Harried Chicago suburbanites should add another task to their to-do list: Prepare to memorize and reprogram yet another area code. Figures released last week reveal that 71% of the prefixes created by a year-old area code for the north and northwest suburbs have been assigned. That means the new code, 847, likely will be exhausted during the second quarter of 1998.

A second area code created last year for the western suburbs-630-is at 61% capacity and projected to run out near the end of 1999. Both area codes cropped up in territory that previously was assigned a new area code in 1989. The Chicago metropolitan area now has six area codes.

Part of the problem is the industry's practice of assigning blocks of 10,000 prefixes to new facilities-based carriers, regardless of their customer base (Telephony, Oct. 28, 1996, page 20). New competitors usually require tens of thousands of numbers because of network and billing circumstances, even if their customer bases are nowhere near that large.

When the 847 area code took effect on Jan. 20, 1996, seven carriers were eligible to receive prefixes. Now there are 29 eligible carriers. In the 630 area code, which took effect Aug. 3, 1996, the number jumped from 11 to 32.

Pagers, faxes, modems, cellular phones, dedicated computer lines and special features all require assigned numbers. Ameritech, for example, offers a second number for a single phone line, enabling it to make a distinctive ring.

A workshop of the Industry Numbering Committee is assessing several ways to end the 10,000-block number assignments. One approach at the top of the list would mean implementing local number portability and setting up a number pool at each rate center. Another option would require reprogramming switches so they route on four numbers instead of three.

Yet many technical issues must be resolved. "How would you administer numbers in a totally different manner than they are today?" said Jim Deak, a manager at Bellcore's North American numbering plan administration. Most industry observers doubt that the number portability and pooling system could be implemented in time to resolve today's area code dilemma.

Meanwhile, Ameritech is lobbying other carriers to join it in petitioning the Illinois Commerce Commission and the Federal Communications Commission for a wireless overlay that would require cellular and paging customers to switch to a new area code. That overlay plan failed three years ago and has been unsuccessful elsewhere.

Ameritech also plans to start a field trial of local number portability in late July, with service following in the fall for residents who live in Chicago's metro area.

MARCH March 16-19, NCTA's Cable '97 New Orleans, Ernest N. Morial Center, (202) 775-3606 March 18-20, FOSE '97: America's Integrated Information Technology Forum Washington, D.C., Convention Center, (800) 791-3673 March 18-20, Internet and Electronic Commerce Conference & Exposition New York, Jacob Javits Convention Center, (203) 256-4700 March 24-27, IN World Forum Orlando, Renaissance Orlando Resort, (312) 559-3726 March 25-26, Linking the Internet to Your Call Center Chicago, Doubletree Guest Suites, (800) 420 2145 APRIL April 2-4, Intele-Card News Expo '97 Chicago, Hyatt Regency, (800) 883-8353 April 15-17, Mobile Outlook Exposition and Conference Dallas, Infomart, (212) 486-6186 April 28- May 2, Network Management Forum Long Beach, Sheraton, (201) 425-1900 May May 5-9, Networld+Interop 97 Las Vegas, Convention Center, (800) 488-2883 May 12-16, International Symposium on Integrated Network Management '97 San Diego, (301) 913-9338 May 12-16, DB/Expo '97 San Francisco, Moscone Convention Center, (800) 232-3976 May 14-16, Implementing and Managing Internal Web Sites Atlanta, Airport Hilton, (800) 882-8684 May 18-21, Wisconsin State Telecommunications Association Lake Geneva, Grand Geneva Resort, (608) 833-8866 May 21-22, Competitive Strategies for Wireless Communications Denver, Westin, (303) 779-4141 May 23, Utilities and Wireless Telecom Alliances Denver, Westin, (303) 779-4141 May 28-30, IEEE International Frequency Control Symposium Orlando, Disney World, (908) 280-2024 JUNE June 1-5, Supercomm '97 New Orleans, Ernest N. Morial Center, (703) 907-7736

Last week's direct broadcast satellite alliance between Echostar and the News Corp./MCI DBS venture abruptly shattered any security the cable industry may have had about its competitive position.

"For the cable and telephony industries, this means competition at a level that has never been seen before," said Jimmy Schaeffler, president and chief executive officer of The Carmel Group.

Bolstered by a $1 billion cash infusion by News Corp. head Rupert Murdoch, the Sky service plans to have seven satellites in orbit by 1998 to deliver more than 500 channels-ironically fulfilling John Malone's much-touted 500-channel vision even as it puts the cable industry on the defensive.

The EchoStar/News Corp. deal came as a shock to cable TV, which had begun to relax about the DBS threat after a flurry of digital activity surrounding last year's Western Cable Show, said Barbara Sullivan, a former EchoStar marketing head who is now president of BG Marketing Inc., Denver.

The cable industry has viewed EchoStar in particular as a minimal threat and was convinced that the carrier's low dish prices would eventually drain its own coffers.

"But now that Rupert has bellied up to the bar, it's a different situation," Sullivan said. "The infusion of cash means that [EchoStar] will be able to market on much more than price points.

Lengthening the shadow over cable, both News Corp. and EchoStar are committed to delivering local broadcast signals-via Sky's enormous channel capacity -once they iron out legal issues.

Cable operators will respond by continuing to shore up customer service, Sullivan said. It's far less likely that cable operators will drop popular channels for financial reasons, as Tele-Communications Inc. did in several of its systems.

The cable industry is also likely to accelerate its cable modem rollout plans, recognizing that high-speed data is a valuable service DBS carriers cannot match, said John Aronsohn, senior analyst at The Yankee Group, Boston.

But that may soon change as DirecTV continues to develop its DirecPC high-speed Internet access service. Sky also might leverage MCI's Internet interests to provide a high-speed data service, Aronsohn said.

MCI will own 10% of the Sky alliance, a considerable stake given that the interexchange carrier had reportedly been trying to reduce its involvement in DBS.