop in the consumer switching charges made by service providers in order to promote effective competition and ensure a level playing field for new market entrants.
Mobile Number Portability (MNP) is an important regulatory measure taken to reduce switching costs, and it is believed to play an important role in fostering competition in the mobile market. MNP implementation has varied significantly across European
Union countries, particularly with respect to porting time and customer fees, both of which are important factors when deciding whether to switch to another provider. The research examines the effects of MNP implementation on competition in the European mobile communications industry. The study findings indicate that subscriber churn rates are negatively affected by both the level of charges levied on subscribers wishing to maintain their current number (porting) when switching mobile providers and the length of time required to switch. The implications of the effectiveness of MNP regulation for competition in the mobile communications industry are discussed.
& 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords:
Mobile number portability (MNP)
Regulation
Competition
Switching costs
Mobile communications industry

1. Introduction
The mobile communications industry is a source of substantial growth for the European economy. In the European
Union, total mobile

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