Now change your service but retain your number. Trai chairman Pradip Baijal on Wednesday recommended on one of the most crucial issues of number portability on mobile phones saying that the facility will be made available for a one-time payment of Rs 200.

According to Trai, the number portability should be implemented from April 1, 2007. It even asked the department of telecom (DoT) to make suitable changes in the license enbaling Trai to issue guidelines in this regard.

Consumeres wil need to pay Rs 200 and that wil enable the operator to recover his investment cost in 3-5 years. Further, it has also recommended that initially MNP be introduced within the service area only.

The authority has come to the conclusion that this is not the appropriate time for introducing Fixed Number Portability. Releasing the recommendations on mobile number portability, Trai said Mobile Number Portability (MNP) benefits subscribers, encourages improvement in quality of service through increased level of competition between service providers, rewarding those operators having better customer service, network coverage, and service quality.

"Considering the present status of telecom services in India, Trai considers it an appropriate time to initiate process for implementing mobile number portability so as to increase customer convenience, quality of service and further enhance competition among service providers in the mobile sector," it said.

IBM said on Wednesday it is setting up a new "Global Business Solution Centre" in Bangalore, which will develop a range of high-value solutions through its global network of delivery centres.

The Bangalore centre will allow IBM consultants to develop and deploy solutions in over 50 key business areas, an IBM statement said.

"With the Global Business Solutions Centre, IBM will create and enhance a portfolio of replicable industry solutions that are developed by combining the strengths of IBM’s business consulting, research, software, systems, engineering, and emerging technologies. These new solutions

will be built-based on IBM’s Services Oriented Architecture methodology, and in collaboration with IBM clients and business partners," the statement said. "At the Global Business Solutions Centre, IBM is embedding a range of high-value capabilities such as consulting, research, and emerging technologies, into easily managed reusable tools that can be delivered globally," it quoted Amitabh Ray, director of global delivery, IBM India, as saying.

According to the release, one example of a solution being enhanced at the centre is the IBM Dynamic Inventory Optimisation solution that is designed to enable an organisation to better manage its supply chain. "Currently, German home improvement retailer, Max Bahr, is using this solution to obtain real-time inventory data in order to forecast demand and to support optimal stock levels of products are on-hand for customers. By leveraging the Global Business Solution Centre as a development resource, rapid and timely enhancements to the solution can be made to drive even higher value for the user," it said.

According to a study released on Wednesday by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), there are an estimated 4.6 million (not a complete representation) Indian Internet users that are banking online and the number is expected to grow to 16 million, inclusive of Internet and mobile banking by 2007-08.

Mumbai leads the way with online banking users at 22.5 per cent followed by Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore and Kolkata. The study suggests that the growing number of Internet users coupled with the increase in financial activities online, could provide an opportunity for the banking industry to get a better understanding of this channel as an additional touch point to serve their customers.

The findings indicate that 81 per cent of the online banking users used online banking for viewing their account balances in real-time with 42 per cent having viewed their credit and debit card transaction history and updates on banking websites. The study was conducted online in December 2005 and received inputs from 2,240 respondents who had banked online. Close to 38 per cent of the users cited that the most important factor to bank online was to check bank balances and statements while 35 per cent have requested demand drafts and pay orders online.

Ms Preeti Desai, president IAMAI, said, "Banking is a very crucial and recurring activity of any Indian household. The acceptance of online banking services delivers a pulse on the increasing confidence and trust in online financial transactions. It is also particularly heartening to see the research findings that 26 per cent of online banking activities are accepted and used across the country to prominent tier-II cities and towns which are witnessing a pick up in online activity at large."

The study found that the majority of users preferred the online banking route for information and financial transactions.