UK Agency Assigns Special VOIP Area Code
The United Kingdom telecommunications industry regulator on Tuesday unveiled its plans for Internet telephony, which include setting aside a phone area code specifically for VOIP calls.
Source: eWeekIn a prepared statement, Stephen Carter, U.K. Office of Communications chief executive sounded very much like a U.S. Federal Communications Commision administrator by saying that since broadband services are a new and emerging market, "our first task as regulator is to keep out of the way." However, the British office has taken a more decisive role in setting out numbering policy. It has officially allowed VOIP providers to use U.K. area codes, allowing subscribers to keep their local numbers when switching to VOIP services. It has also set aside an IP-only area code, 056, that can be used anywhere in the country. "Some people would say that that creates a ghetto," said one telecom engineer and telephone numbering specialist, who asked not to be identified. He suggests that an area code assigned exclusively to VOIP may result in phone numbers that are looked upon as somehow second-class.
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