Let’s get more Fibre in our broadband diet

Once a desirable option, the simple fact is that high quality broadband is now an absolute necessity for modern businesses. Unfortunately, the UK’s old, creaking copper-based telecommunications infrastructure is impeding our ability to keep pace with modern working trends and putting us at risk of falling behind our global rivals.

Fortunately, our reliance on copper is about to change.  In December 2025, Openreach – the infrastructure division of BT – will retire the old copper lines that have supported the UK’s telephony for decades.  The great ‘copper switch-off ‘ will see the well-earned closure of two different copper-based telephone systems – PSTN and ISDN – and their replacement with fibre-optic based internet telephony.  And not before time. ISDN is relatively new, having been with us since only 1988. But PSTN dates to 1875, when Alexander Graham Bell made that first call to his partner Thomas Watson. Society has developed beyond recognition since that momentous call, but little has changed to PSTN design.

Do it now!

Let’s face facts - 2025 is just around the corner so it is vital that you start to plan and implement the necessary changes to your business now, well ahead of 2025, so that you can get ahead of the inevitable last minute rush. So, what does the move from copper to fibre means for you?   And what do you have to do? One of the most urgent considerations is that Openreach’s decision means it will stop providing new PSTN and ISDN services at more than 118 UK telephone exchanges.  This doesn’t mean your telephone service will stop, but it means you will be unable to add certain features to your existing telephone service, such as caller display, call barring, and the 1471 service.  And let’s face it – this isn’t the end of the world, especially when you consider the benefits that our new fibre optic infrastructure will bring.

New business opportunities

World-class full-fibre broadband will become the bedrock of major business investment, growth, productivity and innovation. Research by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) shows that it could increase UK productivity by £59 billion by 2025, reduce pollution and provide a real boost to communities across the country.  It’s certainly set to supercharge small and medium size enterprises (SMEs) in Northern Ireland, where 98% of all firms employ fewer than 20 people. As a key enabling technology, it will play a central role in boosting productivity, employment, economic growth and standards of living in the longer term throughout this region.

If you would like to find out more about full fibre and how it can benefit your business, call the High Performance Networks team today on 028 9053 8411. We’ll help you implement a fibre optic strategy that will see your business thrive into 2025 and beyond.