One Day When We Switch To Digital Voice.

Also posted on 'Kitz' forum Post

We still use our PTSN phone with No Mobile signals (most) in our village due to the terrain and classed as Vulnerable and we get power cuts.

I know the PTSN system is supposed to be turn off January 2027.

I also know I could port my number that we have had for 42 years to a VOIP provider (but why should I , also If I port the number that will kill our ADSL2 connection ! ).

My setup at the moment =

BT paid Phone line with BT Phone, plus Dect phones ( calls go through an ISP )

ADSL2 over the BT line with a separate ISP with who we get 2000 minutes of free calls a month, then if they are used up we pay any other calls through them Not BT..
Still have large amount of email addresses with this isp.

FTTP (over BT Openreach) with a small ISP.

We have our Own domain for other emails etc.

I intend to wait and see what BT will do about my set up and I will not have another BT broadband account to work the Digital VOIP phones (Unless it's free ).

Any Idea's what could happen. ?

Anyone else in similar situation. ?

In reply to a post by APTMAN:

BT paid Phone line with BT Phone, plus Dect phones ( calls go through an ISP )

ADSL2 over the BT line with a separate ISP with who we get 2000 minutes of free calls a month, then if they are used up we pay any other calls through them Not BT..
Still have large amount of email addresses with this isp.

FTTP (over BT Openreach) with a small ISP.]

Anyone else in similar situation. ?

Just to clarify you have 1 PSTN line for calls and an ADSL2 broadband service, which are billed separately?

Also a separate FTTP service with no phone package or phone service?

Presumably you are a SMPF , ( shared metallic path facility ) customer if you pay BT and an ISP for separate services over the same copper pair , but it seems completely illogical to be doing so ,as the combined cost will be significantly more than both services from a single provider , you hopefully have declared you have broadband another source and as SMPF you obviously can’t lie about that , so you are not entitled to the ‘no broadband’ discount from BT for their phone only service .
As a SMPF customer your migration away from PSTN is likely to be amongst the last to be done so probably well over a year before any decision will need to be made , but I dare say at that point you will need to decide (assuming you want to keep this in addition to your FTTP service ) join the ISP and drop BT or join BT and drop the ISP for both services, but in any case as FTTP is available it’s likely whatever you decide, given it will constitute a recontracting event , they will provide the new service via the FTTP network and any telephony will be IP based .

Edited by Iniltous (Thu 05-Jun-25 18:20:03)

In reply to a post by CJT:

Just to clarify you have 1 PSTN line for calls and an ADSL2 broadband service, which are billed separately?

Also a separate FTTP service with no phone package or phone service?


Yes to both.
Both are business accounts (but we sold the business now) using for domestic.
Will check soon with the ADSL2 isp who I think do domestic phone service but not sure if they have gone over to VOIP yet or will do !
FTTP isp do have business VOIP which is expensive for our needs.

Edited by APTMAN (Thu 05-Jun-25 20:19:39)

In reply to a post by Iniltous:

As a SMPF customer your migration away from PSTN is likely to be amongst the last to be done so probably well over a year before any decision will need to be made ,

Yes that's what I was thinking.

Not sure if this new system BT are trying would help my case 'SOTAP for Analogue'
Is this were they are using an ATA type card to do the service.
In our village there are a lot elderly people who still have POT's phones (some with emergency call systems ) who are no way tech savvy who will need help in the switch over to ip based systems.

Edited by APTMAN (Thu 05-Jun-25 20:37:36)

We are in a similar position to yourself.
We have a copper line which carries our long time phone number, FTTP which carries our internet service.
A poor mobile service, it was very poor until recent upgrades which mean we get a signal most times in the garden now.

Where we are different.
I have two VOIP numbers, although neither of these I need, I want the number on the lousy copper line( sometimes it's impossible to use) moved to VOIP with our ISP so that it receives calls, but at present this seems beyond the capabilities of TalkTalk(some might not be surprised at that)
We use Wi-Fi calling for outgoing calls which is cheaper and better than the copper line.
We don't need a phoneline as vulnerable people, good job too, as I've posted before a power cut took out the phoneline for longer than the power was off in the house! Anyway gf has been told if she runs a fever from catching a virus such as common cold, "Don't waste time ringing 999, proceed directly to A&E and produce the card you have been given for immediate treatment"

I do agree older people need help with this change. Speaking to my Aunt recently, she is coming to end of contract with Plusnet, she has multiple health issues, her husband is suffering from dementia, and she doesn't know what to do, I tried to keep it simple on the phone as to what I thought and sent her an email, but she really needs her son in law to sit down and go through it, and he lives 150 miles away from her, as do we.

In reply to a post by burble:

I want the number on the lousy copper line( sometimes it's impossible to use) moved to VOIP with our ISP so that it receives calls, but at present this seems beyond the capabilities of TalkTalk(some might not be surprised at that)

That this is beyond the capabilities of TalkTalk is perhaps an indicator to put your phone line with an independent VoIP service, rather than negotiate this kind of issue when you want to change ISP

In reply to a post by APTMAN:

In reply to a post by Iniltous:

As a SMPF customer your migration away from PSTN is likely to be amongst the last to be done so probably well over a year before any decision will need to be made ,

Yes that's what I was thinking.

Not sure if this new system BT are trying would help my case 'SOTAP for Analogue'
Is this were they are using an ATA type card to do the service.
In our village there are a lot elderly people who still have POT's phones (some with emergency call systems ) who are no way tech savvy who will need help in the switch over to ip based systems.

I believe SOTAP for analogue is a transitional product for PSTN only customers currently without access to FTTP , as someone who already has FTTP access , I doubt BT will offer you this , that’s assuming you remove the broadband provider from your SMPF service and try to revert it to a basic telephone only service with BT , the clock is ticking though , and although some vested interests managed to postpone the inevitable PSTN retirement until Jan 2027 it’s a risk to assume the deadline will be extended again , so I would have though you need to be making a decision sooner rather than later , that being , do you need to even keep this extra service, and if you do , who should provide it, BT or the ISP .

Edited by Iniltous (Thu 05-Jun-25 23:26:04)

You must be paying far in excess of what is required to get what you want. If you have FTTP then you have no need for ADSL, port the numbers from the lines you want to keep to a provider like Voipfone or A&A and take preconfigured ATA hardware from them if you want, and then cease anything that is left over.

In reply to a post by APTMAN:

Yes to both.
Both are business accounts (but we sold the business now) using for domestic.
Will check soon with the ADSL2 isp who I think do domestic phone service but not sure if they have gone over to VOIP yet or will do !
FTTP isp do have business VOIP which is expensive for our needs.

Thanks for confirming this, assuming the FTTP service provides you with decent speeds, that you are happy with I would go with what jpm suggested and ditch the ADSL2 service and the PSTN phone service, and move to VoIP.

If the current VoIP service from the FTTP provider is expensive, but is separate to the FTTP service, you maybe able to move both numbers to another provider, or providers.

Do you or anyone in the household use any Telecare service at all?