Operator, operator

Moving from Carrboro to Durham means switching from BellSouth to Verizon for our local phone service. I thought I might be able to take our phone number with us, but I learned from the Federal Communications Commission that such portability isn’t allowed (unlike with the wireless local number portability). Here’s what the FCC says:

Does Long-Term Telephone Number Portability Mean That I Can Keep the Same Telephone Number if I Move Across Town or to Another State?
The type of telephone number portability that local telephone companies must provide is called “service provider portability.” Service provider portability allows a customer to keep his telephone number when changing local telephone companies. It does not allow customers to take their telephone numbers with them when they move.

Anton Zuiker ☄ Jun 23, 2004