Sutel dismisses ICE request to delay MNP

Costa Rican regulator the Superintendency of Telecommunications (Sutel) has rejected a plea from incumbent cellco ICE Celular seeking to delay the introduction of Mobile Number Portability (MNP). Local paper Costa Rica reports that the cellco, which operates under the ‘Kolbi’ banner, sought to delay the introduction of MNP until 2014. Sutel dismissed the request however, announcing that it would today launch the tender to select a management company for the implementation of MNP. The watchdog is sticking to plans to have the service operational by February 2013, having given the nation’s trio of operators – including new arrivals Claro Costa Rica and Movistar Costa Rica which both launched in November last year – 400 days’ notice from January this year to make any changes needed for the launch of MNP.