| Truly Mobile |
17 November 2003
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FCC Allows Cell Phone Users to Keep Their Numbers
One of the biggest headaches in the US for cell phone users, apart from the huge swathes of emptiness where one cannot get a signal, used to be the immobility of the mobile phone's numbers. The FCC, in a move that is going to put even more pressure of the service providers, has decided to let the consumer keep the number when switching companies.
Of course, this is going to mean higher churn rates; that is, more people are going to switch because there is one less problem in doing so. Since the number stays with the consumer, telling everyone about a new numbers ceases to be the barrier it was a few weeks ago. And that will hurt profits down the line because people will shop around for even more "anytime" minutes, more features, more, more, more. And the provider that doesn't provide these extras, well, the term is "penny stock."
This race to the bottom naturally does have an end. Someday, a service provider will simply give up and announce that there is a flat rate for unlimited use. Thus far, the consumer has had to watch the trade off between minutes and money. Number portability has just made unlimited use that much closer.
There is nothing better than the consumer getting bang for the buck, so long as the supplier of the good or service in question is making a profit as well. But it is not entirely good news. The number of quality conversations people have is few, and making unlimited minutes available will not improve the calibre of discussion. Everyone has overheard the conversations in the malls, stores and parking lots of America.
A truly great innovation would be unlimited minutes only if what is being said is intelligent, eloquent and necessary. The ensuing silence would be deafening.
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