Mafab Communications has gone through a rebirth. It has rebranded as MCom, especially with the 5G launch.
Its entrance into the scene is still a surprise to many, if you followed the news during 5G license auction process in 2021/2022.
Now, the company which secured 5G license alongside MTN Nigeria last year; has within a space of 48-hours (this January) unveiled 5G network services in Abuja and Lagos.
So, today at the event in Lagos, a question was asked relating to how MCom secured the 0801 number plan from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in readiness for its voice call service launch. 0801 looks quite unique, isn’t it? Oh, how come it has been there, whereas the number series from 0802 to 0809, have been allocated?
The team from MCom tried to explain this. But some people appeared not satisfied. In fact, someone in the audience joked about it being a ‘secret number’. You know, conspiracy theories are not peculiar to the political gladiators.
Well, it is no secret. TechEconomy traced how MCom came about the 0801 number plan:
Background: ‘NCC Recalls 41.2 Million Inactive Lines’.
Around July 22 2020 this was the headline widely reported in the media; that the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has withdrawn some 41,240,448 million lines that have been left inactive or unused by telecommunications licencees across 36 states of the country over the years following an audit conducted.
This was contained in the newly published National Numbering Plan Second Quarter, 2020 in which NCC okayed 37 telecommunications service providers as officially operating in the telecom space.
The breakdown showed that the Nigerian telecommunications industry had 33,749,000 lines withdrawn while 7,491,448 lines were returned by the former users with effect from June 19, 2020.
NCC had earlier issued a Draft Final Report on the Development of New Number Plan.
The Withdrawn/Returned numbers were part of the Commission’s “regular audit in order to ascertain the level of utilisation of numbers assigned to operators.”
The phone lines were inactive, dormant or no longer in use by the assigned telecommunication operators. Many of the telecom licencees were either no longer in operation or have had the initial demands for the lines.
According to data made available by the Commission on its website, the licencees who had their lines withdrawn include ABG Communications Limited (10,000) for Abuja; Akklaim Telecoms Limited for Abuja (20,000) and Kano (10,000); Allied Bond Standard Coy Ltd (10,000) for Lagos; Alpha Wireless Limited (5,000) for Warri; Bell & Bell (10,000) for Jos.
Others are: BIG Communications Ltd (10,000) Makurdi; Broadband Technologies Ltd (10,000) Lagos; Cecil-Dolton Nigeria Ltd Lagos (8,000); Chromecomm Ltd (formerly Monarch Communications Ltd) Lagos (15,000), Abuja (5,000) and Port Harcourt (5,000); Cyancomm Ltd (formerly MTS 1st Wireless Ltd) Lagos (100,000), Ibadan (10,000), Abuja (20,000), Abeokuta (5,000), Onitsha (10,000), Aba (10,000), Port Harcourt (20,000).
NCC withdrew from Digital Telecoms Nig Ltd Lagos (6,000); Disc Communications Ltd Lagos (7,000) and Port Harcourt (3,000); Electronics Comms. Inc., Lagos (70,000); Eltel Communications Lagos (5,000); EM-International Systems Ltd Lagos (10,000); Envision Global Reach Nig. Ltd, Abuja (5,000); Fybertel Comms. (Nigeria) Ltd, Lagos (10,000); GiCell Wireless Ltd, Ibadan (20,000), Ilorin (20,000), Yola (20,000), Maiduguri (20,000), Calabar (20,000); Horizons Broadcasting & Telecoms, Kano (2,000).
Also withdrawn lines came from Imperial Telecoms Ltd, Lagos, (10,000); Independent National Electoral Commission, Abuja (10,000); Integrated Mobile Services, Lagos (10,000), Abuja (10,000); Integrated Wireles Tech Nig. Ltd, Lagos (5,000); Magenta Communications Ltd Onitsha (5,000), Port Harcourt (5,000); Mobitel Limited, Lagos (10,000), Abuja (10,000), Warri (10,000) and Port Harcourt (10,000); M-Tel Communications Limited, National (27,500); Multi-Links Telecommunications Ltd, Lagos (400,000), Ibadan (60,000), Abuja (50,000), Ilorin (20,000), Oshogbo (10,000), Ile-Ife (20,000), Ijebu-Ode (15,000), Abeokuta (10,000), National 11,000,000); Multiple Services Ltd, Lagos (10,000); and NAVAO Ltd, Lagos (10,000).
Also, withdrawn were lines from Odu’a Telecoms Limited, Omar Communications Limited, Orprah Communications Ltd, Peace Global Satellite Communications Ltd, Prest Cable& Satellite TV Sys Ltd, Q-Voda Telecom, Rainbownet Ltd, Regal Telecom Ltd, Royal Strides Telecom Ltd, Sadasa Communications Ltd, Shell Petroleum Dev Coy of Nig Ltd, Sky Broadband Ventures Ltd (formerly Direct On PC), Skyview-O Nig Ltd, Syntel I.G. Wills Communications, Starcomms Plc, Startech Connections (Witel Ltd), Sunmail Telecoms, T-Comms Nig. Ltd, TELCO Africa Ltd, Telefonics Networks (thorst) Ltd, Topcom Nig Ltd, Vitel Wireless, WAK Telecommunications Ltd, Webcom Ltd, Wideways Nig Ltd, Wireless Telecoms Ltd, Woldscope Ventures Ltd, XPT Link Ltd, Yemshba Investment Ltd, and Zoom Mobile (Reliance Telecom Ltd).
In summary, Mcom applied for numbering range; 0801 happens to be available. The number range, according to TechEconomy findings, was earlier allocated to Megatech Engineering Limited for national coverage for a total of 2,000,000 users. But since it has been inactive, NCC had to reallocate it to MCom.
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