If you’ve been in the industry of selling communications solutions for a while, you’ve probably noticed a trend of businesses increasingly moving to digital means of communications such as VoIP.
It’s no surprise, really, when you look at the facts. Increasing broadband use and the introduction of cell phones drove many to drop the now optional analog phone line. Businesses held on most likely because the cost to rip and replace an enterprise-grade PBX that still functioned and met business needs was not enough of a justification to switch.
Why are Businesses Transitioning to VoIP and Digital Communications?
When VoIP first became a viable option for business in the early 2000s, it had a big hill to climb. Analog lines were extremely reliable, with good sound quality, and very secure. VoIP was cheaper, but also was susceptible to frequent outages, either from electricity or cable cuts or cyberattacks. When everything worked, it worked very well.
But as the years went on, VoIP matured to a technology that was a strong competitor to the analog network who had not, to that point, come across a comparable technology that threatened the century-long reign of the copper wire. As VoIP continually added new technology, functions, and features, the copper wires were complacent and didn’t innovate fast enough. As a result, subscribers increasingly switched from analog lines to the more cost-effective and agile VoIP technology.
Fax Machines, Alarm Systems and Elevators
There are some devices that have not performed as well over digital connections as they did analog. Fax machines are very sensitive to latency and jitter, and can not reliably send a message over VoIP that will be fully understood by the receiving device. Elevators have been in use for decades and while new elevators have digital connections built-in, older elevators only had analog phones to rely on.
While alarm systems could transmit their data over digital lines, analog lines have been the preferred method of transmission. So many who still have alarm systems, especially businesses, rely on analog lines to protect their business. Which leads us to this:
4 Reasons Why You Need to Offer POTS Replacement Devices
The numbers tell the story….
- 40 Million active Fire and Burglar Alarm Lines in the US
- 900k Elevator connections required by law to connect to a manned desk
- 112 Million telephone line subscriptions as of 2019
- 7 Million fax machines in use across the US
Revenue for analog systems has been in decline for at least a decade and will soon become non-existent. But that does not mean that your telecommunication offerings also become obsolete. You can continue to serve customers throughout the transition by offering them a cost-effective way to connect their analog devices and/or PBX to the digital networks. How?
POTS IN A BOX ® – One device to Connect Them All
Fortunately, the alternate solution is surprisingly simple. One device can convert your analog POTS line devices, such as fax machines, elevator alarms, fire and burglar alarms, to enable the signals to be sent via digital technologies. How?
POTS IN A BOX® is an LTE/Cellular/Wi-Fi/PSTN/FirstNet-capable router that can enable many combinations of legacy analog wireline in-band Voice, M2M, Data, DTMF, Analog Data Modem Tones, Fax and Alarm System Signals. These functions – which were historically supported by POTS Lines – can now be delivered via POTS IN A BOX® and carried over LAN or WAN internet connections such as fiber optics or cable connections. Now you can keep the systems and devices you have invested in so thoroughly over the past years and still enter into the digital era, all by plugging in one simple device to bridge the digital divide. Contact us today to learn more about how you can offer POTS Replacement solutions for your customers.
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The Beginning of the End for POTS Lines
