Issued by the Oftel Numbering Unit
50 Ludgate Hill, London, EC4M 7JJ
Enquiries - Telephone: 0171 634 8758; Fax: 0171 634 8784
Numbering Bulletin 33 ................July 1997
The information may also be found in a readily accessible form on Warwick University pages:
http://www.warwick.ac.uk/search/Phones/Oftel_cl.html
IMPLEMENTATION OF CODE CHANGES
An industry steering group, comprising operators and Oftel, has been set-up to ensure that the code changes announced in Oftel's January Statement are implemented in networks within timescales set out in framework documents issued by Oftel. The industry group will oversee the activities of the technical and communications working groups (comprising consumer groups, manufacturers and operators) as well as the operation of a Project Office. Operators who are not yet represented on the Steering Group should contact the acting chairperson: Lisa Correa, Cable and Wireless, 26 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4HQ (tel: 0171 528 3460; fax: 0171 528 2163).
GEOGRAPHIC NUMBERING RANGE, S1 AND S2
Conservation Areas
The list below is of areas where number conservation measures apply. The list should be used to identify areas where additional information may be required on number applications. The list is kept under review.
| SABC | AREA | SABC | AREA |
| 1202 | Bournemouth | 1642 | Middlesborough |
| 1203 | Coventry | 1703 | Southampton |
| 1204 | Bolton | 1705 | Portsmouth |
| 1222 | Cardiff | 1706 | Rochdale |
| 1223 | Cambridge | 171 | Inner London |
| 1224 | Aberdeen | 1733 | Peterborough |
| 1232 | Belfast | 1753 | Iver |
| 1273 | Brighton | 1772 | Preston |
| 1274 | Bradford | 1782 | Stoke-on-Trent |
| 1332 | Derby | 181 | Outer London |
| 1344 | Ascot | 1865 | Oxford |
| 1483 | Guildford | 1902 | Wolverhampton |
| 1582 | Markyate | 1942 | Wigan |
| 1604 | Northampton |
New range in Reading, 0118
Operators and CPE maintainers are advised that the 118 3 C digit range should be opened up, with effect from 01 January 1998: This CD range 118 37 will be used once capacity in 0118 9 ranges has exhausted.
Applications for Allocations in Non-Conservation Areas
Operators are reminded that the Numbering Conventions permit applications for Allocation up to 9 months in advance of intended use. This allows for the application for multiple blocks outside number conservation areas. However Oftel will continue to require evidence that the requirement is in line with rolling forecasts, switch constraints, and utilisation of earlier allocations.
Recovery of Reserved Blocks following the Annual Audit
116 blocks in the 01 Geographic range are to be made free on 23 August 1997, to accord with the principles of Numbering Convention A5.8 (".. the limit for reservation in the 01 and 02 range will in most cases be nine months") unless the operators concerned provide justification for their continued reservation or apply, with appropriate justification, for their allocation. The Numbering Conventions limit new 01 Reservations to three months, after which time they will be automatically returned to Free.
Recovery of Allocated Blocks following the Annual Audit
50 blocks in number conservation areas have been changed to "To Be Withdrawn" status. This results from previously Allocated blocks not meeting the criteria of Numbering Convention A9.3 ("If an allocation, or part of an allocation, is not brought into service within a reasonable time, it may be withdrawn"). Operators concerned have been given the opportunity to justify the restoration of Allocated status.
Making use of "Unusable" (Geographic) Local Number capacity
Numbering Bulletin 21 (February 1996) announced arrangements for making local numbers beginning with "0" and "1", in code areas where number shortages are forecast, available to operators for services which are not called directly by the public and which are always used by operators with full national number dialling. This arrangement has now been extended and allocations of previously 'unusable' numbers in these code may now be made to operators where the numbers may be dialled directly by the public but which are always dialled in the national number format. The International Telecommunications Union has been informed that the following ranges are now included in the UK Specified Numbering Scheme:
01710 01711 01810 01811
Operators are reminded of the requirement, under the Numbering Convention A6.1, to notify relevant UK operators and, where appropriate, overseas authorities about allocations made to them.
05 CORPORATE NUMBERING RANGE
A consultative document on the use of 05 numbers for businesses will be published on Friday 11 August. The document will be available on Oftel's Internet pages as well as from Oftel 's library (0171 634 8764).
