ISDN switch off will take place by 2025

As technology advances, so must your business communications. Find out why it is time to switch from an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) circuit to a VoIP system.

ALL ISDN circuits are to be discontinued over the coming years.

If you opened your business over 10 years ago, the chances are that you have an ISDN2 or ISDN30 circuit to provide your telephone calls.  ISDN stands for Integrated Services Digital Network.

This ISDN circuit will likely be plugged into your onsite PBX/Telephone system so that the desk phones in your office can make and receive calls.

ISDN switch off will take place by 2025

BT are switching off all ISDN circuits by 2025, your business will be required to switch from ISDN powered telecoms, to VoIP powered telecoms.

VoIP in simple terms is the technology that allows you to place calls using your internet connection, rather than your ISDN connection.

You need a VoIP provider, who provide you with an account, very much like having an email account.  Your phones or PBX can then send and receive calls to this VoIP account.

Big savings can be made switching to VoIP.

Goodbye, line rental!  ISDN circuits typically charge line rental on a per channel basis - having 60 channels could cost as much as 60x £12 = £720 per month.  This is a large amount of money that your business can be saving each month.

Call costs - Have your call costs been falling each year in line with the falling wholesale pricing?  We find that many companies that signed long term ISDN contracts are also tied into long term high rates for their telephone calls.

We can provide big savings on VoIP telephone calls by giving up to date call rates, and bigger saving for high usage businesses.

What is PBX?

PBX stands for Private Branch Exchange, and it is an internal private telephone network system used by businesses and organisations. This network can be used to make and receive calls, as well as to transfer data between PBXs.  It is an essential part of any business communication infrastructure, and it is something that should be carefully planned and managed.

Do you have an onsite PBX System?

If you already have an onsite PBX system that is working perfectly well and you are happy with its features, you will not want to part with it. However, there are a number of reasons why you might want to consider hosted VoIP as an alternative, even if you have a perfectly good onsite PBX. VoIP offers a number of advantages over traditional telephony, including increased flexibility, scalability, and cost-savings. With a hosted VoIP solution, you can keep your existing PBX in place while enjoying the benefits of VoIP. This can help you save money and avoid the hassle of replacing your entire telephony system.

You can use a device called an ISDN to VoIP Gateway that will allow you to continue to use your existing PBX system and make calls over the internet using a VoIP account.  This way you still get the savings on your Line Rental and Calls and continue to use your existing handsets, reducing any staff disturbance with installation and training of a new system.

We can provide an ISDN to VoIP Gateway device to replace as many ISDN circuits as you require.

Advantages of a cloud hosted PBX system.

Are you ready to embrace the next generation of PBX technology by hosting your PBX service in the cloud?

There are benefits to this on two fronts, firstly you don’t have to power and maintain onsite PBX equipment; secondly, you get access to all the new features a modern PBX system can provide including:

• Video Conferencing
• Company Chat
• CRM integrations
• Smartphone Apps
• Desktop apps
• And much more

As with most network devices, there comes a time when it’s necessary to upgrade an older piece of technology for something that is more up-to-date. This is especially valuable in the modern workplaces where employees are hybrid working and need to make and receive calls.

When to carry out your ISDN switch off?

You can keep your existing telephone numbers as we can port them away from your ISDN circuit and onto your new VoIP account.  This Porting can only be completed whilst the ISDN circuit is in operation, so do not cancel your ISDN circuit before you have ported your numbers to your new VoIP provider.

The process for porting the numbers is very straightforward, there is a porting form that needs to be signed to confirm the change in hosting provider of your telephone numbers.  Once this is submitted we can provide you with a date that the hosting of the numbers will be transferred, usually in 2 to 3 weeks time.

Simplifying the process – we can organise a smooth transition and organise your ISDN end of life!

We understand that this sounds like a complicated process, as well as a big decision for your business to make.  Telephone connectivity is a vital component to the operation of most businesses so you will not want any disruption to this service.

Your VoIP account can be run alongside your existing ISDN circuits, the process of switching between ISDN and VoIP is managed by our engineers, onsite in most cases, to ensure there is no interruption to your business operations.

Whichever path you choose when switching to VoIP, we can manage the process for you from start to finish.  It all starts with a free consultation with one of our telecom experts, so please give us a call or chat to us online, we will be happy to help you.