Openreach Offers Free PSTN Migrations for Voice Only UK Phone Lines
Network access provider Openreach (BT) has today moved to help facilitate the closure of the old analogue phone network (PSTN/WLR) in favour of digital (IP-based) alternatives, which they’ve done by making it free for broadband and phone providers to migrate WLR Solus (i.e. voice-only lines) to MPF (fully unbundled) or SOTAP (data-only copper broadband for areas without fibre) lines.
The legacy phone switch-off was previously delayed to 31st January 2027 in order to give broadband ISPs, phone, telecare providers, councils and consumers more time to adapt (details). The main focus of this was the 1.8 million UK people who use vital home telecare systems (e.g. elderly, disabled – vulnerable users), which aren’t always compatible with newer IP-based digital phone services because telecare providers were slow to adapt.
However, in total there are still c.2.4 million UK lines on the old phone WLR/PSTN network that need to be migrated across all providers, with around half a million of those serving business premises. Openreach has also previously stated that prices for these legacy lines are set to double by October 2026 (details), which is another good reason not to leave upgrading until the last minute.
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As it stands there are various solutions and approaches that now exist to handle different scenarios under this migration (e.g. Prove Telecare and temporary Pre-Digital Phone Lines / SOTAP Analogue), but a fear remains that at the current run rate of reductions (c. 44,000 per week), some old phone and broadband lines may still not be migrated by the deadline (those who fail to achieve this may be placed on Emergency Voice Access).
So as well as today announcing the extension of existing special offers for the WLR to SOGEA migration path (copper broadband lines) until 31st October 2026, Openreach have also introduced free migrations for those moving from WLR Solus (i.e. voice-only lines) to MPF or SOTAP services (this doesn’t extend to SOTAP Analogue). Providers with unbundled networks, such as Sky Broadband, Vodafone and TalkTalk, may find this useful.
The offer only applies to migrations placed between 8th June 2026 to 31st October 2026 inclusive, which must complete within 30 days at the end of the offer. You can read the full briefing here and yes, the jargon around all this can be a bit confusing. The short and simple version is to say they’re trying to remove cost as a barrier to digital phone migrations as much as is possible, both for telecoms providers and end-users.
Mark is a professional technology writer, IT consultant and computer engineer from Dorset (England), he also founded ISPreview in 1999 and enjoys analysing the latest telecoms and broadband developments. Find me on X (Twitter), Mastodon, Facebook, BlueSky, Threads.net and Linkedin.
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Fine, but are BT consumer still making it more complex by coupling the switch to digital voice with migration to fibre? And so undoing the attempts by their sibling Openreach to make it easier?
In my case, BT only allowed a switch to digital voice over copper once I got their executive complaints department involved. BT said it’s not possible initially.
Out of curiosity why not just have the phone line over fibre if it was available?
There’s no real reason to reject an FTTP install unless you’re in a rental property and cannot get the landlord’s permission. You’ll have to upgrade eventually.
Are you sure you aren’t in an Openreach stop sell area? If you are, BT would be completely correct to say that it is not normally possible. There is an exemption process but it isn’t intended to be used for those who won’t (rather than can’t) upgrade.
It was my parents house, both elderly, with illness, and trying to avoid disruption. The unsolicited ‘your engineer appointment has been booked’ texts caused extra stress. The exchange wasn’t ‘stop sell’ at the time. Technically, there wasn’t a reason not to it, but it was BT’s sleight of hand and deception which made it irritating and confusing when they had bigger fish to fry than unsolicited broadband changes.
So they should make it free, it is Openreach choice to change it.
The article sounds as if OR is doing everyone a favour, what they are doing they are doing for BT and their shareholders, not for the consumer or for any other company
My current experience with a BT Broadband FTTC line , where DV was only provided in March 2025, suggests that one of their policy objectives i.e. the one which involves the migration of existing BT customers to EE and disposal of the BT brand will entail the loss of DV for those customers.
Microsoft Co-Pilot AI advises that BT/EE group near term policy intention is to retire DV and all the BT Broadband supporting background technology e.g. BT ACS Server as its out-of-date and to replace it with EE equivalents.
Is this advice correct ? . . .makes sense to me . .fits in snugly with their determination to raise the ratio of revenue per capita customer
This would seem to be at odds with what everybody else thinks is going on in BT
Is there still a bit of an internal conflict going on in BT about this policy, or is Ms Kirby, fullspeed ahead with the ’Exotic Ices’ project ? (Lifting BT from the good times they are having now, to the even better times coming in the near future . .of course)
Great example of Copilot talking nonsense. No, BT is not retiring DV, and no, BT is not continuing on with its failed policy of forcing everyone at BT Consumer to migrate to EE.