Last Call Return
Encyclopedia
Last-call return, also known as call return, is a telephony feature offered by telephone
service provider
s to give a called party
the time and telephone number
of the last received call
, and may also offer the facility to place a call back to the calling party
.
The feature is typically listed as "Last Call Return" or "Call Return", particularly in communication companies' publications. The general public tends to refer to the service by the telephone feature code, the telephone number it has in their country; for example, in the UK it is called "1471".
The access number for this facility varies per country and provider:
In the UK, after dialling "1471", the caller can press "3" to automatically return the call. Until August 2004, this service was free; since that date it has incurred a charge, as of 10 January 2007 a per call fee of 10.5 pence is charged.
The service provider may also offer a facility through which the calling party can prevent their number being revealed to the called party, either permanently or on a per-call basis. This is achieved by prefixing the dialed number with:
Conversely, to send the caller number on a line where the number is normally withheld, the following prefixes can be dialled:
In Gibraltar and formerly in Ireland, ex-directory
or unlisted numbers are withheld by default.
In Germany
, all telephones have a specific button functioning as call return and the numeric code for this feature is not generally known.
In Canada
, the feature is commonly marketed by telephone companies as a combination of two features:
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
service provider
Service provider
A service provider is an entity that provides services to other entities. Usually, this refers to a business that provides subscription or web service to other businesses or individuals. Examples of these services include Internet access, Mobile phone operators, and web application hosting...
s to give a called party
Called party
The called party is a person who answers a telephone call. The person who initiates a telephone call is the calling party....
the time and telephone number
Telephone number
A telephone number or phone number is a sequence of digits used to call from one telephone line to another in a public switched telephone network. When telephone numbers were invented, they were short — as few as one, two or three digits — and were given orally to a switchboard operator...
of the last received call
Telephone call
A telephone call is a connection over a telephone network between the calling party and the called party.-Information transmission:A telephone call may carry ordinary voice transmission using a telephone, data transmission when the calling party and called party are using modems, or facsimile...
, and may also offer the facility to place a call back to the calling party
Calling party
The calling party is a person who initiates a telephone call over the public switched telephone network, usually by dialing a telephone number....
.
The feature is typically listed as "Last Call Return" or "Call Return", particularly in communication companies' publications. The general public tends to refer to the service by the telephone feature code, the telephone number it has in their country; for example, in the UK it is called "1471".
The access number for this facility varies per country and provider:
- United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and CanadaCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
: star codeVertical service codeA vertical service code or VSC is a special code dialed prior to a telephone number that engages some type of special telephone service...
*69 (*66 in some markets); 1169 (1166 in some markets) on rotary phoneRotary dialThe rotary dial is a device mounted on or in a telephone or switchboard that is designed to send electrical pulses, known as pulse dialing, corresponding to the number dialed. The early form of the rotary dial used lugs on a finger plate instead of holes. Almon Brown Strowger filed the first patent...
/pulse dial telephones. (In some areas, "to star-69" can be used as a verb). The prompt voice behind most U.S. AT&TAT&TAT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
implementations of this feature is Pat FleetPat FleetPat Fleet is a working American voice actress known as the registered voice of AT&T.Widely recognized for the tens of thousands of recordings she has made for US telephone companies such as AT&T, Verizon, Qwest, the former Bell System companies, and others since 1981, she is still most recognized...
. - AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
: *10# for TelstraTelstraTelstra Corporation Limited is an Australian telecommunications and media company, building and operating telecommunications networks and marketing voice, mobile, internet access and pay television products and services....
services or *69 on OptusOptusSingTel Optus Pty Limited is the second largest telecommunications company in Australia, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore Telecommunications...
HFC Telephony network. This only allows you to hear the last unanswered call, and can cost 35 cents every time you use it. - FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
: 3131 - IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
: *42 - United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
: 1471 (also used in GibraltarGibraltarGibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
, IrelandRepublic of IrelandIreland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, the Channel IslandsChannel IslandsThe Channel Islands are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
and the Falkland IslandsFalkland IslandsThe Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland...
)
In the UK, after dialling "1471", the caller can press "3" to automatically return the call. Until August 2004, this service was free; since that date it has incurred a charge, as of 10 January 2007 a per call fee of 10.5 pence is charged.
The service provider may also offer a facility through which the calling party can prevent their number being revealed to the called party, either permanently or on a per-call basis. This is achieved by prefixing the dialed number with:
- Australia: 1831
- United Kingdom, Ireland and Channel Islands: 141 on landlines, and #31# on mobile phones
- United States: *67
Conversely, to send the caller number on a line where the number is normally withheld, the following prefixes can be dialled:
- Australia: 1832
- Ireland: 142
- United Kingdom: 1470 (also used in Gibraltar and the Channel Islands)
- United States: *82
- Philippines *999
In Gibraltar and formerly in Ireland, ex-directory
Silent number
In telephony, a silent number, unlisted number , ex-directory number or private number is a telephone number that is intentionally not listed in telephone books....
or unlisted numbers are withheld by default.
In Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, all telephones have a specific button functioning as call return and the numeric code for this feature is not generally known.
In Canada
Communications in Canada
-Telephone:Telephones – main lines in use: 18.251 million Telephones – mobile cellular: 23.081 million Telephone system:* general assessment: excellent service provided by modern technology...
, the feature is commonly marketed by telephone companies as a combination of two features:
- Call Again, a form of automatic ring backAutomatic ring backAutomatic ring back is a service offered by phone companies.Normally, when a person's line is busy, one has to call back every few minutes to check if their line is free yet. With automatic ring back, a code can be dialed into the telephone keypad to enable ringback...
, allows a caller, on reaching a busy signal, to hang up, dial a special code, and be called back automatically when the called number is no longer busy, usually with a limit of 30 minutes. - Call Return allows a customer to dial a code that identifies the last incoming call. On some types of central office equipment, it announces the number and offers the call-back option; on others, it simply attempts a connection without an announcement.