Will plusnet provide a voip landline service?

[#1]

Indeed, the drum store was just physically large, a 19" rack mount unit that was around 15U high I think.  I seem to remember that the store was made by Ferranti, probably cost an arm and a leg back then.  I can't remember the capacity, but it was massive compared to the 16kb core store of the PDP.

The story about drivers carrying change is spot on.  Whenever we went anywhere we had an official driver (staff weren't expected to drive themselves back then, even fresh graduates like me!).  I remember our regular driver very well, chap called Fred.  Always kept his shotgun in the boot in case there was the opportunity for bit of rough shooting at whichever airfield we were going to (rough shooting was encouraged  - the RAF don't like birds on airfields much).

Very different era.  I still have a card here from my first ever outside duty trip.  It was to Braintree, to visit a secret (at that time) GEC comms development site.  The card has the hotel rates typed on the back.  Bed and breakfast was £1 17s 6d, with dinner for an extra 12s 6d (dinner, bed and breakfast for about  £2.50).

[#2]

This thread has moved so far from it's title subject that it has become pointless.

Whilst the recent additions to this thread may be interesting and nostalgic for some it has nothing to do with whether or not Plusnet will be providing a VOIP type telephone service.

I for one am about to unsubscride from this thread.

Take care all

[#3]

Sorry . . .

[#4]

To get slightly back on topic 😉 and to avoid duplicate posts, this thread maybe of interest
https://community.plus.net/t5/Home-Phone/Will-Plusnet-use-EE-s-new-Digital-Home-Phone-to-replace-lan...
If EE can provide a digital voip service then what's stopping Plusnet?

[#5]

I think it's just some sort of odd marketing strategy (or the lack of one, perhaps?) within the BT group of companies.  It seems that services sold and badged as BT are pretty comprehensive, with a coordinated offering of broadband, a hub that supports analogue and DECT phones and a VOIP service as a replacement for the PSTN.

Looks like EE are doing something similar.  What's odd is why Plusnet, as a part of the same empire, seem to be at best sitting on the fence with regard to a telephony solution, or maybe the plan is to just do away with Plusnet as a BT entity and do some sort of rebranding exercise that brings all the disparate parts of the BT empire together as something new.

Does seem a bit odd keeping customers in the dark, though.  I've had no reason to be critical or complain about the service I've had from Plusnet, TBH they've provided a reliable a good value service to me for several years now.  The uncertainty about the future of telephony is the only thing that bothers me, and if Plusnet were to say straight out that they were going to continue to offer all customers a broadband and reliable telephony service when the PSTN gets turned off I'd be happy (notwithstanding my ongoing concerns about the long duration backup issues).

[#6]

To know what BT Group have planned for the constituent companies of the BT Consumer Division, you would have to ask them - and I know exactly what response you'd get.

[#7]

Does make me wonder how many customers they may lose as a consequence of the uncertainty over any future phone provision.  The shutting down of the PSTN now seems to be getting some attention (it's the reason I joined this forum - I read about this for the first time a couple of weeks ago).  There seems to be a growing risk that customers may jump ship to other providers that are now advertising comprehensive broadband and VOIP phone services.

Maybe this is what Plusnet want, to gently persuade customers to go elsewhere, especially as some may well opt to just shift to EE or BT branded services, so there won't be an overall loss to the group.  I've noticed that Virgin seem to be advertising a fair bit though, so there has to be a risk that customers that are uncertain about renewing a contract with Plusnet (in the light of the shutdown of the PSTN) could opt to switch to a provider outwith the BT Group.

Undoubtedly I'm an edge case as far as my requirements go, in that reliability of telephony during a long duration power outage is of far more importance to me than it might be for someone in an urban area, with alternative ways to make emergency calls.  Has been enlightening talking to neighbours over the past week or two though.  None were aware of the PSTN shutdown, some don't have broadband, most don't use mobile phones regularly. 

I was sat in the waiting room at our nearest village GP last week, with 5 others.  We were chatting about a village event (moaning, really, because since the demise of the village newsletter none of us knew it was happening).  One thing that came out of that brief chat was that none of us were carrying mobile phones.  Not surprising, as there's virtually no signal here, but it did make me think harder about how any of us would get hold of a doctor or ambulance during a power cut (after the PSTN shutdown).

