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NEWS
Federal Communications Commission

News Media Information 202 / 418-0500

445 12th Street, S.W.

Internet: http://www.fcc.gov

Washington, D. C. 20554

TTY: 1-888-835-5322

This is an unofficial announcement of Commission action. Release of the full text of a Commission order constitutes official action.
See MCI v. FCC. 515 F 2d 385 (D.C. Circ 1974).

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
NEWS MEDIA CONTACT:
February 24, 2010
Mark Wigfield at (202) 418-0253
Email: mark.wigfield@fcc.gov

FCC RELEASES TELEPHONE NUMBERING RESOURCE UTILIZATION REPORT

Washington, D.C. – The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) today released its
latest report on telephone number utilization in the United States. Telephone number utilization
refers to the percentage of telephone numbers assigned to customers compared to the total of
telephone numbers assigned to carriers. The Numbering Resource Utilization Report details how
those telephone numbers are being used.
The report presents numbering resource utilization statistics based on June 2009 data that
carriers submitted to the North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA), as well as
other information. Tracking number utilization is one of a number of initiatives taken by the
Commission to ensure that limited numbering resources are used efficiently.

Summary Data

1.

Utilization Statistics by Carrier Type

– Reporting carriers have nearly 1.4 billion
telephone numbers. Of these, about 673 million were assigned to customers, about
629 million were available to be assigned, and about 87 million were used for other
purposes, such as for administrative use.
Following are utilization statistics by carrier type as of June 30, 2009:
§
Overall, 48.5% of all telephone numbers were assigned to customers.
§
The overall utilization rate for Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers (LECs) was
48.8%, down from 49.6% six months earlier.
§
The overall utilization rate for Cellular/PCS carriers was 66.1%, up from 65.6%
six months earlier.
§
The overall utilization rate for Competitive LECs was 34.3%, up from 31.1% six
months earlier.

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2.

Telephone Numbers Saved through Thousands-block Pooling

– Through June 30,
2009, thousands-block pooling has made it unnecessary to distribute about 449
million telephone numbers. Thousands-block pooling is available in areas with the
most demand for additional numbering resources. This means that telephone
numbers can now be distributed in blocks of 1,000 rather than blocks of 10,000. This
enables carriers to obtain the telephone numbers they need to serve their customers
while allowing unneeded blocks to be made available to other carriers.
3.

Telephone Numbers Returned

– As required by the Commission’s Numbering
Resource Optimization Orders, carriers are returning large quantities of telephone
numbers that they do not need to the NANPA so that those numbers can be assigned
to other carriers with more immediate needs.
§
In the second quarter of 2009, carriers returned 1.15 million telephone numbers to
the NANPA.
§
In the third quarter of 2009, carriers returned 0.82 million telephone numbers to
the NANPA.
4.

Most Utilized Area Codes in the United States

– Michigan’s area code 947 is the
most utilized, with 86.1% of numbers assigned to customers. New York’s area code
646 (which is coincident with New York City’s area code 212) is the next most
utilized, with 81.2% of numbers assigned to customers. (The above statistics exclude
area code 684, in which only one carrier is using numbers.)
5.

Customers Moving Millions of Telephone Numbers to New Carriers

– Since
wireless number portability began on November 24, 2003, wireline customers have
moved over 77 million telephone numbers to new wireline carriers. During the same
time, wireless customers moved more than 70 million telephone numbers to new
wireless carriers.
This report is updated twice a year and is available in the FCC's Reference Information
Center, Courtyard Level, 445 12th Street SW, Washington, DC 20554. Contact the
Commission’s duplicating contractor, Best Copy and Printing, Inc., at (202) 488-5300 to
purchase a copy. This and many other reports can be downloaded from the Wireline
Competition Bureau Statistical Reports Internet site at www.fcc.gov/wcb/stats.
-FCC-
Wireline Competition Bureau contacts: Craig Stroup at (202) 418-0989
or John Vu at (202) 418-2333; TTY (202) 418-0484

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