June 4, 2024 Digitizing Telecoms for the Future

As industries rely heavily on telecoms, digitizing old telephone lines is a business imperative for manufacturing, retail and transport.

In today’s digital age, modernizing telecommunications is a global necessity. The issue of neglecting copper landlines recently reached a boiling point with major telecom carriers being accused of failing to provide reliable service to customers. Public Utilities Commissions in various states have launched investigations into the matter after receiving numerous complaints from residents and businesses about dropped calls, slow repairs during outages and other issues. 

This issue, however, is not confined to specific carriers or states, and in fact has implications far beyond the telecom industry and can impact industries like manufacturing, retail and transportation. With an estimated 35 million landlines still in operation in the U.S. alone, including about 14 million business lines, there likely isn’t an industry that is immune from potentially being affected.

Major telecom providers worldwide have been discreetly retiring their physical copper lines over the past few years, transitioning towards a new digital era. The digital transformation of these lines is beneficial for both telecom carriers and the customers they serve. Copper networks are not only expensive to maintain but also unreliable, with their gradual deterioration accelerating over the past decade. The costs to maintain these lines have grown up to ten times the traditional rates, making them untenable.

The dangers of patching old IT infrastructure are similar to those posed by neglecting critical physical infrastructure like roads, bridges and tunnels. Despite being the network connecting most alarm, elevator and first responder communication lines, our copper wire infrastructure has been overlooked in recent federal investments. This neglect could lead to serious consequences.

The urgency to digitize plain old telephone lines (POTS) cannot be overstated. This transition, also known as POTS transformation or replacement, is essential for maintaining uninterrupted critical communications that support business continuity, security, human safety and regulatory compliance.   In addition to providing cost savings in telecom expenses, the digital transformation of copper landlines has also built resilience into these fraying lifelines that serve millions of people and businesses. Public safety organizations like the New York Fire Department have shown their support for this transformation. 

The end of legacy infrastructure is inevitable, and a new digital era is beginning. Digital transformation provides a more cost-effective, resilient and reliable long-term alternative. For CIOs, building owners and local authorities responsible for cash registers and critical systems supporting elevators, fire alarms, burglar alarms and even fax lines in some industries, this change should be welcome news.

The technology involved in this transformation is a new brand in the VoIP category that uses a special adapter to translate analog signals into digital ones that can communicate over major cellular networks. It offers primary connectivity for voice and data, as well as wireless backup to ensure business continuity during network and power outages. Dual SIMs provide an added fail-over protection to ensure emergency lines remain connected during such outages.

It’s time to stop delaying and paying more to maintain obsolete technology. The future starts now, and it’s time to begin the transformation.

Timor Brik serves as DataRemote’s Chief Operating Officer a company that specializes in analog to digital POTS Transformation. Timor grew up in South Africa where he saw detrimental the effects of copper-theft and rising prices before moving to the U.S. Prior to joining DataRemote, Timor practiced law as a criminal defense attorney in the San Francisco.

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