Telephone prefix
Encyclopedia
A telephone prefix is the first set of digits of a telephone number; in the North American Numbering Plan
countries (country code 1), it is the first three digits out of a seven-digit phone number. It shows which exchange
the remaining numbers refer to.
Some places restrict certain prefixes to only fax
numbers or for cell phone
s while in other places the prefixes are random.
Most (but not all) area codes reserve the prefix 555
for special uses (555-1212 is telephone information in most area codes.) For this reason, it is often used for phone numbers in television and movies. Failure to do so can cause a number of problems, as occurred with the release of the song
867-5309/Jenny
causing hundreds of calls to the various people and organizations all over the U.S. that had that phone number. The film Bruce Almighty
resulted in someone's real phone number being used, eventually leading to a lawsuit.
North American Numbering Plan
The North American Numbering Plan is an integrated telephone numbering plan administered by Neustar which encompasses 24 countries and territories, including the United States and its territories, Canada, Bermuda, and 16 nations of the Caribbean...
countries (country code 1), it is the first three digits out of a seven-digit phone number. It shows which exchange
Telephone exchange
In the field of telecommunications, a telephone exchange or telephone switch is a system of electronic components that connects telephone calls...
the remaining numbers refer to.
Some places restrict certain prefixes to only fax
Fax
Fax , sometimes called telecopying, is the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material , normally to a telephone number connected to a printer or other output device...
numbers or for cell phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
s while in other places the prefixes are random.
Most (but not all) area codes reserve the prefix 555
555 telephone number
Telephone numbers with the prefix 555 are widely used for fictitious telephone numbers in North American television shows, films, computer games, and other media....
for special uses (555-1212 is telephone information in most area codes.) For this reason, it is often used for phone numbers in television and movies. Failure to do so can cause a number of problems, as occurred with the release of the song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
867-5309/Jenny
867-5309/Jenny
"867-5309/Jenny" is a song written by Alex Call and Jim Keller and performed by Tommy Tutone that was released on the album Tommy Tutone 2, on the Columbia Records label. It peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number one on the Billboard Top Tracks chart in 1982...
causing hundreds of calls to the various people and organizations all over the U.S. that had that phone number. The film Bruce Almighty
Bruce Almighty
Bruce Almighty is a 2003 American comedy film directed by Tom Shadyac and written by Steve Koren, Mark O'Keefe and Steve Oedekerk. It stars Jim Carrey as Bruce Nolan, a down-on-his-luck TV reporter who complains to God that He isn't doing His job correctly, and is then offered the chance to try...
resulted in someone's real phone number being used, eventually leading to a lawsuit.
See also
- Telephone numbering planTelephone numbering planA telephone numbering plan is a type of numbering scheme used in telecommunications to allocate telephone numbers to subscribers and to route telephone calls in a telephone network. A closed numbering plan, such as found in North America, imposes a fixed total length to numbers...
- List of international call prefixes
- List of country calling codes