Why Hotels Should Make the Switch from Traditional Analog Telephone Lines
What are POTS Lines?
POTS or Plain Old Telephone Service is the traditional landline telephone system that relies on a copper analog infrastructure. This system has been utilized for over 100 years and used to be the main telephone system for business phones and communications. POTS lines have been in existence since the Alexander Graham Bell era but has undergone upgrades that brought telephones lines from overheard poles to currently being run underground.
What are POTS Lines Used For?
Over recent years, businesses have begun migrating towards other types of communications networks such as fiber and wireless for their business communication needs, resulting in a decline in the use of traditional phone lines. According to the FCC, between December 2008 and June 2017, the use of traditional telephone lines services fell by 49%, while business interconnected VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) subscriptions increased by over 1,062%. VoIP is a process by which business telephone systems can operate using an existing internet connection.
Some businesses and commercial buildings still depend on POTS lines for their legacy devices, such as Fire and Security Systems, Fax Machines, Elevator Call Box, Voice Applications, Point of Sale (POS)Systems, Building Entry Systems, ATM’s and Emergency Safety Systems. Traditional copper analog phone systems are becoming an antiquated infrastructure, and businesses that still utilize POTS lines services for their older devices are now faced with substantial monthly costs and less maintenance.
What is FCC Forbearance Order 19-72A1?
Phone carriers are no longer required to service analog copper telephone lines as per the FCC’s Forbearance Order 19-72A1. The order requires that resellers and customers who utilize POTS line services move to an alternative service on or before August 2, 2022. The FCC and most major telecommunications providers are making the push for POTS replacement and moving to wireless and fiber connections, beginning in 2022.
Businesses and commercial buildings that still utilize POTS lines services can expect a significant monthly pricing increase, as telecommunications carriers are increasing the price for existing POTS lines between 75% and 200% in a concerted effort to force customer migration away from the antiquated POTS Line infrastructure.
Telecommunication carriers are also no longer required to service POTS Lines, therefore rendering them an obsolete technology. Businesses will be left with an increase in monthly expenses and receive less maintenance, resulting in a continuous reduction in support.