Phasing out home phones

[#1]

@Balloonist 

VOIP works just fine with FTTC/SOGEA, in fact it works fine with even a very slow ADSL connection.  The PSTN is being turned off by December 2025 (some areas may go off before then) so everyone that uses a landline will either need to switch to a VOIP service or just accept not having a landline phone.

[#2]

@Balloonist

As stated VOIP works fine with FTTC. The only reason to move to Swish would be speed / cost.

Remeber you will lose PN email if you leave.

Brian

[#3]

Thanks for the info re FTTC and VOIP, so if I understand this so far, you could wait for the end of a plusnet contract term, and given that they are not providing an option to renew the phone service at this point so effectively they are terminating the service (at this stage and not at national PSTN switch off), you could just renew the broadband and request the number transfer to the VOIP provider at this stage within the 30 day period after the existing contract end point.???? or would this terminate the new broadband contract as well ??  I do wish someone somewhere would put all this info in one place OFCOM PLUSNET or whoever......Len...

[#4]

@MixerBIscuit 

Yes, pretty much.  As soon as you terminate your landline phone and go to just a broadband service then your old phone number is saved for 30 days, so you can then get a VOIP provider to request to assign that number to your VOIP account.

It should work smoothly, but there have been a few instances reported here of some having problems, that mostly seem to relate to a lack of familiarity with the way the process is supposed to work.

As for Ofcom, then I think they only do what the communications companies tell them to do, they don't seem to be a great deal of help to consumers at all.  I wholeheartedly agree than this needs far better communication to customers.  It's as big a change for many as the TV digital switchover, but seems to not be generating any useful central guidance from government.

[#5]

so if I understand this so far, you could wait for the end of a plusnet contract term, and given that they are not providing an option to renew the phone service at this point so effectively they are terminating the service (at this stage and not at national PSTN switch off),

@MixerBIscuit No!, currently Plusnet are giving the option to renew the existing contract (on the same product) , including phone service.

you could just renew the broadband and request the number transfer to the VOIP provider at this stage within the 30 day period after the existing contract end point.???? or would this terminate the new broadband contract as well ?

Yes, you could change your product to broadband only and then request the number transfer. This will NOT terminate the new broadband since there is now no phone service associated with it.

[#6]

So I guess you could initiate the process at any time even before end of contract as long as it was a Plusnet product if there was a good deal on offer?

[#7]

@JSHarris
The government are distancing themselves from this

"The withdrawal of the PSTN is industry-led. It is not the direct result of Government policy."

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9471/#:~:text=Over%20the%20next%20few%20....

This is what happens when UK critical infrastructure is driven by commercial concerns!

[#8]

There doesn't seem to be an option on the web site  its only to renew as broadband service only..

[#9]

@MixerBIscuit 

AS PN are withdrawing from offering phone services they only show internet products online. You need to phone to get internet / landline renewed as is. Give the PlusNet Customer Options Team on 0800 013 2632 a ring to find out your options.

I believe you can change to SOGEA at any time with a new contract. If you choose to do so line up your VOIP provider in advance so you know what your'e doing. Some don't handle ports where the line is ceased. A&A are one who do.

You have 30 days to port the number from when the line is ceased but it's advisable to do so ASAP in case of problems.

Brian

[#10]

So thinking outside the box a little bit, it could be said that you don't need to switch to one of the new FTTP operators as long as you have VOIP working with the existing FTTC service you could just wait until the existing provider goes to FTTP. and transfer the number as previously stated. Sounds a very interesting exercise to say the least, sounds like we are being taken for receptacles for drinking coffee out of......!!!!!

[#11]

---

@MixerBIscuit wrote:

So thinking outside the box a little bit, it could be said that you don't need to switch to one of the new FTTP operators as long as you have VOIP working with the existing FTTC service you could just wait until the existing provider goes to FTTP. and transfer the number as previously stated.

There's no link between FTTP and the closure of the PSTN, the two are completely independent.  At the moment it's entirely likely that large numbers of customers will not have access to FTTP when the PSTN gets turned off, so they will need to either switch to a VOIP service or do without their landline phone.

We are in this boat, in that Openreach are saying that there is no prospect of getting FTTP here in their current planning time scale, which goes out to 2030.  The PSTN is being turned off at the end of 2025, long before we are likely to get an FTTP service.

---

@MixerBIscuit wrote:

Sounds a very interesting exercise to say the least, sounds like we are being taken for receptacles for drinking coffee out of......!!!!!

---

We are, it's a direct function of government policy going back more than 40 years to privatise everything and anything, regardless of the impact on consumers.  This is the same policy that is responsible for fly-by-night energy suppliers that grab the money and then collapse, leaving massive debts to be picked up by consumers (in the form of the energy bill surcharges we are now all paying to cover this cost).  Nothing seems to be considered to be a key service any more, and no one seems to give a damn if some people suffer or die because they are no longer able to call for help.

[#12]

Thanks for the reply, I appreciate the mechanics of all the letters FTTwhatever etc and the whole exercise is going to end up down a large hole probably dug by one of the many newbies laying their fibres. What I didn't appreciate is that you didn't need FTTP in order to keep you phone service(VOIP) / number. The ordinary 55mb service is just fine I used to have a 56k Modem with dial up and that was fine as well, the domestic data rates today are probaby faster than the microwave and multiplexed data backbone links used to be. I am grateful for all the help in seeing the task a bit clearer, and on paper at least it appears straightforward...Len....

[#13]

Oh so true many of these new operators are going to go the same way as mercury communications did back in the 80's and big operators will come along to "rescue" them

[#14]

I did a real-world test of VOIP over a low speed connection earlier last week.  We had a power cut, so lost broadband, but I have a second system as a backup, a Mikrotik dish antenna that can just about get enough of a mobile signal to give a slow connection.  This is a bit too slow for usable internet browsing now (any site with images or video content takes forever to load) but it works fine for VOIP.  I used it to call 105 to find out when the power was coming back on and it worked just as well as the landline.  I've no doubt that the majority of people will be able to use VOIP, even if their broadband speed is pretty low.

[#15]

Just when you thought the boat you climbed into was safe, a torpedo sends you to the bottom.

Here are the instructions from a VOIP provider before you even move the number

"Your internet service is supplied over a phone line ADSL or FTTC.

Primary phone line or only Line with ADSL or FTTC Broadband

To maintain both your broadband and XXXXXXX service, you must keep a traditional telephone landline. This is because the industry treats a request to transfer a phone number as request to cancel both the landline and broadband service. To avoid an interruption in your services, complete the following before you request to transfer the number to XXXXXXXX:

1. Request that your landline supplier install another telephone landline.
2. Contact your broadband provider and ask them to the move your internet connection to the newly installed telephone landline.
3. Only when the new line has been installed and your broadband moved to the new line submit a request to transfer your phone number to XXXXXXXXX"

1. I will need to clarify these instructions from the respective parties.  I will try and sharpen the edges of the smoke signals to get a clearer light dark transition this should give me about 10 bits/sec it got us to the moon and back. I will just e-mail the new number to those concerned.......Len......