Openreach has announced a significant expansion in its plans to phase out traditional copper-based phone and broadband services in favour of ultrafast full fibre connections. The company revealed it will stop selling these legacy analogue products in an additional 94 exchange locations, impacting nearly one million homes and businesses across the UK. This move is part of a wider strategy to push customers toward cutting-edge digital infrastructure and ultimately build a fully digital UK network.

According to Openreach, communication providers such as BT, Sky, TalkTalk, and Vodafone will receive 12 months’ notice to cease offering copper-based services in areas where full fibre becomes widely accessible. James Lilley, the firm’s managed customer migrations director, explained that it is operationally and commercially sensible to retire the ageing copper network as its capacity to support modern communications diminishes. "Taking advantage of the progress of our full fibre build and encouraging people to upgrade where a majority can access our new network is the right thing to do," he said.

Industry data shows that Openreach's full fibre infrastructure now passes over 18 million premises nationwide, with more than four million added in the past year alone. The company aims to accelerate this rollout by 20%, targeting 25 million premises by December 2026 and eventually reaching 30 million by 2030. Clive Selley, Openreach’s chief executive, noted that while more than a third of households have already made the switch to full fibre, there remains significant potential for further upgrades.

This latest announcement builds on previous expansions in Openreach’s stop-sell programme, which has seen copper service sales halted in over 160 exchange locations covering millions of premises. Industry reports indicate some sources cite figures ranging from 84 to 163 new exchanges added during recent waves of the programme, reflecting an ongoing intensification of efforts to transition customers to fibre-optic technology.

Openreach’s transition strategy also includes investments in regions such as Salisbury, where over 22,000 homes and businesses have been connected to full fibre. The company plans to cease selling copper services there by December 2025, aligning with its broader £12 billion infrastructure initiative intended to future-proof the UK’s digital connectivity by the mid-to-late 2020s.

In addition to halting new sales of copper-based services, Openreach has implemented a 'stop sell' on traditional wholesale line rental and associated broadband services like ADSL, fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC), and G.fast. Existing users of these copper services will not see immediate disruption but will eventually transition as part of the full copper network switch-off targeted for 2025.

As the UK’s broadband usage continues to surge to record levels, driven by increasing demand for speed and reliability, Openreach’s efforts to retire the copper network and expand full fibre access reflect an industry-wide push to deliver faster, more future-proof internet connectivity. While the shift poses operational challenges, the company asserts that migrating customers to digital-only, fibre-based services is essential for sustaining modern communications infrastructure in the years ahead.

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Source: Noah Wire Services