Future of Sourcing - VoIP line https://futureofsourcing.com/tags/voip-line en The Future of Plain Old Telephone Service: Hang Up or Pay Up https://futureofsourcing.com/the-future-of-plain-old-telephone-service-hang-up-or-pay-up <div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Future_Old_Telephone_Service_625x324.jpg"><a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Future_Old_Telephone_Service_625x324.jpg" title="The Future of Plain Old Telephone Service: Hang Up or Pay Up " class="colorbox" rel="gallery-node-1325-52niZXzYdcs"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/styles/juicebox_medium/public/articles/Future_Old_Telephone_Service_625x324.jpg?itok=HjC5FmWl" width="625" height="324" alt="" title="" /></a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <div>Plain old telephone service, also known as POTS, is old-fashioned copper wires connected to a standard telephone that provides the power and connectivity to the telephone service provider&rsquo;s central switching system. Replacing POTS with new technology has become equivalent to replacing a typewriter with a laptop. New technologies in the market like <a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/caller-id-a-simple-feature-with-complex-effects" target="_blank">VoIP </a>and wireless can now offer telephone services at a much lower cost than POTS. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Companies that delay in transitioning from POTS to Internet-based solutions will shoulder a disproportionate amount of the costs to maintain this aging infrastructure.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>Cost of POTS is Ballooning&nbsp;</strong></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>In some areas of California, <a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/six-steps-to-lower-your-telecom-bills" target="_blank">costs for POTS</a> have risen by 5x in the last 24+ months; in the Midwest, at least 2x; in the Northeast at least 1x (BCStrategies, 2016). Telecom giants are lobbying states, one by one, to hang up on the old telephone system. AT&amp;T is losing revenue on legacy voice POTS lines at 13 percent YoY; there has been a 36 percent drop in revenue in the last four years for their business segment (<a href="https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1002531/000095015207001859/l24103ae10vk.htm" target="_blank">AT&amp;T, 2017</a>).</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>As POTS subscriber levels decline, the costs of maintaining the existing infrastructure will fall on a smaller number of companies, which will lead to higher POTS service costs. There are also indications that the FCC may eventually phase out POTS services altogether due to unsustainable costs. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>Cost Benefit of Replacing POTS&nbsp;</strong></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The cost savings are huge: In 2013, the cost of an average business POTS line was $141 per month, meanwhile the cost of an average VoIP line, including hi-speed Internet access was $66 (<a href="https://www.bullseyetelecom.com/blog/cost-implications-voip-vs-traditional-phone-services/" target="_blank">BullsEye Telecom, 2015</a>). Telecom giants are offering the wireless phones/hardware and making it easy to transfer older established landline numbers to the wireless numbers. The wireless plans on these devices can cost as little as $20 to $40 per month. The cost savings add up as you add more lines: For example, implementing individual phones with an average cost of $35/month, to replace 1,300 individual POTS lines with an average cost of $80/month, can lead to 60 percent savings.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>POTS Still has a Place&nbsp;</strong></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Before you cut all the copper wires in your organization, remember, analog lines have other uses that are not served completely by digital, at least just yet. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <ul> <li>Fax machines &nbsp;</li> <li>Elevators (emergency phones)&nbsp;</li> <li>Alarms&nbsp;</li> <li>Remote access to your legacy private branch exchange (PBX)&nbsp;</li> <li>Failover for survivable remote sites leveraging unified communication (UC)</li> <li>Credit card machines&nbsp;</li> <li>Modems for remote access&nbsp;</li> <li>Lead number, circuits/lines used at SMB sites and smaller enterprise branch sites</li> <li>911 access from a location&nbsp;</li> <li>Overflow/failover at most remote voice IP-enabled UC sites (corporate or branch sites) &nbsp;</li> </ul> <div><strong>The Future of Voice&nbsp;</strong></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>There are workarounds for these services though. Current options for replacement of analog data circuits include the following:&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <ul> <li>SIP trunking eliminates a physical connection to the phone company and allows companies to pay only for the number of lines they need instead of getting locked into excess analog lines.&nbsp;</li> <li>Carrier or private fiber when it is cost effective enough for a performance requirement.&nbsp;</li> <li>Cellular where it is reliable enough and meets security requirements.&nbsp;</li> <li>Private wireless networks or Power Line Carrier (PLC) for those areas that fiber is not feasible and other options don&rsquo;t meet your bandwidth or latency performance standards.&nbsp;</li> <li>IP-based DSL or cable where it is available and meets service security requirements.&nbsp;</li> </ul> <div>An old Chinese proverb states that there are many ways to move forward, but only one way to stand still. POTS is standing still and charging you a pretty penny to stand there.&nbsp;</div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/cost" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Cost</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/innovation" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Innovation</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/service-provider-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Service Provider Management</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/risk-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Risk Management</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/voip-line" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">VoIP line</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-addthis field-type-addthis field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " addthis:title="The Future of Plain Old Telephone Service: Hang Up or Pay Up - Future of Sourcing" addthis:url="https://futureofsourcing.com/the-future-of-plain-old-telephone-service-hang-up-or-pay-up"><a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_linkedin"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_facebook"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_twitter"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_googleplus"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_pinterest_share"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_reddit"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_email"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_print"></a> </div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-region field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Region:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/regions/global" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Global</a></div></div></div> Thu, 29 Nov 2018 21:02:19 +0000 Alakh Krishnani 1325 at https://futureofsourcing.com https://futureofsourcing.com/the-future-of-plain-old-telephone-service-hang-up-or-pay-up#comments