AT&T Discontinuing Land Line Service

mt999999 · 2025-01-23T18:56:39+00:00

I went to sign onto DSL Reports to post that AT&T wire centers in the mid-west (pending regulatory approval) are going to cease offering local dial tone service or orders to move or change existing service, as of March 17th. Basically, they are grandfathering the traditional dial tone service, just as they officially have with ADSL service. I still have a traditional land-line and ADSL in eastern Ohio, that I suppose I can keep unless I move. I guess they'll continue to allow the service and lines to rot in place until it no longer functions. Anyway, back to DSL Reports, I managed to find this new site... Is DSL Reports done for good??

LightSpan

Splitpair Good to see you too !! You should have called me, i would have walked you through it .

Splitpair

LightSpan

Didn't think about that, but I'm slowly figuring it all out.

You know how I am with technology and all that stuff. ;-)

Sort of like splicing fiber try break, try break again eventually I got the hang of it s-l-o-w-l-y.

aes128

I had a ATT copper land line and when they installed the fiber, they cut the copper line. I did not really care because almost all the copper pair on my pole were bad already. As for DSLReports, I believe it is gone and not coming back.

mt999999

Splitpair

Well Bonded, is that you?

Splitpair

mt999999

Yes there are one and the same.

Splitpair

dslwanter you've always told it like it is. Now, it's happening.

It's a matter of reading the writing on the wall that others don't see or don't want to see.

mt999999

Splitpair I knew POTS land lines and DSL was going away, but it's still working as of now. Apparently, even if I wanted to upgrade my ADSL to the 18M VDSL, AT&T isn't offering that any longer, either. The only home internet option now is "Internet Air" for $65/mo. I'd rather pay T-Mobile for their more affordable home 5G "broadband" if that's the case.

Splitpair

mt999999

I have a T-Mobile Hot Spot for internet in my vehicle it works quite well and unlike AT&T has no problems with handoff's from site to site, the real nice part is price $15 per month and when T-Mobile says $15 that's the bottom line unlike who pads the bottom line will all kinds of fee's.

I also get a pretty decent deal with our cellphones at $20 per month.

legacy7955

Splitpair

Hello there old friend. I wondered when you would find the new site. Welcome aboard!
I no longer have AT&T because I moved and could only get Charter Spectrum, but I’m not going anywhere when it comes to your posts. I love your posts and your stories about The Telephone Company!

telcodad

FYI - This article is on the Cord Cutters News site today:

AT&T Unveils Cellular Home Phone Service as It Shuts Down Its Traditional Copper Phone Service By 2029
By Luke Bouma, Cord Cutters News - March 15, 2025
https://cordcuttersnews.com/att-unveils-cellular-home-phone-service-as-it-shuts-down-its-traditional-copper-phone-service-by-2029/

AT&T is bidding farewell to its aging copper-based home phone and DSL services, announcing today the launch of a new cellular-powered home phone alternative designed to ease the transition for millions of customers. Dubbed AT&T Phone – Advanced ( https://www.att.com/home-phone/phone-advanced/ ), this innovative service allows users to keep their existing home phones while connecting through AT&T’s robust wireless network, packed with modern features and priced at a competitive starting rate of $45 per month. The move comes as the telecom giant sets an ambitious target to phase out its legacy copper infrastructure across most of its footprint by the end of 2029: https://cordcuttersnews.com/att-sets-date-to-shut-down-dsl-internet-traditional-phone-service-in-most-areas/

The shift marks the end of an era for traditional landlines, which have dwindled in use as mobile phones and internet-based options dominate. AT&T’s copper network, once the backbone of American communication, is now seen as costly to maintain and ill-suited for today’s digital demands. “We’re modernizing our network to deliver faster, more reliable services,” said Susan Johnson, AT&T’s Executive VP of Wireline Transformation. “This new offering ensures no one loses their voice connection while we exit the copper era.” The company aims to replace copper with fiber and wireless solutions, targeting 50 million fiber locations by decade’s end, though not all areas will get fiber upgrades.

AT&T Phone – Advanced stands out by letting customers plug their current home phones into a receiver that taps into the cellular network, with broadband as a failover option with its $50 plan. It comes with local and long-distance calling, Call Forwarding, Caller ID, Call Waiting, Digital Phone Call Protect to block spam, E911 location detection with a 24-hour battery backup, 3-way calling, and anonymous call blocking. …

It’s also supposed to support devices such as home alarms, medical monitoring devices and fax machines:

From:
Meet The Next-Gen Home Phone Service: AT&T Phone – Advanced
AT&T Connects - October 17, 2024
https://www.attconnects.com/meet-the-next-gen-home-phone-service-att-phone-advanced/

Contains a 24-hour built in backup battery to stay connected during critical emergencies.