07 FIND ME ANYWHERE RANGE
The Numbering Unit has been discussing with operators the migration paths for existing mobile and paging numbers to the 07 range. There remain one or two areas still in need of finalisation before formal migration allocations are made. Details will be published in the next Numbering Bulletin.
080 FREEPHONE RANGE
During July 1997 15 blocks of 1000 0800 numbers were returned to the Numbering Unit by BT. These numbers were previously used by BT in the 9-Digit scheme. They will be issued as blocks of 10,000 numbers in the 10-digit scheme. Details of all the 0800 blocks available are recorded on Oftel's Internet pages.
Numbering Bulletin No32 announced the allocation of the freephone range 080 8. This level is intended primarily to meet high demand arising from services, such as personal freephone, where an alternative freephone code may be preferred. It is not intended in any way to replace or divert demand for 0800 capacity where an operator wishes to have 0800 numbers. As indicated above, Oftel remains committed to releasing more 7-digit capacity 0800 as soon as this is practicable. However, it is not Oftel's intention to designate 0808 for freephone personal numbering services because, in Oftel's view, it will be impossible to regulate such a service definition.
08 MIGRATION
In the January Statement on the National Numbering Scheme Oftel said that it would set out rules by July on the migration of numbers to the 08 ranges (para 52). Work is still continuing with operators to maximise customer choice in migration. However, to date:
090 PREMIUM-RATE RANGE
The substructure for the 090 Premium Rate range has now been decided following discussions between industry, ICSTIS and Oftel as follows:
0900 Non Live Open Ended up to 60ppm
0901 Total Call Cost up to £1
0902 Live Open Ended up to 60ppm
0904 Total Call Cost up to £5
0906 Open Ended over 60ppm or Total Call Cost over £5
0907 Pay for Product
0909 Adult
The use of ranges 0903, 0905 and 0908 has not yet been designated. It is foreseen that they will be used for expansion of the designated ranges as the need arises.
Discussions will now take place with the operators already having Premium Rate number allocations in other ranges in order to agree migration paths to the 090 range. Once these have been agreed new allocations in the 090 range will be made to operators applying for them; operators will be notified of the availability of blocks for new allocations in due course. The 09000 code will not be available for block allocations immediately and to minimise the risk of mis-dialling, 090 blocks that are already in use in the corresponding 0190X codes will not be used initially. Allocations for new PRS number provision from other codes in the 090 range will be made to operators in blocks of 100,000 numbers.
INTERNATIONAL FREEPHONE
The Numbering Unit continues to receive requests for information about International Freephone. The attention of readers is drawn to Numbering Bulletin 27 (September 1996) in which the relevant details were given. The Oftel Numbering Unit is not responsible for the allocation of such numbers; customers should contact their operators.
INCOMING INTERNATIONAL ACCESS TO NON-GEOGRAPHIC NUMBERS
On several occasions it has been reported to the Numbering Unit that it is not possible to receive incoming international calls to certain non-geographic numbers. The accessibility, or otherwise, of these numbers is subject to commercial agreements between the UK and overseas operators. It is the responsibility of the UK operator to whom such allocations are made to arrange, as they require, any incoming international access to such numbers. Queries relating to the availability of incoming international access should be addressed to the operator holding the allocation.
HONG KONG NUMBERING INFORMATION
Details of the Hong Kong Numbering plan can be seen on the Internet, at the following URL:-
http://www.ofta.gov.hk/number/nohome.html
NEXT BULLETIN
Bulletin No 34 will be published in October 1997.
CHANGES TO THE SCHEME
Changes to the Scheme in the period February 1997 to July 1997 are summarised below and Allocations and Reservations made during same period are shown in Annex 1. Full details of all changes to the Scheme are published in Oftel's Internet pages. This Bulletin's changes record the consolidation of MFS allocations under the new name "WorldCom International". These are not new allocations.
With the designation of Find Me Anywhere and Special Services number ranges, there have been a relatively large number of changes to these ranges. These are included under 'Other Changes' below and are recorded in detail in the Numbering Scheme published in Oftel's Internet pages.
Area Numbering Range Allocations 59 Reservations 8
Other Changes 631
Find Me Anywhere Numbering Range Allocations 13 Reservations 0
Other Changes 108
Special Services Numbering Range Allocations 32 Reservations 0
Other Changes 110
Premium Rate Services Numbering Range Allocations 12
Reservations 0
Other Changes 0
Access Codes Allocations 14 Reservations 0
Other Changes 8
Total Number of Changes 994