The Great British Switch Off
August 30, 2022 | News
Gavin Brown, Head of Managed IT Services, Pinnacle advises companies to educate and take action now to plan
Getting ready for the digital upgrade to ALL IP
The UK is preparing for a huge technological change. Stop sell of copper services will take effect in 2023, leading up to the late 2025 switch off by which time we’ll all be enjoying full fibre connections and next-gen communications.
By the end of 2025, the historic analogue network, used to make most phone calls from our landlines and also used for broadband, will have reached the end of its life. And a new digital phone network is taking its place.
What do we mean by stop sell?
In essence, the stop sell simply means that certain products relying on the Openreach network will no longer be sold.
So, from a given date you may, for example, no longer be able to order a new analogue telephone line or ADSL broadband connection.
The stop sell won’t only affect new orders though, it will also impact working line takeovers, restarting of stopped lines, CP transfers, addition of broadband to copper voice lines, bandwidth modification, and the addition of lines and channels to existing installations. In other words, this isn’t just about new services but also modifications to existing services too.
What stop sell doesn’t mean is that existing services will suddenly stop working. Any end customers who are currently using a product that is no longer available for sale will be able to continue using it until the withdrawal date, ensuring that they will have time to transition away from existing contracts without suddenly having the rug pulled from underneath.
What’s involved?
There are currently two programmes to which stop sell applies: Full Fibre Priority Exchange and WLR Withdrawal.
The WLR Withdrawal element covers pretty much what you’ll have already read about stop sell, namely the withdrawal of analogue telephony services (PSTN and ISDN).
The Full Fibre Priority Exchange programme is about complementing the full fibre rollout, ensuring that it becomes the main available product from communication providers.
What’s happening next?
The switch-off isn’t only something that will have an effect from 2023, it’s already underway with exchanges commencing stop sell throughout the year. However, while many businesses are prepared for the stop sell and switch-off, others are less prepared to manage the transition. Don’t get left behind, talk to our Managed IT Services Team today!
Stop Sell exchange rollout:
- Tranche 1a. 13 exchanges. 29 Jun 2021
- Tranche 1b. 94 exchanges. 13 Oct 2021
- Tranche 2. 26 exchanges. 13 Oct 2021
- Tranche 3. 47 exchanges. 25 Jan 2022
- Tranche 4. 69 exchanges. 29 Apr 2022
- Tranche 5. 97 exchanges. 02 Aug 2022
- Tranche 6. 89 exchanges. 01 Nov 2022
- Tranche 7. 98 exchanges. 08 Feb 2023
- Tranche 8. 46 exchanges. 09 May 2023
What does that mean for you?
Essentially, if a Full Fibre Priority Exchange stop sell applies in an exchange you’re trying to put an order through, as long as full fibre is available at the customer premises it will be the only product you can buy (other products – like ADSL and FTTC – will be unavailable).
If full fibre is not available at the premises, you’ll still be able to order legacy products. In addition, we should also point out that Ethernet will not be impacted by Full Fibre Priority Exchange stop sell.
But, the long and short of it is that full fibre will be coming to many more exchanges, and not only that, if it’s available from those exchanges it’s likely (in most cases) to be the only product available from that exchange.
It's time to think full fibre.
That means if you haven’t already added full fibre to your portfolio, the chances are you’re going to start missing more and more opportunities – the question is, will your competitors be doing the same?
Thankfully, we’re still early enough in the process for you to make the most of that early adopter advantage. By adding full fibre to your portfolio, getting your brand known in those early stop sell areas, and warming up customers and prospects in those areas that will inevitably follow suit, you’ll be giving your business the best opportunity to make the most of this fundamental change in UK connectivity.
Fast facts...
- Zen Interent connected its first FTTP circuit over 10 years ago back in 2010
- One-third of Zen's orders each month are for FTTP
- Over the last 12 months, Zen Internet's FTTP base has more than doubled
- Zen Partners most popular ultrafast package is 1Gb FTTP
