Campaign Service Providers (CSPs) no longer have to choose between keeping their data and upgrading their connectivity partner.
It’s the open secret of the business messaging industry: for years, moving connectivity partners felt like a punishment. Because there was no way to simply transfer your data, leaving your current partner meant you had to completely re-register your 10DLC campaigns. Senders were forced to pay new vetting fees and potentially pause their traffic for weeks just to switch to a different network.
The scales were heavily tipped against senders considering a switch. It wasn’t just about the hassle of porting numbers or integrating new APIs; it was about the sunk cost of compliance. You had to weigh the pain of staying with a partner that didn’t meet your needs against the heavy lift of leaving.
Now, that calculus has changed. With the arrival of CNP Migrations, the era of vendor lock-in is over.
The evolution of A2P 10DLC registration: A double-edged sword
Since the inception of 10DLC (10 Digit Long Code) messaging in 2021, the channel has evolved from the wild west into a mature, regulated ecosystem. At Bandwidth, we have been communicative, transparent, and proactive in our approach to compliance with messaging requirements. We’ve consistently championed a consultative strategy, empowering our customers to own their experience with flexible products and ever-refining industry expertise.
But let’s be honest: even with a transparent partner, ecosystem changes haven’t been easy. Tightening restrictions and complex 10DLC registration requirements present real friction. They mean time, money, and potential deliverability delays.
Up until very recently, switching CNPs required a heavy lift. Beyond the normal discovery, negotiation, and onboarding you’d expect from any vendor change, there was a massive roadblock: 10LC campaign registration.
The “turn and burn” trap
In the old model, if you wanted to move your traffic to a new network, you couldn’t just pack up your bags and go. You had to:
- Delete your history: Effectively destroy the trust score and history you built with carriers.
- Pay to leave: Re-pay vetting fees and registration costs (Currently $4 per brand and $15 per campaign) just to get back to where you started.
- Wait in line: Suffer through how long 10DLC registration takes – up to a few weeks, risking revenue-impacting downtime while you waited for approval.
This friction benefitted incumbent partners. Fees and fears kept customers locked in, even if support was slow or reliability was poor.
What’s changed: The power of portability
The Campaign Registry (TCR), the governing body that publishes and enforces 10DLC compliance, recently introduced the Campaign CNP Migration Tool. This feature allows registered Campaign Service Providers (CSPs) to move campaigns to a new Connectivity Partner (CNP) without re-registring their 10DLC campaigns along the way.
This is huge news. It validates the advice Bandwidth has given for years: You should be your own CSP. If you are, then you can migrate as soon as you’re ready.
Bandwidth’s stance: Freedom to choose
This new capability dramatically changes the calculus for senders looking for more scalability, better support, and deeper expertise than their current connectivity partner provides.
Providers can no longer depend on industry friction to keep their customers locked in. As a CSP, you are now free to choose your new connectivity partner without opening your wallet to move your 10DLC campaigns.
And at Bandwidth, we are leaning all the way in, with:
- Zero fees for CNP Migrations: Some industry players charge per-campaign migration fees (up to $8 per campaign!). These are effectively an “exit tax” and are designed to mimic industry friction. But let’s make it clear: TCR’s documentation reflects a $0 fee per campaign to use the CNP Migration tool – and Bandwidth doesn’t add anything on top of that.
- Background provisioning: We don’t break your connection to build a new one. The CNP Migration Tool allows us to establish a provisional path for your traffic while your current path stays live. The switch only happens once the new route is confirmed, meaning your message delivery is never put at risk.
- Speed: We’ve seen 10DLC campaign migrations can take as little as 30 minutes. Given you have numbers on your account already, you can theoretically send A2P traffic on your old partner before lunch, and send from the same campaign on Bandwidth before EOD.
The key to true portability: Owning your CSP ID
As A2P 10DLC continues to mature, the industry is moving past the growing pains phase. We’ve collectively built the registration frameworks; now, we get to enjoy the refinements and efficiencies—like CNP Migrations—that standardization makes possible.
At Bandwidth, we believe a connectivity partner should earn your business every day through network reliability and expert support, not by holding your data hostage. However, there is one important caveat to this new era of portability: The migration tool only works if you are the registered Campaign Service Provider (CSP) of record.
Many connectivity partners offer a “managed” experience where they register campaigns on your behalf. While this feels like a convenient shortcut during initial setup, it’s often a gilded cage. If your partner owns the registration under their own ID, they own the campaign—and they aren’t always motivated to help you port that ownership elsewhere.
To truly take advantage of CNP Migrations, you may first need to graduate to becoming your own CSP. It’s a one-time strategic shift that ensures you hold the keys to your own reputation.
Ready to make your move?
If you’re already a CSP, you can start your zero-cost campaign migration today via your CSP dashboard or API. And if you’re not a CSP yet, don’t worry – you can graduate from your current model and take control of your messaging strategy.
Have questions about becoming a CSP? Already a CSP and interested in making a move? Reach out to our team to start the conversation.
