Utah cellular service providers are reporting mixed reactions to the recent Federal Communications Commission ruling that allows customers to switch landline numbers to cellular numbers.

"We've switched over quite a few people," said Sean Lucky, sales manager at Airtime Cellular, a Salt Lake City cellular service provider. "Lots of people are really excited about it. Lots of people are jumping ship right now."

Mike Woodbury, the president of the Utah company Powerhouse Paging and Cellular, reported a different reaction by consumers.

"I haven't had too many people switch," Woodbury said. "I've serviced about 100 new phones in the last two weeks, and only three have wanted to switch."

The ruling took effect in Salt Lake City and other major cities Nov. 24. It will not apply to Utah County residents until May 24, 2004.

Prior to the switch date, industry sources predicted millions of customers across the nation would try to switch numbers and services. When the day allowing the switch actually arrived, the Associated Press reported probably fewer than 100,000 customers requested the switch.

One possible reason for the lower-than-expected turnout is the slow turn around time and technical difficulties surrounding the switch.

"It hasn't gone very smoothly," Woodbury said. "The FCC required a two-three hour turn around. It is currently taking three to five days."

Lucky said he has seen an even longer turn around rate. He said customers sometimes wait up to seven days.

"It is really slow right now, there is a pretty long back log," Lucky said.

Woodbury and other cellular service providers predict more customers will take advantage of the ability to switch their numbers and services when the technical glitches and long backlogs subside.

"A lot more people will probably change over at the first of the year," Woodbury said.

Another challenge to the new rule is the behind-the-scenes quest of getting competitors to work together.

Lucky explained the process of the switch requires phone companies to communicate with one another to complete customers' request to switch services while keeping the same number.

Customers planning to convert landline numbers to cellular numbers must first call the new company from whom they want service and activate a new phone. Then, the new company calls the old company to complete the service switch.

"It's never easy to get competitors to work together," Woodbury said.

Competitive cooperation is especially unlikely as phone companies step up advertising campaigns in an effort to lure new customers in the wake of the ruling, which is currently being appealed in the courts.

The United States Telecom Association, an association representing local phone companies, asked a United States appeals court to block the ruling. The court decided to allow the ruling to take place as scheduled, but agreed to consider the case. Wednesday, the FCC requested the court uphold the rule in response to the case.

Lucky said, ultimately, phone companies' reactions to the ruling will vary depending on which companies win and which companies lose customers.

Despite some phone companies' challenge to the decision, federal regulators of the FCC say the ruling is a response to consumer demand.

"I think this should have been done years ago," Lucky said. "People have been trapped in lousy services because of their numbers."



Copyright Brigham Young University 4 Dec 2003