VoIP (Voice over IP Telecoms)

BT has confirmed that it will stop taking new ISDN orders in 2020, with a view to switching-off and deactivating its ISDN network completely in 2025.

BT has been making plans to move all of its voice network over to VoIP (voice over IP). VoIP — unlike traditional solutions — does not run over copper lines, making them redundant. The only thing you need is an active internet connection.

A large number of customers have already migrated to VOIP solutions due to the many benefits that t offers over traditional voice solutions. Aside from being a more modern, progressive technology, VoIP has many advantages for businesses over PSTN and ISDN:

• It’s much quicker to provision new lines and more flexible i.e. pay-as-you-grow solutions
• You can potentially reduce your ongoing costs
• It is incredibly scalable and flexible – for example this type of system can give you the ability accept work calls remotely, transfer calls to office based collages and use a variety of call devices to access your voice network – VOIP handsets, PCs, laptops and even your smartphone!

If you’re one of BT’s 2 million ISDN customers, you have until 2025 to review your options and make the change (before the network is switched off). Don’t be fooled by many companies who are needlessly scaremongering on the back of this announcement.  Take your time to make the right decision for your business.

However, if your current PTSN/ISDN phone contract is up for renewal soon, then now is the right time to start exploring the option of switching to VoIP technologies.

Switching from an analogue phone system to a VOIP solution is not as complicated as you might think.

There are a couple of things to consider however: -

While VoIP doesn’t use very much data when compared with other services like video, you still need enough bandwidth to deliver voice on top of everything else your office does. Some VoIP providers suggest 5Mbps down and 2Mbps up as a bare minimum for a small office, but really the bandwidth you need depends on your individual needs and Quality of Service (QoS) priorities.

The reality is, if you don’t have enough bandwidth or a QoS commitment you could experience poor audio quality or intermittent service and miss out on the full benefits. We can suggest suitable connection options that are available to you in your area and even bundle this connectivity into your overall solution for one simple monthly expense.

A large majority of new office phone systems already support VoIP, but if yours does not support this then you can potentially upgrade your entire phone system to an IP-based solution using SIP trunk technology. Alternatively, It might also be a good opportunity to consider switching from a fixed, on-premise phone system to a cloud-hosted telephony service. This provides access to the full range of benefits and flexibility offered by a complete VOIP solution.

Yes, absolutely! We’re already helping a number of UK businesses transition from their current ISDN systems to our class-leading VOIP solution. Everything is taken care of, from porting your existing business numbers, recommendation on hardware options, full migration consultancy and setup, to ongoing support and maintenance. Everything is managed by our customer migration team whose job is to make the move as pain-free as possible

If you would like one of our migration team to chat through your options, then contact us and we will call you at a convenient time without any further obligation.