Digital Voice: coming soon to your business

If you’re not already on the Great British Switch Off (GBSO) bandwagon, here’s the quick lowdown.

By the end of 2023 it will no longer be possible to buy a traditional line rental service. The copper PSTN/ISDN telephone network is being switched off altogether in 2025, but sale of services will begin to cease long before that date (it’s already started).

What that means is if your business is currently making use of traditional telephone wires for your voice needs, you’ll need to upgrade to another service.

For businesses there are two competing services vying for your attention, either of which could be ideal for you depending on your specific needs. Those two services are CloudComms and Digital Voice.

We’ve covered both of these products before – and will do again – but here we wanted to take a more detailed look at what many consider the natural like-for-like replacement for traditional line rental.

What is Digital Voice?

It’s a good question to start with, and the answer is thankfully straightforward.

As the old ‘analogue’ phone network is switched off, Digital Voice will be the natural replacement – for business and home users alike. The great news is that – as far as a user is concerned – it works in an almost identical way to the phone system you’re already used to.

The only difference? Instead of plugging your handset into the master socket to make and receive telephone calls, you’ll plug your telephone into the back of your router instead. Calls are routed over the internet instead of the copper telephone network.

Although the technicalities involved in transmitting and receiving voice signals are quite different (digital vs analogue), for a user there will be little to no noticeable difference.

Why do I need Digital Voice?

As we’ve already said, over the next couple of years traditional phone services are going to be switched off. So the simple answer is you’ll need Digital Voice if you want to carry on using the telephone for business. Of course, our CloudComms service is also available if you want to do a lot more with your business communications, but whichever service you choose, your analogue voice service won’t be around forever.

Why is the switch off happening? I didn’t ask for it

As the existing system ages, it becomes increasingly difficult and expensive to maintain. This Victorian-era system has served the country well for many years, but it has long exceeded its natural lifespan. And in a world where communications can be carried out much more reliably and in much higher quality over our internet connections, the decision has been made to retire the existing setup.

Just as copper broadband services are becoming rarer and rarer – replaced by high quality fibre – so too will traditional phone services that use the same cables.

For most people, the switch will be relatively seamless. If you’re one of the small number of users still on a traditional voice service beyond next year, you’ll be contacted with alternative options in advance of the switch off.

Is Digital Voice more expensive?

The answer to that question is a simple no.

First of all, the move to full fibre connections means the end of compulsory line rental. If you’re a CloudComms or exclusively mobile user, for example, you might decide that you’d rather just take a broadband only deal in the future.

If you do need a voice service, you’ll be able to access Digital Voice (with 1,000 included minutes) for less than the typical cost of line rental.

Is Digital Voice hard to set up?

It really is no more difficult to set up Digital Voice at home or in the office than it has always been to plug a phone into the socket.

The only difference is that instead of using the master socket, you’ll plug your phone into the router. You might need an RJ11 to telephone adapter if you didn’t get one with your router, but that’s the only additional hardware you’ll need. Your existing handset will plug into the router, and your Digital Voice service will be up and running.

Can I keep my existing number?

Yes. When you’re ordering your Digital Voice service, you’ll be able to get your existing number transferred for free.

Interested in making the move to Digital Voice? Check out our site for more details.