Sorry not to be clear. "maintained communications" means that the circuit will continue to operate if there is a wide area power cut. PSTN provides that because the exchange has a battery, that is charged by a diesel generator and the design standard for exchanges was to have fuel storage on site sufficient for two week's running. Openreach FTTP connects to such exchanges and therefore should provide "maintained communications". The Altnet FTTP implementations that I have seen take the fibres to a cabinet that has only battery back-up and therefore the circuit will only stay up for a few hours. The same reliance on battery back-up without generator applies to cellular base stations and to FTTC.

So, if maintained communications is needed I think the choice is PSTN, Openreach FTTP or own-provided communications network with maintained power. When PSTN is discontinued and Openreach FTTP is not available, own-provided communications network with maintained power will be the only solution. This may provide good business for Starlink and other satcom. services.

If you have something that vital then you get a leased line and a generator with a fuel supply contract.

PSTN is not the choice because it's going away for new orders in a little over six months.

In reply to a post by candlerb:

No, it's nothing to do with "lower end packages".

In properties which have FTTP available, and which are in an area where copper stop-sell is in force, you won't be able to order FTTC for any package. Even 40/10 or 80/20 will be delivered as FTTP. Copper will no longer be available to order, nor are regrades or migration orders accepted.

In properties which *don't* have FTTP available, you can continue to take copper-based services indefinitely. But you will have to give up your PSTN+FTTC service, and switch to SOGEA (or SOGFast or SOTAP), before Dec 2025, due to the separate PSTN switch-off project.

Combining these two rollouts: if you're in an FTTP area with copper stop sell in force, but currently have a PSTN+FTTC service, you'll be able to let it roll on for now. But by Dec 2025, you'll have to change. Since SOGEA won't be an option for you, you'll have to move to FTTP - or lose your service entirely.

I have been told that stop sell of FTTC when it happens will not affect people on 40/10 FTTC,

https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2021/06/openre...


Stop sell on PSTN is a different thing, but since I already use a VoiP system it will not affect me

There are exclusions on the 40/10 package but it's not completely exempt from the stop sell.

Existing FTTC/SOGEA customers will be allowed to remain on 40/10 or modify to 40/10 after the stop sell starts.

If you don't have FTTC though you won't be able to order 40/10 FTTC after a stop sell starts if FTTP is available.

In reply to a post by j0hn83:

There are exclusions on the 40/10 package but it's not completely exempt from the stop sell.

Existing FTTC/SOGEA customers will be allowed to remain on 40/10 or modify to 40/10 after the stop sell starts.

If you don't have FTTC though you won't be able to order 40/10 FTTC after a stop sell starts if FTTP is available.

So If I want to stay with FTTC 40/10 I can do as I am an existing 40/10 user, so is everyone in this road that have broadband apart from 3 who have gone to FTTP, I also presume some of the surrounding roads as well as they are too far from the cabinet to get anything faster like I am.

Not that we have FTTC stop sell, it may be a while before it happens, saying that Openreach do seem to moving their backside a bit, maybe because they are worried that ZZoomm will take customers, amazing how quickly Openreach move when they have competition. But I still think it will be a while for a start as far as I know they got to give 12 months notice before stop sell. A lot of water will flow under the bridge in the next 12 months or so, but at the moment I am fine with what I have.,

In reply to a post by zyborg47:

Not that we have stop sell, it may be a while before it happens,

I suspect outside of the trial areas (Salisbury & Mildenhall) that this will be a long way off yet with the PSTN going first taking majority of effort.

That does seem a bit odd not to have a keypad. I wonder if it's like on of my neighbours system, they've always managed it with a phone, but didn't realise that the control pad is behind a small flap under the status display unit in the hallway. They've had it for 3 years and had no idea it was there.

In reply to a post by jchamier:

In reply to a post by zyborg47:

Not that we have stop sell, it may be a while before it happens,

I suspect outside of the trial areas (Salisbury & Mildenhall) that this will be a long way off yet with the PSTN going first taking majority of effort.

If that is the case, then why the hell is Openreach going to restrict people's broadband in Salisbury & Mildenhall if they don't change over? They say it is to do with PSTN, but it doesn't sound like it.

It will certainly not be happening here for a while, I did get a bit worried that it would happen once openreach got to 75% coverage, but not so worried now

The speed restriction (being trialled) is a warning shot before the service disappears completely. PSTN withdrawal affects any product built on top of it, WLR3+FTTC needs to change to SOGEA, only the ISP can do that. The aim of the trial is to trigger a process where the end user contacts their ISP, assuming that the ISP has already tried writing letters, sending emails and making phone calls and not had any success engaging the customer.

In reply to a post by zyborg47:

If that is the case, then why the hell is Openreach going to restrict people's broadband in Salisbury & Mildenhall if they don't change over? They say it is to do with PSTN, but it doesn't sound like it.

Those towns are the full fibre (FTTP) test areas, where copper is being fully switched off, as Openreach have agreed years ago with Ofcom. Completely separate to PSTN which is voice calls.

It will certainly not be happening here for a while, I did get a bit worried that it would happen once openreach got to 75% coverage, but not so worried now

I think they’d have to get 100% coverage to do that.