While Japan is usually a front-runner in mobile communication technology, there is one particular area that it has been lagging behind most other countries - mobile number portability.

Previously, when changing carriers it was impossible to keep the same phone number but it has recently been announced that from November 1st 2006 users will be able to switch mobile providers and still keep their old number.

A small charge will be incurred, possibly in the range of a few thousand yen (about USD$30) and it will even work for online sign-ups. It is expected the transfers would take a day to be processed.