Phone prefixes in Princeton

In numbers

In-service prefixes

17

Telephone numbers covered

170,000

Carriers

13

Area codes

8

Provinces and territories

3

First assignment

October 2, 2001

Most recent assignment

October 6, 2022

Provinces and territories

This name is used for separate rate centres in 3 provinces. The prefixes below share a name in the CNAC register but belong to different communities.

• British Columbia — 11 prefixes
• Ontario — 4 prefixes
• Newfoundland and Labrador — 2 prefixes

Princeton’s share of its area codes

Within area code 250, Princeton accounts for only 5 of 781 prefixes (0.6%): the code is dominated by Victoria and spread over 268 rate centres. Within area code 236, Princeton accounts for only 3 of 730 prefixes (0.4%): the code is dominated by Vancouver and spread over 269 rate centres. Within area code 226, Princeton accounts for only 2 of 778 prefixes (0.3%): the code is dominated by London and spread over 166 rate centres. Within area code 709, Princeton accounts for only 2 of 630 prefixes (0.3%): the code is dominated by St. John's and spread over 209 rate centres. Within area code 778, Princeton accounts for only 2 of 779 prefixes (0.3%): the code is dominated by Vancouver and spread over 159 rate centres. Within area code 519, Princeton accounts for only 1 of 779 prefixes (0.1%): the code is dominated by London and spread over 210 rate centres. Within area code 548, Princeton accounts for only 1 of 499 prefixes (0.2%): the code is dominated by London and spread over 170 rate centres. Within area code 672, Princeton accounts for only 1 of 320 prefixes (0.3%): the code is dominated by Vancouver and spread over 108 rate centres.

Who holds these numbers

Iristel Inc. holds the largest share at 3 prefixes, 17.6% of the total, ahead of 12 other carriers. Code by code: in 250, TELUS leads with 2 of 5 prefixes ahead of 3 others; in 236, Iristel Inc. leads with 1 of 3 prefixes ahead of 2 others; in 226, Execulink Telecom Inc. leads with 1 of 2 prefixes ahead of 1 others; in 709, Bragg Communications Inc. leads with 1 of 2 prefixes ahead of 1 others; in 778, Iristel Inc. leads with 1 of 2 prefixes ahead of 1 others; Bell Canada is the only holder in 519; Fibernetics Corporation is the only holder in 548; Iristel Inc. is the only holder in 672. No carrier holds prefixes in every one of Princeton’s 8 area codes, while 11 appear in just one.

Wireless and wireline

3 of Princeton’s 17 prefixes (17.6%) are held by carriers whose registered name marks a wireless business: Bell Mobility, Rogers Communications Canada Inc. (Wireless) and TELUS Mobility. Wireline prefixes still outnumber them, carried by Iristel Inc, Bragg Communications Inc, TELUS and Aliant Telecom (NF). This is a sort by name, not a licence lookup, and a mobile prefix may have been ported to another network since.

How the allocation was built up

Princeton’s dated assignments run from 2001 to 2022. The busiest period was 2005–2009, when 6 prefixes went to 6 carriers. 3 prefixes (18%) carry no date in the register: these are the historic pre-1999 assignments, the wireline bedrock of the rate centre. Since 2020 another 4 prefixes have been added, so the rate centre is still growing.

Princeton’s oldest prefixes, the ones the register leaves undated, belong to Aliant Telecom (NF), Bell Canada and TELUS: these carriers made up the landscape before competition arrived. The first dated assignment went to TELUS in 2001. The most recent arrivals are Fibernetics Corporation (2022), Bell West Inc. (2020) and Distributel (2016), a sign that new carriers are still asking for numbers in Princeton.

Princeton has only 17 prefixes, or 170,000 numbers: a small rate centre, where the arrival of a single new carrier visibly changes the landscape.

No single carrier dominates Princeton: the leader, Iristel Inc., holds only 17.6% of the prefixes against 12 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.

3 undated in the register.

Dialling a Princeton number

Princeton is served by 8 overlaid area codes (250, 236, 226, 709, 778, 519, 548 and 672). A 672 number is no more “out of town” than a 250 one; from abroad, dial +1 and the full ten digits.

The numbering neighbourhood

Princeton shares area codes 250, 236, 226, 709, 778, 519, 548 and 672 with at least 20 other rate centres, including Vancouver, London, Victoria, Kitchener-Waterloo, Windsor, St. John's, Kelowna and Guelph. The largest of them, Vancouver, holds 397 prefixes in 236, 672 and 778; the smallest on the list, Vernon, has just 36.

What a Princeton number tells you

A number attached to Princeton tells you that its prefix was issued to a carrier for this rate centre in British Columbia, most often Iristel Inc.. It does not tell you where the handset is today: a subscriber may have ported the number to any of the 13 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 British Columbia area code is easy to borrow to look local.

Reading a register entry for Princeton: code 236-760 is recorded for Iristel Inc., so every 236-760-XXXX number (10,000 possible) descends from that assignment. “Princeton, British Columbia” there names a rate centre, not a municipality, and several area codes overlay it.

Every Princeton prefix

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

Allocated prefixes

All 17 in-service prefixes, grouped by rate centre.

Elsewhere in British Columbia