Techie & the Biz Podcast: The Latest in Copper Retirement
This is Techie and the Biz, a podcast to explain and simplify how business technology is changing and why it can benefit your organization. We previously spoke about POTS transformation, a phase out of legacy copper wire telephone infrastructure prompted by the FCC. Since then, we’ve seen new mandates issued by the FCC as of July 25. Many enterprise and government customers have taken steps to transform their communication infrastructure in order to stay current.
To update us on these changes, we are excited to welcome two MetTel experts in POTS transformation from our federal team: Don Parente, Vice President of Public Sector Sales and Solutions Architecture, and Sean Sullivan, Vice President of Product and Regulatory Affairs.
Welcome, Don.
“Thank you. Thanks, Max. Thanks, Erica. Good to be here.”
“Thank you. Happy to be here.”
It’s so nice that MetTel has brought your skills and expertise together to help implement and facilitate MetTel’s POTS Transformation as the best solution for POTS replacement. We are excited to hear how you’re doing this and that MetTel can bring together two experts from opposing teams.
“Now we play for Team MetTel, Max.”
“So we do, yeah—we’re on the same team now.”
“I love it.”
Today we want to look back at the past few years in the market and answer some of the most important questions: Is this still an urgent issue? What are the available options for customers? And is there really a time crunch to move off of POTS lines?
Don, to start us off, can you walk us through what you’ve seen on the customer side and specifically large POTS transformation projects that have reshaped infrastructure for some large, notable customers?
“Sure, Max. Happy to share some of my recent experiences in this POTS retirement and transformation space. The federal government, remarkably, still has a lot of embedded POTS lines, and the need to move is really critical. About a year and a half ago, we announced a large project with the United States Postal Service, where we’re moving 17,000 of their offices to our POTS Transformation solution. Separately, we announced a deal with the Department of Veterans Affairs where we’re moving about 15,000 lines across 1,800 locations. The Postal Service project is mostly voice lines serving analog telephones, while the VA project is focused on specialty use cases—fire panels, alarms, fax. Fax is still critical in the healthcare system.”
“It still boggles my mind that fax is used so commonly,” Erica adds.
“I think it’s also important to note,” she continues, “that MetTel was awarded the 2024 Supplier Excellence Award for the successful deployment with the USPS.”
Don replies, “That award was given to us because of the way we executed the program. It wasn’t a sales award—it was a performance award. We rolled out 12,000 locations in the first six months and saved the Postal Service a lot of money.”
Erica adds, “MetTel’s centralized system deployed 5,000 USPS sites in a single month.”
“That’s right,” Don says. “It’s pretty incredible.”
“MetTel also recently secured a $54 million task order for the Department of Veterans Affairs to modernize their telephone infrastructure,” Max adds.
“That’s a very exciting award for MetTel,” Erica notes. “Congratulations.”
Sean responds, “Thank you so much.”
Max turns to Sean: “To give us a wider perspective on the evolution of POTS Transformation since we first introduced it—can you explain the recent changes issued by the FCC and how they affect customers?”
“Absolutely, Max. Great question,” Sean says. “The four FCC orders issued on March 20 really greased the skids for ILECs wanting to retire copper. The first clarified the adequate replacement test, making it easier to get replacement products approved. The second and third waived notice requirements and grandfathering rules, so ILECs can stop offering copper without filing a full discontinuance notice. AT&T, for instance, is grandfathering all copper POTS lines in 18 states—meaning no new orders or adds. They’ve also set a target to be fully off copper by December 2029. The fourth order allows bundled broadband replacements, so carriers can pair replacement products with broadband and move faster.”
Max clarifies, “So if I’m a large retailer opening new stores next month in those states, I can’t order new POTS lines?”
“That’s correct,” Sean confirms. “You’ll need to re-engineer those deployments. You won’t be able to order new copper-based lines for alarms or elevators.”
Don adds, “We’ve deployed our POTS Transformation at many agencies, often stepping in after other providers failed. Alarm panels are finicky, and our product is tailored to handle older models. Some systems are decades old, and we’ve come in and saved the day—plugging into their panels where others couldn’t.”
Max recalls, “That reminds me of the JCPenney deployment years ago. Every store had different alarm panels, which made things complex.”
Don agrees, “Exactly. You need a product that works with all those old low-baud-rate systems, and ours does.”
Sean adds, “POTS lines have been around nearly 150 years. They’re still used for alarms, elevators, fax, and point-of-sale. With the accelerated copper retirement program, customers need providers that can handle all of these at once—voice, alarms, elevators, fax. Our device supports all of it seamlessly, with extended battery backup, dual SIM failover, and 24/7 monitoring. It typically saves 30% or more compared to legacy copper, and both FDNY and the California State Fire Marshal have endorsed our solution for fire safety.”
Don continues, “With traditional copper, you don’t know a line is down until you use it. With our monitored solution, we know instantly. We’ve replaced lines customers didn’t even realize were broken. We’re giving them the POTS reliability they thought they already had—just digitally.”
The hosts laugh as Don and Sean discuss their vintage phone gear: Sean shows his bright orange “butt set,” and Don mentions he still owns a rotary phone.
As the conversation wraps up, Sean summarizes: “MetTel has been recognized by Gartner for multiple years. We’ve deployed more devices than anyone else. Our solution just works.”
Don adds, “And it’s not just the product—it’s our people. We have experts in Salt Lake City and New York who troubleshoot and fix every problem fast. We keep tens of thousands of devices in inventory, ready to ship.”
Max concludes, “So, is there urgency?”
Don answers, “Absolutely. The time to move is now. You don’t want supply chain issues holding up critical migrations.”
The episode ends with a fun game about Virginia trivia—covering slogans, history, and even wild turkeys on Staten Island—before everyone signs off laughing.
Erica closes, “Thank you both for joining us and sharing this update on MetTel’s POTS Transformation. To learn more, visit mettel.net or follow Techie & the Biz on Instagram.”
