Call pickup

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Call pick-up is a feature used in a telephone system that allows one to answer someone else's telephone call. The feature is accessed by pressing a pre-programmed button (usually labelled "Pick-Up"), or by pressing a special sequence of buttons on the telephone set.

In places where call pick-up is used, the telephone sets may be divided into zones. Under such an arrangement, using call pick-up will only pick up a call in the same zone.

Call pick-up can be directed. Directed call pick-up is used for picking up a call that is ringing at a specific extension number; this feature is accessed through a different sequence of buttons than normal call pick-up.

A telephone set can only pick up one call at one time. If there are many incoming calls at the same time, call pick-up will pick up the call that rang first unless the pick-up is directed.