UK businesses should start planning for life without the analogue phone network, by conducting an audit of their systems and devices, says the telecoms firm Openreach.
By December 2025, the Public Switched Telephone Network (or PSTN) will have reached the end of its life and everyone will have been upgraded to a new digital network. That means over the next four years, more than 14 million traditional lines across the UK will be upgraded to new digital services, which will provide everyone with a faster and more reliable service, the telco says. Systems that can be reliant on phone lines include alarms, lifts, payment card readers, even medical equipment. All of these will need to be considered, says the firm.
The change has been planned for a while; it was last featured in the May 2020 print edition of Professional Security magazine.
Openreach is asking businesses to review of all the devices that rely on their phone lines, or the phone lines of their customers, to prepare for the logistics of the upgrade. An audit could mean that you:
– Make a list of all the devices you have plugged into your master socket and any extensions in the premises; and
– Speak to your service provider (the company you pay your phone or broadband bill to) and the suppliers of your hardware devices to check how these will work when you’re upgraded to digital phone lines.
Over the next couple of years, organisations will be encouraged to upgrade voluntarily by their service providers – but conducting an audit now will ease this process and make sure there is no disruption in service, particularly important for national infrastructure such as Chemicals, Civil Nuclear, Communications, Defence, the 999 Services, Energy, Finance, Food, Government, Health, Space, Transport and Water, which are necessary for the UK to function.
Businesses can also sign up to Openreach’s ‘Call Waiting List’, which the company will use to keep businesses informed on the project, offering tips and advice on the move from analogue to digital.
To retire the analogue phone network by the end of 2025 an average of 50,000 analogue lines will need to be upgraded to digital every week. The ‘Call Waiting List’ will provide bespoke advice for businesses of whatever size, sector and with need. As the firm stresses, this is particularly important for vital CNI (critical national infrastructure) organisations, to make sure the upgrade can go ahead with minimal disruption for the wider public.
James Lilley, director of ALL-IP at Openreach said: “Ahead of the switch from analogue to digital phone lines, it’s crucial that businesses understand their current systems and the implications of the shift. This upgrade will provide the nation with faster, more reliable services and will allow devices to become more connected, providing UK industry with a framework from which it can develop innovative emerging technologies. Taking these simple steps now will make the process of upgrading much smoother.
“For those businesses that want to understand more, we’d encourage them to sign up to our ‘Call Waiting List’, which will provide organisations with regular updates about our activities and the potential implications on their operations, as well as guidance and examples of how they can make the transition a smooth one.”
About, Openreach
The firm looks after 192 million kilometres of network cable, 110,000 green cabinets, and 4.9 million telephone poles and junction boxes. Visit https://www.openreach.com/upgrading-the-UK-to-digital-phone-lines.
