Phones are something that has been in
use for a long time in our world now. And that technology has grown from its
original style to what it is now. A very important factor of being able to make
calls with a phone is to have a phone connection.
Now, a lot of us must have heard
about the term “area code”, but not all of us know what it is. An area code is
essentially the three digit prefix that you add before you dial any phone
number and that area code depends on the location where you are making the call.
Like for example the 646
area code is for New York and the moment you increase one digit and
make it 647, it becomes the area code for Toronto.
Here is some basic information about
the humble area code.
·
Area codes were first made in the late 1940s, in order to
meet the increase in demand for telephone services post World War-II. The area
code can have all possible combinations from 0000 to 9999. A prefix can start
with any number except for 0 or 1 and cannot end with 11 (like 911, which are
reserved for special uses).
·
The North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA)
watches the consumption of numbers and allots new area codes as required.
Numbers are at present provided to telephone providers by prefix. As these
prefixes are assigned, there are fewer remaining numbers to be given to new
service providers.
·
As people are increasing the number of telephone devices, fax
machines, mobile devices, it is accelerating the use of these prefixes due to
which certain area codes are running out of prefixes for telephone numbers.
Also, the increase in the competition in the telecommunication market is also
leading to this problem.
·
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will not allow a
specific area code to be assigned to a particular type of telephone device. FCC
rules prohibit this because you cannot assign numbers based solely on a group’s
specific type of telecommunication service or technology use.
