Bruce wrote:
> gladman wrote:
>> Can someone tell me how to dial 800 and 888 numbers in the US from
>> Toronto?
> I've never heard of these codes being used in actual practice,
> but the following info might be worth a shot.
> From http://www.lincmad.com/nongeographic.html
>> 880 Paid international calls to +1 800 ("replace" code)
>> 881 Paid international calls to +1 888 ("replace" code)
>> 882 Paid international calls to +1 877 ("replace" code)
>> Toll-free services are essentially automated collect calls. The
>> recipient of the call pays the cost. However, many toll-free numbers
>> only work within a limited subset of the North American Numbering
>> Plan countries (for example, only the U.S.A., or only the U.S. and
>> Canada), so "replace" codes have been implemented for the first
>> three toll-free codes: 800, 888, and 877. To dial a U.S.-only 877
>> number from another NANP country, a caller might dial 1-882-nxx-xxxx.
>> The caller pays the same international call charge as for a standard
>> call to the United States. These codes may also be used for calls
>> originating outside the NANP. However, the assignment of further 88X
>> codes corresponding to additional toll-free codes is not guaranteed.
>> In particular, 866 was activated 2000-07-29, but no replace code was
>> issued (883 being the obvious candidate). Furthermore, the three
>> existing 88X replace codes may be recaptured at some future date.
>> If additional toll-free numbers are needed, 855, 844, 833, and 822
>> will be activated in that order, but replace codes will not be
>> issued.
The use of 88X "replace" codes has officially been "reclaimed" by
Neustar NANPA and the ATIS INC. See NANPA Planning Letter #331 dated
June 2, 2003, "Recovery of NPA Codes 880, 881, 882 (Paid Toll-Free
Service) Scheduled for April 1, 2004",
http://www.nanpa.com/pdf/PL_331_v2.pdf
Even though the use of 880 (for 800), 881 (for 888), 882 (for 877)
have been officially eliminated, it is quite possible that some
overseas telecom admins still allow their customers to dial such codes
for "paid" access to US or NANP based toll-free (800, 888, 877)
numbers -- afterall, Neustar NANPA has not yet actively re-assigned
880, 881, 882, for "real" intra NANP toll-free numbers. And before there
will be any (real) toll-free 880, 881, 882 numbers, the North American
telco industry must use up all (most) 866 numbers, which has to happen
before 855, then 844, then 833, and then 822 numbers can be used for
real toll-free numbers -- and then, and only then, will you probably
begin to see (real) toll-free numbers with the toll-free area codes
88x (of course 888 was already assigned and put into use). It was
thought that 855 would be needed simultaneously with 866 when 866 was
planned to open up for assignments in April 2000. However the FCC
delayed the opening up of 866 for real toll-free number assignments
until Novmeber 2000, and the FCC also put an indefinite "hold" on the
opening up of 855 for real toll-free numbers as well, back in 2000.
At the rate things are going, it might be years before we even get
to 833 or 822, much less any (non-888) 88x toll-free codes.
Anthony Bellanga (anthonybellanga@notchur.biz)