Delivery timeframes for number porting and fibre service installation have already increased drastically in the lead-up to ISDN shutdown commencing.
With the shutdown of ISDN services to commence at the end of September 2019, the death of traditional telephony is just around the corner. The roll-out of NBN, while incomplete, has been the catalyst for Telstra to pull support for the legacy fixed-line technology, and the flood of change requests has well and truly commenced.
Number Porting
A major change for organisations shifting from ISDN phone services to business VoIP is the requirement to convert their existing phone numbers to be virtually hosted. This is achieved by porting these numbers to a new VoIP provider to ensure they aren’t lost when ISDN services are disconnected.
Delays in porting numbers are already noticeable and substantial, with average porting timeframes doubled in the past 6 months when transferring away from Telstra, and increased over 50% from Optus and other carriers. These delays are impacting all number porting, not just transitions from ISDN, and is only expected to get worse as fixed-line telephony shutdown becomes a reality.
Handling the delays:
- Planning ahead is paramount. With complex number porting often taking as long as three months to finalise, getting ports underway early is the best way to ensure you don’t miss any calls. Over the Wire customers get access to our powerful self-service Customer Portal and easy-to-use number porting tool, and of course our friendly staff are always happy to help simplify the process for you.
- While waiting for number ports to be completed, a redirection to temporary numbers can help to keep services flowing and give you the ability to take advantage of your new VoIP setup sooner. Ask our sales team if you qualify for free temporary numbers to help make your transition to Over the Wire even smoother than ever.
Fibre Service Provisioning
In addition to the delays in number porting, the extra demand for high speed fibre internet and private network services has also caused longer than usual provisioning timeframes for these services. Whether as a necessity due to copper-based connections no longer being serviceable, or businesses taking advantage of great new pricing for additional bandwidth options to support over-the-top voice services, the spike in requests has been noticeable. While typical lead times for fibre services is between 4 – 8 weeks, the current trend is generally between 8 – 14 weeks.
Handling the delays:
- Again, planning ahead is an important factor. If moving office or in the path of a disconnection be sure to have your request in early to stay connected.
- If you’re in a pinch for time, we’ve got your back. Our Private Mobile Data options are a great way to bridge the gap and have you up-and-running fast – just see what Credo Financial had to say when we helped them relocate with just 2 weeks notice!
Be ready for the ISDN shutdown
If you’d like to know more about the ISDN shutdown and how you can make sure your business is prepared, check out or ISDN Shutdown Survival Guide, an ebook designed specifically to help Australian businesses navigate the minefield being caused the Telstra’s ISDN shutdown. Or let us know if you’d like help from one of our sales consultants to guide you through the process.
