Future Expansion of NANP
The North American Numbering Plan Administration (NANPA) is now overseen by NeuStar, which will probably face the task of adding one or two digits to each number, likely sometime after 2038. During that time, all public and private phone systems within the NANP area will have to be upgraded and reprogrammed (or even replaced) to recognize the new dialing rules.
One plan being considered adds a 1 or 0 either to the beginning or end of the area code, or the beginning of the local 7-digit number (or both), which will require mandatory 11-digit dialing (even for local calls), between any two NANP numbers, well before the transition period. In another proposal, existing codes would be changed to "x9xx" (e.g. San Francisco's 415 would become 4915); once that conversion is complete, the new second digit would be opened for a new range. (Compare PhONE Day in the United Kingdom, which added a "1" to the beginning of area codes in preparation for later using other digits, such as "2", for new area codes.) Other proposals include reallocating blocks of numbers assigned to smaller long distance carriers or unused reserved services.
NANPA previously coordinated an expansion of long-distance carrier access ("dial-around") codes from five digits (such as 10-321) to seven (10-10-321), in 1998. Vertical service codes, such as *69 (callback) and *70 (suspend call waiting), have been designed to allow the use of both two- and three-digit codes.
Read more about this topic: North American Numbering Plan
Famous quotes containing the words future and/or expansion:
“For a parent, it’s hard to recognize the significance of your work when you’re immersed in the mundane details. Few of us, as we run the bath water or spread the peanut butter on the bread, proclaim proudly, “I’m making my contribution to the future of the planet.” But with the exception of global hunger, few jobs in the world of paychecks and promotions compare in significance to the job of parent.”
—Joyce Maynard (20th century)
“The fundamental steps of expansion that will open a person, over time, to the full flowering of his or her individuality are the same for both genders. But men and women are rarely in the same place struggling with the same questions at the same age.”
—Gail Sheehy (20th century)