Eight Digits Begins
March 12, 2008
At the stroke of
midnight, March 12,
2008, Costa Rica will go
from a seven digit phone
number to an eight,
according to plans by
the Instituto
Costarricense de
Electricidad (ICE).
ICE had announced
earlier this year the
move from seven to eight
digit telephone numbers,
but had never announced
a specific date for the
implementation of the
change.
With the change
beginning on March 12,
all fixed line
telephones will have a
"2" added to the
beginning of the number
and all cellular phones
an "8".
The change is being made
to meet the
telecommunications needs
of the next 30 years,
according to ICE
officials.
ICE will begin a
promotional campaign in
January to explain the
change. Most affected
will be international
callers who may not know
of the change and will
not be able to connect.
For the longest time
Costa Rica had six digit
telephone numbers until
1994 when the seven
digit system was
introduced. In some
cases, old signs on
store fronts still
display the six digit
number.
In 1994, the prefix "2"
was added to all
telephone numbers in San
José and Hereida; "4"
for Alajuela; "5" for
Cartago;, "6" for
Guanacaste and north
Puntarenas; and "7" for
Limón and south
Puntarenas. The "3" and
"8" prefixes were
reserved for cellular
phones.
To avoid confusion,
ICE's campaign aims at
educating all Costa
Ricans on the change and
for them to notify their
family, friends and
business contacts
outside of Costa Rica of
the change.
While all telephone
numbers will be affected
by the change, ICE says
the 911, 113, 115, and
800 and 900 services
will not. |
|
