How the New FCC Deregulation Order Affects Your Business Phone Service
As the state of business phone systems continues to advance and telecommunications equipment becomes increasingly more digital, even our most traditional forms of communication are changing. One such example is the Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS), which used to be one of the more utilized business phone systems in the workplace, but is slowly becoming extinct due to lack of demand and government regulations.
The rapid decline of POTS lines has accelerated in recent years, with the FCC reporting that the number of POTS lines in the U.S. has declined from 122 million in 2010 to 41 million in 2019, with major telephone providers set to drop POTS lines entirely within the next five years.
POTS lines are the traditional analog phone lines that have been used for decades by businesses of all industries. However, with the advent of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) and other innovative telecommunication technologies, POTS lines are starting to become phased out.
Here’s a quick breakdown as to what’s leading this technological change of guard, as well as how businesses still utilizing POTS lines can upgrade their telecommunications performance by switching over to more modern business phone systems.
Analyzing the FCC’s Deregulation of POTS Lines
Earlier this year, the FCC issued Order 10-72A1, which requires that all POTS lines in the United States be replaced with an alternate service – such as fiber or wireless connections – by August 2, 2022.
While this order doesn’t necessarily ban or prevent businesses from still using POTS lines, what it does do is incentivize businesses to upgrade their telecommunications systems and invest in more modern network infrastructure designs, such as fiber networks, broadband, premise-based phone systems, cloud-based platforms, and other wireless systems.
This change will have a big impact on businesses that are still using POTS lines, as they will need to upgrade their business phone system or else be subjected to predicted skyrocketing costs for continuing use of POTS lines. In fact, research shows that the cost of POTS service has increased by around 36% over the last decade, and is estimated to increase by 75% over the next five years.
Exploring New Telecommunication Options for POTS Users
The primary reason businesses still utilize POTS lines is simply because they don’t deem it necessary to modernize their communication network infrastructure. However, much of that hesitancy to upgrade their business phone system is due to a lack of understanding of how revolutionary new telecommunication technologies truly are.
For example, VoIP phone systems offer many features and benefits that traditional analog phone lines simply cannot provide, such as:
- Lower Costs: VoIP phone systems are typically much cheaper to operate and maintain compared to traditional analog phone lines.
- Flexibility and Scalability: VoIP phone systems can be easily scaled up or down to meet the changing communication needs of your business.
- Enhanced Features: VoIP phone systems come with a host of features that can improve productivity and efficiency, such as call forwarding, video conferencing, data sharing, and more.
- Increased Mobility: VoIP phone systems are not tied to a physical location, so employees can take their business calls with them wherever they go.
Upgrade Your Business Phone System With Telecom Technologies
If your business is still using POTS lines, now is the time to upgrade your business phone system! At Telecom Technologies, we can equip your company with modern VoIP phone systems that offer many benefits that traditional analog phone lines simply cannot match. You can also choose between cloud-based networks or premise-based phone systems, depending on your company’s telecommunications needs.
Ready to ditch your old analog phone line system? Contact Telecom Technologies today to get in touch with our business phone system specialists and modernize your network infrastructure!