Simplify NPAC Data Use and Local Service Management Systems (LSMS) with PortControl Sync

Looking back at the last 40 years of consumer phone service in the U.S., two things among others stand out. First, the breakup of the Bell System monopoly into “Baby Bells” in the mid-80s introduced a new era of competition for consumers, and the Telecommunications Act of 1996 then built on this by putting into law the ability of consumers to keep their wireline phone number when switching from one service provider to another.

Second, though, even more than 20 years after the passage of the Telecommunications Act, the telecommunication industry by and large still hasn’t refined the technology to make wireline local number porting as simple and seamless as its counterpart, wireless local number porting – until now.

Focusing on Local Service Management Systems

ATL Communications has brought together today’s innovations in business integration applications, online transactions, and automated processes to transform the process for wireline local number porting with PortControl. Crucially, just as with today’s technology solutions available for wireless local number porting, PortControl is designed on the principle of being a true integrated solution for every facet of wireline local number porting, with one login, one set of APIs, one invoice, and one support system.

Simply put, PortControl takes on the challenge of providing local number portability mandated by the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Up to now, there has been no standard or a technologically efficient process for service providers to track down, exchange and update the multitude of phone number records needed to complete wireline local number ports. Instead, this process has been a complicated and time-consuming headache that requires a ton of resources and a slew of extra costs that leave both customers and employees frustrated.

To this end, PortControl was created to simplify the burdensome but necessary processes of local number porting for telecommunication service providers, and to eliminate tedious steps and create a happier workplace for their employees.

Enter PortControl

One area specifically improved in the newest version of PortControl is PortControl Sync, the local service management system (LSMS) component. An LSMS allows carriers to use data from the Number Portability Administration Center (NPAC), the system that supports number porting in the U.S. for the purposes of routing, rating and billing local calls.

To serve this need, PortControl Sync has been designed as an entire LSMS as a service, and it has been honed to provide LSMS data with an easy-to-use interface and set of tools based on the feedback of hundreds of porting experts. Here are some highlights.

In particular, one critical feature of the newest PortControl Sync is that it allows LSMS dipping to be done with APIs, or it allows an LSMS to be set up on-premise to act as a local copy of an NPAC database. For this process, a huge differentiator with PortControl Sync is that it only pushes changes and updates to the local copy database.

There’s no need to schedule downloads at specific intervals. The system can do that for you in real-time. As a result, you no longer have to schedule downloads at predetermined intervals to guarantee your LSMS stays up to date. When a change is made, ATL Communications can update your LSMS for you.

What’s more, the newest PortControl Sync has added these improved features:

• LSMS and location routing number (LRN) function available through an API or on-premise setup.
• For on-premise setups, the capability for real-time delta changes to be pushed to users every time the NPAC database is updated
• Capability for PortControl APIs to be updated directly from the NPAC LRN database in real time.
• New PortControl Explore function that includes a new “‘LRN”’ field for LRN lookup directly within PortControl.

A Complete Solution for Wireline Local Number Porting

On top of these improved PortControl Sync features and along with the other new features, PortControl offers the option of using it to handle local number porting yourself, with back-office integrated APIs, or one that you can turn over to our experienced team to use to completely manage your local number porting for you. For a managed service, ATL Communications can act as a service bureau that provides world class 24/7/365, U.S.-based LNP experts capable of performing end-to-end local number porting for your business.

With today’s technology, porting a wireline phone number shouldn’t be a struggle. It should be as simple as porting a wireless phone number has come to be. ATL Communication has remedied this by developing PortControl from the feedback of hundreds of porting experts, with a smart, easy-to-use SaaS platform for local number porting that removes complexity and frustration.