SOGEA: what is it and what does it mean for your business?

We’ve spoken at length about the Great British Switch Off. You’ve been kept up to date about the approaching end of the old telephone network and why you need to be preparing now for the future of your business communications.

But that switch off also has other implications.

Hand-in-hand with the end of PSTN/ISDN is the rollout of full fibre broadband. It’s the future (and increasingly the present) of broadband – faster, more reliable and not dependent on a phone line.

That lack of dependence on a phone line means full fibre is an ideal platform for modern business communication tools like Digital Voice and CloudComms.

But what if full fibre isn’t available at your office? Currently you can still fulfil your broadband needs with an ADSL (copper) or FTTC (fibre to the cabinet) connection. Each of those connections make use of existing phone lines though – something they won’t be able to do for very much longer.

However, although the telephone service might be being switched off, those cables will still exist, and thankfully for those properties not yet served by full fibre availability, they can still be used for broadband access.

So how exactly will that ‘non-full fibre’ broadband be delivered?

Introducing SOGEA

Single Order Generic Ethernet Access, or SOGEA to use its more palatable name, is the non-full fibre equivalent of broadband without the phone line.

Using the familiar fibre to the cabinet infrastructure, it enables broadband access for properties unable to tap into the full fibre network.

Having all the speed and reliability advantages of FTTC, SOGEA is high quality internet connectivity. The only difference? It works without a phone service. It is instead a data only service, with (unlike traditional broadband) no line rental requirement.

SOGEA will be available wherever FTTC currently is, minus those locations where full fibre is available. And that means, when the analogue telephone network is finally switched off for good, millions of businesses will still have access to the reliable broadband they need not only to fulfil their connectivity needs but also to take advantage of services like Digital Voice and CloudComms.

But there’s the rub. Because if your business requires a voice service (which it probably does), this will need to be separately obtained. From 2025 you will no longer be able to rely on old-fashioned line rental for your voice needs. Thankfully, better options exist today. Check out our previous article here for more on Digital Voice and CloudComms.

You can take a look at our available Business SOGEA packages, or request a call-back here.