How will telcos convert voice-only customers to VOIP?

AT&T's December 2009 proposal to the Federal Communications Commission recommending the phase-out of traditional POTS is very much a "big picture" document that leaves many details to be resolved later.

Although there has been ample coverage of the factors that are driving the company to make this recommendation, few news reports have attempted to identify the details that would need to be resolved if AT&T's ideas were to be accepted. That's something worth exploring, since AT&T's proposal seems to have a lot of support. AT&T suggests that voice service should be delivered in VOIP form over the broadband network it envisions will replace the PSTN. The company already is moving in that direction with its u-Verse offering, which supports voice in VOIP form over a converged platform for customers who also take either data or advanced video service. AT&T's proposal makes just one brief reference to customers who may want only voice service. The company asks the FCC to issue a Notice of Inquiry to address "how to ensure that the phase-out of the PSTN does not leave individuals who do not use computers without service." The company points to the possibility of using inexpensive devices that allow VOIP customers to plug traditional telephones directly into broadband connections. Installing those broadband connections, however, is almost certain to require a truck roll, noted Clif Holliday, president of B&C Consulting -- an industry analyst who has been closely following broadband deployments such as u-Verse. And that could be very costly, Holliday said.