Phone prefixes in Contrecoeur, QC

In numbers

In-service prefixes

8

Telephone numbers covered

80,000

Carriers

4

Area codes

2

Provinces and territories

1

First assignment

September 19, 2000

Most recent assignment

December 5, 2022

Contrecoeur’s share of its area codes

Within area code 450, Contrecoeur accounts for only 4 of 775 prefixes (0.5%): the code is dominated by Granby and spread over 129 rate centres. Within area code 579, Contrecoeur accounts for only 4 of 644 prefixes (0.6%): the code is dominated by Granby and spread over 126 rate centres.

Who holds these numbers

Telebec Ltee. holds the largest share at 3 prefixes, 37.5% of the total, ahead of 3 other carriers. Code by code: in 450, Telebec Ltee. leads with 2 of 4 prefixes ahead of 1 others; in 579, Telebec Ltee. leads with 1 of 4 prefixes ahead of 3 others. 2 carriers hold prefixes in every one of Contrecoeur’s 2 area codes, while 2 appear in just one.

Wireless and wireline

None of Contrecoeur’s holders carries a mobility brand in its registered name: all 8 prefixes belong to wireline or wholesale carriers, among them Telebec Ltee, Videotron Ltd, Bell Canada and TELUS Quebec. A call showing a Contrecoeur number therefore nominally comes from a landline, cable or VoIP platform rather than a locally assigned cellphone.

How the allocation was built up

Contrecoeur’s dated assignments run from 2000 to 2022. The busiest period was 2005–2009, when 2 prefixes went to 1 carrier. 1 prefixes (13%) carry no date in the register: these are the historic pre-1999 assignments, the wireline bedrock of the rate centre. Since 2020 another 2 prefixes have been added, so the rate centre is still growing.

Contrecoeur’s oldest prefixes, the ones the register leaves undated, belong to Telebec Ltee: this carrier made up the landscape before competition arrived. The first dated assignment went to Telebec Ltee. in 2000. The most recent arrivals are Bell Canada (2022), TELUS Quebec (2022) and Videotron Ltd. (2005), a sign that new carriers are still asking for numbers in Contrecoeur.

Contrecoeur has just 8 prefixes (80,000 numbers): a very small rate centre, typical of a village or rural area served by a single switching office.

No single carrier dominates Contrecoeur: the leader, Telebec Ltee., holds only 37.5% of the prefixes against 3 competitors, a sign of a highly fragmented market where cable companies, mobility brands and VoIP providers weigh as much as the incumbent.

Demand remains steady: 28.6% of the dated prefixes go back to the last ten years, the most active period being 2005–2009. The rate centre is growing at a regular rather than explosive pace.

The register also shows 1 prefix assigned but not yet in service in Contrecoeur (Cogeco Connexion Inc): numbers that will start showing up on call displays in the coming months.

1 undated in the register.

Dialling a Contrecoeur number

Contrecoeur is served by 2 overlaid area codes (450 and 579). A 579 number is no more “out of town” than a 450 one; from abroad, dial +1 and the full ten digits.

The numbering neighbourhood

Contrecoeur shares area codes 450 and 579 with at least 20 other rate centres, including Granby, Joliette, St-Jerome, St-Hyacinthe, Longueuil, Ste-Therese, Pont-Viau and Sorel. The largest of them, Granby, holds 51 prefixes in 450 and 579; the smallest on the list, Lachute, has just 17.

What a Contrecoeur number tells you

A number attached to Contrecoeur tells you that its prefix was issued to a carrier for this rate centre in Quebec, most often Telebec Ltee.. It does not tell you where the handset is today: a subscriber may have ported the number to any of the 4 carriers present here or to a VoIP service usable anywhere. Nor does it tell you who is calling: caller ID can be spoofed, and a Quebec area code is easy to borrow to look local.

Reading a register entry for Contrecoeur: code 450-392 is recorded for Telebec Ltee., so every 450-392-XXXX number (10,000 possible) descends from that assignment. “Contrecoeur, Quebec” there names a rate centre, not a municipality, and several area codes overlay it.

Every Contrecoeur prefix

Each row is an in-service central-office code recorded for Contrecoeur, with its original holder and year of assignment.

Had a call from a Contrecoeur number?

No clear pattern in reports on these numbers yet. If a call worried you:

1. Call back on a number you trust

   If a caller says they are your bank, the Canada Revenue Agency, a courier or your phone company, hang up and call the organization on the number from its website or your statement, never the number that called you. Caller ID can be faked.

2. Report the fraud

   Report the call or text to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre online or at 1-888-495-8501. If you lost money or gave out personal details, tell your bank first, then your local police.

   Report to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre ↗

3. Register on the National Do Not Call List

   Registering a landline or mobile on the National DNCL is free. Registered charities, political parties, newspapers and companies you already do business with may still call.

   National Do Not Call List ↗Who can still call you ↗

4. Forward suspicious texts to 7726

   Forward a scam or spam text to 7726 (SPAM on the keypad). It's free, and your carrier uses it to block the sender. Don't tap links or reply.

   Get Cyber Safe: forwarding to 7726 ↗

Allocated prefixes

All 8 in-service prefixes, grouped by rate centre.

Elsewhere in Quebec