Works with other TDM-based technologies such as home alarms, medical monitoring devices and even fax machines;

This sounds like an improved version of Verizon’s “Voice Link” service, a cellular home phone service, that was used as a replacement for damaged landlines in areas affected by Superstorm Sandy back in 2012, instead of repairing their copper network: https://stopthecap.com/2013/05/06/six-months-after-sandy-verizon-abandoning-wired-network-in-mantoloking-n-j/

nucleartx

telcodad That price is outrageous at $45 a month for only voice service.

px_eliezer_

nucleartx That price is outrageous at $45 a month for only voice service.

Agree–while it may be cheaper than current POTS/landline, people can do better with many of the cellular plans.

Heck, my Connect by T-Mobile prepaid cellphone plan is 10 bucks a month, gives me plenty of voice, enough data (and I use my Internet for data anyway), and 911. I also have other cellphone plans similarly priced….

Why on earth would I spend 45 bucks (plus fees/taxes) for this AT&T product ??

adlr

px_eliezer_ I’m with you, but maybe the fax compatibility or ability to work with alarm systems are unique?

mt999999

px_eliezer_

Yes, I feel the same way. I don’t care if they are giving me a 24 hr. back-up battery and free calling features/long distance, I can get all of that with any wireless plan, and figure out my own back up power, for way less money per month. I’d consider their service for $30/mo. once copper is turned down… But not at $45. My current local service is just over that price after taxes, without the features, but I keep it for a mix of nostalgia (rotary kitchen wall phone) and utility. Bundled with my DSL, I’ll keep it as long as it’s available, just for fun, then probably switch ISP’s and go VoIP.

MacLeech

adlr Yeah, there are plenty of online fax services and the vast majority of commercial and residential alarm systems I’ve dealt with in the past few years use LTE/5G wireless modules. I had to swap out a few 3G wireless modules that stopped working when the providers pulled the plug.

px_eliezer_

adlr I’m with you, but maybe the fax compatibility or ability to work with alarm systems are unique?

Excellent point but as MacLeech said, that’s shifting over to online (faxing) or cellular modules (alarm systems) as well.

Alarm systems are better off with cellular transmitters, so that crooks don’t simply cut the wires.

Astyanax

MacLeech Yeah, there are plenty of online fax services

Online fax services are nothing but fax spam receptacles and are a PITA to actually use.

I thought you can add voice phone service to fiber internet?

telcodad

px_eliezer_ Alarm systems are better off with cellular transmitters, so that crooks don’t simply cut the wires.

Not necessarily. Many burglars are now using (illegal) cellular/Wi-Fi jamming devices to disable burglar alarm and security camera systems. 🙁

Burglars are using Wi-Fi jamming devices in ‘alarming’ new trend, N.J. cops say
NJ.com - June 13, 2024
https://www.nj.com/morris/2024/06/burglars-are-using-wi-fi-jamming-devices-in-alarming-new-trend-nj-cops-say.html

MacLeech

telcodad Usually, the wireless link is the backup to the hardline network connection the security systems have. It’s no longer dialup, it’s Ethernet. If no other hardline internet connections are available, it could be 2 different LTE providers or satellite. At some point all methods of connection are vulnerable to forceful interruption, dial-up isn’t immune to that either.

px_eliezer_

telcodad

Poor communications deter theft;
good communications promote theft;
perfect communications stop theft.

Written by Cordwainer Smith (Paul Myron Anthony Linebarger) as part of his 1961 story,
“MOTHER HITTON’S LITTUL KITTONS”.

The significance of each of the 3 statements takes a bit of pondering…

The problem is that our world has moved from (1) to (2) but is not anywhere near (3).

px_eliezer_

Astyanax Online fax services are nothing but fax spam receptacles and are a PITA to actually use.

I don’t see that at all.

I use an excellent online fax service called Faxage for some of my outbound faxing, and all of my inbound faxing.

Fax service is still important in some spheres such as real estate, legal, and medical.

Faxage is independent, whereas many other online services are owned by a company called Consensus Cloud Solutions (formerly J2 Global).

I’m not touching upon J2 Global here but, as noted, Faxage is NOT part of them.

1) Faxage is very easy to use inbound and outbound.

2) As far as spam—-Well gee there will ALWAYS be fax spam if you’re running some sort of business with your fax number posted.

3) But using an online fax service, spam is a small annoyance (and you can block numbers and block whole area codes such as Wyoming/307 which is a pox upon this nation).

4) BY CONTRAST, if I was receiving faxes on a physical fax machine, the spam faxes would be printing out, using my paper and my toner. So a physical fax machine is WORSE for the spam situation…

Astyanax

px_eliezer_ Fax service is still important in some spheres such as real estate, legal, and medical.

You don’t have to tell this guy that being in the insurance industry. We do it old school with the paper in the feeder. If you really want to do it old school use the machines with the rolls of thermal paper with the disappearing “ink” in a year or two. 😉

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