Analogue Switch Off

All residents and businesses in the UK who have telephone lines connected to the PSTN (Public Switched Telephony Network) managed by BT Group through Openreach, are going to need to make changes to the way they use their landlines before the end of the year 2025.

Telephone Exchanges in the UK, some 5.5K of them, are going to stop using the old equipment that was last updated in the 1980s. This will have a significant impact on how we all access and use telephony services in future.

The move will be from analogue (copper wire) to digital lines (either fibre or copper with a new router) and this in practice means that we will all, whether at home or at work, be using our landlines with a router in the future. Many of us already have routers, or Hubs for our broadband services, however a number will require an upgraded router.

However, in future all telephone lines will need to use a router, whether it’s a line used only for voice telephone calls and broadband or services delivered currently using a telephone line such as, intruder alarms, Telecare Devices, card machines, fire alarm systems and lifts to name just a few. Ensuring that the required technology is compatible with the new fibre network will be key to switching to digital services and preparing for the copper switch-off.