[#8]

Not only does it seem that PlusNet will not be offering a digital voice or VOIP solution, but on investigation it would appear that the moment the existing number is ported to another VOIP provider, they will also cancel your broadband service! On the other hand PlusNet were quite happy to press me into accepting a broadband only SOGEA contract yesterday, apparently without loss of service (other than the landline) and with a saving on the landline cost. Shouldn't it be possible to have an orderly transition to a new VOIP provider without loosing the exiting broadband service for a number of weeks? Bearing in mind that this will mean loosing e-mail as well. I am still in contract with PlusNet until next May, but since they are keen to move us to SOGEA and are not providing VOIP then why not us port our existing number to another VOIP provider at the same time and without loss of broadband service? Quite simply put, why not allow loyal customers to transition in an orderly way rather than having this pushy, punitive, anti-competitive attitude? I guess that's the BT influence coming through.

I should probably add that they did offer me the option of buying out of the contract but that also means I will loose broadband and their e-mail service which is not what I was looking for. I am happy, for now at least, to stay with PlusNet for broadband but I just want to plan an orderly transition to another VOIP provider. It then begs the question, what happens when my contract expires? Will I then be able to port my number to a VOIP provider or will my service be automatically moved to SOGEA?

I guess I do have another option, and that is to accept a change in my phone number which I have had for years. Under Ofcom rules providers may not refuse a port request,  but it would appear they can penalise you with loss of service.

Like many others, I wish PlusNet would just be open about this and make an official announcement instead of us having to discover the detail by trial and error.

[#9]

but on investigation it would appear that the moment the existing number is ported to another VOIP provider, they will also cancel your broadband service! 

When converting a line from FTTC (with phone) to SoGEA , since the ISP placing the order owns the broadband asset as well as the phone, they are able to place a type of order which ceases the landline at the same time as changing the asset to SoGEA.

When a Voip provider places an order to port the number, they do not own the broadband asset and so have to place a normal cease order which will automatically cease the landline and any associated broadband.

However, OFCOM have recently decreed that number must be available for porting for up to 30 days after they are ceased, so following a change to SoGEA the number SHOULD be available for porting to a voip supplier for 30 days.  Results have been a bit variable though, with some voip suppliers saying (sometimes but not always?) that they are unable to port an inactive number. Anecdotally it seems that the number must be active when the port is requested and that it doesnt matter if its not active on the actual port date.

[#10]

Also be aware that even if your landline is with ANOTHER SUPPLIER, if Plusnet move your broadband only account to FTTP or SOGEA,  your landline WILL GET CEASED without warning !

See - https://community.plus.net/t5/Full-Fibre/Plusnet-Full-Fibre/m-p/1874810#M17447 

[#11]

It all seems very confusing to me.  Our Plusnet FTTC contract (including line rental and the evening and weekend call package) has another nine or ten months to run.  We've had the phone number for around a decade (it was ported to Plusnet when we switched to them about 8 years ago) and would like to keep it, mainly because we have an elderly relative who is partially sighted and who has our number programmed in to her phone and fall alarm system.  I could re-programme these for her, but she lives about 120 miles away, so making a trip on the day our number is forced to change would be a bit of a pain.

I'm happy to stay with Plusnet and get a SoGEA connection, but very much want to retain our existing number and port it to someone like A&A.  I'd keep the existing number with Plusnet if they offered a VOIP service, but it seems this just isn't going to happen.  I can't understand the thinking at Plusnet that seems intended to block, or hinder, phone service porting, especially as it seems clear that they aren't the slightest bit interested in continuing to provide a phone service.

[#12]

In my case its not even an issue of moving from FTTC to FTTP but its good to be aware of that issue as well, so thanks for posting that Nibiru. The area where mum lives has been canvassed by CityFibre so it looks like there will be an FTTP offering sometime in the near future. They will put her in touch with providers, to I intend to wait and see what will be offered, although in the meantime I am conducting my own research.

However, AFAIK, FTTP will not be offered in the area where I live for the foreseeable future. Apparently, according to the support person I spoke with yesterday, switching to SOGEA is just a case of PN changing the configuration at their end which will result in an increase in the BB speed and ceasing the landline. The difference between the old contract and new will effectively be a reduction by the value of the landline cost. I didn't get around to asking the duration of the new contract.

I would be happy to do that and stay with PN as a BB provider as they have provided a reliable service over a number of years. It would mean loosing PN e-mail which I am already planning for any anyway. Apparently, it is possible to move both BB + landline number to a provider that can supply both BB and VOIP (such as A&A) and unfortunately, the way this is going, when my contract expires, I will have little choice but to do exactly that.

The hindrance might be the Ofcom porting rules or BT dictating PlusNet policy, or even with PlusNet themselves. Whatever the case, the Ofcom advice is to raise a complaint with your ISP....

