Is VoIP a suitable substitute for our Landline Telephone System?

New technologies give us the opportunity to improve our telecommunications networks, but we need to make sure that in so doing we are making improvements that benefit telecom consumers, and not just the utility companies.

While many customers still use copper-wire based “landline” phone service, wireless and broadband technologies have become more widely marketed and accessible to consumers. These systems are less expensive for telecom providers to install, repair, and replace. The ability to switch landline phone service over to an IP, or Internet-Protocol, service is becoming more and more feasible for customers. However, as both wireless and broadband services in Oregon remain largely unregulated by the Oregon Public Utility Commission (OPUC), there are a number of concerns involved with letting telecom providers set up new IP-based phone networks unchecked.

What is Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)?

VoIP is a methodology that allows voice communications, such as telephone calls, to be placed over Internet Protocol (IP) networks, such as the internet. This means that calls utilizing VoIP rely on the public Internet, rather than the traditional phone network (called public switched telephone network, or PSTN) used by traditional landlines.

What is CUB’s biggest concern with VoIP service?

The biggest concern with VoIP, from CUB’s perspective, is that it’s unclear whether the service is currently, or will ever be, regulated by the OPUC. As it stands today, the OPUC has not affirmatively asserted jurisdiction over VoIP providers. If the Commission determines that it will not exercise jurisdiction over VoIP providers or if legislation passes that deregulates VoIP altogether, consumers will not be able to turn to the OPUC for assistance, as they currently can for traditional basic telephone service. There would also be no way for the OPUC to set standards for service quality or for service in underserved regions of Oregon, meaning that customers could get stuck with exorbitantly high rates or be unable to obtain service at all. In short, Oregon’s VoIP customers would lose an effective regulator that can enforce consumer rights.

What are the benefits of traditional landline service?

It’s important to also look at the benefits that landline phones provide. This is particularly necessary due to the trend of many urban telephone users eschewing landline service altogether to opt instead to use mobile phones and broadband as the primary means of communication.

The most often cited benefit to a landline phone, particularly compared with currently available VoIP options is that even when you lose power, you don’t lose your phone connection. Of course, if you only have cordless telephones, you are still out of luck, but as long as you have a wired phone that you can plug straight into your phone jack, you can still have phone service even during a blackout. This can be incredibly important, particularly for rural and elderly customers who may lose power for multiple days, or for those with medical devices such as pacemakers that require regular communication with a hospital or doctor’s office. This option just simply isn’t the case with current VoIP systems. Because VoIP requires a modem to connect to the internet, if your power goes out, even if your Internet connection is still active, there will be no phone signal without electricity.

Landline telephones also offer another benefit: the infrastructure for landline phones is nearly omnipresent. Through concerted effort and the help of the Universal Service Fund (USF), nearly every household in the country has access to an inexpensive phone line that provides a consistently available signal. With wireless phone systems and VoIP, there is a requirement that newer, more advanced infrastructure be in place, be it with high powered cell phone towers, or an advanced broadband line. This simply does not exist in some areas of the country, particularly in some rural areas of Oregon. (Today in Oregon there are many areas that do not receive consistent cell phone signal, nor are there any Internet options available save for dial-up or expensive yet slow satellite.) If VoIP is to become the future for our landline phone service, it must be guaranteed to be available to as much of the population as is currently served reliably by the old copper wire phone lines.

On top of that, it needs to remain affordable. Currently, basic phone service in Oregon ranges between $12-$25 depending on one’s location and service provider. Since VoIP requires a relatively fast internet connection, and then often has additional charges on top of that requirement, there is the potential for customers being charged much higher rates for a similar service as traditional landlines.

Technology is constantly improving, and so should our phone and broadband networks. However, if customers are going to move away from something that has stood by reliably for decades, and has given Oregonians across the state equal access to communicate with family and emergency personnel, then we need to make sure that the new service meets the standards and consumer protections already in place for basic residential telephone service.

At CUB Connects, we can help you to find the best home phone plan for your needs, whether that be through a traditional phone company or through a VOIP provider. Call our toll-free helpline at 1-855-892-4314 for more information!

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