(ME)ID Required
One manufacturer described the hurried switch to MEID by saying "it's like falling out of a fifty story building; just because you haven't hit the ground by the time you reach the 25th floor doesn't mean that everything's okay." The good news is emergency crews are rushing to the scene, and it sounds like there will be a big airbag at the bottom.
There is an emergency response plan in place. Carriers have to free their back-end systems of reliance on ESNs, then decide with their handset partners if they will support pESN handsets or skip straight to MEID. Equipment manufacturers must ratify MEID for CDMA2000 and then test and release software upgrades for their base stations. Handset manufacturers need to work with carrier partners to make sure their carrier partners are ready for when they will run out of ESNs and switch to MEID.
As with the Y2K fixes, it's critical support for MEID is complete before time runs out. If everything goes smoothly, major CDMA carriers expect to be ready in mid to late 2006. This should give them a few months of cushion before the TIA predicts all manufacturers will be forced to switch to MEID in 2007.
If the switch to support MEID closely parallels Y2K, then the deadline will come and go and most people will be none the wiser. But it's worth knowing that this is happening because it's best to be prepared. We knew all about Y2K, didn't we? The coordinated efforts of every company and organization involved should once again pay off in smooth transition. However just like Y2K, there's no guarantee everything will work until the deadline comes and the switch is made.
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