The Telephone Guru - Profile

Not exactly: the physical lines will (most likely) remain in place, but instead of running analogue services they will be digital. As Steve points out, the copper wire technology is an old system. In other countries where they have invested in their communications networks, copper has largely been superseded by fibre. This opens up the possibility for much faster and more flexible services, for both data and voice communication, as was eloquently explained by Steve. It does not mean that people will be forced to buy a PC and learn how to program it.

Good points, Steve, thank you. It is now increasingly possible for even the sole trader to appear much larger through the use of hosted phone services, as well as run a more efficient operation by using apps and services that are cloud-based. From a security point of view alone, it's got to be better than relying on a single PC sitting in a home office! 

On the subject of POTS and analogue phone lines, there are some major changes ahead that will affect both residential and business customers: Openreach and Ofcom have agreed that the analogue lines that have served us for many decades are coming to an end. As of 2020, no new orders for ISDN lines will be taken. By 2025, the whole ISDN and analogue phone network is scheduled to be switched off, and all residential and business telephony services will be run on broadband lines. Although more people say they are disposing of landline connections at home, their broadband becomes even more vital, so why not use its capabilities and put a phone service on it as well? 

Thanks for this. Our focus is on business telecoms services, so that's where most of our expertise lies. 

Numerous research papers point to the strong growth in the adoption of cloud-based services by businesses of all sizes, including the information quoted by Pete England above. Here's another source, which talks in some depth about the situation in 2016: Cloud Industry Forum 2016 report The summary on page 3 outlines some key statistics on the volume of Cloud users, their satisfaction levels and plans for further deployment.

Even if users might still be sceptical about the benefits of the Cloud, it is highly likely that they are using it anyway! For example, if you use iTunes, Google Docs or any of the dozens of other such services for storage and recall of photos, music or documents, you're using the Cloud. 

Advantages of Cloud-based data storage include ease of access from anywhere (as opposed to having to come into the office, open a PC - or filing cabinet - and retrieving the information from one location); security is usually much higher than in a traditional storage system. Depending on the programs used, collaboration between departments and teams is said to be improved.

In telephony, we know from our clients that they see similar benefits. There is no longer the need for large capital outlay on the installation of lines and on-site PBX equipment. The services run on a broadband line, and the "brains" that direct and manage call traffic are now run from secure servers. Upgrades and improvements to the system are managed by specialists and often implemented as part of the service.

Flexibility is a key factor: As you are no longer tied to the one location by a phone line, you can take your hosted phone and plug it into a broadband service almost anywhere in the world, and be in the office even when you're out and about. Online management portals make it very easy to make changes to the service, such as forwarding calls without having to ask a service provider; it's also very simple to set up a disaster recovery option, so that each user can have their calls reach them in the event of a loss of service. A traditional system would typically send all calls to one alternative destination.

In addition to the reduced initial costs, ongoing charges are often much lower in comparison with traditional line rental and call costs. Adding and removing users from your account is also straightforward, without the need to work out in advance home many lines are needed. Simply add a user licence and a handset, and it's ready to use.

Sorry for the lengthy post! If you'd like to know more, or have other questions, either post here or call us on 03456885122.

Happy to share thelegalstop just waiting for moderators to pass our posts!! Feel free to ask any questions and I will be happy to pass on any pearls of wisdom that might be of help to any SME.

Hi Pete, thanks for the question!! Just waiting for the moderators allowing my full reply.

HI this is Bryan Davis of Connect-it Communications. We are a small family run business in the Medway Towns and we have been around for 9 years now, all growth by word of mouth.  Hopefully, that means we are doing something right.  This is the first time we have done any advertising at all, so be gentle with us!

We work with sole traders and small to medium businesses offering a full health check for their business.  Our aim is to make what you want and more importanly, what is best for your company, to become a reality.  

I think, we are nice people to do business with, but you will only know that if you give us a call!  

Looking forward to joining in the forum chat

Bryan