The switch off is fast approaching! Are your customers ready?
Switch on to the switch off
Everything you need to help your customers prepare for the Great British Switch Off.
The Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) switch off is a major change that you will certainly be aware of - but your customers might not. Originally designed for voice communication, the PSTN is an ageing system that is being phased out. The challenge is that many of your customers will still rely on it for a range of connectivity needs.
Openreach is leading this transition, which means your customers will have to move to newer, more reliable digital solutions sooner rather than later. To minimise disruption, you should be fully prepared to help your customers manage this change.
You may have heard that the switch off date has been extended to 2027, but this doesn't mean you should slow down your preparations... In fact, with the PSTN network becoming increasingly creaky and error-prone, you need to be more proactive than ever.
Zen is here to help. We're dedicated to raising awareness and working with our partners so that everybody is fully prepared for this once-in-a-generation transition.
Tick Tock. The countdown is on...
The end of PSTN is not a distant event that you can forget about for the time being. Far from it... While the final switch off is scheduled for 2027, a phased shut down means that you haven't got as much time as you may think.
In October, Openreach revealed that over 5.5. million circuits still had to to transition to all-IP, and that there were around 800 days left to complete the job. To put it another way, that's 700 circuits a day or 49,000 a week! Everyone has their work cut out.
Leaving your switch off planning to the last minute puts your customers at risk of bottlenecks, delays and disruption. It could put your customers at risk too. So why not get ahead of the game? As a direct network provider, Zen has firsthand experience of migrating and upgrading customers and we are ready and waiting to support your plans. To kick your preparations off, we're offering 30 minute "Switch Off Sessions" where our Partner Experience team will review your base and formulate switch off plans that will get you well and truly switch off ready.
New terms to be aware of:
90 days' notice!
Could you prepare your customers to transition in just 90 days?
Openreach, the organisation responsible for maintaining the PSTN, has announced that it can now give just 90 days' notice to cease services. This might mean that if a customer encounters a problem with a legacy product, you may have to move their line to an all-IP alternative in just 90 days.
We'll know more about how this 90-day limit might work in practice as Openreach updates us over the next few months, and we'll keep you fully informed on how Zen will support partners as the new deadline kicks in. But it's one of the many reasons we advise you to start your switch off planning sooner rather than later.
What does this mean for your customers?
The big question is, could your customers switch all of their critical systems to all-IP alternatives in just 90 days? It's complicated by the fact that many of their current systems may rely on these outdated networks - think card payment systems, CCTV, lift alarms, and more. We can help you address these challenges today.
Here's your free report:
Navigating a new telecoms era
After reading this report you'll have all the information you need to prepare your business customers for a smooth transition to new digital connectivity, including:
- Why the switch off is happening?
- How prepared are UK businesses
- The risks of delaying a transition to digital (all-IP)
- Choosing the right solutions
You can download a white-labelled version of this with your company logo from our Campaign Centre to utilise with your customers too. Log into Campaign Centre and search 'Great British Switch Off' and add your logo.
How did we get here?
The UK has been building towards faster, more reliable, digital connectivity for a while, and now it's time for the switch to take place. Here's how we've got to this point:
The switch off challenge - why we need to prepare today.
As you can see, there's a lot to think about. This is why we're urging partners to help their customers to start their planning for the switch off today.
Our CEO Richard Tang highlights the switch off challenge
Our CEO Richard Tang highlights the challenge businesses face with the PSTN switch off. Unlike consumers, where the transition is straightforward, businesses with multiple lines and specialised applications require a complex, one-by-one migration. This makes the switch off especially difficult for your business customers, adding more time and effort to ensure everything transitions smoothly.
Businesses are especially vulnerable to switch off disruption. Unlike consumers, businesses with multiple lines and specialised applications require a complex, piece-by-piece migration. This makes the switch off especially difficult for your business customers, requiring more time and effort to ensure everything transitions smoothly.
For example, businesses often find that at least some of their additional systems rely on PSTN. The above diagram gives a few common examples of third-party services that are typically connected to a legacy landline.
All in all, it's just another reason to start planning your switch off journey today. You need time to contact all those third-party suppliers, and find out when the services your customers rely on will be available in digital (all-IP) formats.
At the same time, your customers need time to plan their move. That means porting over the telephone number that has become synonymous with their business. It also means thinking about the right replacement connectivity and voice solutions to take their business forward. The switch off is an opportunity as well as a challenge. Talk to your customers about using the transition to move to more effective technology.
What's being switched off and when?
The Great British Switch Off consists of two concurrently running projects.
The WLR Withdrawal covers pretty much what you've already read about; that is, the withdrawal of analogue (PSTN and ISDN) telephone services.
Running hand in hand with that scheme is the Full Fibre Priority Exchange programme, which is complementing the full fibre rollout to ensure full fibre becomes the predominant connectivity product across the UK.
The stop sell is well underway and will continue throughout 2025. Our Stop Sell exchange rollout table covers all the most recent Tranches that have already completed and the ones that are planned.
Follow the link below to access the latest Stop Sell exchange list for more information on when your nearest exchange is due to be switched off.
Stop Sell exchange rollout
- Tranche 7. 46 exchanges. 08 Feb 2023
- Tranche 8. 46 exchanges. 09 May 2023
- Tranche 9. 41 exchanges. 08 Aug 2023
- Tranche 10. 37 exchanges. 01 Nov 2023
- Tranche 11. 56 exchanges. 16 Feb 2024
- Tranche 12. 115 exchanges. 04 Jun 2024
- Tranche 13. 39 exchanges. 16 Aug 2024
- Tranche 14. 41 exchanges. 8 Nov 2024
- Tranche 15. 63 exchanges. 17 Feb 2025
- Tranche 16. 91 exchanges. 26 May 2025
- Tranche 17. 92 exchanges. 19 Aug 2025
- Tranche 18. 79 exchanges. 06 Nov 2025
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Resources
We're committed to helping our partners get switch off ready. For existing partners, all your switch off content will be available in the campaign centre alongside a range of additional resources. They include technology audit templates, a switch off video series, whitepapers and webinars. We'll be adding more over the next few months. These resources will provide you with all the tools you need to plan your switch off strategy.