[#13]

Apparently, according to the support person I spoke with yesterday, switching to SOGEA is just a case of PN changing the configuration at their end which will result in an increase in the BB speed and ceasing the landline.

Close but not quite, PN have to raise an order on Openreach to change to SoGEA. There is also no reason why the BB speed would increase, unless you changed from the Unlimited Fibre(40/10) to a Fibre Extra(80/20) product at the same time.

The difference between the old contract and new will effectively be a reduction by the value of the landline cost.

The reduction in cost is usually nowhere near the amount of the line rental. There is still a need for the copper line to be maintained and so the cost for SoGEA is often not a lot less then FTTC with phone ( unless of course you are going from an out of contract FTTC cost to a contracted SoGea !)

[#14]

Our position is much the same, @Batphone .  We are unlikely to get FTTP in my lifetime, I've been told that there are no plans to replace the copper wires with fibre for the "final mile" in most rural areas, because of the high cost of slinging thousands of miles of fibre on to the poles for just a few tens of thousands of customers.  The cost I was quoted by Openreach to run a fibre here was about £30k, so the reluctance to do this as standard is perhaps understandable.  If they can meet, or exceed, the government target to provide at least 10Mb/s without the expense of running fibre, then I'm sure that's what they will do.

This means that SoGEA will be our default connection when the PSTN shuts down anyway, so porting our number needs to happen sometime, the question is just one of timing.  I would like to get ahead of the game and ensure we retain both a landline phone service and our existing number before the PSTN stops working, partly because I want to gain experience of the resilience of VOIP over our broadband.  I can't see anything at all unusual in wanting this, I would assume that's what the vast majority of landline customers would want.

In my case I have had my own email server, with my own domain name, for many years now, simply because I got caught out when a previous ADSL provider chose to get out of the business, with my old email address being destined for oblivion.  The nuisance this caused was so great that I decided to pay the money for my own email service.  That's proved to be a good decision, as it both very much more robust, plus it doesn't have the inherent privacy issues that "free" email services provided by data-gathering companies have (never understood why anyone would freely give private and personal data away to the likes  of Google etc).

The Ofcom rules seem clear, all landline phone providers are required to make numbers available for porting to another provider for 30 days after the end of the contract/service.  Under that rule, Plusnet should port my existing number to A&A when I request it.  The problem seems to be one of compliance, in that this may or may not be expedited by Plusnet, for reasons that aren't clear.

I'm tempted to write a letter to Plusnet (by post so I can be sure it is received), with a request that they clarify EXACTLY what their policy is with regard to customers switching from one of their FTTC packages with line rental and calls, to their SoGEA broadband only package.

[#15]

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@JSHarris wrote:

... we have an elderly relative who is partially sighted and who has our number programmed in to her phone and fall alarm system.  I could re-programme these for her, but she lives about 120 miles away, so making a trip on the day our number is forced to change would be a bit of a pain.

Another way of looking at this specific point, is what is your elderly relative going to do when their analogue landline is due to be switched off by the end of 2025 ?.  Assuming that they don't use the internet, then what will happen to their fall alarm if BT arrive and simply convert the landline phone to "Digital Voice" using an SIP enabled phone socket.  Elsewhere it is suggested that suppliers of fall alarms should replace the existing analogue dial-up device with an internet connected equivalent - well that's fine if the customer also a broadband contract, but what if they don't ?.

If the only reason for you to not change your landline phone number is because of your elderly relative, perhaps solving the technical issues that your elderly relative is likely to run into over the coming months, might mean that your need to retain your landline number disappears ?

I don't know what the answer is, but I have five neighbouring households all of whom are in their late 70s or 80s, none with broadband, who as yet have no idea that they will need to have their analogue phones and associated alarms changed by late 2025.  In every case their phone handsets are next to the front door with no nearby mains power outlet, in an area that we have power cuts several times a month, and have almost no mobile coverage.  They are going to hate having a mains extension lead running along the length of their entrance hallway, with a big battery backup UPS sitting on the floor to power their phone and "Digital Voice" line adaptor.

I wish you luck in finding a solution ! - I appreciate your struggle in attempting to do the least bad thing and reducing the possibility of unintended consequences,  as I've just been through MONTHS of deciding what is best for myself, and the ONLY solution that solves my specific requirements was to migrate landline and internet to A&A on their shortest contract length, and then if need be at a later date migrate the VoIP and/or broadband to different suppliers.