Ooma Forums

I am currently porting my AT&T number over to Ooma. I want to be sure that if I ever cancel Ooma or if they ever go out of business, that I can port my number back to AT&T. If this is possible I would like to know where it is stated in my contract. Thank you.
Thanks,
George

I called support and asked that question and was told that I could port my number out after porting it in.

I don't see any reason why you wouldn't be able to port it out. From what I've read, the numbers are owned by the local exchange carrier, ILEC or CLEC.

There is no contract with Ooma, just the Terms of Service that you agree to.

In case you would ever want or need to port out, I would suggest that you save a print out or screen shot of your account information showing your name, address and phone number which may be required in order to port out to your new provider.

bw1 wrote:I called support and asked that question and was told that I could port my number out after porting it in.

I don't see any reason why you wouldn't be able to port it out. From what I've read, the numbers are owned by the local exchange carrier, ILEC or CLEC.

You will want to harass OOMA tech support to ensure that the name and adress, etc. listed in the CLEC is indeed yours and not OOMA's. After all, it is the CLEC that ports the number, not OOMA.

..After all, it is the CLEC that ports the number, not OOMA...

That is correct Ooma doesn't "own" any numbers, they control a ported number on behalf of their customer. They work in partnership with a CLEC in a specific area. The number is always "owned" by the RBOC or ILEC for that area. When a CLEC releases a number it is returned to the RBOC or ILEC.

As the customer who controls a certain number you may port it to whomever you want, if you do not port it it is returned to the RBOC's or ILEC's pool

jm9496 wrote:
You will want to harass OOMA tech support to ensure...

Why would you want to harass anyone - especially before you know how they are going to handle something? ooma tech support have shown to be the most professional and caring group of people I have ever dealt with in their capacity. They spent hours making sure my system was working perfectly. Why would anyone assume they would have to harass these folks for them to do the right thing?

Not trying to rag on jm9496, but just telling all who read this that using a little grace and giving respect works wonders with ooma. You won't be disappointed.

Hi,

I have actually spent the last 6 months trying repeatedly to port out my phone number from Ooma to ATT uverse. I have failed. I tried every combination possible, my name/my address, ooma inc/ooma address, my name/ ooma address, ooma inc/my address. The automated system just doesn't work. Whatever information Ooma has setup for my phone number, does not allow porting. My advise to those planning to port your number to Ooma - don't. You will not get it back.

dhr_ooma wrote:Hi,

I have actually spent the last 6 months trying repeatedly to port out my phone number from Ooma to ATT uverse. I have failed. I tried every combination possible, my name/my address, ooma inc/ooma address, my name/ ooma address, ooma inc/my address. The automated system just doesn't work. Whatever information Ooma has setup for my phone number, does not allow porting. My advise to those planning to port your number to Ooma - don't. You will not get it back.

Did you actually ever call Ooma Customer Support and discuss your porting away from Ooma problem with them?

Customer Support
Email: support@oomacare.com
Phone: 1-888-711-OOMA (6662)
Monday-Friday 7am-7pm PST
Saturday-Sunday 8am-5pm PST

dhr_ooma wrote:Hi,

I have actually spent the last 6 months trying repeatedly to port out my phone number from Ooma to ATT uverse. I have failed. I tried every combination possible, my name/my address, ooma inc/ooma address, my name/ ooma address, ooma inc/my address. The automated system just doesn't work. Whatever information Ooma has setup for my phone number, does not allow porting. My advise to those planning to port your number to Ooma - don't. You will not get it back.

If you are trying to initiate porting from Uverse web page, you may have some issues because user interface may have some edits that they are looking for which you don't have (such as account number). With Ooma port out, there is no account number, no pin to provide. Talk to a live person on Uverse and give them your phone number, your name and address you have with Ooma, look in my.ooma.com to make sure you provide accurate info.

What you said about not being able to port our your number from Ooma can not be further from the truth.

I did not use uverse website. I repeatedly called AT&T and set this up. I also called Ooma support. They were of no real help. They kept insisting that they have given all the information needed. Basically, there is nothing I can do other than watch them shrug their shoulders.

dhr_ooma wrote:I did not use uverse website. I repeatedly called AT&T and set this up. I also called Ooma support. They were of no real help. They kept insisting that they have given all the information needed. Basically, there is nothing I can do other than watch them shrug their shoulders.

For anyone reading this thread and wondering whether you can port your number away from Ooma, the answer is YES.

One example, our beloved member kieranmullen was able to port away to a mobile carrier in 2 days.

kieranmullen wrote:Anyhow for anyone who finds this post in the future. There was no account number, and no pin or password to port away from ooma. I was able to port away from Ooma to Virgin Mobile within 2 days and I have been able to port to Google Voice so I can take advantage of free multi ring and voicemail transcription for free (or until they start charging anyway)

In all it was quite quick. VOIP to VOIP was never that quick. Vonage, Viatalk, Vitelity

As always, quickiest number port happens between wireless carriers. Hence porting away to wireless happens faster than porting to other types of carriers. Ooma goes through a carrier to service you so your number port happens between your Ooma carrier and the new service provider. In the unlikely event (this is extremely unlikely but I am sure people think about this) that Ooma goes under, your number is with your carrier so you would still be able to port out from that carrier. In the even more unlikely event your carrier also goes under, FCC would setup some special arrangements so you can still port your number over to a new service provider. So, don't lose sleep over losing your phone number.

To look up who your carrier is, check here: http://tnid.us