"Adam Lipscombe" <adam.lipscombe@qucs.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1158309316.88837.0@iris.uk.clara.net...[color=blue]
> Folks,
>
>
> Is it possible to port a POTS landline number ported to VOIP?
> Like you can with mobile numbers?
>
>
> Thanks -Adam[/color]

Porting is a an area fraught with mis/disinformation. In order for one
carrier to port a geographic number to another both operators must have a
porting agreement which involves technical as well as commercial terms. Many
operators who have geographic number allocations from Ofcom have very few
porting agreements. The problem has been exacerbated in recent years by
operators greedily snapping up vast amounts of geographic numbers (which for
some areas have run out completely) in order to deliver the same to the DID
market for VoIP.
You should always ask an operator what porting agreement they have in place
if you are concerned about changing your supplier, or your supplier going
bust ! In many cases you will not get a clear answer, particularly if your
supplier is a reseller and at the bottom of a very long food chain in the
telecomms market.
The same is true for the non-geo numbers e.g. 0845. I have had big problems
in the past where 0845 number ranges have ben unobtainable for hours on end.
When we finally found the problem at the wholesale level the operator could
not port the numbers and in addition refused to speak to us directly as we
were the customers of their distributor's reseller.
The 'next generation networks' (NGN's) promise a more flexible environment
being based entirely upon IP which makes the concept of telephone numbers
redundant. However, I fear it will be a long and rocky road until the
benefits filter down to us consumers. Meanwhile, Caveat Emptor !