BT(Openreach) recently announced that by December 2025, they will have completely decommissioned their Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN).
This will render the traditional and maintenance-heavy WLR copper cable network redundant, and will see all services transferred to a more efficient and modern fibre network.
This will significantly change how telephony and broadband is delivered as providers with be able to provide fibre direct to the property (FTTP), rather than using the outdated WLR network. These new data-only broadband services will replace the traditional lines and broadband, which is delivered via a traditional phone line, and are referred to as Single Order Journey products.
If you receive any of the following services or products from Immervox, this will affect you;
- PSTN Lines
- Analogue Lines
- Lift Lines
- ISDN 2
- ISDN 30
- Broadband services ( ADSL 2+, Max 400, FTTC)
But there’s no need to panic!
BT will be rolling this out with a phased approach based on individual exchanges. As soon as we are notified that your exchange is set for transition, your Account Manager will be in touch to talk you through the options and next steps.
As your trusted advisor we will keep you informed through the entire process.
If you have any immediate questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out your Account Manager or our Customer Services Team– we’re here to help.
KEY DATES
- Stop sell on first 119 exchanges – June 2020
- Every 3-6 months other exchanges added
- Nationwide stop sell on entire PSTN – Sept 2023
- Switch off – Dec 2025
BENEFITS OF MOVING AWAY FROM WLR
- Faster connection with fibre
- Quicker fixes
- Improved functionality
- Higher bandwidth
- Less contention
- Less faults or issues
POTENTIAL ISSUES OF MOVING AWAY FROM WLR
- Traditional phones will not work with fibre – lift lines and alarm lines will need to change
- Voice services will require an overlay onto fibre
- Routers will need to be installed for all services, which require power
- IP addresses may change
- Phone numbers will need to be ported into a cloud/hosted service