Call Forwarding

Call forwarding (or call diversion), in telephony, is a feature on some telephone networks which let an incoming call to a called party to be redirected to a third party. For example, the third party may be a mobile telephone, voicemail box or other telephone number where the desired called party is situated. It was invented by Ernest J. Bonanno. In North America, the forwarded line usually (though not always) rings once to remind the customer using Call forwarding that the call is being redirected. More consistently, the forwarded line indicates its condition by stutter dial tone. Call Forwarding lets you forward incoming calls to your home number to another telephone number. The number can be anywhere in the U.S., though you will pay any long distance charges for forwarded calls outside your local calling area. To activate Call Forwarding, dial 72# followed by the telephone number to forward calls to. Once someone answers, Call Forwarding is in effect. If no one answers or the line is busy, hang up and dial 72# followed by the same telephone number, and Call Forwarding will then be in effect. To turn off Call Forwarding, dial 73#. This feature requires a subscription from your local telephone company. Also available in some areas is Remote Access to Call Forwarding, which lets you turn Call Forwarding on and off from telephones other than your home phone.

In Europe, most networks indicate that unconditional call forwarding is active with a special dial tone. When the phone is picked up it is immediately apparent that calls are being forwarded.