Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1:	If a customer changes long-distance companies, do they have to change their 800/8XX number?
A1:	No, the number is assigned to the customer at the Service Management Systems (SMS), the main operations support system of the 800/8XX Data Base Service). When the customer changes long-distance companies, the number is "ported" by the SMS to your new company. This is where the term "800/8xx Portability" comes from.
2:	What is a LATA?
A2:	Local Access and Transport Area (LATA), a term created by Judge Greene when he broke up Ma Bell in the early '80s into AT&T Long Distance and the original 7 regional Bell operating companies (RBOCs). Judge Greene tried to divide the U.S. telephone network into metropolitan areas that are used by the U.S. Department of Commerce for all government statistics. However, the telephone network didn't align with these boundaries, so the final set of defined areas are called LATAs. There are several important aspects of LATAs. First, toll calls within a LATA are referred to as intraLATA toll calls, local toll calls, or regional toll calls. IntraLATA calls can be carried by the local telephone company or by a long-distance carrier. Second, toll calls between LATAs are referred to as interLATA toll calls and state-to-state toll calls. However, not all interLATA toll calls are state-to-state because most states have several LATAs. The local telephone company is not permitted to carry interLATA toll calls. IXCs, or long-distance carriers, carry all interLATA toll calls.
3:	What is 1+ service?
A3:	Most wireline telephone subscribers in the U.S. can presubsribe to the long-distance carrier of their choice for both intraLATA and interLATA calls. These calls are made by dialing a "1" plus the 10-digit telephone number, hence, "1+" is the popular way of referring to these calls.
4:	What's the difference between a PIC and a CIC?
A4:	CIC, a four digit number that identifies a long-distance service provider. PIC is the long-distance provider used when a 1+ call is made. There are currently two types of PICs: intra-LATA and inter-LATA. The inter-LATA PIC is also used for international calls (starting with "011," but not "0011"). A CIC is assigned to each PIC when a new number is assigned from the local telco (LEC) or when PICs are changed. Often both PICs are the same, but that need not be the case. The current PICs of any given number can be determined by calling from that number as follows: Intra-LATA: call 1-NPA-700-4141 where NPA is the first 3 digits or the 10 digit number. Inter-LATA: call 1-700-555-4141. Both numbers are toll-free and should result in a brief recorded message identifying the underlying carrier.
5:	What is casual calling? Casual Calling is using a 10-10 number to override the PIC selection. Using the 10-10 number only applies to the immediate call. Although carriers advertise the casual calling as 10-10 followed by a 3-digit number, the actual casual calling is 101 followed by a 4-digit number (the CIC).