FCC reported number utilization rates were ‘generally higher’ in ...
FCC reported number utilization rates were “generally higher” in 2nd of new series of semiannual reports on telephone number utilization in U.S. Report is based on Dec. 2000 data telecom carriers submitted to N. American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA).…
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Report series is first to examine telephone number utilization in U.S. since Commission enacted variety of number optimization measures such as assigning numbers in blocks of 1,000 (thousands block numbering) and delegated authority to states to implement other number optimization measures, it said. Among report highlights: (1) No telephone numbers had been returned voluntarily to NANPA in year preceding FCC’s adoption of resource optimization strategies. (2) Carriers in first 6 months of 2000 returned 17 million numbers to NANPA and in second half returned 20 million. (3) Overall utilization rate for ILECs increased to 59.3% from 58.1% and CLEC utilization to 10.5% from 8.9%. Overall utilization rate for cellular/PCS carriers jumped to 50.7% from 44.8%. (4) Reporting carriers have more than one billion telephone numbers, of which 440 million were assigned to customers, 580 million were available to be assigned and 100 million were used for other purposes. FCC said carriers had begun initiatives resulting from agency rulings including self-accessing numbering resource needs and inventories, grooming use of numbers and returning telephone numbers not needed immediately to NANPA so they could be assigned to other carriers. If thousands block number pooling were implemented in all top 100 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), 180,000 blocks of telephone numbers could be made available (180 million numbers), Commission said. If number pooling were implemented nationwide, 330,000 thousands blocks could be made available. Report will be updated twice yearly and is available at FCC Reference Information Center or www.fcc.gov/ccb/stats.