Cingular Flips on the Switch to Number Portability
24 Novembre 2003 - 3:41PM
PR Newswire (US)
Cingular Flips on the Switch to Number Portability ATLANTA, Nov. 24
/PRNewswire/ -- Bringing new freedoms and conveniences to customers
that were not available before, Wireless Local Number Portability
(WLNP) begins today, and Cingular Wireless is ready. (Photo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20031124/CLM012 ) As mandated
by the Federal Communications Commission, wireless and wireline
users in the 100 largest metropolitan areas now have the option of
taking their existing phone number with them when they switch to
another wireless carrier. The option will be available to the rest
of the country on May 24, 2004. Cingular, the second largest
wireless carrier in the nation, announced early this morning it
initiated its first wireless number port request on behalf of the
soon-to-be Cingular customer and five-time world boxing champion,
Felix "Tito" Trinidad. The port request was submitted in Puerto
Rico at 12:01 a.m. Atlantic Standard Time (11:01 p.m. Eastern
Standard Time) and is believed to be one of the first in the
country. (Note to broadcasters - Satellite feed times for video of
Trindad's port request follow at the bottom of the release) As part
of its ongoing commitment to make WLNP simple for customers,
Cingular has created three easy ways for customers to switch their
numbers to Cingular: 1) Visit any Cingular retail store or any
retail outlet that offers Cingular service 2) Call 866-CINGULAR 3)
Sign up on http://www.cingular.com/ Also, Cingular has established
a toll-free number to allow consumers to check on the status of a
WLNP transaction that is pending. That number is 866-895-1097. As
part of a new promotion, Cingular is offering customers 500 bonus
Rollover(TM) minutes when they sign a two-year contract. Cingular
is the only domestic wireless carrier to offer Rollover, which
allows you to keep your unused anytime minutes from month to month;
and FastForward(TM), a device that lets you forward your wireless
incoming calls to a designated landline, saving you from tapping
into your wireless minutes. Cingular also offers a variety of
local, regional and national rate plans, as well as Family Talk(R),
which allows you to add a line for $9.99. "I'm proud of the work of
our employees, who have dedicated thousands of hours over the last
few years developing and testing the processes to ensure WLNP is as
efficient as possible for consumers," said Adam Vital, Vice
President, Wireless Operations. "I am confident that we are well
prepared to provide the best customer experience possible for those
wanting to switch their number." Cingular has invested more than
$300 million in the last two years to prepare for WLNP. The company
has added a call center in Jacksonville, Florida, and hired nearly
1,000 additional customer service representatives in anticipation
of increased volume of calls. Cingular was the first carrier to
publish the A to Z of WLNP - a consumer "tip sheet" on Wireless
Local Number Portability. Customers can save time by following
these recommendations: -- Know the details. Your new carrier will
need to know information about your existing account. So for
convenience, bring a bill from your existing carrier to your new
one. If you don't have a copy of your bill, know the exact details
of your account, including name (for example, is it billed to
"Bill" or "William" Smith), address, account number and phone
number. -- Leave some time. The process can take a few minutes or a
few hours. It could take even longer for your phone to be fully
functional (such as being able to receive incoming calls). --
Timing Counts. Start the process with your new carrier. If you
cancel your current service with your existing carrier, you may end
up losing your number. -- Are you a free agent? You may be under
contract with your existing carrier, who may charge you an early
termination fee if you cancel your existing service while still
under contract. -- Start from scratch. You may need a new phone
when you switch carriers, even if you are keeping your number.
Familiarize yourself with your new carrier's rate plans, coverage
area and features, too, because you'll need to choose a new plan.
-- Larger cities first. WLNP is required to be available in the 100
largest metro areas on November 24th of this year. Some carriers
may offer it in smaller markets before late May 2004. -- The "L" in
WLNP. "Local" means when switching carriers you will be able to
take your number within the same metro area but you may not be able
to take it from one metro area to another. -- Need your consent.
Your new wireless carrier will need your authorization to move your
wireless number from your existing carrier. This protects you from
carriers switching your number without yourpermission. Satellite
Feed To view and receive footage of Mr. Trinidad initiating his
port request, see below times and coordinates for the satellite
feeds. Monday, November 24, 2003 (KU Band/Analog) 1030-1100 a.m.
EST SBS6/T7 DL11872H 1400-1430 p.m. EST SBS6/T5 DL11823H 1900-1930
p.m. EST SBS6/T5 DL11823H About Cingular Wireless Cingular
Wireless, a joint venture between SBC Communications (NYSE:SBC) and
BellSouth (NYSE:BLS), serves more than 24 million voice and data
customers across the United States. A leader in mobile voice and
data communications, Cingular is the only U.S. wireless carrier to
offer Rollover, the wireless plan that lets customers keep their
unused monthly minutes. Cingular provides cellular/PCS service in
43 of the top 50 markets nationwide, and provides corporate e-mail
and other advanced data services through its GPRS and Mobitex
packet data networks. Details of the company are available at
http://www.cingular.com/ . * Cingular also imposes the following
charges: a Regulatory Cost Recovery Fee of up to $1.25 to help
defray its costs incurred in complying with obligations and charges
imposed by State and Federal telecom regulation, a gross receipts
surcharge, and State and Federal Universal Service charges. The
Regulatory Cost Recovery Fee is not a tax or a government required
charge. http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20031124/CLM012
http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: Cingular Wireless CONTACT:
Clay Owen, +1-404-236-6153, or , or Jennifer Bowcock,
+1-404-236-6319, or , both of Cingular Wireless Web site:
http://www.cingular.com/
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