If you could have any international country code… what would it be?

By on April 22, 2008 in News

I’m really pissed off with the United Kingdom country code.

How come America gets +1 and we’re lumbered at the back of the queue on +44?

Kazakhstan is +7. So is Russia.

HOW did that happen?

I see that Cuba (Guantanamo Bay) is +5399.

EMSAT — the mobile satellite service is apparently +88213. That’s a mouthful.

Back to +44. Romania’s in at +40. That’s FOUR better than the UK. Peru isn’t far off on +51.

South Africa’s on +27.

Sweden +46, Switzerland +41.

Who and what decided how the international dialing codes were allocated?

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  • http://www.rickyc.co.uk Ricky Chotai

    Well as the Americans got +1, I am sure they had something to do with it however what's wrong with +44 at least we do not have 3 numbers like our Irish brothers (and sisters)!

  • http://www.mobileindustryreview.com smstextnews

    I just don't see how it's fair. I'm definitely used to the +44, but why couldn't we get +4?

  • http://www.rickyc.co.uk Ricky Chotai

    True but then I suppose there would not be enough for everyone? +1 is still shared with countries like Jamaica and Canada. I thinks its another one of those things where the Americans wanted something and they got it! (as Usual :P ) Sorry to the American Readers!

  • http://www.smstextnews.com Krystal

    Excuse me, Canada is #1 too ;)

    (Hey it's the only thing we're number one at related to phones ok, let us have it ;)

  • http://invalid.name Dan Lane
  • mattinx

    According to wikipedia, it was originally largely geographic, with North America getting +1, Africa getting +2, Europe getting +3 and +4, Mexico, Central and South America getting +5, Southeast Asia and Oceana getting +6, Russia and Kazakhstan getting +7, East Asia getting +8, and West, South and Central Asia and the Middle East getting +9.

    North America got +1 as the existing area code numbering system assigns area codes that are unique within the whole North American Numbering Plan Area, the other zones were given 2 and 3 digit codes, with larger countries getting two digit codes to allow for longer domestic numbers.

    More recently, things have of course become a little less defined, fitting in new countries, islands that gain telephone service, special services, etc.

    According to http://www.wtng.info/wtng-hst.html, the UK was listed with the area code +44 in the 1960 CCITT red book, with North America getting +1 in the later 1964 CCITT blue book.

    So there.

  • http://www.smstextnews.com/author/Ben.Smith Ben Smith

    There's even a country code established for VOIP services: http://www.voip-news.com/feature/inum-effort-03…

  • http://www.phone-rush.com Amir A.

    Americans get a good +1 prefix, the UK gets GMT time. Even overall.

  • http://www.topmobile20.com Jeb

    I'm happy with my +1.

  • http://shkspr.mobi/ TerenceEden

    IIRC it's ITU who decide such things.

    A complete list of country codes is available on Wkipedia.

  • http://freshplastic.vox.com Anthony

    Walking Hotspot sign up… inspiration for this post? I was pondering the codes yesterday as well!

  • http://www.phonereport.info Meraj Chhaya

    Lol Portugal is +351 and you don't see us complaining.

  • http://dotsisx.blogspot.com Rita El Khoury

    Lebanon has got +961 yeah middle east is always last *sigh*
    where would you be without the region's petrol, I wonder!!!

  • http://www.movoxx.com Alec

    Russia is +7 because of Mr Bond (you actually have to dial 007 to get in)…

    Joking…but who knows? May be it's the other way around?

  • http://www.mobileindustryreview.com smstextnews

    And why is there no +8?

  • peruvian

    Peru is far better than your country not only by the phone code, man.

    btw your post is stupid.
    “buaaa my country is “44″.” ?????? please….

  • http://www.kimweinberger.com weinki

    Some of us in North America are chewing on our own bone of contention regarding the assignment of telephone codes.

    As a part of analogue telephone technology, area codes in North America used to be indicator of an area's remoteness. The pocket-protector crowd at that time was intent on allocating the time and energy resources of the Company (Ma Bell) and its customers as efficiently as possible. To accomplish this they assigned higher numbers to less frequently dialed areas because higher numbers just took longer to dial. This gradually faded as rotary dial phones were replaced by touch tone service and its egalitarian attitude toward all digits.

    As the much vaunted time-saving efficiency of dialing lower-numbered area codes became moribund, possessing a low number lost its status as an indicator of the subscriber's proximity to soci-economic centers and focii of political power.

    A new twist has developed however, and given people who care about such things, another reason to whine.
    The most popular and numerically lowest area codes are filling up having issued all possible seven-digit numbers in their areas, and have had to spin off as higher-numbered area codes.
    New subscribers in Manhattan had to settle for 917 unless they could somehow grandfather their way into 212 service.

    The older 212 area code has become a desirable status symbol in that it gives the impression if you're in Manhattan, that you've been around for a longer time (more reliable perhaps?) than someone sporting a more-recently created 917 area code.

  • http://www.kimweinberger.com weinki

    Some of us in North America are chewing on our own bone of contention regarding the assignment of telephone codes.

    As a part of analogue telephone technology, area codes in North America used to be indicator of an area's remoteness. The pocket-protector crowd at that time was intent on allocating the time and energy resources of the Company (Ma Bell) and its customers as efficiently as possible. To accomplish this they assigned higher numbers to less frequently dialed areas because higher numbers just took longer to dial. This gradually faded as rotary dial phones were replaced by touch tone service and its egalitarian attitude toward all digits.

    As the much vaunted time-saving efficiency of dialing lower-numbered area codes became moribund, possessing a low number lost its status as an indicator of the subscriber's proximity to soci-economic centers and focii of political power.

    A new twist has developed however, and given people who care about such things, another reason to whine.
    The most popular and numerically lowest area codes are filling up having issued all possible seven-digit numbers in their areas, and have had to spin off as higher-numbered area codes.
    New subscribers in Manhattan had to settle for 917 unless they could somehow grandfather their way into 212 service.

    The older 212 area code has become a desirable status symbol in that it gives the impression if you're in Manhattan, that you've been around for a longer time (more reliable perhaps?) than someone sporting a more-recently created 917 area code.

  • http://www.kimweinberger.com weinki

    Some of us in North America are chewing on our own bone of contention regarding the assignment of telephone codes.

    As a part of analogue telephone technology, area codes in North America used to be indicator of an area's remoteness. The pocket-protector crowd at that time was intent on allocating the time and energy resources of the Company (Ma Bell) and its customers as efficiently as possible. To accomplish this they assigned higher numbers to less frequently dialed areas because higher numbers just took longer to dial. This gradually faded as rotary dial phones were replaced by touch tone service and its egalitarian attitude toward all digits.

    As the much vaunted time-saving efficiency of dialing lower-numbered area codes became moribund, possessing a low number lost its status as an indicator of the subscriber's proximity to soci-economic centers and focii of political power.

    A new twist has developed however, and given people who care about such things, another reason to whine.
    The most popular and numerically lowest area codes are filling up having issued all possible seven-digit numbers in their areas, and have had to spin off as higher-numbered area codes.
    New subscribers in Manhattan had to settle for 917 unless they could somehow grandfather their way into 212 service.

    The older 212 area code has become a desirable status symbol in that it gives the impression if you're in Manhattan, that you've been around for a longer time (more reliable perhaps?) than someone sporting a more-recently created 917 area code.

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