Portability question

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richms

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#12005 22-Feb-2007 22:15

once this happens, will other providers still be cursed with the dreaded 9 numbers that they have at the moment for new connections, or will it be that if I was a new (for example) vfx customer, I will get a number from a normal number range for the area that I am getting the connection in?

Otherwise what options would there be to get a normal number other then getting an overpriced telecom line connected and then immediatly disconnecting and porting it to the providor that you actually want?

Richard rich.ms

grant_k

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#61661 22-Feb-2007 22:58

That's an extremely good point Richard. I have been wondering the same thing.

I have also noticed that these "dreaded 9 numbers" apply mostly to the 09 region. If you sign up for a VFX number in other centres, you get a number which starts with 83 in the case of Wellington or 74 for Christchurch/Dunedin. It is fair to say though that the VFX number you receive will still be different to the one you would have received had you initially signed up with Telecom.

Here's the latest version of the NZ Numbering Plan which makes for interesting reading:

http://www.nz.m-co.com/upload/sectionimages/13571_Number_Register_2007_02_05.xls

munchkin

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#61663 22-Feb-2007 23:33

I'd rather have a 95x xxxx number in Wellington (Hutt Valley) than the 83x xxxx number which I currently have, atleast we have 92x/93x/97x in Wellington through TelstraClear.

maverick

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#61676 23-Feb-2007 05:46

munchkin: I'd rather have a 95x xxxx number in Wellington (Hutt Valley) than the 83x xxxx number which I currently have, atleast we have 92x/93x/97x in Wellington through TelstraClear.

Sorry we have an allocation from the NAD, these are the number blocks assigned to us for each region

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sbiddle

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#61677 23-Feb-2007 06:45

What are people's hangups with getting numbers starting with 9? Here in Wellington they're very common. The concept of numbers being tied to an exchange or small area of a city are now a thing of the past and has been for several years..

grant_k

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#61688 23-Feb-2007 08:47

sbiddle: ...The concept of numbers being tied to an exchange or small area of a city are now a thing of the past and has been for several years..

Yeah, good point Steve. You Wellingtonians are leading the way (again) in this area I suppose

For the rest of us in Telecom monopoly areas, it has always been handy to get an idea of where somebody is located according to their phone number. As you say, that has been a thing of the past in Wellington for some time and no doubt other areas will follow when number portability gets into full swing. It would seem that we are all going to have to get used to it. It's a bit of a shame but unless we all want our numbers to stay wedded to Telecom, there isn't much choice.

Whenever I tell people what our VFX number is (950-xxxx), it's always a talking point -- "that's a strange number" whereas in Wellington, it probably wouldn't raise an eyebrow...

munchkin

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#61712 23-Feb-2007 10:38

maverick:
Sorry we have an allocation from the NAD, these are the number blocks assigned to us for each region

I understand that from reading previous posts, as well as the NZ NPA - it isn't actually a problem, I was being a dork, as I mention below, it is a talking point, too.

Grant17: Whenever I tell people what our VFX number is (950-xxxx), it's always a talking point -- "that's a strange number" whereas in Wellington, it probably wouldn't raise an eyebrow...

9xx numbers in Wellington don't raise an eyebrow at all, mostly through the work of TCL, and I suspect that soon, 83x numbers won't raise an eyebrow either, but at the moment most people have the general idea that 8xx number are for central Wellington.

Slightly OT: From what I've noticed over the last few days, the phone is always answered within 5 rings if you ring the VFX support line, and they're always helpful, much better than TCL :)

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robscovell

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#63494 12-Mar-2007 18:33

To go off topic briefly ... there used to be snobbery in London about whether you lived in an 020 7 area (good) or 020 8 area (bad).

Now, there are 020 3 numbers ... which give people no clues about location/snob value!

Back to topic. In the brave new world of voip, the numbers you are talking about are in the grey area between geographic and non-geographic. These numbers are only geographic to a point, in that they fit in with the system of 'free local dialing'. But in essence, they are non-geographic. If you take your ATA or voip phone somewhere else on the planet and plug it into an ethernet point, you would still have your 04 ... or whatever number, but it would not be local in any real sense.

The only significance of the prefix on these numbers is to tell people that "If you call me from the 04 calling area, the call is local and therefore free to residential callers."

Given that you can take your ATA anywhere, it makes more sense to give people 08... for voip DIDs, or some other (new) non-geographical prefix such as 028 or sthg.

Rob

chris021

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#64118 17-Mar-2007 23:34

robscovell: <snip!>

Given that you can take your ATA anywhere, it makes more sense to give people 08... for voip DIDs, or some other (new) non-geographical prefix such as 028 or sthg.

Rob

Sure is food for thought!!!

richms

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#64126 18-Mar-2007 02:30

Do telecom still offer customerlink as a service? I had that when I moved for a while and didnt want to have a non-cbd number (was pre everyone having caller id so didnt matter for outgoing calls) - could I just get that for a month and then port it to the telco of choosing?

Richard rich.ms

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#64128 18-Mar-2007 07:07

richms: Do telecom still offer customerlink as a service? I had that when I moved for a while and didnt want to have a non-cbd number (was pre everyone having caller id so didnt matter for outgoing calls) - could I just get that for a month and then port it to the telco of choosing?

$20 a month...

chris021

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#64138 18-Mar-2007 08:48

tonyhughes:
$20 a month...

Plus however many cents a min for the calls!

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richms

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#64169 18-Mar-2007 15:48

Yeah, but you just have it long enough to get a number and then port it over to whoever you choose to use for your IP phone, rather then leave telecom handling the calls.

Im just thinking of a way to get a number that most people will associate with the CBD on my voip ;)

Richard rich.ms

chris021

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#64372 20-Mar-2007 08:15

richms:

Im just thinking of a way to get a number that most people will associate with the CBD on my voip ;)

which is? :-P