On Monday 17th May 2024, BT Group dropped a massivebombshell in their year-end report, casually mentioning, “we now expect to have migrated all customers off the PSTN by the end of January 2027, allowing us to align the programme with full fibre broadband customer upgrades where available.”

Back in early April, the Telegraph released an article explaining that an expected delay was to be announced, pushing the switch-off from it’s original deadline from 31st December 2025 to late 2027.

The whole industry went into a frenzy, with everyone buzzing about how this delay was highly anticipated.

In April, we shared our perspective on the matter and spread some positivity about the delay, and our stance remains unchanged. The extension provides the industry with the necessary time to continue encouraging existing customers to transition to a digital voice service. Plus, the extensive national press coverage about the switch-off aids in educating customers. Before 2024, convincing customers that a voice migration was necessary to future-proof their service was somewhat of a struggle for resellers, ISPs, and MSPs.

So, let’s hope that much more of the national press conversation stays apparent!

Now, some other intriguing news in the report is the staggering rate at which Openreach is expanding. In their last quarter alone, they reached an additional 1 million properties, averaging a build rate of 78,000 per week. Openreach now covers over 14M properties with full fibre.

The channel has a rather “sensitive” relationship with Openreach. Most of us have been dealing with them for decades regarding WLR3 services, and it can be quite painful when things don’t go as planned (which is pretty often). But there’s no denying it: They’re wholeheartedly committed to transforming the country into a full fibre nation, and that’s something to celebrate!