Case 1: AI Customer Service on WeiboI shared an article from Xinwang titled “Multiple Telecom Operators Expose Hidden Rules for Number Portability: If There Are Complaints to 12345 or the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Processing Will Be Delayed” on Weibo.
The article states, “Several citizens in Chengdu, Sichuan, reported on social media that when they attempted to process number portability, they were informed by the receiving operator that due to previous complaints to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology or 12345, they were required to wait 120 to 180 days before processing could occur,” and that “the staff indicated that this rule is intended to prevent malicious competition among operators and to deter users from making complaints, as complaints can result in a fine of 3000 yuan for the staff, leading to strict enforcement of this rule.“Xinwang reported that they contacted several offline service points of Unicom, Mobile, and Telecom in various districts of Chengdu and received similar responses.Relevant staff from the Sichuan Provincial Communications Administration explicitly denied the existence of a policy requiring citizens to wait 180 days for number portability after filing a complaint to 12345.From the content, it seems unlikely that Xinwang’s reporters fabricated the information after interviewing multiple operators’ service centers and relevant authorities. I am unsure of the truth; I am merely sharing this to draw attention.However, I quickly received a response from the AI customer service robot of China Unicom Sichuan, stating, “Hello! To protect your privacy, please send us your phone number and a detailed description of your issue via private message. We will handle it as soon as possible!”This article is shared from media reports, with a link to the original from Xinwang, clearly not an issue I encountered myself. How should I respond to Sichuan Unicom? Should I get a new phone number just for this article?Case 2: AI Customer Service from Telecom OperatorsThis should be a typical scenario showcasing the “5G Messaging + AI Customer Service Model” from telecom operators.
Many users have expressed that with AI customer service, the process has become more complicated, often taking several minutes to resolve issues. My experience is that “(with the support of large models, telecom customer service) has already transitioned from a menu-based to a conversational model, with relatively high accuracy in voice recognition. However, there are many instances of convoluted responses, so unless I have a clear and simple request, I usually just say ‘transfer to a human’ after connecting, and it generally works after repeating it twice.” Voice, SMS, and APP customer service are similar; users need to save time by first assessing the accuracy of AI responses. If the issue is uncommon or the content and requirements are complex, it is advisable to request “transfer to a human” for resolution.Another case: Why is it so difficult to replace a lost phone card when I present my ID at the service center?
This process needs to be improved. A person should have the highest authority over all phone numbers registered under their name, including the ability to cancel and replace cards. After presenting their ID at the service center and passing the operator’s “live authentication,” they should have the highest authority, and call records and frequently contacted numbers should not be mandatory options. Operators should reasonably assume that the number is being used by the “real-name information holder.”