Do you Have a PSTN Switch Off Migration Plan?

BT Group are closing the UK’s largest and oldest Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN). This copper network dates back to Victorian times and still has over 12 million broadband and phone lines connected. 

After the switch off, your landline will be replaced by a digital alternative that requires a broadband connection (using technology known as VoIP or Digital Voice). 

The PSTN switch off date was recently postponed to 31 January 2027, due to fears over complex migration issues that could disrupt continuity for safety-critical devices, such as telecare devices, including personal alarms for the elderly.

The Stop Sell on Wholesale Line Rental (WLR) products (i.e. basic landlines, ISDN2, and ISDN30), has a widespread impact on businesses and the public sector. These WLR products are ubitiquous in our daily lives. Examples include: telecare devices, traffic lights, water level monitoring stations, gas pressure monitors, electricity substation controls, emergency lift lines, fire alarms, intruder alarms, CCTV cameras, payment machines; the list is endless.

The PSTN switch-off will affect many businesses on multiple levels. Thousands of SMEs rely on the PSTN network for daily operations. Alarm and fire systems will be impacted in workplaces, hospitals and public buildings. 

Resellers of copper-based services will need to change their product portfolio to fibre. 

2027 might sound far off, but businesses should start now to avoid costly migration problems that affect business continuity.

Given the lack of a national plan or central funding for the necessary infrastructure upgrades, responsibilities for welfare and safety will impact at a local level on councils, healthcare services, social housing, fire departments and third sector organisations (charities and community groups). 

If these upgrades do not get funded and planned in detail (and if alternative digital solutions are not adequately tested under real scenarios) then emergency services could fail at a critical moment, putting vulnerable people at risk.

It is estimated that PSTN upgrades will cost London councils between £45-70m if you include the costs of supported living and social housing. Hospitals and care homes will need to upgrade telecare devices, a costly and safety-critical process that needs to be completed early and thoroughly tested for issues.

Many businesses still rely on PSTN service-based technologies and will be severely impacted by the switch off. We have provided a quick reminder of affected services below to help with general awareness (please note, this is not a complete list, and you should conduct a thorough review of your equipment):

- Phone Lines: All phones connected to a landline or ISDN line 

- Broadband: Businesses using ADSL or FTTC 

- Door Entry Systems: Systems running on ISDN 

- Alarms: fire, smoke and intruder alarms that reply on analogue communication

- EPOS Machines

- CCTV

- Lift Emergency Lines: These usually run on PSTN and you should contact the servicing company or manufacturer to find out what provision is being made to switch to VoIP or cloud telephony

- Cash Machines

- Fax machines: Fax machines usually access the PSTN via an analogue interface

- Health Monitors and Telecare devices

- Cardiac Arrest Phones

- Secure phones (Brent phones)

- Pagers

- Level crossing emergency phone lines

- Utility monitoring & control lines 

Cambridge MC can help support you at any stage of your copper-to-fibre migration. We can drive the whole programme or solve individual issues and challenges you face in successfully executing your migration. 

We will audit your IT and telephony systems to isolate what will be affected and also ascertain the risks involved. Next, we put steps in place to minimise those risks, and then give you options for new suppliers and contracts based on cost vs requirements. 

We can also put in place a project management team to handle the entire migration for you and oversee all of your procurement needs, including renegotiation of contracts with supply-chain vendors.