This article first appeared in UC Advanced issue#20
Data produced this year suggests that 70% of the UK population has access to full fibre, yet with the ever-looming switch-off deadline, take-up across all providers stands on average at around 35%*.
While many customers may prefer to wait to move directly to Fibre to the Premise (FTTP), there are still some access issues in certain areas, as availability stands at around 70%. However, with SoGEA now accessible to 90% of premises, availability is no longer a barrier or reason to delay migrating legacy services to fibre.
Andrew Cooper, Head of Nimans Connect is well aware of the challenges facing many ‘The January 2027 deadline is misleading and will most definitely see a fight to get customers migrated to fibre to ensure continuity of service. There is an inevitable bottleneck approaching as the number of copper-based connections still to convert, versus the time and number of engineers and operational personnel required to make it happen doesn’t equate. Our approach at Nimans is firm – we are still working to December 2025 as the deadline, allowing until January 2027 to ensure that our resellers’ vulnerable and more complicated customers can be moved without disruption.’
So why are there still so many connections to migrate? In channel there’s partners and resellers to work with in supporting them to be proactive with their customers. This understandably adds another layer to the communication and often doesn’t feature as a priority. Understanding resistance goes a long way to establishing the right approach in engaging resellers to take action. Expecting a further deadline extension is futile, but if there’s genuine misunderstandings about cost implications, downtime, fear of losing numbers etc., these can all be addressed with resellers and their customers. Bigger concerns should be customers losing service altogether because they have been switched off, or losing end customers to a competitor because they have swooped in with a compelling offer and clear plan of action.
Cooper adds ‘Go for the easy wins first. ADSL and FTTC where you are remaining with the existing supplier should mean a zero-cost migration with no downtime and no changes to credentials or configurations. Another message that resellers should lead with is to migrate asap to avoid further WLR price increases. Inform them that you will take care of everything and reiterate the need to act urgently.’
Establishing what customer connections are being used for is key. If there’s no voice traffic this is more straightforward, as there’s often no need to retain numbers, however understanding which lines are being used for incoming and outgoing calls takes time but allows the opportunity for resellers to carry out thorough audits to streamline and upgrade their customers’ networks.
Aside of the necessity in moving to fibre, it offers much more than just faster speeds and resilience – consider what the fibre will be needed for. New UC, voice platforms and Teams integration means a move to more subscription-based services offering more customer buy-in and longer-term revenues. New areas for growth can present itself in the form of video solutions, remote access and monitoring and back-up services. Plan for the critical services, especially where some form of power backup is required. Alarm lines, care lines, lifts and door entry are examples of services that don’t qualify for straightforward migrations. This opens up other forms of connectivity, namely SIM technology and M2M which can be fast to deploy and used as a ‘PSTN replacement’.
‘With so much opportunity, providing resellers with the right choice to get the right solution is paramount’ says Cooper ‘We partner with leading service providers who go beyond the standard Openreach network and enable us to have routes into the Altnets, expanding our fibre footprint in the UK. In addition, we can offer different contract terms and options with zero install costs. Pre and post sales support including providing customer data to help with availability and upgrade options. Our new partner portal also gives resellers full visibility and management of their fibre estates. If fibre isn’t the right fit, then we have multiple M2M offerings to ensure the best transition to switch-off ready connections.’
As we’re getting to the point where no one can afford to hang around, Andrew’s advice is to speak to your customers if you haven’t already. ‘We as a business are getting to the stage now with the straightforward conversions, where we are telling our resellers that we are upgrading their customers to SoGEA, giving notice and advising of the process. We need to rip off the plaster and get on with it.’ The message is simple and his advice for everyone is simply ‘Act now’.
*Ofcom, March 2025
