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Article: FCC Announces Birth of Two More Toll Free Numbers to Help with Boom.(Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News)
- Article from:
- Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News
- Article date:
- August 2, 2000
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2000 Knight-Ridder/Tribune Business News. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Aug. 2--Eight million isn't what it used to be.
Back in 1967, AT&T rolled out the original 800 toll-free exchange. It was good enough to meet demand from consumers and businesses -- each area code contains nearly 8 million valid numbers -- for nearly three decades. Times sure have changed.
This past Saturday, the Federal Communications Commission ordered a fourth toll-free exchange (866) into service, only a couple of years after the introduction of the third toll-free number (877). The second toll-free exchange (888) was inaugurated in 1996. The tremendous explosion in electronic commerce and the proliferation of dot-coms will make a fifth exchange ...