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Time is running out to switch to digital phone lines, UK businesses warned
UK businesses warned they have less than 100 days to switch to digital phone lines before PSTN switch-off
Key points
- Around a million copper-based lines remain active across the UK, including 300,000 within business premises.
- Openreach raised rental prices for WLR and legacy ISDN services by an extra 40%, with further rises due from February 2027.
- If customers do not transition, they may be moved to EVAc, a limited, temporary last-resort phone service.
Why it matters. Businesses still relying on copper lines risk sudden and permanent disruption, and those that delay may face higher costs, as EVAc is a great deal more expensive than digital alternatives.
Openreach has warned firms across the UK that they have less than 100 days to switch to digital services before the Public Switched Telephone Network is switched off, with a final deadline of 31 January next year and no extension. Around a million copper-based lines remain active, 300,000 of them at business premises. Openreach raised rental prices for WLR and legacy ISDN services by an extra 40%, effectively doubling 2025 rates.
Latest updates
Time is running out to switch to digital phone lines, UK businesses warned
UK businesses have been warned they have less than 100 days to switch to digital services before the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) is switched off – and that the process may not be as simple as they think. The switch to digital is set to introduce faster connections, a more reliable service, smoother performance for video calls, streaming and other real-time services, and enough capacity for multiple connected devices at the same time. The final deadline for making the switch is 31 January next year, according to Openreach, with no possibility of an extension. Any services still reliant on copper-based lines risk sudden and permanent disruption. However, around a million copper-based lines remain active across the UK, including 300,000 within business premises – and these remaining connections are among the most complex to migrate. While standard business phone lines are pretty straightforward to upgrade, legacy circuits connected to specialist infrastructure require deeper investigation, testing, and potential equipment replacement. For example, large multi-site organizations may have multiple suppliers and undocumented legacy circuits, making migrations more complex. According to Openreach, vulnerable systems include: Sign up today and you will receive a free copy of our Future Focus 2026 report - the leading resource for IT decision-maker insight on priorities and.