Verizon may soon be removing the old-school copper wires that have connected New Yorkers to the phone system for the last 150 years.
Pending Federal Communications Commission approval that’s anticipated to come this fall, the legacy phone provider with roots in the original Bell Corporation that monopolized American telecommunications from the 1870s will stop relying on the standard copper cables that the system was originally built on, replacing most copper connections with fiber-optics or wireless networks.
Verizon landline customers across New York received a letter sometime in the last two weeks alerting them that their service was going to be transitioned at some point in the future. Federal regulators still need to stamp their approval on the plan, and its anticipated that the actual transition will take months to years to complete.
According to the letter, if the FCC says yes, the company will have the power to make the change effective Nov. 30. But that doesn’t mean the lines are getting cut immediately, according to Diana Alvear, spokesperson for Verizon.
“As we transition from legacy copper to modern networks, we are committed to ensuring no customer is left behind,” she said in a statement sent by email Friday. “Our customers’ home phone service is not going away. Receiving an initial notice simply marks the beginning of a multi-step regulatory process and does not mean immediate service disconnect. Furthermore, if a suitable replacement is not yet available, we will not discontinue a customer’s copper voice service.”
Customers will be kept apprised of the next steps in the process, and will not be expected to do anything as a part of the process. If new equipment has to be installed at the customer’s address, the company will reach out to schedule a technician visit who will establish the system and, if requested, test to ensure it works as expected.
More details on the conversion can be found at verizon.com/copper.
Alvear said Verizon does not share details on how many customers it has on specific services, and was unable to say how many New Yorkers are still using the copper-wired telephone system. A majority of the company’s customers have moved to their fiber-optic system, Fios, which provides telephone service with a product called Fios Digital Voice.
Verizon will be running fiber-optic cables to addresses that are not connected that can viably be wired to the network, and replacing their phone connection with a Fios modem. Customers can choose just to subscribe to the home phone service at $25 per month, or add it onto a Fios internet and television package.
For customers that can’t be reliably connected to the fiber optic network, usually addresses in rural and sparsely populated regions where the cables would be too expensive to run, customers will be provided with a Verizon Voice Gateway, a product that connects to the Verizon wireless network via 4G and 5G. The gateway costs $99, with a $40 activation fee, and unlimited voice-only service costs $20 per month.
Both options will come with battery backups, allowing them to operate when the power is out the way traditional copper telephone systems do. And they work with most home phone systems that are available.
For business customers, Verizon has a wide array of desk and conference phones that connect to their wireless network and base stations to connect with existing commercial phone systems.
Verizon is one of many companies to transition out of their copper networks; local network provider SLICFiber, formerly the Nicholville Telephone Company, has been removing copper lines and replacing them with fiber optics as well.
Verizon argues that maintaining the aging copper network has become a drag on its operations; it’s only suitable for telephone and dial-up internet, is susceptible to failing in inclement weather and is increasingly a target for theft. By removing it, the company can stop investing in the more than a century-old network and put more money into the state-of-the-art wireless and fiber-optic systems it’s been building for the last 30 to 40 years.
“We are committed to ensuring that customers remain connected as we transition from a 100-year-old copper network to the faster, more reliable technologies of the 21st century,” Alvear said. “Our goal is to provide every community with the resilient, high-speed infrastructure required for today’s world while maintaining the essential safety features that our customers rely on.”
Services that rely on the copper lines, known as POTS or plain old telephone service, will be transitioned when the customers change their equipment. Most alarm systems and other home systems that communicate via phone line are compatible with both the Fios and wireless home phone solutions. For most customers, the devices can be plugged into a telephone wall port and enable the other home telephone ports and all devices connected to it. Most new fax machines also work on the Fios and wireless networks.
While Verizon is appealing to the FCC for approval for this, the state’s Public Services Commission also regulates telecoms companies in the state. A spokesperson for the Department of Public Services said that the PSC will be participating in the FCC review process and providing comments to the regulatory body. Once the FCC’s decision comes down, the PSC will review it and see what state-level regulations may apply.
“PSC’s focus is on protecting consumers, safeguarding public safety, and ensuring continued access to reliable communications services,” the spokesperson said. “If we find that FCC is not meeting these objectives, then PSC will consider what additional steps may be warranted to protect New York’s customers.”