Hold the phone: Maine’s 207 area code gets another extension

Photo / Pixabay.com Maine's 207 area code is now projected to last until the first quarter of 2050, placing Maine among the states with the longest remaining area code life spans.

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By Renee Cordes

Maine’s 207 area code will be in service until at least the first quarter of 2050, the latest projection shows. That's the year that Carly Rae Jepsen, the Canadian singer-songwriter who released the hit song "Call Me Maybe" over a decade ago, will turn 65.

The latest forecast from the North American Numbering Plan Administrator is five years beyond its previous projection of when the the statewide area code would be exhausted, placing Maine among the states with the longest remaining area code life spans nationwide.

Area code 207, assigned as one of the country’s original area codes in 1947, is also commonly used in web addresses and corporate branding, as in the “207” nightly news magazine TV show on WCSH-WLBZ, the NBC affiliate more commonly known as News Center Maine.

Maine’s utilities regulator attributes the continued longevity of the 207 area code to efficient number management practices and ongoing efforts toward rate center consolidation, which reduce the rate at which new numbers must be assigned.

"The 207 area code is part of Maine’s identity," said Philip L. Bartlett II, chair of the Hallowell-based Maine Public Utilities Commission. “We are pleased that careful number conservation measures and collaboration with the telecommunications industry have extended its life well into the middle of this century.”

The regulator said it is working with industry partners to ensure that Maine maintains its single statewide area code for as long as possible-potentially matching the overall lifespan of the national numbering system.

When NANPA first began projecting area code exhaust dates, Maine’s 207 area code was expected to be depleted by 2024.

The latest analysis underscores the success of the regulator’s ongoing number conservation initiatives, aided by Consolidated Communications in a strategy the company expects could be implemented as early as March 2026.

Numbers game

How attached are you to your area code, 207 or otherwise? Please drop a note to Deputy Editor Renee Cordes if you’d like to weigh in for a story in progress.

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