So, what is PSTN Replacement?

The Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), also known as Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) is scheduled to be phased out in most countries by 2030. Read on to learn what this means for your business and how you can switch to VoIP services.

What is PSTN replacement?

Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) replacement is an essential step in the advancement of the global telephony system and refers to the ability to offer fully-featured telephony services in a specific country or area. The PSTN replacement feature set includes inbound and outbound local calling; geographic, toll-free, and national number resources; emergency service-enabled numbers; guaranteed Calling Line Identity (CLI) passthrough; dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) signaling; and number portability.

Why does it matter?

Though full-featured, the analogue equipment required for the PSTN to function is outdated, costly to maintain, and increasingly obscure as knowledge of the infrastructure dwindles. To that end, the PSTN is being phased out around the world, with 2030 as the global target for switching it off entirely. The UK, for instance, intends to be completely switched off by 2025.

Meanwhile, internet-based alternatives like SIP Trunking, which enables Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calling through a given network’s Points of Presence (PoPs), provide the path forward. But executing compliant, reliable, full-featured PSTN replacement takes resources and expertise. Providers are required to comply with local regulations and meet various criteria such as having in-country infrastructure, complying with regular audits, having a local company, having interconnects, and testing with local carriers.

As the PSTN dissipates and CPaaS providers move towards completely cloud-based communications systems, it’s important that the telephony features and services we’ve grown accustomed to remain available. At Telnyx, with our expanded PSTN replacement capacity, we have more control over our international processes, which means we can offer our customers a wider range of features and quicker turnaround times.

What does it mean for you?

If you’re using legacy phone systems:

While the global PSTN replacement initiative demands new telephony systems, there is an inherent range of benefits to this shift. By removing dependencies on external carriers and widespread, non-proprietary physical infrastructure, communications providers have unprecedented control over network coverage and connectivity quality. The shift to VoIP calling ultimately enables faster, higher fidelity telephony services at lower costs.

In contrast to legacy telephony systems and landlines, VoIP removes the need for local infrastructure—powering flexible, scalable systems while reducing costs substantially. These systems offer functional parity with a host of value adds like optimized call quality, local caller IDs, access to emergency numbers, and local dialing without the need for additional dial-prefixes. VoIP also enables a broader range of modern calling features at a minimal added cost, if any, including caller ID, integrated directories, high definition Voice, click-to-call, softphone and more.

If you’re a VoIP user:

You may be familiar with the inherent benefits of VoIP, but PSTN replacement introduces further benefits for businesses looking to expand internationally. In countries with PSTN replacement you can expect more seamless communications thanks to pure local calling, which eliminates post-dial delay. Additionally, you can rest assured knowing that you don’t need to worry about achieving emergency service compliance in various countries, as emergency calling is part of the PSTN replacement feature set.

PSTN Replacement with Telnyx

As a global PSTN replacement provider, Telnyx delivers more than the standard VoIP offering. Scale globally with instant access to local numbers in over 100 countries, port numbers even more quickly in the 30+ countries where Telnyx offers PSTN replacement, and comply with international regulations effortlessly thanks to Telnyx’s 30+ carrier licenses and expert regulatory team.

Telnyx offers PSTN replacement in 47 countries worldwide--Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, U.S. Virgin Islands, United Kingdom, and USA.

Check out our full list of international number and service offerings here.

Getting started is as simple as creating or signing into your Mission Control Portal account and configuring Elastic SIP Trunking. We offer APIs that allow you to achieve better automation and control over your communications, and have a support team available to help you 24/7/365.