covert@covert.enet.dec.com (John R. Covert) (07/27/89)
Our moderator writes: >If you dial an intra-lata call (a call within your own town, for example) >using 10288 as the leading code, it is likely the call will be rejected and >you will have to dial over again. I've tried this, and at least here in >Chicago, dialing 10288 followed by a seven digit (or ten digit, but within >IBT's LATA) number and a recording says the call cannot be completed as >dialed. Patrick, remember that this country is formed of 50 sovereign states, each with its own PUC/PSC/DPU/CC or whatever the state chooses to call the regulatory body for intra-state calling. What applies in Chicago does not necessarily apply in other parts of the country. The situation is as follows: For each 10XXX code, intra-LATA calling can be enabled or disabled, based on whether the carrier is authorized by the proper regulatory bodies to provide intra-LATA calling. Here in Massachusetts, the carriers AT&T and ITT have not applied for the right to carry intra-LATA traffic, and calls within the LATA (all of area codes 508 and 617) do not complete if prefixed with 10288 or 10488. MCI, Sprint, and ALLnet (and others) have applied to the DPU for the right to carry intra-LATA traffic, and intra-LATA calls prefixed by 10222, 10333, and 10444 complete via the carrier, even if the call is 10XXX+7D in the local C.O. There is a "do not complete within this office bit", but it should not be set. There is not a "do not complete within the local calling area" bit. It is worth noting that it should theoretically be possible for subscribers to pick a default carrier for intra-LATA calling, either the same default as for inter-LATA or a different one, but the original order from Judge Green did not require this capability, and it was not implemented. Thus to use a carrier other than your local telco for intra-LATA calling, you will always have to use the 10XXX code. /john