Single Order Generic Ethernet Access (SoGEA) is a new Openreach product that will bring big changes to telecoms in the UK. It means that providers can bring fibre optic cable to a street-side cabinet without a phone line.
Most homes and businesses connect to Openreach via Wholesale line rental (WLR), with broadband added on top as a package deal.
However, in the current times of VoIP Systems and mobile phones, phone lines are becoming more and more redundant.
“one in four (24%) UK households – more than 6.5 million – has a landline that goes unused.” – Comparethemarket.com
According to Openreach, around 15 million UK homes and businesses will need to be switched away from traditional analogue voice services, which also includes other services that use analogue signals e.g. security alarms, cash machines, elevators, traffic lights and even sluice gates in rivers and canals.
SoGEA was created in response to this shift in usage so consumers and businesses can buy a broadband connection without the need for a phone line. Instead, customers can get a voice service on a SoGEA line although it will need to be an IP-based solution like VoIP.
Using SoGEA means there is a lower install costs because it is 50% quicker to install and lower rental costs. However, it does mean that if your customer needs/wants a voice service, they have to have a VoIP solution for their home or business.
Looking ahead Openreach are aiming to make all traditional landlines extinct by 2025.
Don’t panic over the acronyms, people will not have to get
bogged down in configuration or need a new phone – you will simply change where
you plug your phone in. Some providers may recommend VoIP handsets, but we
believe the new broadband routers will have a phone socket and will take a
standard telephone.
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