GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Get ready to change the way you call someone up if you’re in the 920 area.
Beginning Oct. 24, 10-digit dialing will go into effect for parts of the nation and all 920 numbers, so that the national suicide hotline can be set up.
“The FCC launched a short dial campaign, and you can dial 988 on any wireless phone or wired line phone and it will direct you to that hotline,” said Jodi Delahaut, senior marketing communications manager at Cellcom, “So really, the 10-digit dialing can as a result of that, so now Instead of just dialing your phone number, you might need to dial the area code plus phone digits.”
Delahaut says after the 24th, local calls dialed with only seven digits may not be connected ,and a recording will inform customers that their call cannot be completed as dialed.
FOX 11 asked, “what changes should businesses make?”
“Again, any contacts that they would have stored or information that they have, I would say even any of the collateral office supplies, anywhere that you have your phone number printed if you do not have your area code there, make sure your area code is part of your number,” said Delahaut.
Cellcom suggests customers should start dialing 10 digits for local calls now and to start updating contacts stored in their devices so they are all programmed to use 10-digit dialing.
“People forget, they just go right to that contact list, automatically dial that number and they forget,” said Delahaut.
920 is not the only area code changing. This is part of a National effort from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that must require the 10-digit number.
Cellcom says numbers will not change nor will the cost of a local call.
