What’s in a number?

In November 2010 we reported on the Ofcom consultation in respect of the allocation of telephone numbers. The consultation period finished in February and Ofcom has now announced its decision on the way forward.

Briefly, the reason behind the need for a review of telephone numbers was that in certain areas 01 and 02 numbers were becoming scarce. Despite the increasing use of mobile and VoIP internet calls, telephone numbers were running out in areas such as Bournemouth, Cambridge and Milton Keynes. Ofcom wanted to come up with a solution which preserved the integrity of the local dialling code system whilst avoiding the need for customers to change their numbers.

As part of the review process Ofcom asked for communications providers to return any blocks of numbers which were unlikely to be used. This has resulted in the release of some 69 million numbers back into the pool. Whilst this has helped to extend the lifespan of some UK Regional numbers for up to four years, there are a still some 25 areas where telephone numbers are scarce. These include Bournemouth which is expected to run out of numbers during 2012. Ofcom’s first solution will be to impose full telephone number dialling for these areas. So, for example, those dialling within Bournemouth will no longer be able to simply dial the basic telephone number but will have to dial the full number including the 01202 code.

Secondly, to encourage telephone providers to only apply for telephone number blocks which they are likely to use, Ofcom has decided to start to charge telephone providers for number blocks allocated within 30 areas. These number blocks are important to companies such as Callagenix as they enable us to offer clients access to a range of telephone numbers within different geographical areas. Using internet technology, calls to these numbers can then be diverted to a business’ main switchboard or designated number, allowing businesses to have a local presence across the country whilst operating from a single site.

This ability to have a local presence is extended to international calls with a range of international freephone, international local and universal freephone numbers available from over 100 countries across the world including China and Spain. Adding virtual switchboards to this local telephone number presence allows a business to automatically transfer its calls on a “follow the sun” or other basis.

With an increasing use of VoIP and other methods of internet communication the use of telephone numbers in the UK may start to fall in years to come. In the meantime, some areas of the country will have to start to get used to dialling the full telephone number for a local call; which is a small price to pay to avoid the alternative of dealing with a complete new telephone numbering system.